“The Lord is With You”
Joshua 3:7-17
Moses has died. He is not there to lead the people into the
land that God has promised to give them.
Moses was the leader who suffered through the wilderness doubts and
grumblings of the people, always turning them toward the will of the Lord, the
commandments of the Lord, the way of the Lord.
He kept them on the paths that the Lord had laid out for them. Moses goaded them, prodded them, and inspired
them. And now Moses was gone.
The promises of the Lord are
never dependent upon the work of one human being. Moses has died. The Lord calls out Joshua – who had been one
of Moses’ assistants – and instructs him to lead the people to the next part of
their journey. He said to Joshua: “As I
was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake
you. Be strong and courageous; for you shall put this people in possession
of the land that I swore to their ancestors to give them. Only be strong and
very courageous, being careful to act in accordance with all the law that my
servant Moses commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the
left, so that you may be successful wherever you go. [Joshua 1:5b-7]”
He tells Joshua to always
keep in front of the people the “book of the law” of the Lord. He advises Joshua – and through Joshua the
whole of the people – to contemplate on the words that Moses passed on to them:
“you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be
careful to act in accordance with all that is written in it. For then you shall
make your way prosperous, and then you shall be successful. [Joshua 1:8]”
So Joshua leads the people to the banks of the Jordan. The Lord promised Joshua that he would show
the people that Joshua was the chosen one of the Lord. We are told that the river was overflowing
its banks, and the Lord caused the river to cease flowing. Just as the beginning of the Exodus story tells
of the parting of the Red Sea so now the waters of the overflowing Jordan stopped
and parted and the people were able to cross over into the promised land
safely.
Reading the story of Joshua and the movement of the people into
the next chapter of their relationship with the Lord, I could only think of
this congregation. The promises of the
Lord are for all who keep his commands.
The presence of the Lord among you is not dependent on the life or work
of one person. It’s dependent on your
desire – as a congregation – to live as God has instructed you and tell those
around you of the Lord of all the earth.
But we become anxious. We become scared. We’re not sure that God is still with us. We
begin to look around us for something to give us strength. We think that maybe the world has something
that will bring us reassurance. If only
we had more money. If only we had more
people. If only we had a more functional
building. If only we could use the
marketing tricks of the automobile dealers. If only. If only ....
Over the wanderings of 40 years the Lord had certainly heard the
people complain to Moses often enough about “If only....” The Lord had brought them safely from
slavery. The Lord gave them rules for
safe and happy lives that would set them apart from every other nation. The Lord had fed them and gave them
water. The Lord kept them safe. The Lord reminded them of the Lord’s ancient promise
about a land that would be theirs’. Time
and again they came to Moses saying “If only....”
The Lord knows that they – that we – would waver in our
faith. Knowing that, the Lord tells
Joshua that to relieve doubts, to instill confidence and courage in the people
they should meditate on the words of the Lord, the words given to Moses, day
and night. They would find all that they
needed in the words of the Lord.
Those of you who know me know that I am passionate about
lifelong reading, learning and conversation about the Scriptures. As the congregation searches for a new
pastor, a new shepherd, remember that’s God’s joyful presence among you is
dependent upon YOU, not on a new pastor.
We have been given so much more than the experience of the Israelites
and the words of Moses: we have been
given the life and triumph of Jesus, recorded in the Scriptures and attested to
by the writings of our Bible.
Let me be clear. Jesus
told us that all that we need is in the words of Moses, but in the Lord’s
patience and loving understanding of our own weaknesses we have been given an
even clearer picture of what it means to follow the will of the Lord. Just as the entrance into Canaan was the
completion of one more piece of the Lord’s promises to us all, so the life and
triumph of Jesus was the completion of yet another of those promises: we have seen the Messiah; we have seen a God
whose love is defined by a willingness to suffer and die for the sake of that
love. We have seen a sacrifice that for
our sakes has defeated death itself so that we might live now – today – as the
true children of God.
Scary? Anxiety
provoking? Absolutely! Which is why God recommended to us that we
study the scriptures “day and night.”
The promises, the history of God’s relationship with us, the key to
understanding what God wants us to do today and tomorrow is there, in the words
of Scripture.
I know that a great many of you are worried about the future of
Christ United Presbyterian Church. Don’t
be. If you must worry then worry about
the proclamation of the Gospel and the reality of God’s reign in this
community. Worry about how this congregation can contribute to it, can live in
it.
Soon you will have a new pastor.
No matter how gifted that person may be in preaching, teaching,
counseling, or even marketing, that person alone will never insure the presence
of the Lord here among you. The presence
of the Lord here among you is wholly dependent upon you and your desire to know
and follow God’s will.
There’s an extraordinary statement in the opening chapter of
Joshua. The Lord says: “I hereby command
you: Be strong and courageous.... [Joshua 1:9]”
How many military leaders would wish that their troops would find
strength and courage by the issuing of a command?
The rest of that verse has the answer: “Do not be frightened or dismayed, for
the Lord your God is with you
wherever you go. [Joshua 1:9]” The Lord
is with you.
The Lord tells us that when we follow the will of the Lord, the
Lord is with us. The Lord tells us that
if we have doubts or waver in our resolve, we should study the word of the Lord
and we shall find our answers and our courage.
And the Lord promises that when we live our lives studying scripture and
following the will of the Lord, we shall succeed in our purpose, our mission
and our ministry.
As
you consider the months and years ahead and the ministry of Christ United
Presbyterian Church remember the promise of the Lord: “I hereby command you: Be strong and
courageous; do not be frightened or dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you
go. [Joshua 1:9]”
Indeed,
the Lord your God is with you.
Amen.
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