Author: pastortravislv

Joshua 11:15 – Just as the Lord had commanded Moses his servant, so Moses commanded Joshua, and so Joshua did. He left nothing undone of all that the Lord had commanded Moses.
.

Here is a great thing to have written about you. Joshua did everything he was called by God to do. No one could ask for more to be said of them by the Lord.

When I come to the end of my days on earth, I desire greatly that such a thing could be said about me. I know that, over my first thirty years, I certainly could not say that I did everything to which God called me. But, perhaps over the remaining years, God would give me the grace to obey him as completely as Joshua did here.

When you come to the end of your days, what would you like to have said about you? If it has anything to do with your physical appearance, your business success, or your great accomplishments, you are missing the mark. None of those things will last. No one will remember, likely even a few years after your death—much less a few hundred years after your death. What will last is if you obey the commands of God. If you do what God tells you to do, then at the end of your days, you may hear God tell you that you have faithfully followed all that he set before you. That is a reward worth far more than anything this world has to offer. So, think about the direction of your life. Think about the things for which you are striving. And ask God to help you to obey him fully. Then, obey him, because obedience is your responsibility (it is not God’s job to obey for you).

Lord, I ask you that, at the end of my days, it could be said of me that I followed you completely. Please give me a heart to obey you. Please make your will plain for me to understand. Let me see and understand your will for me, and then let me follow. I long to follow you fully. I long to hear you tell me, “Well done.”

Acts 11:18 – When they heard these things they fell silent. And they glorified God, saying, “Then to the Gentiles also God has granted repentance that leads to life.”
.

This is one of the most significant events in the book of Acts, though many of us would read past it awaiting something more spectacular. Acts begins with the Jews receiving the gospel. This is no surprise, because the Jews are the elect people of God. Then, a strange shift occurs, and Samaritans also receive the gospel. This must have been a bit disconcerting to the Jews, since the Samaritans were a mingled race only partly related to the Jews. But now, the gospel has crossed another crucial line. With Cornelius and his household, gentiles receive the gospel.

To the Jews, nothing could have seemed stranger than a gentile receiving the gospel and the gift of the Holy Spirit. This clearly placed the gentiles on the same footing with the Jews, and that had to be hard to swallow. No longer were the Jews the only race that had access to God. No longer did people need to become part of the Jewish nation to enter God’s kingdom. Now the gospel is available to all people, regardless of national or ethnic background.

We must give God thanks for this great move. As the gospel crossed ethnic and social barriers, it became available to many who would have never otherwise received it. Since the vast majority of us are not Jews, but gentiles by birth, we must remember that it is a great grace of God to allow us into his chosen nation. He brings us in, not because we had anything to offer him, but because he has chosen to include people from every nation in his eternal kingdom.

Also, it is good to remember that no particular people group has a monopoly on knowing God. The Jews do not know God more than the Romans. The Americans do not know God more than the Africans. The Asians do not know God more than the Europeans. God is not bound by geopolitical boundaries. His kingdom includes people from all nations. His plan is glorious.

Dear Lord, I thank you, today, that you chose to allow people from my nation into your kingdom. You did not have to let us in. You could have not allowed the gospel to enter my country, but you did allow it in. For that great blessing, I give you thanks. Help me to remember that the gospel is for all peoples all over the world. Help me to remember that Americans do not hold the keys to the kingdom of God, and neither do any other peoples. Praise to your name, Lord God, because you have a kingdom of people from every ethnicity and every nation.

Joshua 9:14-15 – So the men took some of their provisions, but did not ask counsel from the Lord. And Joshua made peace with them and made a covenant with them, to let them live, and the leaders of the congregation swore to them..

This passage in Joshua 9 has always been one of great interest to me. Joshua and the nation of Israel had been commanded by God to go into the land and drive out all of the peoples who lived there. They were not to make any truce with any of them. They were to totally take the land, and to not allow foreign nations to live among them in order that they not mingle the worship of God with the worship of the false gods of the nations.

The Gibeonites, who lived in the land, heard of the command of God and the success he was giving to Israel. So, they devised a plan. They came to Joshua, and pretended to be from far off. They sought peace with Israel, pretending not to be people of the land.

