1-25-26 Character Study: Joshua

Good evening and thank you for the opportunity to share with you tonight.

I have really enjoyed these character studies.

I get to dive into an individuals life and see how God moved in their life.

This isn’t just a straight biography of someone who happens to be in the Bible, but a study of someone who interacts with God. We aren’t just studying someone’s character, but engaging with God.

I selected Joshua tonight for a few reason’s

I’m gearing up to find Jesus in the book of Joshua in the Morning services. That will be an extreme focus on Jesus in the book and this is an opportunity to meet Joshua prior to that study.

Also, some pretty neat stuff happened to Joshua, so let’s check him out.

I’m going to start with Joshua’s name.

It’s a pretty cool name that most of us actually say in some way each and every day.

Some of us have a friend named Josh or a brother, but what does the name mean?

יְהוֹשׁוּעַ

Here it is in the Hebrew. His name means salvation, or The Lord is my Salvation.

In Hebrew they may have said Yeshua, which translates pretty easy to Joshua.

Yeshua, Joshua, makes sense.

That’s direct Hebrew to English,.

But it’s not the only way to change his name.

If we take the Hebrew and turn it to Greek

YEHSHUA

We drop the ‘a’ because there is not equivalent from Hebrew to Greek

YEHSU

Then we drop the H off the SH because there is still no Greek equivalent and throw in an O for some reason

YEHSOU

Then we go really crazy and take the YEH and change it to the Greek equivalent IE

IESOU

Because this is now a Greek name we gotta add an S at the end, don’t ask me why. It’s all Greek to me

IESOUS

Here we have it in Greek, but let’s take it one or two steps forward to English.

First we take the O out, don’t know why it was there in the first place and neither did King James

IESUS

And back around the 14th century the letter J was added to the English alphabet and many, but not all I’s were changed to J’s

JESUS

That’s a process called transliteration. Many of our names have gone through that over the millennia as did Jesus’ and Yeshua or Joshua son of Nun.

Joshua was one of the tribe of Ephraim and took over Moses duties after Moses passed away.

One of Joshua’s first big appearances is in Numbers 13. Here we have Moses sending 12 spies into Canaan to scout it out for them, so that they will know what they are up against.

Numbers 13:8 ESV

8 from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea the son of Nun;

You’ll notice a difference here in the name

Numbers 13:16 ESV

16 These were the names of the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Hoshea the son of Nun Joshua.

Hoshea simple means help or to save. Joshua means the Lord saves. Sometimes a small name change can make a big difference, just ask Simon Peter.

But Joshua was one of the 12 that went in to spy out Canaan

The 12 came back with a favorable report, kind of

Numbers 13:25–29 ESV

25 At the end of forty days they returned from spying out the land. 26 And they came to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation of the people of Israel in the wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh. They brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 And they told him, “We came to the land to which you sent us. It flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. 28 However, the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large. And besides, we saw the descendants of Anak there. 29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the Negeb. The Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the hill country. And the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and along the Jordan.”

It’s great, but our God is not strong enough to get us through, is what they were saying, but not all of them

Numbers 14:6–9 ESV

6 And Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes 7 and said to all the congregation of the people of Israel, “The land, which we passed through to spy it out, is an exceedingly good land. 8 If the Lord delights in us, he will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land that flows with milk and honey. 9 Only do not rebel against the Lord. And do not fear the people of the land, for they are bread for us. Their protection is removed from them, and the Lord is with us; do not fear them.”

Joshua and Caleb, 2 of the 12 said, God is strong enough, let’s go.

Long story short, the 10 won and Israel was stuck in the wilderness for 40 years.

This is a great Character trait for Joshua.

His name was Hoshea, but Moses changed it to Joshua. Maybe it was a mistake, the names are very close in spelling and pronunciation, but Joshua means God Saves. Not me or you, or Moses. GOd saves.

Hoshea = Savior

I think the character of the ten were set on how strong they were and their ability to defeat the people in Canaan. They weren’t. But that’s often the point with God in the picture.

God often puts us in impossible situations to show us that we can’t save ourselves, but he does.

So, perhaps Hoshea went into Canaan to see what he could do to save Israel, but Joshua came out knowing that only God could save them.

