This week we introduce our new series on the book of Joshua!
Promises, combat, and order and how they reveal Christ.
Strong & Courageous
The only reason that the Christian church holds onto the Older Testament and declares that it is the story of God is because of Jesus.
Strong & Courageous
Where God is calling us—what he is calling us to—is not an easy path.
Though the path may be hard, God.
Three Ways
- Trust God, He’s leading
I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. ~ John 14:6
The promises of God, the hope of true life requires us to trust in Jesus, for he is the one who leads us to it.
The Lord is my Shepherd…even though I walk through the valley of death, I will fear no evil… his rod and staff are with me. ~ Psalm 23
We can be strong and courageous because God is leading us
- Obey His Word
For the Israelite people, this meant the Torah. They followed the written word, and it was their guiding force. Is this what God wants us to do?
Understand, then, that those who have faith are children of Abraham. ~ Galatians 3:7
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ~ John 1:1
Harassed by life, exhausted, we look about us for somewhere to be quiet, to be genuine, a place of refreshment. We yearn to restore our spirits in God, to simply let go in him and gain new strength to go on living. But we fail to look for him where he is waiting for us, where he is to be found: in his Son, who is his Word. Or else we seek for God because there are a thousand things we want to ask him, and imagine that we cannot go on living unless they are answered. We inundate him with problems, with demands for information, for clues, for an easier path, forgetting that in his Word he has given us the solution to every problem and all the details we are capable of grasping in this life. We fail to listen where God speaks: where God’s Word rang out in the world once for all, sufficient for all ages, inexhaustible. Or else we think that God’s Word has been heard on earth for so long that by now it is almost used up, that it is about time for some new word, as if we had the right to demand one. We fail to see that it is we ourselves who are used up and alienated, whereas the Word resounds with the same vitality and freshness as ever; it is just as near to us as it always was. ~ Hans Ur von Balthasar
As we obey the word, Jesus, we will find strength and courage.
- God is with you
The word “with” denotes relationship.
All this took place to fulfill what the Lord has said through the prophet: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”). ~ Matthew 1:22-3
And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The World cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor know him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. ~ John 14:16-17
We can be strong and courageous because the Holy Spirit, God’s Spirit is in us.
Application
- Trust that God is leading
- Obey His word
- Invite God’s Spirit into your life
next week – Joshua 4:5-7
Anchor Group Questions
Hangout Warming up to the topic
- As we begin to discuss the book of Joshua, what are some questions you have about it?
Hear Listen to God through Scripture
- Read Joshua 1:6
- What does/would it look like for you to trust that God is leading you?
- How would it make you strong and courageous?
- Read Joshua 1:7-8
- What does it mean to you to obey God’s Word?
- In what ways can you find strength and courage in obeying God’s word?
- Read Joshua 1:9 & John 14:16-17
- What do you think/feel when you read these passages?
- In what ways does it change your life to know that God is in you?
Huddle Make it personal and pray together
- What has God been saying to you through this week’s teaching? Talk about the next steps in your life and pray for each other.
- How can we be a safe place for others—a place to be known and loved?
