Joshua 11:6a The Lord said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid of them, because by this time tomorrow I will hand all of them, slain, over to Israel.”
For quite awhile after I retired from teaching, I would have stress dreams. Those dreams where I would be in a classroom with an unruly bunch of students and I couldn’t gain control of the setting. Or where contest is tomorrow and I discover we haven’t been practicing one of the pieces. The situations sound silly in a way, but they represent real fears of being a band director. Not life-threatening, of course, but very concerning nonetheless.
Joshua had many reasons for confidence. He had been Moses assistant throughout all of the miraculous things that had occurred. He had seen God’s hand at work on multiple occasions. He also had been chosen by Moses as successor and approved by God. He himself had since seen God do unimaginable things! The walls of Jericho fell by trumpet blast. An enemy army defeated by hailstones. Even the sun standing still at his prayer! But now there were multiple kings and armies arrayed against them. Of course he’d have a measure of fear!
We are fearful people. We like to think we’re not. We certainly want others to know we’re not! But deep down, most of us have fears. God knows this. Phrases like, “do not be afraid”, “fear not”, etc. appear literally hundreds of times in the Bible! But God isn’t just flippantly saying not to be afraid as though we had ultimate control of that feeling. He is telling Joshua that the reason not to fear is that He is on the scene.
If I know that God is working, I can take comfort. What could I be afraid of that is more powerful than God? Nothing! The Almighty God of the Universe cares about us! He doesn’t want us to live in fear. We can have a relationship with Him that allows us to come to Him with our fears. And our hopes. And our failures. And our successes. And everything else!
God was with Joshua because Joshua was with God. If we follow after God, He will be there to comfort our fears also!
Blessings,
Pastor Russ
