John 8

 “The Slavery of Sin”

Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say unto you, everyone who commits sin, is the slave of it.” (v.34)

When we repeatedly give in to a particular sin, we become a slave to it. Slowly it begins to take over lives until most people feel powerless to break free from their habit. Guilt and shame begin to mount while ones self identify and confidence begins to fade.

Once we start down the wrong path, turning back is difficult. Some of the most dangerous practices bring only temporary pleasure but a lifetime of pain and misery. Those who are willing to endure the pain for the temporary pleasure are addicted, hooked, enslaved.

Freedom however, is found in becoming a slave of Jesus Christ. When we are in the grip of any evil practice that is ruining our life, we can simply acknowledge our sin and helplessness to the LORD, submit fully to Him, and be assured that He will forgive and deliver us.

The pleasures of sin are for a season, but its wages are for eternity.

The Truth: “Don't you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living.” (Romans 6:16)

Joshua 24

“Joshua’s Legacy”

“Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua, who had known all the works of the Lord which He had done for Israel.” (v.31)

Not many leaders in all of history could lay claim to what is said of Joshua in verse 31. His nation served the Lord until the day he died, and even after that throughout the lives of the other leaders who served under him.

Joshua died at the age of 110, and what an eventful 110-year period it was. When Joshua was born, Israel was under captivity in Egypt. When he died, they were enjoying the peace and riches of the Promised Land. He held the distinct honor of being buried in the same land as Joseph, of whom Joshua was a direct descendant. And the book of Joshua concludes with the burial of Eleazar, the High Priest. So in the land of the sons of Joseph were buried a general, a priest, and a forefather of the nation. We get the sense that an era of faithfulness is drawing to a close in Israel. The years that followed would be marked by a cycle of disobedience, judgment, and redemption, which makes Joshua's consistent leadership and Israel's faithfulness under him all the more remarkable.

God called Joshua to lead His people, which involved being strong, courageous, and obedient. Courage, strength, and submission don't often materialize in one man, but when they do, it makes for a powerful combination.

If you're looking for that secret ingredient that made Joshua a great leader, don't look at Joshua. Look to God. His power, His Word, and His faithfulness are all available to you. Then you have to look at yourself. If making money, having fun, and being popular are among your top goals, you can never be the leader Joshua was. But if serving the Lord is your definition of success, God will give you the strength and courage to fulfill your purpose.

The Truth

“O God, You are more awesome than Your holy places. The God of Israel is He who gives strength and power to His people. Blessed be God!” (Psalm 68:35)

Joshua 23

“Joshua’s Warning”

“Be very careful, therefore, to love the LORD your God. For if you turn back and cling to the remnant of these nations remaining among you and make marriages with them, so that you associate with them and they with you, know for certain that the LORD your God will no longer drive out these nations before you, but they shall be a snare and a trap for you, a whip on your sides and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from off this good ground that the LORD your God has given you.” (v.11-13)

Here in chapter 23, Joshua is calling together the leaders of the nation to pass on some advice for those in authority before he dies, just as Moses did before him. In our text he warns against the consequences of complacency; loss of position, power, peace.

Loss of position by mingling with other nations in marriage, causing the

nation of Israel will lose it's identity, customs and distinctive character of

being God's chosen people. They would also have an ineffective testimony

among the people and lose all credibility. Oh, how many have lost their

testimony among the lost world by compromise? Even among their family?

The loss of power, if they neglected the warnings given by Joshua, was a

certainty. God would no longer fight for them as He had done in the past.

He would remove His blessing of might and power and would no longer

work in and through them. One could no longer stand against a thousand.

The loss of peace would occur by finding themselves once again in bondage, just like in Egypt. Sin would be their master and they would become ensnared and trapped by it.

Joshua could see the possibility of trouble ahead. He knew what complacency could do to the nation from within. His warnings are just as important today as they were then and we need to pay attention to them.

It is easy for us to forget the Lord and what He has done for us. It is so easy for us to get caught up in what's going on in the world around us that we forget there is a world to come.

There is so much to lose. Let’s take to heart the warning of Joshua, “Take good heed therefore to yourselves, that you love the LORD your God.” (v.11)

The Truth

“The Lord preserves all who love Him, But all the wicked He will destroy.” (Psalm 145:20)

Joshua 22

“The Offensive Alter”

“When they came to the region of the Jordan which is in the land of Canaan, the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh built an altar there by the Jordan, a large altar in appearance.” (v.10)

I can remember my grandfather saying to me on more than one occasion, “Boy, you better look before you leap” or “You can’t judge a book by its cover.” He was trying to give me good advise about first impressions. Jumping to wrong conclusions can have very serious consequences. Here in Joshua 22:10-34, we read of a flawed first impression which almost led to an internal conflict between the tribes of Israel.  

The tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Manasseh had built an altar near the Jordan. When the other tribes learned about this, they were enraged (v.9-12) because God had commanded that He alone be worshiped and that sacrifices be performed only in the tabernacle ( Ex.20:3; Lev.17:8-9). They saw the building of this altar as an act of apostasy.

Fortunately, Phinehas the priest led a delegation to find out why they had built the altar (vv.13-33). Crisis averted because Phinehas was willing to confront them in love.

Often our first impressions can be wrong. Open communication, however, can correct misunderstandings that are created by our own pride and prejudice. Grandpa was right again. It’s always better to look before you leap.

The Truth

“Test all things; hold fast what is good.” (1 Thessalonians 5:21)

Joshua 21

“The God of His Word”

“Not a single one of all the good promises the Lord had given to the family of Israel was left unfulfilled; everything He had spoken came true.” (NLT)

Not only did God fulfill His promises to the nation of Israel but He also kept His promises to Joshua personally. Back in chapter 1 the LORD said to Joshua, “There shall not any man be able to stand before you all the days of your life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with you: I will not fail you, nor forsake you.”  Joshua went forward believing in God’s Word, to eventually claim all that He had promised to fulfill.

We too are given this same promise. We too can move forward in our lives, 2 believing in His Word and claim all that God has for us. However, just like Joshua, we must not falter, give up, or lose hope – but fully trust in God and His Word.

The Truth

“For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.” (2 Corinthians 1:20)

Joshua 20

“Refuge of Grace”

“These were the appointed cities for all the sons of Israel and for the stranger who sojourns among them, that whoever kills any person unintentionally may flee there, and not die by the hand of the avenger of blood until he stands before the congregation.” (v.9)

The cities of refuge (listed in ch.20) were not for Hebrews only, but for whosoever had killed any person without malice or forethought, but quite unintentionally. If some poor Gentile, sojourning among the chosen people, suddenly found himself liable to the pursuit of an avenger of blood - the gates of the refuge city were open to him. And the elders of the city were bound to give him a place that he might dwell safely and rest in peace (v.4) until justice was served (v.6).

If the accused was convicted of murder, a relative of the victim was permitted to avenge the murder by taking the life of the guilty person (v. 19). Even if he was deemed innocent of malicious, intentional murder, causing a death was still a serious offense, and the offender couldn't leave the city of refuge until the death of the high priest without fearing for his life (vv. 26-28).

We may wonder at this, but God wanted to stress that all life is valuable, and there is punishment for murder and consequences even for accidents. Yet God still demonstrated His mercy by instituting protections in the legal system and by providing cities of refuge.

God places tremendous value on human life. He would do anything to save a life, but He can't ignore justice to do it.

The Truth

“Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war.” (Revelation 19:11)