What about Fear?
Joshua: Pass Over and Possess • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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And the whole congregation of the children of Israel assembled together at Shiloh, and set up the tabernacle of the congregation there. And the land was subdued before them. And there remained among the children of Israel seven tribes, which had not yet received their inheritance.
And Joshua said unto the children of Israel, How long are ye slack to go to possess the land, which the Lord God of your fathers hath given you? Give out from among you three men for each tribe: and I will send them, and they shall rise, and go through the land, and describe it according to the inheritance of them; and they shall come again to me.
And they shall divide it into seven parts: Judah shall abide in their coast on the south, and the house of Joseph shall abide in their coasts on the north. Ye shall therefore describe the land into seven parts, and bring the description hither to me, that I may cast lots for you here before the Lord our God.
But the Levites have no part among you; for the priesthood of the Lord is their inheritance: and Gad, and Reuben, and half the tribe of Manasseh, have received their inheritance beyond Jordan on the east, which Moses the servant of the Lord gave them. And the men arose, and went away: and Joshua charged them that went to describe the land, saying, Go and walk through the land, and describe it, and come again to me, that I may here cast lots for you before the Lord in Shiloh.
And the men went and passed through the land, and described it by cities into seven parts in a book, and came again to Joshua to the host at Shiloh. And Joshua cast lots for them in Shiloh before the Lord: and there Joshua divided the land unto the children of Israel according to their divisions.
Introduction
Introduction
In our passage this morning, Joshua is careful to address something that affects all of us, fear. The task of taking possession of the land was a large one that will take time. Will God still be there for them in the days ahead?
We need to be looking throughout the book for our theme for 2025. The central focus of the book of Joshua is that God wants us to move forward and take ahold of the blessings of our salvation.
Pass through the host, and command the people, saying, Prepare you victuals; for within three days ye shall pass over this Jordan, to go in to possess the land, which the Lord your God giveth you to possess it.
As we saw in our study of Ephesians, God has blessed us with spiritual blessings. All the saved have access to these blessings. Do we share them with the lost? Do we live them faithfully in our lives? Do we thank God for them daily? The book of Joshua leads us along the path of living the victorious Christian life. All we need to live victoriously, we already have in Christ. We must just cross over the river of fear and take ownership of the land of Promise!
One of the challenges of living the Christian life is the amount of faith that is involved. Many have rejected religion for this very reason. Think about the many things that you take as true on faith.
God created the world
There was a world-wide Flood as a punishment for sin
Jesus was a historical Person who died for your sins
Jesus rose again and one day will return
Of course, we know that these truths are found in the Bible. However, we believe the Bible on faith. We have never seen these things with our own eyes. We choose to believe what the Bible says about them.
Fear is the opposite of Faith. Fear is looking at things with our eyes and seeing no way forward. Fear causes us to be unable to move or act. Sometimes Fear can cause us to defend ourselves but often we choose to run away from the challenge.
In his book The Sharp End: The Fighting Man in World War II, John Ellis summarizes a study conducted among the soldiers on the front lines of the war. Being in combat could have different impacts on different people. However, one of the most universal was fear.
In the study conducted, he mentions how many of the respondents felt that prayer helped them when they were afraid. Fighting the Japanese, seventy percent said that prayer very much helped them. Fighting in Europe, the number was even greater at eighty-three percent. The fear of the battlefield was real but it drove them to the One who controls all things.
How often in times of fear do people call out to God!
What can cause fear in our own lives? It might be what another person would think of us. It might be a concern about what the next conversation that we have with someone will be like. It could be whether we will lose our job or have financial trouble. Whatever our fears in life, God wants us to realize a truth this morning that ought to bring us to greater faith in Him.
Declaration
Declaration
Sometimes fear is the greatest challenge we must overcome to participate in God's work. Fear can become laziness in our lives when we take the easiest route instead. Today, God has the same solution for fear that He had then, His Presence in their midst.
