Ever felt overwhelmed by an impossibly huge task? You’re in good company. Charged with leading God’s people into Canaan, Joshua was familiar with the fear that accompanies enormous responsibility. And yet somehow he was able to trust God and accomplish His will.
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so we have a choice of facing the
difficult as we face in life in one of
two ways we can do it courageously or we
can do it fearfully and God doesn’t want
his people living fearfully he says I
have not given you the spirit of fear
but of power and of love and of a sound
mind God wants us to be triumphant he
wants us to be courageous and bold
whatever we face in life and he’s made
promises to make it possible for us to
face anything and everything and still
be standing when the battle is over
next on InTouch dr. Charles Stanley
begins his series courage for the
Christian life today’s message courage
for the difficult tasks what do you fear
most in life ill health some financial
loss loss of a loved one what do you
fear most is it death or maybe failure
in some particular area of your life we
probably all have areas that we have to
deal with probably have to find
ourselves talking to God about them
several times many times sometimes
whatever it might be maybe every day but
what are you afraid of what really haunt
you well if you have courage you can
handle anything to haunt you and that’s
what I want to talk about in this
message because this is a very difficult
trying time in the life of our nation
many people fear many different things
and oftentimes they have right cause but
God wants you and me to live with
courage not fear so I want you to turn
if you will to Joshua chapter one
and as I think back over the years all
the situations circumstances challenges
that I’ve been through in life this is
the passage of Scripture I always go
back to somehow I end up in this first
chapter of Joshua and since my mother
first gave it to me before I preached my
first sermon it has always been there
for me and no matter what the situation
of circumstance I find awesome courage
strength resilience encouragement out of
this chapter and I want to share with
you so if you’ll turn to that for just a
moment listen to what happens here
beginning in this first verse now it
came about after the death of Moses the
servant of the Lord that the Lord spoke
to Joshua the son of nun saying Moses my
servant is dead
now therefore rise across this Jordan
you and all those people to the land
which I’m going to give to them the sons
of Israel every place on which the sole
of your foot treads I have given it to
you just as I spoke to Moses from the
wilderness and this Lebanon even as far
as the Great River the river Euphrates
all the land of the Hittites and as far
as the Great Sea tour the setting of the
Sun will be your territory that was his
promise no man will be able to stand
before you all the days of your life
just as I was with Moses I will be with
you I will not fail you or forsake you
be strong and courageous but you shall
give this people possession of the land
which I swore to their fathers to give
them only be strong and very courageous
be careful to do according to all the
law which Moses my servant commanded you
do not turn from it to the right of to
the left so that you may have success
wherever you go this book of the law
shall not depart from your mouth but you
shall meditate on it day and night so
that you may be careful
to do according to all that is written
in it but then you’ll make your way
prosperous then you’ll have success and
then he says this havenõt commanded you
be strong and courageous do not tremble
or be dismayed for the Lord your God is
with you wherever you go now your first
response might be well I’m not in that
kind of a situation
I do have areas of my life in which I
feel weak or sometimes fear but I’m not
in that kind of a situation so what does
that have to do with me listen carefully
the principles in this passage of
Scripture will take you through anything
and everything no matter what
now if I were 25 years of age you may
have a lot of reasons to doubt me but I
give you enough evidence that I can tell
you it is true every single time no
matter what you face in life because
many people just they’re just fearful of
defeat and fearful of failure fearful of
many things so I must look at this
passage as a message that God is giving
us in this 21st century because the
truth applies to all of us whatever
we’re going through the truth applies so
when I think about this passage and
think about what’s happening let me give
you a couple of definitions that might
be helpful first of all let’s define
what fear is all about fear is that
uneasy feeling and all of us have felt
it it’s a dreadful feeling an internal
alarm that goes off inside of us in some
fashion when we’re facing imminent
danger feel threatened feel helpless to
