Go, Possess The Land: Strong and Courageous - Part II - 6/13/2021

GIVE THANKS

OPENING PRAYER

BIBLE CONFESSION

I. INTRODUCTION:

GOLDEN TEXT:

JOSHUA 1:1-2, 5-7

Jos 1:1 Now after the death of Moses the servant of the LORD it came to pass, that the LORD spake unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ minister, saying,

2 Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel.

5 There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.

6 Be strong and of a good courage: for unto this people shalt thou divide for an inheritance the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give them.

7 Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper whithersoever thou goest.

8 This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous.

(EMPHASIS MINE)

In verse 5, The LORD told Joshua that no one will be able to prevail against him.

Meaning their arsenal, their ability, their strategies, even their alliances to war against Joshua would fail.

The LORD made it known unto Joshua, that no man will defeat him, but it was critical that the children make it across Jordan.

This was their gateway to the Promise Land; the land that flowed with “milk and honey”.

The GOOD of the land would certainly proceed after their willingness and obedience to cross over the Jordan River.

It was God’s plan to prosper and elevate the children of the children of Israel in every way.

It was completely necessary that they relocated across Jordan for the LORD to complete the process of blessing and prosperity.

The Children of Israel needed to be in position to receive it; and that position was on the other side of Jordan!

A spiritual relocation was needed to achieve the physical location, which required FAITH!

Because the LORD has a plan to prosper you and elevate you to a greater place; It is necessary for you to relocate as well.

ALWAYS spiritually, and sometimes physically relocate if that is what the LORD is requiring of you.

That is your own personal Jordan that you have to cross.

Three examples of men that followed God in obedience to what His will was for their lives:

1. Pastor Holmes relocated from New York to South Carolina to birth and carry out the vision of Full Gospel Word & Worship Center; A thousand churches on the horizon.

2. Abraham relocated from his father’s house and from among his kinsmen to Caanan; to made into a great nation, the father of many nations.

3. And myself, to accept the plan of God for my life to commute from Winnsboro to Beaufort, and planning to relocate here, to continue to pastor this great church and great people.

HE wants your spiritual relocation of faith, trust and obedience to bring you to a higher height and deeper depth in HIM, so he can complete your full transformation!

II. BODY:

1. The Introduction of Rahab:

JOSHUA 2:1-7

2:1 And Joshua the son of Nun sent out of Shittim two men to spy secretly, saying, Go view the land, even Jericho. And they went, and came into an harlot’s house, named Rahab, and lodged there. (Reference the 2 points below)

2 And it was told the king of Jericho, saying, Behold, there came men in hither to night of the children of Israel to search out the country.

3 And the king of Jericho sent unto Rahab, saying, Bring forth the men that are come to thee, which are entered into thine house: for they be come to search out all the country.

4 And the woman took the two men, and hid them, and said thus, There came men unto me, but I wist not whence they were:

5 And it came to pass about the time of shutting of the gate, when it was dark, that the men went out: whither the men went I wot not: pursue after them quickly; for ye shall overtake them.

6 But she had brought them up to the roof of the house, and hid them with the stalks of flax, which she had laid in order upon the roof.

7 And the men pursued after them the way to Jordan unto the fords: and as soon as they which pursued after them were gone out, they shut the gate.

Notice that Joshua only sent two spies. He was not directed to send twelve spies like Moses did.

TWO POINTS TO CONSIDER FROM THIS:

A. NATURAL: It’s better from a strategic standpoint; a smaller number made them more agile and easier to be concealed from the soldiers of Jericho. The King of Jericho still received word that spies had come to their land, but Rahab helped them escape.

B. SPIRITUAL: It’s easier for two to be on one accord than twelve:

Are you seeing with the eyes of God?

Are you hearing with spiritual ears?

Are you thinking with the mind of Christ?

Do you believe what God said?

NOTE: Herein are several reasons why God has called pastors to feed their flocks with knowledge and understanding.

2. Results of the evil report:

NUMBERS 13:25-33

King James Version (WordSearch Edition) Chapter 13

25 And they returned from searching of the land after forty days.

Their unfavorable report

26 And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron, and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the wilderness of Paran, to Kadesh; and brought back word unto them, and unto all the congregation, and shewed them the fruit of the land.

27 And they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it.

28 Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we saw the children of Anak there.

29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south: and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains: and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan.

30 And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it.

31 But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we.

32 And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature.

33 And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.

3. THE UNBELIEVING CONGREGATION:

NUMBERS 14:1-11

King James Version Chapter 14

14:1 And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night.

2 And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness!

3 And wherefore hath the LORD brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt?

4 And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.

5 Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel.

6 And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of them that searched the land, rent their clothes:

7 And they spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land.

8 If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey.

9 Only rebel not ye against the LORD, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the LORD is with us: fear them not.

10 But all the congregation bade stone them with stones. And the glory of the LORD appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel.

11 And the LORD said unto Moses, How long will this people provoke me? and how long will it be ere they believe me, for all the signs which I have shewed among them?

4. The Two Spies Return With A Good Report:

JOSHUA 2:23-24

23 So the two men returned, and descended from the mountain, and passed over, and came to Joshua the son of Nun, and told him all things that befell them:

24 And they said unto Joshua, Truly the LORD hath delivered into our hands all the land; for even all the inhabitants of the country do faint because of us. (Emphasis mine)

Where did they get that assurance from? Rahab! Where did they get that confidence from? Rahab!

III. CONCLUSION:

The History of Rahab:

Rahab was a harlot of Jericho, who hid the two spies.

She believed that the God of Israel was the true and living God.

Her faith is commended in the NT in Hebrews 11:31 and James 2:25 by her demonstration of faith by good works.

Joshua spared Rahab and her family’s life because she followed through on the terms the two spies made with her (Joshua 6:17, 22, 25).

Rahab’s son, Boaz, married Ruth and became the father of Obed, the grand-father of Jesse, and the great grand-father of David.

Thus, a Canaanite harlot became part of the lineage of King David, from whom the Messiah descended!

This is a true demonstration that God’s grace and forgiveness is extended to all, and is not limited by nationality or the nature of a person’s sins.

IV. SERVICE WRAP-UP

LIFT YOUR HANDS AND GIVE THE LORD PRAISE

CLOSING PRAYER

ALTAR CALL

PRAY FOR MEMBERS

PRAY FOR PASTOR HOLMES

ANNOUNCE MEETINGS FOR TODAY (Paulette Shepherd, Darryl Owens, Ryle Owens, Ciera Bias, Tineesha Singleton)

DECLARATION OF FAITH

BENEDICTION