We are taking up our study on the book of Joshua. Now, before I move on to the theme of my lesson this morning, I just want to say that the Christian's lifelong pursuit is to know God as He is revealed in scriptures. and not knowing him only, but to obey his commands. That is most evident anywhere in scriptures. And in Jesus, when he was praying at the Garden of Gethsemane, he said in John 17, verse 3, And this is eternal life, that they, that is, Christians, may know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. And Paul, in Romans 11, verse 33, says, O the depth of the riches, both of the wisdom and knowledge of God, how unsearchable are his judgments and his ways past finding out. So I'll start with those two verses as somewhat of a theme, and that is that as we go through the book of Joshua, we'll know God better, and not to know him better, but to obey him. And the book of Joshua reveals much of God's character as he dealt with Joshua, the Israelites and the Canaanites. These three in God are the main players, really, of the book of Joshua. But for this morning we will focus our short study on the book of Joshua on Joshua. Not the man Joshua, but rather Yeshua, that is, the Lord who is our salvation. So this will be my theme as we go through this morning, is that we will learn more about the character of God as found in the book of Joshua. Now just as a background before we get into the book of Joshua, or where the time frame and the events that led to where Joshua was written, go back to Numbers 13. Moses and the Israelites had been freed from Egypt two years or so prior. And they're now at the southern borders of Canaan. And Moses sends 12 spies, as you recall, into the land of Canaan. And of course, two of those spies were Joshua himself and Caleb. And these spies go back to Moses and they describe the bountifulness of the land, but yet 10 of the 12 did not want to go in there because they were afraid of the people in the fortresses that they saw there. And they started grumbling, and this is in Numbers 14, they started grumbling about the fact that God sends them all the way from Egypt where they had plenty of food and they were comfortable, even in their enslavement. And yet they were grumbling to God that He sent them to this place where they would be killed. And because of that disobedience, because they did not listen to the voice of God, God punished them and sent them back into the wilderness. And for 40 years they wandered off, just not too far from the area where they had been. And so, 40 years passes, and Moses and the remnants of the sons of Israel and Joshua and Caleb return back to the land of Canaan on the east side of the Jordan. And they are camped there for a month or so according to the numbers in Deuteronomy. That's where Moses writes Deuteronomy, the book of Deuteronomy, and provides detailed information and detailed instructions to the sons of Israel as they go into the promised land, into Canaan. So after, as they are awaiting to go into the land of Canaan, that's where Moses dies. And the leadership of the Israelites is passed on to Joshua. And in Joshua 1, verse 1, There is recorded the death of Moses and God appoints Joshua as the leader who will take them across the promised land. So let's begin our study of or just a general survey of the book of Joshua as we learn about the character of God. Let's start by reading Joshua 1 verses 1 through 9. And I think I'd like to have maybe one of the men to read this. Mr. Venso, would you like to read Joshua 1 verses 1 through 9? Moses, my servant, is dead. Now therefore arise and go over this Jordan, you and all its people, into the land that I am giving to them, to the people of Israel. Every place that the soul of your foot will tread upon I have given to you, just as I promised to Moses. From the wilderness of this leaven and as far as the great river, the river of Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, to the great sea, from going down to the sun, shall be your territory. No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you, nor forsake you. Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers and give to them. Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses, my servant, commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go. This Book of the Law shall not be apart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous, and not be frightened, and not be dismayed. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. Thank you. Now it's appropriate that we read first the first few verses of Joshua as God himself talking to Joshua. And in these short verses the glory and power of God is manifested in these verses and all throughout the book of Joshua. And as I said we will look at the characters of God in Joshua. And the first character that I would like to present to you is that God, the Lord of Joshua, keeps his promises. And what is that promise? To really understand what that promise is, we have to go back over 400 years when God promised to Abraham that he will establish his covenant between God and himself and he will provide that inheritance which is the land of Canaan. And in Genesis 17 verses 7 and 8 says, And I will establish my covenant between me and you, that is Abraham, and your descendants after you in their generation for an everlasting covenant to be God to you and your descendants after you. Also I give to you and your descendants after you the land in which you are a stranger, all the land of Canaan as an everlasting possession, and