WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:08.099 A dear friend of mine tells a story about how, as a twenty-something, he found himself at a crossroads. 00:00:08.099 --> 00:00:16.800 ! His career was doing well, although it was extremely demanding and it tempted him here and there at a bit of moral compromise. 00:00:16.800 --> 00:00:26.300 A lot of grey area that maybe wasn't so grey that he was tempted to participate in. 00:00:26.300 --> 00:00:34.299 There's also the prospect of a very meaningful romantic relationship, but with someone who did not share the same faith. 00:00:34.299 --> 00:00:42.299 Many things were going well. For my friend, the conventionally wise thing to do would be to go for it. 00:00:42.299 --> 00:00:46.299 To go for it. These are great opportunities. Go for it. 00:00:46.299 --> 00:00:53.299 But it would ultimately mean compromising his commitment to his faith. 00:00:53.299 --> 00:01:01.299 My friend shares how he wrestled with the question about whether God would honour his decision to not compromise his faith, 00:01:01.299 --> 00:01:07.299 even if it meant saying no to many good things. Many great opportunities. 00:01:07.299 --> 00:01:10.299 Quite the fork in the road moment. 00:01:10.299 --> 00:01:23.299 You know, one of the biggest struggles that Christians, people that maybe have a foot in and foot out of the Christian faith, 00:01:23.299 --> 00:01:31.299 or those that are spiritually interested and are looking to see whether the Christian faith would be the right move for them. 00:01:31.299 --> 00:01:43.299 One of the biggest issues is this. If I get serious about this faith, will I have to give up much more of what I love and enjoy? 00:01:43.299 --> 00:01:51.299 Will my life be more or less robust? Can God truly give what this faith promises? 00:01:51.299 --> 00:01:57.299 And I'll say this. It's a good question to ask if you're asking the question, if you have asked that question. 00:01:57.299 --> 00:02:01.299 It's a very good question to ask. Why? 00:02:01.299 --> 00:02:03.299 Because it's an honest question. 00:02:03.299 --> 00:02:10.300 It's a question that recognizes that the Christian faith makes claims on all areas of your life. 00:02:10.300 --> 00:02:12.300 It has implications. 00:02:12.300 --> 00:02:21.300 It recognizes that we are taking a chance by trusting in the biblical claims of the God of Scripture. 00:02:25.300 --> 00:02:29.300 Is Christianity worth the cost? 00:02:30.300 --> 00:02:34.300 So we're going to continue on in Joshua 5 as we think that over. 00:02:34.300 --> 00:02:41.300 We're going to read through the, continue to read through this story of Israel in the land, in the promised land. 00:02:41.300 --> 00:02:50.300 And we'll find that the Israelites are in a situation not so dissimilar from the situation that my friend found himself in. 00:02:51.300 --> 00:02:54.300 A situation that seems to go against conventional wisdom. 00:02:55.300 --> 00:03:00.300 That calls into question God's faithfulness to his promises. 00:03:00.300 --> 00:03:07.300 Will he provide for Israel even if it seems like following him might result in their downfall? 00:03:07.300 --> 00:03:13.300 So to explore this question, we'll look at Joshua 5 verses 1 to 12. 00:03:13.300 --> 00:03:14.300 Not the whole chapter. 00:03:14.300 --> 00:03:19.300 It's interesting how the chapter is divided up. 00:03:19.300 --> 00:03:25.300 Really the last few verses of chapter 5, it goes better with chapter 6. 00:03:25.300 --> 00:03:27.300 So that's the way I've broken it up. 00:03:27.300 --> 00:03:31.300 So to explore this question, we'll look at chapter 5, 1 to 12. 00:03:31.300 --> 00:03:36.300 And we'll look at two rituals that are described in the text. 00:03:37.300 --> 00:03:39.300 So the first one is a ritual act. 00:03:40.300 --> 00:03:42.300 And the other one is a ritual meal. 00:03:43.300 --> 00:03:47.300 And just before we get into these two points, let's consider where we are in the narrative thus far. 00:03:47.300 --> 00:03:53.300 So if you are new or you haven't followed along in Joshua, let me bring you up to speed. 00:03:54.300 --> 00:03:56.300 Last week we were in Joshua 3 to 4. 00:03:56.300 --> 00:03:58.300 And there is so much to say about it. 00:03:58.300 --> 00:04:08.300 But the broad strokes are that Israel, they have received the report from the spies that went into the land. 00:04:08.300 --> 00:04:10.300 And the report is a good report. 00:04:10.300 --> 00:04:16.300 The people are afraid of this nation that is amassed on the east side of the Jordan. 00:04:16.300 --> 00:04:20.300 And now chapters 3 and 4, they will begin to cross the Jordan. 00:04:20.300 --> 00:04:26.300 And they cross the Jordan in a very supernatural way during the flood season. 00:04:27.300 --> 00:04:35.300 Which is to say, without a supernatural way to get over the Jordan, they would have to wait some time until the flooding subsided. 00:04:35.300 --> 00:04:38.300 But yet, God does a miracle. 00:04:38.300 --> 00:04:44.300 He enters into his natural world and he does a supernatural thing. 00:04:44.300 --> 00:04:51.300 He holds up the Jordan, the waters up north, so that by the time all of the excess water flows down, 00:04:52.300 --> 00:04:55.300 the Jordan is dry and the entire nation crosses it. 00:04:55.300 --> 00:05:07.300 The nations that inhabited the land, they continue to be absolutely frightened. 