Courage and the Call to Biblical Faithfulness
Notes
Transcript
Handout
Introduction
Introduction
As we survey the cultural landscape that we, as the church and the people of God, now live and function in we see increasing hostility towards Christianity.
Just in the last decade we have seen a major shift in the world views and the thinking that for centuries have been the majority are rapidly disappearing, not just in America but western civilization as a whole.
Biblical Christianity has become pretty much socially unacceptable. To be honest I don’t think we are too far away from Biblically faithful churches losing their tax exempt status. A lot of christian schools and institutions are already seeing that happen.
As a result of this increasing social pressure many churches and Christians are compromising and thus we see a lot of division.
A lot of the issues are pretty black and white and so those who liked to live in the grey area are being forced to choose.
I will say this, I believe God is refining His church. The nominal Christian and cultural Christianity is disappearing.
But this is nothing new right?. God’s people have always faced opposition from the unbelieving world.
So we shouldn’t panic right? Of course not.
Also, Christians in other parts of the world face much more severe persecution.
Jesus tells us to count the cost right? () For some Christians that has included their heads.
So while things could be much worse we must remain faithful. And in order to do that, we need courage and we need to be strengthened.
Courage
Courage
9 The wise men shall be put to shame;
they shall be dismayed and taken;
behold, they have rejected the word of the Lord,
so what wisdom is in them?
9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
psalm 119:
98 Your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies,
for it is ever with me.
99 I have more understanding than all my teachers,
for your testimonies are my meditation.
100 I understand more than the aged,
for I keep your precepts.
to be courageous
Hebrew Verb. To be strong, let grow strong, make firm; prove to be strong
Is God commanding Joshua to hit the gym? Should we infer that Joshua had small biceps?
to be courageous
The Context
The Context
Moses is dead a2nd God has chosen Joshua to succeed Moses in leading the Israelites into the promised land.
Why the need for strength and courage?
Well the task certainly wasn’t an easy one. He had challenges in front of him as well as behind him.
The Israelites weren’t the easiest people to lead and the land the God has promised them isn’t exactly vacant. It’s occupied. And on top of that it wasn’t for sell. Joshua’s task is to take it by force.
The immediate context is God commissioning Joshua and the promises are addressed to Joshua individually.
There is a lot that applies to us because Joshua’s God is our God.
1 The Need for Strength and Courage
1 The Need for Strength and Courage
Joshua needed strength because his task from the human perspective was impossible. And it would have been impossible apart from God.
2 Strength Demonstrated
2 Strength Demonstrated
So was the strength that God commanded Joshua to have physical strength?
What does this strength look like?
1:6 Be strong and courageous. Confidence based on the promises of God is the essence of biblical faith (vv. 9, 18; 8:1; 10:8, 25; 11:6).
So it is a confidence based on what God has said.
6 Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them.
So strength and courage is confidence to do what God has commanded:
Because God commanded it
Because he has God’s promise
The victory for Joshua and the Israelites is certain.
We as well as Joshua need strength to obey God
7 Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go.
The essential relationship between faith and obedience is illustrated here. Faith is confidence based on God’s promise (v. 6), and such faith bears the fruit of obedience (v. 7).
3 The Need for Faith
3 The Need for Faith
BRT “The greatest any christian can ever be is faithful?”
That has really stuck with me. There may be a lot of words and ways that we would describe Christians that played a significant role over the course of history but perhaps the best word to describe them is faithful.
As Christians our task isn’t novelty or to innovate anything really. It is however to be faithful.
After reading the NT we wouldn’t come away saying that the Apostles and the early church were innovators, no, we would say they were faithful servants.
3 Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.
“The” (definite article) faith was delivered to us. We aren’t pioneering the faith. We are simply to be faithful to what was delivered to us. It has been entrusted to us and we are to be good stewards of it.
23 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’
14 “For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. 15 To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. 16 He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. 17 So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. 18 But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master’s money. 19 Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. 20 And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here, I have made five talents more.’ 21 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 22 And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here, I have made two talents more.’ 23 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’
The words that we as Christians should long to hear are “well done, good and faithful servant.”
So as we begin a new year I think it helpful for us as men to take inventory as it were of our lives. There may be areas of our lives that we are weak. Areas were our confidence in God’s word and promises are lacking.
Here is a small list of potential areas where our strength may be lacking.
Strength to love our wives like Christ loved the church
Strength to raise our children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord
Strength to make disciples (outreach and personal evangelism)
Strength to speak the truth in love
Strength to persevere in all we do
Gather other examples from the other men