WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.320 Good morning everyone. My name is James, I'm the student minister here at St. Paul's. 00:00:06.020 --> 00:00:12.220 It's a joy to be here this morning to preach to you our last sermon in the series on Joshua, 00:00:12.500 --> 00:00:18.440 Be Strong. So I've got about 15 chapters to kind of summarize for you this morning, 00:00:18.600 --> 00:00:25.440 so strap yourselves in and we'll get into it. But if you could have open 23 and 24 there, 00:00:25.440 --> 00:00:29.280 but also flick back to chapter 9 and we'll start from there this morning. 00:00:29.280 --> 00:00:32.480 But before we do that, let's pray. 00:00:35.160 --> 00:00:39.700 Heavenly Father, we give you great thanks and praise that we get to gather as your people this morning. 00:00:40.280 --> 00:00:44.380 We thank you so much that as your people we can sit under your word and have you teach us, 00:00:44.760 --> 00:00:50.120 that we can be more like your son Jesus. And we do pray, Lord, as we finish up our time in Joshua 00:00:50.120 --> 00:00:55.659 and we see what it is to be strong and courageous, Lord, would we be able to go out from here, 00:00:55.659 --> 00:01:03.859 change and different to serve you well and to face the world of sin and to face the world full of suffering and pain, 00:01:03.979 --> 00:01:08.319 but be strong and courageous in your son, in whose name we pray. Amen. 00:01:09.979 --> 00:01:14.539 We've been going throughout Joshua and we've seen a God who is mighty and powerful, 00:01:14.540 --> 00:01:18.740 who gives victory to the Israelites, delivering their enemies into their hands. 00:01:19.380 --> 00:01:25.100 These are nations that we are told in chapter 23, verse 9, were strong and great. 00:01:26.000 --> 00:01:30.740 But God had driven them from the land. He had fought the battle for little Israel. 00:01:30.739 --> 00:01:36.799 And this is the basis for which he tells his people to be strong and courageous, 00:01:37.019 --> 00:01:39.359 for he is the one doing the fighting. 00:01:40.019 --> 00:01:44.699 And as long as Israel remained faithful to the God that they serve and worship, 00:01:45.239 --> 00:01:46.259 he would fight for them. 00:01:46.979 --> 00:01:53.519 And today, as we sum up our time in Joshua, we will see on what basis that we have to be strong and faithful, 00:01:53.739 --> 00:01:54.679 to be strong and courageous. 00:01:54.680 --> 00:01:58.920 And we'll be left with the very question of who we will serve. 00:02:00.240 --> 00:02:03.600 However, before we get there, let's spend some time back in chapter 9, 00:02:03.720 --> 00:02:08.800 looking at one of the final sections, or the most final battles and sections of this book. 00:02:09.700 --> 00:02:12.219 So the opening verses of chapter 9, verse 1. 00:02:12.280 --> 00:02:15.500 Now when all the kings west of Jordan heard about these things, 00:02:15.600 --> 00:02:17.879 the kings in the hill country, in the western foothills, 00:02:18.340 --> 00:02:21.379 and along the entire coast of the Mediterranean Sea, as far as Lebanon, 00:02:21.659 --> 00:02:24.260 the kings of the Hittites, Amorites, and Canaanites, 00:02:24.680 --> 00:02:26.700 Perizzites, Hivites, and Debuchadnezzar, 00:02:27.200 --> 00:02:31.219 they came together to wage war against Joshua and Israel. 00:02:31.879 --> 00:02:37.939 The kingdoms that surrounded them had been paying close attention to what had been happening. 00:02:38.420 --> 00:02:42.180 They knew what had happened at the Battle of Ai and at the Battle of Jericho. 00:02:42.319 --> 00:02:45.920 They knew the history of God's people, that they had been brought up out of Egypt. 