Joshua 23 -- Words of Warning Important To Us Today

Joshua himself admits that he is very old.  It's time for him to give the leaders of Israel a reminder before he dies, and then to speak to all the people.  "While Israel had gained control of Canaan, there still remained territory to possess and pockets of resistance to overcome.  The task of the tribes wasn't finished," my commentary said.  "The great danger was that the people of Israel would gradually change their attitudes toward the pagan nations around them and start accepting their ways and imitating them."

They needed motivation for remaining  a separated people, my commentary added, and Joshua laid it out.  "Those Gentile nations were God's enemies, and therefore must be Israel's enemies."

Obedience to God's commands and devotion to His Word were the secrets to Joshua's success ... They enabled him "to get to know God better, to love Him, and to want to please Him ... It isn't enough to know the Word of God.  We must also know the God of the Word and grow in our fellowship with Him ... The most important thing was that Israel remain a separated people and not be INFECTED BY the wickedness of the Gentile nations around them."  I think that is still the biggest stumbling block for Christians today.  We often call that missionary dating.  We seek to become friends with those who are not Christians and instead of them being drawn to God, we find ourselves compromising to get along with them.  "Joshua warned them that their disobedience would be a gradual thing.  First, they would associate with these nations in a familiar way; then they would start discussing their religious practices; and before long Israel would be worshiping the false gods of the enemy.  The Jewish men would then start marrying women from the pagan nations, and the line of separation between God's people and the world would be completely erased."

For us today, "it takes courage to defy the crowd and stay true to the Lord.  But it also takes love for the Lord and a desire to PLEASE Him."

He reminded them that God promise both blessing and chastenings, depending on their obedience.  "Both are evidences of his Love, for 'whom the Lord loves, He chastens' ... God will not allow His children to sin successfully."

"Joshua's argument is obvious:  Since God has given us such a good land, the least we can do is live to please Him."  And it's the same with us today!

"James connects the goodness of God with our resisting of temptations.  In Luke 15:17 it was not his own badness but his father's goodness that brought the prodigal son to repentance and then back home.  'The goodness of God leads you to repentance.' (Romans 2:4)  The danger is that the material blessings from the Lord can so possess our hearts that we focus on the gifts and forget the Giver, and this leads to sin."

Summing up, it said we need to keep God's Word, cleave to the Lord, and love the Lord.  "Too many Christians have not only compromised with the enemy, but also have capitulated to the enemy and the Lord is not first in their lives."

Father, help me to continue growing in fellowship with You, getting to know you, loving You and not the gifts You've given me.  Keep my separation from the world intact and help me to meditate on Your Word instead of listening to the world.

Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford