Our dreams may be deals or duds, and we need to test them to determine which they are. Just like the reporter tests these products to see if anyone should buy them, we should test our dreams and determine if they are dreams that we should follow. As we grow older, sometimes we hold on to those dreams that are duds. What dreams have you had? Are you like me, dreaming dreams that will never meet reality? Dreams that are duds, not deals? How do we determine if these are duds or deals so that we know whether to follow them?
Many young girls have dreams of marriage or stardom. They dream of the men they hope to marry. Grown-up reality has a way of debunking most of those dreams. Too often a child’s dream involves perfection—the happily-ever-after syndrome, and real people don’t live up to that kind of expectation.
Many young girls have dreams of marriage or stardom. They dream of the men they hope to marry. Grown-up reality has a way of debunking most of those dreams. Too often a child’s dream involves perfection—the happily-ever-after syndrome, and real people don’t live up to that kind of expectation.
Adults are not always any better! Many of our dreams come from what we watch on television or what we read in novels. When life doesn’t match those ideals, we think that we have missed out, that the person or situation we face is not normal, when in fact it may be!
This study deals with the dreams that God gives, dreams that He births in us, visions of the future that He has planned for us. When God gives us a dream, it involves His plans and His purposes. He is the one who brings the dream to pass.
As we look at Joshua’s life and his leadership, we will see that he was responsible for bringing God’s dream for the people of Israel to reality; we will see that difficulty and setbacks were involved, even though it was a dream birthed by God. Following God’s dream is not an easy road, but it is well worth the effort.
I pray that you will learn from Joshua some lessons that will serve you well as you follow that dream that God has placed in your heart.
Lesson PowerPoint (two parts), Audio and handout available below.
A Word from Kay Daigle on how to use the resources for this study…I want to encourage you to complete the personal lesson below before you click on any of the accompanying elements that may be found with this lesson (audio lecture, manuscript, PowerPoint, or handout). This study was written to help you maximize your personal spiritual growth. That means that you first spend time with God through His word, and then hopefully, discuss what you learned with a small group of women. After that, if you want to hear the audio (or read the manuscript) and follow the PowerPoint, filling in the handout, then that is a great time to do it! I cannot cover all the verses in depth, but you can read and study them for yourself. It is best for you to think through the passages before hearing what anyone else thinks, even me! You will find some lessons without lectures. At our church we use some of those weeks to spend extra time in our small groups sharing life stories, having a longer prayer time, or expressing how God is working in our lives.
“The Lord commissioned Joshua son of Nun, ‘Be strong and courageous, for you will take the Israelites to the land I have promised them, and I will be with you.’”
Deuteronomy 31:23
What dreams have you had come true? What did you do to bring them to pass? Perhaps you dreamed of a career that you are now pursuing. Maybe it was of having a family, which you now enjoy. You may have dreamed of close friends with whom you could share your struggles in life. Perhaps you desired to make a difference in this world and have searched for the opportunities to do so.
God is a dream-giver; He has dreams for each of us that He intends to bring to pass if we listen and obey. Because of His greatness, He is able to fulfill those dreams if we follow His lead and direction.
Joshua followed God’s dream. It was not a new dream, but rather it was one that God had given hundreds of years beforehand to Abraham. It was the vision of a land. This week we will look at this dream and at the person of Joshua. Who was this man who brought the dream to reality?
God first gave the dream of the land to Abraham, the father of the nation of Israel. At this time his name was Abram; only later did God change his name to Abraham. Read Genesis 12:1-7.
1. What dream did God give Abram, and how did Abram follow that dream?
Read Genesis 15:7-21.
The ancient customs reflected in this story signify the making of a covenant, a solemn binding agreement made before God. In ancient times the covenant-makers would walk between the pieces of animals and make oaths to one another; in effect, they were asking God to slay them as they had done the animals if they were unfaithful to the covenant. In this so-called Abrahamic Covenant, God obligated Himself to fulfill the promises alone when He passed through the pieces of the slain animals by Himself.
2. What promises did God make to Abraham in this covenant?
Over and over God reinforced the dream He gave to Abraham by repeating it.
Read Gen. 22:15-18 and Hebrews 6:13-20. (This Genesis passage is the event to which the author of Hebrews refers.)
3. What truths about the character of God did the author of Hebrews emphasize in this passage?
4. Sharing question: As you think about these truths, how do the words in Hebrews encourage you today (note Heb. 6:18-20)?
Knowing God’s character and the ways by which He works with people can make a difference as we walk with Him day by day. As we experience His character in action, we learn that God is indeed the person whom He reveals Himself to be.
Digging for Diamonds: What aspects of God’s character give you hope in the midst of a hard time? Find verses that focus on those character traits. Memorize one of them if you do not already know it.
5. Responding to God: Focus on one particular aspect of God’s character and thank Him for proving it to be true as you have experienced His work in one circumstance in your life.
Now we fast-forward hundreds of years to the time of Moses, who delivered the people of Israel from bondage in Egypt, as God had promised Abram in Gen. 15. After leaving Egypt, God led the people through the Red Sea and into the desert of the Sinai Peninsula.
Joshua was one of those who came out of Egypt under Moses. He experienced both the hardships of slavery and the freedom from bondage. He saw firsthand the plagues on the Egyptians and the miracle of the Red Sea crossing.
What else do we know about this man who would lead the people into the land?
Read Exodus 17:8-15, which describes an event that took place between the crossing of the Red Sea and the arrival at Mount Sinai.
6. What was Joshua’s role in this battle? What lessons may he have learned about God through this experience?
7. Sharing question: Describe a time when you saw the power of God in your own life. Maybe it was a situation of healing; maybe hard hearts were changed in answer to prayer. Whatever it was, share with your group how what you learned about God at this time impacted you in a later situation.
Joshua was next mentioned at Mount Sinai, recorded in Exodus 24:12-18.
8. How was Joshua described in Ex. 24:12-18, and what took place on the mountain while he stood nearby?
You may remember what happened next in the story. While Moses and Joshua were gone, there was a problem in the camp down below. Read Exodus 32:1-4, 7-8, 15-20.
Digging for Diamonds: Read all of Ex. 32 as well as Ex. 33:1-6, 12-17. Write down your insights into God’s character from these passages.
9. How would you have felt if you were observing all of these events as Joshua did? What would you have learned about God in this situation?
10. Sharing question: Think of a specific situation in the life of a friend, co-worker, or family member where you saw God work. What did you learn about God by observing what happened?
11. Responding to God: Thank God for what He has taught you about Himself as you have seen Him work in your own life or in the lives of others. Thank Him for how that knowledge has impacted your faith. Write out your prayer below.
The people of Israel camped out at Mount Sinai for almost a year while they received God’s law and built a tent of worship. Then, they set out for the land promised by God. They were on the very brink of the dream!
Read Numbers 13:1-4, 8, 16.
12. What was Joshua’s role at this time? What does this tell you about him?
Read Numbers 13:26-14:45.
13. What happened to derail the fulfillment of the dream?
Digging for Diamonds: What lessons do you learn about prayer from the conversation between God and Moses in Numbers 14:11-20?
14. Put yourself in the camp of Israel when the spies returned. All of the men would be expected to go into battle against these giants. You might be a mother left alone with your children. You might have grown sons called upon to fight. Or perhaps your fiancé would march off. Honestly assess this question—would you have likely responded in fear or in faith? Why?