a border to change it so all of us have
felt that at some time of the other then
of course there’s another word I want us
to define and it may be good to define
this one right now what is the opposite
of fear and that’s courage
the quality of mind or spirit enabling
us to meet danger face opposition all
the challenges of life with fearlessness
calmness and firmness so we have a
choice of facing the difficulties we
face in life in one or two ways we can
do it courageously or we can do it
fearfully and God doesn’t want his
people living fearfully he says I have
not given you the spirit of fear but of
power and of love and of a sound mind
God wants us to be triumphant he wants
us to be courageous and bold whatever we
face in life and he’s made promises to
make it possible for us to face anything
and everything and still be standing
when the battle is over so with that in
mind let’s look at what Joshua was
facing Joshua now has the awesome
challenge of taking this bunch of
murmuring rebellious unbelieving fretful
you name it two million of them into
this new land that God had promised them
that was it a big challenge it was a big
challenge it’s it would appear to be an
impossible challenge because they were
moving into a land across the Jordan
where the enemy there were seven cities
there they were very well-armed many of
the cities had walls around them there
were many giants there and besides that
they had chariots and so he has the
challenge really of leading these people
into that land now naturally he would
have been a little bit afraid because he
knew have they operated they were with
you today and tomorrow they won’t
dystonia to death and so for him to have
that responsibility God needed to say
something doing and here’s what he said
to him and he said it so beautifully in
this first chapter of Joshua
because here we find the basis of our
courage our courage isn’t something we
just think up we have a basis for our
courage as a believer and that basis is
our relationship to God through his son
the Lord Jesus Christ and when we face
difficult tasks we need we need courage
and some of you probably facing very
difficult tasks and situations in your
life has nothing to do with chariots and
crossing over a sea or anything like
that what I want you to see is this the
principles of Scripture applied to us
whether it’s a 21st century or the
second century made its no difference
what and I want you to see what God is
saying here because what he’s saying to
Joshua we have the right to claim these
same promises not in the same
circumstances but the promise and the
challenge is there and we have the right
to claim that promise and so when I
think about that I want us to begin
looking in in the fourth verse from the
wilderness and this Lebanon even as far
as the great river the river Euphrates
all the land of the Hittites far as the
Great Sea toward the setting of the Sun
will be your territory and so naturally
Joshua would have thought about that and
think no way cannot leave this crowd to
do that but listen to what God said to
him because God’s listen the truth here
is as applicable for you and me as it
was for him listen know what he said in
verse 5 he said Joshua no man will be
able to stand before you all the days of
your life that is successfully just as I
have been with Moses I will be with you
I will not fail you or forsake you now
if anybody ever needed to hear
Joshua need to hear that last part I’ll
be with you I’ll not fail you I’m not
going to forsake you but here’s what I
want you to see the same promise he made
the judge was the same promise he’s made
to all of us What did he say
I’ll not fail you I’m not gonna forsake
you now he says here’s what I want you
to remember Joshua be strong not
therefore be strong and courageous for
you shall give this people possession of
the land which I swore to their fathers
together be strong and courageous you
them if you look around you might be
afraid be strong and courageous watch
this in difficult times dangerous times
we don’t look around we look where up we
look up Amen that’s pretty weak we look
up amen amen
we don’t look around he said be strong
and courageous now look in verse seven
that you will because note notice how he
said it
only be strong and very courageous God
is making a point
he knows the challenge he says be strong
and very courageous to do according to
all the law which Moses my servant
commanded you he didn’t say be strong
and courageous and here’s my blueprint
for victory he isn’t he he didn’t say
here’s the war plan he says be careful
to do all the law which Moses my servant
commanded you do not turn from it to the
right or to the left so that you have
success wherever you go someone says I’m
not into that successful are you in the
failure you’re not in the failure you
want to you want to succeed as a parent
you want to succeed in the school you
want to succeed on your job you want to
