By Ronald Bartanen God has never promised
anyone that life would be easy. Far from
it! The future is not always filled with sunny days, but frequently with dark
clouds and thick darkness. For the
Christian, difficulties, grief and frustrations serve as a constant challenge
to our faithful endurance. However, God
abundantly supplies the resources needed to achieve a favorable outcome in
life. Chief among such resources is the
record of God’s people as recorded in God’s word, set as examples for us. The apostle Paul wrote the Christians at
Rome: “Whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction,
that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might
have hope” (Rom. 15:4, ESV). One among
many “former-days” examples is Joshua, a successor to Moses, chosen by God to
lead Israel in conquest of Canaan following their 40-year trek through the
wilderness. The first chapter of Joshua
records God’s commission to Joshua. He is
to lead Israel to take the land in Canaan, which God had centuries before promised
to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
In essence, God is telling Joshua, “You are my man. Heed my word.
Rid yourself of all fears.
Fulfill my purpose for you. Now,
get with it!” While Joshua may well
feel overwhelmed by the task set before him, God does not leave him without
divine assurance. Four times within this
short 18-verses chapter God encourages him, saying, “Be strong and courageous”
(vs. 6, 7, 9, 18). For Joshua and the
army, he leads there must be no retreat, for this is God’s battle. He is assured, “No man shall be able to stand
before you all the days of your life. As
I was with Moses, so I will be with you.
I will not leave you or forsake you” (v. 5). Faith in God’s presence, and obedience to His
word, will assure him of victory. The
fact that the Lord told him to “be strong and courageous” four times would
imply, first of all, that God meant it, and second, that Joshua needed it. Joshua, through 40 years
of wandering with God’s people through the wilderness, knew them in all their
fickleness. He must have heard them ask
a hundred times, “Where is God?” The “God is dead” cry is not anything new to
our generation. We would not be surprised
if many times he heard comments like, “Maybe God spoke to Moses, but maybe
not.” Now, could he trust the people to
not be faithless as they faced Jericho? |
- Ronald Bartanen is a
retired minister who for many years served the Lord's church in Illinois,
Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan and Tennessee. After the passing of his beloved
wife, Doris, Ron has relocated from Illinois to Florida where he is near
family. He may be contacted at: ron33dor@yahoo.com  |
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