1. Victory Had Already Been Won
1. Victory Had Already Been Won
And the whole congregation of the children of Israel assembled together at Shiloh, and set up the tabernacle of the congregation there. And the land was subdued before them. And there remained among the children of Israel seven tribes, which had not yet received their inheritance.
Chapters 13-17 of Joshua have given us the boundaries of the tribes of Reuben, Gad, Manasseh, Ephraim, and Judah. Some on the western side of the Jordan River and others on the eastern side. God has been using the method of casting lots to select them at Gilgal.
In chapter 18, we see that the scenery changes. Gilgal was a place of stones that had been setup near the ruins of Jericho after being taken out of the Jordan River. This was a camp. The tents were now no longer needed because the cities and towns were ready to be inhabited in Canaan.
So, in verse 1, we see that all of the people gather together to a new location, Shiloh. More central to Canaan, this place is situated in the newly inherited area of Ephraim. Shiloh will remain the location of the worship of Israel up until closer to the time of Saul. It then seems to have moved to an area called Nob.
The land of Canaan is again described in verse 1 as “subdued”. This was a description that was used in the command of God to Adam and Eve in the Garden. Here, we see that God has accomplished the victory for the people in the battles that we have seen in Joshua.
The same is true for all people today. The victory is won over sin and death. Jesus has accomplished all of this on the cross and through the empty tomb.
The conflict that we all have in our lives is against the evil influence of sin. Every person that has ever lived has been born in sin. Our choices are bent toward sin because of our nature.
Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
We have a problem that cannot be solved on our own. We can try to do good works. We can try to keep the commands of the Law. No matter what we do to try to earn salvation, our wages instead go toward death.
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Death is eternal separation from God. We are not able to do anything to change that other than trust in the finished work of Jesus for us. Jesus died for you and for me. He alone was the perfect sacrifice needed to satisfy the demands of God’s Justice.
For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.
Jesus offers that victory to us today through faith in Him. If we put our trust in what He has done alone for our eternity, we can have a part of this victory. As one song says, “Faith is the Victory that overcomes the world.”
For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.
And so we see, that the victory has been won for us even as it was for the children of Israel. There was an opportunity for their faith. They could go on with living in the blessings that God had won for them. However, the victory was not lived out in faith.
2. But Fear Caused Delay
2. But Fear Caused Delay
And Joshua said unto the children of Israel, How long are ye slack to go to possess the land, which the Lord God of your fathers hath given you? Give out from among you three men for each tribe: and I will send them, and they shall rise, and go through the land, and describe it according to the inheritance of them; and they shall come again to me. And they shall divide it into seven parts: Judah shall abide in their coast on the south, and the house of Joseph shall abide in their coasts on the north. Ye shall therefore describe the land into seven parts, and bring the description hither to me, that I may cast lots for you here before the Lord our God.
In verses 3-6, what is the exhortation of Joshua to the people gathered? Joshua was a man who had lived his life in faith in the power of God and he had seen God come through in the challenges that the people faced in the land of Canaan.
The question of Joshua in verse 3 gives us a glimpse into the tenor of this meeting. He asks them, “how long are ye slack”? How long are you going to allow something to hold you back from the task? Something was causing them to respond differently than expected.
The word “slack” gives the idea of faltering, fainting, or laziness due to hardship. One dictionary defines its use here as “to delay - to take longer to do something than planned, scheduled, or required”. (LXHOTLEX) We see the Hebrew used in Proverbs several times,
He also that is slothful in his work Is brother to him that is a great waster.
If thou faint in the day of adversity, Thy strength is small.
What the people were being questioned about was fear. Fear caused them to be slow to ask for the land that they had been promised. Truly, the question was not just to the remaining seven tribes. It was also to the tribes who had already received their land but were gathered at Shiloh.
The question is the same for us today. How long will we remain in fear of what we need to do. The people were not as much afraid of doing something in a group. They had been quick to respond in the first 12 chapters to fight the battles that the Lord had brought them to.
