“Moses my servant is dead.”
These are the first words spoken by God to Joshua, and forgive me for being brash but I’m reading this and jumping for joy. Why, you ask? Shouldn’t something like death make me sad? Not when it’s death to rules and regulations! I’m remembering what we learned in Romans 7 – we died to the power of the Law when we died with Christ.
And what does Moses have to do with the Law, you ask? We learn throughout Scripture that Moses was a representation of the Law, because the Law came through him. John 1:17 says, “For the Law was given through Moses, but God’s unfailing love and faithfulness came through Jesus Christ.” And we are learning now in this new book, that Joshua is a representation of Jesus Christ. He is a picture of Jesus. Theologians like to call him a “type of Christ”. Remember that the name Joshua means, Yahweh Is Salvation, and is the Hebrew form of the Greek name Jesus, and most probably the name by which Jesus was known by His contemporaries.
So the Israelites could not enter the promised land by following Moses, but only by following Joshua would they enter in. All of this is God’s illustrating for us that it is the same for us today. It is not by following the Law that we get to the promised land. Relying on our own good works won’t get us the spirit-filled life (Galatians 3:3). We are going to see that it is only by trusting and following our heavenly Joshua that we can enter into that place of spiritual victory, abundance and freedom.
And here’s a shocker for many of us: this victory that we’ve been yearning for and striving for and hoping to get to eventually…it’s already ours! In verse 3 we saw God telling Joshua that all he had to do was step out and take it! This is a verse that many of us know quite well. We’ve memorized it and recited it over and over. As a matter of fact, this was a key verse for me and my friends as we walked over all sorts of lands as missionaries. Many times we even removed our shoes as we walked through the dirty streets, sandy beaches, and dusty roads! We would often pray, “Okay Lord, You said anywhere we set our feet you would give to us!” And off we went barefoot and oblivious to the deeper meaning hidden here in this verse. I like the way that the New Living translation renders it. It says, “Wherever you set your foot, you will be on land that I have (already) given you.”
If we are following the Spirit of God, He will lead us into victory.
For some of us, we feel like we’ve spent more time in the wilderness than we have in the promised land. Maybe we’re still wandering around in the wilderness trying to get back on the path that we somehow have lost. It actually reminds me of John and I’s favorite television show, ‘Lost’. I don’t know how many of you have seen this show, but in almost every single episode it shows someone wandering around in the jungle. They start off with a goal in mind. One of the leaders has made a decision and has given instructions: “Follow this specific trail.” They say yes, but most of the time each person has his or her own ulterior motives. So they head off into the jungle, but before you know it they are off the beaten path, lost, alone and hearing strange voices. How does that happen? (It’s amazing that we even keep watching, knowing that it’s going to be the same story every episode.)
How often does that happen with us!? Here we are tracking Jesus’ trail, following Him. He gives us some specific instructions, we intend to follow them eventually but delay our obedience for a short time because we have our own “good” ideas. This is when we get lost and start to hear the voices. “Did God really say?” It’s the oldest play in the book, literally. Satan used the same method on Eve in the Garden and he continues to use it today. (Genesis 3:1)
Joshua wanted nothing to do with that. Remember that he too wandered for 40 years under Moses’ leadership. He’s been there and done that. It seems that he learned a great lesson during the wilderness experience. So when God speaks now, he brings forth immediate obedience. (verses 10-11) But that isn’t the only thing that his wilderness experience did for him. This spoke volumes to me. Joshua did not despise his wilderness experience, but instead learned from it.
Probably the most eye opening part of this lesson for me was seeing just how committed these men were to Joshua. They chose to commit to him despite the fact that their contract was up, so to speak. Remember that these men were leaders of their tribes and had been leaders long before Joshua ever stepped up. They were leaders when Joshua was a servant. They had a contract with Moses, not with Joshua. And when Moses died, they could have very well said, “See ya later son!”
Why is it that they not only submitted to Joshua with immediate obedience themselves, but even went above and beyond what he had asked them to do? These men were willing to kill for him! (verse 18) I believe it is because of the very fact that Joshua was a servant before he was a leader. He was a witness in the wilderness. The fact that these tribal leaders submitted to him had nothing to do with how Joshua was leading now, but had everything to do with how Joshua served before he got there. These men had seen him serve for 40 years in the wilderness. And THAT is why they were so willing to not only submit to him, but to fight for him as well.
In Matthew chapter 23, Jesus speaks of this very thing. He is speaking to the crowds and to his disciples about the religious leaders of that day. He says that “they tell people what to do, but they aren’t willing to do it themselves. They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as a finger.” And he punctuates it by telling them that “the greatest among you shall be your servant.” (Matthew 23:3-4,11)
We are always waiting for something. For some of us, we are waiting to get that big promotion. Others are dreaming of being in full time ministry. Whatever it is that we find ourselves waiting for, it is not a question of whether or not we have to wait for it, but of how we wait for it. For Joshua, it was not a question of how he was leading when he was finally in a position that demanded it, but how he served before he got there. These men were willing to bring forth immediate obedience for Joshua, because his life had been an example to them of immediate obedience and integrity of heart for 40 years. Joshua was a servant and it was because of this that God made him the leader. Remember, he is a picture of Christ.
Let us remember this week that it’s not whether we wait but how we wait. Where we are at right now is not a mistake. God is working. And as we bring forth obedience with humility and a servant’s heart, God will be faithful to bring us into His wonderful promises.