Possess The Promise Together Joshua 1:10–18

• You were never intended to walk through life alone, on your own terms, disconnected from others. Walking with God has never been an individual endeavor.
• Yet many people have been led to believe they were saved merely for themselves, that their relationship with Christ can exist entirely on their terms, with little connection or responsibility to other believers. Or even a connection with a Church.
• They attend church when they want, but can have little care or concern for their fellow brethren. But that is not the picture we see in Scripture.
• Today we are going to see Israel moving forward to possess the promise, but they are going to possess it together.
• No tribe gets to say, We already have ours. No tribe gets to stay behind while their brothers fight. They need one another. They must cross over together. They must fight together. And they will possess the promise together. So today: How do we possess the promise together?

1. Prepare v11

• You can’t win the battles you don’t prepare for and they must be prepared together.
• 11 “Pass through the camp and command the people, saying, ‘Prepare provisions for yourselves, for within three days you will cross over this Jordan, to go in to possess the land which the Lord your God is giving you to possess.’ ”
• God, in His graciousness, often gives His people time to prepare before the moment arrives.
• Proverbs 21:31 The horse is prepared for the day of battle, but deliverance is of the LORD.
• God told Noah before the Flood, Abraham before Sodom, Joseph before famine, Israel before Passover, Elijah before Rain, Jonah before Judgment Jesus told the parable of the ten virgins to prepare lamps, The wise man to build his house on the rock, the faithful servant to be found working, the watchful servant to keep his lamp burning, the tower builder to count the cost.
• All through Scripture, God prepares His people for what is ahead. But here, notice who He is preparing. Not one man. A people. This is a corporate endeavor.///
• The New Testament never replaces that corporate picture with isolated Christianity. God still works through a people, a body, a church.
• And for us as a Church, we can’t prepare for what the future holds if we aren’t together in it
• Mt 16:18. Christ will build His church, He’s building us together. Eph 5:25–27 The church will be presented to Christ glorious , presented together We all belong together..1 Cor 12:20 there are many members, yet one body. Col1:18 He is the head of the body, the church.
• Jesus did not save isolated individuals and leave them disconnected. He died to purchase a people, build a church, and make us one body under one Head.
• Ac 20:28 Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.
• How are you specifically preparing for the promise? Spiritually? Relationally? Practically?
• If Jesus returned, if persecution increased, if the economy tanked, are you promised prepared?
• Are you going to go it alone, or are you going to be so embedded in a Church that you are part of a community that will support and defend one another? You aren’t intended to go alone
• Are you praying? Saving? Teaching your children? Fasting? Investing in others? PREPARE.
• The individuals of Israel did not enter the promise alone. God was leading THEM not ONE

2. Remember the word v13

• As they are preparing, Joshua reminds them- 13 “Remember the word which Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you, saying, ‘The Lord your God is giving you rest and is giving you this land.’ What was that which they were remembering?
• We have to go back a little bit- In Num 32 Reuben and Gad saw the land east of the Jordan and wanted it. they asked Moses if they could have it as their inheritance instead of crossing the J.
• Moses got upset, thought they were trying to get out of the fight.
• But they came to an agreement- They would build cities, but the fighting men would join w the rest of Israel to take the land. They would not return home until Israel got their inheritance.
• Joshua is reminding them– Hey guys. You said you’d fight for your brothers. Time to step up.
• They’ve already possessed their land. They don’t need to take the risk. They are secure.
• There’s a principle here though- You must not forget what was spoken to you and what you have agreed to. This isn’t just about the “word of the Lord” its about YOUR word as well
• Does not God keep his word? 1 Ki 8:56 There has not failed one word of all His good promise. Heb 6:18It is impossible for God to lie.
• And the greatest proof that God keeps His word is Jesus Christ. Every promise God made concerning redemption finds its fulfillment in Him. He saved and redeemed us like he said!
• 2 Cor 1:20 For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.
• And the Bible says that we should keep OUR word Nu 30:2If a man makes a vow to the LORD, … he shall not break his word. Matt 5:37 Let your Yes be Yes, and your No, No.
• You cant possess the promise if you forget what God has said and you don’t keep your word.
• As we live, people will do anything they can do to get out of something that they agreed to.
• We get upset when a restaurant promises a deal they don’t, we are overcharged on a svc etc.
• But we agree to serve in a ministry and then back out or don’t show up on Sunday morning.
• “someone else can cover me” “its not that big of a deal” “no one thanks me for it”
• The principle is the power of your word.
• We want God to keep his word, we should keep our word as well. What good is it if we don’t?
• I lost a relationship many years ago because I held someone to their word. They said “God said” I wouldn’t let them out of it unless they publicly said they didn’t hear from God. Keep your word
• Do you remember what God has said about you and to you? Encourage yourself in the Lord!
• And furthermore, do you have a measure of self accountability to your word?
• When you say you’ll come, do you? If you’ll help? Be there? Do or not do something?

3. Fight for your brother v14

• Here’s a rock solid biblical truth: you can’t only fight battles for yourself.
• Christianity isn’t a selfish I got mine good luck for you don’t care about you religion. NO
• You notice in story, Rueben, Gad and half of Mannaseh had already possessed their land
• They made a promise to help the others, and they kept it. Just because they got theirs, they didn’t bail on the rest of their brothers. They were committed to the cause.
• If you already have yours, maybe your next battle is for someone who doesn’t have theirs yet.
• And nobody did this more perfectly than Jesus. He did not need rescuing. We did. He did not need deliverance from sin. We did. He entered our battle, bore our burden, took our sin, suffered in our place, and brought us into what we could never obtain for ourselves.
• V14But you shall pass before your brethren armed, all your mighty men of valor, and help them, 15 until the Lord has given your brethren rest, as He gave you, and they also have taken possession of the land which the Lord your God is giving them.
• All the mighty men, going out to battle to help their brothers gain THEIR inheritance.
• Aaron and Hur helped moses. Jonathan helped David. Silas Helped Paul. Who are you helping?
• Ro 15:1 We then who are strong ought to bear with the scruples of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Phi 2:3–4 Look out not only for your own interests, but also for the interests of others..1 Cor  12:25–26 The members should have the same care for one another. When one suffers, all suffer. When one is honored, all rejoice.
• This modern idea that I go to church for myself, by myself, whenever I want, is not biblical.
• How do blood bought Holy Ghost filled Christians become so self consumed with themselves?
• Have you been delivered from your sin and addiction? Are you flourishing in your walk? Is your family life strong and are you disciplined? Do you have strong friends on which you can lean?
• Good. Quit isolating yourself and your mini tribe and open your eyes to those crossing over
• You can’t stand on the East side of the Jordan and watch your brothers fight without you///
• Do you know why we push Go to the events and retreats? Be there for others. Help others
• If your heart is I don’t have the energy, the will, the heart you’re missing it.
• Whos on your list? Who do you call, reach out to, look for, follow up with. Not the easy ones
• God is developing us into a body. A whole. We grow. We assimilate. We can’t stop w others.
• Years ago after Army I was underemployed. Jim came, bought me lunch, practiced. 2x Job
• And just like it was for those tribes, it’s costly. It’s painful. But how can we look past our brothers?

4. Enjoy the inheritance v15

• We help others to receive their inheritance because we’ve received ours and rejoice in it!
• V15 Then you shall return to the land of your possession and enjoy it,
• What God was calling Joshua and Israel into was a blessing for them. Yes, God gets the glory, but there is blessing in walking in what God has given you, and it is right to enjoy it.
• Walking in the promises of God brings blessings READ Deuteronomy 8:6-10. Land, water, grain, fruit, sweetness, lots of bread, LACK NOTHING, eating and being FULL and blessing the Lord!!!
• And God will fulfill it. Israel will possess the promise and enjoy what He has given them.
• We have a saying around our house- The God life is the Best life. I love serving the Lord
• I love living by the precepts of God. My life has been deeply blessed by following Him.
• And I get it. People will push back and say ‘what about me’ I can’t answer your situation.
• Ec 5:18-19 Here is what I have seen: It is good and fitting for one to eat and drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labor in which he toils under the sun all the days of his life which God gives him; for it is his heritage. 19 As for every man to whom God has given riches and wealth, and given him power to eat of it, to receive his heritage and rejoice in his labor this is the gift of God.
• When Crystal and I first got married living in our 950 sq ft house on Easy street we were blessed
• It wasn’t about what we had or did not have. We were walking with God, provided for, protected, surrounded by a community of faith, and blessed.
• Walking with God brings blessing, and it is not ungodly to enjoy what God has given you
• .James 1:17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights. 2 Corinthians 9:8 And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work. Matthew 7:11 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him! 3 John 2 Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers. John 10:10 I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. 2 Peter 1:3 His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness.
• And yes, this is not WHY we follow and worship God, but when you inherit what he gives? Enjoy
• Why should we be ashamed to enjoy what God has given us? Apologize for being blessed?
• But we don’t trust in THEM we trust in HIM 1 Tim 6:17 Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy.
• By American standards, may not feel wealthy. Compared to the world, I live with access to clean water, sanitation, shelter, food preservation, heat, technology, info, and personal security.
• Sometimes the problem is not that God has not blessed us. Sometimes the problem is that we have gotten so used to the blessing that we stopped recognizing it and enjoying it. Enjoy it!
• And the greatest blessings are not material. In Christ we have forgiveness, salvation, the church, the Word, worship, fellowship, and eternal life.
• The greatest thing God has ever given us is not a house, money, health, comfort, or opportunity.
• The greatest gift God has given us is Christ Himself.
• Romans 8:32 He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?
• Acts 2:46–47 So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God
• Enjoy what God has given you, but never confuse the gifts with the Giver. The greatest gift is Christ Himself.

5. Be obedient and strong v16

• These tribes knew the fight would be difficult, but they committed to it- 18 Whoever rebels against your command and does not heed your words, in all that you command him, shall be put to death. Only be strong and of good courage.
• Strength and courage are necessary if you are going to walk in what God has called you to.
• It wasn’t going to be easy, but it was going to be worth it. They would fight and they would win
• And for us, the word is this: keep fighting toward godliness, faithfulness, and community.
• We are not strong because we are naturally strong. We endure because Christ strengthens us and because He has already overcome.
• John 16:33 These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”
• Galatians 6:9And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. 2 Corinthians 4:16 Therefore we do not lose heart.
• Let’s commit to God and to one another that we will not give up on each other.
• we will corporately continue in the ways of God, and help others ‘cross over’ and fight w them
• It’s hard because there are people here. We will disagree. There will be hard times.
• But if we remain strong, courageous, and faithful, we can keep moving forward together.
• We will possess the promise together as we prepare, remember the word, fight for our brother, enjoy what God has given us, and remain strong and courageous.

• On Mission (Genesis 24:10-67)

  – Eph. 2:10 (NKJV), 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

  – I often reflect on if I am accomplishing these “good works” God has prepared for me to do? Am I on task? Am I “on mission”? Am I prepared for the next mission God will send me out to do…?

  – You were created for a purpose: Do you know what it is? Are you prepared to walk it out?

  – Your life is a “mission field” now! But sometimes God will call you to go out into the world, away from your home, to accomplish a new, “short-term mission”. Are you ready for that?

  – Our story in Genesis today follows a faithful servant on his short-term mission trip, and gives us insight on how we can walk out our own calling from God. 

   

  – In Genesis Chapter 24, Abraham sends his servant back to his homeland to find a wife for Isaac from among his family. He doesn’t want Isaac to marry a Canaanite woman from the land.

  – He must bring a wife back, and not take Isaac to the homeland.

  – The servant accepted the mission, and he swore to follow Abraham’s instructions.

  Genesis 24:10-27 (NLT), 10 Then he loaded ten of Abraham’s camels with all kinds of expensive gifts from his master, and he traveled to distant Aram-naharaim. There he went to the town where Abraham’s brother Nahor had settled. 11 He made the camels kneel beside a well just outside the town. It was evening, and the women were coming out to draw water.

  12 “O Lord, God of my master, Abraham,” he prayed. “Please give me success today, and show unfailing love to my master, Abraham. 13 See, I am standing here beside this spring, and the young women of the town are coming out to draw water. 14 This is my request. I will ask one of them, ‘Please give me a drink from your jug.’ If she says, ‘Yes, have a drink, and I will water your camels, too!’—let her be the one you have selected as Isaac’s wife. This is how I will know that you have shown unfailing love to my master.”

  15 Before he had finished praying, he saw a young woman named Rebekah coming out with her water jug on her shoulder. She was the daughter of Bethuel, who was the son of Abraham’s brother Nahor and his wife, Milcah. 16 Rebekah was very beautiful and old enough to be married, but she was still a virgin. She went down to the spring, filled her jug, and came up again. 17 Running over to her, the servant said, “Please give me a little drink of water from your jug.” 18 “Yes, my lord,” she answered, “have a drink.” And she quickly lowered her jug from her shoulder and gave him a drink. 19 When she had given him a drink, she said, “I’ll draw water for your camels, too, until they have had enough to drink.” 20 So she quickly emptied her jug into the watering trough and ran back to the well to draw water for all his camels.

  21 The servant watched her in silence, wondering whether or not the Lord had given him success in his mission. 22 Then at last, when the camels had finished drinking, he took out a gold ring for her nose and two large gold bracelets for her wrists. 23 “Whose daughter are you?” he asked. “And please tell me, would your father have any room to put us up for the night?” 24 “I am the daughter of Bethuel,” she replied. “My grandparents are Nahor and Milcah. 25 Yes, we have plenty of straw and feed for the camels, and we have room for guests.” 26 The man bowed low and worshiped the Lord. 27 “Praise the Lord, the God of my master, Abraham,” he said. “The Lord has shown unfailing love and faithfulness to my master, for he has led me straight to my master’s relatives.”

