Okay, back to Joshua! It is the end of the 40 years of wandering. Now the children of Israel sit on the edge of the Promised Land leaderless, but not for long. God has a man and his name is Joshua. He has big shoes to fill and a large contingent of followers who are better at wandering than following. What will God tell him? How will He instruct this new leader?
Be strong and courageous, for 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 or 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; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success. 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; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.
Joshua 1:6-9
Have I not commanded you?
Be strong and courageous!
Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.
I find God’s instruction here intriguing. In my way of thinking, it seems there would be little need for God to tell a mighty man like Joshua to be strong and courageous. After all, he and Caleb were the only ones within a whole generation with any moxie. They were not afraid of the giants or fortified cities in the Promised Land.
They were more than ready to pack it up and move in; 40 years ready!
Wouldn’t it make more sense to repeat three times something in regard to a weakness within Joshua’s skills and talents rather than an obvious strength? Did he need help with his public speaking skills? Or maybe he could have a lesson in angel recognition? Why did God instruct him multiple times about something that was natural…normal…comfortable for him? Strong and courageous was woven into Joshua’s very being. No man would dare call Joshua a coward. Is that what God was doing?
On the contrary! God first affirmed Joshua’s skills and position of leadership and his success in securing the land (v. 6). God then gives Joshua instructions on the foundational pieces for achieving that success. As for the repetition, I can think of eight distinct reasons God repeated the command to be strong and courageous. Maybe you can add to this list.
- Joshua was indeed strong and courageous as Moses’ right-hand man, but now he was the leader of millions of people who did not have a great track record of cooperation.
- The preverbal buck would now stop with Joshua. No more running to Moses.
- God was now speaking directly to Joshua as He had done with Moses. That alone would be enough reason to need more strength and courage.
- Joshua was a brave warrior and military general seasoned in tactical warfare, but his first battle in the Promised Lane would be won with his sword in its sheath.
- God was about to ask him to not just step out of his comfort zone, but to dump that comfort zone in the trash heap.
- It takes strength and courage to stay on course and a new course at that. This new direction was the law (v.7). It’s no coincidence that meditating on the laws given to Moses was also repeated in these instructions (v. 8). Before Moses, God had not actually written His expectations down anywhere. Now they were written down for all of Israel and humanity. For Joshua, there was no excuse for not following it.
- Prosperity and success require a great deal of strength and courage (v.7, 8). Power and achievement are strong distractions from following God’s instructions.
- Finally, often a personal great strength can easily turn into a greater weakness when one loses sight of God’s perspective.
Discussion
We have two practical applications to work on this week as we wind down our time together.
The first is to ask God to open our eyes and ears so we may comprehend when a fellow one another blesses us and then respond with appropriate thankfulness. This may seem silly and unnecessary because we assume we surely notice when we are blessed. But I wonder if we really do. As women, I think we have so many expectations of the one anothers within our circle we are calloused about being thankful when they bless us.
Let’s ask ourselves:
- Are the morning and bedtime hugs and kisses treasured moments or commonplace rituals?
- Is that firm handshake from Pastor So-and-So second nature to you, except when it isn’t extended?
- Does the smile across the conference room given by the only Christian co-worker at work go unnoticed most days or do you smile back and lift her/him up in a quick prayer?
- When you share a prayer request in small group or Bible study and one or more sisters in Christ name your name before the throne, does your heart skip a beat in wonder or is your spiritual EKG flat?
Every single day God blesses us through one anothers and we should be thankful and full of praise. But because we are in a hurry or rattled or expectant, we don’t hear or see the blessings let alone take opportunity to bless our one anothers back.
This week, ask God to help you see your life and your circle of one anothers with heightened spiritual senses and respond with a heart of praise.
One Another Living 