00:05:07.300 --> 00:05:10.300 They knew that the God of Israel was the only true God. 00:05:10.300 --> 00:05:14.300 There is this interesting, if you read the end of chapter 4 and chapter 5, 00:05:14.300 --> 00:05:23.300 there is a bit of a seamlessness in the narrative that Israel is poised to unsheathe their sword, 00:05:23.300 --> 00:05:28.300 take military control and win the day, to have a conquest of the land. 00:05:28.300 --> 00:05:30.300 See if you can see the transition. 00:05:30.300 --> 00:05:31.300 It goes really well. 00:05:31.300 --> 00:05:33.300 We will start in chapter 4, 23. 00:05:33.300 --> 00:05:40.300 For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until you passed over, 00:05:40.300 --> 00:05:45.300 as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up for us until we passed over. 00:05:45.300 --> 00:05:48.300 So that, this is verse 24, 00:05:48.300 --> 00:05:53.300 So that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the Lord is mighty, 00:05:53.300 --> 00:05:56.300 that you may fear the Lord your God forever. 00:05:56.300 --> 00:05:58.300 Chapter 5, verse 1. 00:05:58.300 --> 00:06:03.300 As soon as all the kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan to the west, 00:06:03.300 --> 00:06:06.300 and all the kings of the Canaanites who were by the sea, 00:06:06.300 --> 00:06:13.300 heard that the Lord had dried up the waters of the Jordan for the people of Israel until they had crossed over, 00:06:13.300 --> 00:06:22.300 their hearts melted, and there was no longer any spirit in them because of the people of Israel. 00:06:22.300 --> 00:06:23.300 This is it. 00:06:23.300 --> 00:06:26.300 Israel is in such an advantageous position. 00:06:26.300 --> 00:06:29.300 They crossed the Jordan in a miraculous way. 00:06:29.300 --> 00:06:32.300 Their enemies are completely demoralized. 00:06:32.300 --> 00:06:34.300 Completely demoralized. 00:06:34.300 --> 00:06:37.300 Now is the time to strike. 00:06:37.300 --> 00:06:39.300 So what happens next? 00:06:39.300 --> 00:06:43.300 Look with me at verses 2 and 3, and this will begin our first question. 00:06:43.300 --> 00:06:47.300 Verse 2 and 3 of chapter 5. 00:06:47.300 --> 00:06:50.300 At that time the Lord said to Joshua, 00:06:50.300 --> 00:06:54.300 Make flint knives and circumcise the sons of Israel a second time. 00:06:54.300 --> 00:07:01.300 So Joshua made flint knives and circumcised the sons of Israel at Gebeat Har-erloth. 00:07:02.300 --> 00:07:05.300 And that's, oh, and then I'll read verse 8. 00:07:05.300 --> 00:07:06.300 Sorry about that. 00:07:06.300 --> 00:07:07.300 Verse 8. 00:07:07.300 --> 00:07:09.300 When the circumcising of the whole nation was finished, 00:07:09.300 --> 00:07:13.300 they remained in their places in the camp until they were healed. 00:07:13.300 --> 00:07:18.300 On the eve of Israel's greatest victory, okay, the greatest victory, 00:07:18.300 --> 00:07:23.300 their enemies completely demoralized, the promise-making, promise-keeping God, 00:07:23.300 --> 00:07:27.300 pumps the brakes on the whole operation. 00:07:27.300 --> 00:07:33.300 And it's a bizarre kind of turn of events. 00:07:33.300 --> 00:07:35.300 Now is the time to strike. 00:07:35.300 --> 00:07:38.300 Conventional wisdom says everything is going their way. 00:07:38.300 --> 00:07:40.300 This is the time. 00:07:40.300 --> 00:07:42.300 The strategy couldn't be better. 00:07:42.300 --> 00:07:44.300 The situation couldn't be better. 00:07:44.300 --> 00:07:47.300 And God says to Joshua, hold on a second. 00:07:47.300 --> 00:07:50.300 Make some flint knives and circumcise the people. 00:07:50.300 --> 00:07:55.300 And by the way, you'll have to wait a good amount of time until they're all healed up. 00:07:55.300 --> 00:07:58.300 It's like the worst possible time to do this. 00:07:58.300 --> 00:08:01.300 It is strategically idiotic. 00:08:01.300 --> 00:08:08.300 Every man between the ages of 8 and 40, the whole generation that was born in the wilderness, 00:08:08.300 --> 00:08:15.300 had to be circumcised on the moment of their greatest conquest. 00:08:15.300 --> 00:08:18.300 It's a remarkable, remarkable tension in the story. 00:08:18.300 --> 00:08:22.300 I mean, I can imagine hearing the murmuring in the camp. 00:08:22.300 --> 00:08:23.300 Sorry? 00:08:23.300 --> 00:08:25.300 What's going on? 00:08:25.300 --> 00:08:30.300 Can this not wait until we have the upper hand, until we conquer the land? 00:08:30.300 --> 00:08:32.299 This is the worst possible time. 00:08:32.299 --> 00:08:35.299 And even worse if the murmuring was like this. 00:08:35.299 --> 00:08:39.299 I mean, is Joshua really hearing from the Lord? 00:08:39.299 --> 00:08:44.299 Does this make sense that God would make this promise 00:08:44.299 --> 00:08:49.299 and then on the eve of our victory, we are going to be completely vulnerable? 00:08:49.299 --> 00:08:50.299 It makes no sense. 00:08:50.299 --> 00:08:53.299 Is Joshua the right leader for us? 00:08:53.299 --> 00:08:56.299 Maybe Moses was our guy in the end. 00:08:56.299 --> 00:08:58.299 Maybe this Joshua guy is a bit cuckoo. 00:08:58.299 --> 00:09:00.299 He's a bit crazy. 00:09:00.299 --> 00:09:07.299 Whether or not that happened, I mean, this is what I'm reading into it or imagining it to happen. 00:09:07.299 --> 00:09:12.299 But nevertheless, you can feel the tension of what's happening here. 00:09:12.299 --> 00:09:19.299 Conventional wisdom says that Israel is acting completely unwise. 00:09:19.299 --> 00:09:23.299 But what we see here is not unwise at all. 00:09:23.299 --> 00:09:27.299 Even if it does fly in the face of conventional wisdom. 