Maintaining A Life Of Victory

We are wrapping up our study of Joshua today, and we will finish kinda where we started, remembering that Joshua is a book about victory! It’s a book about Jesus! Now when Jesus came to this earth, He came not only to give you life, but He came to give you abundant life. There are many people who have eternal life, but they don’t have abundant life; they’re not living in victory. And some who are living now in victory may not be living in victory next week. (think about this- about 1500 people came to church Sunday, that don’t usually go, or never go, so why would they come at all? Maybe they are saved? Maybe not? But what does that say? Are they living an abundant Christian life? or is it on life support?

Now the passage that I’m about to read to you is after the children of Israel had come into the land of Canaan. Now the land of Canaan is that land which flows with milk and honey, and it was a natural, historical thing. Remember, God could have given them this land in any number of ways. He could have just blew the Canaanites into the sea. But everything he did, he is painting us a picture, He is teaching Israel a lesson, it’s all for a purpose.

in Bible typology, as an illustration, it represents the Spirit-filled victorious life. Those of us who’ve been saved, we’ve come out of the darkness of Egypt, through the wilderness, into the fullness of Canaan, a land of milk and honey, a land of fullness, of mountains and valleys and hills. Now Joshua had led the children of Israel into Canaan, and now he’s coming to the end of his ministry with them. He’s about to die, and he’s a wily old warrior. And so he’s giving his farewell address, and in his farewell address he is telling them not only how to possess their possessions, but how to preserve their possessions; not only how to claim their Canaan, but how to keep their Canaan.

Now if you want to stay strong spiritually, I want you to listen to what Joshua had to say to them. I begin reading Joshua 24 and verse 14:

Joshua 24:14–15 (NKJV)

“Now therefore, fear the Lord, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the Lord! And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

And then, skip on down to verse 20 and see the warning:

Joshua 24:20 (NKJV)

If you forsake the Lord and serve foreign gods, then He will turn and do you harm and consume you, after He has done you good.”

God will do his part, but we have to do our part! Just because you’ve been blessed, that doesn’t mean you’re always going to be blessed. Just because you’re living in the land of milk and honey, that doesn’t mean you’re always going to be living there.

Now in this scripture that I read to you, there are three commands and one warning.

I. Don’t Lose the Wonder

First of all, I want us to look at the first command, and it is this—look, if you will, in verse 14: “Now therefore fear the LORD”— “fear the LORD.” (Joshua 24:14)

Do you know that sometimes, never any of us, but sometimes believers can lose the wonder, and grow stale and get kind of crusty. I know you can’t believe that! Close your eyes for a minute, I want you to think back to when you first came to Christ. Maybe it was a very emotional moment. If it was real, then you will probably remember having a sense of awe, wonder. Have you lost that? I know emotions pass, and I think a marriage could be a good example. A couple loses the honeymoon stage, but the love grows deeper, and more stable. if you would keep your spiritual health, don’t lose the wonder—don’t lose the wonder. What do I mean by that? I mean we need to stand in awe and reverence and amazement always before God. Never let it get old. Never become a casual Christian. “Fear the LORD.” (Joshua 24:14) You say, “Now, wait a minute, I thought that we had a faith that was built on love and not fear.”

Do you like scary movies? Why do people go to these? It’s a fear, but they enjoy the rush of adrenaline from being scared. Why do people skydive? or bungy jump? There was a show called Fear Factor- people would do all sorts of things, like taking a bath in a tub full of spiders or snakes, or eating something awful. That’s not the fear this word means, it’s not being afraid.

It’s a healthy fear, a respectful reverence. Not everyone had this experience, but many of us loved our Father but also feared him. (no time for sargents- did your father beat you?! yeah boy! ain’t nobody who can give a good beatin like my daddy) Now that can definitely be abused and taken too far, where there is no love but only fear.

But in this case, there’s no contradiction between love and fear. He who fears God the most loves Him the best. the fear of the Lord is love on its knees.

Let me give you some verses.

Psalm 25:14 (NKJV)

The secret of the Lord is with those who fear Him, And He will show them His covenant.

Would you like to be one of God’s insiders? Does God have favorites? No, but He has intimates. Would you like for God to be whispering secrets into your ear? Well, “the secret of the LORD is with them that fear him.”

Listen to Psalm 31 and verse 19:

Psalm 31:19 NKJV

Oh, how great is Your goodness, Which You have laid up for those who fear You, Which You have prepared for those who trust in You In the presence of the sons of men!

Do you want some of that great goodness? Do you want what God has got laid up there in the treasure houses of heaven?

Psalm 33:18 NKJV

Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him, On those who hope in His mercy,

Do you want God’s eye to watch over you? Then, fear the Lord.

Psalm 147:11 NKJV

The Lord takes pleasure in those who fear Him, In those who hope in His mercy.

Would you like to please God? Then fear Him—fear Him. That’s what Joshua said to these people. He didn’t want them to be cast out of Canaan, so he said, “Fear the LORD.” we don’t see much fear of God anymore.

Now, what do we mean when we say, “Fear the LORD”?