  1. To make your short-term mission successful: Put the Lord’s plan first.

  – It would be easy to second guess the plan: 

  – Go to a far-off land, find a girl willing to go back with you to marry a stranger, then hope it’s someone Isaac actually wants to marry too…

  – It would be easier to let Isaac pick his own wife… same outcome in the end, right?

  – God has a sovereign plan, even if we don’t understand it…

  – Example: My first short-term mission trip to build a house in Mexico…

  – Q: Why not build houses here? Why not send money? Etc… That’s NOT God’s plan there!

  – It’s not about the house or the building… it’s about the people (Missionaries AND poor)

  – YWAM (HOH) mission: “Engaging a Broken World with God’s Generosity” and “Know God, and Make Him Known”… The house is a task… NOT the mission itself.

  – After 10 years, I CAN see the generational change!

  – It’s not about me or what I want. It’s about playing a small part in the magnificent plan of reconciliation that God has for his people. You (the servant) is not the hero of the story… Jesus is.

  – I really connect with the starfish story… How can one person make a difference? (level-setting)

  – The servant in our story was on mission, followed instruction, and trusted God to work it out.

  Proverbs 3:5-6 (NKJV), Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.

  Proverbs 16:9 (NKJV), A man’s heart plans his way, But the Lord directs his steps.

  Psalm 37:5 (NKJV), Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass.

   

  Genesis 24:28-49 (NLT), 28 The young woman ran home to tell her family everything that had happened. 29 Now Rebekah had a brother named Laban, who ran out to meet the man at the spring. 30 He had seen the nose-ring and the bracelets on his sister’s wrists, and had heard Rebekah tell what the man had said. So he rushed out to the spring, where the man was still standing beside his camels. 31 Laban said to him, “Come and stay with us, you who are blessed by the Lord! Why are you standing here outside the town when I have a room all ready for you and a place prepared for the camels?”

  32 So the man went home with Laban, and Laban unloaded the camels, gave him straw for their bedding, fed them, and provided water for the man and the camel drivers to wash their feet. 33 Then food was served. But Abraham’s servant said, “I don’t want to eat until I have told you why I have come.” “All right,” Laban said, “tell us.”

  34 “I am Abraham’s servant,” he explained. 35 “And the Lord has greatly blessed my master; he has become a wealthy man. The Lord has given him flocks of sheep and goats, herds of cattle, a fortune in silver and gold, and many male and female servants and camels and donkeys. 36 “When Sarah, my master’s wife, was very old, she gave birth to my master’s son, and my master has given him everything he owns. 37 And my master made me take an oath. He said, ‘Do not allow my son to marry one of these local Canaanite women. 38 Go instead to my father’s house, to my relatives, and find a wife there for my son.’ 39 “But I said to my master, ‘What if I can’t find a young woman who is willing to go back with me?’ 40 He responded, ‘The Lord, in whose presence I have lived, will send his angel with you and will make your mission successful. Yes, you must find a wife for my son from among my relatives, from my father’s family. 41 Then you will have fulfilled your obligation. But if you go to my relatives and they refuse to let her go with you, you will be free from my oath.’ 42 “So today when I came to the spring, I prayed this prayer: ‘O Lord, God of my master, Abraham, please give me success on this mission. 43 See, I am standing here beside this spring. This is my request. When a young woman comes to draw water, I will say to her, “Please give me a little drink of water from your jug.” 44 If she says, “Yes, have a drink, and I will draw water for your camels, too,” let her be the one you have selected to be the wife of my master’s son.’ 45 “Before I had finished praying in my heart, I saw Rebekah coming out with her water jug on her shoulder. She went down to the spring and drew water. So I said to her, ‘Please give me a drink.’ 46 She quickly lowered her jug from her shoulder and said, ‘Yes, have a drink, and I will water your camels, too!’ So I drank, and then she watered the camels. 47 “Then I asked, ‘Whose daughter are you?’ She replied, ‘I am the daughter of Bethuel, and my grandparents are Nahor and Milcah.’ So I put the ring on her nose, and the bracelets on her wrists. 48 “Then I bowed low and worshiped the Lord. I praised the Lord, the God of my master, Abraham, because he had led me straight to my master’s niece to be his son’s wife. 49 So tell me—will you or won’t you show unfailing love and faithfulness to my master? Please tell me yes or no, and then I’ll know what to do next.”

  2. To make your short-term mission successful: Stay mission focused.

  – The servant knew his parameters and what success was going to look like. He didn’t even want to eat until he knew that he had confirmed he had the right girl… he was on the right track.

  – God was blessing his path, but he was still engaged in doing the work!

  – By the grace of God, he was able to find Isaac’s wife very quickly… Sometimes our Short-term mission seems to be taking longer than we ever expected.

  – Gal 6:9 (NKJV), And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.

  – There are many parts to God’s plan, many people are a part of it… focus on what God has called you to do, and don’t get distracted by all the noise. God is bigger than all this! He is in charge!

  Genesis 24:50-61 (NLT), 50 Then Laban and Bethuel replied, “The Lord has obviously brought you here, so there is nothing we can say. 51 Here is Rebekah; take her and go. Yes, let her be the wife of your master’s son, as the Lord has directed.” 52 When Abraham’s servant heard their answer, he bowed down to the ground and worshiped the Lord. 53 Then he brought out silver and gold jewelry and clothing and presented them to Rebekah. He also gave expensive presents to her brother and mother. 54 Then they ate their meal, and the servant and the men with him stayed there overnight. 

  But early the next morning, Abraham’s servant said, “Send me back to my master.” 55 “But we want Rebekah to stay with us at least ten days,” her brother and mother said. “Then she can go.” 56 But he said, “Don’t delay me. The Lord has made my mission successful; now send me back so I can return to my master.”

  57 “Well,” they said, “we’ll call Rebekah and ask her what she thinks.” 58 So they called Rebekah. “Are you willing to go with this man?” they asked her. And she replied, “Yes, I will go.” 59 So they said good-bye to Rebekah and sent her away with Abraham’s servant and his men. The woman who had been Rebekah’s childhood nurse went along with her. 60 They gave her this blessing as she parted:

  “Our sister, may you become the mother of many millions! May your descendants be strong
      and conquer the cities of their enemies.”

  61 Then Rebekah and her servant girls mounted the camels and followed the man. So Abraham’s servant took Rebekah and went on his way.

  3. To make your short-term mission successful: Finish Strong.

  – It has been a long journey, he just got there last night, found the wife… now, immediately wants to return home. Not hang out a few more days, not rest, not drag his feet… NOT BE DELAYED!

  – It is easy, at the end, to let off the gas and be satisfied with “good enough”. Sometimes we simply get in our own way, and get discouraged. God isn’t done with you yet!

  – Phil 1:6 (NKJV), being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ; 

  – Finishing strong is not something we do on our own; it is God working in us to bring His purpose to completion. Trusting in His plan gives us the strength to endure.

  – Col 3:23-24 (NKJV), And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, 24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ. 

   

  Genesis 24:62-67, 62 Meanwhile, Isaac, whose home was in the Negev, had returned from Beer-lahai-roi. 63 One evening as he was walking and meditating in the fields, he looked up and saw the camels coming. 64 When Rebekah looked up and saw Isaac, she quickly dismounted from her camel. 65 “Who is that man walking through the fields to meet us?” she asked the servant. And he replied, “It is my master.” So Rebekah covered her face with her veil. 66 Then the servant told Isaac everything he had done.

  67 And Isaac brought Rebekah into his mother Sarah’s tent, and she became his wife. He loved her deeply, and she was a special comfort to him after the death of his mother.

  MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

   

  – Isaac’s marriage to Rebekah ensured that God’s plan would continue into the next generation. God showed covenant faithfulness by working through his faithful people. (Big Picture!)

  *The servant faithfully carried out the mission, and he glorified God for bringing all the details together. God sovereignly worked behind the scenes to accomplish His will through the circumstances of those acting responsibly in faith. 

  – You we created for a purpose: Do you know what that is? Be in prayer, trusting God that he will reveal it to you.

  – Be ready for the next “short-term mission” God calls you on, and be successful by…

  – Putting the Lord’s plans before your own.

  – Staying mission focused.

  – And pushing through to finish strong for the glory of God!

  – Eph. 2:10 (NKJV), 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

   

  – prayer –

  
  
  

Joshua 1:4–8 — Strong and Courageous

• Strength and courage are required for many human activities. We fight and win wars. We intervene in difficult relationships. We overcome adversity in life.
• But most of what we do isn’t overly heroic or noteworthy. 
• We build relationships. We get jobs. We work out. pay bills. raise families. We walk through life.
• It may seem mundane on paper, but all of those things require strength and courage too.
• Because as we go through life, we quickly discover that things that seem easy often aren’t.
• Life can get hard./// And the good news is that when we read what God did in the lives of those who followed Him, we learn something about the God we serve.
• The God who was with Joshua is the same God who is with you. He is with you on assignment
• His nature has not changed. His character has not changed. His promises are still true.///
• And when God calls you forward, He does not send you alone.
• Today we’re going to walk through how to be strong and of good courage and prosper in the assignment God has given you.

• Realize God is with you 

• • The first part of walking in the promises of God is realize that God is with you. He is. 
  • God speaks to Joshua- V 5 I will be with you, I will not leave you or forsake you
  • I put myself in the text and think: “I’d be scared and worried that I’d have what it took”
  • The assurance from the Lord directly to Joshua obviously empowered him to walk in it

• God spoke to Joshua his presence and his promise- I will go with you and empower you

• • 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
  • dismayed :become discouraged, intimidated, or overwhelmed by what you see in front of you.
  • Don’t let the size of the assignment, the strength of the opposition, or the uncertainty of the future cause your heart to collapse.
  • Fear is often about what might happen. Dismay is what happens when what you see starts draining your courage. Fear is I wont get the interview. Dismay is I’m failing this interview. 
  • Isa. 41:10 Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. 
  • Isa. 43:2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. 

• Strength starts with His presence, not your personality.///

• When you’re faced with your assignment you have to internalize that God is with you. 
• You are not alone. You are not being sent out in your own strength and power. He is with you
• God will bring you into assignments where your strength alone is insufficient, because He wants your dependence and He deserves the glory.
• Matt. 28:20 And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. 
• That’s not just for discipleship. That’s for the seemingly mundane aspects of your life that are overwhelming. Being alive is hard. Making life work is hard. ///
• But the Promise to Joshua was God’s presence. God’s promise to you is Christ’s presence. 
• I can remember when I was 28 and out of the Army. First time finding a job to support my family. College was easy. Army constant paycheck. 
• Now: Its on you. Sitting in car, fearful and worried- I cried out to God- I need your strength. I don’t have what it takes. He showed up. He gave me the strength and the purpose
• And you say- well that’s easy for you! No, no its not. And it wasn’t it took constant reminding and constant recalibration to stay in the word and listen to what God’s word says to me
• Heb. 13:5 I will never leave you nor forsake you. Rom. 8:31 If God is for us, who can be against us? Ps. 23:4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of BILLS and LIFE I will fear no evil; for You are with me.  Ps. 46:1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. 
• Christ walks with you as you walk through the challenges of your assignment. He is with you

• Listen to what God says about you

• 3 times he says be strong and courageous to Joshua. 3 times. Once wasn’t enough. 

• • God didn’t say to Joshua- I told you once- that should be enough. He told him repeatedly. 
  • Here’s what I know– God wouldn’t say that if it wasn’t possible for Joshua to walk in it. 
  • Be strong and courageous. Be strong and courageous Be strong and courageous
  • Are you listening Joshua? Are you paying attending to what I’m saying? I’m with you and you are going to be strong and courageous. My presence with you will empower you to walk in it. 
  • You may feel weak. You may worry and doubt but still obey the command to be strong.
  • I can and will be strong and courageous. I’m not going to forget what God said to me. I can do it. 
  • And you may say- I’m not Joshua. I’m not possessing the land. Are these promises for me?
  • Romans 15:4 For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.
  • So we read the things that were written. We learn. We have patience. We have hope. 

• What does God say?

• He says that He’ll strengthen your heart as you walk with him. 

• • Ps. 27:14 Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart. 

• He says you don’t have walk in fear because he knows your name and you belong to him. 

• • Isa. 43:1 Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine. 

• He says that he is for you so no one can stand against you

• Rom. 8:31 If God is for us, who can be against us? 
• And what that means is this- When you’re struggling in your marriage you can have strength. When your job seems overwhelming you can walk without fear. That means when you’re given a scary medical diagnosis you can know that he calls you by name and you are his
• The Christian walk is a real walk in a real world that has real challenges. Remind yourself! 
• Christ has said good things to me and about me. Jesus, I will remember what you have said
• ILL-Now I’m not God. Far from it. But I’m bigger than most men. Its interesting, at times, Faith and I will be walking through downtown seattle at night. Its scary down there! She says to me- Dad, I’m never afraid when I’m with you. I feel completely confident when I’m with you
• That’s the mindset we should have! God you are with me! I can walk in strength and courage
• 2 Tim. 1:7 God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. 
• my encouragement to you Heb10:35 Do not cast away your confidence, which has great reward. 
• There is a great reward for you on the other side of fear. Blessings upon blessings in Christ
• Heb. 13:6 The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?

• Stay with the Word

• • As Christians, our guide and foundation is the written word of God. It does not change
  • Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
  • God spoke To Joshua. It was written down. It became scripture and now it guides us
  • 7 Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left,
  • 8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it.
  • There’s  principles for Joshua here. God had given the Law of Moses and the commandments
  • Joshua was to observe them, not turn from them, speak them, meditate them. Observe them
  • If Joshua was going to be strong and courageous his foundation had to be the word of God
  • Joshua wasn’t being sent out without marching orders and directions on how to walk. 