I will be their God. And God revisits this promise to Moses when Moses was standing before the burning bush. God tells Moses this in Exodus 3, verses 7 and 8. And the Lord said, I have surely seen the oppression of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters. For I know their sorrows, So I have come down to deliver them out of the land of the Egyptians and to bring them up from that land to a good and large land, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. So we see that God continues to foster that promise that he had made to Abraham. After even 400 years, he makes it again, pronounces it again to Moses. And finally, as Moses was about to die, he was on the east side of the Jordan. He was not allowed to enter the Promised Land because of a sin that had been committed prior. And in Deuteronomy 34, verses 1 through 4, records that Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo to the top of Pisgah, which is across from Jericho. And the Lord showed him all the land of Gilead as far as Dan, Naphtali, and the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the western sea, the south, and the plain of the valley of Jericho. the city of palm trees as far as Zohar. Then the Lord said to him, this is the land which I swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, saying, I will give it to your descendants. I have caused you to see it with your eyes, but you shall not cross over it." So this is the promise up to the very end before they enter the promised land. God reminds Moses, And I'm certain that not just Moses but to all the people that were with Moses including Joshua. And we see that Joshua takes over the Israelite leadership and he goes into Canaan into the promised land and there God proceeds to take over the lands that were inhabited by the Amorites and all the Jebusites and the Hittites. And in Joshua 21, which is near the very end of this book, in verses 43 to 45, after the conquest had been made, it says, So the Lord, this is Joshua 21, verses 43 and 45, So the Lord gave to Israel all the land of which he had sworn to give to their fathers. And they took possession of it and dwelt in it. The Lord gave them rest all around according to all that he had sworn to their fathers. And not a man of all their enemies stood against them. The Lord delivered all their enemies into their hand. Not a word failed of any good thing which the Lord had spoken to the house of Israel. all came to pass." So, we read that everything that God had promised to Abraham with regard to the land of Canaan all came through during the lifetime of Joshua. Now, Joshua himself, he had been a slave in Egypt. And he was freed from that slavery and became the servant of Moses during those 40 years of wandering in the wilderness. And he, along with Caleb, he knew of the promise and he was very blessed to have seen the promise fulfilled. when he and the rest of the remnants of that generation of Israelites entered Canaan. Now, as we apply this character of God to us, we have a better promise than Joshua ever had, really. And that promise is regard to eternal life. Now Jesus said in John 6 verses 40 and 47, And this is the will of him who sent me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have everlasting life. And I will raise him up on that last day. And most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in me has everlasting life. And in John 11 verse 25, Jesus says to Martha, after Lazarus had died, and he comforts her by saying, I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me, though he may die, shall live. He shall live. So God's promise, as he gave that promise to Joshua and the Israelites, was fulfilled. Okay, so as God had fulfilled the promises he made to the Israelites, as Christians, the promise that Jesus made to us with regard to eternal life will be fulfilled. While we may not yet see that or be there yet as Joshua was in the promised land, so God will fulfill that promise that he gave to those who will believe on his son Jesus Christ. In Hebrews 13, 5, we are familiar with this verse. It says, Let your conduct be without covetousness, be content with such things as you have. For he himself has said, I will never leave you nor forsake you. So I'd like to go to Hebrews 12, because there's also that promise made concerning eternal life. And I'd like to read 12, verse 3. I'll start with verse 1 of chapter 12. Therefore, we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight in the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, O, for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him who has endured such hostility from sinners against himself, lest ye become weary and discouraged in your souls. And ye have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin. And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons. My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord. I'll stop there. But we are reminded that the promise that God made is eternal and that will be accomplished. While we may go through difficulties in our lives, but yet we are assured that that eternal life awaits us. There's a, I'd like to quote Jeff from Jeffrey's book, Peter Jeffrey's book. And he says that the value of a promise is not lying in the thing promised, but in the one who makes it. The one who makes the promises of scripture is the eternal and everlasting God. So that is our assurance, brethren, that promises made by God, promises contained in the Scriptures, while the promises are of value and encouraging to us, but