15. How were the consequences of unbelief that God handed down to the people (Num. 14:28-35) appropriate?
16. Sharing question: Either describe a time when you were paralyzed by your fears instead of trusting God, or describe a present fear that could keep you from following God’s plan or purpose for you. What consequences followed your answer to the first question?
17. Responding to God: Be honest with God about your fears. Ask for His strength and for the faith that you need in the situation you face today. Write a prayer or poem about the bigness of God and the greatness of His character so that you can focus on faith rather than fear.
Because of unbelief fueled by fear, the children of Israel returned to the wilderness and spent another thirty-eight years there in addition to the two already spent there. After that time God would finally allow them to fulfill the dream that He had given them. In the meantime, Moses also had to give up his dream of leading the people into the land.
Read Numbers 20:2-12.
18. What happened? How did Moses lose the right to lead the people into the land?
19. What does this story teach you about the dreams given by God and about those people whom He chooses to fulfill these dreams? (Remember that Joshua was right there to learn these lessons.)
After a total of forty years in the wilderness, as the nation of Israel stood on the brink of fulfilling their dream, God spoke to Moses.
Read Numbers 27:12-23.
20. Write down your insights into God’s instructions for transferring the leadership of the people from Moses to Joshua.
Digging for Diamonds: Look up Timothy in your concordance and find the references to him in Paul’s letters. What insights do you have into the ways Paul passed leadership on to Timothy?
Read Deut. 31:1-8; 34:1-8.
21. Consider all that you know about Moses and his influence and impact in his forty years of leading the Israelites. How would you have felt to be stepping into his shoes, as Joshua did? How have you seen God prepare Joshua as you have studied this week?
22. What does the Scripture tell us here about Joshua and Moses as God’s leaders (34:9-12)?
23. Sharing question: Have you ever had to follow someone who left big shoes to fill? Perhaps you had to supervise employees who loved their last boss. Maybe you had to create something, and the previous worker was outstandingly creative. Or you may have taken on an area of ministry from someone who was very well-liked by all. Share the situation and your feelings with your group. What did God teach you through the challenge? OR tell how you can look back and see how God has prepared you for the ministry He has put you in today.
24. Responding to God: Thank God for what He taught you through challenges where you were in over your headJ If you are not sure what He taught you, ask Him and then listen for His answer. Ask Him to continue to challenge you to depend upon Him instead of yourself.
Leader of the nation, the one responsible to defeat the inhabitants of the land, the one answerable to God for the spiritual condition of His people—what a daunting and scary position for Joshua! We have seen this week that God prepared him in many ways for the job; yet, Moses had always been there and now he was gone. Joshua was left alone to face the challenge and fulfill the dream.
Read Joshua 1:1-9.
25. What promises did God make to Joshua here?
26. What were God’s conditions for fulfilling all of these promises?
27. What did God repeat to Joshua? Why would He say the same thing over and over? Compare the words to Joshua in Deut. 31:23, our Thought to Cherish for this week. (Be sure and memorize it.)
Digging for Diamonds: Use your concordance or online resource to find other verses about being “strong and brave” (NET) or “strong and courageous” (NASB, NIV). Write down any additional insights that God shows you.
28. Sharing question: What principles do you learn about fulfilling God’s dreams for you from this passage? What specific thing can you do to apply this in your life today?
29. Responding to God: Pour out your feelings before God concerning your desire to fulfill His dreams and plans for your life. Commit to follow Him and His word above all else. Write down your thoughts below.
We gain insight on fear as two women share their stories with us this week.
Life in this world is filled with uncertainty. No one knows what tomorrow will hand us. And through the years I have noticed that security is something very important to women. We all want to have secure lives and futures. We want to know that we will always be loved by husband and family. If we have a career, we want to know we will always be appreciated in our work. If we have children, we want to know that the future holds wonderful promises for them. We want to know that our home will stand no matter what. And so when something happens in our lives to shake the foundation that we thought was solid, we become afraid for the future.
I can tell you from experience that fear, is not only paralyzing, but destructive. As a young adult in my early 20’s, both my parents died within a few years of each other. And as a young, single mom, I had depended upon my mother for advice and direction. In the years following her death, I experienced so much fear that it controlled my life to the point of almost destroying it and every relationship I had. The foundation of my existence had been shaken and as I looked to the future, I was paralyzed with questions, doubts and fear.
It wasn’t until years later after I became a Christian and began to study God’s word that I was able to overcome the fear of not knowing what the future would bring. The first verse God used to help me was 2 Timothy 1:7 (NASB): “For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but power and love and discipline.” The Greek definition for the word timidity is fear and for discipline is sound mind. And so I began to pray and claim this verse for my life everyday until I began to see a difference in my emotions. I would pray, ‘Lord, thank you that you have not given me a spirit of fear, therefore I know that fear is not of you. But You have given me power, love and a sound mind, and I pray your power will overpower my fears and push them out of my heart and mind.’
Following the realization that paralyzing fear is not from God, there had to be a change in my heart and mind regarding trust. God does not want fear to destroy our lives and He gives us the power and sound mind to overcome it. And so, the next step is to trust Him to do in the present what He has already done in the past and to rest in the knowledge of His love. God’s love is perfect and there is no fear in His love according to I John 4:18. In fact the verse tells us that His perfect love casts out fear! We can trust Him to remove the fear from our hearts as we trust Him and ask Him to do it. We can be secure in the future as we give our fears to Him and thank Him for casting them out of our lives. We can overcome! Why? “You are from God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world” (I John 4:4 NASB). This became a life verse for me and I still pray it and claim it in those times when circumstances begin to overwhelm me.
And finally, we receive the help we need to get past our fears by listening to the words of Jesus as He spoke to the disciples in John 14:27 (NASB). “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives, do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.” As we recognize that fear is not from God, as we ask Him to overpower it and trust Him to do it; Jesus fills our hearts with His peace. Not the kind the world offers, but a deep abiding rest from our fears that comes from believing in Him and believing Him.
Whatever difficult circumstances you face today that are causing you paralyzing fear, Jesus says; “Let not your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me” (John 14:1 NASB). May His peace be in you today.
Virginia Grounds
7/16, 2007
My story is about the journey of how God helped me to overcome my fear of public speaking and prepared me to go on a women’s mission trip to Kazakhstan. A few years ago, if you had told me that I would be going on a mission trip half-way around the world to speak at a Women’s conference, I would have said that it would be impossible. The thought of getting up in front of a group of people to give a presentation terrified me. Just thinking about it made my stomach knot up and I would feel physically sick. Any time I was asked to do a presentation, I would always figure out some way to get out of it.
In the fall of 2003, I was involved in a women’s bible study that focused on how we are all on a journey with God to walk closer to Him and depend on Him and cast our anxieties on Him. I realized that I needed to confront my fear and turn it over to God. Before the study ended that fall, I got that opportunity. I manage the international compensation programs for my company and our team was organizing a global HR conference in Dallas for our HR colleagues from around the world. I was asked to do a presentation, and I decided I could handle doing a 30-minute one. Well, my boss had more in mind; given the material I needed to cover, she wanted to schedule 2 hours for my presentation! I thought there was no way I could do that but there was no way I could get out of it; I was a department of one so there was no one that I could delegate this to. I had my small group here praying for me as I began to prepare. My prayer requests were for confidence and self-assurance and above all, I wanted God to be glorified in this situation. I knew that I did not have the ability to accomplish this task, and I wanted to lean on Him and allow Him to accomplish this through me. So I turned that fear over and going into the presentation, I felt calm and really wasn’t nervous. The presentation went smoothly and I was actually comfortable enough to leave the podium to walk around and answer questions from the group.