00:02:46.319 --> 00:02:51.680 But this is the first time in the whole book that we see the kingdoms go on the offensive, 00:02:51.680 --> 00:02:56.379 joined together before there is any imminent attack against them. 00:02:56.460 --> 00:02:58.219 But why? Why do they do this? 00:02:58.980 --> 00:03:00.659 It may be because they're fearful. 00:03:01.500 --> 00:03:08.159 The God of Israel is unstoppable, delivering every city into Israel's hands. 00:03:08.780 --> 00:03:09.879 It's a good conclusion. 00:03:10.640 --> 00:03:16.620 But there is nothing in the text to suggest or to indicate that they were fearful at this point. 00:03:16.620 --> 00:03:24.539 In fact, this change of character, going on the offensive, might suggest that their disposition towards Israel has changed. 00:03:25.379 --> 00:03:29.200 No longer were they fearful, but they had hope. 00:03:30.360 --> 00:03:37.060 They had heard not only about Israel's victories, but also Israel's loss at Ai. 00:03:37.060 --> 00:03:43.819 And even though it was only a hiccup along the way, the surrounding nations saw that Israel were vulnerable. 00:03:44.680 --> 00:03:47.340 Israel were no longer considered undefeated. 00:03:47.500 --> 00:03:48.819 They lost a battle. 00:03:49.280 --> 00:03:56.259 And so they thought to themselves, maybe, maybe we can gather up all our armies and we can defeat Israel together. 00:03:57.439 --> 00:04:01.080 However, it seems to be a misplaced hope. 00:04:01.580 --> 00:04:05.219 It says they came together to fight Joshua and Israel. 00:04:05.219 --> 00:04:07.000 No mention of God. 00:04:08.020 --> 00:04:13.740 They don't realize that there is the God of Joshua and Israel who does the fighting, not them on their own. 00:04:14.460 --> 00:04:18.879 And so they show that they don't truly understand what they are getting themselves into. 00:04:19.740 --> 00:04:22.600 However, one city, Gibeon, does something else. 00:04:22.720 --> 00:04:26.019 In verse 3, we are told that after hearing about Jericho and Ai, 00:04:26.720 --> 00:04:29.959 Gibeon planned to deceive Israel into a peace treaty. 00:04:29.959 --> 00:04:34.019 And they went to great lengths to make themselves look like a faraway nation, 00:04:34.199 --> 00:04:39.699 to look like they had traveled great distances to get to their camp, to get to the Israelite camp. 00:04:40.139 --> 00:04:45.439 They loaded worn-out sacks on their donkeys, worn a wall, worn-out sandals as well. 00:04:45.680 --> 00:04:51.599 They made sure all their bread looked dry, so they looked like they had come from a very faraway land 00:04:51.599 --> 00:04:53.599 and had traveled for quite some time. 00:04:53.600 --> 00:04:57.300 They went to great lengths to deceive Israel. 00:04:57.820 --> 00:05:02.520 I mean, I don't know if I could ever be bothered to go to such lengths to cover up the lie. 00:05:02.640 --> 00:05:08.020 As a kid, the only kind of defense I had to cover up the lie was to try and keep a straight face. 00:05:08.620 --> 00:05:13.260 If I could lie with a straight face, maybe I would get away with it, but I never really did at all. 00:05:13.259 --> 00:05:21.099 But these people, the Gibeonites, they had a great reason to lie and to try and deceive. 00:05:21.339 --> 00:05:22.879 In verse 9, they said to Joshua, 00:05:22.879 --> 00:05:47.759 Unlike the other kings, the Gibeonites knew they didn't stand a chance, 00:05:48.379 --> 00:05:50.699 because they knew what they were up against. 00:05:50.699 --> 00:05:54.079 Unlike the kings who thought they were up against Joshua, 00:05:54.259 --> 00:05:57.379 the Gibeonites recognized that they were up against God. 00:05:57.819 --> 00:05:58.519 Look again. 00:05:59.639 --> 00:06:03.980 Because of the fame of the Lord your God, we have heard reports of him. 00:06:04.360 --> 00:06:11.159 All that he did in Egypt, and all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites. 00:06:12.180 --> 00:06:13.500 They knew what was up. 00:06:14.659 --> 00:06:18.180 They knew that they could not stand against Israel. 