we have that assurance that the person who made the promises in these Scriptures is God Himself, and He will bring it to pass. I'd like to move on to the next character of God, as I found in my study of the book of Joshua. And that is that the Lord demands total and prompt obedience to his commands. And Peter Jeffrey says, as Christians we must appreciate that in the work of God there are no little commands or big commands. Every command of God is crucial to the ultimate outcome. And throughout the book of Joshua, God gave very specific instructions to Joshua and to the Israelites, and to do them precisely according to his word. And God wrote the book of Deuteronomy for that purpose, so that the Israelites will have basically a manual of life for them as they move into the land of Canaan. So God commands Joshua to do according to his word. And indeed, Joshua was blessed because God provided the books of Moses, the five books of those scriptures, to be used as they live in the land of Canaan. So indeed, Joshua was blessed. And we are blessed ourselves because we not just have the book of Moses that we can look upon, but we also have the entirety of Scripture as God has revealed it unto us. And there are many examples of this obedience that can be found in the book of Joshua. As we read earlier, Joshua 1, verses 7 and 9, God says, Only be strong and very courageous, that ye may observe to do according to all the law which Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go. This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. Have I not commanded you Be strong and of good courage, and do not be afraid nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." There's a good example of disobedience in the book of Joshua through the lives of the two tribes of Israel, that is the Reubenites and the Gadites, and also half the tribe of Joshua. Moses, or these particular tribes, had requested that they habitate the land east of the Jordan. And in Joshua 1, verses 12 and 18, here's what it says. And to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, Joshua spoke, saying, remember the word which Moses, the servant of the Lord, commanded. you saying, the Lord your God is giving you rest and is giving you this land. It is the land that's east of the Jordan. Your wives, your little ones and your livestock shall remain in the land which Moses gave you on this side of the Jordan. But you shall pass before your brethren armed, all your mighty men of valor and help them until the Lord has given your brethren rest as he gave you And they also have taken possession of the land which the Lord your God is giving them. Then you shall return to the land of your possession and enjoy it, which Moses the Lord's servant gave you on this side of the Jordan toward the sunrise. So they, that is the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, So they answered Joshua, saying, all that you command us, we will do. And wherever you send us, we will go. Just as we heeded Moses in all things, so we will heed you. Only the Lord your God would be with you as he was with Moses. Whoever rebels against your command and does not heed your words in all that you command him shall be put to death. And these are the Gadites, the Reubenites, who are saying this to Joshua now. Only be strong and of good courage. And these tribes, they entered into the land of Canaan with the rest of the tribe of Israel. And they fought alongside with them until everything was fulfilled. And then after the time of conquering had been completed, then God allowed these tribes to go to the land where they were designated to go. And indeed, that was a blessing that was given them because of their obedience to the word of God. And another example that is found in Joshua is when God gave very specific instructions as to how they will enter into Canaan. In Joshua 3, verses 7 and 8, it says, And the Lord said to Joshua, This day I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. You shall command the priests who bear the ark of the covenant, saying, When you have come to the edge of the water of the Jordan, you shall stand in the Jordan. So again, this is just about a brief verse of God's instructions to the Israelites as they crossed. But God expects complete obedience to his commands. And then another example of this obedience that we find in God's word in Joshua is the very familiar scene of the downfall of Jericho. Now, as you recall, God gave the Israelites very specific instruction on how they are to conquer Jericho. And they were not just to go out there in spears and invade and climb the ramparts of Jericho, but rather God gave them specific instruction to march around the city every day for six days, and then on the seventh day to march around it six or seven times around that city. And it's recorded in Joshua, verses 6 through 5, which says, See, I have given Jericho into your hand, its kings and the mighty men of valor. You shall march around the city, all you men of war. You shall go all around the city once. This you shall do six days. But the seventh day, You shall march around the city seven times and the priests shall blow the trumpets." As we read these verses, I can't help but see in my mind's eye the humility of the Israelites. I suspect that they were men of valor who would have wanted to be a part of the battle. But yet God instructed them specifically that this battle is not theirs but it is God's alone. And so they obeyed God and as a result of that they were able to overcome the city of