THE PATH OF CONFIDENCE - PART 2

The instructions God gave to Joshua right after the death of Moses are contained in Joshua 1:1-9. Forty years earlier, God brought the Jewish people out of bondage in Egypt. Their disobedience, grumbling, and lack of faith kept them wandering in the desert for forty years . . . on a journey that should have taken only a few months. God was so displeased with the Jews’ behavior that He decreed that the whole generation would have to pass away before He would allow the next generation into “the Promised Land.” Joshua and Caleb were the only ones from the old generation God allowed to go into “their future.” The death of Moses was the trigger that released this forward movement.

“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 them—to the Israelites. I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses” (1:2-3, NIV).

I like clear instructions, and God’s instructions here are immediate and very demanding. I believe the Lord was saying to Joshua and then, through Him, to the people, “I have led you this far; I have prepared you for this time; I have made a promise to you and it is now time to get up from where you are and possess your future.” 

Some people possess their future and others let the future possess them. In Numbers 13 and 14 we read about the twelve men Moses sent in to spy out the Promised Land. Ten of the spies let the future possess them when they allowed it to become a place of fear and uncertainty. Only Joshua and Caleb saw the future as a great opportunity, filled with confidence born of a relationship with God. They knew the future was theirs to possess.

God’s words to Joshua were a command to action. Inherent in the command was the understanding that God’s people were ready; He doesn’t send people into their “Promised Land” before it is time. But they have to be willing to step up and possess the future; they have to want to move from where they are toward what God has for them.

We live in a tragic moment in the Church in America. The wave of easy “believism” of today leads many to conclude that if I just think good thoughts and push away the bad thoughts, my life will be fine. I am not interested in imposing legalistic demands but we must understand that God demands a response from us. That’s why He was explicit with Joshua, “Arise, go!” What He is saying is, “Your future is here and it’s up to you to possess it. You must get up and start moving toward the goal and as you move forward, I will be with you and direct your steps.”

“I will give you every place you set your foot, as I promised Moses.” What was the promise to Moses that God was now reminding Joshua about? 

The promise to Moses is found in Deuteronomy 11:22-25: “If you carefully observe all these commands I am giving you to follow—to love the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways and to hold fast to him—then the LORD will drive out all these nations before you, and you will dispossess nations larger and stronger than you. Every place where you set your foot will be yours: Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the Euphrates River to the western sea. No man will be able to stand against you. The LORD your God, as he promised you, will put the terror and fear of you on the whole land, wherever you go.”

Wow, that’s quite a promise! We are told that “if we follow God’s instructions, love Him and hold fast to Him” then He will move the opposition out of our way. What seems to be insurmountable opposition will be moved.

What comes to your mind when you read the words “hold fast”? I think of my grandson who, when he was little and confronted by a situation he was uncertain of, would run and grab onto the leg of his dad or mom. That is exactly the picture of what we are to do, “run to Him and grab on for dear life.”

And God’s promise to us is that as He was with Moses and as He was with Joshua, so He will be with us! Jesus restates this for us when He said at the end of His earthly ministry, “I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:20).

As we walk into the unknown of our future, of all the promises God makes to us, I believe this is the greatest. I am thankful for His provision, for His protection, for all the benefits that daily come our way, but most of all I am thankful for His promise to accompany me into my future. “I am with you . . . to the very end.”

And I intend to “hold fast”!