00:06:18.180 --> 00:06:22.439 To stand against Israel was to stand against God. 00:06:23.560 --> 00:06:29.500 And they would rather make peace of Israel through deception than stand against them 00:06:29.500 --> 00:06:32.439 and fight this mighty and powerful God. 00:06:33.199 --> 00:06:34.939 And it totally paid off. 00:06:35.100 --> 00:06:36.000 Look at verse 14. 00:06:36.000 --> 00:06:51.980 We see again how vulnerable Israel is. 00:06:51.980 --> 00:06:56.120 Not only can they be defeated in battle by a small outpost at Ai, 00:06:56.120 --> 00:07:00.240 but they can also be completely deceived by the enemy. 00:07:01.439 --> 00:07:04.240 When Israel put God offside, 00:07:04.579 --> 00:07:08.439 not giving him his worthy place as God and ruler, 00:07:09.319 --> 00:07:11.680 they make themselves vulnerable. 00:07:12.959 --> 00:07:15.399 And there's almost an expectation at this point 00:07:15.399 --> 00:07:18.079 that something bad might happen. 00:07:18.079 --> 00:07:23.899 that the Gibeonites may not have been genuine about their reasons for deception. 00:07:25.519 --> 00:07:26.819 Well, it didn't take long. 00:07:27.519 --> 00:07:29.599 The deception began to unravel. 00:07:29.740 --> 00:07:31.919 And the Israelites found out that they had been tricked. 00:07:32.000 --> 00:07:35.120 And you can imagine how the Israelites would have been feeling 00:07:35.120 --> 00:07:39.259 to be tricked into a peace treaty with a Canaanite nation. 00:07:39.779 --> 00:07:41.180 They're sworn enemies. 00:07:41.560 --> 00:07:42.319 Not cool. 00:07:42.680 --> 00:07:43.860 Not cool, Gibeon. 00:07:43.860 --> 00:07:48.900 And we are told in verse 18 that the people who are murmuring about them, 00:07:49.480 --> 00:07:50.620 and in verse 26, 00:07:51.240 --> 00:07:53.439 that the people, Israel, wanted to kill them. 00:07:54.400 --> 00:07:55.920 And you can imagine why. 00:07:57.259 --> 00:08:00.580 This is a potentially dangerous nation. 00:08:01.580 --> 00:08:03.160 And they have deceived Israel. 00:08:03.340 --> 00:08:08.180 What if their plans were to invade and destroy Israel from the inside 00:08:08.180 --> 00:08:08.960 through this deception? 00:08:11.100 --> 00:08:12.819 And so Joshua asked them, 00:08:12.980 --> 00:08:13.280 Why? 00:08:13.860 --> 00:08:15.620 Why did you do these things? 00:08:15.740 --> 00:08:17.600 To which they respond in verse 24. 00:08:19.080 --> 00:08:22.620 Your servants were clearly told how the Lord your God 00:08:22.620 --> 00:08:26.240 had commanded his servant Moses to give you the whole land 00:08:26.240 --> 00:08:29.960 and to wipe out all its inhabitants from before you. 00:08:30.540 --> 00:08:33.000 So we feared for our lives because of you. 00:08:33.460 --> 00:08:34.960 And that is why we did this. 00:08:35.659 --> 00:08:37.279 We are now in your hands. 00:08:38.100 --> 00:08:40.820 Do to us whatever seems good and right to you. 00:08:40.820 --> 00:08:46.580 They hadn't deceived Israel to try and destroy Israel from the inside. 00:08:46.580 --> 00:08:54.379 They did so because they themselves were afraid of being destroyed by Israel, by God. 00:08:54.379 --> 00:08:55.960 And they say, 00:08:55.960 --> 00:08:57.879 We are now in your hands. 00:08:57.879 --> 00:09:01.120 That is a recurring term that we hear in the book of Joshua. 00:09:01.120 --> 00:09:07.320 Normally it is God who says it to Joshua before he goes into battle to conquer an enemy. 00:09:07.320 --> 00:09:11.980 But now we hear the Gibeonites say it to Joshua of themselves. 