Jericho. Now Joshua himself was commended for his obedience. In Joshua 11, verse 15, it says, As the Lord had commanded Moses his servant, so Moses commanded Joshua. And so Joshua did. He left nothing undone of all that the Lord had commanded Moses. The Israelites themselves were commanded for their obedience. In Joshua 14, verse 5, As the Lord had commanded Moses, so the children of Israel did. and they divided the land. Then another one, Caleb. Caleb, the man who had been a spy 40 years before, who has also now become one of the leaders alongside Joshua. In Joshua 14, verses 13 to 14, it says, And Joshua blessed him, that is Caleb, and gave Hebron to Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, as an inheritance. Hebron therefore became the inheritance of Caleb, the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite, to this day because he wholly followed the Lord God of Israel." Now contrast that with a man who had disobeyed, and this would be years and years after the conquest of Canaan. And the first one, the first person that comes to mind in terms of disobedience is who? Saul. We find in 1 Samuel 15, 22-23, that Samuel said, Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is an iniquity. in idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, he also has rejected you from being king." So we read that God doesn't take lightly disobedience from his people and the consequences of disobedience is penalty and that is a very significant penalty. If I have time I will go over that later on. And Jesus himself expects obedience from his disciples when he says to his disciples, if you know these things, blessed are you if you do them. And again he says in John 14 verse 21, he who has my commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves me and he who loves me will be loved by my father and I will love him and manifest himself to him. In John 15.10, Jesus says, If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. Jesus is our example of one who completely and willingly obeyed his Father. And when he was praying at the Garden of Gethsemane, he prays to his father, I have glorified you on the earth, and I have finished the work which you have given me to do. And then finally after his resurrection, when he was talking to, or I should say, I'll take that back, at his death, when he was at the point of death, he simply exclaimed, it is finished. In other words, everything that he was sent here to do was complete. And so this is the type of obedience that God demands of his people. And thirdly, the Lord, the character that can be found in Joshua is that the Lord redeems his people. From the Israelites' standpoint, the Lord redeems his people from the bondage in Egypt. And we see that God cared for these people even when they were perhaps unworthy of being redeemed. And in Joshua, God particularly displays this redemption to this generation that had come out of Egypt, even though practically All, well not practically, all of the men that had come out of Egypt that were 20 years or older were eliminated because of their disobedience. And only those that were 20 and under, Joshua and Caleb, were able to enter that promised land because of their disobedience. And we read in Joshua 5, verses 6-9, For the children of Israel walked forty years in the wilderness, till all the people who were men of war, who came out of Egypt, were consumed, because they did not obey the voice of the Lord, to whom the Lord swore that he would not show them the land which the Lord had sworn to their fathers, that he would give us, a land flowing with milk and honey. Then Joshua circumcised their sons whom he raised up in their place, for they were uncircumcised because they had not been circumcised on the way. So it was, when they had finished circumcising all the people, that they stayed in their places in the camp till they were healed. Then the Lord said to Joshua, This day I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you. Therefore the name of the place is called Gilgal to this day. Jeffrey writes, the reproach of Egypt was now a thing of the past, and a new start was to be theirs, with the Lord not now against them, but very much for them. The faith of the people of Israel that entered that promised land is even recorded in the Hall of Faith in Hebrews, Hebrews 11.30. It says, By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they were encircled for seven days by faith, meaning the faith of the people that entered the Promised Land. The other story of redemption that can be found in Joshua is the story of Rahab. We all, I think, are familiar with that story of Rahab when she harbored or protected the two spies that came out of Israel's camp and she protected them and allow them to escape. We read in Joshua 2 verse 11 says, this is what Rahab says to them, to the spies, and as soon as we heard these things, our hearts melted, neither did there remain any more courage in anyone because of you. For the Lord your God, He is God in heaven above and on earth beneath. Now, after the conquest of Jericho, God spared Rahab and her family. We read in Joshua 6, verse 25, And Joshua spared Rahab the harlot, her father's household, and all that she had. So she dwells in Israel to this day, because she hid the messengers whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho. And Jeffrey comments on Rahab's faith. Her faith, like ours, was a gift of God. Consequently, she heard the news about God, not merely with an eye to self-protection, but with a vision of