Children, I'm so glad you're here. I got a couple drawings last week that were phenomenal.
I've got them on my desk right now, and I'm going to ask you to draw another picture this week,
but it's going to come later in the sermon.
So, it's not to bait you, but just to hold out.
It is a pretty cool situation, and I think it's going to be fun to draw a picture of.
In case of emergency, break glass.
Have you seen those fire alarms?
Maybe it's a Bigonon thing now, but back in the day when I was a little lad,
there'd be these red fire alarms on the wall,
and there's this little kind of steel hammer dangling on a chain next to it,
and it says, in case of emergency, break glass.
It was to protect people from pulling the alarm that didn't need to pull it.
Well, when you are a leader, whether that's in the home,
or that's in the workplace, or on an athletic team,
or on a music band, or at school, or in the church,
you're going to be challenged.
You're going to face hard things.
Leaders face challenges of many different kinds.
Leadership challenges can be stifling.
They can wither a leader,
wither them in his or her own weakness.
Leadership challenges can stir up the foam of fear,
and a leader can flounder in it.
This morning, I could stand before you and say something like this.
Christian leadership is not for the weak or fearful.
But that's not true.
God chooses the weak and the fearful to lead us people.
Do you know why?
Because God gives the weak and fearful strength and courage
for the task He calls them to.
He gives strength to the weak and courage to the fearful,
and so this morning on this Elder Commissioning Sunday,
I'm going to stand before you
based on the authority of Joshua 1,
and I'm going to call Lou and Dave, both of you guys,
to be strong and courageous in the call God has on your life
to be an elder of this church.
To be strong and courageous.
The heat's going to come.
Break the glass.
Pull the alarm.
Help is on the way.
And this morning, there's a little word written on the alarm.
It's Joshua 1, 1-9.
And we're going to pull that this morning.
And so let's turn there in our Bibles to Joshua 1.
It's at the beginning of your Bibles,
right after Deuteronomy.
Let me read it for you right now.
Here is Joshua 1, verses 1-9.
This is God speaking.
After the death of Moses, the servant of the Lord,
the Lord said to Joshua, the son of Nun,
Moses' assistant,
Moses, my servant, is dead.
Now therefore arise.
Go over this Jordan, you and all this people,
into the land that I am giving to them,
to the people of Israel.
Every place the sole of your foot will tread upon,
I have given to you,
just as I promised to Moses.
From the wilderness in this Lebanon,
as far as the great river, the river Euphrates,
all the land of the Hittites,
to the great sea,
toward the going down of the sun,
shall be your territory.
Verse 5,
No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life.
Just as I was with Moses,
so I will be with you.
I will not leave you or forsake you.
Be strong and courageous,
for you shall cause this people to inherit the land
that I swore to their fathers to give them.
Only be strong and very courageous,
being careful to do according to all the law
that Moses, my servant, commanded you.
Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left,
that you may have good success wherever you go.
This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth,
but you shall meditate on it day and night,
so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it.
For then you will make your way prosperous,
and then you will have good success.
Have I not commanded you, Joshua?
Be strong and courageous.
Do not be frightened,
and do not be dismayed,
for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.
Amen.
This is the reading of God's Word.
Three times in Joshua 1,
God specifically tells Joshua to be strong and courageous.
Three times.
He's saying, Joshua, break the glass,
pull the alarm,
and I will be there to help you.
What I want you to see this morning from this passage
is how God makes a weak and fearful man
strong and courageous.
We're going to see four great truths
that give courage to the fearful.
I'm just going to list them out for you right now.
Truth 1,
God's great cause.
That will put good courage in your heart.
God's great call.
That does put courage in your heart.
God's great commands.
When you know,
when you know who spoke these words,
it gives you courage.
And God's great companionship.
God is with us.
That will give you courage.
God's great cause.
The book of Joshua is the history
of the people of Israel
occupying the promised land.
And so what Joshua is there for
is to help us see
how God occupies this land
He promised from long ago.
And He calls a particular man
to lead His people.
Now there is a reason why
God is leading His people
in the promised land.
You see it in chapter 1, verse 6.
