April 20
Joshua 1-3
Psalm 49:1-9
Proverbs 11:22-23
Luke 13:1-17
Be Strong and Courageous
“Be strong and courageous, for you will distribute the land I swore to their fathers to give them as an inheritance. Above all, be strong and very courageous to carefully observe the whole instruction My servant Moses commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you will have success wherever you go. This book of instruction must not depart from your mouth: you are to recite it day and night, so that you may carefully observe everything written in it. For then you will prosper and succeed in whatever you do. Haven’t I commanded you: Be strong and courageous? Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:6-9 HCSB
Three times in these four verses Joshua was encouraged to be strong and courageous. He was about to lead the children of Israel to take possession of the promised land. In Numbers 13 we find a description of the people of the land of Canaan. They are described as “powerful’ and “very large.” Joshua was very familiar with the people because he was one of the twelve spies who went into the land forty years earlier. He saw them and remembered them well. Now, all these years later, he was given the task of leading the children of Israel to defeat them and finally take possession. Joshua and Caleb were the only two of the twelve spies who believed they could take over the land because they knew that God had the power to do whatever He promised. But Joshua knew how large and powerful the people were, and how difficult it would be to conquer them. He believed God would go with them and protect them, but he must have been frightened. In these verses God is giving Joshua encouragement. He looked into Joshua’s heart and met him where he was. He told him to be strong and courageous and assured him he was not alone. God told Joshua the importance of reading and obeying the book of instruction because it would lead them to success in whatever they did. God’s Word is our source of encouragement and instruction as well. It gives us strength and hope when we are afraid. It leads and guides us and if we follow its teaching, we can expect to experience success. God knows our hearts and He meets us where we are. We do not have to be ashamed to admit that we are afraid. Franklin Delano Roosevelt was President of the United States during the Great Depression and World War 2. During that time there was legitimate reason to be afraid. The world was a scary place. In one of his “Fireside Chats” he said something that has become very familiar: “Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the assessment that something else is more important than fear.”⁴ Without fear there is no need for courage. We can be in situations where we should be afraid and yet we can respond with courage because we know that God is with us and will take care of us. Joshua knew that obeying God was more important than any fear he might have, and that taking possession of the promised land was the task set before him. He chose to obey God and believe in
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