24-0526p Transcript

Preacher: John Nousek

(0:57) Well, good evening. So this evening’s sermon I have the pleasure to give, and it’s entitled (1:08) WWJD, What Would Joshua Do? So I selected this because Joshua, kind of like him, (1:27) is a military guy amongst everything else. I just like that.

So the question is, (1:37) the second half of the reading, which was verse 2, (1:43) but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. So how does your mind get renewed? (1:55) Right? So something is repeated. We experience it, and it affects how we think.

(2:01) We experience it ourselves. So the question is, how does your mind get renewed? (2:19) Something is repeated, we experience it, and it affects how we think. In God’s Word, (2:29) Proverbs 23.7 says, For as he thinks in his heart, so he is.

Eat and drink, he says to you, (2:39) but his heart is not with you. Thinking is a very significant part of our existence, (2:49) and God is very concerned about how we think. In 1 Thessalonians 5.27, (2:57) it reads, I charge you by the Lord that this epistle be read to all the holy brethren.

(3:11) And in Colossians 4.16, now when this epistle is read among you, see that it is read also (3:21) in the church of the Laodiceans, and that you likewise read the epistle from Laodicea. (3:29) So God’s describing the public reading of the scriptures, and I appreciate that. (3:43) Now here’s a warning in Matthew 13.15, For the hearts of this people have grown dull, (3:54) their ears are hard of hearing, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their (4:05) eyes and hear with their ears, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, (4:13) so that I should heal them.

So it’s extremely important to God to think correctly in your (4:21) heart, and that’s done in part by keeping your eyes and your ears open. In the case of God’s (4:33) Word, he’s given us ample evidence to believe that what he has provided is accurate, correct, (4:42) true, fully faithful in all respects. We can rely on it completely.

(4:50) However, our minds and our hearts can become dull without continuous use of the Word of God. (5:03) You know, the kind of work I do, I work with a lot of spreadsheets, (5:09) adding and subtracting formulas for this, calculations for that. Some of them are simple, (5:18) column numbers, add them up, that’s the answer.

There’s nothing really to talk about. (5:24) Some calculations require some severe thinking. There’s columns and rows and massive amounts of (5:34) information of all kinds.

And in a spreadsheet, I develop formulas that will extract the (5:42) information that I want. I want to know how many green apples on Tuesday went this far, (5:48) whatever it might be. And there’s computer writing that you have to do to make that work, (5:56) just the way it needs to be done.

And I’ll tell you, I’ve looked at spreadsheets that I’ve done (6:02) in the past. I did them. What in the world is this? I don’t remember.

What? And it takes me a (6:11) while to re-digest what it was that I was thinking at the time and how I was going about getting (6:18) what I wanted. It takes a little refresher, but it’s pretty quick. It doesn’t take as long as (6:25) it did the first time because it’s already there for me.

It just has to be brought to the surface (6:31) again. And then I remember, oh yeah, that’s right. That’s how it works.

And then boom, move on. Next (6:39) thing. But it has to be brought to the surface.

And that’s how it works in our minds. So a significant (6:52) way to renew our minds as far as God’s Word is the public reading and hearing of God’s Word, (7:01) not just once, but repeatedly. So we do not become dull of heart, dull of hearing, or allow (7:10) our eyes to be closed to what is true, accurate, and right in front of us.

So I’m going to read to you (7:21) starting in Numbers 13. And I’m going to, there’s some, a certain amount of repetition in (7:33) the verses, which is interesting by itself, considering I’m speaking on repetition. (7:43) Numbers 13, verse 1, and this is the account of the spies that are to go into the promised land, (7:53) check it out, come back, and explain what they saw.

God’s ready to send them in. (8:03) Verse 1, it says, And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, Send men and spy out the land of Canaan, (8:10) which I am giving to the children of Israel. From each tribe of their fathers you shall send (8:15) a man, every one a leader among them.