Be strong and courageous
for you shall cause this people
to inherit the land
that I swore to their fathers
to give them.
And so what God is doing is
He's going to bring His people
into this land of Canaan
because He promised to.
He promised Abram long ago
that He was going to make
a nation out of them
to bless the nations.
And He was going to give them
this land.
And so one may conclude,
okay, why are you calling
Joshua to lead this people
into this promised land?
And one can conclude,
well, he's just fulfilling
His promise.
But there is a bigger cause
going on.
There's something grander
going on here.
Something more glorious.
If you turn back to
Genesis chapter 12.
Genesis, of course,
is the first book of your Bible.
Genesis chapter 12,
verses 1 through 3.
God calls Abram
to come out of Mesopotamia
and go.
Go from your country
and your kindred
and your father's house
to the land that I will show you.
The promised land.
The land of Canaan.
And I will make you
a great nation, Israel.
And I will bless you
and make your name great
so that you will be a blessing.
Now, pay attention
to verse 3.
I will bless those
who bless you
and him who dishonors you
I will curse.
And in you,
all the families
of the earth
shall be blessed.
The scope of God's cause
is the nations.
He wants to bless
the nations
through His people.
And you know what
the goodness
of this blessing is?
God Himself.
God wants to be
a blessing
to the nations
through His people.
God wants to get
His glory out.
He wants to make
His fame known.
And here,
under the old covenant,
before Jesus came,
here's how that worked out.
God called
a specific people
to Himself,
Israel.
And He says,
I'm going to bring you
into this land
and I'm going to dwell
with you
in your place.
And you know what?
You can bring the nations
to this place
so that they can see
my glory in your midst
and be amazed.
And so the methodology
of the old covenant
of God making His glory known
was come and see.
Come and see.
Come and see God's glory
and be blessed.
But under the new covenant,
things changed.
With the coming of Jesus,
God's purpose
to bless the nation
still stands.
He wants to get
His great name out.
He wants His fame
to be spread.
He wants His glory
to cover the earth
as the waters cover the sea.
But instead of a
come and see methodology,
God kind of reverses it.
His new covenant people,
the church,
us,
the redeemed,
those blood-bought
by the blood of Jesus,
He tells us to
go and tell
of the glory of God
in the person
of Jesus Christ.
So in the new covenant,
the covenant which we live
under now,
the one established
by the blood of Jesus,
we are to
go tell it
on the mountain.
We are to tell the nations
of the great glory of God.
His work that He's accomplished
in the person of Jesus Christ.
God's great cause
is the glory
of His name.
It's always been the case.
So why is God
bringing His people,
Israel,
into the promised land
in Joshua chapter 1?
Well, ultimately,
it's to make His name known
among the nations.
God's great.
So for us today,
on this Sunday,
when we're commissioning
these two men
to be elders of this church,
one can conclude,
oh, this is a Sunday
for the elders.
It's not, ultimately.
Or this is a Sunday
for our church.
Ultimately,
that's not the case.
Do you know why
we're having an elder
commissioning Sunday?
Ultimately,
it's for the glory of God.
for this church
to be healthy
and what God
has called us to,
to make His name great
in our little slice
of the nations
here in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
Now,
does that put courage
in your heart?
It should.
God,
in all of His might,
is for His great cause.
He wants His name
exalted in this city.
Man.
What a God we have.
God's great cause
is the glory of His name.
Now let's look at
God's great call.
Joshua 1
focuses on leadership.
We've got a leadership vacuum.
Moses has died.
Israel's missing
a leader.
Who will lead God's people
into the promised land?
Well,
God knows.
He had a guy
that He's been grooming
for a while.
His name is
Joshua.
Look at verse 1.
Let this
kind of
find a place
in your heart.
God
speaks directly
to Joshua.
Look at it.
Verse 1.
After the death
of Moses,
the servant
of the Lord,
the Lord
said to Joshua,
the son of Nun,
Moses' assistant.
He speaks
directly to him.
He's calling him.
He's commissioning
for the task.
Now,
I want you to see
all the you's,
Y-O-U,
in Joshua 1.
Here's,
just look at verse 3.