The people were afraid of doing battle in their own lives and properties. Am I afraid of getting rid of things in my life that keep me from being all that God wants me to be? Are you afraid of adding habits and choices that will move you forward in your Christian life? Do we live content in our lives because at some point in the past we were afraid?
Behold, the Lord thy God hath set the land before thee: go up and possess it, as the Lord God of thy fathers hath said unto thee; fear not, neither be discouraged.
Fear and discouragement become laziness. We decide to live in a portion of the land that we have been given. We clutter our lives with meaningless activities and objects that hide the enemy from our eyes. We turn on the radio and television to mask the fear that we have of doing what the Holy Spirit has told us to do.
There ought to have been faith in the hearts of these people. They had seen the wonders of victory won. Yet, they allowed fear to paralyze them and keep them back from what was theirs. In verses 4-6, Joshua sends out the men to write down the areas left so that the people can take up their inheritance. Fear keeps us back from our blessings.
3. Where Tasks Were Required
3. Where Tasks Were Required
Josh 18:7-19:48
The rest of chapter 18 and most of chapter 19 are lists of the land that made up each of the parts that were surveyed by the twenty one men sent by Joshua. Each of the remaining seven tribes would receive one of these areas. To ensure that God was the One who chose which one, the lots were again used.
The lot is cast into the lap; But the whole disposing thereof is of the Lord.
Show Southern Map
Benjamin 11-28
Benjamin 11-28
Benjamin inherited a portion that was in between the area of Ephraim and Judah. One of the most important cities on the border of this area was the city of Jerusalem. Together with Judah, the people of Benjamin were going to be at the center of some of the most important events in the books ahead.
There were other cities in this area that become significant, Jericho, Bethel, Gibeon, Ramah, and Mizpeh. But no matter how great were the cities they had the charge of, they still required faith to take them for their blessings. Fear could keep them back. Faith could move them forward.
Simeon 19:1-9
Simeon 19:1-9
Simeon’s area of inheritance was different from any other tribe. Jacob had prophesied on his death bed that both Simeon and Levi would be divided in the land of Canaan due to their anger and violence. Levi would have no geographical inheritance except scattered cities throughout the land. Simeon fulfills this prophecy by inheriting land inside of Judah.
The cities of Hormah and Ziklag are significant in this area. Ziklag will be given by the Philistines to David to live in when he flees Saul. Simeon loses their distinctiveness to the men of Judah in the years ahead.
Show Northern Map
Zebulun 19:10-16
Zebulun 19:10-16
The next several tribes inherit land north of Ephraim and Manasseh. God is giving them land that will be fruitful through the rivers and rainfall.
Issachar 19:17-23
Issachar 19:17-23
Issachar, Zebulun, and Asher all have portions of the Jezreel Valley and surrounding area that they inherit. This area is the site of several major battles in the time of the judges. Issachar inherits the city of Jezreel itself.
Asher 19:24-31
Asher 19:24-31
Asher is given a challenging area that includes the cities of Carmel, Hebron, and the area leading up to Tyre and Sidon, the two major Phoenician cities.
Naphtali 19:32-39
Naphtali 19:32-39
Nazareth, not mentioned here, is part of this inheritance. Naphtali, lying in the most northern area, will one day be called Galilee.
Dan 19:40-48
Dan 19:40-48
The last of the tribes here to be given a portion is Dan. The writer of Joshua gives us a note here that the Danites feel that their area is too small and in the time of Judges, they will go north to find another area.
These seven tribes, like the other five before them, have tasks to do. We also have tasks that fear will keep us from. It takes endurance in faith to carry out the faithful warfare God calls for against the sin in our hearts.
Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.
