June 12, 2023

God's Word Is Trustworthy

Joshua 1

Collin Fletcher
Monday's Devo

June 12, 2023

Monday's Devo

June 12, 2023

Monday's Devo

June 12, 2023

Monday's Devo

June 12, 2023

Big Idea

God's definition of success is faithfulness.

Key Verse | Joshua 1:8

This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.

Joshua 1

God Commissions Joshua

1 After the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, the LORD said to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses' assistant, 2 “Moses my servant is dead. Now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land that I am giving to them, to the people of Israel. 3 Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given to you, just as I promised to Moses. 4 From the wilderness and this Lebanon as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites to the Great Sea toward the going down of the sun shall be your territory. 5 No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you. 6 Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them. 7 Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success 1 1:7 Or may act wisely wherever you go. 8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”

Joshua Assumes Command

10 And Joshua commanded the officers of the people, 11 “Pass through the midst of the camp and command the people, ‘Prepare your provisions, for within three days you are to pass over this Jordan to go in to take possession of the land that the LORD your God is giving you to possess.’”

12 And to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh Joshua said, 13 “Remember the word that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded you, saying, ‘The LORD your God is providing you a place of rest and will give you this land.’ 14 Your wives, your little ones, and your livestock shall remain in the land that Moses gave you beyond the Jordan, but all the men of valor among you shall pass over armed before your brothers and shall help them, 15 until the LORD gives rest to your brothers as he has to you, and they also take possession of the land that the LORD your God is giving them. Then you shall return to the land of your possession and shall possess it, the land that Moses the servant of the LORD gave you beyond the Jordan toward the sunrise.”

16 And they answered Joshua, “All that you have commanded us we will do, and wherever you send us we will go. 17 Just as we obeyed Moses in all things, so we will obey you. Only may the LORD your God be with you, as he was with Moses! 18 Whoever rebels against your commandment and disobeys your words, whatever you command him, shall be put to death. Only be strong and courageous.”

Footnotes

[1] 1:7 Or may act wisely

S2:111 Joshua 1

Listen Now

Dive Deeper | Joshua 1

As a ninth-grade teacher and periodic foster parent, I am no stranger to repeating myself. I could state the clearest instructions, have a student repeat them back, have it all concisely typed on the screen, and what am I sure to hear 20 seconds later? "Mister, what are we doing?"

In the same way, we are sinners in a fallen world who are often distracted from our Heavenly Teacher. But He does not mind repeating Himself. There are examples of God repeating the important stuff for us throughout Scripture. For example: The divine nature of Jesus in John 1; reminders to be mindful of our money, mouth, and morals in the Proverbs; and Jesus' desire for us to be one as He is one with the Father in John 17.

What was important for Joshua, the successor of the renowned Moses, to hear over 3,000 years ago and for us to hear today? That whenever you face a monumental task, "Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go." (Joshua 1:9) This is so important to God that He gives this command to Joshua three times in Joshua 1 alone (Joshua 1:6, 7, 9) and has the people echo it once more for good measure (Joshua 1:18).

It's taken me eight years of teaching to realize that an inattentive kid is quite possibly distracted by struggles at home. We all have our struggles with fear and taking our eyes off the God who died for our sins. So, how can we remain strong and courageous in conquering whatever "Promised Land" God has set before us? Joshua 1 tells us we can do this by developing a love for God's Word (Joshua 1:8), not being afraid (Joshua 1:9), and continually seeking the God who is always by our side (Joshua 1:5, 9, 17). These are practices we must reinforce daily.

So whether your mountain is claiming the long-awaited Promised Land or keeping the attention of 20 14-year-olds for 90 minutes, remember friend: Jesus is "with you always, to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:20).

This month's memory verse

58 Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

– 1 Corinthians 15:58

Discussion Questions

1. God tells us to meditate on His Word "day and night" in Joshua 1:8. What's the best thing God has taught you through His Word lately? How do these verses apply in your life?

2. Joshua had the Herculean challenge of taking over for Moses and leading God's people into the Promised Land. What mountains are you facing in your life and how can you "be strong and courageous" in standing up to these challenges?

3. What areas of your life tend to cause you to fear, doubt, or  anxiety? Present these before God and your community in prayer, and see what the Spirit leads your community to say.

4. God reminds us in Joshua 1 that He is near to us. What sort of activities make you fall more in love with God? Schedule some time this week to do more of what makes you love God more.

As we gear up to release even more features for Join The Journey in 2025, our staff team, unfortunately, no longer has the margin to continue to support the comment functionality. We have big things in store for Join The Journey 2025. Stay tuned!

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Hugh Stephenson

Good morning, Collin. Love your point about God’s Word, His Promises (fear not), and constantly seeking Him. When my eyes are fixed on Jesus, (Hebrews 12:1-3), it’s hard to veer off course. Q1. I’ll risk a slight rephrase and focus on the best reminder. And that would be the response of the people in Joshua 1:16 and Joshua 1:18- “All that you have commanded us we will do, and wherever you send us we will go…Only be strong and courageous.” If I know Him, I’ll trust Him. If I trust Him, I’ll obey Him. If I obey Him, His spirit will make me strong and courageous. Q2. This is going to seem like an odd answer; Mount Regret is the biggest challenge for me. At 65 I look back on decades of living life off track. The Holy Spirit has guided me away from regret and melancholy and to memories of the many wonderful experiences with Amy, kids, and friends. In all of it, God’s redemption has been in an insatiable thirst for the water of life in following Him. Q3. I wouldn’t necessarily call it worry or fear but more of a fervent prayer that is prayed at every meal and many other times during the day- -That my unsaved children come to a saving and surrendered faith in Jesus. Q4. My activity would be playing worship music 24/7/365.
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Hugh Stephenson