00:09:27.299 --> 00:09:34.299 Listen to the explanation as to why this had to happen at the moment that it had to happen. 00:09:34.299 --> 00:09:37.299 Look with me at verse 4 and we'll read to verse 7. 00:09:37.299 --> 00:09:42.299 And this is the reason why Joshua circumcised them. 00:09:42.299 --> 00:09:52.299 All the males of the people who came out of Egypt, all the men of war had died in the wilderness on the way after they came out of Egypt. 00:09:52.299 --> 00:10:03.299 Though all the people who came out had been circumcised, yet all the people who were born on the way in the wilderness after they had come out of Egypt had not been circumcised. 00:10:03.299 --> 00:10:12.299 For the people of Israel walked 40 years in the wilderness until all the nation, the men of war who came out of Egypt, perished. 00:10:12.299 --> 00:10:15.299 Because they did not obey the voice of the Lord. 00:10:15.299 --> 00:10:24.299 The Lord swore to them that he would not let them see the land that the Lord had sworn to their fathers to give to us. 00:10:24.299 --> 00:10:27.299 A land flowing with milk and honey. 00:10:27.299 --> 00:10:33.299 So it was their children, whom he raised up in their place, that Joshua circumcised. 00:10:33.299 --> 00:10:39.299 For they were uncircumcised because they had not been circumcised on the way. 00:10:39.299 --> 00:10:49.299 You see the Exodus story was not just about God freeing the Israelites from Egyptian slavery. 00:10:49.299 --> 00:10:51.299 It wasn't just a rescue mission. 00:10:51.299 --> 00:10:55.299 But it was about inheriting a promise that God gave centuries earlier. 00:10:55.299 --> 00:11:01.299 That he would bring the descendants of Abraham into a land that was a promised land. 00:11:01.299 --> 00:11:03.299 That a land that was flowing with milk and honey. 00:11:03.299 --> 00:11:10.299 That it would be a land that would flourish and that they would flourish as a people as a result. 00:11:10.299 --> 00:11:21.299 That they wouldn't be a grouping of random tribes, but actually they would become a nation under God. 00:11:21.299 --> 00:11:23.299 A nation with a land. 00:11:23.299 --> 00:11:26.299 They would be inheritors of a covenant. 00:11:26.299 --> 00:11:31.299 And this covenant was the one that the Lord made. 00:11:31.299 --> 00:11:35.299 And ultimately the covenant pointed to this reality. 00:11:35.299 --> 00:11:39.299 That God would be the God to the people of Israel. 00:11:39.299 --> 00:11:43.299 And the people of Israel would be the people to the one true God. 00:11:43.299 --> 00:11:46.299 There would be an incredible relational dynamic. 00:11:46.299 --> 00:11:53.299 I mean, if you're trying to figure out what the big thrust of the Abrahamic covenant is. 00:11:53.299 --> 00:11:58.299 It is God connecting, choosing a people and connecting with them. 00:11:58.299 --> 00:12:01.059 Initiating a relationship with them. 00:12:01.299 --> 00:12:03.299 This is what the covenant was. 00:12:03.299 --> 00:12:07.299 So to rescue these people out of Egyptian slavery. 00:12:07.299 --> 00:12:09.299 It wasn't, again, just to rescue them out of slavery. 00:12:09.299 --> 00:12:16.299 But to bring them into this wonderful, loving, God-initiated covenant relationship. 00:12:16.299 --> 00:12:24.299 But to enjoy the covenant, the people had to walk in the covenant. 00:12:24.299 --> 00:12:32.299 For the first generation, even though they were freed by God from Egyptian slavery. 00:12:32.299 --> 00:12:39.299 It was very clear that they did not want this relational connection, commitment to the Lord. 00:12:39.299 --> 00:12:41.299 I'm not going to read it now. 00:12:41.299 --> 00:12:41.299 00:12:41.299 --> 00:12:49.299 But if you read the Apostle Paul's interpretation or explanation of this in 1 Corinthians chapter 10. 00:12:49.299 --> 00:12:53.299 In verses 1 to 7, 1 to 5, 1 to 7. 00:12:53.299 --> 00:12:57.299 You will see that the people, they enjoyed being free. 00:12:57.299 --> 00:13:02.299 But they did not want to submit to the one true God. 00:13:02.299 --> 00:13:04.299 They didn't want the king. 00:13:04.299 --> 00:13:08.299 They only wanted the kingdom. 00:13:08.299 --> 00:13:10.299 They didn't want the covenant giver. 00:13:10.299 --> 00:13:14.299 They only wanted the benefits of the covenant. 00:13:14.299 --> 00:13:23.299 And that entire generation, they were left in the desert to wander until they died. 00:13:23.299 --> 00:13:27.299 This generation, they are not like the other generation. 00:13:27.299 --> 00:13:35.299 Even if it meant effectively ruling out conventional wisdom in favor of faithfulness to the Lord. 00:13:35.299 --> 00:13:37.299 And his call to covenant renewal. 00:13:37.299 --> 00:13:39.299 And that's exactly what we see here. 00:13:39.299 --> 00:13:43.299 The people of Israel, under Joshua, are renewing the covenant with God. 00:13:43.299 --> 00:13:46.299 The sign of the covenant being circumcision. 00:13:46.299 --> 00:13:53.299 They cannot enjoy the benefits of the covenant unless they renew it themselves. 00:13:53.299 --> 00:13:55.299 Maybe put it another way. 00:13:55.299 --> 00:13:59.299 An uncircumcised Israel cannot inherit the land. 00:14:01.299 --> 00:14:05.299 Before we continue, I just want to say this. 00:14:05.299 --> 00:14:08.299 We should affirm that conventional wisdom is a good thing. 00:14:08.299 --> 00:14:10.299 It's a good thing. 00:14:10.299 --> 00:14:15.299 It's a wise thing to take advantage of good opportunities afforded to you. 00:14:15.299 --> 00:14:23.299 Sometimes we find ourselves in the advantageous position where we can strike while the iron's hot, so to speak. 