The Courage of Joshua

Tonight we’re talking about the next big character in the Biblical narrative - Joshua.

Joshua was one of the Israelites who escaped from Egypt, following Moses. When they arrived on the edge of the promised land the first time, Joshua was one of the spies Moses sent in to Canaan to scope it out. They saw that the land was indeed wonderful - flowing with milk and honey. But it was also filled with strong, fortified cities and giants! Most of the spies were afraid and tried to persuade the Israelites to turn back because they had no hope. But Joshua and his friend Caleb stood firm in their faith and said:

“The land we passed through and explored is exceedingly good. If the LORD is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us. Only do not rebel against the LORD. And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will devour them. Their protection is gone, but the LORD is with us. Do not be afraid of them.” (Num 14:7-9)

What is different about Joshua and Caleb? Where did his confidence come from? It came from God, and trust in His promises.

In Numbers Ch. 20 we see that Moses has a moment of doubt. Instead of trusting God and obeying a command, he stuck with what was familiar. But because he disobeyed the LORD, God  said in v. 12 “Because you did not trust in me enough to honor me as holy in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this community into the land I give them.” Ouch! If Moses isn’t going to lead the people into the promised land, that means the Israelites need a new leader! So who do you think that’s going to be? In Numbers 27 Moses commissions Joshua to be the next leader of Israel!

So here we have this guy - military man, smart, gifted in leadership, not afraid to speak against popular opinion and do the right thing even when it’s not easy. Seems like a pretty cool hero, don’t you think?

In Joshua Ch. 1, God speaks to Joshua and encourages him in kind of His own Divine Change of Command speech.

Joshua 1:1-9: “1 After the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, the LORD said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ aide: 2 “Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them—to the Israelites. 3 I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses. 4 Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the great river, the Euphrates—all the Hittite country—to the Mediterranean Sea in the west. 5 No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you. 6 Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their ancestors to give them. 7 “Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. 8 Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.”

God repeats the phrase “Be strong and courageous” three times, which means it is very important to God. So the Godly characteristic we focused on tonight was: COURAGE.

Tonight is the first installment of a two part mini-series on men of courage. Next week we’re going to talk about David and Goliath - another example of a Godly man with some real guts.

If you look at these three verses, God relates strength and courage to leadership, to obeying God’s Laws, and to having faith that God will be with Him wherever he goes. So it’s not military related. God wants to make sure that Joshua is solid spiritually, first and foremost.

That might seem like a weird concept. How can we be spiritually brave?
Look at v.5 “As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you.” - Our courage and confidence comes from God, not our own strength
v.8 “Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything within it.” Making sure we’re in the Word all the time, and being reminded of how great our God is and of His promises helps.
Prayer - talk to God and share your fears with Him, allow Him to comfort you!

I think this particular section of scripture is extremely encouraging, and one that I go to often when I’m struggling or freaking out about something. So I think your scripture memory verse should be Joshua 1:9. It’s a good one to have in the back of your mind at all times.

Now, as I was reading through it and meditating on its meaning earlier, there was one word in there that caught me off guard. You know what it was? “Have I not COMMANDED you?” It doesn’t say He encourages us to be strong and courageous. Or that it would be a good idea. This is a commandment, just like “thou shalt not kill!” How can God COMMAND someone to be strong and of great courage? Keep thinking about that - we’ll come back to it in a second.

Moving on to the big story of the night - the attack on Jericho, which is found in Joshua ch. 6. Jericho was a city of the Canaanites - who were an evil people and God wanted to wipe them out and give their land to the Israelites. But He wanted to do it in a way that was honoring to Him so that no one would doubt the defeat was because of HIS power, not man’s.

Joshua 6:1-5: “1 Now the gates of Jericho were securely barred because of the Israelites. No one went out and no one came in. 2 Then the LORD said to Joshua, “See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its fighting men. 3 March around the city once with all the armed men. Do this for six days. 4 Have seven priests carry trumpets of rams’ horns in front of the ark. On the seventh day, march around the city seven times, with the priests blowing the trumpets. 5 When you hear them sound a long blast on the trumpets, have the whole army give a loud shout; then the wall of the city will collapse and the army will go up, everyone straight in.”

There are two things I want you all to notice here. First of all - God is laying out his battle plan, but there is no fighting mentioned. How do you think Joshua, the warrior, would have reacted to this plan? It takes a great deal of faith and trust to follow God’s plan when it doesn’t make sense to us. But Joshua did what he was told and was victorious!

Also, in v.2 God tells Joshua, “See I have delivered Jericho into your hands.” God gives Joshua assurance that He is in control, that He has already written the ending of this story, and that Joshua has already as good as won.

I want you to think for a second about the things that make you afraid or nervous. Would it give you a lot more confidence and courage if you knew how it was going to end up and that you were going to come out on top? I think that’s how God can command us to be strong and of great courage. Because our circumstances might change, we might be facing something different that scares or intimidates us, but our GOD never changes - and He has already told us the end of the story.

In John 16:33 it says: “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

Our enemy is cunning, and will do everything in his power to trip you up, to distract you. He’ll lie to you and get you to stay focused on yourself and your flaws so that you feel weak and forget how great God is. But ultimately, his power is NOTHING compared to our God. We’ve been given a glimpse at the end times in the book of Revelation and we see that Good WILL defeat evil. Our story has a happy ending. So we have no reason to fear. Instead, we must be strong and courageous, meditating on the Word and Promises of God, and being obedient so that He can do great works for His Glory and our Good through us.

Take some time this week to think about how this applies to us directly.
* What are some situations where we need courage?
* Is there anyone who would like to share about a time where they were afraid, but their faith gave them courage?

One of the best things that has helped me when I’m afraid is to look at all the times God promises us that He will take care of us. So I’ve got a bunch of verses about courage that I want to give you all.

1 Chronicles 28:20: ‘David continued, “Be strong and courageous, and do the work. Don’t be afraid or discouraged by the size of the task, for the LORD God, my God is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you.”

Psalm 27:1 "The LORD is my light and my salvation— whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life— of whom shall I be afraid?"

Psalm 46:1-2 “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heat of the sea.”

Isaiah 41:10 “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

Isaiah 43:1-3 “But now, this is what the LORD says— he who created you, Jacob, he who formed you, Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. 2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. 3 For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior;”

Romans 8:31 “What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?”

2 Timothy 1:7 “For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.”