What is the most encouraging book in the Bible? Or even a chapter of a book? There are a lot of possibilities. If we talk in terms of chapters, I’d have Joshua 1 in the top group. “This passage contains the principles necessary for spiritual success in every age. We must: know what God requires, maintain perpetual awareness of that, and be consistently and completely obedient to it in our daily experience —in order to gain victory over our spiritual adversaries.” For me, it’s all about God fulfilling His promises. Remember the Abrahamic covenant, land seed and blessing. https://www.gotquestions.org/Abrahamic-covenant.html The promise of seed was present in a nation of 2.5 million people. Clearly the blessings had been given with more to come.
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Hugh Stephenson

This chapter is the beginning of the Israelites inheriting the land of the Promise. And this blessing is being fulfilled despite the prior generation’s total failure at Kadesh when they believed the report of the 10 spies; and then didn’t believe the two spies; Joshua and Caleb. And guess who is now their leader? AND the single most amazing aspect of this blessing is how God presents the blessing- Go get it. Possess it. I’m GIVING it to you. Inherit it. In modern terms… Go deposit the check. It’s your inheritance. Go to the closing and sign the real estate docs then go move in. The fridge is stocked and the house is beautifully furnished and decorated. Go to the car dealership and pick up the keys. And what does God command them for all this? My summary: “Remember what I have told you”. That’s it. Please slowly re-read Joshua 1:1-9. It’s just ridiculous.
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Michael Sisson

Re: Jos 1:6,7,9,18 “During the concluding pasuk [verse] of each book of the Torah it is customary for the congregation to stand as the Torah reader reads the final words. Then, in a dramatic manner, he signals to the congregation, who then respond with "Chazak, chazak, ve-nit chazek" (Be strong, be strong, and let us be strengthened!). This is a cry of encouragement to continue with the reading of the next book, and to return to this one again in due course. This custom may be derived from the words of Joshua to the children of Israel, "chazak ve'ematz" (be strong and courageous) — Jos 1:6,7,9,18.” — Hebrew For Christians https://hebrew4christians.com/Meditations/Chazak/chazak.html Re: Jos 1:3-4 Jos 1:3-4 (NASB) >>>“Every place on which the sole of your foot treads, I have given it to you,<<< just as I spoke to Moses. “From the wilderness and this Lebanon, even as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and as far as the Great Sea toward the setting of the sun will be your territory.” Faith required Israel to have the courage to take what G-d was offering.
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Michael Scaman

Being strong and courageous are tied to clinging to God's word and obeying it. Sinclaire Fergusen (and some others) say the center verse of the Psalms is "If only my people listened to me I would quickly subdue their enemies and defeat their foes" (Center book 3, center Psalms of the book 81, center verse of the Psalm 83:13-14. ) . God's commands Joshua to go into the land promising to give him every place his foot steps. Spoiler alert! Joshua's feet will be without sandals as the angel of the Lord appears to him on 'holy ground'. I wonder if these are connected. Spoiler alert! Joshua will defeat 5 kings and put his foot on the neck of the Kings. Defeat by da feet. I wonder if those are connected. Is Joshua conquering the land step by step a picture of the seed of the woman crushing the head of the serpent? Or the church defeating Satan crushing him underfoot?
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Amy Lowther

1. In 1 Samuel, Samuel helps readers learn that sharing faith with nonbelievers is important. It helps them learn what is available in life. It is example that sharing faith is important. 2. I have a new job, and I need to identify, understand, and achieve the expectations of my new employer. I am staying to God’s values as I work through things. 3. I don’t like failing. I guess it could be said I have a fear of failure. God helps me through this. Prayer: God thank you for your love in everything I do, good or not good. God you help me work through things, and you help me work to correct things as needed. When I work and live for you, life is good. God I thank you and I love you. Amen. 4. Going to service on Sunday, participating in Women’s Bible Study, and volunteering for Watermark help me love God.
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Collin Fletcher

Thank you, Hugh, Michael, Amy and anyone else for your insightful comments! God bless you going forward in your journey knowing God through His Word and growing in strength and courage with your relationship with Him!
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Sue Bohlin

Thanks so much, Collin! Four times we read the exhortation, "Be strong." Must be pretty important! Putting on my Old Testament glasses, I would think, "Yeah, but how do I BE STRONG when I feel weak and incompetent?" I'm thankful for my New Testament glasses, when the secret is revealed in Ephesians 6:10--"Be strong/strengthened in the Lord and in the power of His might." We're not dependent on our own power or strength, we open ourselves up to the Lord and allow *Him* and *His* strength to flow into and empower us. And the way we do that is by donning our spiritual armor, which is spelled out in the following verses. On a completely unrelated topic, this chapter reminded me of one of my favorite stories, with which I concluded my blog post "Does God Have a Sense of Humor?" When Angie was mothering three young children, she was struggling with a number of severe stressors when she sensed God calling to her. Literally. In her spirit, she heard Him say her full name: “Angela.” Only her mother and God call her Angela. So she knew He wanted her to do something and whatever it was, she knew she didn’t want to do it. She heard, “Angela,” and she pretty much held up her hand to the Lord and said, “Talk to Moses.” Some time passed, and she heard His voice again: “Angela.” Again, she said, “Talk to Moses.” More time passed. And then one day she was cooking dinner, stirring the pasta into boiling water, when she distinctly heard His voice again: “Joshua 1:2.” Oh boy. She turned off the stove, told her son to watch his younger siblings, grabbed her Bible and went to her room to read, “Moses My servant is dead. You, however, arise and go . . .”