00:14:23.299 --> 00:14:25.299 We have investment opportunities. 00:14:25.299 --> 00:14:29.299 We have opportunities to get promotions. 00:14:29.299 --> 00:14:38.299 To take chances on a bigger home. 00:14:38.299 --> 00:14:40.299 To move into a different neighborhood. 00:14:40.299 --> 00:14:44.299 To take on opportunities for our children. 00:14:44.299 --> 00:14:50.299 There's so many aspects of conventional wisdom that are wise. 00:14:50.299 --> 00:14:51.299 It's good. 00:14:51.299 --> 00:14:53.299 It's conventional wisdom. 00:14:53.299 --> 00:14:55.299 It's still wisdom. 00:14:57.299 --> 00:15:05.299 However, it ceases to be wise when taking such chances will come at a moral or relational cost. 00:15:05.299 --> 00:15:13.299 It ceases to be wise if you choose not to stick your head out and speak out about something that is legitimately wrong at work. 00:15:13.299 --> 00:15:15.299 Something that is morally corrupt. 00:15:15.299 --> 00:15:17.299 Or even evil. 00:15:17.299 --> 00:15:20.299 It is not wise to compromise financially. 00:15:20.299 --> 00:15:29.299 To, you know, fudge numbers a little bit so you can save yourself a bit more money at tax time. 00:15:29.299 --> 00:15:41.299 It is not wise to make decisions that will draw you away from God's people on a consistent basis. 00:15:41.299 --> 00:15:52.299 Where you are not interacting and fellowshipping with people that will pray for you and hold you to account and ask how your soul is doing. 00:15:52.299 --> 00:15:58.299 There are many decisions that we can make that seem conventionally wise. 00:15:58.299 --> 00:16:01.299 But in the end, they're actually compromised. 00:16:01.299 --> 00:16:04.299 And this was the decision before the Israelites. 00:16:04.299 --> 00:16:10.299 They seem to be going against conventional wisdom by not striking the Canaanites right away. 00:16:10.299 --> 00:16:15.299 However, in this case, conventional wisdom was not true wisdom. 00:16:15.299 --> 00:16:25.299 For it would not be a decision that was ultimately fueled by faith and trust in the one true covenant-making, covenant-keeping God. 00:16:25.299 --> 00:16:37.299 Instead of embracing conventional wisdom, they decide to trust in the ever-living God. 00:16:37.299 --> 00:16:40.299 To put their faith and hope in Him. 00:16:40.299 --> 00:16:47.299 To recognize that He wants to be their God and they have this great privilege of being His people. 00:16:47.299 --> 00:16:54.299 You see, walking in the fullness of wisdom meant walking in the fullness of covenant relationship. 00:16:54.299 --> 00:17:00.299 Which meant ultimately being circumcised, bearing the mark of the covenant. 00:17:00.299 --> 00:17:05.299 The sign of the covenant that the Lord instituted all the way back with Abraham. 00:17:05.299 --> 00:17:07.299 The men had to be circumcised. 00:17:07.299 --> 00:17:09.299 They had to bear the mark of the covenant. 00:17:09.299 --> 00:17:18.299 It reminded them and reminded their families that God had made a promise to their forefather. 00:17:18.299 --> 00:17:19.299 That He would give them the land. 00:17:19.299 --> 00:17:21.299 That they would be His people. 00:17:21.299 --> 00:17:24.299 They had to fulfill this requirement of the covenant. 00:17:24.299 --> 00:17:28.299 Even if it meant being at a military disadvantage. 00:17:28.299 --> 00:17:32.299 I mean, here they are. 00:17:32.299 --> 00:17:36.299 The vast majority of the men. 00:17:36.299 --> 00:17:39.299 Maybe all of the men. 00:17:39.299 --> 00:17:41.299 They are ready to fight. 00:17:41.299 --> 00:17:43.299 And yet, there is this kind of fear. 00:17:43.299 --> 00:17:50.299 Maybe, maybe, maybe, as we are healing up, maybe the Canaanites are healing up. 00:17:50.299 --> 00:17:54.299 Maybe they are bolstering their morale once again. 00:17:54.299 --> 00:17:55.299 Maybe they are organizing. 00:17:55.299 --> 00:17:56.299 Maybe they are fortifying. 00:17:56.299 --> 00:18:01.299 Maybe they are amassing troops just around the bend. 00:18:01.299 --> 00:18:03.299 Maybe behind that hill. 00:18:03.299 --> 00:18:07.299 Will God honor our decision? 00:18:07.299 --> 00:18:17.299 The previous generation would have given in to these fears. 00:18:17.299 --> 00:18:22.299 Remember, they wanted the promised land without the promise maker. 00:18:22.299 --> 00:18:23.299 But this generation is different. 00:18:23.299 --> 00:18:24.299 They are trusting in the Lord. 00:18:24.299 --> 00:18:29.299 And again, we will see in weeks to come, it is not a perfect trust. 00:18:29.299 --> 00:18:33.299 By no means is it a perfect trust. 00:18:33.299 --> 00:18:37.299 Nevertheless, their faith is in the God of Israel. 00:18:37.299 --> 00:18:39.299 And what is the result of all this? 00:18:39.299 --> 00:18:41.299 Look with me at verse 9. 00:18:41.299 --> 00:18:44.299 And the Lord said to Joshua, 00:18:44.299 --> 00:18:49.299 Today, I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you. 00:18:49.299 --> 00:18:52.299 And so the name of that place is called Gilgal to this day, 00:18:52.299 --> 00:18:55.299 which is to say, to roll. 00:18:55.299 --> 00:18:58.299 It is named after what God had done. 00:18:58.299 --> 00:19:03.299 He has rolled away the reproach of Egypt from the people. 00:19:03.299 --> 00:19:06.299 The reproach of Egypt is no longer. 00:19:06.299 --> 00:19:10.299 The slavery, the taunts, the ridicule, 00:19:10.299 --> 00:19:13.299 the fear that God would abandon them. 00:19:13.299 --> 00:19:17.299 The disobedience and disbelief of the previous generation. 