The people of Israel, in the verses above, make a terrible mistake. They make a covenant with the Gibeonites without first seeking counsel from the Lord. They take the false evidence given to them by the Gibeonites, and never ask God to lead them to the truth.

This event has terrible consequences for Israel years later, as we see in . . .

2 Samuel 21:1-2 – Now there was a famine in the days of David for three years, year after year; and David sought the presence of the LORD. And the LORD said, “It is for Saul and his bloody house, because he put the Gibeonites to death.” So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them (now the Gibeonites were not of the sons of Israel but of the remnant of the Amorites, and the sons of Israel made a covenant with them, but Saul had sought to kill them in his zeal for the sons of Israel and Judah).

In 2 Samuel 21, we find that a king of Israel, Saul, attempts to destroy the Gibeonites, and brings punishment from God on Israel. Though Israel should have wiped out the Gibeonites during the days of Joshua, they promised not to. So, when Saul tried to get rid of this people group who was a thorn in Israel’s side, God punished Israel with three years of famine for Saul’s disobedience to the covenant made by the people under Joshua.

There are at least two major lessons for us to learn in this passage. One is that we need to be very careful to seek God’s wisdom in making important decisions. Had Israel sought the wisdom of God, they would have found out that the Gibeonites were tricking them. Their failure to seek God’s counsel on their decision led to great heartache. Let us learn to seek God’s counsel, and to not always trust in our own human understanding. We need to check the scriptures to see what God has commanded regarding what we want to do, and be sure to follow his commands—even if those commands do not make sense to the world.

The other lesson that we need to see here is just how much weight our words have. Israel made a vow to a people who tricked them. This vow was rash, foolish, and against the will of God. However, once the vow was made, God intended that Israel keep it. The famine of 2 Samuel 21 is proof that God takes our promises very seriously, even if we do not. Though the world around us breaks its promises and vows—especially marriage vows—very easily, the people of God must not. If we want to be like Jesus, we must be people who keep our vows, because God takes them very, very seriously.

Joshua 5:12 – And the manna ceased the day after they ate of the produce of the land. And there was no longer manna for the people of Israel, but they ate of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year.
.

God is truly in control. Joshua and all the nation of Israel were fed by God supernaturally for forty years while they wandered in the wilderness. However, as soon as the manna was no longer needed, God stopped sending it. The manna came when it was needed, and it stopped when it was no longer needed. God provided, just as he had promised.

Sometimes we worry, thinking that our needs might not be met. Sometimes we get all stressed out about whether or not we will be able to accomplish a task to which God has assigned us. But if we take a moment to remember the miracle of the manna, we will recognize that God provides exactly what is required for his will to be done. He does not provide too much, and so allow us to treat his provision as frivolous or take it for granted. He does not provide too little, so we would be in want and speak out against him. He gives exactly what is needed for the situation, and he never fails.

Without trying to figure out personally specific things that God has called you to do, it might be comforting, today, for you to think about the general commands that God has placed before you. For example, he has called you to love him with all your heart. He has called you to go and make disciples of all nations. He has called you to love your neighbor as yourself. If he has made these calls on your life, and he has done this for all believers, he will also provide you with the resources necessary to accomplish the task. He does not do the work for you—he calls you to obey him—, but neither does he leave you without exactly what you need in order to be able to accomplish his will. So, you and I have no excuse. If we fail to do God’s will, it is because we have chosen not to, not because he hasn’t given us what we need. When we do obey God, he is the one to glorify, because he has supplied us with everything we need to accomplish the task.

Lord, I recognize from the miracle of the manna that you provide your children with everything that they need to accomplish your will. I pray that you will forgive me for ever making excuses for any reason why I might not have obeyed you in the past. I recognize now that any time I have ever disobeyed you was my own doing, not yours. I also recognize that anytime I have obeyed you, it was your power that supplied my needs to help me to do your will. I pray that you will continue to give me all that I need to obey your will. I want to serve you. I desire to obey you. Please supply my needs, and help me to be motivated to honor your name forever.

Joshua 4:20-24 – And those twelve stones, which they took out of the Jordan, Joshua set up at Gilgal. And he said to the people of Israel, “When your children ask their fathers in times to come, What do these stones mean? then you shall let your children know, Israel passed over this Jordan on dry ground. For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until you passed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up for us until we passed over, so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the Lord is mighty, that you may fear the Lord your God forever.” .

When Israel entered into the land of Canaan as God had promised, the Lord performed a great sign. Much like the Exodus, God allowed the Israelites to pass over water, but on dry ground. This time, it was the River Jordan, which was at flood stage, that God caused to dry up long enough for all the nation to cross.

Joshua commanded the people to gather twelve stones from the miraculously dry river bet and bring them to the shore. He then set them up as a monument, a reminder of what God had done. The people were to see those stones, remember the great thing that God did on that day, and allow that to give them confidence for the future. They were to tell their children about the miraculous crossing of the Jordan whenever they saw the stones, so that future generations would marvel at the faithfulness and power of God.

Have you ever set up a spiritual marker in your own life? It is not as Old Testament as you might think. God wants us to remember the great things he has done for us. We remember things like Jesus’ birth and his crucifixion and resurrection with holidays, special services, and special meals. But wouldn’t it be wise for us to also remember the things that God has done in our own lives? Do you remember the date when you were saved—not all can—; perhaps you should mark that day as a day of celebration. If you commemorate your birthday or anniversary, how much would it really take for you to also commemorate your spiritual second birth? What about great things that God has done for you in the past such as miraculously meeting your needs, leading you to a wise decision, granting you health, or showing you something of his glory; should you not commemorate those things with something?

Perhaps today would be a good day for you to take a moment to think back over some of the great things God has done in your life. Take time to write them down in a journal. Perhaps you can tell a new friend something that God did for you years before you ever met. Perhaps you can plan a special meal in celebration of the good things that God has done. Perhaps you can offer God praise in a special time of worship.

Joshua’s command to set up the stones from the river was a good thing. It is good for the people of God to remember the glory and faithful provision of God. It is good for us to have confidence in the future because of God’s faithfulness in the past. Let us never fail to remember the great things that God has done.

Acts 9:20-22 – And immediately he proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is the Son of God.” And all who heard him were amazed and said, “Is not this the man who made havoc in Jerusalem of those who called upon this name? And has he not come here for this purpose, to bring them bound before the chief priests?” But Saul increased all the more in strength, and confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus was the Christ..

Saul, after the murder of Stephen, continued on his quest to destroy the church of the Lord Jesus. But Christ met him on the road to Damascus, and forever changed his life. Saul, who would later be known as Paul, was changed, and began preaching the truth that Jesus is truly the Son of God.

One thing that is certainly true in the lives of many believers is that we often think that we know of somebody who is beyond hope. Now, we would never say that aloud, because we do not want to sound as though we lack faith. But, if the truth be known, we often do lack faith. We fail to remember how great was the change in us when God drew us to himself. We fail to remember that we were just as dead in sins and transgressions as is that person we think beyond God’s reach. We fail to remember that God can change anyone, even his staunchest enemy, which is exactly what he did with Saul.

Think right now of a person or persons you know who you feel may be too far gone. Is there someone with whom you no longer think of sharing the gospel? Is there a person you think simply will not be reached by you? Look back at Saul’s story. He was an enemy of Christ. He had Christians arrested and killed. He not only did these horrible things, but he was being highly rewarded for doing them. He was too far gone. But Jesus has a habit of saving those who are too far gone. He saved me, and I was too far gone. If you are a believer, he saved you when you were too far gone. No one is beyond his reach. In fact, his name is greatly glorified when he reaches out and brings to himself one who the world thinks is beyond his reach. While I can not guarantee that God will save the person on your mind, I can guarantee this: that person is not beyond his reach.

Lord, I acknowledge here and now that no one is beyond your reach. Yes, I know that not all will come to know you, but that is not because you could not reach them. Your hand can not be stayed. No one can thwart your will. You can accomplish anything you so choose. I entrust myself to you. I ask that you will help me to share the gospel with those who are too far gone. I pray that you will let me see your glory as you reach into the heart of someone dead in sins and transgressions and give them new life. I pray that you will use me as an instrument in your hands in that task. Lord, I simply want to serve you and see you glorify your name. Forgive me, I pray, for ever thinking that anyone is beyond your reach. May I never stop telling people, all people, about your saving grace.