God's grace and promises being fulfilled. And Rahab also is mentioned in Hebrews 11, verse 31, by faith The harlot Rahab did not perish with those who did believe when she had received the spies with peace. So God demonstrates this redemption to the people of Israel as well as to an individual, that is Rahab. And God demonstrates this redemption by the power of his mercy and grace. And God also redeemed the people of Israel physically, really, If you recall the battle of Ai, after having fought the battle of Jericho, the Israelites sort of gained this self-confidence that they can defeat the other armies before them. And so they went ahead and fought the warriors of Ai and they were defeated. And 30 some men were killed. And they got discouraged. And Moses, on behalf of the people, prayed to God that he delivers them from the hands of the people from Ai. And in Joshua 8 verse 1, it says, Now the Lord said to Joshua, Do not be afraid, nor be dismayed. Take all the people of war with you, and arise, go up to Ai. See, I have given into your hand the king of Ai, his people, his city, and his land. So even with the sin that had been committed by Achan, which affected the whole nation, and as a result of this sin, the people were defeated. Yet God showed mercy to them once more by delivering the people of Ai into the hands of the Israelites. And I will return to the sin of Achan here shortly. And we're all familiar with Job when Job was talking to one of his friends and Job was recounting all of the difficulties, the sufferings that he was going through. And in Job 19, verse 25, he exclaims, For I know that my Redeemer lives, and he shall stand at last on the earth. From a Christian perspective, as we see the work of God in our lives, Jesus is our Redeemer. Jesus says in John 6 verse 45, It is written in the prophets, And they shall all be taught by God. Therefore, everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me. And Paul in Galatians writes in chapter 4 verses to 7, But when the fullness of the time has come, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who are under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father, Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ." So we see that God is a redeeming God and he will bring forth that redemption to its fullness in Christ Jesus. And fourthly, the other character that I I found in the book of Moses is that the Lord leads and delivers his people. God did not just bring the people of Israel into the land of Canaan and then let them be and let them take over the land by themselves. No, God is in full control of that which he has promised to the Israelites. Joshua 1 verse 9, Have I not commanded you Be strong and of good courage. Do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. There's a story in Joshua 5 where Joshua meets this man. And Joshua asks him, Let's read Joshua 5 verses 13 through 15. And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, a man stood opposite him with his sword drawn in his hand. And Joshua went to him and said to him, Are you for us or for our adversaries? So he said, no, but as commander of the army of the Lord, I have now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped and said to him, what does my Lord say to his servant? Then the commander of the Lord's army said to Joshua, take your sandal off your foot for the place where you stand is holy. And Joshua did so. Jeffrey in his book quotes Warren Wiersbe, and this is what Wiersbe has to say. This paragraph records one of the pre-incarnation appearances of the Lord Jesus Christ, recorded in the Old Testament. Our Lord always comes to us when we need him and in the way we need him. It must have been a great discouragement to Joshua to realize that he was not alone. Then going back to as they entered the promised land, as they entered Jericho, in Joshua 6, verse 2, it says, And the Lord said to Joshua, See, I have given Jericho into your hand, its king and the mighty men of valor. So as I mentioned earlier, the Israelites did not fight the people in Jericho. It was God's fight. It was God that completely destroyed by some forces the walls of Jericho. I'm sure we all are familiar with that ditty of Joshua fought the battle of Jericho. Well, no, Joshua did not fight the battle of Jericho. It was God himself, Yeshua, who fought the battle of Jericho, who brought the walls down. Now there's another battle where the Lord led the army of the Israelites. In Joshua verse 10, and the Lord said to Joshua, do not fear them for I have delivered them into your hand. Not a man of them shall stand before you. There are many more battles to be fought in every single one of those battles. God was alongside them or with them or leading them. He was indeed the captain and the commander of the army of the Israelites. And fifthly, real quickly, the Lord is a just judge. As much as the Lord shows mercy to the people of Israel and redeems them, when sin is committed, God will execute His judgment. And that is illustrated very succinctly by the sin of Achan. And Achan was a man who took things that were banned. and he hid them. And because of that, it resulted in the defeat of the army against the people of Ai. And we see here that while this was an individual who committed sin, it was the result of that one bad sin that affected the entire nation of Israel. And so God's judgment fell not just upon Achan, but upon all that were of the Israelite army. And then also the judgment of God is fully demonstrated against the Canaanites