00:19:17.299 --> 00:19:21.299 The sinfulness of desiring the kingdom without the king. 00:19:21.299 --> 00:19:23.299 The promised land without the promise maker. 00:19:23.299 --> 00:19:31.299 All of that has been rolled away so that they are now made righteous by faith in the God of Israel. 00:19:31.299 --> 00:19:37.299 Israel once again has inherited the covenant promises of God. 00:19:37.299 --> 00:19:39.299 It is a beautiful, beautiful line. 00:19:39.299 --> 00:19:40.299 Verse 9. 00:19:40.299 --> 00:19:43.299 God has rolled away the reproach of Egypt. 00:19:43.299 --> 00:19:47.299 Friends, the Lord wants to bless. 00:19:47.299 --> 00:19:48.299 This is what he is about. 00:19:48.299 --> 00:19:50.299 He wants to bless. 00:19:50.299 --> 00:19:52.299 And he wants to bless you. 00:19:52.299 --> 00:19:53.299 Okay? 00:19:53.299 --> 00:19:54.299 You. 00:19:54.299 --> 00:19:55.299 He wants to bless you. 00:19:55.299 --> 00:19:58.299 He wants to bless you with joy. 00:19:58.299 --> 00:20:03.299 He wants to bless you so that you would know love. 00:20:03.299 --> 00:20:04.299 And the joy of giving love. 00:20:04.299 --> 00:20:06.299 To grow in virtue. 00:20:06.299 --> 00:20:07.299 He wants to bless you with that. 00:20:07.299 --> 00:20:13.299 He wants to bless you with learning how to work hard and to bless your children. 00:20:13.299 --> 00:20:18.299 And how to be a good employee or an integral business person. 00:20:18.299 --> 00:20:22.299 He wants you to walk wisely in all the areas of this life. 00:20:22.299 --> 00:20:24.299 These are all blessings he wants to give you. 00:20:24.299 --> 00:20:26.299 But above all, okay? 00:20:26.299 --> 00:20:30.299 Above all, God wants to bless you with himself. 00:20:30.299 --> 00:20:32.299 With himself. 00:20:32.299 --> 00:20:38.299 Ultimately, the gift of the promised land isn't the land itself. 00:20:38.299 --> 00:20:39.299 It's God. 00:20:39.299 --> 00:20:40.299 It's him. 00:20:40.299 --> 00:20:43.299 Now, he will dwell with him, his people. 00:20:43.299 --> 00:20:46.299 And this is the same God that we read about in Joshua. 00:20:46.299 --> 00:20:50.299 It's the same God that dwells among us right now. 00:20:50.299 --> 00:20:54.299 He wants to bless you with himself. 00:20:54.299 --> 00:21:01.299 He wants you to learn to walk by faith and not by sight. 00:21:01.299 --> 00:21:06.299 To walk in the fullness of being a member of God's covenantal family. 00:21:06.299 --> 00:21:10.299 Which means valuing the things that God values. 00:21:14.299 --> 00:21:18.299 Valuing the reality that nice things are nice. 00:21:18.299 --> 00:21:20.299 They're great and wonderful. 00:21:20.299 --> 00:21:26.299 But valuing the reality that now we are the possession of God. 00:21:26.299 --> 00:21:29.299 And he's happy about it. 00:21:29.299 --> 00:21:30.299 He delights in it. 00:21:30.299 --> 00:21:31.299 Right? 00:21:31.299 --> 00:21:35.299 So how does God do this? 00:21:35.299 --> 00:21:37.299 Well, the same way he does it for Israel. 00:21:37.299 --> 00:21:40.299 He rolls away the reproach of Egypt. 00:21:40.299 --> 00:21:46.299 Now, we are not slaves or former slaves of the Pharaoh. 00:21:46.299 --> 00:21:49.299 The Pharaohs haven't existed for millennia. 00:21:49.299 --> 00:21:55.299 So, how does God roll away the reproach of our Egypt? 00:21:55.299 --> 00:21:59.299 Well, he does so by redeeming us from slavery. 00:21:59.299 --> 00:22:02.299 Not to Pharaoh, but to sin and to death. 00:22:02.299 --> 00:22:05.299 By removing all that separates us from God. 00:22:05.299 --> 00:22:08.299 A sinful man from a holy God. 00:22:08.299 --> 00:22:14.299 But we must embrace the reality by accepting his salvation by faith. 00:22:14.299 --> 00:22:15.299 By faith. 00:22:15.299 --> 00:22:18.299 That means we must inherit the promises of the covenant. 00:22:18.299 --> 00:22:22.299 And like the Israelites, we have been given a sign of the covenant. 00:22:22.299 --> 00:22:28.299 Now, it is no longer circumcision for the people of God in the church. 00:22:28.299 --> 00:22:32.299 Baptism now is the sign of the new covenant. 00:22:32.299 --> 00:22:42.299 Baptism, although it is much more than just a reminder that God has washed away our sins, it is not less than that. 00:22:42.299 --> 00:22:49.299 Like circumcision, it is a memorial to what God has supernaturally done for us in Christ. 00:22:49.299 --> 00:22:57.299 And like circumcision, which serves as a memorial of reminding every household that the Lord keeps his covenant. 00:22:57.299 --> 00:23:01.299 And that they are his people and he is their God. 00:23:01.299 --> 00:23:04.299 Baptism is also deeply, deeply personal. 00:23:04.299 --> 00:23:07.299 And it is connected to our future. 00:23:07.299 --> 00:23:11.299 So that we see something similar. 00:23:11.299 --> 00:23:14.299 We see something similar in the sacrament of baptism. 00:23:14.299 --> 00:23:16.299 As we do in circumcision. 00:23:21.299 --> 00:23:28.299 You see, in baptism we are reminded that the mighty new covenant of the Lord has been inaugurated by the Son. 00:23:28.299 --> 00:23:31.299 Our souls have been redeemed through death to life. 00:23:31.299 --> 00:23:36.299 We are washed in the very precious blood of Christ Jesus, the Messiah. 00:23:36.299 --> 00:23:41.299 Who willingly gave up his life for us on the cross of Calvary. 00:23:41.299 --> 00:23:43.299 So, when we are tempted. 