So Moses sent them from the wilderness of (8:22) Paran according to the command of the Lord, all of them men who were heads of the children of Israel. (8:33) Drop down to verse 17. Then Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan and said to them, (8:43) Go up this way into the south and go up to the mountains and see what the land is like, (8:49) whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, few or many, whether the land they dwell in (8:57) is good or bad, whether the cities they inhabit are like camps or strongholds, whether the land (9:05) is rich or poor, and whether there are forests there or not.

Be of good courage and bring some (9:17) of the fruit of the land. Now the time was the season for the first ripe grapes. So they went up (9:26) and spied out the land from the wilderness of Zim as far as Rehob near the entrance of Hamas.

(9:37) Dropping down a little bit to 25. And they returned from spying out the land after 40 days. (9:47) Verse 27.

And they told him, they said, We went to the land where you sent us. (9:54) It truly flows with milk and honey. That is the truth.

Nevertheless, the people who dwell (10:02) in the land are strong. The cities are fortified and very large. Moreover, we saw the descendants (10:10) of Anak there.

The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south. The Hittites, the Jebusites, (10:17) the, and the Amorites dwell in the mountains. And the Canaanites dwell by the sea and along (10:25) the banks of the Jordan.

They come back and it’s, wow, terrifying. We’re going to go there? We’re (10:36) going to take this over? God said so. But, but, but, but then Caleb quieted the people before (10:48) Moses and said, let’s go up at once and take possession.

For we are well able to overcome it. (10:59) But the men who had gone up with him said, we are not able to go up against the people, (11:05) for they are stronger than we. And they gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land, (11:15) which they had spied out, saying, the land through which we have gone as spies is a land (11:23) that devours its inhabitants.

And all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature. (11:31) There we saw the giants, the descendants of Anak came from the giants. And we were like (11:37) grasshoppers in our own sight.

And so we were in their sight. You know, God said, (11:47) I’m going to go there. I gave it to you.

This is going to be your land. Go check it out. And yet (11:58) 10 out of the 12 came back trembling and almost hear the chickens crowing now.

(12:12) So number 14, I, the Lord have spoken this. I will surely do so to all this evil congregation (12:26) who are gathered together against me. In this wilderness, they shall be consumed.

(12:33) And there they shall die. God’s not happy with that report at all. (12:42) He knows who was there and what it was like. He said, go check it out. (12:49) They came back, unbelief, unsure of themselves, unsure of God’s word that this is what to do. (12:59) Now, the men who Moses sent to spy out the land, this is verse 36, (13:05) who returned and made all the congregation complain against him by bringing a bad report (13:11) of the land.

Those very men who brought the evil report about the land died by the plague (13:17) before the Lord. But Joshua, the son of Nun and Caleb, the son of Jephunel, (13:24) remained alive of the men who went to spy out the land. Those are the two that gave a good report.

(13:32) Joshua, the son of Nun and Caleb. So it didn’t go so well. At that point, (13:45) God had told them to go there, check it out.

He tried to essentially back out of the deal. (13:55) And they saw what they’re really up against. It wasn’t just words.

There’s a real (14:00) crowd on the other side of the river. They’re big. God told us so, but they’re big.

(14:14) So God tells them they’re going to spend a total of 40 years in the desert. They were three years (14:23) in at this point. It sounded like they were good to go.

Then the spies gave a bad report and God (14:34) says to them, no, you’re not going to go in. But yet, 37 years later, I’ll take you up to Numbers (14:48) 32, now 40 years in the wilderness. Numbers 32 starts with, now the children of Reuben and the (15:00) children of Gad had a very great multitude of livestock.

See, they’re at the river. (15:08) It’s like 40 years in the wilderness. They’re all at the river.

You’ve had your time. You had (15:16) your bad report. Okay, fine.

Now let’s go. Continuing. And when they saw the land of (15:25) Jazir and the land of Gilead, that indeed the region was a place for livestock.

(15:34) The children of Gad and the children of Reuben came and spoke to Moses, to Eleazar the priest, (15:40) and to the leaders of the congregation saying, Adaroth, Jabon, Jazir, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elieha, (15:52) I can’t say his name, Elila, Shabam, Nebo, and beyond. The country which the Lord (16:04) defeated before the congregation of Israel is a land for livestock. And I can hear this.