• His Courage without obedience could become recklessness. Away from the word he’s lost

• • God has clear directions that he had given in his word and Joshuas success is found in it

• Biblical courage stays submitted to the Word. It doesn’t invent its own way. ///

• • Joshua raised in the wilderness:- Ex 24:7 Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read in the hearing of the people. And they said, All that the LORD has said we will do, and be obedient.
  • All that the Lord has said we will do and be obedient. Plain and simple. Read and Obey

• This right here is the dividing line between those who walk in obedience and those who don’t

• • The word. People want his presence, strength and power, but they depart from the word. 
  • You can’t expect that a soft declaration of faith can sustain a life of victory. It just wont

• Matt. 4:4 Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. And Jesus is the Word! His words are life! To whom else shall we Go? Stick w Jesus!

• As you walk through this life and lead yourself and your family you need to stick with the word
• That means when you’re faced with a decision- you go to the word. You do what it says
• You want your relationships to flourish? Do what the word says. You want your finances to flourish do what the word says You want the work of your hands to be blessed- Stick w the word
• Ps. 1:2–3 His delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night… whatever he does shall prosper. 
• Many people want prosperity outside of the precepts of God. They feel as though somehow there’s a special provision for them. A workaround where they can circumvent the word. no
• Prov. 4:20–22 Give attention to my words… keep them in the midst of your heart; for they are life to those who find them. 
• Be relentless with you life- Ask- Am I living out the living words of Jesus? Am I with the Word?
• 2 Tim. 3:16–17 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God… that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. 
• Like your money. You resist the precepts of God in your finances and struggle. Do the word

• Prosper

• • The promise to Joshua was that he would prosper wherever he went. Battles would be won. Boundaries would expand. Israel would be blessed and inherit the land. It was a promise
  • And as you read through it, you will see. They will have challenges, but they will prosper. 
  • V7 that you may prosper wherever you go. V8 For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.
  • The promise is not “follow God and get rich.” The promise is “stay in His presence, stay in His Word, obey Him courageously, and you will succeed in the assignment He has given you.”
  • Prosperity isn’t just material blessings. Its too simple and limited to only want the tangible. 
  • Israel wasn’t just going to prosper in what they received. They would prosper in who they were
  • Look at what the word says  Gen. 39:2–3 The Lord was with Joseph, and he was a successful man… the Lord made all he did to prosper in his hand. 
  • 1 Chron. 22:13 Then you will prosper, if you take care to fulfill the statutes and judgments… 
  • The prosperity gospel has infected the church to the point where now its like we’re no longer allowed a measure of success because someone bastardized a simple Bible truth
  • Yes, Christians have challenges, but Walking with God produces prosperity in the things that matter to God. ///
  • I’m not ashamed to believe that God blesses obedience. I’m not ashamed to believe that God can establish the work of your hands. I’m not ashamed to believe that when you walk with Him, stay in His Word, and obey His voice, your life can prosper in the things that matter to Him.

• Walking with Jesus is life and that more abundantly. He gives us bread and not a stone. 

• • And it takes a measure of honesty- Are you in his presence? Are you reminding what he told you? Am I staying with the word of God? Often, many people are not doing this
  • And the definition of prosperity isn’t always in your hand. Heart, mind, ministry etc. 
  • You can prosper making 50k and you can be outside of God’s blessing at 500k. not equal
  • Biblical prosperity is not the absence of hardship. It is the presence of God, obedience to His Word, fruit in your life, and faithfulness in the assignment He has given you.
  • Isa55:11My word…shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it. 
  • Has my life had challenges? Of course it has. Has there been lean times with struggles? Yes
  • But I have always prospered in the things of God. I have always been taken care of 100% 
  • Heb. 13:20–21 Make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight.

• Your question should not be why am I not prospering, it should be am I walking with him. 

• • Am I walking in obedience to my assignment under the precepts of God’s word. 

• Because when you walk with God, you will prosper in what matters. His assignment goes

• Ps. 90:17 Establish the work of our hands for us; yes, establish the work of our hands. 
• Hebrews 4:8–10 READ shows us that Joshua gave Israel a real inheritance, but not the final rest. There remained something greater. Jesus is the greater Joshua. He leads His people into the rest, inheritance, and life that only He can give.
• So don’t measure your life only by what is in your hand. Ask: Is Christ with me? Am I obeying His Word? Am I walking in the assignment He has given me? If I am, then even in the hard season, I can trust that God is accomplishing His purpose in me.
• And like Joshua, there will be challenges, but challenges not= God is not prospering me
• Be strong and courageous. Stay in His presence. Remember what He said. Stay with the Word. Walk in obedience. And trust God with the outcome.

• • Matthew 6:31-33(Nkjv) “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.

    What do I do when the past keeps calling me? Genesis 24:1-9

    • • Abraham is old and blessed – in all things 
      • He tells his servant Eliezer to go and get Isaac a wife
      • Eliezer is in charge of ALL that Abraham owned
    • This is the same guy Genesis 15:2 (Nkjv) – 2 But Abram said, “Lord God, what will You give me, seeing I [a]go childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?”
    • • I don’t know at what point he started to fear the Lord but we know that He is a man who knows Abraham’s God and not only that but has his own faith 
      • This is confirmed now and in later chapters
    • Abraham asks him to swear by the Lord God of heaven and earth –Genesis 24:3
    • Before he approached Rebekah, he prayed for God’s `guidance – Genesis 24:12-14
    • When he gets to Rebekah’s home, he gives God credit rather than himself – Genesis 24:27 (Nkjv) 
    • Here is a slave entrusted with not only wealth but also the future of mankind  
    • Sometimes we are concerned if “we matter” and we do in God’s kingdom. Only when we let Him do above, beyond anything that we can ever think or imagine 
    • Here is an example that if we are willing to leave our care to the Lord, He will direct our steps in places we never thought we would be 
    • Abraham has one major request – Swear to me to: 
      • Do not take a wife from this place for my son vs 3– (We can still live in the gates of Sodom and still refuse to be integrated with the customs and behaviors of the place – go back to my relative’s house 
      • However, do not take my son there -at all 
      • Both things can be true – Obedience to God doesn’t require understanding 
    • Eliezer asks for clarification
      • Suppose the woman is not willing to follow me back?
      • Abraham responds the same – DO NOT take my son back there!!
      • Abraham is confident that the Lord who has seen him this far will indeed send an angel to go before his servants
      • At this age – Abraham has no doubt regarding the power and the promises of God 
    • Abraham clarifies 
      • If she refuses, then you are off the hook 
      • But you must NEVER take my son back there 
    • Begs to ask the question- what did Abraham have against:
      • Canaanite women
      • Isaac going back to his homeland Mesopotamia?
    • Deuteronomy 7:3-4 (Nkjv)- You must not intermarry with them. Do not let your daughters and sons marry their sons and daughters, 4 for they will lead your children away from me to worship other gods. Then the anger of the Lord will burn against you, and he will quickly destroy you.
    • Does Abraham not trust his son – it’s not about trusting his son 
    • The past has a loud voice, memories, lure, – the past never forgets 

    Do not take my son back to my past 

    • • The Bible has a lot to say about looking back 
        • There is a difference between looking back and remembering 
        • Remember what the Lord has done for you ~  “When your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, ‘What are these stones?’ Joshua 4:19-24(Nkjv) 
    • Looking back – lot’s wife looked back – Genesis 19:26 (Nkjv) 
    • As a dog returns to its vomit – Proverbs 26:11(NLT)
    • James 1:23-24(Nkjv)- For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; 24 for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was.
    • That brings up a great question – why do we go back to our past?– After we have been redeemed, delivered, and changed – what is it back there that keeps on calling us?
    • Your plough is in storage 
    • • Elijah is asked by the Lord to go and anoint Elisha 
    • 1 Kings 19:16-21 (Nkjv) So he departed from there, and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he was with the twelfth. Then Elijah passed by him and threw his mantle on him. 20 And he left the oxen and ran after Elijah, and said, “Please let me kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow you.” And he said to him, “Go back again, for what have I done to you?” 21 So Elisha turned back from him, and took a yoke of oxen and slaughtered them and boiled their flesh, using the oxen’s equipment, and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he arose and followed Elijah, and became his servant.
    • • Elisha kills 2 of his 24 Cattle and uses the plough to cook the meat and through a party 
      • Things we can learn about Elisha: 
      • He was wealthy 12 pairs of cattle – challenges the notion that, when we have worked so hard for something, that we can’t leave those things or relationships. He walked away and more so, burned the one thing he didn’t have more of 
      • He threw a party – equivalent of posting on Facebook- I am no longer drinking, going to those places- I gave my life to Christ – Make it public 
    • Ephesians 6:12 (NLT) For we[a] are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.
    • • The reason we struggle with the past things, is because we have left them physically, but we have not yet left them spiritually. We still like how it felt, how it made me look, how it built me
      • To our physical eyes you are good but to the Spirit world – you are still paying that U-Haul storage monthly 
      • You need to spiritually disconnect from that thing 
      • The old spirit keeps on calling – we never put it to death 
    • Matthew 12:43-45 (Nkjv) “When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest, and finds none. 44 Then he says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when he comes, he finds it empty, swept, and put in order. 45 Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first. So shall it also be with this wicked generation.”

    
    

    • False sense of safety 
    • • If you have spoken to me one of one of late – I will tell you that the word Sovereignty of God has been coming up in almost all my conversations 
      • We have to get to this point in our lives, where just like Joshua we will have to decide – Choose whom you will follow this day 
      • If you have been walking with God, you love Him and desire to be obedient to Him
      • Then – He is either:
        • As Psalm 37:23 (Nkjv) says: The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. – and that mean that He ordered you out of the past 
        • And no matter how bad your current situation feels like – He was Lord before then and He is Lord in it and He will be Lord after (He is sovereign) 
        • Or – He is not- and the past has just been luck, today is luck and tomorrow will be luck as well 
      • Unfortunately, we don’t trust God to see us through tomorrow – We put safety – false sense of safety before the one who GOT it up to this point
      • Some of you have unspoken covenant with your past: If it doesn’t work out, I can always go back 
      • That was us when we left California – if it doesn’t work out 
      • When I left ATT – to go into real estate 
      • I would be a fool now – unfaithful if I have the same sense of dependency on the things that have worked before – my dependency should and will be Christ!!
      • He has led me this far and tomorrow He will be in charge as well 
      • Abraham didn’t want his son going back because He did not have any spiritual connection with the past and he didn’t not have his faith in what had worked before 
      • He had faith in WHO had worked in his life before and who continues to be faithful – JESUS!!
      • Abraham had no doubt that God would be the one in charge – God will make things happen
    • Vs 7 – The Lord God of heaven, who took me from my father’s house and from the land of my family, and who spoke to me and swore to me, saying, ‘To your [b]descendants I give this land,’ He will send His angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there. 
    • We want control 
    • • Do we really have control – and I am not talking about the things we do, like your attitude – I am talking about the things that we hold on too tightly that we can’t let go – we hold on to our past hoping to be in control of that as well 
      • Control is a byproduct/ symptom of worry = Lack of trust in the Lord 
    • You are in control if you don’t: Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall [a]direct your paths. – Proverbs 3:5–6 (NKJV) 
    • Luke 12:25-31 (NKJV) 25 Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? 26 And if worry can’t accomplish a little thing like that, what’s the use of worrying over bigger things?“Look at the lilies and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. 28 And if God cares so wonderfully for flowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith?
    • • Some of you have a greater future ahead, but you choose to not let go what you have today – something has to die 
    •  John 12:24 (AMP) I assure you and most solemnly say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone [just one grain, never more]. But if it dies, it produces much grain and yields a harvest.
    • • The Psalmist teaches us how to lose control in the careful hands of God 
    • Psalms 23(NkjV)
      The Lord is my shepherd;
      I shall not [a]want.
      2 He makes me to lie down in [b]green pastures;
      He leads me beside the [c]still waters.
      3 He restores my soul;
      He leads me in the paths of righteousness
      For His name’s sake.
    • 4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
      I will fear no evil;
      For You are with me;
      Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
    • 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
      You anoint my head with oil;
      My cup runs over.
      6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
      All the days of my life;
      And I will [d]dwell in the house of the Lord
      [e]Forever.
    • • This relationship/benefits can only happen if He leads 
      • The Lord led Eliazer to Rebekah because He Let the Lord lead –  
    • Genesis 24:27(Nkjv) – And he said, “Blessed be the Lord God of my master Abraham, who has not forsaken His mercy and His truth toward my master. As for me, being on the way, the Lord led me to the house of my master’s brethren.”
    • What do I do when the past keeps calling me? 
    • First – don’t answer – but most important 
    • Remember your one thing! 
    • Vs 7- 7 The Lord God of heaven, who took me from my father’s house and from the land of my family, and who spoke to me and swore to me, saying, ‘To your [a]descendants I give this land,’ He will send His angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there.
    • • God will – not your skills, or connection, or hard work, charm, e.t.c – The God who has already done it before over and over, will send His Angels yet again to go before you and make His will accomplished in you – you only need to seek Him- and then everything else will be added to you – Above, beyond anything you can ever think or imagine  

   

Josh. 1:1–2 Moses is Dead. Arise

• To possess something new, something old usually has to be left behind
• You leave one season to enter another. You leave one role to step into another. You leave what was to walk into what is next. When God moves you into a new season, there are things from the old one that cannot come with you. ///
• Moses My servant is dead. Now therefore, arise, go over this Jordan…Josh. 1:2
• You cannot experience what God is beginning if you refuse to accept what is over.
• We’re beginning our Study of Joshua The overall theme is that God keeps His promises, and His people must courageously walk in faithful obedience to possess what He has given them.
• And the book begins with a death. Before Joshua can move into what God has next, he has to accept that what was before is over.
•  Moses is dead. Now arise. Something ended. But the promise of God did not.

