July 10, 2010

July 10, 2010 Joshua 12,13

“Now Joshua was old, advanced in years. And the Lord said to him: “You are old, advanced in years, and there remains very much land yet to be possessed.” How old was he? Well, let’s see. He was 110 years old when he died (Joshua 24:29). We are not too sure how old he was when he left Egypt. We normally associate him with Caleb because they spied out the land together. Caleb was forty when they left Egypt, and from Caleb’s conversation, we can assume that the conquest lasted five years (Joshua 14:7-12). I wouldn’t think that Joshua was any younger than Caleb. Indeed, I think he was older. So Joshua is at least 85 at this point. I suspect that he is much closer to 110. Joshua has much to reflect upon the glory of the Lord during those years.

He was with Moses when they left Egypt. The first mention of him is in Exodus 17 when Moses makes him general of the army when they fight that famous battle against Amalek. He saw the glory of the Lord in the midst of the battle. It was clear that when Moses raised his hands, they won. When Moses lowered his hands, they lost. Joshua knew that it was the glory of the Lord that produced his victory.

Joshua went with Moses when he went up on the mountain of God to receive the law (Exodus 24:13-18). He was nearby when the fiery finger of God inscribed the law upon the stone tablets. He alone dwelt next to the cloud on the mountain and experienced the thunders and lightings of the presence of the glory of the Almighty God as Moses entered the cloud for forty days and forty nights. As they returned, it was Joshua who remarked that there was a sound of war in the camp (Exodus 32:17). He was unaware of the apostasy that occurred in the valley below. While it was Moses with whom God spoke face to face as with a friend, it was Joshua who refused to leave the tabernacle where the glory of God dwelt (Exodus 33:11).

It was Joshua that was jealous for the glory of Moses when men were prophesying in the camp. But Moses corrected his thought relating to the glory of the Lord, saying, “I wish the Lord would give his Spirit to all his people so everyone could be a prophet (Numbers 13:29).” It was Joshua who was selected among his tribe to be one of the twelve spies sent into the land. Only he and Caleb brought a positive report because they knew the glory of the Lord. When they rebuked the people, they took up stones to kill him. It was then that the glory of the Lord appeared and prevented any harm to him (Numbers 14:6-10).

It was Joshua who led them across the Jordan. It was Joshua who met the commander of the Lord’s army. It was Joshua who led them in the renewal of the covenant signs. It was Joshua who led them around Jericho. It was Joshua who led them against Ai. It was Joshua who stumbled in making the treaty with Gibeon. It was Joshua who had seen the mighty victories against the Canaanite kings. What a legacy! My how he had seen the glory of the Lord! When you and I die, will we with Joshua be able to say, “I have seen the glory of the Lord in my life, and this how I have seen it. . . !" God forgive me for being satisfied with lesser things. Let me thirst and crave nothing less than the glory of God. Let not my life be mediocre! Let it only be saturated and dripping with the glory of God. May people see not me but the glory of God! Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!

--Pastor john

Acts 16:22-40

Have you ever been a prisoner? We all have been at one time or another. Maybe not in a conventional prison. But, we have been prisoners trapped in the confines or consequences or our own sin. Jesus is the ultimate liberator because He makes us free from the very bars that we have built.

Paul and Silas were in prison. It was a literal prison. They were there unjustly. They could have been bitter. They could have allowed emotional walls to go up that would have enslaved them against the jailer and the people of Philippi. But they knew too much about the glory of their king. Indeed, Paul had been left for dead and Jesus raised him up. Paul had encouraged others that through much tribulation we must enter the kingdom of God. They knew that in every town that they entered, tribulation and maybe death awaited them there. Why did they still go? Because they knew that in every town they entered, the glory of their king needed to be revealed.

They had received many stripes and were placed in the securest cell with their feet in stocks. But they chose to focus on the glory of their king. That focus on the glory made all the difference in the world. You know, whenever I focus on the glory of my King, I cannot help but sing. So too, they could not help but sing. Picture this: Many stripes--that means that their back was beaten until the skin broke in multiple places. You know they had to be experiencing physical pain. They were In a prison with no knowledge of if or when release would come. You know they had to be experiencing emotional pain. Feet in stocks. If your back is bruised and bloodied and your feet are stationary in stocks, how can you possibly lie down? It is midnight. I am sure they have been in the stocks for some hours now. Now they begin singing. Why? Because of the glory of their King. It has nothing to do with their remarkable character, which they had. It has all to do with their remarkable King. Choosing to focus on Him made all the difference in the world. They could have been prisoners in a second cell, an emotional one. But they chose to focus on the glory. A Roman family embraced that glory because Paul and Silas made the choice to focus upon it. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!

--Pastor John