succeed financially you want to succeed
in every way of life he says be strong
courageous and very careful to do
according to all that I have said
through the book of Deuteronomy the law
of God the law of Moses now in order to
do that he says here’s what you must do
listen carefully here’s the key the
he is keeping focused on the truth which
is a Word of God and I notice how he
says be strong and very courageous be
careful do according all that’s written
in the law he says this book of the law
shall not depart from your mouth I’m
asking a question
it’s real simple how many days go by in
any given week that you don’t open the
Word of God days go by you’re busy you
got things to do but you’re the bridge
you have to know don’t have to but even
when I’m not preaching I’m opening the
Word of God listen to what he says this
book of the law which would be the Bible
to us shall not depart from your mouth
but you shall meditate on it day and
night so that you may be careful to do
according to all that is written in it
if you’ll do that he says and you’ll
have success somebody says well now
what’s this meditation business let me
just say this to you it is the simple
key to accomplishing anything and
everything God sets before you you say
that’s too simple what does God want to
make it complicated no but notice what
he said he said I want you to meditate
on a day and night what’s this in
essence is what he seen a little brief
skimming of it’s not going to cut it I
want you to meditate on a day and night
and your devotions in the morning and
read the Word of God a few minutes or
whatever it might be before you go to
bed at night but he said meditate on it
the key he is meditating on a day and
night so I want to give you five
essentials of meditation first of all it
involves reading the Word of God
secondly believing what you read in the
Word of God and thirdly absorbing it
which means I got to think about it
absorbing it means that I think about it
it means that I apply it to my life and
it becomes a part of my way of thinking
and my way of living so we apply we
absorb it we we understand it we apply
it to our life and we obey it he said
you must be careful to meditate upon it
day and night
in essence here’s what he’s saying you
want to have success meditate upon the
word of God day and night that doesn’t
mean you have to give God four hours in
the morning at 4:00 at night and they
caused it somewhere trying to find no
that’s not what it means meditation is
just what we said it’s reading it it’s
thinking about it I’m sorry no words in
fifteen minutes
God can do a big work in your life by
meditation upon the word of God there’s
not anybody in here who’s so busy they
can’t give God
ten minutes of 15 minutes where the open
Word of God every day who in here is so
busy they can’t do that that’s right
nobody is you say well that was the
Joshua why did God put in the Bible it
listen it isn’t just a message to Joshua
it listen it is a principle that applies
to everybody you know it doesn’t mean
that you’re doing the same thing that
doesn’t mean that you’ll accomplish as
much as as Joshua or none of us who do
that but listen it’s watch this it’s
your world your world may be this big
your world may be that big but the issue
is the same that if I meditate upon
God’s Word watch this here’s what you’re
saying I’m acknowledging God that I’m
not smart enough to live this life
myself
I need your help I don’t I don’t have
enough strength I’m not have enough
smarts I’m acknowledging that I need you
that I honor you and I’m acknowledging
you as my god you have the right to tell
me what to do and how to do it and Lord
I’m committing myself to be obedient to
you and so meditation is the key it’s
the key to everything he’d said to him
before then he says this book of the law
shall not depart from your mouth you
can’t you can’t skip it day and night so
that you may be careful according to do
all that is written in it then you make
your way prosperous then you’ll have
success and look at this last verse he
says have I not commanded you be strong
and courageous do not tremble or
dismayed for the Lord Jehovah Yahweh
Elohim the Lord your God is with you
where ever you go
now let me ask you a question how do you
beat that how can you beat that promise
thank you back with clear instruction he
said he said here’s my law that what I
want you to do I want you to meditate
didn’t I listen he didn’t say I want you
to memorize this I memorize that no he
says I want you to read it
meditate upon it day and night I want
you to I want you to get it on the
inside of you I want you to absorb it so
that you are thinking you’re watching
watch this you’re thinking Joshua like I
think and what happened you know why I
got it was so particular about that I’ll
tell you one of the reasons couple of
reasons number one he knew what Joshua
was going to face and he knew what the
challenge was going to be and he knew