 

The Promised Land

• • At the beginning of Joshua, Israel is leaving the wilderness and preparing to possess the land God had promised them.
  • The promise- Ex. 3:8 I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land to a good and large land, to a land flowing with milk and honey…
  • the promise? God promised them something far better than the wilderness they had known.
  • The Process Ex. 23:20 Behold, I send an Angel before you to keep you in the way and to bring you into the place which I have prepared.
  • God not only gave the promise, He also promised to lead them into it.
  • Now as we walk through this sermon today, and as we walk through Joshua we need to make an important distinction: we are not Israel, and we have not been given Israel’s land promise.

• But God has given His people promises in Christ, and we are called to trust Him and walk obediently in what He has spoken.

• 2 Cor. 1:20 For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us
• Our promises are not a piece of land. In Christ, we are promised eternal life, forgiveness of sin, the presence of God, resurrection, and an eternal inheritance.
• God also cares for our needs, restores what He chooses to restore, blesses obedience, and faithfully provides for His people.
• As you walk with God, He will lead you in the relationships, work, ministry, and assignments He has for your life.
• So as we walk through this, ask: What has God actually promised me, and what obedience is He requiring from me?
• Israel had a specific covenant promise of land. We do not inherit that promise. But the same God who kept His word to Israel is the God who keeps every promise He has made to us in Christ.

 

1. SOME RELATIONSHIPS NEED TO END

• • Picture Moses on Mount Nebo, looking over the land God had promised Israel. He can see it, but he will not enter it. And Moses dies there, never entering the land himself.
  • For 40 years he led Israel through the desert. Worship. Battles. Births. Deaths. Provision. 
  • Moses was the leader- And Joshua was his right hand man- he spent years as Moses’ assistant, servant, and military leader. But then Moses dies and Joshua becomes the leader
  • However strong of a relationship that Moses and Joshua had together. That season was over 
  • It was a God-ordained relationship, but its season had ended. Israel could honor Moses without trying to keep living under Moses. Some people are part of a season, not every season.
  • You can honor what God used yesterday without demanding that He use it tomorrow.
  • Moses is dead. Now arise. And this is not the only place in Scripture where God-given relationships changed
  • Abraham and Lot  Gen. 13traveled together, but eventually the land could not support them both. Abraham separates from him. No hatred, no betrayal. Just a necessary division.
  • Paul and Barnabas Ac 15ministered together, but disagreement over John Mark caused them to separate. Paul took Silas; Barnabas took Mark. relationship changed, but ministry continued.
  • The principle is this: not every relationship will remain the same in every season God leads you through

• Don’t kill relationships God hasn’t ended. But don’t resurrect relationships God has ended.

• • I am not telling you to abandon covenant relationships, and this is certainly not justification for divorce.
  • But There may be unhealthy relationships where wisdom requires distance or boundaries.

• And sometimes God uses someone powerfully in one season without intending that relationship to remain the same forever

• I had a wonderful pastor growing up. HS and college. First to let me preach. Loved me with a fathers love. We had a deep relationship and then it ended. I was conflicted for a long time
• I eventually realized that if I was going to become who God had called me to be, that relationship could not remain what it had been.
• God did not call me to become him. He called me to become who He had made me to be, and that required the relationship to change
• Eccl. 3:1 To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven.
• If God has clearly brought a season in a relationship to an end, do not keep trying to resurrect what He has already finished. Let the Holy Spirit lead you.

 

2. OLD WAYS NEED TO DIE

• • The wilderness required one way of living. The promised land would require another.
  • Crossing the Jordan would bring a massive change in how Israel lived. (we’ll see in Joshua)
  • here’s what I know: we like what we know, even when God is leading us into something new.
  • How Israel lived in the wilderness could not be how they lived in the land
  • Invetiabley- there was and were people who didn’t want to change. Keep the ‘old ways’
  • Food: wilderness: manna arrived daily. Now: plant, harvest, store, and manage food.
  • Movement: follow the cloud and move camp v fixed cities, boundaries, territories
  • Shelter: tents and temp camp v houses, cities, vineyards, wells, and cultivated fields. 
  • Warfare: some battles, but not conquest v warfare central bc they must possess cities etc
  • Leadership: Moses led a wandering nation v Joshua leads a conquering and settling nation. 
  • Provision: provision miraculous and immediate v work, seasons, rain, harvest, and stewardship.
  • What brought them to it could not sustain them through it. The old ways needed to die
  • Its like our Church. We are not who we were 23 years ago. Not even 5 years ago. Wherever God leads us in the future, we can’t hold on to an old way of doing something just bc it worked
  • churches get stuck because people confuse faithfulness to God with faithfulness to a method.
  • Scripture repeatedly shows following God requires leaving things behind and dying to the old
  • Lu 9:62 No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.

• You cannot follow Jesus while constantly turning back toward what He called you to leave.

• John 12:24 Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain.
• Sometimes death to the old is the very means God uses to produce new life.
• Is this not the same with our spiritual life? Must the old man die for new life to take root?
• Rom. 6:6 Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.
• Gal. 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me…
• If God is moving you into a new season, do not cling to an old way simply because it is familiar.
• What was useful in one season may not be useful in the next. Be willing to let God change your methods without changing your convictions.
• Be ruthless about methods, but immovable about truth. Is this still serving the purpose God gave it, or are we keeping it alive simply because it is familiar?
• 1 Cor. 15:36 Foolish one, what you sow is not made alive unless it dies.
• We cannot make a method sacred just because God used it before.

 

3. THE PAST NEEDS TO BE LET GO

• • Forty years of wilderness history was behind them. An entire generation died in the wilderness. Hundreds of thousands of adults who left Egypt never entered the Promised Land.
  • And they lived real life there- Failure, disappointment, death, wandering.
  • Again, these are humans. They remembered. They knew what they had been through
  • Unbelief, complaining, idolatry, rebellion, and a constant temptation to go backward.
  • Think about some of what Israel went through in the wilderness
  • Complaining about food and provision Ex. 16 what they had left behind in Egypt.
  • The golden calf  Ex. 32 While Moses was on Sinai, they turned to idolatry almost immediately.
  • Rebellion at Kadesh Barnea Num. 13–14 Spies were fearful, didn’t enter the land. 
  • Moses striking the rock Num. 20:7–12 His disobedience kept him from entering the land.
  • Israel knew this. They experienced the pain of the past and the judgment that came from it

• Here’s whats hard about being human- we remember. The good the bad and the ugly

• When we step into something new, old failures have a way of coming back to mind and trying to paralyze us.
• And now they stand on the precipice of victory and those memories still rest in their brains
• What do you do with those thoughts? The past can explain you without controlling you.///
• All of your failures of your life really happened and there’s nothing you can do to fix it
• When you came to Christ, your sins were forgiven and you became a new creation.
• But even AFTER being born again. You might still have sinned or made a bad decision
• Bless God, we serve a God of new beginnings where we can still move forward by faith
• The Bible says we can: forget those things which are behind… and reach forward to those things which are ahead Phil. 3:13–14
• We can lay aside every weight… and run with endurance… and look unto Jesus Heb. 12:1–2
• Israel’s past did not cancel God’s faithfulness, and your past does not cancel what Christ has done for you. The past is real, but it does not have to rule your future.///
• We must let it die. Let it stay where it is- in the past- 
• Isa. 43:18–19 Do not remember the former things… Behold, I will do a new thing
• Here’s a bible help when faced with a new season with an old memory- 
• Eccl. 7:10 Do not say, Why were the former days better than these?
• I’ve mentioned it before- 2019 was a rough year for me and the Church. I wanted to quit and the pains of that season often kept me from forward movement. I had to stop letting that season govern the seasons that came after it.
• God doesn’t tell Joshua to live looking backward. “Arise, go over this Jordan.”

 

4. SELF NEEDS TO DIE

• • I want you to notice something in this scripture- Josh. 1:1  Joshua is introduced as “Moses’ assistant.” He was just assistant of Moses. Wasn’t even the guy, but he had to change. 
  • That was who Joshua had been, but it could not remain the limits of how he saw himself.
  • The assistant now had to become the leader. He could no longer have an assistant mindset
  • God’s calling required Joshua to stop defining himself by his old role
  • Sometimes what has to die isn’t something around you. It’s the version of you that belonged to the previous season.///
  • Who you were in the last season cannot define who God is calling you to be in the next
  • Joshua was chosen and publicly commissioned as Moses’ successor. Num. 27:18–20 Take Joshua… lay your hand on him… give some of your authority to him
  • God personally confirms Joshua’s assignment and promises to be with him. Deut. 31:23 Be strong and of good courage; for you shall bring the children of Israel into the land
  • So what does he do? He does it. God confirms it v 1:5 As I was with Moses, so I will be with you
  • I’m reminded of when Samuel spoke to Saul in 1 Sam. 10:6 Then the Spirit of the LORD will come upon you, and you will prophesy with them and be turned into another man.

• God’s call often requires us to become different than we were before

• Jesus took fishermen and made them disciples. He took ordinary men and reshaped their identity around His call.
• This is what happened when you came to Christ- Gal. 2:20 it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me you put off the old man… put on the new man Col. 3:9–10
• And so you must be willing to let God change not only what is sinful in you, but also the habits and disciplines required for what He is calling you into.
• New responsibilities require new disciplines. What God entrusts to you next may require disciplines you have never needed before.
• Embrace it. Be willing to go to God and say: What in me needs to change for me to obey You in this next season?
• The process will not be easy, but the blessings will be immeasurable and worth it. 
• Enter and let the old die Relationships  who you’re connected to. Old ways  how you’ve operated. The past  where you’ve been. Self who you’ve believed yourself to be.
• Moses is dead. Arise. Something ended. But God’s promise didn’t end with it. 

• The Purchase of a Grave

  “Sarah lived one hundred and twenty-seven years; these were the years of the life of Sarah. So Sarah died in Kirjath Arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham came to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her. Then Abraham stood up from before his dead, and spoke to the sons of Heth, saying, “I am a foreigner and a visitor among you. Give me property for a burial place among you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.” And the sons of Heth answered Abraham, saying to him, “Hear us, my Lord: You are a mighty prince among us; bury your dead in the choicest of our burial places. None of us will withhold from you his burial place, that you may bury your dead.” Then Abraham stood up and bowed himself to the people of the land, the sons of Heth. And he spoke with them, saying, “If it is your wish that I bury my dead out of my sight, hear me, and meet with Ephron the son of Zohar for me, that he may give me the cave of Machpelah which he has, which is at the end of his field. Let him give it to me at the full price, as property for a burial place among you.” Now Ephron dwelt among the sons of Heth; and Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the presence of the sons of Heth, all who entered at the gate of his city, saying, “No, my Lord, hear me: I give you the field and the cave that is in it; I give it to you in the presence of the sons of my people. I give it to you. Bury your dead!” Then Abraham bowed himself down before the people of the land; and he spoke to Ephron in the hearing of the people of the land, saying, “If you will give it, please hear me. I will give you money for the field; take it from me and I will bury my dead there.” And Ephron answered Abraham, saying to him, “My Lord, listen to me; the land is worth four hundred shekels of silver. What is that between you and me? So bury your dead.” And Abraham listened to Ephron; and Abraham weighed out the silver for Ephron which he had named in the hearing of the sons of Heth, four hundred shekels of silver, currency of the merchants. So the field of Ephron which was in Machpelah, which was before Mamre, the field and the cave which was in it, and all the trees that were in the field, which were within all the surrounding borders, were deeded to Abraham as a possession in the presence of the sons of Heth, before all who went in at the gate of his city. And after this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah, before Mamre (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan. So the field and the cave that is in it were deeded to Abraham by the sons of Heth as property for a burial place.” Genesis 23:1-20 NKJV

  Sarah has died and Abraham mourns her death. So Abraham says, “Give me property among you for a burying place, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.” 

   

  This was very interesting to me. There is a variation of this phrase that’s actually repeated seven times in this chapter. The phrase, “bury my dead.” 7 times scripture records this phrase in only 20 verses. There is a spiritual principle at work. 

   

  In the Bible, the number seven symbolizes completeness, divine perfection, and finished work. 

  Shevah: The Hebrew word for seven comes from a root meaning “to be full,” “satisfied,” or “having enough”

  Shaba: This related Hebrew word means “to swear an oath”. In ancient thought, the number seven connected a complete promise with God’s faithfulness.

   

  Sarah is dead, her life is complete. The promised son has been born. There is a completion of Sarah’s life, a finished work along with the faithfulness of God to bring the son of promise. 

   

  But there is also a promise of a land not yet fulfilled.

   

  Abraham stood at a grave, but he was still holding onto a promise. There will be moments when what you see looks like a grave, while what God has said looks like a promise. Faith chooses to believe God anyway.

  1. Sarah died in faithfulness.

  Sarah has died. She was 127 years old and this is significant she is the only woman that scripture records the age of her death. After walking with Abraham through years of uncertainty, waiting, testing, and God’s promises, Sarah’s earthly journey has come to an end.

  There are no great miracles in this chapter. No fire falls from heaven. No angel appears. No dramatic victory takes place. Instead, we find Abraham mourning his wife and purchasing a grave.

  The Bible shows a lot of respect for Sarah. Some of the things that Sarah did were questionable and sometimes awful, but she died in faith and faithful. 

   

  Hebrews 11:11 ESV “By faith Sarah herself received power to conceive, even when she was past the age, since she considered him faithful who had promised.” 

   

  Sarah had faith that the Lord would keep his promise because she recognized that God is faithful. And however much she doubted that that her own age would keep her from having children, she knew that God was faithful and she knew that God had made a promise. And so that faith in the Lord’s Word, even though sometimes she struggled with it, that faith enabled her to conceive and have a son. 

   

  It is recorded of her-

   

  1 Peter 3:1-6 ESV “Likewise, wives, be subject to your own husbands, so that even if some do not obey the word, they may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives, when they see your respectful and pure conduct. Do not let your adorning be external, the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear, but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious. For this is how the holy women who hoped in God used to adorn themselves, by submitting to their own husbands, as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord. And you are her children, if you do good and do not fear anything that is frightening.” 