After it was over, I thought, “Great – I can now check that off the list.” However, God wasn’t finished with me; the next day, our VP of HR from China came up to me to tell me how valuable the presentation was and that I had to come to China to give it to the China Management team! I thought, “God, you have got to be kidding! You know that I can’t do that!” So I told her that I would need to talk to my boss because we didn’t budget any travel for me, and tried to think of other excuses. Well, she looked me straight in the eye and said, “China pays,” so that ended that discussion. Four months later, I was on a plane by myself, headed to Shanghai to give that presentation to the management team, not only in China but in Taiwan and the Philippines. My small group again prayed for me and all three presentations went very smoothly. Also, I experienced an amazing opportunity from God while I was in the Philippines. My husband’s grandfather served in World War II in the Philippines and was killed a couple of day s before the war ended. He was buried in the Philippines and the American Memorial Cemetery where he is buried is about 10 minutes away from our office in Manila. I was able to visit the cemetery and take pictures for my husband and his family. It was an incredible opportunity that I would have never experienced had I not turned over my fears to God the year before to do that presentation.
After that, God opened the door for me to travel for work all over the world to do management presentations at several of our other international offices. I had always wanted to travel for my job and never realized that my fear of doing presentations had prevented that from happening.
As a result of this, God opened the door for me to go on a women’s mission trip to Kazakhstan. One day in church, the song – To the Ends of the Earth touched my heart and I made the commitment to God that I would go to the ends of the earth to share His love. Immediately, I signed up for the women’s mission trip to Kazakhstan, not knowing what the objective of the trip was. A few weeks later, I met with our Women’s Minister and found out that the objective was to do a women’s conference and that each of the women going on the trip would have to pick a topic to prepare a session to present at the conference. For a split second, those old fears started to creep in, and the old me would have said thanks but no thanks. However, I was quickly reminded of everything that had happened over the past few years and how it all was preparing me to go on this mission trip. Even though I experienced feelings of inadequacies as I was preparing for this trip, I trusted God to use me. On the trip, I realized that the situations in which He placed me, the sessions I did, the home visits I went on, He had perfectly equipped me to be used in those situations. He didn’t need a polished, professional speaker or evangelist; all He required from me was to open my heart and share it with those I met. It was never more evident when we visited a group of elderly ladies in hospice. All they needed was our touch and our love, and we were perfectly equipped to be His arms and heart to those women.
So as you hear God calling you to serve Him, remember that He has not given us a spirit of fear but He has given us a spirit of power and love. And that He is faithful to those He calls. I encourage you to walk out in faith to overcome your fears and serve God, He may take you half-way around the world or next door, but where ever He takes, you will experience His blessings and it will open the doors to opportunities you can’t even imagine.
A Word from Kay Daigle on how to use the resources for this study…I want to encourage you to complete the personal lesson below before you click on any of the accompanying elements that may be found with this lesson (audio lecture, manuscript, PowerPoint, or handout). This study was written to help you maximize your personal spiritual growth. That means that you first spend time with God through His word, and then hopefully, discuss what you learned with a small group of women. After that, if you want to hear the audio (or read the manuscript) and follow the PowerPoint, filling in the handout, then that is a great time to do it! I cannot cover all the verses in depth, but you can read and study them for yourself. It is best for you to think through the passages before hearing what anyone else thinks, even me! You will find some lessons without lectures. At our church we use some of those weeks to spend extra time in our small groups sharing life stories, having a longer prayer time, or expressing how God is working in our lives.
“For the LORD your God is God in heaven above and on earth below!”
Joshua 2:11c
Neil Tomba, our pastor at Northwest Bible Church, recently did a sermon series called “Hidden Heroes of the Old Testament.” This week we meet a hidden heroine in the book of Joshua, a woman who is known far too often by her past reputation. Her story teaches us that God’s dreams involve a great future which allows us to leave the past behind us.
Her story begins as the people of Israel are on the edge of the land, just across the Jordan River!
Read Joshua 1:10-17.
1. How did Joshua, as the leader, keep God’s dream before the people and encourage their faith so that they would trust God (v.11)?
Digging for Diamonds: Read Ephesians 1:15-2:10. How does Paul as a leader of the church keep God’s dream before the believers and encourage their faith?
2. Sharing question: Think of a relationship where you are an encourager of someone else’s faith—maybe as a mother, a wife, a mentor, or a friend. What do you learn from Joshua’s example about building faith in others? What one specific thing will you do this week for that person? Share with your group what happens.
3. When Joshua addressed the two-and-a-half tribes who had settled in the land already conquered on the east side of the Jordan River, he reminded them of Moses’ commands to them. Summarize what they were to do (vv. 12-15).
4. How committed were these tribes to following these commands (vv. 16-18)?
It would have been easy for the two-and-a-half tribes to stay in their allotted land and let the rest of the nation go out and conquer their portions of the land alone, but God called them to support and help their brothers.
It seems to me that this picture applies to us. It is easy to be comfortable with our past service and want to use our time for ourselves and our own families. I have heard older believers say that they have done their volunteering, and “it’s someone else’s turn.” The problem is that others, particularly those younger in the faith, need believers who have walked with God for a long time to come alongside them as they deal with the problems and issues of life. They need the help and support of believers who have experienced God’s faithfulness and power.
5. Sharing question: Where are you ministering to others right now? How can you seek encouragement so that you continue serving others instead of sitting back and feeling good about your past accomplishments? Is there a particular person who can help? OR perhaps you have never joined the action at all but have allowed others to serve you. Share your thoughts with your group.
6. Responding to God: Write a prayer of commitment to God. Commit your service to His will. Consider the strength of commitment of the two-and-a-half tribes. Confess any lack of commitment on your part, and ask for the motivation to serve Him all the days of your life.
Read Joshua 2:1-7.
7. Summarize this part of the story. What are your first thoughts about what happened?
The narrative is not written chronologically. Scholars understand it in different ways. Some put the sending of the spies first, Joshua’s call to cross the river in three days next (1:10-18), and then lastly, the preparation for the march (3:2 ff.). Others consider 1:10 and 3:2 to be the same event and feel that Chapter 2 is a parenthetical story.1 It may be that the expression three days means that they began to move toward the crossing within three days without actually crossing the river itself.2
Rahab lied to the king’s men. The biblical text gives us no comment on her actions in this context; it simply relates what happened. Often we have to find God’s commentary on the morality of people’s actions elsewhere in the scriptures. We must be careful when we read the stories of the Bible not to think that everything that a character does is an example for us to follow!
8. Read these verses and write down your insights about God’s perspective on lying:
a. Lev. 19:11
b. Prov. 12:22
c. John 8:44
d. Heb. 6:18
Digging for Diamonds: Consider Exodus 1:15-21. Compare the actions of the Hebrew midwives with those of Rahab. Write down your thoughts.
God was gracious to Rahab despite her lies, as He is so often gracious to us, overlooking our sins. Rahab was not of the people of Israel; her heart was certainly right although her actions were wrong.
9. Read the parable in Luke 12:42-48. How does Jesus’ teaching in vv. 47-48 apply to the story of Rahab?
10. Sharing question: Consider sins of your past when God didn’t punish or discipline you although you deserved it. Share one situation with your group.
11. Responding to God: Read Psalm 51 and pray it back to God, confessing sins that He has graciously let you get away with, so to speak.
Reread Joshua 2:1-7 and continue reading 2:8-14.
12. In this passage Rahab explains her actions. What motivated her to hide the spies and help them escape?
13. From their conversation with Rahab, what did the spies learn about the attitude of the people of the land toward the invading Israelites?
