JOSHUA'S FINAL FAREWELL

PROCLAMATION

“And it came to pass a long time after … that Joshua waxed old and stricken in age.  And Joshua called for all Israel, and for the elders … and said to them, ‘… ye have seen all that The Lord your God hath done unto all these nations because of you; for The Lord your God is He that hath fought for you.’ ”  Joshua 23:1-3 (KJV)

 

EXPLANATION

These are the words of God which were revealed to and written by Joshua under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  After years of peace and rest from their enemies which were all around them, Joshua calls all of Israel together.  He tells them that he is old and stricken in age.  He tells them that The Lord God has fought their battles for them and defeated all of the nations around them. (Joshua 23:1-3)  He says that God has done great things for them and they should remain close to Him and follow His commands. (Joshua 23:6-11)  Then he cautions them and says that if they turn from The Lord God they could lose the land which He has given to them. (Joshua 23:12-13)  He tells them that he is about to die and he warns them that if they transgress and serve other gods, the anger of The Lord God will burn against them and they will be driven from the land. (Joshua 23:14-16)

 

APPLICATION

Sometimes the worst thing that can happen to us is to be blessed with success, prosperity, and plenty.  We tend to get an over inflated image of ourselves and we forget about God.  We have all been blessed in more ways than we can count and we should be grateful and thank Him daily.  If we do not acknowledge The Lord God and give Him praise, honor, and glory for all that He has done, then we may lose the blessing which we have been given.  If we turn from Him, He will withdraw from us and we will also lose the protection from our enemies.  All that we have, and all that we are, is the result of the goodness of God and we need His continued grace and mercy in order to maintain what we have.

THE LORD GOD SAID AS I WAS WITH MOSES SO I WILL BE WITH YOU

PROCLAMATION

“Now after the death of Moses the servant of The Lord it came to pass, that The Lord spake unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ minister, saying, ‘Moses My servant is dead;  Now arise, go over this Jordan … As I was with Moses, so I will be with thee;  I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.”  Joshua 1:1-5 (KJV)

 

EXPLANATION

These are the words of God which were revealed to and written by Joshua under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  The Lord God allowed Moses to climb to the top of Mount Nebo and to see the promised land, but He did not allow him to cross over into it. (Deuteronomy 34:1-4)  Moses died in Moab and The Lord God buried him at some unknown location in the valley. (Deuteronomy 34:5-7)  Joshua was filled with The Spirit because Moses had laid hands on him. (Deuteronomy 34:9)  After the Israelites had grieved for Moses for thirty days, (Deuteronomy 34:8) The Lord God spoke to Joshua and told him that he would lead the people into the promised land. (Joshua 1:1-6)  The Lord God also told Joshua to be strong and courageous, and to obey the law which Moses had given to them. (Joshua 1:7-9)  Joshua told the people that in three days they would cross the Jordan river and take possession of the land which God had promised them. (Joshua 1:10)  They responded to Joshua saying, as we obeyed Moses, so will we obey you. (Joshua 1:17-18)  There were no written Scriptures available to Moses, The Lord God spoke to him directly.  However, Moses had faithfully written down all that The Lord God had spoken to him so the first five Books of the Bible were written and available to Joshua.

 

APPLICATION

Moses was clearly a man of God, and so was Joshua.  Both of them were leaders of God’s people.  The Lord God was with them to counsel and advise them, to guide and direct them, and to protect and defend them.  The same is true today for the men of God who are leading God’s people.  However, this also applies to all of the leaders of God’s people who are believers.  That also includes the patriarchs and matriarchs who are believers and leaders of our families today.  When they die, it passes on to us to obey The Word of God and to lead our families.  As leaders of God’s people, even if we only lead or influence a few of them, we must also obey The Lord God.  If we will obey His Holy Word, then He will be with us as He was with Moses and Joshua.  He will never leave us nor forsake us. (Joshua 1:5 and Hebrews 13:5) 

 

DO THIS IN REMEMBRANCE OF HIM

PROCLAMATION

“Jesus took bread, and when He had given thanks, He broke it and gave it to His disciples, saying, ‘Take and eat; this is My body.’  Then He took a cup, and when He had given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink from it, all of you.  This is My blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.”  Matthew 26:26-28 (NIV)

EXPLANATION

These words are from the gospel, the good news regarding Jesus, The Christ, which were spoken by Christ according to the Apostle Matthew.  When Jesus had finished telling His disciples the parables, and explaining them, (Matthew 24 and 25) He again told them that He would be crucified. (Matthew 26:1-2)  They left the Mount of Olives and went to Bethany.  On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, His disciples asked Him where they should prepare to eat the Passover?  He directed them to follow a certain man to his home and ask him to use his upper room. (Matthew 26:17-19, Mark 14:13-14, and Luke 22:10-13)  Once they were there, He told them that one of them would betray Him. (Matthew 26:21-25)  After Judas left, they partook of the Last Supper. (Matthew 26:26-30) 

APPLICATION

The Lord’s Supper, the Ordinance of Communion, was instituted for us.  We are to do it in remembrance of Him until He comes again. (1 Corinthians 11:23-26)  There was no mandate given as to how often we should take it, but every time that we do, it should be done in remembrance of Him.   However, we should make sure that we pray and ask to be forgiven of our sins before we partake of it.  Because The Bible says that to take it unworthily would be bad for us. (1 Corinthians 11:27-30)