   

  The Bible lifts up Sarah as an example of a holy woman of God. A godly woman doesn’t require attention through her outward appearance, but her inward character is beautifully shown by submitting to her own husband as Sarah obeyed Abraham. 

   

  Over the last ten chapters or so, Sarah didn’t always obey Abraham. So what is Peter saying here? It is the way Sarah addressed him, calling him “lord”. Sarah had a respect for Abraham. Sarah respected his word. She had a respect for his decisions. She did not undermine her husband. She didn’t talk bad about him behind his back. And she trusted him to lead her to obey and follow the Lord.

   

  Scripture holds up Sarah as an example of a godly wife that women should follow, even though Sarah wasn’t perfect in her own marriage. 

   

  Isaiah chapter 51:1-2 ESV “Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness, you who seek the Lord: look to the rock from which you were hewn, and to the quarry from which you were dug. Look to Abraham your father and to Sarah who bore you; for he was but one when I called him, that I might bless him and multiply him.” 

   

  The prophet Isaiah is saying, saying, “Remember where you came from. Remember Abraham your father, remember Sarah your mother, look to their examples, look to his faith when I called him, because I promised to bless him and multiply him.” 

   

  So it’s not just Abraham that the Bible holds in high regard, it’s Sarah as well. 

   

  Abraham is grieving a godly wife who ended her life faithful. She is recorded in Scripture as being faithful. 

  God keeps good records. What will be recorded of you??

  2. Grieve in hope

  Abraham repeatedly calls Sarah “my dead”. Scripture is being deliberately blunt about death. Abraham does not minimize it or spiritualize it away. Sarah was not merely “gone.” She had died, and Abraham was grieving.

  That is an important biblical picture of grief, faith does not require us to deny the reality of loss.

  Abraham wept. The man who had seen God do the impossible still cried when he lost someone he loved. There is nothing unspiritual about grieving. There is nothing weak about tears. Sometimes the most faithful thing you can do is bring your broken heart before God.

  Sarah’s death was real.  Abraham had walked with Sarah for many years. They had traveled together. They had faced famine together. They had waited for God’s promise together. They had experienced Isaac’s birth together. And now she was gone. 

  People are a privilege not a promise. Not everyone who starts out with you, will finish with you. EX: the death of my grandmother was precious to me, I wanted her to meet Matt, I remember crying at just visiting her house years later

  Abraham would have to go on without his beloved wife.

  Abraham mourned. You can believe in heaven and still miss someone. You can know that God is good and still ask, “Lord, why?” You can have faith and still have tears in your eyes.

  This is important because sometimes we think that strong faith means we should not grieve. Faith does not mean we never cry. Faith means that even when we cry, we still trust God.

  Abraham was a man of faith, but he was also a man who experienced loss. Abraham did not pretend Sarah’s death didn’t hurt. He mourned.

  HOWEVER, There is a difference between grieving and giving up.

  Grief says, “This hurts because I loved.” Despair says, “There is no hope.” The Christian is allowed to grieve, but we do not have to grieve without hope.

  “But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus.” I Thessalonians 4:13-14 NKJV

  Paul tells believers not to sorrow “even as others which have no hope.” Notice that Paul doesn’t say, “Do not sorrow.” He says, do not sorrow as those who have no hope. That means our tears can coexist with our faith.

  Let me let you in on something- thoughts and emotions without hope are not from God. EX: After my grandmother died, I had lost hope for a time because I took care of her and she took care of me, paid for my schooling, what was I going to do?? 

  He is the God of all HOPE. I can tell you now, that if my grandmother had never died, i would never have had to get another job, and quit school and i would never have met my husband,

  God still has a plan!

  You may be hurting today. You may have lost a loved one. You may be grieving a relationship. You may be grieving a dream that never happened. You may be grieving a season of your life that is over. Bring your tears to the Lord.

  But there is still hope in a good God that not only keeps all your tears, but He heals your broken heart. “It will always be this way” is the lie of the enemy. God moves in hope and faith.

  If you are struggling with loss- I need you to hear God’s word tonight, He is the God of Hope. He wants you to believe Him for healing, for deliverance, for restoration; have hope that in time, He will restore all that was lost! Believe HE still has a plan and that your best days are ahead of you and not behind you.

  3. Hope moves from grief to action

  Notice the progression:

  • “Abraham came to mourn for Sarah, and to weep for her” (v. 2).
  • Then he gets up and begins dealing with the practical necessity of burial (v. 3).
  • He negotiates for a burial place.
  • He insists on paying the full price.
  • Sarah is finally buried (v. 19).

  The repeated language of burial moves the narrative forward. Grief is acknowledged, but Abraham doesn’t remain paralyzed by grief. He mourns, and then he takes the next faithful step.

  Sometimes faith looks like getting up after we have wept and doing the next thing God has put before us.

  “Then Abraham stood up from before his dead, and spoke to the sons of Heth, saying, “I am a foreigner and a visitor among you. Give me property for a burial place among you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.” 

  The Hittites answered Abraham, “Hear us, my lord; you are a prince of God among us.” 

  The Hittites recognized God’s favor on Abraham. They called him a prince of God. They said, “Bury your dead in the choices of our tombs. None of us will withhold from you his tomb.” 

  So Abraham asked to talk to Ephron, that he would give him the cave of Machpelah. And he said, “For the full price let him give it to me in your presence as property for a burying place.” 

   

  Abraham wanted to get a deal done right away. He needed a burial place very quickly. He had his dead wife on his hands and he had finished his mourning and now he needed to get her buried. And so he wanted to get a deal done right away.

   

  Ephron was sitting among the Hittites, and Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the hearing of all the Hittites, of all who went in at the gate of his city. This is the place where these negotiations were typically held- at the gate of the city. 

   

  And Ephron says, “No, my Lord, hear me: I give you the field.” 

   

  This is a typical method of negotiating a sale. The seller offers the item for free knowing that the buyer won’t accept. That’s a little bit different obviously than our modern culture. We would think if somebody today were to offer you something for free, we would think of it as that person is being extremely generous and we would accept. That’s our culture. 

   

  But in those days, in that culture, that’s not how it was. The seller would offer it for free to make it appear as if he was being generous, but the buyer would never accept something for free because that wasn’t socially acceptable. It was socially acceptable to offer something for free. It was not socially acceptable to accept something for free. So then the buyer would offer to pay the full price and the seller would suggest a price that would be usually very high and then they would negotiate down from there to an agreed upon price. 

   

  Abraham bowed down before the people of the land. He shows respect and integrity by bowing down and he rejects the offer of the free land, and offers to pay the full price. Ephron said the price is four hundred shekels of silver. This is an outrageous amount for a piece of land. In those days, one acre was about 40 shekels. It’s not exactly clear how large this piece of land is, but it’s probably very high for what Ephron was offering. 

   

  And in fact, Abraham could have gone back to his family to bury Sarah for free. Remember, his family is still alive. And at the end of the last chapter, we found out that his brother Nahor had a bunch of kids. He could have gone back there and buried Sarah for free on his brother Nahor’s land.

   

  But God told him to stay in the land of Canaan. And so he’s staying obedient to God, he’s willing to make the personal sacrifice that is required to stay obedient. 

   

  Again, what can we learn from this? What cost is required in order to stay obedient to God? 

   

  There’s going to be a cost. Are you willing to pay that cost? Are you willing to pay a high cost? 

   

  400 shekels of silver,  is a very very high price for what Abraham was actually getting. But he was willing to pay it. 

  Are you willing to pay a high cost in order to remain obedient to God? 

   

  Abraham weighed out for Ephron the silver that he had named in the hearing of the Hittites as witnesses. Abraham paid the price. He did not negotiate down. 

   

  The field and the cave that is in it were made over to Abraham as property for a burying place by the Hittites. This act solidifies Abraham’s commitment to keep his family in Canaan. Now he owns land in Canaan. Now he has personal stake in the land. He owns portion of the land. He’s now tied to it. 

   

  This is faith in action. 

   

  “But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect? And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” And he was called the friend of God. You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only.”

  James 2:18-24 NKJV

  
  
  

  Abraham showed his faith by his works. God had already spared his son on the altar of sacrifice and now, Abraham believed the promise of God that God was going to give him the land of Canaan, and so Abraham was spending a large amount of money on a personal stake in the land. 

   

  Sarah, Abraham, Isaac, Rebecca, Leah, and Jacob would all be buried in this cave. This would be a very important cave to Abraham’s family. So Abraham’s concern to “bury my dead” becomes part of the establishment of a family heritage in the land God promised.

  
  
  

  4. The grave is connected to God’s promise.

  This is perhaps the most important theological significance. God had promised Abraham the land of Canaan. Yet at this point Abraham does not possess the land.

  What does he own? A grave.

  The first recorded piece of the promised land that Abraham legally possesses is a burial site.

  So even while Abraham is standing beside a grave, God’s promise is quietly advancing.

  Abraham is essentially saying: “I don’t possess this entire land yet, but I believe God’s promise enough to purchase a piece of it.”

  The grave becomes a foothold of faith in the promised land. It points beyond Sarah’s death to future generations. What begins as an act of mourning becomes part of God’s unfolding covenant story.

  There is a beautiful tension: death is present, but God’s promise is alive and marching on

  Genesis 23 puts a grave in the middle of the promised land.

  Abraham is grieving death while simultaneously believing God’s promise of life for generations to come. He cannot yet see the fulfillment of the promise.

  There is another grave at the center of God’s fulfilled promise- 

  “After this, Joseph of Arimathea, being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly, for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus; and Pilate gave him permission. So he came and took the body of Jesus. And Nicodemus, who at first came to Jesus by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds. Then they took the body of Jesus, and bound it in strips of linen with the spices, as the custom of the Jews is to bury. Now in the place where He was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid. So there they laid Jesus, because of the Jews’ Preparation Day, for the tomb was nearby.” John 19:38-42 NKJV

  The Bible does not specify a monetary amount that Joseph of Arimathea paid for the tomb of Jesus Christ. Instead, the Gospels explain that Joseph was a wealthy man who donated a brand-new, private tomb that he had already owned and had personal workmen cut directly out of solid rock. 

   

  In ancient Judea, rock-hewn tombs with large rolling stones were luxury items reserved exclusively for royalty, high-ranking officials, and the ultra-wealthy. Christian historians and scholars often estimate that purchasing the land near Jerusalem, paying the laborers to carve the stone, and preparing the private garden would cost anywhere from $50,000 to $200,000 in today’s currency.

   

  By donating his personal luxury tomb, Joseph directly fulfilled the Old Testament prophecy

  “And they made His grave with the wicked— But with the rich at His death, Because He had done no violence, Nor was any deceit in His mouth.” Isaiah 53:9 NKJV

  Just as Abraham paid way more than the land was worth, there is a cost associated with believing God.

  Joseph believed that Jesus was Messiah. And he may not have understood the Promise of a risen Savior, but he believed Christ was the Savior of all mankind and so he honored Him by putting him in a new wealthy grave. This action was where he paid the highest cost- he exposes himself as a follower and believer of Christ, risking everything- his family, his reputation as a Pharisee, and his livelihood. He is standing by a grave believing for a promise.

  Faith believes God’s promise even when circumstances seem to contradict it.

  What cost are you willing to pay to believe Jesus?

  A grave is a marker that someone has died. But that is not the end of the story 

  What Satan meant to kill, God meant to fulfill His promise to heal mankind. The greatest promise in history is centered around the purchase of a son-to-be empty grave,

  “Now on the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they, and certain other women with them, came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared. But they found the stone rolled away from the tomb. Then they went in and did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. And it happened, as they were greatly perplexed about this, that behold, two men stood by them in shining garments. Then, as they were afraid and bowed their faces to the earth, they said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen! Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee, saying, ‘The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.’ ” Luke 24:1-7 NKJV

  He had to die. He had to be buried. And He had to rise and walk out of the grave in victory. Every other Religion serves a dead man.  

  We serve a risen Savior, who rose from the grave and is seated at the right hand of the Father making intercession for us. 

  This means that we do not have to fear anything, including death. God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.

   “Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.” Hebrews 2:14-15 NKJV

  Jesus shared in our humanity so that through his death he might break the power of the devil and set free those who were held in lifelong slavery by the fear of dying. We find freedom from this fear by trusting in Christ’s victory over the grave, offering assurance of forgiveness and eternal life. What can man do to me? At the very worst he can kill me and send me straight to glory!

   

  If we live with Him, we will rise with Him. HE overcame the power of the grave! Ain’t no grave, gonna hold me down!

  “Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption. Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed— in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” “O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?” The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.”

  I Corinthians 15:50-58 NKJV

  
  
  

September 6, 2026

Don’t Pretermit the Passionate Plea

Hebrews 13:22-25 “And I appeal to you, brethren, bear with the word of exhortation,
for I have written to you in few words.

  Know that our brother Timothy has been set free, with whom I
shall see you if he comes shortly.

  Greet all those who rule over you, and all the saints.  Those from
Italy greet you.

Grace be with you all. Amen”.  (NKJV)

Have you ever given someone sound advice and they ignored it?  Or maybe it was given to you and you ignored it.  

There are “levels” to the type of advice we might give or receive.

Level 1

Not a huge deal if you ignore it.  The consequences aren’t that big of a deal.

Level 2

Maybe not the end of the world if you ignore these things.  But the consequences are definitely more severe.

Level 3

Consequences can be quite severe.

Each “level” has higher consequences when the advice is ignored.  

There’s a point where the advice actually becomes more of a warning.  Eventually, you get where you just want to shake the person and scream, “Please, listen to me!!  Do you not understand what’s at stake?!?!”

People don’t want the warning when it comes with a rebuke or correction.