14. Our Thought to Cherish this week is from Joshua 2:11. When you see the word LORD in all caps, it is a reference to Yahweh, the name of the God of Israel. What significance does that give her words in 2:9-14?
15. Read these New Testament verses that refer to Rahab and write down your insights:
a. Hebrews 11:31
b. James 2:25
If you have studied the book of James, you know that this verse referring to Rahab was part of James’ argument that true faith results in outward works. What we believe affects our actions. Rahab alone of all the people in Jericho proved that she was not simply afraid of the God of Israel, which is not faith but fear; she alone believed that He was the true God and the One worthy of her faith.
16. Rahab’s actions saved her physically, but it was her faith that saved her spiritually. God often uses the word “salvation” to refer to His work on our behalf in saving us from the consequences of our sins. Read these verses and write down your insights into how they apply to Rahab:
a. Rom. 10:11-13
b. Rom. 6:23
c. Gal. 3:6-9
Digging for Diamonds: Read John 1:1-14. How would you explain this to someone who has never heard the good news about Jesus before? What other verses would you use? Why?
17. Sharing question: God reached down to mankind by becoming man in Jesus, who died and paid the penalty of your sins. Rahab heard of the greatness of God, and then she trusted Him as her God. Share with your group about the time when you trusted Jesus rather than your good works to save you. If you have not yet trusted Him, I hope you feel comfortable enough with your group to share where you are on your journey of faith. If not, consider sharing it with your leader, allowing her to pray for your journey.
18. Responding to God: Spend time meditating on the verses in #16, considering that Jesus had to come to earth as a man in order to die so that you could live in relationship with Him. He gives you His life. Write a poem or love letter expressing your love for Him.
Reread Joshua 2:1-14 and continue reading 2:15-21, just to get the story in context.
19. Summarize what happened to the spies after their conversation with Rahab on the roof (vv. 15-16).
20. What were the conditions under which the spies agreed to save Rahab and her family?
21. How would you have felt if you were Rahab as you waited for the Israelite army to invade your city? What risks was she taking?
Digging for Diamonds: Read Hebrews 11, where Rahab is joined by many other Old Testament heroes as examples of faith. Which of these heroes risked much for their faith?
22. Sharing question: Have you ever risked a job, a friendship, a relationship, or simply the good will of others for your faith? If so, share the situation and what happened with your group.
23. Responding to God: Ask God for the wisdom to know when to take a risk for His glory and honor out of the depth of your love for Him. Confess your fear and ask for the faith that you need to act.
Rahab took a risk and acted on faith. We won’t get to the story of the battle of Jericho for a couple of weeks, but let’s look ahead at her future.
24. God gave Rahab the dream of a future as one of His people. Remember that she was not an Israelite. Read Matt. 1:1-5, particularly the reference to Rahab. What do you learn about what happened to her?
25. Rahab’s faith enabled her to put her past behind her. That was surely a dream that God had given her. Read these verses and write down what God says about the dream of putting your past behind you.
d. 2 Cor. 5:17-19
e. Heb. 10:14-17
26. Read 1 Peter 2:9-10. What is your relationship to God if you have trusted Him as Rahab did? How does your position relate to Rahab’s? What kind of dream does God give you here in 1 Peter 2:9? What should you do to fulfill that dream?
Digging for Diamonds: What other dreams given to believers in God’s Word do you treasure and hang onto? Look them up, and memorize them if you have not.
27. Responding to God: Is there a past that you want to put behind you? Have you trusted that God has made you a new creation and put you in relationship with Him? Write your prayer or poem to Him asking Him to help you believe His Word, which says that He has indeed totally forgiven you and made you a new creation before Him. It’s not a matter of forgiving yourself but of believing and living out the forgiveness you already have!
Read Joshua 2:22-24, which tells the end of the story of the spies.
28. Contrast the report of these spies with the report of the twelve spies who were sent into the land under Moses. You read it last week but if you want to review it, turn to Num. 13:26-33.
29. Sharing question: How has the story of Rahab impacted you?
I am so appreciative to the women who so graciously give me their stories to share in the hope that the truth of God’s Word will become more real to you through the reality of the application in the story. This week we have the story of a woman who recognized God’s mercy in saving her, not by works but by her faith.
I don’t “deserve” salvation. I have committed almost every sin known to man. I have stolen things. I have murdered. I have committed adultery. I have not been a very good witness for Christianity. In fact, I sometimes wonder why God has kept me here on earth. But, I thank Him for keeping me here. He truly has cleansed me from all my downfalls and has brought me up to rely and trust only on Him. Each and every day is a gift. And He gives me strength to try to do His will.
I was born into a Christian family, so I can’t use that excuse. Times were tough when I was growing up, but I made it. I had a mountaintop religious experience on top of a mountain when I was 9 years old. It is as vivid now as it was when I was 9. So, why did I go wrong? The only thing I can say is that God allowed me to sin and make horrible choices, so that I could understand His forgiveness and His remaking of me now. I am SO thankful for another opportunity to worship and serve Him. Trying to understand how to live the “good life” is for me trying to understand God’s message in the Bible and doing what is laid out so beautifully there. I want to do as much as I can do to repay God for all the goodness He has bestowed on me. Isn’t that silly? We can never repay God. He has blessed me beyond anything I could ever imagine. God’s like that! When my life is done on earth, I just pray that God won’t regret leaving me here so long!
A Word from Kay Daigle on how to use the resources for this study…I want to encourage you to complete the personal lesson below before you click on any of the accompanying elements that may be found with this lesson (audio lecture, manuscript, PowerPoint, or handout). This study was written to help you maximize your personal spiritual growth. That means that you first spend time with God through His word, and then hopefully, discuss what you learned with a small group of women. After that, if you want to hear the audio (or read the manuscript) and follow the PowerPoint, filling in the handout, then that is a great time to do it! I cannot cover all the verses in depth, but you can read and study them for yourself. It is best for you to think through the passages before hearing what anyone else thinks, even me! You will find some lessons without lectures. At our church we use some of those weeks to spend extra time in our small groups sharing life stories, having a longer prayer time, or expressing how God is working in our lives.
The Lesson 3 Manuscript available for this lesson. The lecture audio, powerpoint and handout for Lesson 3 follows this page.
“He told the Israelites, ‘When your children someday ask their fathers, “What do these stones represent?” explain to your children, “Israel crossed the Jordan River on dry ground.”’
Joshua 4:21-22
My mother holds onto the tangible proof of her memories. She saves her birthday cards; she saves graduation programs; she saves notes and letters from her friends. Whenever she feels lonely or unloved, she goes back to those things and rereads the thoughts and prayers of those who love her. She is able to remember special events in the lives of her children and grandchildren and see how God has blessed her with friends and family.
We all need tangible ways to remember the past so that we never forget all that God has done. The nation of Israel was no exception.
Read Joshua 3:1-4.
1. The people of Israel made their final move before entering the land of God’s promise. Where did they travel and how long did they stay there before receiving further instructions? (If you have a map in the back of your Bible or a Bible atlas, you may want to look up the Jordan River near Jericho.)
2. What command did the leaders give the people and what reason did they give for this command?
3. Read these verses and write down what you learn about the Ark of the Covenant.
f. Exodus 25:10-22 (Describe the Ark in general. Note what you learn in 25:22 in particular.)
g. Exodus 26:31-34
h. Exodus 32:7-8, 15-19: 34:1, 4; 40:17-21
i. Heb. 9:1-5
Digging for Diamonds: Use your Bible references—encyclopedias or commentaries—or go online and read more about the Ark of the Covenant.
