Be Strong and Courageous

In Joshua 1:6 - God commands Joshua to "Be Strong and Courageous" - in verse 7, God commands him "Be Strong and Very Courageous".  Why did God give this command to Joshua?

At first glance it seems like Joshua has very little to worry about - very little need to "Be Strong and Courageous" - in verses 3-5 God had just finished promising Joshua that nobody would be able to stand against Him.  He promised Joshua that He would never leave him or abandon Him.  But upon further examination - what God did not promise is that it would be easy - He did not promise that people would not try to stand against him - but He did promise Joshua that he would be successful.

God has made these same promises to us.

Romans 8:31 (NLT)

Nothing Can Separate Us from God’s Love

31 What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us?  

Hebrews 13:5–6 (NLT)

5 Don’t love money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said,

“I will never fail you.

I will never abandon you.”

6 So we can say with confidence,

“The Lord is my helper,

so I will have no fear.

What can mere people do to me?”  

God has not promised us that it would be easy to follow him but He has promised us that we will be victorious if we do the same thing that He also commanded of Joshua.  Along with God's promise that none would stand against Him and His command for Joshua to be Strong and Very Courageous - God also issues a warning:

Joshua 1:7–8 (NIV) 

7 Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. 8 Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.

Too many people forget the part about being obedient.  They want to believe that just because they are Christ followers - everything is going to be handed over to them - but God has said that we will only be prosperous and successful if we obey His word and follow his commands - all of them not just the easy ones.


Unfortunately for the Israelites - when it came time to take the land that God had promised them, many of the tribes gave up and settled for less than God had intended because they found out it was too hard.  As a result they never enjoyed the full extent of God's blessing and faced many hardships down the road.


Never give up - never settle for less than God's best - it won't be easy - but it's worth it.

Religious Arrogance

How do we stand firm in the conviction and biblical teaching that Jesus is the only way to God without coming across as being arrogant in our beliefs?

I want our church to be a place where people who are searching for truth, purpose, meaning, help, etc. can come and find the answers that they are looking for.  I desire this because I know that in reality, what they are looking for is God - a savior who offers them forgiveness and a fresh start.

Unfortunately, if people perceive Christians as being arrogant and intolerant they won't even bother looking there for their answers.  That's why I think it is important to guard against presenting ourselves as "I know Jesus therefore I'm always right - you are always wrong".

I constantly find myself struggling with questions - especially questions about the nature of God.  I don't claim to know all of the inner workings of the Trinity for instance.  I don't have all of the answers regarding the end times.  I don't know for sure what happens when a person who has never been exposed to the truth of Jesus Christ dies without ever knowing that God loves us enough to send His son to die for our sins.  And the list goes on and on and I am constantly reminded that I don't have all of the answers to the tough questions.  But I do know a few things.

I know that God is God and I am not.  I know that by nature I am a sinful being.  I know that God is not.  I know that He is Just.  I know that He is a loving God.  I know that there is nothing that I could ever do to make myself right with God (in fact to me the very idea that I could make myself right with God through my actions is the epitome of arrogance).  I know that He sent His only son - Jesus Christ to die on a cross and pay the punishment for my sins.  I know that if I live my life according to the principle's taught in the Bible my life as well as those around me will benefit.

I may not have all of the answers - but God does and I trust Him.