Proverbs 29:1 “He who is often reproved, yet stiffens his neck, will suddenly be
broken beyond healing”.  (ESV)

That’s a pretty intense warning.  And that’s how the writer of Hebrews is closing out his remarks.

“Everything I’ve just told you is of the utmost importance.  Don’t stiffen your neck.  Do not ignore what’s been said!” 

Vs. 22: “Bear with the word of exhortation”

“Bear with”

It doesn’t mean “politely listen to”.  Bear with me a moment…

In the Greek, it literally means “endure patiently” or “receive graciously”.

“Word of exhortation”

In the Greek, it literally means “an earnest appeal”.  Or “passionate plea”

Title Slide

Interestingly, the phrase “word of exhortation” is only used one other place in the Bible.  Acts Chapter 13.  

Acts 13:15-16 “And after the reading of the Law and the Prophets, the rulers of
the synagogue sent to them, saying, “Men and brethren, if you
have any word of exhortation for the people, say on.

Then Paul stood up, and motioning with his hand said, “Men of
Israel, and you who fear God, listen”.  (NKJV)

• Starting with the patriarchs and the Exodus, he summarized Israel’s history and explained how it all led to Jesus.  He basically preaches the gospel to them.  And ends his sermon with an “earnest appeal”.

Acts 13:38-41 “Brothers, listen!  We are here to proclaim that through this man
Jesus there is forgiveness for your sins.

  Everyone who believes in Him is made right in God’s sight –
something the Law of Moses could never do.

  Be careful!  Don’t let the prophet’s words apply to you.  For they said,

‘Look, you mockers, be amazed and die!  For I am doing something in your day, something you wouldn’t believe even if someone told you about it’ . (NLT)

Paul’s warning comes from Habakkuk 1:5 where God says He is going to use the Babylonians to carry out His judgement against Jerusalem.  The “something you wouldn’t believe” is not something too good to be true.  It’s something so terrible you don’t want to believe it could be true.

In the same way, God will judge those who reject His offer of forgiveness through Jesus. 

It’s like Paul is trying to shake his audience by the shoulders, saying “Do not let this happen to you”! 

It’s the exact same thing the writer of Hebrews is trying to warn his audience about.  

We have to remember the reason the writer is writing Hebrews.

• First century Jews who were leaving Judaism to follow Christ (not like changing churches/denominations today)
• Probably written around 60-63 AD which means the priesthood and sacrificial systems were still in place
• They were leaving the burden of Jewish law and that system, but would have faced intense pressure from many of their friends, families and leaders to remain faithful to the Old Ways
• It would have been tempting to leave Christianity and return to Judaism
• The writer is imploring these Christians to remain dedicated to their faith in Jesus and giving them the same warning that Paul gave in the synagogue.  

You do not want to reject Jesus and then face the judgement of God.  Especially after you have already embraced Him as Messiah.

Hebrews 10:26-27 says there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins when we do that.  But only a certain fearful expectation of judgement.

Hebrews 10:30-31 “For we know Him who said, ‘Vengeance is Mine, I will repay’, says
the Lord.  And again, ‘the Lord will judge His people’.

  It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God”.  (NKJV) 

He gives them this stern warning because they were struggling.  In (2) main ways…

1.   They had become dull of hearing…

Hebrews 5:9-11 “And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal
salvation to all who obey Him,

called by God as High Priest ‘according to the order of
Melchizedek’

of whom we have much to say, and hard to explain, since you
have become dull of hearing”.  (NKJV)

The word “become” here is important.  The audience wasn’t so new to the truth of Christ that they were having a hard time catching on.  It was that over time they became that way.  

“Dull of hearing” has nothing to do with the actual ability to hear or the mental capacity to understand.  It’s a problem with the heart.  It’s when the hearer has no desire to learn about and obey the things of God.

Jesus talks about this in Matthew 13:

Matthew 13:14-15 “And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says,
“Hearing you will hear and not understand, and seeing you will
see and not perceive;

For the hearts of this people have grown dull.  Their ears are hard
of hearing, and their eyes they have closed…”. (NKJV)

James 1:22 warns us that if we hear the Word and don’t respond, meaning our hearts become dull, then we deceive ourselves.

This Hebrew audience is starting to deceive themselves by not allowing their hearts to remain teachable and fully embracing the truth of Jesus.

It was important for the writer to show that Jesus was the fulfillment of the Law and Prophets.  That His priesthood was “in the order of Melchizedek”, meaning that it didn’t come from the tribe of Levi or the family of Aaron.  

That priesthood couldn’t achieve the perfection that God intended.  So, God had to create a new priesthood and then He set Jesus as High Priest forever, giving us confidence in a better hope than what the Law could provide.

It was vital that these early Christians understood this truth.  But until they were woken up from their apathy, they would never fully receive it.

2. They were not maturing in their faith…

Hebrews 5:12 “For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need
someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of
God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food”.  (NKJV)

Again, these weren’t brand-new Christians.  They had been believers long enough that they should’ve moved past the strained peas stage and start chowing down on some steak.  But here they are; stuck in their infancy.

The “first principles” here are like learning the ABC’s or how to count.  Everything else develops out of these principles.  They are the building blocks of our faith.

They weren’t being told to become someone holding the title of “teacher”.  They were being told they should be able to teach anyone the principals of being a Christian.  

Teaching is the final stage of learning.  But they haven’t moved on.  They were still babies.

One of the most frustrating and discouraging things is to see someone who refuses to grow in their walk with the Lord.  Or even worse, to see them regress in it. 

The writer says, “you have come to need milk” and “you need someone to teach you again”.  This shows a regression.  They are wavering.  They are going backwards.

And again, he calls them out, and in Chapter 6, he gives them a stern warning.

Hebrews 6:7-8 “When the ground soaks up the falling rain and bears a good crop
for the farmer, it has God’s blessing.

  But if a field bears thorns and thistles, it is useless.  The farmer
will soon condemn that field and burn it”. (NLT) 

He makes it pretty clear.  You guys need to start maturing and produce some good fruit or else it won’t go well for you.

The majority of the book of Hebrews is filled with all kinds of warnings and statements meant to convict and correct their current mindset and spiritual condition. 

Topics Covered

• Warned against drifiting away
• Warned against unbelief
• Rebuked for spiritual immaturity
• Given a severe warning about apostasy
• Persuaded to persevere through suffering
• Called to endure discipline
• Urged to embrace practical holiness and obedience

Whether we want to admit it or not, we also need to be warned, rebuked, persuaded, called, urged, etc. when it comes to the things in that list.  Because we also become “dull of hearing” and stagnant in our faith.

We can’t cover everything, but there are two topics I want to challenge us with.  I think they encompass everything else.

Embrace Holiness

We (Christians) have such a diminished view of sin these days.  We make tolerance and excuses for things because we think it’s ok, regardless of what God has to say about it. 

We think we have some level of holiness because we go to church, or pray with our kids or pay our tithe. 

Those things don’t make you holy.  True holiness comes from having the same view of sin (any sin) that God does and striving to eliminate those things from our lives.

God sets the standard, we don’t.

Psalm 51:4 “Against You and You alone have I sinned, and done this evil in Your
sight”. (NKJV)

“In Your sight”.  Not in our sight.

Romans 6:23 tells us that the wages of sin is death.  It doesn’t say “the wages of the really big sins are death – and everything else is fine.  So, go ahead and decide for yourself”.  

Instead of letting God set the standard, we start to decide what’s sin and what isn’t.  And when it comes to the things we think are ok, we dismiss them with a wave of the hand.  Brushing them off like it’s no big deal or won’t have any consequences.  

“Yeah, I have sin in my life.  But whatever!  It should be fine”.

“It should be fine”…not words you want to hear when it comes to dealing with something of great importance or consequence.

We can’t have an “it should be fine” mindset when it comes to sin in our lives.  There is too much at stake.  

To me, the scariest verse in the Bible is in Matthew.

Matthew 7:21-23 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord’, shall enter the
Kingdom of Heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in
heaven.

Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not
prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and
done many wonders in Your name?’

And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from  me,  you who practice lawlessness”. (NKJV)

How can there be anything more devastating than to think you are in right standing with the Lord, only to be rejected when you see Him face to face?

That’s the deception that James talks about.  Our hearts become dull towards sin, we stop responding to the Word and yet we think we’re still “cool with Christ”. 

Stop playing with sin.  Stop justifying.  Stop seeing how close to the flame you can get without getting burnt.

Don’t dabble with sin.  Embrace holiness.  View it the same way God does.

Don’t Go Back or Drift Away

One of the challenges facing these early Christians was the temptation to go back to what was comfortable and safe when the difficulty and persecution of following Jesus came.

They left the familiar AND faced persecution.  Without a solid foundation and commitment to Christ, they would never make it.

Maybe not full-blown rejection, but trying to mix aspects of Christianity with aspects of Judaism.  

We try to mix aspects of Christianity with aspects of the world.  But Jesus can’t be mixed with anything.  He stands alone.

We can’t be running back to the old and familiar when things get hard.  And they will get hard.

In John 16:33 assures us that in this world we will have “many trials and sorrows” (NLT)

Where are we going to turn when those times come?

• When we need comfort or healing
• When the pain gets to be too much
• When the failures of our past come back to whisper in our ears
• When the fear of what tomorrow holds keeps us up at night
• When the cost of following Christ becomes more than we think we can pay

We need to be planted firmly in the truth of who He is. 

The first step to staying committed to Christ is setting that resolve in your heart.  

Daniel 1:8 “But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with
the portion of the king’s delicacies…”.  (NKJV)

Daniel didn’t make this resolve when he first sat at the king’s table.

We need to make that same commitment in our lives.  But we need to do it now.  We need to say no matter what, I’m committed to Christ and living my life for Him.  And we have to believe that He is enough.

There is no, “Jesus AND….”

That’s the beginning of the end.

You see it all the time with people who come out and deconstruct their faith. 

Because Jesus wasn’t enough.  Either because of societal pressures or personal struggles, they started mixing Jesus with something else.  They started looking elsewhere for answers.  And it led to them being double minded and unstable.

Jesus has to be enough.  And the only way to never drift is to be firmly anchored in Him.

Hebrews 6:19: “This hope [this confidant assurance] we have as an anchor of the
soul [it cannot slip and it cannot break down under whatever
pressure bears upon it] – a safe and steadfast hope that enters
within the veil [of the heavenly temple, that most Holy Place in
which the very presence of God dwells]”.  (AMP)

Our hope in Christ will never slip, never break down, never fail – no matter what.  No other religion, person, system, coping mechanism, nothing – can make that claim.  

Decide now to stake your life in Christ and never look back.

You Can Do It – Because It’s Worth It

As I mentioned, Hebrews is a book full of warnings, rebukes, corrections.  It couldn’t have been an easy message for the early Christians to receive.

It’s not easy for us to hear either.  It’s not fun to get confronted with bold, hard truths about our sin.  The ugly parts of our hearts are exposed to the light, and it doesn’t feel good.

But what I love about Hebrews is that is also a book full of encouragement.

Hebrews 6:9 “Dear friends, even though we are talking this way, we really don’t
believe it applies to you.  We are confident that you are meant for
better things, things that come with salvation”.  (NLT) 

The author has warned and corrected and now says, “I think you’re going to make it”.

And that’s what good Biblical preaching should do.  It should confront.  It should correct.  And it should also encourage.

It should remind us that if we embrace the corrections and don’t become stiff-necked at the rebukes, then we’re doing alright.  That if we’re striving for the things of God, we are on the right path.  

We’re not going to get it right all the time, but we need to remember there’s a difference between falling down and falling away.

Proverbs 24:16 “The godly may trip seven times, but they will get up again…(NLT)

Jesus understands our weakness.  He knows that we’re going to struggle and we’re going to fall.  We will fail.  But we need to fail forward.  We need to learn from our mistakes, get back up and keep moving on.  

Because Jesus still offers us mercy and grace even when we’ve missed the mark.

Hebrews 4:15-16 “For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our
weakness, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without
sin.

Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may
obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need”.  (NKJV)

2 Cor. 12:9 “And He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength
is made perfect in weakness…'” (NKJV)

Our Christian walk is not about perfection.  It’s about a heart condition that clamors after the things of God and chooses Him over everything else.  And getting that right is a process.

Becoming more like Christ and being anchored in Him is something we must desire every day.  Because outside of Him, we have nothing.  We have no hope and no salvation. 

That’s the heart behind what the writer of Hebrews is getting at.  For the early Christians, Jesus Christ was the fulfillment of every promise in the Old Testament.  There is nothing more.  Everything they gave up for Him, was worth it!

And he ends with a passionate plea to graciously receive everything that’s been written.

And that’s my passionate plea for you today as well.  Pursue a life of holiness and cling to Jesus no matter what.

I think that’s some of the best advice you’ll ever receive.  Don’t ignore it.    