4. Consider all of the verses in question #3. Why was the Ark so important? What did it represent? What lessons about God did it teach the people? How would you, as an Israelite, have felt when led by the Ark?
5. Sharing question: The leaders told the people, “Keep your distance so you can see which way you should go, for you have not traveled this way before.” Every day we go where we have not traveled before, but often we are unaware of our need to follow God and let Him go before us. Share with your group how you go about watching where God is working and follow Him there. How do you keep alert to His direction?
6. Responding to God: Draw a picture—stick figures are great! Put yourself in view of the Ark, as a symbol of God’s presence in your life. Where are you in relation to the Ark—out in front of it or following it?
Read Joshua 3:5.
The NET Bible says the people were to “ritually consecrate themselves.” Other versions also use the word “consecrate” (NIV, NASB). The New Living Bible says, “Purify yourselves,” while The Bible in Basic English phrases it “Make yourselves holy.” Some use the term “sanctify” (MSG, NKJV, and KJV).
7. Look up these references which relate other times when the people were called to consecrate themselves. Write down your thoughts.
j. Ex. 19:10-11, 14-15
k. Num. 11:18
8. Remember that in the Old Testament God often used physical pictures of spiritual realities to teach his people. Why might God call the people to purify themselves before entering the land and encountering God’s miracles?
Digging for Diamonds: Use your concordance or go online to bible.org and look up the word in Joshua 3:5 listed above #7 in the translation of that particular concordance. Skim the other references and pick out some that may help you better understand what it means to be sanctified or consecrated.
9. Sharing question: What does this purification teach you about your part in fulfilling God’s dreams? What kind of purification may He want you to undertake in order to see Him bring about His miraculous deeds? What specific sin is He asking you to forsake and confess?
10. Responding to God: You may need to spend time listening to God as He directs you to things that He wants purified from your life. Go back and add those to #9. Then, confess before Him the sins that may be holding you back from seeing God fulfill His dreams for you.
Review Joshua 3:1-5, and read Joshua 3:6-17.
It appears that the story here is not completely chronological. Often a writer has other purposes for the way he puts his narrative together, but that may make it difficult for us to understand what was happening. In v. 6 the priests picked up the Ark, apparently on the day after v. 5, but vv. 7-13 appear to flashback to the instructions that Joshua gave beforehand.3
11. Describe the “miraculous deeds” (Josh. 3:5) that God did that day. (Go ahead and read Joshua 4:10-18 as you answer.)
12. Compare this event with the events of Ex. 14:8-31.
13. Read Psalm 114. The psalmist used wonderful poetic language to describe the great deeds that God did for His people in leaving Egypt and entering the land of promise. How did he poetically describe what happened at the Jordan River?
14. What should be the response to God’s deeds, according to the psalmist in Psalm 114? How should we respond today to knowing what God did for His people in the desert and as they crossed the Jordan into the land of promise?
Digging for Diamonds: Read more about the deeds that God did in Egypt in Exodus 7:14-11:10.
15. Sharing question: Share about a time in your life when God did a mighty work on your behalf and you ended up in awe of Him. The word miraculous may not be appropriate because that is when God acts in opposition to the laws of nature, as He did here. God doesn’t show up with miracles most of the time, but His greatness is often seen in the small things of each day. Instead of focusing on a huge act of God, focus on your response. When did God awe you with His work?
16. Responding to God: Write a prayer or poem about your awe of the works of God.
Read Joshua 4:1-24. Although you read vv. 10-18 yesterday, reread the entire chapter to get the feel of the story.
17. What were twelve men to do and how were they chosen (vv. 1-5)? What was the purpose of the stones vv. 6-7, 21-24)?
18. Often a Bible character marked a special occasion or covenantal promise with a tangible marker. Read these verses and consider what kinds of markers were made and what the person was to remember:
l. Gen. 12:6-9; 13:3-4
m. Gen. 28:10-22
n. Gen. 31:43-47
19. Sharing question: Spend some time thinking back through your life. Write down the story of a time when God clearly moved in your life, a time when He proved His power and presence to you. How does remembering that time encourage you today?
Be sure and memorize the Thought to Cherish for this week.
I usually save the stories for Day Five, but this week you should read these before answering the next question.
Today we are blessed with stories of two women who have found ways to mark God’s work in the lives of their families and pass those on for their children to remember.
About seventeen years ago, my husband and I were taking a prayer course. One of the weekly assignments was to write out spiritual markers remembering how God had moved in our lives. We took the challenge and went even further than the homework. We prepared, with our two older teen children’s assistance, a “Praise Stones” notebook. We documented each of the things that could be remembered:
The list continued to grow and it was a true time of rejoicing in all that He had done for us over the years!
Our children both married within five months of each other. For their tenth wedding anniversaries, we copied our “Praise Stones” notebook (nothing fancy) and gave each a copy and told them it was now time for them to begin adding their own family “Praise Stones”. It was a blessing to be able to pass along to the next generation the wonderful deeds that He has done!
I have found that the longer I walk with the Lord how forgetful I really am. For some reason, I seem to convince myself again and again that I won’t forget how God has come through for me, or what prayers He has answered in my life. Unfortunately, this is not the case. I forget, you forget, we all forget…and then we subtly begin to doubt God’s faithfulness.
In order to combat spiritual forgetfulness, there are three things that I do. First, I journal during my prayer time. By nature, I am not a person who loves writing out my thoughts. Thus, journaling is a struggle for me. However, if I don’t write out what God is doing and keep track of the prayers I am praying, I realize that I often forget to thank the Lord when He answers those prayers. The scriptures admonish us to be thankful. If I’ve forgotten what He has done, I forget to be thankful. That is not a place I like to be, so I press on in journaling. It keeps my heart encouraged because I can see the timeline of God’s faithfulness before my eyes.
Our family also has a memory box. It is a decorative display box where we keep receipts, notes and small mementos that reflect a particular moment in time where God provided for us something we had been praying about. It has been a wonderful thing for us over the past 6 years as my husband and I will occasionally thumb through the items. It encourages us when we are struggling to believe that God will provide for us in a particular need. It is a valuable tool for us to share with our children what God has done. It helps them to see and remember examples of God’s provision for their family.
I was recently given a gift that I am excited to begin using. I friend of mine gave me a jar, a bag of stones, and a journal that all matched. Much like the Lord told Joshua, it will give us an opportunity to mark events in our family’s life in such a way that we can remember God’s faithfulness and tell our children of His wondrous works.
Digging for Diamonds: Read Gen. 9:8-17 and write down your insights into the relationship of this story to the story of the stones in Joshua.
20. Sharing question: What practical things have you done to help you remember God’s work, His answered prayers, or His mighty deeds in your life? If you haven’t done that, what is your plan to make a marker of remembrance? You may want to try one of the ideas in today’s stories.
21. Responding to God: Spend time thanking God for the mighty works He has done for you. Write a prayer or poem of praise. You may prefer to draw an illustration of the one that stands out in your mind.
Review the story in Joshua 4:1-24 and read Joshua 5:1.
22. What purposes did God have for His miracle at the Jordan River (3:7, 10; 4:23-24)?
23. At this point, how well had God succeeded in fulfilling His purposes (4:14, 5:1)?
24. How would you have felt to have been at the Jordan River with Joshua and all the people, realizing that your parents crossed at the Red Sea or maybe you did also as a child? How would you have viewed Joshua, and what would you have learned about God?
