Introduction
Let me begin with a discipleship question: how will you follow Jesus in prayer and dependence on God this week?
Main Points
In this lesson shaped by Calvary Boise's teaching on JOSHUA: Discover God's Will for Your Life, Christ invites us to receive truth with humility, practice repentance, and walk in faithful obedience.
Life in the Church
Joshua is the book of the Bible that gives us really a transitional period for the people of God and as we study this. It is in stark contrast that we study what happens under the leadership of Joshua with what happened under the leadership of Moses and.
- There are really two distinct things that we see as God redeems his people from slavery in Egypt and points them to the promised.
- Land there is a lesson of the people that actually go in and for those of you wondering if you come in to church.
- It's like okay we're studying this ancient texts especially ancient because it's the Old Testament what can we get from Joshua for our modern.
- Time I'll remind you what Paul says to this church in Corinth about the importance of what you can draw from the biblical examples.
In the historical accounts of God's people this is what he says to the church in Corinth he says all these things happen to. Them meaning the children of Israel specifically the time from the wilderness into the promised land as examples they were written for our admonition.
Sin and Salvation
Preaching because God's love is what compels us to share his goodness and the answer just so you know for any one of you. That comes this morning with that question is God loves you more than you know God loves you enough to send his son to.
- Die on your behalf he's demonstrated his love for you and sending his son to die on the cross while we were still sinners.
- The second question and this is what we will focus on this morning is how do I actually know how to be led by.
- God how do I know God's will for my life as you go from season to season every new thing that you do in.
- Your life will come with questions and as you desire to pursue God some of those questions you'll wrestle with and say what am.
I supposed to do now and so one of the things that we can look at in contrasting the children of Israel under the. Leadership of Moses and the leadership of Joshua is in one example we find people who did not do God's will it was God's.
Faith and Obedience
It then you shall set out from your place and go after there is a signpost that are given to the people when you. See the priest taking the presence of the Lord through the Ark of the Covenant that's when you move yet verse 4 there shall. Be space between you and it's about two thousand cubits by measure do not come near it that you may know the way which. You must go and there it is another emphasis you look at that and then you're gonna know the way that you should go. And why is this so important it says you must look unto the Ark of the Covenant to know the way that you must. Go for you have not passed this way before there's a new thing in the movement of God's people to take a new land. A terrain that's totally unfamiliar a place they've never gone before and then Joshua says this as a final command to the people in. Verse 5 Joshua said to the people sanctify yourselves for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you and before we get into a. Few principles that will draw out of this ancient text to apply to our lives let me give you the payoff right up front. The will of God for your life is not a straightjacket and it is not something that God wants to do to control your. Life to have his way with you in ways that will hurt your life the will of God for your life as it says. Here will bring wonders into your life says listen if we do this if we follow the Lord if we take hold of what. He has taken hold of us for we're gonna see him move in mighty ways and that is the promise for anyone who truly. Finds the will of God for their life if you truly become a disciple of Christ and you follow him with your life Jesus. Says I came to give you life and life more abundant we are people that are looking to God's perfect will because we trust. Him that in that will there's goodness and in that will there's satisfaction in that will there is joy there is joy abundant and. It will work for your relationships for your neighborhoods for your workplace for your church community and for the children that we're raising up. We believe according to the word you find the perfect will for.
Faith and Obedience
God for your life and you will see God do wondrous things for your life that's the payoff so now I hope we can. Say okay well how do we do it how do we know how to be led by God there's three things that we just. Read that will serve as those signposts to say okay let us follow the Lord in this way so that we know that we. Can overcome our own fear and disobedience follow God into those wondrous works and the first thing we find in verse 4 he says. You've got to look for the presence of the Lord you've got to follow him why because God's will in this circumstance and as. You study the scripture from generous Genesis to Revelation God's will is so often found in this simple phrase the Lord is taking you. To a place that you have not passed before you really want to know the will of God what you're actually doing is you're. Saying Lord I am willing to let you do a new thing in my life that is the beginning of the will of God. For your life and that is found in our way of the full expression of what it means to be God's people in the. Fullness of Christ if you study the Gospels in the way that Christ draws people to himself the fundamental truth in what all of. The will of God through Christ has in common is that Jesus calls people to live a brand new life it says in the. New Testament that anyone who is in Christ is a brand new creation so what this tells us is the will of God is. Not coming to simply boost your life it's not simply coming to clean up your plans and give you some moral support and tell. You to keep going in the way that you're going and if you ever need anything just ask God what this is saying is. There is a path for your life that you have not passed before the will of God is always doing a new thing he's. Taking people from place to place from glory to glory and teaching them how to trust him apart from what they can understand and. That is the story of the Bible the story of the Bible is God's people on the move continually and it isn't just to. The promised land the story of the New Testament is God's.