00:23:43.299 --> 00:23:46.299 When we are ready to trust in other gods. 00:23:46.299 --> 00:23:51.299 When we are ready to embrace all the benefits of the kingdom. 00:23:51.299 --> 00:23:53.299 And reject the king. 00:23:53.299 --> 00:23:57.299 To embrace all of the benefits of the covenant. 00:23:57.299 --> 00:24:00.299 And yet reject the covenant maker. 00:24:00.299 --> 00:24:03.299 We remember our baptism. 00:24:03.299 --> 00:24:07.299 We remember that we are marked out as God's people. 00:24:07.299 --> 00:24:11.299 We remember that God gave us a memorial. 00:24:11.299 --> 00:24:18.299 And this leads to a second memorial that God will give us in our text. 00:24:18.299 --> 00:24:21.299 That gives it the nation of Israel, but also us in our text. 00:24:21.299 --> 00:24:23.299 And this leads to the second point. 00:24:23.299 --> 00:24:28.299 Where we are going to look at not just the ritual act, but the ritual meal. 00:24:28.299 --> 00:24:33.299 Look with me at verses 10 to 12. 00:24:33.299 --> 00:24:37.299 While the people of Israel were encamped at Gilgal. 00:24:37.299 --> 00:24:43.299 They kept the Passover on the fourteenth day of the month in the evening on the plains of Jericho. 00:24:43.299 --> 00:24:48.299 And the day after the Passover on that very day they ate of the produce of the land. 00:24:48.299 --> 00:24:51.299 Unleavened cakes and parched grain. 00:24:51.299 --> 00:24:56.299 And the manna ceased the day after they ate of the produce of the land. 00:24:56.299 --> 00:24:59.299 No longer manna for the people of Israel. 00:24:59.299 --> 00:25:04.299 But they ate of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year. 00:25:04.299 --> 00:25:10.299 A new era has begun for Israel. 00:25:10.299 --> 00:25:14.299 They have crossed over the Jordan. 00:25:14.299 --> 00:25:20.299 If you were here last week, you remember I mentioned how they are talked about as a people. 00:25:20.299 --> 00:25:23.299 And when they cross the Jordan, they are referred to as a nation. 00:25:23.299 --> 00:25:28.299 The old disobedient generation has died. 00:25:28.299 --> 00:25:35.299 This new generation, they are walking in obedience and submission to the Lord. 00:25:35.299 --> 00:25:39.299 And now they get to celebrate the Passover once again. 00:25:39.299 --> 00:25:43.299 And this is the first time that Passover is celebrated in the Lamb. 00:25:43.299 --> 00:25:46.299 The second time it is celebrated after the Exodus. 00:25:46.299 --> 00:25:56.299 Only we see here that this time they no longer bear, verse 9, the reproach of Egypt. 00:25:56.299 --> 00:25:58.299 They are fully free. 00:25:58.299 --> 00:26:01.299 They have renewed their covenant with the Lord. 00:26:01.299 --> 00:26:04.299 They are ready to follow him by faith. 00:26:04.299 --> 00:26:09.299 So this Passover is different for a number of reasons. 00:26:09.299 --> 00:26:15.299 One of the reasons is that, yes, it does look back to what God has done. 00:26:15.299 --> 00:26:16.299 In the past. 00:26:16.299 --> 00:26:22.299 But more importantly, or maybe equally important, it looks towards the future. 00:26:22.299 --> 00:26:25.299 It looks back towards the past. 00:26:25.299 --> 00:26:28.299 And it looks towards the future. 00:26:28.299 --> 00:26:31.299 Towards what the Lord will do. 00:26:31.299 --> 00:26:34.299 So the question is, what will the Lord do? 00:26:34.299 --> 00:26:37.299 And that is this. 00:26:37.299 --> 00:26:40.299 He will provide everything they need to flourish in the land. 00:26:40.299 --> 00:26:42.299 What do I mean? 00:26:42.299 --> 00:26:48.299 Okay, so since leaving Egypt, this is a bit of a Coles notes on the history of Israel. 00:26:48.299 --> 00:26:51.299 They leave Egypt and they are wandering the desert. 00:26:52.299 --> 00:26:55.299 The thing about deserts are that they are not exactly the most fertile places. 00:26:55.299 --> 00:26:57.299 I am not sure if you knew that. 00:26:57.299 --> 00:26:59.299 They produce nothing. 00:26:59.299 --> 00:27:03.299 So what does God do in his goodness and kindness? 00:27:03.299 --> 00:27:05.299 He provides manna. 00:27:05.299 --> 00:27:06.299 Manna is this heavenly bread. 00:27:06.299 --> 00:27:09.299 I am not going to get into what exactly that means. 00:27:09.299 --> 00:27:16.299 But God, supernaturally again, provides food and sustenance for an entire nation. 00:27:16.299 --> 00:27:18.299 An entire people group. 00:27:18.299 --> 00:27:19.299 For 40 years. 00:27:19.299 --> 00:27:22.299 Every single day they would get up. 00:27:22.299 --> 00:27:23.299 They would gather the manna. 00:27:23.299 --> 00:27:24.299 They would eat it. 00:27:24.299 --> 00:27:28.299 Every day they would go to bed and they would rise up and there would be more food for them. 00:27:28.299 --> 00:27:32.299 This is God and his goodness and kindness expressed to them. 00:27:32.299 --> 00:27:40.299 So, it is not a throwaway line when we read in verse 11 and 12 that they began to eat the fruit of the land. 00:27:40.299 --> 00:27:43.299 And that actually the manna is no more. 00:27:43.299 --> 00:27:45.299 The manna is no more. 00:27:45.299 --> 00:27:47.299 So, three times in two verses. 00:27:47.299 --> 00:27:49.299 In verses 11 and 12. 00:27:49.299 --> 00:27:52.299 It says, they ate of the produce of the land. 00:27:52.299 --> 00:27:54.299 They ate of the produce of the land. 00:27:54.299 --> 00:27:58.299 And then at the end, they ate of the produce of the land of Canaan. 00:27:58.299 --> 00:28:03.299 And it says right in there that there is no longer manna for the people of Israel. 