Every place
that the sole
of your foot
will tread upon,
I have given
to you.
That is speaking
to Joshua.
Verse 5.
No man shall be
able to stand
before you
all the days
of your life.
Just as I was
with Moses,
so I will be
with you,
Joshua.
I will not
leave you,
Joshua,
or forsake you,
Joshua.
If you look
at all the way
down to verse 9.
Have I not
commanded you,
Joshua?
Joshua,
be strong
and courageous.
Do not be frightened.
Do not be dismayed.
For the Lord,
your God,
is with you,
Joshua.
Wherever you go,
Joshua,
God is with you,
Joshua.
Joshua,
Joshua.
You,
you,
you.
God is commissioning
this man
for that task.
It's his great call
and it's very personal.
He,
his hand-picked
Joshua
for leading them
into the promised
land.
Now,
Joshua had quite
the resume.
I don't know
if you know this,
but he was one
of the original
12 spies that went
out into the promised
land and to scout
out the land
and came back
with a good report.
He believed God.
He's like,
yeah,
God,
we can take him
with God.
Let's go get it.
And then the other
10 were like,
wah,
they're too big.
Wah,
wah,
we can't go in.
Did you know
that Joshua
was with Moses
on Mount Sinai
when Moses
received the law?
Did you know that?
Did you know
when Moses
was above
the fray
between Israel
and the Amalekites
and remember
Aaron and Hur
were holding up
his hands
and when he'd
hold up
his hands,
kind of Israel
would prevail
against the Amalekites
and when they'd drop him
the Amalekites
would prevail
against Israel.
Do you know
who was leading
the charge?
Who was down
on the ground
fighting?
Joshua!
The guy's a warrior.
He's a stud.
Probably squat 900 pounds.
Probably not.
But what I want you
to know is that
God hand-picked Joshua
for leading his people
into the promised land.
You know why
I'm telling you this?
I want you to hear this.
Lou,
Dave,
God has hand-picked you
to be an elder
of this church,
to serve among
a plurality of elders,
to shepherd
this particular people
in this particular place
at this particular time.
Now,
it is quite an honor.
If you would open,
move in your Bibles
to the New Testament
to the book of Acts,
Acts verse 20,
28,
let me just set up
what's going on.
The Apostle Paul
is on his way
back to Jerusalem
and he knows
when he goes to Jerusalem
he's going to get
persecuted.
And so,
he's thinking,
I'm probably not going
to see the leaders
of these churches again.
And so,
on his way back
to Jerusalem,
he sends word out
to the Ephesian elders
to meet him
in the town of Miletus.
And there he meets them
and he exhorts them.
And it's in that context
we read 20, 28.
Would you read that with me
if you're there?
Paul says
to these Ephesian elders,
pay careful attention
to yourselves
and to all the flock
in which the Holy Spirit
has made you overseers.
Paul recognized
that these men
the Holy Spirit
had raised up
to be elders
of the Ephesian church.
Now,
unlike Joshua,
guys,
I haven't heard you
say this,
but I'm unaware
of God audibly speaking
to either of you
to tell you
that you are to be
an elder
of Christ the King Church.
But God uses means.
The Holy Spirit
uses means.
And so,
over the last
seven months,
these men
have gone through
a process,
a rigorous process
of deciding,
determining whether
they want to be an elder
and if they are in fact
called to be an elder
of this church.
And then last Sunday
with an overwhelming
affirmation
from the members
of this church,
these men
were recognized
as being called
of God
to be elders
of this church.
Do you know
what that means?
There's not a mistake here.
The Holy Spirit
has used these means
to set you apart
as elders.
He's hand-picked you
to lead this church,
to shepherd this people.
Now,
at the end of
Acts 20, 28,
after he says,
in which the Holy Spirit
has made you overseers,
he says,
to care for the church
of God
which he obtained
with his own blood.
We encountered this verse
together a few months ago
and there was
a sober hush
over us.
this personal call
to lead God's people,
we recognize
who this people
belongs to.
We recognize
that the members
of Christ the King Church
are the blood-bought
of Jesus.
They don't belong to us.
They belong to Him.
And we are called
to be under-shepherds
of His flock,
of this flock.
