02-03-2019 – Keith Cozort – Joshua, A Man of The Book (PM Sermon)

Open your Bibles with me, if you will, to the book of Joshua. I mean, as I announced this morning, I would like for us to study concerning Joshua, a man of the book, Certainly glad that you’re able to be here tonight wants to read verses one through nine of chapter one. This is going to serve as the introduction to the book of Joshua,

certainly, excuse me. But it’s also where we’re going to be taking our lesson from this evening, beginning in verse one. Now, after the death of Moses, the servant of the Lord, it came to pass that the Lord spake unto Joshua, the son of nun, Moses’s minister saying, Moses, my servant is dead now, therefore arise and go over this Jordan thou and all this people under the land,

which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel, every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon that. Have I given unto you, as I said, unto Moses from the wilderness of this Lebanon, even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites and under the great sea toward the going down of the sun shall be your coast.

There shall not any man be able to stand before the, all the days of my life as I was with Moses. So I will be with thee. I will not fail the North for safety, be strong and have a good courage for under this people shall divide for an inheritance, the land, which I swear under their fathers to give them only be thou strong and very courageous that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law,

which Moses my servant commanded thee turn, not from it to the right hand or to the left that thou may as prosper with her. So ever they’ll go list this book of the law shall not be, shall not depart out of my mouth, but thou shalt meditate therein day and night that thou mayest observe to do. According to all that is written there in for then now shall make thy way prosperous and then shalt thou have good success.

Have not. I commanded thee be strong and of a good courage. Be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed for the Lord. Thy God is with the weather. So wherever they’ll go with, as the opening verses of this book, speak to us and speak to Joshua. It is stated here that Moses is now dead. Joshua is the one who has been called in order to be the leader of the children of Israel from this point forward in order to take the promised land.

And he will be the one who will be the main person responsible for dividing the promised land among the 12 tribes. If Joshua would be successful in leading the people to victory, then he has to be willing to do it God’s way, and God is going to give him instructions concerning that. But Joshua also must depend completely upon the integrity of God, as well as the dependability of God’s word.

And so what I want us to do is to notice in these first nine verses concerning the characteristics that we read concerning Joshua as he is right now, and those characteristics that are going to be descriptive of him as he continues on to be the leader of the children of Israel. Notice, first of all, That Joshua, According to God, must be strong and of good courage.

Three times in these first nine verses God tells Joshua to be strong and to be courageous or to be of good courage. He uses different, a different phrase there, but it’s carrying forth the same idea. This is not going to be the last time that God is going to speak these words to Joshua. In fact, he will speak at several more times throughout the book of Joshua and Joshua in turn will speak these words to the children of Israel that God says to Joshua.

He is to be strong in a good Curry, You know, the amount of courage In proportion to the amount of hostility that he is going to have, the danger that he is going to face. And when it speaks concerning being strong and of good courage, This is not going without fear, but, And it is that of going, recognizing the presence of God and one’s faith in God.

And therefore knowing that victory is going to be on your side, if fighting were an easy affair, just about anyone would be able to do it and do it successfully. But having been in a couple of scrapes myself, I know that that’s not always the case. You don’t always come out on top. Somebody is going to be a loser. All right?

And I was generally that somebody that was designated If fighting or battle was always a pleasant thing, producing pleasure, Then everybody would be willing to do it. Then of course, that’s not going to be the case, but war is not easy. And there are great dangers and disappointments. There are generally large casualties depending upon the size of the battle anyway.

And sometimes There’s even success. Three times, got it Calls upon Joshua to be strong and of good courage. And Joshua must not let anyone or anything take him off. His Course must not allow Anyone or anything to frustrate his plans and of accomplishing God’s will in taking the problem Slant times. It’s not easy to do exactly what God wants us to do.

Sometimes it put, it takes a great deal of effort. It takes a great deal of courage even to do what God wants us to do, But The enemy would certainly be one who would oppose vigorously what God requires. And it is such that Sometimes Even God’s old own army would be a discouragement to Joshua. It’s not always the enemy that’s out there.

Sometimes it’s the enemy that’s within that causes great discouragement as well. And so Paul would admonish the brethren in much the same manner over in Ephesians chapter six. And in verse 10, when he says, finally, my brethren be strong in the Lord and in the power of his mind, That’s what God is calling upon Joshua To be strong and of good courage.

