Be Strong and Courageous
Children are anxious to grow up. They want to be big and they want to be strong. It's really fascinating. And interesting. When especially young children are trying to show you how strong they are there, muscles or what they can take care of your kids for that or whatever. When I was about 4, he came into the house and the mouse.
Now my brother had a very vivid imagination. He had three what he called, invisible dogs become visible dogs, they were invisible dogs with all kinds of trouble but the thing that was really confusing is that my little brother. Looks like he had just pulled up a tree so we went next door and our neighbors had planted the fruit tree. Take it have been watered it than my little brother had done planted it for them. It was really Brown. But all by himself.
God wants us to grow up to, he wants us to be strong. He wants us to Revel in that, take pride in that and look forward to doing that until this morning at, like 4 to look at the skirt. The description is found multiple times in Scripture.
Free strong and courageous. We focus mostly on that with the identity of
Joshua is going to be slow going today. like if I pause just say Josh,
your mother has been the leader. Moses LED them out of slavery. Joseph Moses, lived all over for 40 years as he says he's from 80 to 120. Now, they're fixing to change leadership and that's always a difficult time. Major leadership changes, you see sports teams governments to do so Moses has done his job but now it's time to turn this process over to really more of a military General out so that Joshua can go in and conquer all the various places in the land of Canaan and that's the Israelites can have their Homeland.
God. This is such a simple explanation. These just be strong be courageous. Don't be afraid. And don't be discouraged, and you're almost anticipate this next portion so easily, because the question was, why not? I mean dub. Joshua could have put together a list of all along of things to be afraid of that. She was concerned about as he goes into this nation and all these malicious people and all these various actions and warfare's in various things are going to take place. Why are you saying? Don't be afraid. Don't be discouraged and God says the Lord, your God will be with you. Wherever you go Gods. Are you taking care of this? He's already map to South Jersey, lawn just out as they cross the Jordan and go to what's going to be there, largest struggle in that stuff at what what does God do? He gives him this really easy game plan going to March around the you're going to yell and I'm going to make the walls fall down. This is going to be a little bit. What is going to be and so are extremely successful. As you remember, they were allowed to take any of the precious things from Jericho. So a little bit later, they're going to fight this little town called a. I am very, very critical Bible place because it's able to be identified in relationship to Jericho it also You're able to understand this tactic of trying to lure her out and kind of a reversal of the flanks and that territory is very well known and you can actually stand there and see how this would abort Israel win over there. You just send the defeated having lost thirtysomething soldiers in this little skirmish. and what's interesting to me is what Joshua does. when he finds out what's happened in a, i
Send Joshua tore his clothes. And fell face down on the ground before the Ark of the Lord remaining there till evening. The Elders of Israel did the same as sprinkle dust on their heads and Joshua said, I last saw burn. Why did you ever bring this people across the Jordan to deliver them into the hands of the a ride to destroy us? Free quick change. Universal yelling at this guy for a little bit with me. The last couple weeks, first Rattle out of the box. He starts to behave very differently than that. He's certainly not acting strong or acting courageous. And he goes on to talk about how bad it's going to be here. Everybody's going to be attacking them in here. I got tested in verse 10, stand up. What are you doing down your face? You're the leader. You're supposed to be strong and courageous. You're supposed to be looking for answers. Yeah, that beveled was at Skirmish was it was a total failure. It wasn't the plan. It was strategy, it wasn't the scale of the soldiers. It was a problem with sin in the can and we know that one of the families took precious gold and garments from the city of Jericho. And now, the whole nation is being punished for that. But Joshua doesn't look for an answer. He was immediately goes to Ho, this is horrible, this is terrible. The worst thing that could possibly happen and literally is laying there on the floor, instead of trying to give some direction order to provide leadership and I think we can see ourselves in that you know, when things are going good and things are turning out. Alright? And we are being rewarded positively at least some of the time and then all the sudden, you just have this huge setback, and we can very easily follow right here in Joshua's, with this, we're right down there on the floor, giving up, giving in quitting wondering why we were ever involved to that level across that whole process. Joshua strength and courage don't hold up really very long.
We look at leadership in our own world.
Zelensky in Ukraine. What are the most people know, right by now that he his profession was a comedian. I would imagine that, when that war started, the other side, you thought they'll fall very quickly. They've got a professional comedian is ahead of their country. What country is it was easy to tell jokes? And yet, this man is responding very differently from that and he has provided leadership. A lot of you say, will, you know, I'm really loving that many situations were or I'm the leader. but if you look at the circumstances when life starts to unravel,
it gets broken down into small units. I'm thinking particularly about 9/11, there was a master plan, how are they going to deal with this? The First Responders got there? And, and, and they took action and a tender going doing everything according to plan. But as things happen, this plan gets totally disrupted. And what really is happening is little enclaves of people. Are trying to solve their individual situation. Some of them successfully in a corset number who were successful, but it's not like there's somebody who's in charge of getting them out of there are maybe three or four people and their stories. You can read a few for people who do their own strengths to their own determination, they work together. Do in fact, be bleeders and usually very small groups. And I think that's where we really find the spiritual things in our own lives. We have this bureaucracy out there and we can unload bureaucracy to solve things. And yet some of the things happen in our world, in our live, in our home place, in our personal situation where somebody needs to leave at that moment you're there, but I don't know anything about being the leader. You do know that God makes promises. You do know that God says be strong and courageous. Don't quit. Don't give up. Why not God?
Going to get you through this. And I believe all over life. You find people who are wanting to respond, that kind of leadership. It looks hopeless. And if we're just like the world and we said, yeah, it is Hope was this terrible. There's no chance of everything is Doom and Gloom. Does it? I need a guy to stand up and Lead. Let me just one person. But you just in one situation.