themselves. And these Canaanites were wicked, evil people. And it's recorded in many places in Deuteronomy, Numbers, Leviticus. But God showed no mercy for them because of their wickedness, and he executed complete judgment upon them. And those that were not overcome, they became subservient to the Israelites. And then finally, with the remaining time that we have, the Lord gives rest to his people. After five years of battle or so, the land is taken over. We read in Joshua 11.23, Joshua took the whole land according to all that the Lord had said to Moses. Joshua gave it as an inheritance to Israel according to their divisions by their tribes. Then the land rested from war. And in Joshua 21 we read, So the Lord gave to Israel all the land of which he had sworn to give to their fathers, and they took possession of it and dwelt in it. The Lord gave them rest all around them, according to all that he had sworn to their fathers. And not a man of all their enemies stood against them. The Lord delivered all their enemies into their hand. Not a word failed of any good thing which the Lord had spoken to the house of Israel. all came to pass. And this generation that entered the land were a unique generation because they were given peace during all their days. And in Joshua 24, 29-31 we read, Now it came to pass after these things that Joshua, the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died, being 110 years old, and they buried him within the borders of his inheritance, which is in the mountains of Ephraim, on the north side of Mount Gash. 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." So the Israelites were given rest all the days of their lives, this particular generation, because we read later on in the book of Judges that soon after this generation had passed away, a new generation had come and they disobeyed the Lord. And the consequences of that disobedience caused major damage and penalties against the people of Israel. Now, as we apply this rest, We can rely upon the rest that Jesus gives, because he is our rest. In Matthew 11, 28-30, Jesus says, Come to me, all you who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. And finally, brethren, with a few minutes, final exhortation. We are reminded that God is a God who keeps his promise, a God who will execute judgment, but yet a God who will show mercy. And we have this great comfort that God indeed is a God who loves his people, but expects complete obedience. Jeffrey, in his book, writes, love for God, as far as Joshua is concerned, is shown in obedience to him. This is exactly how Jesus defines it in John 14, 23. If anyone loves me, he will obey my teachings. John tells us that love is not a matter of words, but of action and truth. For Joshua, this action and truth meant an uncompromising commitment to the Lord alone. There could be no room for other gods. This is the message of the Bible all the way through its unfolding revelation. The devastating effects of ignoring it are spelled out by Joshua in verses 23, 12-13 and by Paul in Galatians 1, 6 and 9. I'd like to read these and then conclude. Joshua 23, 12-13. or else if indeed you do go back and cling to the remnant of these nations, these that remain among you and make marriages with them and go into them and they do to you, know for certain that the Lord your God will no longer drive out these nations from before you, but they shall be snares and straps to you and scourges in your sides and thorns in your eyes until you perish from this good land which the Lord your God has given you. And in Galatians 1, 6 through 9, Paul writes, I marvel that you are turning away so soon from him who called you in the grace of Christ to a different gospel, which is not another. But there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again, If anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed." So in closing, we need to remember the words of Joshua, as he says it in Joshua 24, verses 14 and 15. Now, therefore, fear the Lord, serve him in sincerity and in truth, put away the gods which your father served on the other side of the river and in Egypt. Serve the Lord, and if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your father served that were on the other side of the river or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." And brethren, that is the exhortation that That Joshua brings to us is a very broad perspective that I presented, and I know I jumped around to many, many verses, but overall the message in Joshua is that God redeems His people, He will deliver us, and that promise will be realized because He is a true God who keeps His promise. But our role in all of this, his obedience to his word. Let us pray. Our dear Father in heaven, Lord, we are thankful for your goodness to us, for your mercy and for your grace. Thank you for the words written in the book of Joshua and for allowing us to better understand your character and your nature. as presented in your dealings with Joshua, the Israelites, and the Canaanites, and in your dealings with us. Father, we do pray now that as we continue on with the Lord's Day, as we enter into worship, we pray, Father, for your mercy upon us, for your wisdom upon our pastor as he brings the message of redemption to us here this morning. We pray for those who are visiting that they would receive encouragement and receive the word that would open up the eyes of those who do not believe. We pray now, Father, that you would bless this day for us. In Jesus' name we ask these things. Amen.