(16:13) Oh, and your servants have livestock. Coincidence? (16:23) Therefore they said, if you have found favor in your sight, let this land be given to your (16:28) servants as a possession. Do not take us over to Jordan.

That gave them 37 more years to walk around (16:41) waiting, waiting for the spies and their families to die. They’ve been out there 40 years now. (16:56) They’re right at the door.

Oh, we have livestock. This is the place for livestock. (17:04) I can hear the chickens crowing again.

(17:07) Would it be any different for us though? Let’s be honest. We’ve been there in our own circumstances (17:18) and chickens started to crow for us. New statement.

Verse 6, and Moses said to the children (17:28) of Gad and to the children of Reuben, shall your brethren go to war while you sit there? (17:33) Now why would you discourage the heart of the children of Israel from going over into the land (17:38) which the Lord has given them? Thus your fathers did when I sent them away from Kadesh Barnea to see (17:45) the land. But when they went up to the Valley of Eshkol and saw the land, they discouraged the (17:52) heart of the children of Israel so that they did not go into the land which the Lord had given them. (17:59) So he’s reminding them.

Remember the additional 37 years? (18:06) Really? You want to do this? Dropping to verse 14. (18:15) And look, you have risen in your father’s place a brood of sinful men to increase still (18:23) more the fierce anger of the Lord against Israel. For if you turn away from following him, (18:32) he will once again leave them in the wilderness and you will destroy all these people.

Enough. (18:45) Let’s go. I can hear it said.

Verse 31, and the children of Gad and the children of Reuben (18:56) answered saying, this is good. They get to kind of rewind a little bit. (19:04) The children of Reuben answered saying, as the Lord has said to your servants, so we will do.

(19:13) We will cross over armed before the Lord into the land of Canaan, but the possession of our (19:20) inheritance shall remain with us on this side of the Jordan. So they go. They do go.

You know, (19:36) I’m going to pause for just a second, and I’m going to give you something else from the book (19:41) of Deuteronomy and reading. This is Deuteronomy 17, 18 and through 20 of these three verses. (19:57) Sometimes we need to hear things again and again.

Like we’re hearing this. This might be (20:03) something you’ve heard before, but we’re hearing fresh again today. I noticed this in Deuteronomy (20:11) 17 verses 18 through 20 concerning principles governing the kings of Israel.

(20:24) There’s also, it shall be when he sits, meaning the king, sits on the throne of his kingdom, (20:31) that he shall write for himself a copy of this law in a book from the one before the priests, (20:39) the Levites, and it shall be with him, and he shall read it all the days of his life, (20:46) that he may learn to fear the Lord his God and be careful to observe all the words of this law (20:53) and these statutes, that his heart may not be lifted above his brethren, that he may not turn (21:02) aside from the commandment to the right hand or to the left, and that he may prolong his days (21:10) in his kingdom, he and his children in the midst of Israel. What I noticed there is (21:20) the king is to write this himself. He doesn’t outsource this one.

He doesn’t send somebody (21:27) to do it for him. He should take his own hand and write, not just a five-minute task, but (21:35) he has to write the law. It says, a copy of this law in a book.

Well, that would refer to (21:49) Torah. That’s a lot of writing. If we know much about writing of the book of the law, (22:00) you write it.

Don’t make a mistake on the last page. Start fresh, the whole thing. That’s bad.

(22:10) Pay attention. It’s interesting, just like in school, grade school, the teacher makes you (22:17) write it down. Why? Because you remember it.

There’s just something about writing it down (22:23) yourself. You remember it. Very important.

Keep this stuff fresh. God’s telling us. (22:34) So now, Joshua.

That’s what the title of the sermon is. What would Joshua do? (22:45) So I’m going to start here in Joshua, verse 1. Chapter 1, verse 1. After the death of Moses, (22:54) the servant of the Lord, it came to pass that the Lord spoke to Joshua, the son of Nun, (23:00) Moses' assistant, saying, Moses, my servant is dead. Therefore, arise.