And the success of God’s army is due in part to the courageous spirit of those that are going to do To the fighting. But Also the greater part is going to be because God is going to be with them. As long as they are faithful. Joshua must be strong in a good courage. We also See where Joshua must be completely obedient, Verse seven Strong and very courageous that may just observe to do according to all the law,

which Moses my servant commanded thee turn, not from it to the right hand or the left that thou may as prosper with her. So ever, I would go list God, here is calling upon complete Bye Joshua. And He is too, as we’ve already stated, be strong and of good courage. This is now the second time that he is stated that concerning Joshua and he is to be strong and very courageous in keeping the law of God In keeping The law of God.

God’s rules are Significant. Sometimes people Look at the Bible and look at the word of God and they think, you know, it really doesn’t matter. God doesn’t really care whether we do something the way he said, do it or not do it as long as it feels to me, as long as it pleases me, then that’s all that really counts.

And if it pleases me, then God’s going to be accepted or will be acceptable with that. Well, of course we can point out untold numbers of, of examples where that just simply is not True. Oh, okay. Obligations placed by God. Upon man are there to be considered in all seriousness and complied with thoroughly in order to be acceptable with God.

Now, some obligations are placed upon man by God that are weight that are weightier than other obligations, but all obligations, our obligations. How do I know that some obligations are weightier than other? Well, all I have to do is read the words of Jesus, because Jesus says in Matthew chapter 23, and in verse 23, He Says, woe unto you scribes and Pharisees hypocrites for e-pay ties of mint and anise and cumin,

and have omitted notice have omitted. The weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy and faith. These are easy to have done and not to leave the other undone. Jesus says that in fact, the scribes and the Pharisees, those that are hypocrites as Jesus describes them, are those that have omitted. The weightier matters of the law. And he says,

these things that you’ve done are right in and of themselves, but you’ve omitted. The weightier matters of the law. Those that carry even more Wait. And the fact of the matter is they were required to do all of those things. So it is that some obligations that are placed upon man by God are weightier than others. And it certainly wrong to treat matters of obligation as if they were matters of option.

If it is obligated, then that means we must do it. If it’s a matter of option and that means you can do it, or you don’t have to do it, it really doesn’t matter which way it is. There are those who will treat matters of obligation, that which we must do as if they are matters of option, you can take it or leave it.

There are others who attempt to bind things upon others that God has not bound. And therefore Teach as that, which is required. Something that God did not require. We’re wrong. Anytime we judge one of God’s commandments as being unworthy of our obedience, turn over to the book of James chapter four, If you would, James chapter four, verses 11 and 12,

James says speed, not evil. One of another brethren, he didn’t speak of evil of his brother and judge his brother speak of evil of the law and judges the law. But if thou judge the law of our, not a doer of the law, but a judge, there is one law giver who is able to save and to destroy who art thou that judges to another.

And so with this, James is making the point that we are to be those who do not speak evil of our brethren. We are not to be those who judge them. And that kind of judgment that is being brought out here by James is the same kind of judgment that Jesus would talk about in Matthew chapter seven. And in verse one, judge,

not that you be not judged. Well, what kind of judgment is he talking about? Hypocritical, judgment, judgment that I hold for you as being something that is bound, but I don’t hold that same thing for me. Something it’s wrong for you to do, but it’s okay for me to do it. That’s hypocritical judgment. And so it is that we must be willing to be those who recognize that we must follow what God’s word has to say and be obedient to it.

Josh would needed to be impressed with the absolute necessity of being faithful to God and faithful to what God had said to do. And every dispensation God has demanded obedience. There is no exception to that, Thirdly, okay. Joshua was not to deviate to the right hand nor to the left. Again, at times men try to bind their will upon others and thus making laws where God did not make laws.

And other times there are those who seek to go beyond the restriction that has been placed upon them by God. And by doing such, they lose where God has not lose the Thomas B. Warren several years ago when he was attempting to illustrate this idea of binding where God has not bound and losing where God has not put forth the illustration of a man who instructs his son to go out and to put a cow or a horse or something like that on a line.

