Joshua 1:1-18
For Israel, it was a new beginning. They were leaving the wilderness. That was their past. They were entering the promised land. This was God’s future. For God’s future, there is God’s command - ‘Be strong’- and God’s promise - ‘the Lord your God is with you’. We wonder what the future holds. We wonder how it will all work out. God says, ‘Don’t be frightened. I will be with you wherever you go’(9). How can we face the future with confidence? How can we ‘be strong in the Lord’(Ephesians 6:10)? How can we be sure that the Lord will never let us down (2 Corinthians 3:5)? How can we step out into a future full of His blessing? ‘Meditate on His Word day and night’. Read your Bible - ‘This Book will keep you from sin or sin will keep you from this Book’: Which will it be? (8; Psalm 1:1-3).
Joshua 2:1-24
The story of Rahab is summarized in Hebrews 11:31 - ‘By faith... she gave a friendly welcome to the spies’. A friendly welcome - What an important thing this is! She spoke the word of encouragement - ‘I know the Lord has given you this land’(9). This message of faith was taken back to Joshua (24). It was exactly what he needed! Few of us are ‘big name’ spiritual leaders like Joshua. All of us have an important part to play in the Lord’s work. For every ‘Joshua’ we need plenty of ‘Rahabs’, giving the friendly welcome, speaking the word of encouragement. Let there be no more unhelpful, negative criticism - ‘We cannot do this. We dare not do that. We must not do the other’. Let there be the friendly welcome, the word of encouragement. It will make such a difference - for the better!
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Blessings in Christ
Christ in all the Scriptures
http://christinallthescriptures.blogspot.com