(23:09) Go over this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them, (23:14) the children of Israel. Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon, (23:20) I have given you. As I said to Moses, from the wilderness and this Lebanon, as far as the great (23:31) river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and to the great sea, (23:38) toward the going down of the sun shall be your territory.

Huge area of land. (23:48) Church. Then he says to Joshua, and this is a strong one.

No man shall be able to stand before (24:00) you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you (24:10) nor forsake you.

Amen. He’s telling Joshua, I’m with you. You don’t need to fear.

I’m with you. (24:23) You can do this. But he’s telling him, verse 6, he says, be strong and of good courage.

(24:35) For to this people you shall divide as an inheritance the land which I swore to their (24:41) fathers to give them. Only be strong and very courageous. That you may observe to do according (24:51) to all the law which Moses, my servant, commanded you.

Do not turn from it to the right hand or to (24:58) the left. That you may prosper wherever you go. This book of the law shall not depart from your (25:06) mouth.

It’s to remain fresh. It’s to remember these things. But you shall meditate on it day (25:17) and night.

That you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. (25:25) For then you will make your way prosperous and then you will have good success. I have not (25:37) commanded you, have I not commanded you.

And he says a third time now, the repetition. (25:46) Be strong and of good courage. Do not be afraid nor be dismayed for the Lord your God is with you (25:55) wherever you go.

So now it’s decision time. Joshua’s seen all these things. He’s seen, (26:09) he was there, he was one of the spies.

That was 37 years ago. It’s time again. Let’s go.

(26:22) He knows what’s out there. He’s been there. He’s seen it himself.

What’s he going to do? (26:32) Verse 10. Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people saying, (26:39) pass through the camp and command the people saying, prepare provisions for yourself. (26:47) For within three days you will cross over this Jordan to go in to possess the land (26:56) which the Lord your God is giving you to possess.

He’s ready. He’s going. (27:05) His faith in the Lord.

He understands. He knows what’s going to happen. He knows (27:11) there’s some really big, strong opponents on the other side.

God said do it. He’s going to do it. (27:26) So in verse 16, so they answered Joshua saying, all that you command us, we will do.

And wherever (27:34) you send us, we will go. Just as he heeded Moses in all things, just as we heeded Moses in all (27:44) things, so we will heed you. Only the Lord your God be with you as he was with Moses.

Whoever (27:55) rebels against your command and does not heed your words in all that you command him shall be put to (28:02) death. Only be what? Fourth time. Only be strong and of good courage.

There’s another repetition. (28:18) He knows what to do. He’s going to do it.

But still, he needs to hear it again. (28:26) He really needs to hear it. In the book of Hebrews, I’ll read just this little bit.

(28:33) And then bring it to a close. It says in Hebrews 3 verses 12 through 19, (28:45) that’s Hebrews 3, 12 and 19. Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of (28:54) unbelief in departing from the living God.

But exhort one another daily, daily, (29:04) daily. While it is called today, lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin, (29:12) for we have become partakers of Christ. If we hold the beginning of our confidence (29:20) steadfast to the end, while it is said today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts (29:30) as in the rebellion.

Remember 37 years ago? Don’t do that. Verse 16, for who having heard (29:42) rebelled? Indeed, it was not all who came out of Egypt led by Moses. Now with whom was he angry (29:52) 40 years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose corpses fell in the wilderness? And to whom did (30:00) he swear that they would not enter his rest, but to those who did not obey? So we see that (30:11) they could not enter in because of unbelief.

So I encourage all of us, myself included, (30:22) to not fall into unbelief. Let us keep the word of God fresh in our minds, (30:32) be strong, steadfast, and courageous. Not of our own strength that fails, (30:42) but by following the word of God.

The word of God is strong, steadfast, and courageous, (30:48) and we can take shelter in that. And I encourage you always cling to the truth, God’s perfect word. (30:56) Amen.