And that line or that lead is to be 50 feet long. Well, The sun goes out and he rather than making the lead 50 feet, he makes it 30 feet. What has he done? He has bound where his father did not tell him to buy him. He’s made his own regulations there where his father said, make it this distance. And he shortened that up.

Well, The next day he gives the son the same instructions. And this time, rather than making the lead 50 feet, he makes it 75 feet. He’s LUESD what his father is bound to him to follow Laughter. Well, that happens in the religious world. Bye Hanging where God has not bound losing where God has not loosed. And unfortunately it happens even within our brother.

Joshua Is not to deviate to the right hand nor to the left, both extremes the binding where God is not bound to Lucy where God has not loosed. Both extremes are unscriptural and they must be avoided. God is the law-giver. And we are to be those who follow his instructions, who follow his lead. And to be obedient requires that we know what it is that is to be done and what is not to be done.

This means that we must be biblically informed people. Isn’t it interesting when you turn to the book of Hosea, one of the minor prophets chapter four and in verse six there, God says my people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. The interesting part here is that Hosea is not saying, and God is not saying they’ve not had opportunity to hear the word of God in order to know what God would have them to do,

but having heard the word of God, they are not willing to, to do that. Realizing that even if they were to look around them, to the nations around them, that all these different nations are falling because of rebellion against God. And having heard the word of God yet, the children of Israel are those who are doing the exact same thing these other nations have done,

and God destroyed them. Why would they think that God would not destroy the children of Israel? Which of course he ends up doing both the Northern kingdom of Israel, the Southern kingdom of Judah, because of the very same things. My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge, the knowledge was there. It was able for them to be able to acquire that,

but they did not follow the knowledge that was given to them. Joshua is not to deviate to the right hand nor to the left. Fourthly. God says that Joshua is to keep the law in his mouth and to meditate on it. Day and night, verse eight, he is to keep the law in his mouth. He says, the book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth,

but thou shall meditate therein day and night that thou mayest observe to do. According to all that is written there in for then thou shalt make our way prosperous. And then thou shalt have good success. We need biblical information. We need a biblically informed army Today. An army that understands the orders that have been given An army that understands its enemies, an army that understands the nature of the struggle as well as the authority And the reward that’s being offered.

Person who constantly feasts upon God’s word can become what that feasting alone can produce. Now, it’s not a guarantee that it’s going to happen. We certainly have pointed out at other times, there are people who maybe even know the Bible better than we do, but they don’t believe a single word of it. And so Just having the knowledge of what the book teaches is not enough.

Joshua was told to keep the law in his mouth and to meditate on it. Day and night, He will come Value the things that God values. He will come to hate the things that God hates. How many times have you heard somebody say that hating is wrong? We should never hate anything. Well, that’s interesting. Turn over to the book of Proverbs chapter six,

Proverbs chapter six, verses 16 through 19 wise, man, Solomon recorded these, these six things does the Lord hate yea seven are an abomination unto him, a proud look, aligned tongue and hands that shed innocent blood and heart that deviseth wicked imagination, feet that be Swift and running to mischief a false witness that speak of lies. And he, so with discord among brethren,

there are things that God hates the point. We have to learn to hate what God hates and love the things that God loves. And certainly if you want to boil all of that down. So as to not disappoint Tim, anyway, if you want to boil all that down, what it says is God hates sin. Tim said preachers in the church,

Christ can’t preach a sermon without mentioning sin. So I had to make sure I got it in there for him. Joshua was told to keep the law to meditate upon it day and night, by doing it That God’s ways will become Joshua’s ways God’s enemy will become Joshua’s enemy. Isaiah says in Isaiah chapter 55 and in verse eight and speaking for the Lord for my thoughts are not your thoughts.

Neither are my ways, your ways say The Lord. Sometimes we have the idea And I use the editorial. We not necessarily every single one of us, but sometimes mankind has the idea. That’d be better way to express it. That whatever Man thinks is right then that’s what God thinks is right. They’ve got the wrong person in the driver’s seat. Just like the Bumper sticker stickers you used to see.