Now,
if you were to ask
Joshua how he felt
about being commissioned
by God Himself,
or if you were to ask
the Ephesian elders
how they felt
about being commissioned,
about giving this responsibility
to lead God's people,
I'm guessing they would say
things like,
you know,
it's very sobering.
It's a great responsibility.
These are God's people.
We are to be caring
for the blood-bought of Jesus.
That's a serious
kind of a thing.
And not only is it sobering,
but it's humbling.
It's like,
me?
Serve this people this way?
I can't do that.
It's humbling.
So,
a leader ends up
saying things like this.
In order to be a leader
of God's people,
I've got to depend on God.
Christ is going to give me
what I need to lead His people.
He's the vine.
We're just branches.
But,
the sobriety,
the humility,
all which is good
and right response
to a call by God
to lead His people,
here's something else
that should come out of this.
Courage.
God has called you
to this task.
He's called you
to lead His people.
There's going to be times
where we break the glass.
We pull the alarm.
It's going to happen
every elder meeting
because we are in
constant awareness
of our own weakness
and fears.
And so,
we're constantly
breaking the glass,
pulling the alarm
and saying,
God,
we need You.
We need You
to strengthen us.
We need You
to give us courage
to lead this people
for the glory of Your name.
But,
there's courage.
He hasn't made a mistake.
Just as He called
Joshua,
He has called
the two of you
to serve this people
at this time.
He used different means,
but He's called you
nonetheless.
This is God's great
personal call
and it gives you courage.
Let's look at
God's great commands.
In verses 7 and 8,
we read,
only be strong
and courageous,
very courageous,
being careful to do
according to all the law
that Moses,
my servant,
commanded you.
Do not turn from it,
the law,
to the right hand
or to the left
that you may have
good success
wherever you go.
This book of the law
shall not depart
from your mouth,
but you shall meditate
on it day and night
so that you may be
careful to do
according to all
that is written
in it.
In God's commissioning
of Joshua,
God emphasizes
the absolute necessity
of His Word
in a leader
who leads His people.
You can't miss it.
Be careful to do
according to all
that Moses,
my servant,
commanded you.
Joshua,
do not turn
to the right hand
or to the left.
Joshua,
stay focused.
Remember Star Wars?
The first movie?
I mean,
the very first,
the 1977 movie?
Luke Skywalker,
X-Wing,
dropping into that
little
trench,
thank you,
of the Death Star.
He's flying
his X-Wing,
R2-T2,
beep-boop,
he's in the back.
He's got to drop
his laser torpedo
things down the
exhaust tube
of the Death Star
to blow it up.
Remember?
He's in the trench.
Do you remember
the guy on the other
ship telling him to do?
Stay on target.
Luke Skywalker
getting rattled.
Beep-boop,
beep-boop,
ah, ah, ah.
And then Obi-Wan Kenobi
from who knows where
says,
Luke,
may the force
be with you.
Trust the force,
Luke.
Stay on target.
Brothers,
stay on target.
God's word
is the target.
It's our aim.
And what God's word
aims us at
is the glory of God,
His great cause.
That's what He's
called you to.
God's word
in a man
who is humble
is extremely powerful
in God's hands.
God is telling Joshua,
stay on target,
Joshua.
Stay on target.
Meditate on my word.
Keep it close.
Live it out.
Keep it on the tip
of your tongue.
That's how you lead,
brother.
Lead with God's word.
God's word provides
the path
of God's blessing
for His people.
Don't turn on the right.
Don't turn to the left.
Stay on target.
Stay on the path
of God's word.
And my people
will be blessed.
Did you see
the different
expressions
of God's word?
Three different ways.
The law of Moses.
The book of the law.
All that is written
in it.
It's all got to do
with words.
The words of this book.
You know,
Joshua just had
like the first five books.
We've got 66 books.
Talk about staying
on target.
We've got a lot
of target.
Here's what Joshua knew.
These words
were inspired
by God.
These words
originated
in the mind
of God.
All scripture
is God
breathed.
It originates
in God's mind.
This is God
speaking to us.
