Seize the Moment – Day 664
Be Strong and Courageous!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Monday, January 10.
The Bible is a history of God’s work through real people, with real faith, in real history. When I teach someone how to memorize the order of the books of the Old Testament, I emphasize that the book of Joshua follows the five books of Moses (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy), because Joshua assumed command of the Israelite nation after Moses’ death to fulfill God’s promise to enter the Promised Land.
God charged Joshua with this task of leadership in Joshua 1:6-9:
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. 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.
Including verse 18, four times God tells Joshua to be “strong and courageous” in this opening chapter. People presume that God said this because of the long military campaign ahead, starting with Jericho, and while that is true, the only real danger Joshua faced was the people’s rebellion against God and His word. Joshua’s primary duty and greatest challenge was leading the people spiritually. Without obedience to God, there could be no military victory, nor rest in the land (13-18; Hebrews 4:8-11).
Seize the moment and be strong and courageous to follow God!