how Deb would rush into his mind
so here’s Joshua the command and God
says all right I want you to take
Jericho
it’s a walled city they’re fully armed
and you all have pitchforks and and
pocketknives and so forth and that’s
that’s the way it is and so what God
says to him here’s what I want you to do
I want you to assemble the army and I
want you to march around the wall one
day and Joshua probably said and do what
God said don’t do anything just go back
to your tents second day third day
fourth day fifth day six days seventh
day I want you to march around seven
times and probably a judgment said then
what and God just we used one word watch
and what happens they did it the walls
fell down they conquered Jericho big
success well think about this how many
blessings do we miss because we think
we’ve got to figure it out Joshua would
never have come up with that strategy
never supposed Joshua said there’s no
way we’re gonna attack Jericho
without climbing the walls and killing
him God said be careful to do according
to all that I’ve told you and what I
want you to do is something that sounds
very ridiculous all you do is line them
up and March
what what what battle was ever
successful for just lining up people
marching watch this we we have to be
wise enough that’s why it takes current
watch this it often takes just pure gut
courage to be obedient to God because it
doesn’t make sense sometimes and so
people who are courageous enough bold
enough and people who are willing to
trust God and that’s why he says
meditate on the Word of God day and
night because it’s meditation on the
word that we said absorbant you know
what we have so–but it absorbs us and
so we had courage strength and we’re
willing to trust God be fearless in
bowl’ no matter what God requires of us
so living in the days in which you and I
live I think that is very very important
now I want to give you a statement I
want you to write down God will never
give us a schedule so full that there’s
no time for him
write it down God will never give us a
schedule that’s so full that is that we
don’t have any time for him
so therefore we have no excuse for lack
of meditation from the Word of God and
I’ll say again to make it clear there’s
no menu sit down and memorize the verse
every night no you just simply read a
pastor description if you’re not used to
doing that I’ll give you a good start
start with the book of Psalm just read
the first song then tomorrow read the
next song and when you get through the
Psalms they’ll take you awhile in fact
several months before you get to the
Psalms start with the Proverbs you can
read one proverb for every day takes you
just one month but you won’t be able to
do that because it’s so full of rich
rich rich rich stuff from God you don’t
want to read a whole chapter
you know what if you just listen to this
message take it to heart God will change
your life
God is ready to give you the best the
question is are you ready to trust in
void I want to give you a challenge
you’re ready listening say Amen
read the first nine verses for the next
week until next Sunday twice a day now
how many of you don’t have time to do
that that’s right you say well I don’t
need to read it now I don’t need to read
every day yes you do every day and every
night something will happen to you I
promise you it will you’ll want to give
a testimony next Sunday morning have I
not commanded you to be strong very
courageous to face anything and
everything and be sufficient for all
things because of him if you’re not
saved look what you’re missing and I
pray that you’ll be honest enough to
confess your sinfulness and your pride
that you think you can live your life
and be a success and do what you gotta
want you to do without asking him you
may be successful now as the world but a
total failure dollars of God God’s best
is a free offer of salvation the price
being paid by Jesus of the cross when he
shed his blood at Calvary and I trust
you be wise enough to ask him to forgive
you of your sins or into your life to
him and tell him you want his best amen
father how grateful we are you impact so
much in so little such an awesome
challenge such an awesome opportunity we
thank you for it
now I pray Lord every man every woman
here oh gee
Jesus Jesus Jesus Jesus put it in their
heart this morning to read these first
nine verses twice a day but one week
Lord God if they go to bed at night Lord
and they haven’t done it wake them up if
they start out in the morning and they
ignore it remind them of it you said be
careful to do according to all that is
written in it and so we want to say
thank you this morning for Moses and for
Joshua and thank you God for giving us
this awesome passage of Scripture that
we can live by faced anything and
everything live by every day every night
in Jesus name Amen if you’ve been
blessed by today’s program please visit
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