00:09:11.980 --> 00:09:20.019 And it is as if they consider themselves like Ai and like Jericho to be conquered, to be a conquered city. 00:09:20.019 --> 00:09:23.319 And so what will Joshua do? 00:09:23.319 --> 00:09:25.120 Verse 26. 00:09:26.500 --> 00:09:31.620 So Joshua saved them from the Israelites and they did not kill them. 00:09:32.679 --> 00:09:39.600 Joshua mediates for the people of Gibeon and ensures their safety, showing grace. 00:09:40.100 --> 00:09:45.860 For even though the Gibeonites deceived the nation, their reasons were always genuine. 00:09:45.860 --> 00:09:50.680 They feared the Lord God and so they were spared. 00:09:52.000 --> 00:09:53.740 What is the point of all this though? 00:09:54.580 --> 00:09:56.460 It is an interesting chapter. 00:09:57.300 --> 00:10:05.940 On the one hand we have Gibeon, who while deceives Israel, shows that they have come to know and fearfully know the God they worship. 00:10:06.840 --> 00:10:13.740 And on the other hand we have Israel, who while they couldn't help being deceived, did not inquire God's counsel on the matter. 00:10:13.740 --> 00:10:23.460 And then we have God, who whilst he might not speak in the narrative, is clearly active in displaying grace to both. 00:10:24.240 --> 00:10:27.560 Grace to the Gibeonites in saving them and including them in. 00:10:27.860 --> 00:10:37.700 And grace to Israel by not allowing another nation who may have abused their trust to deceive them and therefore to destroy them within. 00:10:37.700 --> 00:10:52.320 God is incredibly gracious in his actions, showing that he is the one who sustains his people and is able to sustain his people and achieve his purpose through them even when they are deceived. 00:10:53.500 --> 00:10:58.780 For this deception in itself, in a way, kind of slingshots Israel into the conquest. 00:10:59.080 --> 00:11:01.960 You see, in the first eight chapters we have two battles. 00:11:01.960 --> 00:11:11.019 But from chapter 10 to halfway through 11, pretty much all the southern and northern kingdoms are conquered by them. 00:11:11.800 --> 00:11:13.580 Things speed up very quickly. 00:11:14.460 --> 00:11:16.139 And it's all because of this deception. 00:11:17.120 --> 00:11:22.940 The other nations, after hearing about Gibeon's alliance of Israel, want to attack them right now. 00:11:22.940 --> 00:11:25.360 Now, chapter 10, verse 3 says, 00:11:25.360 --> 00:11:36.080 So Adonis, king of Jerusalem, appealed to Hoham, king of Hebron, Piram, king of Jammuth, Japhia, king of Lachish, and Debir, king of Eglon. 00:11:36.500 --> 00:11:44.240 Come up and help me attack Gibeon, he said, because it has made peace with Joshua and the Israelites. 00:11:44.240 --> 00:11:55.840 This gave Israel a reason to enter back into the conquest, since they were obliged by their treaty to protect Gibeon. 00:11:56.659 --> 00:12:04.299 And since all the kings had come together, this allowed Israel to swiftly defeat the other nations and end the conquest. 00:12:04.980 --> 00:12:07.740 To which we read in chapter 11, verse 23, 00:12:07.740 --> 00:12:23.779 The land was now theirs. 00:12:24.159 --> 00:12:28.759 Because of this deception, it slingshot them to the rest of the conquest. 00:12:29.399 --> 00:12:33.060 And they were able to defeat all the surrounding nations, north and south. 00:12:33.419 --> 00:12:34.940 The land was now theirs. 00:12:35.039 --> 00:12:35.940 It was finished. 00:12:35.940 --> 00:12:41.700 Now came the time to enjoy rest in the land that God promised to give them. 00:12:41.780 --> 00:12:45.140 Indeed, this is the purpose of the whole campaign. 00:12:45.520 --> 00:12:51.360 That God's people would be in God's place, under God's rule, and enjoy rest. 00:12:52.260 --> 00:12:53.460 Rest with God. 00:12:55.160 --> 00:12:59.360 To enjoy the good land that Deuteronomy 8 spoke of, in verse 7. 