I don’t see them much anymore. God is my co-pilot think about that. If God is your copilot, then who’s the pilot. I’m the pilot. I’m the one in charge he’s in. No, that’s the wrong place. Okay. Just as God says, in Amos three and in verse three can two men walk together except they be agreed. The point he is making with the prophet Is that there is Only agreement when we are walking with God in the way,

the direction that he Walks, he is the one Who decides the direction that we are to go. He is the one who decides those things, which are right and acceptable. And those things that are not right and acceptable. The question is, are we going to walk With him or are we going to choose to go our own way? Joshua Was one who was to keep the law in his mouth and to meditate upon it day and night Fifthly.

Okay. Joshua is to realize God’s authority. He is to realize God’s authority. Verse nine, have not. I commanded thee, be strong and have a good courage. Be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed for the Lord. God, he is with the wither. So that will go. It is God’s authority. And therefore the recognition of Our authority for what we say and what we do is God himself.

We are to recognize him as being the authority and thereby to motivate us to do the work with confidence that we are doing that, which is right. And that which is acceptable with God. The apostle Paul makes the same point in Colossians chapter three. And in verse 17, when he says, and whatsoever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord,

Jesus giving, thanks to God in the father, by him. We use this verse often to make this very point. We have to have authority from God to do the things that we do. If we’re going to be acceptable With him, we have to have Of thus sayeth the Lord. We have to have scripture in order to show that these are the things that we are to do.

You go back to the book of Matthew, Matthew, chapter 18, and in verse 18, Jesus is barely I say unto you whatsoever. Ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven. And whatsoever you shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. There’s that illustration the thing is that Jesus, his point that he is making here and speaking to the apostles is not that whatever you say to do is such that God’s going to bind that upon everybody else or whatever you say,

you don’t have to do. God’s going to bind that upon everybody else. No, that’s not it at all. Jesus is actually saying here, according to the way, the original languages brought out that whatever you say to do to bind on others has already been bound in heaven. That’s the reason you’re able to say that whatever you lose and tell people they’re not bound to do is,

has already been loosed in. Yeah, but that’s why you’re able to say that. Of course we’re not inspired as the apostles were in the first century. And those who had received a miraculous gifts of various means, and yet by reading those scriptures and rightly dividing those scriptures, we can know what those things are that are to be bound in those things that are to be loosed.

Some examples When Parents bring their children up in the nurture and the administrative award, they’re exercising, the authority that God has given to them and doing it in order to accomplish that, which God wants them to accomplish with their Children. They’re doing Exactly what Paul tells them to do. And Ephesians chapter six verses one through four children are w obey their parents.

And then in verse four are fathers provoke, not your children to wrath, but bring them up in the nurture and the admonition of the Lord. When parents are doing that, they’re doing exactly what God said they’re supposed to do when elders rule well and take care of the flock, exercising the authority necessary To Do that, to bring about that effect. They’re doing that,

which is right. As far as God is concerned, the very thing that God says, elders are supposed to do first Timothy chapter three, verses four and five. And that Peter talks about being an elder as well as an apostle first, Peter chapter five verses one through four, when the government rewards the good and punish the evil, they are exercising the authority that God has given to them in order to do that,

to bring about the desired result. And it is right for them to do that. That’s what Paul brings out in Romans chapter 13 verses one through seven acids that we heard often referred to and, and read two weeks ago, when we were down at the Florida school of preaching lectureship concerning, do you understand the Christian’s responsibility to the civil state? That passage was looked at several different times.

So it is that Joshua must realize God’s authority. Finally, Joshua is not to be afraid or dismayed. He is told there in verse nine, the Lord’s authority should produce great courage in Joshua, as well as in the children of Israel Thrill Because of the fact that God is the one who has sent them out and has given them their marching orders, Joshua would have God’s consent.

He would have God’s constant attention. He would have God’s constant assistance, as long as he is abiding by what the word of God teaches what God has given to him. And So Paul, in Romans chapter eight and in verse 31 shell, what shall we then say to these things? If God, before us, who can be against us? What Great statement that is that Paul by inspiration makes if God is on our side and actually it’s,

if we’re on God’s side, then who can defeat us. The answer is no one can defeat us. We can, and we will be victorious as long as we are on God’s side. And when you go through the book of Joshua, one of the things that you certainly notice is that over and over again, in all these different battles that are spoken of that the children of Israel fight in order to take the promised land.