Faith and Obedience
People on the move until we meet him face to face in eternity here's what this means you haven't arrived yet this church has. Not arrived yet God's people the expression of his love given to us in the church age is not seen as fullness yet don't. Set up the stakes in the ground just quite yet because there's still things that God wants to move us towards to do new. Things that's why one of the great works of Christian literature is a book called the pilgrims progress by John Bunyan and apart from. The Bible it's one of those books you can recommend to any ones who read year-by-year over and over and again because of all. The spiritual truth to remind you that you are in fact a pilgrim you have not gotten to celestial kingdom you're not at eternity. Sure yet and so for that you keep moving you keep pressing on as Paul says to that thing which Christ laid a hold. Of you for you keep pressing on to that prize do not stand still do not think that you have arrived at the place. That God has for you there is a path that you have not trekked before and God's will wants to open up your heart. And your mind and your plans to something brand-new for your life now this is very hard this is very challenging we see the. Challenge as we contrast the people of God under the leadership of Joshua who will grab hold of the promise who will grab hold. Of the new possession and we contrast it to the people that were being led under the leadership of Moses who died in the. Wilderness why because they had an opportunity to cross this very River they had an opportunity as it says to go down that way. They've never passed before and what do they say as we look over the Jordan and we think about the land this place we've. Never been before what we realize is it's scary and it's hard and there are giants in the land and there are chariots made. Of iron and if we go to this place we've never been before we will surely die and all of you feel that whether. You know it or not the call to follow Christ comes with an incredible burden on your life that if you try to complete. It in your own strength and your own flesh and your own.
Faith and Obedience
Will you will be crippled because jesus says anyone who wants to follow me must leave all to follow they must hate their mother. And father and sister or brother it is a whole paradigm shift for your life to follow Christ and you know why people don't. Follow Christ it's not because history doesn't point us to the reality of the Resurrection and it isn't because theology doesn't line up for. God sending his son to the full revelation of who he is through Christ it is because Christ demands your life is because Christ. Wants to take you on a path you've never been before he wants to pull you away from all of those plans and desires. That you had which will be the wilderness of your life and he wants to do something brand new and so often there is. Spiritual cold feet because you're not really ready to cross that Jordan you're not really ready to cross into the new thing and you. Know this isn't a church problem this is not a spiritual problem only this is a problem that exists throughout your life when it. Is time to do a new thing you are people who like what you like you love what you love and when you find. The comfortable thing it's sometimes hard to do the new thing let me give myself as an example here when I was four years. Old on the cusp of my fifth birthday my mother being the awesome mom that she was planned for me the most amazing fifth. Birthday party we're talking all my friends the decorations the pinata all of the 80s hats pin the tail on the donkey and I. Came out of my room for just a brief second I thought I don't want that I'm happy being four because I heard this. Rumor on the street that when you turn five you have to do this thing called school you actually have to kind of grow. Up in some small way step out of your house do a new thing and I thought if I stay for forever I'll never. Have to do that and sometimes we all feel that way my mom had to cancel my fifth birthday party send all my kids. Home she actually still has the pinata that I was unwilling to break because she's so sentimental you know what happened anyway turned five. That bunch of numbers in between I'm 37 you can't stop the.
Faith and Obedience
Change that has happened in your life the world doesn't stop because you want to get off and God's movement by the power of. His spirit and what he wants to do in the new way he reaches each and every new generation with his truth that endures. From generation to generation it will not stop even if you want to get off the ride the God will take his people to. His promised land the only question is are you willing to do the new thing with God and the spiritual cold feet that the. Children of Israel had that said I can't go into that land there's too many Giants we see this throughout the story of God's. Faithfulness continually wants to expand his love to expand his blessing to do new things to bring new wonders and new joy and people. Continually stiff-arming God because we see the whole story repeat in the New Testament in the New Testament there is a brand new path. Upon which God's people had never traveled before namely that God was not only the savior of the Jewish people the descendants of Abraham. And Moses but now the word on the Street is the good news gospel message is that Jesus died for the sin of the. Entire world it wasn't just for the Jews it was also for what they called non-jewish people Gentiles and that was a message that. The first church struggled with we accepted freely now were mostly made up of people that are outside of the direct line of the. Descendants of Abraham and yet the first church didn't want to do that we know we glorify Peter because he's the chief disciple preached. The first message to bring the church in 3,000 strong and yet what happens when he was called to eat with a Gentile of. Unclean food heaven forbid Lord I can't go in that man's house and what if God say to Peter in that moment he said. Never call something unclean which I have called clean my love is deeper than what you realize I'm going to new people and I. Want to use you in a way that you've never been before to expand my love into the lives of the Gentile world praise. God that he did and we belong to a church movement that has a similar history if you study the movement of Calvary Chapel. It has a glorious Genesis because in the late 60s and.
We return to the opening teaching: discipleship is not just information, it is transformation through faith and obedience to Jesus. If we receive His Word and walk it out, He will shape us into people who endure and bear fruit.
Lord Jesus, help me hear Your Word, obey it with faith, and grow as Your disciple. Amen.
Conclusion
We return to the opening teaching: discipleship is not just information, it is transformation through faith and obedience to Jesus. If we receive His Word and walk it out, He will shape us into people who endure and bear fruit.
Closing Prayer
Lord Jesus, help me hear Your Word, obey it with faith, and grow as Your disciple. Amen.