Digging for Diamonds: In your concordance or on bible.org or other online references look up “know I am LORD” and similar phrases. Glance through the passages. Look for those where God is saying that His actions will result in the knowledge that He is God. Write down any insights that you gain.
25. Sharing question: What is the greatest lesson that you have learned about God? What happened to help you learn it? How does knowing that truth about God impact a specific situation in your life today? How does it help you deal with it in faith?
26. Responding to God: The greatest commandment is to love God with your whole being, before all other things (Mark 12:30). As God reveals Himself to us through personal experiences of His love and care for us, we should love Him more and more. Write a love letter or poem to your God, remembering His mighty works on your behalf.
3 Woudstra, 82.
This lecture page is designed to go after the student has followed the workbook and done the homework for Lesson 3. A powerpoint to accompany the audio lecture is available, as well as a handout.
How good is your memory? I really have a bad memory, and it is getting worse with time. Years ago my husband and I attended a convention in Puerto Rico. Usually at those events, the spouses just go off and do something fun while the actual convention participants are forced to hear speakers relevant to their field. This particular time, however, the spouses were invited because the hosts felt that we would enjoy and even benefit from the main speaker, who was a memory expert.
We spent all morning one day learning this man’s method for remembering names. Basically, we were to think of a visual trigger for each person whom we met; then, when we saw them again, we should be able to visualize that image associated with the person. Of course, it seemed to me that his examples were all pretty easy to associate; his names were people like Bill Boxwood; we were told to picture him with a boxwood plant shooting out from around him while his mouth was a giant bill.
I never meet anyone with names like that. You don’t have names like that! If you did, I would remember all of your names!
Apparently, remembering is a universal and age-old problem. Over and over the Bible tells us that God’s people forgot Him; over and over God gave them triggers to help them remember His mighty acts so that they would not forget and turn from Him to other gods.
This week the book of Joshua reveals one of those times when God so wanted His people to remember His mighty acts that He gave them a memory trigger.
Joshua told the Israelites, “Come here and listen to the words of the Lord your God!” Joshua continued, “This is how you will know the living God is among you and that he will truly drive out before you the Canaanites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites, and Jebusites. Look! The ark of the covenant of the Ruler of the whole earth is ready to enter the Jordan ahead of you. Now select for yourselves twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one per tribe. When the feet of the priests carrying the ark of the Lord, the Ruler of the whole earth, touch the water of the Jordan, the water coming downstream toward you will stop flowing and pile up.”
So when the people left their tents to cross the Jordan, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant went ahead of them. When the ones carrying the ark reached the Jordan and the feet of the priests carrying the ark touched the surface of the water – (the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest time) –the water coming downstream toward them stopped flowing. It piled up far upstream at Adam (the city near Zarethan); there was no water at all flowing to the sea of the Arabah (the Salt Sea). The people crossed the river opposite Jericho. The priests carrying the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firmly on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan. All Israel crossed over on dry ground until the entire nation was on the other side.
As we look at this story, we see that God acted on behalf of His people at the Jordan River. In this case there was an insurmountable obstacle before the people. God had given them the dream and the promise of the land; however, the flooded Jordan River blocked the way in.
But God is a God of miracles. He created the water and the land. Nothing is impossible for Him to do. The work of God in this case was stopping the flow of the river. This was a great miracle. Look again at v.16. The waters piled up in a heap upstream from their crossing position, and the effects of the miracle were seen all the way to the Sea of Arabah, which is the Salt Sea or Dead Sea because there was no water coming in. The scholars I read understand this to mean that the water heaped up at Adam, which is today identified with Damiyeh, 19 miles upstream from Jericho, and the water did not flow all the way to the Dead Sea; this would have given them a broad area of crossing.1 They didn’t cross single file, which is probably how we picture it!
This mighty act of God resulted in the people of Israel entering the Promised Land by faith. The priests believed that God would stop the water when they stepped into it because He said He would; the people believed that God had the power to continue holding back the water while they passed on dry land. And so they all stepped out in faith and entered the land of God’s dreams.
It’s amazing to think that their children and their children’s children would somehow forget this story. What a miracle! And yet, God knew their tendency to do just that. So He prepared a memory trigger.
When the entire nation was on the other side, the Lord told Joshua, “Select for yourselves twelve men from the people, one per tribe. Instruct them, ‘Pick up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, from the very place where the priests stand firmly, and carry them over with you and put them in the place where you camp tonight.’”
Joshua summoned the twelve men he had appointed from the Israelites, one per tribe. Joshua told them, “Go in front of the ark of the Lord your God to the middle of the Jordan. Each of you is to put a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the Israelite tribes. The stones will be a reminder to you. When your children ask someday, ‘Why are these stones important to you?’ tell them how the water of the Jordan stopped flowing before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it crossed the Jordan, the water of the Jordan stopped flowing. These stones will be a lasting memorial for the Israelites.”
The people went up from the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month and camped in Gilgal on the eastern border of Jericho. Now Joshua set up in Gilgal the twelve stones they had taken from the Jordan. He told the Israelites, “When your children someday ask their fathers, ‘What do these stones represent?’ explain to your children, ‘Israel crossed the Jordan River on dry ground.’ For the Lord your God dried up the water of the Jordan before you while you crossed over. It was just like when the Lord your God dried up the Red Sea before us while we crossed it. He has done this so all the nations of the earth might recognize the Lord’s power and so you might always obey the Lord your God.”
So that the people would have a memory trigger to help them remember God’s mighty act on their behalf at the Jordan River, He had them set up a pile of stones that came from the very bed of the Jordan, picked up while it was completely dried up by God in preparation for the crossing into the land.
There is also an interesting discussion among scholars about v 9. Look at it real quick.
Verse 9 in my NET Bible says, “Joshua also set up twelve stones in the middle of the Jordan in the very place where the priests carrying the ark of the covenant stood. They remain there to this very day.” Then, v. 20 says, “Now Joshua set up in Gilgal the twelve stones they had taken from the Jordan.”
Those who translated this Bible felt that since v. 20 says he then set up the stones, that the ones he set up in v. 9 were definitely a different group of stones.
If you have an NIV, it sounds like Joshua was placing the stones that the 12 men took from the river bed. This is not actually in the Hebrew; in fact, most other translations suggest that this was a second pile of stones that Joshua placed actually in the middle of the river bed.
Back to the point—you can probably think of other times when God asked the people to make memory triggers to help them remember. The Passover, which we will quickly look at next week is one. Another trigger is still seen on observant Jews, who wear certain articles of clothing because they believe God ordained them as reminders. The phylacteries on their foreheads and the fringe on their prayer shawls are to trigger their memories of God and His law.
We are to remember the mighty acts of God throughout the ages, not only in the Old Testament but also in the New. The greatest act of God on behalf of the world came at the cross.
God did this mighty act because of an insurmountable obstacle—in this case, our sins block the way to life with God.
Look at Rom. 3:23: “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”
Turn over 3 chapters to Rom. 6:23: “For the payoff of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Paul tells us that we are all sinners; no one can escape that truthful designation. He describes sin as falling short of the glory of God. We may feel like pretty good people when we compare our lives and our character to that of other people, but the real measure is God Himself. We fall far short of His glory and His greatness. We can never overcome that lack because Paul says that we deserve death for those sins. We can never do enough good or go to church enough or be kind enough to overcome the obstacle of sin that prevents us from life with God here and in heaven. We are blocked by our own shortcomings from reaching the life with Him that He desires for us.