I don’t know how often you faced the impossible and gave up because you couldn’t handle it. I’ve done it. But can you imagine what that situation would have been like had you said, “God, this is impossible for me, please help.”?

If the other 10 had the faith of character that Joshua and Caleb had, Israel may have had a different history.

But as many of us know, God uses even our bad decisions for his glory. Israel stayed in the wilderness for 40 years because of their disobedience. And shortly after Moses died, Joshua took charge and they crossed the Jordan River and were given VERY specific instructions on their first Conquest: Jericho

Joshua 6 tells of the fall of Jericho and the instructions to the people on how to defeat Jericho.

Now, if I said, tomorrow. I want you to take out your crockpot in the morning, turn it to high, but don’t plug it in, and put a raw pork loin on top but not in the pot. Then I say go to Klamath Falls for the day and when you get home, dinner will be ready. You would all think me insane.

That’s impossible.

That is not how cooking works.

But this is what Joshua is told. Walk around Jericho once a day every day for 6 days and 7 times on the 7th day.

When all that is done, give a great shout and Jericho is yours.

This is not how conquests work. It is impossible to tear down a city wall by walking around and yelling.

Joshua 6:15–20 ESV

15 On the seventh day they rose early, at the dawn of day, and marched around the city in the same manner seven times. It was only on that day that they marched around the city seven times. 16 And at the seventh time, when the priests had blown the trumpets, Joshua said to the people, “Shout, for the Lord has given you the city. 17 And the city and all that is within it shall be devoted to the Lord for destruction. Only Rahab the prostitute and all who are with her in her house shall live, because she hid the messengers whom we sent. 18 But you, keep yourselves from the things devoted to destruction, lest when you have devoted them you take any of the devoted things and make the camp of Israel a thing for destruction and bring trouble upon it. 19 But all silver and gold, and every vessel of bronze and iron, are holy to the Lord; they shall go into the treasury of the Lord.” 20 So the people shouted, and the trumpets were blown. As soon as the people heard the sound of the trumpet, the people shouted a great shout, and the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they captured the city.

Believing God to do the impossible and seeing him do the impossible are two different things.

40 Years earlier Joshua believed God would save them. He knew it, but he didn’t get to experience it in that way at that time.

At Jericho Joshua saw God save them.

can you imagine that faith?

Walk around the city once a day, every day for 6 days and 7 on the seventh day.

If I was given those marching orders, you know I’d be watching for cracks in the wall every day. Or angels to show up, something. But they got nothing for 7 days.

No sign that what they were doing was working or not.

I’ve heard people say the reason they don’t try something is because, I quote, “We tried that once 30 years ago, it didn’t work.”

I’ve given up early my share of times. But here is what we should all know. God saves us. And it won’t often be in the way we expect it.

I know I’ve asked God for help many times in my life. And then I brainstorm how God is going to pull it off. You know how often God surprises me with how he answers my prayers? Every single time.

Joshua had all the information. Walk around and the walls will fall. But I can imagine Joshua looking for those cracks in the wall, or angels, or a neighboring army coming to help.

How great must have been Joshua’s faith.

I cannot promise that God will deliver on everything you ask, but when you ask him for help, he will, but don’t demand it on your terms. Let him surprise you.

So, Joshua took Israel into Canaan and they took the land.

Near the end of his time, Joshua made a speech in Joshua 24 that is as true for us today as it was then. And it tells us of his love and devotion to God.

Joshua 24:14–15 ESV

14 “Now therefore fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. 15 And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond 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.”

Where ever you are at in your life, God is with you. We don’t have to understand every bit of what he has said, much of it will come with time, some won’t come til we meet him in glory.

But we too can be devoted to God like Joshua. As for me and my house, we can choose to let him save us. We can choose to stop relying on our own strength and understanding and give it over to him.

I know that when I fight for control over my life things end up going down hill. But when I follow Jesus. Nothing gets in my way.

Going all the way back to Joshua chapter 1, God tells Joshua something that is perfect for every human being on the planet.

Joshua 1:5 ESV

5 No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you.

When God is with us, then nothing can stand against us.

Joshua loved and followed the Lord all his days. I won’t say everyday was perfect or free of trials. But the Lord was with him and led him through.

That promise is true for us as well. We can call for help and he will be there. We too can say.

As for me and my house we will serve the LORD.

Let’s Pray