It is only at the battle of AI where they lose a single life In battle. Now they’re going to end up losing 32 lives there in that particular battle. And when they lose 32 lives, they are so distraught. They, they, they have no understanding as to how this could happen in any battle, up until this point and any battle in the book of Joshua.

After this point, they do not lose a single life and they are always victorious. Many times you read concerning the number of the enemy that’s defeated, but you don’t read them. Any of the children of Israel die. And sometimes God will even say, you just wait, you hold back and I’m going to put things in motion. And then you come up and do the sweep up after it’s over.

He even did that with David. He’ll tell David on one occasion where again, in going against the Philistines, the first time he goes against the Philistines, David says, should I go up against the Philistines? God said, yes, go up. And David does defeats them. Well, the Philistines decided they’re going to try again. And so David says,

should I go up against the Philistines? God says, no. In fact, what I want you to do is I want you to go to behind them. And you come as far as the Mulberry trees, and then you wait. And when you hear the sound in the top of the Mulberry trees, and the indication is that they would hear the sound of marching feet.

God says, at that point in time, then you come against the Philistines. The marching feet was the sound that God was giving. That he was the one who was doing the fighting against the Philistines. David and his army was just doing the sweep up afterwards. Well, Joshua ends up having to do many of the same kinds of things. Joshua is being told here.

And, and in other places, in the book of Joshua that the soldiers are to be brave. God had already told Moses that the children of Israel were not going to be victorious because they were going to outnumber the enemy. He says, in fact, you’re going to be very small compared to the, that you will be victorious because I will be with you.

As long as you remain faithful and soul there to fight the good fight they are. The war. The good warfare, just as Timothy says that he did are Paul, rather than writing. Timothy says that he did first Timothy chapter six and in verse 12. And then when you turn to first Timothy chapter one, and in verse 18, there, Paul says charge.

I committed under the son, Timothy, according to the prophecies, which went before on thee, that thou by them mightest war. A good warfare. Paul is calling upon Timothy to war a good warfare. When you get to the end of First Timothy there in chapter six, and in verse 12, he tells Timothy to fight the good fight lay hold on eternal life,

where in two thou art also called and has professed a good profession before many witnesses. And by the time you get to the end of second, Timothy, Paul says, I fought a good fight. I finished my course I’ve kept the faith henceforth. There is laid up for me, a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge. So give me it that day and not to me only,

but under all them also that love his appearing. Second Timothy four verses seven and eight Joshua. He was under obligation to be a man of God’s book. He was under obligation to know what the law taught, what the law said and to abide by. And he had to be informed concerning God’s will and be a practitioner of it. And so when you look at God’s opening statements in the book of Joshua to Joshua,

you see that he had to be strong and of good courage. You street see that he had to be completely obedient to God. If he’s going to be victorious, that he had to not deviate to the right hand nor to the left. As far as God’s word was concerned that he had to keep the law in his mouth and meditate on it day and night,

that he was to realize God’s authority, that he was to not be afraid or dismayed. And if Joshua would do those things and he did, all you have to do is go to the end of the book, chapter 24 and see how that Joshua was righteous. Joshua did, as God had instructed him to do, then we can see how that if we are willing to live the same way,

then we can have the same description of us that Joshua had of him. If you’re one who’s outside the body of Christ this evening, the emphasis is, and always has been, that we need to do with the Bible, says, do, and to do it in the way the Bible says, do it in order to become a Christian, you have to do it the way God said,

do it, or it’s not going to be done. Therefore you have to hear the word of God and believe it. You have to be willing to repent and to confess your faith Christ. And you have to be willing to be immersed in water in order to have your sins washed away, thereby you will be added to The church. If you’re needing to do that,

we’ve plead with you to do that before it is eternally too late. If you’re already a member of the body of Christ, but you’ve gone back into the world, will you come back and repentance, praying to God for forgiveness and begin again, walking in the way of righteousness, Joshua was instructed to be strong and of good courage. He was instructed to follow God’s word and to follow it explicit And exactly.

Okay. And Joshua encouraged the children of Israel to do the same thing. Will you do that In returning to the Lord and becoming faithful to him? Okay. If we can help you, will you come as together? We stand and as we sing.