Remember our story of Rahab last week? There was nothing Rahab could do to overcome her past. God had to do it. There is nothing we can do to overcome the obstacle of our own sin as we attempt to reach God and enjoy life with Him.
So God had to do it. God reached down to us to give us what we could never get for ourselves—no matter how smart, good, kind, generous, or loving we are. There is no heavenly scale on which our goodness can outweigh our badness for us to be with God. We are so short of the glory of God that no matter how much good we do or how many prayers we say or how much money we give away, God’s side of the balance outweighs us.
So God tipped the scales to our side. He gave us a gift so that the obstacle would be taken away. This was the work of God—Jesus, as God Himself, became a man, died for our sins, and rose from the dead to remove the obstacle.
“For I passed on to you as of first importance what I also received – that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day according to the scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as though to one born at the wrong time, he appeared to me also.”
What was the result?
We enter a life of promise by faith in Jesus.
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was fully God. The Word was with God in the beginning. All things were created by him, and apart from him not one thing was created that has been created. In him was life, and the life was the light of mankind.”
“The true light, who gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was created by him, but the world did not recognize him. He came to what was his own, but his own people did not receive him. But to all who have received him – those who believe in his name – he has given the right to become God’s children– children not born by human parents or by human desire or a husband’s decision, but by God.
Now the Word became flesh and took up residence among us. We saw his glory – the glory of the one and only, full of grace and truth, who came from the Father.”
“For this is the way God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.”
The mighty act of God on behalf of the world at the cross meant that God Himself came to earth to die and remove the obstacle to life with Him. When we believe, not when we go to church or when we feel guilty, but when we believe that Jesus is God who came and died for us, when we trust in Him as our gift instead of relying on our own goodness, we receive Him and His life.
What an amazing gift! What an amazing God! But we have the same problem that Israel did—a memory problem. If we aren’t frequently reminded of the mighty act of God on our behalf, we forget and lose focus in life. We begin to turn to other gods to give us life—gods like beauty, husbands, children, success, and friends.
So God gave us a memory trigger, also—communion, which reminds us of Jesus’ sacrifice for the life we now have and our future with Him
“For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night in which he was betrayed took bread, and after he had given thanks he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way, he also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, every time you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For every time you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.”
So that we always remember this mighty act of Jesus on our behalf, we participate in eating the bread and drinking the cup. Today we will do so together.
If you have trusted in Jesus and believe in His work on your behalf, not trying to please God yourself but throwing yourself on the mercy that Jesus gives through His death, you are welcome to partake of this bread and cup if you desire. Feel free to let it pass if you are more comfortable doing so. We remember together His mighty act on our behalf. If you are still on the journey of discovering who Jesus is and what He offers you, we ask you to simply pass it on.
If you want to participate in this memorial and remembrance, follow your leader and do what she does. If you are the leader at the table, please break a piece of bread and pass the rest around. All of you who want to participate, break a piece for yourself until we all have them. Hold them in your hands, and remember Jesus’ work on your behalf in coming to earth and dying for you.
Luke described the first time Jesus told them to remember Him this way in Luke 22:
“Then he took bread, and after giving thanks he broke it and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is my body which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”’
Ladies, now take and eat the bread in remembrance of Jesus.
Now, leaders, take the cup on front of you. Hold them in your hands, ladies, and think about the death that Jesus died for you so that the obstacle of sin was removed from your relationship with God.
“And in the same way he took the cup after they had eaten, saying, ‘This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.’”
Together let’s now drink the cup, remembering the mighty work He did by pouring out His blood for you.
God calls us to remember His mighty acts, just as He called the Israelites to remember His opening the way to the Promised Land by removing the obstacle of the flooded Jordan. We are to remember Jesus’ opening the way to a promised life with God by removing the obstacle of our sins.
But there is more to remember. God is always at work on our behalf, and if you are to remember His mighty acts on your behalf day-by-day, I suggest you have a memory trigger.
What mighty act of God do you need to remember? What obstacle has He removed? What prayer has He answered? What mighty deeds has He done for you? What door has He opened?
You may need to spend some time with God for Him to show you something that you have forgotten. Or you may know right now what God has done that you need to mark by a memory trigger. I have brought each of us a small stone to use as a memory trigger. I suggest that you put it in a prominent place where it will serve to remind you of that thing that God has done for you. Put it by your sink where you see it each day; put it in your coin purse so you notice it each time you get out change; put it on your desk where you spend time working.
Throughout the Old Testament, God was called the Rock. I think it’s fitting that we look at a stone to remember what God, our Rock, has done for us.
You may want to use it to remember how much God loves you so much that Jesus came and died so that you can be totally forgiven of the old life you had, just as Rahab was. You may to use it to remind you of His faithfulness to you in an answered prayer when He healed you physically, emotionally, or spiritually. What is a Jordan River crossing in your life?
You can choose other memory triggers as God does things for you. I have on a necklace that has the name of God el roi on it. That name means “the God who sees,” and comes from a story of Hagar. Years ago there was a hard time in my life when I relied upon el roi, knowing that He saw everything that had happened to me and would bring truth to light. Later that year I had the opportunity to buy this necklace in Israel and I bought it to always remind me of God’s mighty deeds in my day-to-day life.
Remember God’s mighty acts. Do what He called Israel to do at the Jordan and prepare a memory trigger so that you always remember what He has done on your behalf.
A Word from Kay Daigle on how to use the resources for this study…I want to encourage you to complete the personal lesson below before you click on any of the accompanying elements that may be found with this lesson (audio lecture, manuscript, PowerPoint, or handout). This study was written to help you maximize your personal spiritual growth. That means that you first spend time with God through His word, and then hopefully, discuss what you learned with a small group of women. After that, if you want to hear the audio (or read the manuscript) and follow the PowerPoint, filling in the handout, then that is a great time to do it! I cannot cover all the verses in depth, but you can read and study them for yourself. It is best for you to think through the passages before hearing what anyone else thinks, even me! You will find some lessons without lectures. At our church we use some of those weeks to spend extra time in our small groups sharing life stories, having a longer prayer time, or expressing how God is working in our lives.
“’Truly I am the commander of the LORD’s army. Now I have arrived!’ Joshua bowed down with his face to the ground and asked, ‘What does my master want to say to his servant?’”
Joshua 5:14
We like to force others to our side—whatever that side is. Just like little kids arguing over a game, we want to “win” by having others agree with us and not with the other side. Adults are no different. We often tell others about those who are “wrong” so that we get that third party on our side before the other person does!
What about God’s side? Do we ever think about what that side would be? Or do we assume we know it, and of course, it happens to be our side!
Read Joshua 5:2-3.
1. What instructions did God give Joshua and how did Joshua respond?
2. How did the Israelites give a marker or reminder, as we studied last week, to this occasion? (The answer may seem hard to find but it is in v.3.)
Let’s look back at the beginning of the rite of circumcision for the Jewish people. Read Gen. 17:1-14. Let’s answer some basic who, what, when, where, why, and how questions about this story in order to be sure we cover the basics, as all good reporters do. Note questions #3-5 cover what, how, who, when specifically, and they hint at why!
3. What was the significance of being circumcised? How important was it?
4. Who was to be circumcised and when?
5. What promises were reiterated to Abram from the covenant in Gen. 15, which we studied in a previous lesson?
Digging for Diamonds: Look up Exodus 4:24-26 and Acts 16:1-3. What do these verses show about the importance of circumcision for the Jewish people? You may want to read in your commentaries about these verses, which you may consider strange!