Doesn't do real good with the search test. Unfortunately he didn't do really well with the second test, either. If you go into Joshua chapter 9, there's a group of guys. The end, they come over to
Alliance with Israel. What they do is they make all their stuff that used broken down corroded leather material, they have bread that's old and musty and then he can't really eat it anymore. So they present this thing, like they've comfortable long and they want a lion. and the crazy part about it is, Is real Falls for it now they looking they looking they look at at their supplies live look at their shoes and they look at all the leather and they just keep going back and examining things but in the end look what their downfall is starting to verse 14. Does the Israelites sampled their provisions? But they did not inquire of the Lord. Then Joshua made a treaty of peace with them to let them live and the leaders of the assembly ratified. If I did write ratified it by hoes, they came into that land to take it over. They came into that land to run out the sinful people that were living there.
Yeah, it's real simple cross at gilgal. Just north of the Dead Sea. That's where they're camping. They can't there. When they battled Jericho days, I reached Skirmish with a. I r Gibby it is Is 4 red dots. One of them's give Ian About 15 miles away from gilgal. that's all he was next door, neighbors, literally, and these guys that come over there,
Joshua Falls Board, the leaders fall for it. They making a range with these people. These people that they won't kill them, destroy them, so they make them weed cutter.
Can you really imagine just think about this? Nobody prayed about it.
Joshua didn't pray about it. Joshua watched. Moses, All Those Years having this intensive communication with God. You knows how it works. if we're looking at things, chronologically Before this God is actually talked directly to Joshua. Hey, does it crosses mine? Did maybe have a prayer. And see what God would like for me to do and just amazing to me that if you go back to that chapter and look at it over and over again, they just keep looking at all the human evidence. They just keep trying to look closer and closer and explain it in it and figure it out. And God is saying to them, as he's always had two people we want my face out by side somewhat. You can see it's the power, but I have
Sometimes one of the cats will get them get in a precarious situation. And you know what they do, they sell for the all their Ruffles up. You know, this I feel like a lot of times that's what we do when it comes to being strong and courageous. We don't really want to be something courageous. We just want to present the image that we're strong and courageous. How do you get to really be strong and courageous? Will you do? If I disciplined you just buy first appearance. You do it by training as well. Mentioned here just a few minutes. This is all these things that God is teaching us and getting us telling us that he he wants us to do. It's really hard. To have a good spiritual life when prayers your last resort. or in this case, not Resort at all.
Strong and courageous. Will that do it? Next week, we'll talk about Samson. Sansa's pretty strong. He's pretty courageous is the perfect guy. Well, there's some holes there. And the reason is in Behavioral Science, there's a principle called necessary but not sufficient. Certain things that you have to have, but in and of itself, it doesn't solve all the problem and a sports team is a good example. You're going to have a good football team. You're going to have to have a good quarterback will having a good quarterback make you good football team know because there are other things that have to happen but you have to have that necessary Park and that's what God's talking about to Joshua, to the people of old to the people of our time. I need for you to be strong and courageous. Okay, I can do that. Lord. Is that all know you're going to have to leave that in with other things that I asked you to do. But there were moments, they were moments when your belief motivates you to the point where you can stand and say, okay, this is what I can do.
I mention training 2nd, Timothy chapter 36, through 17, all scripture is god-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking correcting and training in righteousness. So that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. God wants us working on things on a day-by-day basis as we prepare ourselves and with courage and then majority, James 1:4, let perseverance finish this work. So that it may be mature and complete not lacking anything. We're going to grow up. Lima tour. I mentioned to you before that.
I've been in positions, where people have been hit with very, very, very hard things where doctor say terminal, Where people say relationships over. Where people say your child is not going to be any better. Your fortune is gone.
And I mentioned to you before that. I've watched people in those moments. Say I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me?
Hard hard, hard things. That's the response.
Because they know how to be strong and courageous. They've been there, they did experience. It worked out at they trained for it because they knew that when the moment came, they wanted to be able To do what God wanted to do.
Now, I don't want to leave Joshua totally beat up because Joshua goes from the early chapters to a very different approach and philosophy at the end of it. Can you order your right shoes? But you already know what I'm talking about. This is Joshua chapter 24, he is coming now to the time where is leadership. Is over and he wants to say something to the nation, that will inspire them. And he said, simply but if serving the lord seems undesirable to you. Then choose for yourselves this day, whom you will serve whether the God, your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates or the gods of the amorites and whose land you were live. But as for me and my household. We will serve the Lord. Joshua grew up in this leadership position. He grew up me, filled in the gaps and in his case, it started with being strong and being courageous being willing to step into those top spots. And when he did that, he found himself, I believe, maturing and growing, and strengthening, and being stronger. So that's when everything came to him, that he needed to do, he was able to do it. Because he did believe that God had the power to do that. John about appearances, we live in a society that says, if you just appear to be at you are and that's really confusing. For me, talk about spiritual things because God says, that's not true. I have the power To make you strong. I have the power to make you courageous, but you've got to work my plan in order to arrive there. Would you play with you, please? Do God. We know that our strength comes from you. we know that our courage is because of what you have, we know that you did not want us to be afraid, you don't want us to be indifferent, you don't want us to be discouraged. Father, we know that you hold out of us. The ways that we can Lift your hands up much like Joshua did for Moses at an earlier time. Mother. We just ask you to bless us and help us to act. Help us to do the things if you asked us to, do we play this or your precious son,
As always, we're going to offer an invitation you need or want to respond to that this morning. We'd heard you to do so while we sing the song together.