And when you realize
who this book
started with,
whose mind
it starts with,
you're realizing
it's authoritative.
We come
under
God's word.
Elders,
everybody else,
we're underneath it.
We live
under God's word.
It's his inspired word.
But it's not only inspired,
it's sufficient.
It provides
everything we need
from cover to cover.
It's got what you need.
All scripture.
All of it.
Man cannot live
by bread alone,
but by every word
that proceeds
from the mouth of God.
It's sufficient
for us.
And not only
is it sufficient,
it is powerful.
Remember the great passage
in Hebrews 4,
verse 12,
the word of God
is living
and active.
It gets down
into the nitty-gritty
of people's lives.
It penetrates.
2 Timothy 3
says it's
profitable.
It gets things done.
This is God speaking.
And when God
speaks into a situation,
things happen.
God is telling
Joshua,
get this book
in your heart
and lead out of it.
If you flip back
to Ezra 7,
verse 10,
you know what you'd
read about Ezra?
He studied the word,
did it,
and taught it
to others.
You see the order?
He took it
into himself
and he sought
to be faithful to it
and then he taught
it to others.
He was a man
of integrity.
He wasn't calling
anybody to do anything
he himself wasn't
seeking to do.
He was seeking
to obey God's word
and he was calling
people to do the same.
And that's exactly
what God calls
Joshua here to do.
He says,
Joshua,
first and foremost,
as I'm calling you
to lead my people,
get these words
in you,
meditate on them,
and get them
on the tip of your tongue.
Lead out of it.
Be careful
to do
what I say.
Rightly handle
my words.
Bring them to bear
on your life
and you will be
in a great position
to bring them to bear
on other people's lives.
Christian leadership
begins
with one's
personal devotion
and obedience
to God's word.
We depend on it.
We trust in it.
We live by it.
We lead out
of our humble
dependence
and submission
to God's word.
Another way
to think about it
is this.
God in his glory
wants to get his word
into his people.
And he has chosen
us to get his word
into his people.
It's not limited to us,
but he's called us
in the context
of leadership
this church
to do it.
What a privilege.
What a responsibility.
So Lou and Dave,
I want to tell you this.
The best thing
that you can do
for Christ the King Church
is to continue
to personally
devote yourself
to living according
to all that God
has said
in this book.
Be a man
beholden
to God's book.
Love it and live it.
Be a lifelong learner
of it.
May it be
at the forefront
of your mind
day and night.
May you stay
on target.
May it be
on the tip
of your tongue.
Now can I just
call everyone
to imagine
something with me?
Imagine this.
that when you
encounter
one of the elders
of Christ the King Church
that you would
encounter a man
beholden to God's word.
That you encounter
a man who is eager
to direct you
to what God says.
That we would bring
to conversations
a question like this.
Well, you know what?
We've got to ask
this question.
What does God
say about that?
What does God
say about this
situation that you
find yourself in?
What does God
say about this
attitude that you're
demonstrating?
What does God
say about it?
We're to be
men of the book.
Man,
it is a
tremendous
source of courage.
When you
realize
that this
book is
God speaking
His all
authoritative
word,
it is a
tremendous
source of
courage.
My courage
is not in me.
My courage
is in God
and what He
said.
He's calling
us to be
courageous
brothers.
The last
of these
greats
is a
great
promise.
It's a
great
promise.
God
says,
I'm
with you.
God's
great
companionship
in this
call to
leadership.
God
promises
to be
with us.
Now,
God's
commands are at
the very
heart of
Joshua's
commission
here.
He says,
get this
word on
your heart,
but what
sandwich is it?
The bookends
in verse 5
and verse 9
is this
promise.
I am
with you,
Joshua.
Verse 5,
as God was
with Moses,
so I will
be with you,
Joshua.
I will never
leave you or
forsake you,
Joshua.
I will not
abandon you,
Joshua.
And then
verse 9,
for the Lord
your God
is with you
wherever you
go.
Every step
of the way,
I'm with
you.
It's a
tremendous
source of
encouragement to
know that
the almighty
God of the
universe goes
with you.
He's got
your back.