00:28:03.299 --> 00:28:06.299 No longer do they eat the food of wandering. 00:28:06.299 --> 00:28:12.299 They now have the land that will produce what they need. 00:28:12.299 --> 00:28:14.299 They are to work the land. 00:28:14.299 --> 00:28:15.299 They are to settle the land. 00:28:15.299 --> 00:28:18.299 They are to participate in the flourishing of the land. 00:28:18.299 --> 00:28:22.299 They now receive the land by faith as free men. 00:28:22.299 --> 00:28:25.299 And the manna has stopped. 00:28:25.299 --> 00:28:29.299 Does that mean though that the Lord's provision has stopped? 00:28:29.299 --> 00:28:30.299 Right? 00:28:30.299 --> 00:28:31.299 They wake up. 00:28:31.299 --> 00:28:32.299 There is bread. 00:28:32.299 --> 00:28:33.299 Now they wake up. 00:28:33.299 --> 00:28:35.299 And they throw on the overalls. 00:28:35.299 --> 00:28:37.299 And they get the shovels. 00:28:37.299 --> 00:28:38.299 And they get the plows. 00:28:38.299 --> 00:28:41.299 And they work and break their back. 00:28:41.299 --> 00:28:44.299 Making the desert bloom. 00:28:44.299 --> 00:28:49.299 Is this a lack of God's provision? 00:28:49.299 --> 00:28:53.299 You know, we tend to miss or misunderstand God's provision often. 00:28:53.299 --> 00:28:55.299 It's easy to do so. 00:28:55.299 --> 00:28:58.299 The world we live in is full of cause and effect. 00:28:58.299 --> 00:28:59.299 Okay? 00:28:59.299 --> 00:29:00.299 You go to work. 00:29:00.299 --> 00:29:01.299 You work. 00:29:01.299 --> 00:29:03.299 You come home. 00:29:03.299 --> 00:29:05.299 Every couple weeks. 00:29:05.299 --> 00:29:06.299 You pay. 00:29:06.299 --> 00:29:07.299 Every month. 00:29:07.299 --> 00:29:08.299 Whatever your pay cycle is. 00:29:08.299 --> 00:29:09.299 You get a pay. 00:29:09.299 --> 00:29:11.299 You take the money. 00:29:11.299 --> 00:29:12.299 You pay your mortgage. 00:29:12.299 --> 00:29:13.299 You pay your bills. 00:29:13.299 --> 00:29:15.299 You get groceries delivered. 00:29:15.299 --> 00:29:18.299 I know most of you probably get groceries delivered. 00:29:18.299 --> 00:29:20.299 Nobody's going to get groceries these days. 00:29:20.299 --> 00:29:22.299 You're getting groceries delivered. 00:29:22.299 --> 00:29:23.299 Okay? 00:29:23.299 --> 00:29:28.299 You're taking your family out for dinner sometime. 00:29:28.299 --> 00:29:30.299 You're putting your kids in sports. 00:29:30.299 --> 00:29:32.299 All of it, it costs money. 00:29:32.299 --> 00:29:33.299 You work. 00:29:33.299 --> 00:29:34.299 You get paid. 00:29:34.299 --> 00:29:35.299 You spend the money. 00:29:35.299 --> 00:29:36.299 You go to bed. 00:29:36.299 --> 00:29:37.299 You wake up. 00:29:37.299 --> 00:29:40.299 You do the same thing over and over and over again. 00:29:40.299 --> 00:29:42.299 It's cause and effect. 00:29:42.299 --> 00:29:50.299 And although this might seem like cause and effect, God is not uninvolved in your day 00:29:50.299 --> 00:29:51.299 to day. 00:29:51.299 --> 00:29:53.299 He is still very involved in your day to day. 00:29:53.299 --> 00:29:58.299 It is just as much proof of God's provision that you even wake up and that you are given 00:29:58.299 --> 00:30:02.299 the strength and the know-how to carry out your job. 00:30:02.299 --> 00:30:06.299 You worked hard to get your job. 00:30:06.299 --> 00:30:07.299 You networked. 00:30:07.299 --> 00:30:12.299 You spiced up your LinkedIn resume, hopefully, without lying. 00:30:12.299 --> 00:30:14.299 You got a job. 00:30:14.299 --> 00:30:17.299 In the end, it's the Lord who provides. 00:30:17.299 --> 00:30:22.299 It is God who is giving you strength and breath and life. 00:30:22.299 --> 00:30:27.299 And this is because God isn't just the creator of the world. 00:30:27.299 --> 00:30:28.299 Okay? 00:30:28.299 --> 00:30:29.299 The creator of the cosmos. 00:30:29.299 --> 00:30:31.299 He is also the sustainer of all things. 00:30:31.299 --> 00:30:37.299 Everything that exists also perpetuates because of his power and might. 00:30:37.299 --> 00:30:44.299 You can't divorce God being the creator from God being the sustainer of all things. 00:30:44.299 --> 00:30:47.299 So he has sustained us and he continues to provide for us. 00:30:47.299 --> 00:30:54.299 Therefore, we must recognize that whether it is manna from heaven or grain, we have parched ourselves. 00:30:54.299 --> 00:30:57.299 All of it is equally from the hand of God. 00:30:57.299 --> 00:30:59.299 We have to. 00:30:59.299 --> 00:31:08.299 We have to learn how to see the supernatural provision of God, but also the natural provision from God. 00:31:08.299 --> 00:31:16.299 So I consult three or four different commentaries as I prepare for Sundays. 00:31:16.299 --> 00:31:21.299 And one of the commentators I look at, his name is Dale Ralph Davis. 00:31:21.299 --> 00:31:24.299 He's an Old Testament scholar in the States. 00:31:24.299 --> 00:31:28.299 And he, about this, I love this line, okay? 00:31:28.299 --> 00:31:33.299 One day I will write and come up with such things. 00:31:33.299 --> 00:31:35.299 But this is what he says. 00:31:35.299 --> 00:31:42.299 Most of God's gifts to his people are not dazzling and gaudy, but wrapped in simple brown paper. 00:31:42.299 --> 00:31:44.299 And I love that. 00:31:44.299 --> 00:31:52.299 I love that because it draws our attention to the fact that God delights in sustaining our lives, 00:31:52.299 --> 00:31:57.299 even when we don't see it and recognize it and therefore can't give him praise. 00:31:59.299 --> 00:32:03.299 That he still delights in sustaining and uplifting his creation. 