• The Lord will provide Genesis 22:1-24

  • Now it happened that after these things – God tested Abraham
  • Testing and sacrifice 
  • • Most people don’t like testing- Testing is only good when it is told as a story that passed
    • Testing requires sacrifice:
      • There are those that choose testing – Iron man, marathons, e.t.c 
      • Or those who find themselves in a fight/struggle with life and they choose to give up or stay in the fight 
    • I love that the Bible doesn’t sugar coat it – In this world there will be trouble – John 16:33 (NLT) – Troubles that will test your resolve, your patience, from things seen and things unseen 
  • The Bible says that God does test us. 
  • O Lord of Heaven’s Armies, you test those who are righteous, and you examine the deepest thoughts and secrets ~ Jeremiah 20:12 (NLT)
  • This is not uncommon that He decides to test Abraham 
  • Vs: 2 (AMP) -God said, “Take now your son, your only son [of [a]promise], whom you love, Isaac, and go to the region of [b]Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”

  Take your son: 

  • God is not just asking for anyone. Take Noah’s son or take someone’s resources
  • Take something that belongs to you! Something that you value. Something that requires ownership transfer 
  • Today, you may not be asked to take your son, but for most of us the call is –take your time, take your money, take your hobby, take your relationship and be ready to walk it to the mountain to sacrifice it 
  • I was really surprised when I got to America – little kids would say – Lets go to my house, we can give you a ride in my car 
  • See where I came from as a child you knew better than says “my this – my that” It was our house, …emphasizes on OUR- Entitlement was not a thing! 
  • There is a beauty in ownership and also English is indeed a difficult and sometime confusing language – however, we all know that in the west, entitlement is huge 
  • We are ok with giving up things as long as we keep “mine”– and God will ask for that which is deeply hidden in your heart 
  • God is interested in your heart condition

  Take your only Son: 

  • • Once we get past the mine, ONLY carries more weight – it’s easy to give up things when we have extra stuff   
    • But the stakes are higher here with God’s request – Take that promise and sacrifice it to me 
    • If you don’t remember, Abraham waited for Isaac for a very long time – 75 YEARS
    • And now that He has in son of promise- The inheritance (very big in those days) – God wants him to give it up 
    • Here is where we lose 50% of the crowd  
      • We become possessive, we become bitter, we are afraid, we forget who gave us that thing in the beginning 
  • We forget that every good thing that we have come from the Lord – James 1:17 (NLT) 
  • What do you have that God hasn’t given you? – 1 Corinthians 4:7 (NLT) 

  Take the boy Isaac, whom you love

  • • We are willing to give up that which we have, or even that one thing – but when it come to love – that’s where most of us quit 
    • The one I love? – Heck no!! 
  • Vs 7- 8 (Nkjv) But Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” Then he said, “Look, the fire and the wood, but where is the [a]lamb for a burnt offering?” 8 And Abraham said, “My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering.” So the two of them went together.
  • My Father, Here I am my son, my son, God will provide – These words carry Love and trust 
  • Love was in the balance scale – and Abraham knew what it would cost him and was willing 

  
  

  • Decide beforehand 
  • As I read this – this question keeps on coming up ~Abraham, How did you do it?
    • Please teach me your ways 
  • Word that wrecks me are: 
    • So Abraham got up early in the morning 
    • Prepared -Saddled the donkey, split the wood 
    • On the 3rd day – he saw a place 
  • It’s easy to think that the test began when Abraham raised his knife to sacrifice his son
  • NO! It began when Abraham made the decision to love God more than the promise 
  • During the conversation with God, he already resolved in his heart and mind – I choose you God – I choose you over everything you have given me 
  • It the same heart that we read in Joshua 24:15 (Nkjv) – choose whom you will follow – But as for me and my house – we have already decided it’s all God or nothing!
  • I have decided to follow Jesus, not turning back, no turning back ~Song!

  Not today’s choice 

  • • A choice like this does not happen the day of – You don’t just wake up and say – here I am Lord – take everything you want from me 
    • The desire has to be motivated by something greater than emotion or self will 
    • Before Abraham resolved that he was all in, he remembered
      • Abraham did not initiate this relationship. God called Abraham from a pagan household ~ Genesis 12:1–3. Jesus (initiated) died on the cross 
      • Abraham lied that Sarah was his sister fearing that he might be killed -twice (Genesis 12:10–20(Nkjv) – Egypt & Genesis 20:1–18 (Nkjv) Abimelech – So do we 
      • God remained faithful after the Hagar/Ishmael failure — Genesis 16–17
      • God delivered His promise of Isaac – regardless of his failures. – So do we 
    • And these are the things we know – how much more has God, protected & delivered you from? Given you and covered your failures with His loving kindness?
    • That is why vs 1 says. After these things? 
    • After which point do we recognize the things that God has already done and be willing to give up that which he requires -as reasonable service to Him 
    • After how many miracles do we need to see before we can trust the Lord fully. How many lies does He have to cover, how long are we going to reject Him before we can submit His call and trust His promise 
  • Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest ~ Matthew 11:28 (NLT) 
  • • We have to decide before the call comes – Here I am Lord!
    • Here is how deciding beforehand sounds like: 
    • Don’t miss this – vs 5 NLT) – Stay here, my son and I will go over there and WORSHIP GOD! And we will return to you! 
    • Worship??? 
  • Romans 12:1 (NLT) And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice, the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him
  • This is worship
  • And Abraham was willing to worship God with everything he had because he knew God was faithful 
  • Abraham would have decedents through Isaac as God had already promised 

  The Lord will provide 

  • Vs 7 (Amp) And Isaac said to Abraham, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” Isaac said, “Look, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?” 8 Abraham said, “My son, God will provide for Himself [f]a lamb for the burnt offering.” So the two walked on together.
  • vs13 -14 (Amp) Then Abraham looked up and glanced around, and behold, behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by his horns. And Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up for a burnt offering (ascending sacrifice) instead of his son. 14 So Abraham named that place The Lord Will Provide. And it is said to this day, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be seen and provided
  • • Provision is on the other side of obedience – Period!!
    • Sometime the blessings are on the mountain, caught in the thicket – obstruction, confusion, caught -Need some undoing 
    • When we believe that the Lord will provide – we are willing to go to the mountain/thicket
    • He has already planned it all out 
  • You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book.
    Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed ~ Psalm 139:16 (Nlt)
  • • And He has already provided above beyond anything you can ever think or imagine 
    • How do I know this: Because vs 20-24 tells us 
  • Vs 20-24  (NLT) Soon after this, Abraham heard that Milcah, his brother Nahor’s wife, had borne Nahor eight sons. 21 The oldest was named Uz, the next oldest was Buz, followed by Kemuel (the ancestor of the Arameans), 22 Kesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph, and Bethuel. 23 (Bethuel became the father of Rebekah.) In addition to these eight sons from Milcah, 24 Nahor had four other children from his concubine Reumah. Their names were Tebah, Gaham, Tahash, and Maacah.
  • • As we are fighting to give up that which is currently in our hands …
    • God had already put the promise in place and moved on to make it happen 
    • While we are so distracted by what might happen if we sacrifice what we are holding on to – God is already working – above beyond anything you can ever think or imagine – (Images:)
  • What are you willing to give up?

   

You are complete Hebrews 13:20-21

• • I think a lot of people are searching after something to satisfy them. 
  • Its like when I eat something and I keep grabbing something from the pantry until I find that one little morsel that finishes the day. I’ll keep nibbling until I find it. Even if I’m not hungry. 

• Its funny when it comes to your pantry. Its not funny when it comes to your soul. 

• You are complete in Jesus Christ. Everything was accomplished on the Cross. 
• The dissatisfaction you may suffer from is often directly connected to not understanding your completeness in Christ.
• The Christian life starts with what Jesus has done, continues by what Jesus does in us, and ends with Jesus getting the glory.

 

1. You are complete because Jesus is your foundation

• • 20 Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant,
  • The writer of Hebrews is giving a prayer and a benediction to the reader
  • Reminding them of what they have been taught and on whom this truth is built. 
  • The God of peace. The world was in chaos and sin, and God himself has once again inserted himself into the human story to bring his peace to the world. It is God’s nature to bring peace
  • The risen Lord. Christ is risen from the dead. He sits at the right hand of the father and is interceding as our high priest on our behalf. His resurrection is the proof that His sacrifice was accepted and that our justification is secure.
  • The great Shepherd. We are being led by Jesus himself through the power of the Holy Spirit. We are not left guideless wandering souls. We are being led by Jesus into His will for our lives.
  • The blood of the everlasting covenant. His covenant is in blood and it is everlasting. He cannot and will not break it. We have been sealed with blood and are in an eternal covenant with him. 

• These truths become the foundation and backbone of a life that is complete in Christ

• 1 Cor 3:11 For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
• God gives peace. Christ is risen. Christ shepherds us. Christ secured the covenant with His blood.
• So what does that mean for me? I have peace with God. I am forgiven. I am being led. I belong to God. /// What exactly am I still wandering around looking for?
• I think often the sense of incompleteness in people is because they haven’t internalized this
• They wonder about how God will deal with them, if they are forgiven, if Jesus is leading, if they are still in covenant with God. And like me in the pantry– they keep nibbling to find satisfaction
• Your foundation must be the simplicity of the Gospel- I am forgiven and reconciled to God///
• This is a firm foundation that keeps you from wondering if you are missing something
• Sometimes the thing you think you are missing is what you had at the beginning of your salvation. Jesus Himself.
• Col 2:6-7 As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, 7 rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving.
• Spend more time in thanksgiving. Thank God for having his peace in this world. Thank him that you are completely forgiven of all your sin. Thank Jesus that he’s leading. Thank him for his covenant of grace that is everlasting for all eternity. 
• Its like this. You sin. Feel shame. Go around all these theological mountains trying to figure out the why, and the source, and the means, etc. The foundation? I am complete in Christ. 
• 2 Cor 11:3 But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
• This is the largest theological argument of the book of Hebrews. The old covenant could never bring the worshiper to final perfection. Sacrifice after sacrifice. Priest after priest. Year after year. But Jesus offered one sacrifice for sins forever. ///
• The new covenant is in Jesus. Its not a ‘I used the wrong spoon’ I’m going to Hell situation
• It’s “7 rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith,”

 

1. You are complete because Jesus equips you

• • Who of us at times have been faced with a task that we feel unequipped to complete?
  • we go to YouTube. You watch a bunch of videos, you get some knowledge and move forward
  • And then you go and stand in sprinkler supply area for over an hour and go back 5 times. 
  • But our spiritual life isn’t like that. Your problem is not that you don’t have enough knowledge, its that you don’t have enough surrender. Surrender is the pathway to being equipped. 
  • This is why Heb. can encourage with- “Make you complete in every good work to do His will.” 
  • The end result is his will, and he’s the one doing it, but do to work, you need to be equipped. 
  • Ephesians 2:10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
  • If we are his workmanship created for Good works, he’ll give us the tools we need
  • And what is the equipment we need? love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.
  • The purpose of Hebrews and the Bible was never knowledge for the sake of knowledge

• Its to continually push us back to Christ as our sufficiency for every spiritual task of life

• • And again, we’re faced with these conundrums of our life, where we’re trying to figure out what to do, and how to fix it and how we can equip ourselves for the work- and its found in Christ
  • quoted this verse already, but lets go back to it for sec- Gal 5:22–23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…
  • This is a great road map for relationships- be loving, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle, and have self control. Not many of you would argue with that. 
  • And in our own strength- we might be able to dutifully and begrudgingly walk it out. 
  • But when we have Christ as our foundation, and we’ve surrendered our will to him, it’s the spirit of God working in us, for his good pleasure, where this fruit manifests that’s not of ourselves
  • I’ve seen it. A man who has no joy. Angry, frustrated, and they don’t change- God changes him
  • Now the tool of love and joy that was needed in his relationship has been deposited by God
  • This is why Jesus said Jn 15:5 …for without Me you can do nothing.
  • And we can’t. I am not properly equipped for patience of myself. But through Christ I am!  
  • God calls you to stuff. Marriage, kids, work, relationships, discipleship, sanctification
  • And you’re there in the midst of it- he gives you the tools necessary to accomplish it
  • Because here’s a truth that we all know intrinsically- people can act, but the only real manifestation of it can only come through the Spirit. I want to love, I don’t want to act it. 
  • So next time you find yourself struggling- remind yourself- he has made me complete. Its in me. 
  • And its not you. Its never been you. Its not your effort and ability, its your awareness///

• First time built a fence, I’d dig a hole and find a stone, I’d dig wider to get it out. Took a long time. Then I once saw a guy using a pry-bar. Next time, I used it. Amazing results. 

• Use your tools or God’s tools. See how much more effective the work is for him!

But here’s the ultimate truth of it- 

 

1. You are complete because Jesus works in you

• • “Working in you what is well pleasing in His sight.”
  • When you got saved, and you came to Jesus, the Holy Spirit entered you to regenerate you and to equip you. Everything God has given you to live the Christian life is made effective in you through the indwelling Holy Spirit.
  • Ephesians 1:13-14 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.
  • You were sealed with the Holy Spirit, indwelt by the Holy Spirit, and now you are called to walk in the Spirit. Because of that, the power that now indwells within you is not of yourself. 
  • 2 Cor 4:7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.
  • Isn’t this what we want? The Spirit of God living, dwelling, moving and working within us?
  • Philippians 2:13 for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.
  • When you live a righteous, moral, obedient Christian life empowered by the Holy Spirit, its for His pleasure and His glory, not primarily for your own benefit. The by-product is that you experience blessings as well. But its him doing it. Not us. 
  • Here’s what you’ve probably experienced- there is often an abiding sense of the spirit of God walking out the will of God within us that is not of ourselves, but the spirit of God moving upon us in our lives
  • Its like this- we agree that there is nothing good in us? At our core we are inherently selfish and if we live in the flesh, our natural desire is for self-preservation and self-promotion?
  • Given the opportunity, apart from the spirit, we will always default to self-benefit.