00:12:59.360 --> 00:13:08.139 For the Lord your God is bringing you to a good land, a land with brooks, streams, deep springs, gushing out into the valleys and hills. 00:13:08.360 --> 00:13:13.419 A land with wheat and barley, vines and fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey. 00:13:14.000 --> 00:13:17.840 A land where bread will not be scarce, and you will lack nothing. 00:13:17.840 --> 00:13:22.420 A land where the rocks are iron, you can dig copper out of the hills. 00:13:23.600 --> 00:13:31.540 The description of springs, of waters gushing out of valleys and hills with plentiful produce and rich in minerals, 00:13:32.100 --> 00:13:36.120 is not just a description of the land they're about to enter into. 00:13:36.120 --> 00:13:42.220 But it's also a description of a land that the people of God once were in. 00:13:43.320 --> 00:13:44.379 The Garden of Eden. 00:13:45.039 --> 00:13:47.379 I'll read out chapter 2 of Genesis. 00:13:49.120 --> 00:13:51.200 See if you can pick up some similarities here. 00:13:52.379 --> 00:13:56.360 Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden. 00:13:57.179 --> 00:13:58.779 And there he put a man he had formed. 00:13:58.940 --> 00:14:01.740 The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground. 00:14:02.180 --> 00:14:04.600 Trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. 00:14:04.600 --> 00:14:08.700 In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of knowledge and good and evil. 00:14:09.360 --> 00:14:12.759 A river, watering the garden, flowed from Eden. 00:14:13.320 --> 00:14:15.420 From there it was separated to four headwaters. 00:14:15.779 --> 00:14:18.100 The name of the first is Pishon. 00:14:18.259 --> 00:14:23.340 It winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. 00:14:24.720 --> 00:14:26.200 And the gold of the land is good. 00:14:26.399 --> 00:14:28.240 Aromatic, resin, onyx are also there. 00:14:28.360 --> 00:14:31.000 The name of the second river is Gihon. 00:14:31.100 --> 00:14:32.840 It winds through the entire land of Cush. 00:14:32.840 --> 00:14:35.000 And the third river is the Tigris. 00:14:35.639 --> 00:14:37.820 It runs along the east side of Asher. 00:14:37.920 --> 00:14:39.360 And the fourth river is the Euphrates. 00:14:40.680 --> 00:14:41.960 Do you see the similarities? 00:14:43.300 --> 00:14:52.500 The land that God was bringing them into was a reflection of the perfect garden that God's people had once enjoyed. 00:14:52.500 --> 00:14:58.919 And more than that, that God would be with them in this good land himself. 00:14:59.340 --> 00:15:04.559 And that he, along with his people, would be able to enjoy his created purpose. 00:15:05.240 --> 00:15:05.860 Rest. 00:15:06.899 --> 00:15:08.759 Rest with God. 00:15:08.759 --> 00:15:19.799 But, it was predicated upon Israel's obedience to God and remembrance for what he had done for them. 00:15:20.379 --> 00:15:22.879 One verse earlier in Deuteronomy 8, verse 6. 00:15:23.439 --> 00:15:28.519 Observe the command of the Lord your God, walking in obedience to him and revering him. 00:15:28.519 --> 00:15:31.179 And again, right after that description in verse 11. 00:15:31.299 --> 00:15:34.000 Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God. 00:15:34.740 --> 00:15:42.819 Obedience and remembrance were key for remaining in this good land and enjoying God and resting with him. 00:15:42.820 --> 00:15:53.840 And so Joshua, to sum up the whole book, spends two chapters, 23 and 24, imploring the Israelites to remember God and to obey him. 00:15:56.900 --> 00:15:58.100 23, verse 6. 00:15:58.180 --> 00:15:59.100 Be very strong. 00:16:00.080 --> 00:16:04.580 Be careful to obey all that is written in the book of the law of Moses. 