4. God’s Presence Lies in the Midst
4. God’s Presence Lies in the Midst
When they had made an end of dividing the land for inheritance by their coasts, the children of Israel gave an inheritance to Joshua the son of Nun among them: According to the word of the Lord they gave him the city which he asked, even Timnath-serah in mount Ephraim: and he built the city, and dwelt therein. These are the inheritances, which Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun, and the heads of the fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel, divided for an inheritance by lot in Shiloh before the Lord, at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. So they made an end of dividing the country.
How can the people get beyond their fear and instead live a life of faith? How will the generation after Joshua choose faith? The answer to these questions is worship and the Fear of God. The phrase “tabernacle of the congregation” is only found here in the book of Joshua in verse 18:1 and 19:51. The Presence of God bookends this passage. Moses had told the people,
Then there shall be a place which the Lord your God shall choose to cause his name to dwell there; thither shall ye bring all that I command you; your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, your tithes, and the heave offering of your hand, and all your choice vows which ye vow unto the Lord:
The place at Shiloh was this place. Here, every year, the three festivals were observed. The Feast of Tabernacles, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, and the Feast of First Fruits were times that the people of the nation were to gather together and worship God. The firstborn males would give a tax to the Tabernacle showing that the Levites had been chosen in their stead to serve the Lord. The people would offer sacrifices for a covering for their sins. God was to be worshiped here where His name was established for here was the visible manifestation of His promise to be with His people.
The worship of God in His presence is the antidote to the poison of fear in our lives. The Fear of the Lord is the attitude of this worship. When we realize who God is, what really matters in life, how we can serve Him in the midst of many other vain things,
Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.
Jay Adams says it this way in one of his books on Biblical Counseling,
Many counselees are fearful, often about matters that, had they been handled God’s way, they need not be.
The fear of man bringeth a snare: But whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe.
Trust in the Lord was the opposite of this fear of man. The location of drawing these lots in Joshua 18-19 was important. It was before the door of the tabernacle. There the Presence of God could be seen and there they could be reminded of God’s power and protection of them. This was where Joshua had spent much time in the wilderness wandering. This was where they could see the cloud that had led them. This was where every sacrifice pointed to the coming death of Jesus for sins on the cross to win the ultimate victory.
Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on thee: Because he trusteth in thee.
All of us have fears in our lives, if we honestly look at our hearts. Fear is the opposite of faith. The solution to our fear is to look to the Presence of God at the center of our lives. Where are you looking today in your fear?
Conclusion
Conclusion
Sometimes fear is the greatest challenge we must overcome to participate in God's work. Fear can become laziness in our lives when we take the easiest route instead. Today, God has the same solution for fear that He had then, His Presence in their midst.
The Presence of God ought to have been a comfort and a guide to Israel. Instead, it was neglected then as it is today. God ultimately judged Shiloh for their sin.
But go ye now unto my place which was in Shiloh, where I set my name at the first, and see what I did to it for the wickedness of my people Israel.
What affect does God’s Presence have on your life? Jesus promised us that He would never leave us. God the Holy Spirit lives in our hearts if we are saved. And yet, we still live in fear because we don’t allow our faith to grow.
Will you choose faith over fear today? Faith begins with the finished work of Jesus on the cross. It continues through sanctification, growing to be more like Jesus on a daily basis. One day, our faith will end in sight as we see Jesus Himself and live forever with Him in a new, perfect body. Faith must be a part of every day of our Christian lives, no matter what might come our way.
When the disciples were with Jesus in the storm, they were afraid for their lives. The waves crashed around them. Jesus was asleep in the front of the boat. There seemed to be no way that God was aware of their situation or in control of the world. Yet, we see the reply of Jesus to their cries in Mark 4. He points out that the enemy of faith is fear.
Mark 4:39–40 (KJV 1900)
And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith?
Instead of fear of the storms of life, whether they blow up without warning or they are seen afar off, live a life of faith in God and worship in His Presence in your life. The disciples continued to be very afraid, but now their fear was a healthy fear of God,
Mark 4:41 (KJV 1900)
And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?
