Joshua 1:17-18 "According as we
hearkened unto Moses in all things, so will we hearken unto thee: only the LORD
thy God be with thee, as he was with Moses. (18) Whosoever he
be that doth rebel against thy commandment, and will not hearken unto thy words
in all that thou commandest him, he shall be put to death: only be strong and
of a good courage."
Joshua had begun to prepare the people for the next leg of their journey which would begin with crossing the swollen Jordan River. This morning, I would like for us to be reminded of the goodness and mercy of our Lord. When He is preparing us for the work to which He calls us, He gives reassurances. Sometimes those reassurances are simple things that we might overlook and other times they might be a bold declarative reminder of His presence and grace for our strength.
At the conclusion of chapter one, God gave Joshua an assurance that might very well be overlooked. There were certain tribes of Israel that had been promised land on this side of the Jordan River. They came to Joshua to remind him that this promise had been made. He told them they could have the land, but first they must go with the rest of the nation into Canaan to help fight the enemy. Then they could come back to this land. They agreed. And it is in their agreement that we see God bringing fresh to the mind of Joshua a promise that He had given. "According as we hearkened unto Moses in all things, so will we hearken unto thee: only the LORD thy God be with thee, as he was with Moses ... only be strong and of a good courage. " (Joshua 1:17,18) God moved the people to answer Joshua in using the very words that He had spoken to Joshua. "As I was with Moses, so I will be with thee.... be strong and of a good courage." It does not seem that the people would have known at that point that God had said that to Joshua; yet, they spoke these words at the time when Joshua was beginning his work. I have to believe the Lord brought to his reminder that He, Himself, had said these words to Joshua and everything was going to be alright.
Today's devotion is shorter than usual, but very much to the point. We live in a time when we very much need reminders of God's Word and His faithfulness. It is a time when we especially need to be still and know He is God. We must use these times to exercise our God given ability to listen for Him to speak to our hearts. It might be in a sunrise or sunset. It might be in the face of a child. It might be in a word spoken by a friend. Or it might be in the stillness of the night that the Holy Spirit begins to speak to our hearts. Let us practice the art of listening for our Lord.
Joshua had begun to prepare the people for the next leg of their journey which would begin with crossing the swollen Jordan River. This morning, I would like for us to be reminded of the goodness and mercy of our Lord. When He is preparing us for the work to which He calls us, He gives reassurances. Sometimes those reassurances are simple things that we might overlook and other times they might be a bold declarative reminder of His presence and grace for our strength.
At the conclusion of chapter one, God gave Joshua an assurance that might very well be overlooked. There were certain tribes of Israel that had been promised land on this side of the Jordan River. They came to Joshua to remind him that this promise had been made. He told them they could have the land, but first they must go with the rest of the nation into Canaan to help fight the enemy. Then they could come back to this land. They agreed. And it is in their agreement that we see God bringing fresh to the mind of Joshua a promise that He had given. "According as we hearkened unto Moses in all things, so will we hearken unto thee: only the LORD thy God be with thee, as he was with Moses ... only be strong and of a good courage. " (Joshua 1:17,18) God moved the people to answer Joshua in using the very words that He had spoken to Joshua. "As I was with Moses, so I will be with thee.... be strong and of a good courage." It does not seem that the people would have known at that point that God had said that to Joshua; yet, they spoke these words at the time when Joshua was beginning his work. I have to believe the Lord brought to his reminder that He, Himself, had said these words to Joshua and everything was going to be alright.
Today's devotion is shorter than usual, but very much to the point. We live in a time when we very much need reminders of God's Word and His faithfulness. It is a time when we especially need to be still and know He is God. We must use these times to exercise our God given ability to listen for Him to speak to our hearts. It might be in a sunrise or sunset. It might be in the face of a child. It might be in a word spoken by a friend. Or it might be in the stillness of the night that the Holy Spirit begins to speak to our hearts. Let us practice the art of listening for our Lord.