00:16:05.060 --> 00:16:07.500 Without turning aside to the right or to the left. 00:16:07.500 --> 00:16:15.059 So, firstly, he reminds them, as God reminded him in the beginning, to be strong and courageous. 00:16:16.639 --> 00:16:21.960 And that such strength and courage is based off obedience to God and to his law. 00:16:22.960 --> 00:16:27.500 He reminds them, it's actually God, not you, Israel, who defeated your enemies. 00:16:28.279 --> 00:16:31.820 Big and strong they were, yet nothing compared to the Lord God. 00:16:31.820 --> 00:16:38.280 And indeed, we have seen how incredibly vulnerable Israel are without God. 00:16:38.379 --> 00:16:44.420 They cannot afford, even for a moment, to forget who they are and what God has done for them. 00:16:45.300 --> 00:16:51.460 They cannot afford to turn aside one way or the other from the word that is in the book of the law. 00:16:51.460 --> 00:16:59.500 If they want to enjoy rest in the land, to enjoy a relationship as God's people, in God's place, under his rule, 00:16:59.780 --> 00:17:05.860 they must obey the Lord God to live rightly in the land he has given them. 00:17:07.920 --> 00:17:16.539 And secondly, in chapter 24, we see Joshua leave the congregation of Israel with an important question to answer. 00:17:17.240 --> 00:17:19.920 One which we ourselves need to answer as well. 00:17:19.920 --> 00:17:27.039 After recounting what the Lord had done for them since bringing them out of Egypt, he says in verse 14, 00:17:27.240 --> 00:17:31.060 Now fear the Lord and serve him in all faithfulness. 00:17:31.560 --> 00:17:38.519 Throw away the gods your ancestors worshipped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt and serve the Lord. 00:17:39.320 --> 00:17:45.840 But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, 00:17:45.839 --> 00:17:53.299 whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living. 00:17:54.000 --> 00:17:57.439 But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord. 00:17:58.139 --> 00:18:04.939 Will the people of God serve him alone as their Lord God or will they serve other gods? 00:18:04.940 --> 00:18:09.460 The people respond resounding, yes, of course we will. 00:18:09.960 --> 00:18:13.700 Joshua, of course, God, he has done great things for us. 00:18:15.000 --> 00:18:18.600 And you would think Joshua would be pretty positive hearing that response. 00:18:19.680 --> 00:18:20.360 But he's not. 00:18:21.700 --> 00:18:27.039 Verse 19, Joshua said to the people, you are not able to serve the Lord. 00:18:27.299 --> 00:18:28.539 He is a holy God. 00:18:28.600 --> 00:18:29.840 He is a jealous God. 00:18:30.160 --> 00:18:32.940 He will not forgive your rebellion and your sins. 00:18:32.940 --> 00:18:36.279 A bit of a downer, really, isn't he? 00:18:37.000 --> 00:18:40.940 Calling them to serve God and saying, nope, you really can't serve him. 00:18:42.000 --> 00:18:43.180 What's going on here? 00:18:43.620 --> 00:18:45.100 Why is he being so negative? 00:18:46.660 --> 00:18:53.519 It's not that he's being negative or being a downer, but that he's being really, really serious. 00:18:54.740 --> 00:19:02.240 He questions Israel's ability to fully commit themselves to the Lord and to abandon all other gods. 00:19:02.940 --> 00:19:04.940 Questioning whether they are single-mindedness. 00:19:04.940 --> 00:19:14.480 He's being so negative or being a downer, but he's not convinced that they truly mean them. 00:19:14.620 --> 00:19:26.000 Saying in verse 20, if you forsake the Lord and serve foreign gods, he will turn and bring disaster on you and make an end of you after he has been good to you. 00:19:26.000 --> 00:19:39.720 And in verse 23, calling them to do this, now then, said Joshua, throw away the foreign gods that are among you and yield your hearts to the Lord, the God of Israel. 