• And there’s this war in our flesh- where we are going to have to decide what we will yield to

• Will we yield to self or the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit within us?///

• Galatians 5:16-17 I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. 17 For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.
• Romans 6:13 And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God.
• When we walk in the Spirit and refuse to present our members as instruments of sin- instead present ourselves to God, we yield ourselves to the working power of the Spirit in our lives.
• Practically it looks like this- my desire is confrontational anger and self preserving action withing a relationship. I am in the moment and I realize this fleshly truth rising up within my person
• At that moment I don’t give into it. I immediately remind myself of the indwelling spirit within me and yield to it. “Lord, have your way.” “Holy Spirit I yield to you in this moment” “ I am complete in you, I don’t need to fight for myself and defend myself” “have your way Lord”
• God is working something in you. Allow him to do it. Don’t destroy what God is trying to build

 

1. You are complete when Jesus gets the glory

• “Through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.”
• To give God glory means to live, speak, worship, and act in a way that makes His greatness visible and gives Him the credit He deserves.
• We don’t add glory to God like He was lacking something. He is already glorious. We recognize it, reflect it, declare it, and point others to it.
• Is your heart cry- Philippians 1:20 according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.
• This is the Christian life. Our whole existence all day every day to live for HIS glory not OURS///
• obeying Him because He is worthy thanking Him instead of taking the credit living in a way that reflects His character using your gifts for His purposes letting your good works point people to Him making much of Jesus instead of making much of yourself
• So when a man walks out his completeness in Christ, he becomes less and Jesus becomes more
• Matt 5:16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.
• This is the Father’s will for your life. That you would bear much fruit to draw men to HIM
• Many people who have declared they want salvation don’t want submission. They want to hold onto their own desires and plans. They want protection but wont change their posture
• A posture of submission to the will of God admits our completeness in HIM and relinquishes our innate desires and submits every last part of our lives to his ultimate glory in our lives. 
• Practically- this means our desires- we desire what he desires because it brings him glory
• This means our plans– our current and future plans are now subject to what is best for him
• This means our resources- what we have is an instrument for HIS glory. He owns it, not us
• This means our Focus- we no longer focus on what meets our needs, its what brings HIM glory.
• Romans 12:1-2 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
• That’s it- I give you my all- my body. This is reasonable based on what God has done for me. I will not be like the world. They live for self, I will not. This is not natural to me, my mind must be renewed by the Spirit of God within me so that I can be used as an instrument of HIS glory. 
• You are complete. You are complete in him. Your foundation is in Him. You have been equipped by him. He is the one doing the work in you, its not of you. You have been made complete for this purpose- that your life would direct others to Him and bring Him glory.

• 
  
  

  Show Me the Evidence!

   

  “And it came to pass at that time that Abimelech and Phichol, the commander of his army, spoke to Abraham, saying, “God is with you in all that you do. Now therefore, swear to me by God that you will not deal falsely with me, with my offspring, or with my posterity; but that according to the kindness that I have done to you, you will do to me and to the land in which you have dwelt.” And Abraham said, “I will swear.” Then Abraham rebuked Abimelech because of a well of water which Abimelech’s servants had seized. And Abimelech said, “I do not know who has done this thing; you did not tell me, nor had I heard of it until today.” So Abraham took sheep and oxen and gave them to Abimelech, and the two of them made a covenant. And Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves. Then Abimelech asked Abraham, “What is the meaning of these seven ewe lambs which you have set by themselves?” And he said, “You will take these seven ewe lambs from my hand, that they may be my witness that I have dug this well.” Therefore he called that place Beersheba, because the two of them swore an oath there. Thus they made a covenant at Beersheba. So Abimelech rose with Phichol, the commander of his army, and they returned to the land of the Philistines. Then Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba, and there called on the name of the Lord, the Everlasting God. And Abraham stayed in the land of the Philistines many days.”

  Genesis 21:22-34 NKJV

   

  A life surrendered to God should become so visibly different that even those around us recognize, “God is with that person.”

   

  A relative said to Matt one time- How come everything you touch turns to gold? They may not have recognized that it was because Matt serves the Lord, but they recognized, that something was different about his life.

   

  1. GOD’S PRESENCE SHOULD BE VISIBLE IN YOUR LIFE

   

  1. 22 “God is with you in all that thou do.”

   

  Abimelech wasn’t a worshiper of Abraham’s God in the same way Abraham was, yet he could see the evidence of God’s blessing and presence in Abraham’s life.

   

  Notice he didn’t say:

   

  • “You talk about God a lot.”
  • “You know a lot about God.”
  • “You claim God is with you.”

   

  He said, “God is with you.”

   

  God’s presence produces observable evidence. Note, Abraham’s life was marked by God’s blessings.

   

  God’s blessings are not the same as God’s permitting. God’s blessings come through obedience. I am not talking about riches, I am talking about a life that is marked by favor. God will allow you to do things your way, He has given great and mighty gifts, He will intervene to protect, He shows an abundance of grace- but none of these are the blessings of the Lord. 

  Grace is not by obedience, otherwise it would not be grace. Some people are graced, not blessed.

   

  I prayed for a couple who were living together and she says to me “We are blessed”, no friend, you are under grace and Not getting the judgment of God, but He is extending to you goodness and mercy. It is HIs kindness that leads to repentance- This is what that scripture means. That God is long-suffering with us, holding back His wrath so that men will repent.

   

  Blessings come  through obedience, and these are the rewards, protection, and success that come when people follow God’s guidance and laws.

   

  ““Now it shall come to pass, if you diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God, to observe carefully all His commandments which I command you today, that the Lord your God will set you high above all nations of the earth. And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, because you obey the voice of the Lord your God:”

  Deuteronomy 28:1-2 NKJV

   

  “But He said, “More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!””

  Luke 11:28 NKJV

   

  Jesus said that the people who hear the word of God and obey it are truly blessed.

   

  “But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.”

  James 1:25 NKJV

   

  What the Blessings of God Look Like-

  Supernatural Protection: God guides you away from harmful choices and traps.

  Peace of mind that surpasses all understanding: Doing the right thing brings a clean conscience and less worry.

  Success: not in the way the world defines success, but your work and daily efforts are given favor and strength.

  And this is the most important- a closer relationship with the Lord: Walking in obedience helps you grow closer to God every day, like Abraham, you become a friend of God

   

  ““If you love Me, keep My commandments. (V 15)

   

  He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.” (V 21)

   

  Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father’s who sent Me.”(v.23-24)

  John 14:15, 21, 23-24 NKJV

   

  Our testimony is more than what we say. People should be able to see God’s hand in our lives:

   

  • marriages- does your marriage reflect Christ’s love of the church?
  • homes- is your home in order? Is your husband the head and as a wife, are you submitted? Are you children obedient, respectful and kind? (I have a thing about respect) My kids just left for a vacation together, Matt and i see this as a parenting win. Our kids actually love one another and want to spend time together 

   

  The Proverbs 31 woman has children that rise up and call her blessed. 

   

  “Her children rise up and call her blessed; Her husband also, and he praises her:”

  Proverbs 31:28 NKJV

   

  “Blessed is every one who fears the Lord, Who walks in His ways. When you eat the labor of your hands, You shall be happy, and it shall be well with you. Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine In the very heart of your house, Your children like olive plants All around your table. Behold, thus shall the man be blessed Who fears the Lord.”

  Psalms 128:1-4 NKJV

   

  Order in the home is a blessing for obedience. Do things the Bible way and get the Bible results.

   

  Think about your testimony (con’t)

  • reactions- how do I respond to people? Especially how do I respond when things do not go my way?
  • treatment of people- does my treatment of others reflect the Lord? Do i mirror His treatment of me?
  • trials- How do I go through trials and tribulations? Like a tea bag out into hot water, whatever is in you will come out of you when the heat is turned up
  • priorities- does my life reflect that He is Lord of my life? Do I portray to those around me that I put the Lord 1st in everything I do? 
  • EX: I have always read my Bible and prayed first thing in the morning, and I have had to tell the kids if they got up early to find something to do until I was done talking to the Lord. We go to church when we are on vacation. 

   

  Question: If someone watched your life for a month, would they have evidence that God is with you?

   

  2. GOD’S PEOPLE SHOULD WALK WITH INTEGRITY

   

  1. 23–24 Abimelech asks Abraham to swear that he will not deal falsely with him or his descendants.

   Abimelech is asking for honesty and integrity in a man he knows do be a God-follower.

   

  Being blessed by God doesn’t exempt us from dealing rightly with people. Sometimes Christians think:

  “God knows my heart.” He does, but other people are watching our conduct.

   

  Abraham makes a covenant, willing to establish peace and trust. Our integrity before the world matters.

  Integrity is the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles that you refuse to change. It is your conduct when no one is watching, or no one will know the difference. 

   

  Ask-

  • Can people trust your word? Trust is hard fought to gain and easy to lose.
  • Do you keep your promises? Do not make a vow if you cannot keep it.
  • Do you pay what you owe? 
  • Are you honest when nobody is watching? integrity is not just your conduct around others, it is how you act when no one is watching. Do you cheat, steal or lie because you can get away with it? 
  • Do you handle conflict biblically?

   

  Integrity is what your character looks like when your reputation is not at stake. Abraham confronts Abimelech about the well that Abimelech’s servants had violently taken.

  This is important. Abraham doesn’t just say: “Well, I’m a Christian. I’ll just let it go.” He addresses the problem. There was a conflict and it needed to be addressed to establish peace.

   

  “If it be possible, as much as it pertains to you, live peaceably with all men.” Romans 12:18

   

  Peace does not mean avoiding confrontation. Biblical peace isn’t pretending there isn’t a problem.

  Sometimes peace requires confrontation and a conversation.

   

  There had been a misunderstanding, and Abraham brings it into the light. Deal with problems honestly. 

   

  There is a difference between:

   

  • peacekeeping — avoiding conflict at all costs. Matt was stationed in the Sinai peninsula and his mission was peacekeeping. The military presence was just to keep the peace, that mission oversees the security provisions of the 1979 Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty. 
  • peacemaking — addressing conflict in a godly way, we do not brush things under the rug and hope they will go away. Do something’s need to just be let go? Yes. But most conflict requires a conversation, even if it is to agree to disagree.

   

  “Blessed are the peacemakers.” Matthew 5:9

   

  Abraham used what God gave him to establish peace. His possessions became instruments of reconciliation. That’s a powerful principle:

   

  We are to be instruments of peace and reconciliation! Let me explain- forgiveness is one sided. I can forgive someone who has since died. I forgive them, release all the anger and bitterness and can move on. But reconciliation is two-sided. Both sides have to come together to repent, forgive so that the relationship can be reconciled. This is what we are called to- reconcile men to God and men one to another.

   

  God has blessed you and reconciled you to Himself through the blood of Jesus so that we will go and do likewise. We are called to be peacemakers. 

   

  Is there an area or a person that is need of peace? Go make peace, do not sweep it under the rug. This is integrity.

   

  3. GOD’S PEOPLE SHOULD PLANT THEIR LIVES IN WORSHIP

   

  1. 31–33 Abraham plants a grove, or tamarisk tree, and calls upon: “the name of the LORD, the everlasting God.”

   

  The tamarisk tree, or salt cedar, is famous for its unique ability to excrete salt through its leaves, creating a natural cooling mist in the desert. It holds deep biblical symbolism as a sign of enduring faith

  • Salt Glands: Special glands push salt out onto the leaves. This salt forms crystals that catch night moisture.
  • Morning heat turns that trapped water into a cool mist. This makes its shade cooler than other desert trees
  • Roots go deep into the water table. A single mature tree can use up to 200 gallons of water daily

  It is native to the arid regions of the Middle East and is characterized by its feathery foliage and ability to thrive in saline soils. The tamarisk tree holds symbolic significance in the biblical narrative, often representing themes of covenant, provision, and endurance.

   

  Thriving in harsh, salty, and arid desert soils where other plants die, it represents faith, strength and resilience during hard times. Abraham plants one in Beersheba and calls on the name of the Lord, symbolizing worship of an everlasting God and covenant faithfulness. 

   

  Worshippers are planted in the house of the lord. And when you are planted, your roots run deep into the water reservoirs and you receive strength for the long journey in the dry places.

   

  “Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful; But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper.”

  Psalms 1:1-3 NKJV

   

  Abraham worshiped the “everlasting God”. What a name! El Olam, the Everlasting God.

  WE worship an eternal and everlasting God who is worthy of your worship. In this life, you will worship something. We were created to worship. God wants our worship, and you can join with the angels in worshipping His glorious name, or you can worship the world, yourself or the enemy by default. Both God and Satan demand worship. Just look at Revelation

   

  People change. Circumstances change. Kings change. Relationships change. Seasons change. But God doesn’t. The God who made a promise to Abraham years earlier is still the same faithful God. 

   

  Abraham planted a tamarisk tree to worship the Lord, he inadvertently created an eternal boundary.

   

  4. A GODLY LIFE LEAVES A WITNESS BEHIND

   

  Abraham’s worship to the Lord unknowingly sets up a Geographic Boundary and witness for all of Israel . In the Bible, Beersheba marked the southern limit of the Promised Land. The common phrase “from Dan to Beersheba” was used to describe the entire territory of Israel, stretching from the far north to the far south. This is a remarkable witness of a worshipping man. Worship leaves an inheritance.

   

  Another great worshipper, King David said,

  “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever.”

  Psalms 23:6 NKJV

   

  I read a commentary on the 23 psalm and the author gave me a different perspective- not that goodness and mercy were chasing me down as others have said, but that because of God’s blessings and favor in my life, wherever I go I leave a wake of goodness and mercy.

   

  I like this perspective much better.

   

  Abraham wasn’t merely having a spiritual moment. He was living a consistent life of worship. His testimony was being built over time and he left a wake of goodness and mercy whenever he went.

   

  The question isn’t: “Can I have a powerful spiritual moment?”

  The question is: “What will my life consistently say about my God?”

   

  Imagine Abimelech standing before Abraham and saying: “God is with you in all that thou do.”

  What a testimony!

   

  Will the same be said of you?

  Would your spouse say it?

  Would your children say it?

  Would your coworkers say it?

  Would your neighbors say it?

  Would the people who have seen you under pressure say it?

  Not because you’re perfect.

  Not because you never fail.

  But because there is something unmistakably different about a person who walks with God.

   

  Abraham didn’t have to convince Abimelech that God was with him. Abimelech had already seen it.

   

  That’s the challenge- Live so close to God that His presence becomes evident in the way you live.

   

  “God is with you in all that thou do.” Will this evidence be found in you?