A. The fear of the Lord is not a superstitious fear.

Well, we’re not talking about superstitious fear. “God hath not given us the spirit of fear.” (2 Timothy 1:7)

B. The fear of the Lord is not a slavish fear.

And not a slavish fear. True we are his servants, but we don’t avoid his presence, we crave it. That doesn’t mean you’re to quake and tremble when you think of God. I fear God, but I’m very comfortable, at peace, in His presence.

C. The fear of the Lord is a satisfied fear.

What are we talking about when we say, “Fear the LORD”? (Joshua 24:14) We’re talking about a satisfied fear. It is the awe, the reverence, the amazement, as we stand in His presence Or it’s not the fear of the Lord that says, “If I don’t do right, He’s going to get me.” That’s not the fear I’m talking about. You know the difference between a slave and a son? A slave fears his master’s whip; a son fears his father’s displeasure. And a true Christian, it’s not because he’s afraid God’s going to get him if he doesn’t behave; he just loves God; he stays in the presence of God. There is that awesome reverence for God.

Let me illustrate the difference between these two kinds of fear. Turn to Mark chapter 4 for a moment, and you’re going to find there the story of Jesus performing a miracle where Jesus stilled the waves.

Mark 4:37–41 NKJV

And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?” Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. But He said to them, “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?” And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, “Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!”

Now, friend, there are two fears right there back to back: one, a bad fear; the other, a good fear. First they were afraid of the weather, Then they were afraid of the one who controlled the weather!

We have so many fear! But really there are only 2 things to fear!! (I heard a comedian say- you really only have 2 things to worry about: healthy or sick get better or get worse gonna live or gonna die heaven or hell original or extra crispy?

And so what Joshua is telling these people is just simply this: “Just fear God. Don’t lose the wonder.”

II. Don’t Lack in Worship

And so Joshua is saying to these folks, “Hey, don’t take this for granted. Don’t settle down. Stand in awe—stand in awe before your great God.” That’s the first thing: don’t lose the wonder. Then, here’s a second command. He says, “Serve him in sincerity and truth.” (Joshua 24:14)

First, fear Him. And then, serve Him. “Don’t lack in worship. Now the word serve here literally means “to pay homage.” It doesn’t mean just to run around doing tasks: that isn’t what he means. when we hear servant- we immediately think of a maid or a butler, running around If that’s all He wanted, He could get angels who’d do a better job than we do. But the word here means “to worship, to bow down before, to pay homage to our Lord.” if you would keep your possessions, if you would preserve your spiritual health, here’s what you’re to do: You’re to worship Him. What kind of worship?

A. We must have a sincere worship.

First of all, your worship is to be a sincere worship. Look at it: “Serve him in sincerity.” (Joshua 24:14) Now the word sincere here is the word that was used of animals that were perfect and whole, without blemish; and so the word came to mean “complete.” And what Joshua is saying here when he says, “Serve the Lord in sincerity,” he is saying worship Him with all that you have; let it be a sincere worship. I don’t think there’s anything more insulting to God than half-hearted worship— when we’re to be worshipping the Lord or to be singing a hymn and your mind is off somewhere else, we’ve all been guilty of that.

Again, this word sincerity means “wholeness, without blemish.” “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy”—which is the New Testament counterpart of this word sincere: completely, without blemish, totally—“[to the Lord].” (Romans 12:1) Have you done that? Have you done that? Have you given Jesus Christ everything? Have you just simply said to the Lord, “Lord, I worship you in sincerity, with all there is of me”?

B. We must have a scriptural worship.

Now if you want to keep your spiritual health, let it be a sincere worship. And, secondly, let it be a scriptural worship. Look again to what Joshua said: “Serve him in sincerity and in…”—what?—“and in truth”—“and in truth.” (Joshua 24:14) All the sincerity in the world is no good unless you link that sincerity with truth.

Jesus said we’re to “worship…in spirit and in truth.” (John 4:24) If you worship in spirit and not in truth, you know what you’ll become? A fanatic- purely emotional, not grounded in truth. You worship in truth and not in spirit, and you ’re going to become a legalist. You worship in spirit and in truth, and you’re going to become a powerful Christian.

Now here’s what Joshua said to these people: “You want to stay spiritually healthy? You want to keep the Canaan that you’ve claimed?” He is saying, “Worship the Lord sincerely, in sincerity, and worship Him scripturally: in truth.” (Joshua 24:14) Don’t, lack in worship. You will not stay spiritually strong if you fail to worship.

Do you know there are Christians who seem to think worship is optional. I’ve known men especially, that think worship is only singing, and singing isn’t a masculine thing to do, that’s for women. Worship is more than just our songs, worship really is our life! Our actions, our attitudes, it’s all our worship.

C. We must have a steadfast worship.

Not only should it be a sincere worship, and a scriptural worship; it needs to be a steadfast worship. Notice what Joshua said in verse 15:

Joshua 24:15 NKJV

And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

It can’t be on and off. Things are good, i’m on. Things are bad, i’m off.