00:19:40.779 --> 00:19:42.799 Joshua is saying, you don't get it. 00:19:42.900 --> 00:19:44.019 This is serious. 00:19:44.019 --> 00:19:49.400 If you're going to serve God and make him Lord of your life, then do so. 00:19:49.819 --> 00:19:51.940 Forsake all else and serve him. 00:19:52.079 --> 00:19:55.700 Don't boast and say, oh, Joshua, of course we will. 00:19:55.740 --> 00:19:56.379 Of course we will. 00:19:56.400 --> 00:19:57.279 We love God. 00:19:58.299 --> 00:20:00.599 And then hold behind your back idols. 00:20:00.599 --> 00:20:07.480 No, Joshua wants them to understand the big commitment it is to follow God. 00:20:07.480 --> 00:20:10.419 And what they promise is no small thing. 00:20:11.500 --> 00:20:16.659 To forsake all other gods and serve the one true God. 00:20:18.359 --> 00:20:21.019 And this is a question we must ask ourselves. 00:20:21.139 --> 00:20:25.019 And what the book of Joshua gets us to ask ourselves. 00:20:25.019 --> 00:20:29.000 Do we take following God seriously? 00:20:30.259 --> 00:20:33.180 Are we single-minded in serving him alone? 00:20:35.039 --> 00:20:38.480 Like the Israelites, we might think, yes, of course we do. 00:20:38.539 --> 00:20:39.420 We love God. 00:20:40.559 --> 00:20:42.900 But have we put away all our idols? 00:20:43.519 --> 00:20:50.279 Are we as a people truly single-minded in our devotion and love for God as Lord of our life? 00:20:51.039 --> 00:20:54.619 Does worshipping and loving him come before work? 00:20:55.879 --> 00:21:00.000 Money, holidays, pleasure, our own families. 00:21:00.460 --> 00:21:06.079 Does worshipping and loving God, first and foremost, come before our own life? 00:21:07.839 --> 00:21:14.559 Can we truly say that right now, that there is not a moment in our life where God isn't number one? 00:21:15.400 --> 00:21:16.980 I'm not sure if I can say that. 00:21:17.619 --> 00:21:18.960 Can we really say that? 00:21:18.960 --> 00:21:28.840 If we want to enjoy a relationship with God, then we are to obey and serve him. 00:21:29.559 --> 00:21:31.779 We must put him first. 00:21:32.460 --> 00:21:36.140 We must serve him wholeheartedly, single-mindedly. 00:21:36.140 --> 00:21:40.900 But how can we do that if there are times we don't serve him wholeheartedly? 00:21:41.120 --> 00:21:45.820 When we kind of turn to the idols in our life and put them before God? 00:21:46.940 --> 00:21:54.800 When we, like the Gibeonites, are caught out in our deception, in our inability to keep God's covenant? 00:21:54.799 --> 00:21:56.859 What are we to do? 00:21:57.220 --> 00:21:58.339 How can we communicate? 00:21:59.019 --> 00:22:02.240 How can we continue to be a part of God's people? 00:22:02.659 --> 00:22:07.919 To enjoy the rich inheritance of rest with God in his place for us? 00:22:07.920 --> 00:22:17.660 Well, as we see throughout the whole book of Joshua, whilst God is an incredibly angry God who hates sin, 00:22:17.900 --> 00:22:23.960 who destroys those who are against him, we also witness a God who is gracious, 00:22:25.019 --> 00:22:28.000 who sustains his people even though they sin. 00:22:28.740 --> 00:22:32.120 He sustains them by his word. 00:22:32.119 --> 00:22:39.500 And although they are vulnerable, his people are weak in body and weak in mind, 00:22:39.919 --> 00:22:44.139 God enables them to remain in the land, to serve him and to love him. 00:22:45.359 --> 00:22:51.439 And although we here, we are vulnerable without God, we are easily distracted by worldly things, 00:22:52.319 --> 00:22:57.039 God also promises us that he will sustain us by his word. 00:22:57.039 --> 00:23:02.039 Indeed, as John 1 says, by the word that became flesh. 