Now the
big question
that we have
to ask is,
is this
promise here
in Joshua
that God
is with
you,
is that,
can we
take that
on ourselves
today?
Can we
claim that
as our
own?
You better
believe it.
In Matthew
28,
20,
Jesus
himself said
this,
go make
disciples of
the nations,
baptizing them,
teaching them
all that I've
commanded,
and lo,
I'm with
you always,
even to the
end of the
age.
I promise
to be
with you.
He's
promised to
be with
us,
to comfort
us,
to strengthen
us,
and to
fight for
us.
Fight for
the glory
of his
great name.
Alright,
kids,
the time
has come.
I want
you to draw
something for
me.
You ready?
Look in
Joshua 5.
Read with
me.
Here it is.
Ready?
Joshua received
the command.
He brings
his people
over the
Jordan.
He celebrates
the first
Passover with
them,
chapter 5,
and in
513,
right before
they go
and battle
Jericho,
we read
this.
When Joshua
was by
Jericho,
he lifted up
his eyes
and looked,
and behold,
a man
was standing
before him
with his
drawn sword
in his hand.
That's what
I want you
to draw.
Right before
they go to
Jericho,
Joshua
encounters
the commander
of the
Lord's army
with his
sword drawn.
He's ready
for battle.
Keep reading
with me.
And Joshua
went to him
and said,
are you for
us or for
our adversaries?
It's like
Joshua saying,
hey,
are you one
of us or
one of them?
To which
the commander
of the
Lord's army
said,
no,
neither.
He says,
but I am
the commander
of the
army of
the Lord.
And he
says,
now I
have come.
I am
with you.
With my
sword drawn.
And they
go to
Jericho
and God
does a
mighty
work.
Joshua,
when he
encounters
this
commander
of the
Lord's
army,
falls on
his
face
and
worships.
What does
my Lord
say to
his servant?
And the
commander
of the
Lord's
army
said to
him,
take off
your
sandals
from your
feet,
for the
place
where you
are
standing
is holy.
It's the
same thing
that God
in the
burning
bush
told
Moses.
Moses
worshipped.
It was
God in the
burning
bush.
And here
we have
God
present
before
Joshua.
Some
scholars
speculate
that this
is a
pre-incarnate
appearance
of the
Son of
God.
Jesus.
Whose
name is
Joshua.
Joshua
is
encountering
the
second
Joshua.
The
Savior of
the world,
the
commander of
the Lord's
army,
who says,
I'm going
to fight
for you.
When
Jesus
came
incarnate,
He came
and He
began
His
conquest
over the
hearts of
man.
And His
death on
the cross
and resurrection
declared victory
over sin,
declared victory
over Satan,
declared victory
over the
grave.
And right
now,
He's
working out
His plan
among His
people to
get His
glory out.
And when He
comes back,
it's going to
be final.
Sin,
the devil,
death eradicated.
We've got a
zealous
Savior.
Do you know
what fuels
the zeal of
the Lord?
His love for
us,
and His love
for the glory
of His name.
I hope
that encourages
you,
brother.
That your
God is
with you.
Your Savior
is the
commander of
the Lord's
army who
will fight
for you
because He
loves you
and He
wants you
to bring
glory to
His name.
This
morning,
break the
glass,
brothers.
Pull the
alarm of
Joshua 1,
1-9.
God's
great cause
is His
glory.
Let that
encourage you.
God's
great calling
is He
chose you.
He hasn't
made a
mistake.
God's
great commands,
they are
His
words,
and they
accomplish
great things.
Let that
encourage you.
And of
course,
maybe the
greatest of
all,
I am
with you.
even to
the end
of the
age.
Be strong
and courageous.
Let me
pray.
I'm going
to have
Lou and
Dave come
up,
and Rick's
going to
lead out
the next
part of
our
commissioning.
God in
heaven,
we are a
people who
need to
be encouraged,
and we
look to
You.
We're
pulling the
alarm.
We need
You,
Lord.
Would You
give us
strength?
Would You
give us
courage for
the cause
You've
called us
upon?
And of
course,
that is the
glory of
Your wonderful
name,
and it's
in Your
name we
pray,
Jesus.
Amen.
Thank you.