00:32:03.299 --> 00:32:06.299 And sustaining and uplifting his people. 00:32:06.299 --> 00:32:08.299 So a question for us. 00:32:08.299 --> 00:32:14.299 Can we grow as people to recognize the simple brown paper of the Lord in our lives? 00:32:14.299 --> 00:32:26.299 Or, or are we going to give in to the temptation to curse God because we do not see the bright, gaudy wrapping paper? 00:32:26.299 --> 00:32:29.299 God is at work, friends. 00:32:29.299 --> 00:32:32.299 He is at work in your lives. 00:32:32.299 --> 00:32:38.299 He is providing for you by giving you grain to parch. 00:32:38.299 --> 00:32:43.299 And it is to your benefit that you are not getting manna from heaven. 00:32:43.299 --> 00:32:52.299 If God gave you everything, everything you ever wanted, it is no guarantee that you would walk in holiness and goodness and love. 00:32:56.299 --> 00:32:59.299 I think it would create in us monsters. 00:32:59.299 --> 00:33:03.299 So going back to the Passover. 00:33:03.299 --> 00:33:11.299 I mentioned that the Passover does not just look back to what God has done, but also at what he will do in future. 00:33:11.299 --> 00:33:18.299 We see that like the ritual act of circumcision, this ritual meal also serves as a memorial. 00:33:18.299 --> 00:33:21.299 It reminds the people that the Lord is mighty. 00:33:21.299 --> 00:33:25.299 And he is mighty to save and that he saves to the uttermost. 00:33:26.299 --> 00:33:33.299 That he takes away the reproach of sin and death and brings us into life and fullness of joy. 00:33:33.299 --> 00:33:40.299 So it is with Holy Communion, which also was a Passover meal. 00:33:40.299 --> 00:33:49.299 I mean, if circumcision is likened to baptism, then Passover is likened to Holy Communion. 00:33:49.299 --> 00:33:54.299 And it reminds us weekly that we have been saved to the uttermost. 00:33:54.299 --> 00:34:02.299 That God has brought us from death into life, into brokenness, into the fullness of joy. 00:34:02.299 --> 00:34:08.300 And it helps us to look forward ultimately to the ultimate promised land. 00:34:08.300 --> 00:34:11.300 When the new heavens and the new earth will become reality. 00:34:11.300 --> 00:34:18.300 Where the church, the bride of Christ, will sit down with Christ the bridegroom and partake of the marriage supper of the land. 00:34:18.300 --> 00:34:21.300 It always looks ahead. 00:34:21.300 --> 00:34:28.300 When you gather at the table with me and with each other this morning, you know what? 00:34:28.300 --> 00:34:35.300 It prefigures, it imagines, it helps us to anticipate the marriage supper of the land. 00:34:35.300 --> 00:34:38.300 The culmination of all of time. 00:34:38.300 --> 00:34:47.300 The very, very high point that will not be a high point and then go back down, but will remain high for all of eternity. 00:34:47.300 --> 00:34:57.300 It reminds us that the Lord has provided for everything we need, including, including himself. 00:34:57.300 --> 00:34:59.300 And especially himself. 00:34:59.300 --> 00:35:01.300 For he has provided his very son. 00:35:03.300 --> 00:35:05.300 Going back to my friend. 00:35:05.300 --> 00:35:08.300 My friend chose to follow the Lord ultimately. 00:35:08.300 --> 00:35:10.300 Just in case you were wondering. 00:35:10.300 --> 00:35:15.300 It went against conventional wisdom. 00:35:15.300 --> 00:35:17.300 My friend had to quit his job. 00:35:17.300 --> 00:35:22.300 My friend did not pursue the romantic interest. 00:35:22.300 --> 00:35:26.300 He did not compromise his faith. 00:35:26.300 --> 00:35:39.300 And he has told me on numerous occasions that whatever he lost and he did lose in deciding to follow Christ, it was 100% worth it. 00:35:39.300 --> 00:35:43.300 The Lord satisfied the restlessness of his heart. 00:35:43.300 --> 00:35:47.300 The opening question. 00:35:47.300 --> 00:35:50.300 Is Christianity worth the cost? 00:35:53.300 --> 00:35:54.300 It's an important question to ask. 00:35:54.300 --> 00:35:57.300 And keep asking it if you're still unsatisfied. 00:35:57.300 --> 00:35:58.300 Keep asking it. 00:35:58.300 --> 00:36:00.300 But I'll just say this as we close. 00:36:00.300 --> 00:36:05.300 If we are afraid that a life in Christ will cost us too much. 00:36:05.300 --> 00:36:06.300 And it will cost us. 00:36:06.300 --> 00:36:07.300 Make no mistake. 00:36:07.300 --> 00:36:17.300 Just know that God in Christ Jesus, fully man and fully God, has removed our reproach. 00:36:17.300 --> 00:36:20.300 And the cost to him was his own life. 00:36:24.300 --> 00:36:28.300 And if friends, he gave you his own life. 00:36:28.300 --> 00:36:36.300 And you find yourself in a situation where you are wondering, man, following Christ means going against conventional wisdom. 00:36:36.300 --> 00:36:41.300 And saying no to some good things. 00:36:41.300 --> 00:36:45.300 But maybe in a way that is devoid of faith. 00:36:45.300 --> 00:36:48.300 Is devoid of trust in him. 00:36:48.300 --> 00:36:56.300 Just know that if God gave you his own son, will he not give you everything you need in this life? 00:36:57.300 --> 00:37:01.300 I'll close with Romans 8 verses 31 and 32. 00:37:01.300 --> 00:37:05.300 What then shall we say to these things? 00:37:05.300 --> 00:37:10.300 If God is for us, who can be against us? 00:37:10.300 --> 00:37:18.300 He who did not spare his own son, but gave him up for us. 00:37:18.300 --> 00:37:24.300 How will he not also with him graciously give us all things? 00:37:24.300 --> 00:37:25.300 Thanks. 00:37:25.300 --> 00:37:55.280 Thank you.