Joshua 1:7 Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go.
Have you ever noticed that sometimes kids get teased or called names for being a rule follower? Names that imply some secret, questionable desire on the part of the student to get in good with the teacher. (As though that were bad!)
The Israelites are less than three days away from entering the Promised Land. Less than three days away from a journey that began, in actuality, about 500 years before with Abraham! Just before entering, Moses died and Joshua was appointed the new leader. Joshua is one of two people who have been in the Promised Land before. He saw it forty years prior when Caleb, he, and the ten others spied out the land. The ten thought it was far too dangerous but Joshua and Caleb felt otherwise. I bet Joshua thought, “With God’s help and Moses’ leadership, we can’t fail!”
Now it’s time to go in, but with a new leader. Joshua! Was he tempted to fear? Yes! He knew Moses and he knew himself. God knew he was afraid. That’s why God encouraged him. But God didn’t tell him, “Be strong and courageous when you lead the people.” Or, “Be strong and courageous when the battle forms.” God said, “Be strong and courageous, that you may observe the Law!”
God knew the biggest battle in the Promised Land would be the same as the biggest battle they’d had all along the way. Following God’s Law. There would be temptations in the new place to disobey God’s Law. There would be other people around who would wonder why in the world they followed God’s Law?
It’s still the same. Accept the Bible as God’s Word and adopt it as the rule for your life and you can expect temptations. You will be tempted as you set your life’s course by the unchangeable Word of God because we live in a world with an ever-changing moral code. Follow God’s Word and you will not do as the world does. And they will question you about it. They might even mock you. They might call you names for being a rule follower. Names that imply some secret, questionable desire on your part to get in good with God.
It really is no secret. If you want to ‘get in good’ with God, obey His Word! Jesus once said, “If you love Me, obey My commandments.”
blessings,
Pastor Russ