00:23:02.119 --> 00:23:09.279 It is Christ Jesus in whom we are able to be strong and courageous. 00:23:10.559 --> 00:23:15.339 For just as God graciously included the Gibeonites into his own people, 00:23:15.819 --> 00:23:20.299 God in Christ graciously included us into his own people. 00:23:20.879 --> 00:23:26.399 Just as God fought the battles for the Israelites and delivered their enemies into their hands, 00:23:26.919 --> 00:23:31.479 God in Christ Jesus defeated our enemy of sin on the cross, 00:23:31.480 --> 00:23:35.579 by dying himself as our eternal sacrifice. 00:23:36.579 --> 00:23:41.299 Just as God promised to bring the Israelites into a land that was good, 00:23:41.559 --> 00:23:44.019 a reflection of the Garden of Eden, 00:23:44.299 --> 00:23:47.660 a place where they can enjoy rest with God, 00:23:48.559 --> 00:23:54.140 God in Christ Jesus provides us a resting place in himself. 00:23:54.140 --> 00:24:05.100 In Christ Jesus, we get to enjoy all the blessings of God's people, 00:24:05.100 --> 00:24:07.780 because unlike us and unlike the Israelites, 00:24:08.400 --> 00:24:10.420 Jesus was entirely obedient. 00:24:11.440 --> 00:24:13.020 He was perfect. 00:24:13.019 --> 00:24:19.879 And so in being united to him, united to his righteous life, 00:24:19.980 --> 00:24:21.859 it has now been credited to us. 00:24:22.539 --> 00:24:26.920 We no longer need to fear being condemned for our own sin, 00:24:27.099 --> 00:24:29.680 for Christ has dealt with that on the cross. 00:24:30.059 --> 00:24:33.980 We no longer need to worry if we have lived a good enough life, 00:24:33.980 --> 00:24:38.379 because Christ has lived the life that was required from us. 00:24:38.380 --> 00:24:43.200 And even in a world full of turmoil, full of war and famines, 00:24:43.340 --> 00:24:46.640 pain and suffering, distress and uncertainty, 00:24:47.420 --> 00:24:50.280 things in your life that you might be struggling with, 00:24:51.280 --> 00:24:55.400 for all of us who believe, who trust in Jesus, 00:24:56.340 --> 00:24:57.980 even though all that might be going on, 00:24:58.640 --> 00:25:00.740 we can enjoy rest. 00:25:00.740 --> 00:25:08.420 Rest with God, who has given us hope and certainty for our future in Christ. 00:25:09.819 --> 00:25:14.819 And so it is in Jesus, the word that became flesh, 00:25:15.380 --> 00:25:18.180 that we can be strong and courageous 00:25:18.180 --> 00:25:22.120 and continue to walk with God, following him. 00:25:23.700 --> 00:25:26.620 So, who will you serve? 00:25:26.619 --> 00:25:31.219 For Israel, Joshua called them to a choice, 00:25:31.919 --> 00:25:33.899 to make a choice, a serious one, 00:25:33.979 --> 00:25:37.579 a serious commitment to the service of one God. 00:25:39.059 --> 00:25:41.059 And I think for us, it's a little bit different, 00:25:41.199 --> 00:25:41.939 a tiny bit different. 00:25:42.699 --> 00:25:46.599 For us, this choice is not just a once-off choice we need to make. 00:25:47.439 --> 00:25:50.039 It's a choice that we need to make daily. 00:25:51.559 --> 00:25:55.459 Will we daily choose to serve and follow Jesus, 00:25:55.460 --> 00:25:58.400 to daily call him Lord and Saviour, 00:25:58.460 --> 00:26:01.620 to daily repent of our sins and turn back to him, 00:26:01.700 --> 00:26:04.900 to daily choose him and above all else, 00:26:05.880 --> 00:26:09.299 to daily remember what he's done for us 00:26:09.299 --> 00:26:12.980 and obey his commands to serve him and one another. 00:26:14.299 --> 00:26:17.059 We do this not in fear of judgment, 00:26:18.019 --> 00:26:20.460 but knowing Christ has paid for our sin 00:26:20.460 --> 00:26:23.799 and made us to enjoy rest with God now. 00:26:23.799 --> 00:26:27.259 So, be strong. 00:26:28.000 --> 00:26:28.859 Be courageous. 00:26:29.700 --> 00:26:30.180 Let's pray.