Worship during hard times is not easy. Joshua knew they were going to have lots of ups and downs. He’s pleading with them to be steadfast in worship, as God was steadfast in love and faithfulness.

III. Don’t Lighten the Warfare

Now here’s the third command. The third command is “put away”; look at it here: “Put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt.” (Joshua 24:14) Now this is a negative command, “to put away,” Don’t stop fighting! Get rid of that junk because you are still in a fight!

You see, they had been out of Egypt now for over forty years, and the gods of Egypt, they thought they’d left behind them. But now he’s saying to these folks who are already into Canaan— I mean, a whole generation has died in the wilderness, and these are new people; and yet, he is warning them, “You have come out of Egypt, but there are residues of Egypt still in you. Put away those gods of Egypt. The weeds of that old life can sprout again, and those smothered flames that are in your heart can burst up and consume your life. Did you ever put out a fire, but it wasn’t out and came back to life?! (started a fire near our house, put it out, but it caught fire again, and burned the whole field, we were scared to death!) And that enemy that you thought was subdued and down in the dust can rise up and bite you.” The Bible says, “Let him that thinks he stands, take heed lest he falls.” (1 Corinthians 10:12)

Now what he’s talking about is old idols. You say, “We Americans don’t have idols.” Do you know what an idol is? An idol is anything you love more than God,

Now do Americans have idols? anything you fear more than God, and anything you serve more than God. Anything you trust more than God is a god to you; it is an idol. And there are things that you may have conquered before you were saved and things that you put away, and now those things can gradually creep back into your life.

But I tell you I’m still fighting the gods of Egypt. Are you? I still find in my heart and in my life those old weeds that want to sprout again, those old flames that want to burst up again, those old enemies. The devil never gives up anybody or anything without some kind of a fight.

And what Joshua said is, “Put away these gods.” And then he says in verse 15: “Choose this day who you will serve.” (Joshua 24:15) Now, look at the word choose. The word choose means “to take a hard look.” It actually has the idea of discrimination: you look at all the gods and say which one is going to be your god.

choose. never, never, never lay down your sword; never begin to coast; never think that you’re out of the battle. You’re not out of the battle.

And how are you to put away these old gods?

A. We must put idols away forcefully.

Well, first of all, you put them away forcefully. Listen to what he says. He says, “Put them away!” That doesn’t mean, “Oh, I wish I were a better Christian. O God, help me with this bad habit I have.” “I put that thing away.” You make a choice. The choice is yours. Do it forcefully. (I remember a boy who got saved in my youth group and he had a big hangup with music, really bad music, and he got saved but couldn’t let go of that music, he invited me over- look!- it was all in a big trashcan burned!)

B. We must put idols away fully.

And do it fully, or you’re going to lose your spiritual health. You say, “Well, I’ve got a little tuberculosis in me: I’ll live with it.” Well, listen, friend: You do it fully.

IV. Do Not Depend on Your Own Strength

Then, one last thing: he gives them a warning. Now when the people hear what Joshua says, he must have thought they gave a blah answer. Look in verse 16:

Joshua 24:16–17 (NKJV)

So the people answered and said: “Far be it from us that we should forsake the Lord to serve other gods; for the Lord our God is He who brought us and our fathers up out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, who did those great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way that we went and among all the people through whom we passed.

And they recite what God had done for them, and they must have said it in a flippant way, like yeah “we can handle this, we got this” But see what Joshua says to this bunch in verse 19:

Joshua 24:19 (NKJV)

But Joshua said to the people, “You cannot serve the Lord, for He is a holy God. He is a jealous God; He will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins.

“Now, wait a minute, Joshua. Make up your mind. You said, ‘Serve…the LORD,’ and then we said we would serve the Lord. Now you’re telling us we can’t serve the Lord? What kind of a leader is that?” Joshua was giving them a warning and really trying to get their attention and make sure you are speaking from your heart and not just telling me what I want to hear! In other words- don’t just say it! mean it! Do not do not—depend on your own strength, or you’re going out of Canaan. He wasn’t saying it couldn’t be done. He’s just saying, “You can’t do it. You don’t have what it takes. You think in your power and your strength you’re going to serve this God? Why, He’s a holy God. He hates sin, and He’s a jealous God.”

And Joshua is saying to this bunch, “Don’t you make a commitment easily uttered and soon forgotten. God does business with those who mean business.” And the people answered now this time differently and soberly—verse 21:

Joshua 24:21–22 (NKJV)

And the people said to Joshua, “No, but we will serve the Lord!” So Joshua said to the people, “You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen the Lord for yourselves, to serve Him.” And they said, “We are witnesses!”

He was trying to give them a pep talk before he died! He was getting in their face, challenging them. So, think about your life for a minute. Just like God had a plan for Israel, he has a plan for you. He’s brought you out of death and slavery, out of your Egypt. He’s brought you into your Godly possessions. He wants you to experience those promises. So don’t grow stale and crusty in your faith, don’t lose the wonder.

Don’t fail to worship him. Don’t stop fighting! Keep your eyes on him, trust him, be obedient.

And walk in victory!