Year 1, Day 186: Joshua 1

Joshua

In today’s reading, Joshua assumes command to lead the people into the Promised Land.  As we open Joshua, I’d like to share a quote that I found this morning from Warren Wiersbe’s Expository Outlines of the Old Testament:

The [New Testament] makes it clear that Joshua is a type of Christ (Heb. 4:8, where “Jesus” (kjv) should be translated “Joshua”). The name “Jesus” in Greek is equivalent to “Joshua”; both mean “God’s salvation” or “Jehovah is the Savior.” Just as Joshua conquered earthly foes, so Christ has defeated every enemy through His death and resurrection. It was Joshua, not Moses (representing Law), who brought Israel into Canaan, and it is Jesus who leads us into spiritual rest and victory. As Joshua assigned the tribes their inheritance so Christ has given us our inheritance (Eph. 1:3ff).

That quote led me down this line of thinking.  Canaan does not figuratively represent heaven, for we need not fight for heaven nor conquer the current occupants to possess it.  However, Canaan does represent our spiritual life in Christ.  We do have to battle to be more spiritual and less worldly.  We certainly have to fight against the current occupants of our life – desires, lusts, wants – and replace them with spiritual desires.  So we can certainly see the literal struggle for Canaan as a figurative battle for our own spirituality in our own lives.

Here’s the neat part.  Moses did not lead the people into the Promised Land.  Moses – the great prophet and law-giver could only take the people so far.  Moses could only walk beside people in the wilderness and guide them towards the Promised Land.  It was Joshua who brought them in.  Taking this into the figurative and speaking of our own life and the struggle for spirituality is easy.  Our spiritual leaders and friends cannot take us into the promised land of spirituality.  They can find us in the wilderness of life and guide us in the right direction.  Only Jesus, and our promise to do as He asks, can bring us into that Promised Land of a spiritual life in Christ.  I thought that was a neat thought that needed to be shared as we begin Joshua.

God’s Declaration

Let’s actually get into the Word of God.  In the first 9 versus, God makes many promises to Joshua.  Yet God makes only three commands. 

• First, be strong.  The war for Canaan will take some muscle and it will take some inner fortitude. 
• Second, be courageous.  The war for Canaan will have many pitfalls and many hard paths to walk.  Joshua will need much resolve to get the job completely done. 
• Third, do not let the Book of the Law depart from his presence.   Without the Word of God, which had been written by Moses and given to Joshua, there would be no success.

Again, let’s take the literal reading regarding Joshua/Canaan and bring it into the figurative for us and our spirituality. 

• Be strong.  The war for our own spirituality will take some muscle.  We aren’t going to become spiritual by just sitting around and wanting to become spiritual.  We actually have to fight for our spirituality. 
• Be courageous.  The war for our spirituality will be difficult with many places where we will want to stop and say that we’ve had enough.  We must have the resolve to drive through those places. 
• Third, we must not abandon the Word of God.  If we think we can be spiritual without the Word of God, we are kidding ourselves.

To The People

In the last half of this first chapter of Joshua, Joshua then turns to the people and puts the charge before them.  They yield and promise to do whatever it takes to take possession of the land.  They promise that anyone in their midst who does not adhere to the ways of God will die.

And so it is with us.  Jesus – our Joshua leading us into spirituality – is turning to each of us and asking the same question.  “Are you ready to enter the promised land of spirituality?”  You can answer either yes or no, it is your choice.  But to answer yes requires strength, courage, and the Word of God.  To answer yes implies a willingness to put things within you to death if they will not bend to the will of Christ.  We cannot say yes to Christ with our mouth and know that we have a few things we aren’t willing to give up to Christ.  It just won’t work that way.  Saying yes to Christ implies being willing to put to death that which is not in Christ.

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