6. Sharing question: You could say that circumcision indicated that the baby boy was to be on the LORD’s side. How do you show people that you are on the LORD’s side with actions rather than words? Do you respond differently to situations at home, at work, or in the PTA? What situation are you facing right now in which you can choose to show yourself to be on the LORD’s side by your actions? How do your words show you to be on his side (not words about him but all your words)?
7. Responding to God: The previous question may have uncovered some situations in which you have failed to act on God’s side. If not, ask God if there are some and confess those to Him. You may want to read David’s psalm of confession in Ps.51. Of course, God already knows everything but expects you to confess in order to walk in fellowship with Him (1 John 1:8-9). Write a prayer or psalm of confession. (A psalm would be poetic.)
Reread Joshua 5:2-3 and continue reading Joshua 5:4-8.
8. Why did Joshua have to circumcise the men who had entered the land?
9. If you had been one of the people of Israel, finally about to have the dreams of the land fulfilled, this event may have seemed like a delay and maybe a useless delay. How do you think you would have felt? What made it important enough for God to demand it before they possessed the land?
Sometimes our priorities are not God’s. Sometimes we fail to see the importance of the little things that God considers important; therefore, God may bring our dreams to a halt until we take care of the things that He deems important.
Digging for Diamonds: Use your knowledge of the Bible. What other stories can you think of that emphasize the importance of the little things? Maybe you can think of another example of God delaying until the issue was cleared.
10. Read what Jesus said. Write down what you learn about obedience in the small things.
a. Mt. 25:31-46
o. Luke 16:10-13
Before we leave this idea of the little things and before you think about your life and the little things there, I want you to read this real-life story that applies so well.
Denise shares her story of a time when God showed her to get rid of an attitude that she had. When God wants us to obey, it’s not always the kinds of issues we would put in our Top Ten list! Sometimes it’s the small things in life that breed sinful resentment and bitterness. In reality what seems insignificant to us, may be a big thing that affects our lives without our realization.
I used to mow the grass because my husband was physically unable to do it. As I mowed, I felt sorry for myself, let anger build up, cried, and was somewhat embarrassed to be mowing my yard in an affluent neighborhood where women didn’t clean or iron—let alone mow! (I did all three.)
I began to pray about my attitude, and God brought about a complete change—so much so that I began enjoy each Friday morning when I mowed. This has been very encouraging to me through the years, because I have proof that God really cares about what goes on in my mind.
11. Responding to God: Spend time just sitting quietly before God, asking Him to show you any small thing in which you have not obeyed. Ask Him if there is anything in your life keeping you from moving forward to see the dreams He has for you fulfilled. Write down what He shows you.
12. Sharing question: Share with your group what you did about what God showed you in #11. OR share about a time when God made clear to you that you needed to deal with something that seemed small to you but which was important to Him.
Read Joshua 5:9.
13. The NET Bible tells us that the name Gilgal sounds like “roll away”.4 Why did they name the place Gilgal?
In v.9 we find the Hebrew word cherpah, which is translated “disgrace” in the NET Bible. It is also translated “shame” (NLT) and “reproach” (NIV, NASB, NKJV). The word in the New Testament used to translate this Hebrew word in Joshua 5:9 comes from the idea of someone being taunted and reviled, reproach being brought on the person for some reason.5
The NET Bible gives us this insight into this verse:
One might take the disgrace of Egypt as a reference to their uncircumcised condition (see Gen 34:14), but the generation that left Egypt was circumcised (see v. 5). It more likely refers to the disgrace they experienced in Egyptian slavery. When this new generation reached the promised land and renewed their covenantal commitment to the Lord by submitting to the rite of circumcision, the Lord’s deliverance of his people from slavery, which had begun with the plagues and the crossing of the Red Sea, reached its climax.6
14. God always promised to “roll away the disgrace” of His people Israel as He did at Gilgal, even though their sins had often caused that shame. Write down your insights from these verses:
a. Isa. 25:7-9 (The word is in v.8)
p. Ezek. 36:27-32 (The actual word is in v. 30 but the context is helpful.)
15. Sharing question: Eventually, the Old Testament reveals that the people of Israel were disgraced by their idolatry and by the consequences that they had to endure because of it. Those who were innocent had to deal with the same captivity and desolation that the others did. Have you been disgraced by something you or a family member has done? Share your situation and your feelings of shame with your small group.
Digging for Diamonds: In our modern society many believe there should be no shame over anything because all choices are equally okay. Should people ever feel shame or disgrace, and if so, when? How does God use our shame over our sins? What verses come to mind on this issue?
16. Jesus came and rolled away the disgrace and shame which comes from our sins; in other words, although we brought this on ourselves, He took care of it! Read these verses and write down the dream He fulfills for us:
a. Ps. 103:3, 8-12
q. Is. 53:5-6
r. Heb. 8:12
17. Sharing question: How do you feel knowing that Jesus took your shame upon Himself at the cross and rolled it away from your life? Do you truly believe that, or do you harbor the guilt of a past sin? Without necessarily sharing the details of the sin, share your need to believe that you are forgiven and that your shame is truly rolled away. You may want to make that need your prayer request for this week so that your group can pray with you.
18. Responding to God: Draw a picture of Jesus rolling away the shame of your sins or even that one sin on which you tend to dwell.
Read Joshua 5:10-12.
19. What else happened at Gilgal?
20. What do you learn about the significance of the feast of Passover from these verses?
s. Exodus 12:12-15
t. Exodus 12:24-27
u. Lev. 23:4-8
Digging for Diamonds: Find information about the celebration of Passover today online or in other resources that you have.
21. Read Ex. 16:2-15. Why did God send manna? What do you see as the significance of the last of the manna in God’s fulfilling the dreams that He had given His people?
22. Picture yourself as part of that first Passover in the land, as part of the group eating food that was grown there in the land given to you by God instead of the manna. What might you be thinking and feeling?
23. Sharing question: What dreams has God fulfilled in your life—graduations, weddings, births, new jobs, new homes, old friends, new businesses, sales, ministry opportunities, etc.? How have you celebrated them? Or perhaps there is something you can do to celebrate a dream fulfilled now. If so, what is it?
24. Responding to God: Write a prayer expressing your thanks for the dreams that God has fulfilled in your life.
Read Joshua 5:13-15.
25. As a good reporter, tell us the “who, what, when, where, why, and how” of this event. You can write it as a newspaper article or simply answer the questions that the text answers. What would be your headline?
Digging for Diamonds: Compare Ex. 3:1-22 with Joshua 5:13-15.
Most of our English translations suggest that the commander answered “neither” or “no” to Joshua’s question. James Montgomery Boice explains this seemingly strange answer: “It was not for Joshua to claim the allegiance of God for his cause, however right it was, but rather for God to claim Joshua. The two would fight together, but Joshua would be following the commander of the armies of the Lord in his causes and battles rather than it being the other way around.”7
Boice goes on to say, “This is a most profound principle. Christians have a tendency to marshal God for their programs rather than simply follow him wherever he leads. As a result, the God they speak of seems to many outsiders to be quite partisan rather than the God of all men and women, which he truly is.”8
26. Sharing question: Consider Dr. Boice’s concern about putting God on our side rather than being on His. How have you witnessed this happen first-hand in your church, among other believers, or in the political arena? (As you share this with your group, be sure that your own attitude is not as one-sided as the situation you are describingJ)
27. Read Mt. 16:21-28. How was Peter not on God’s side? What was wrong with Peter’s thinking?
Who was this commander? Many scholars say it was Jesus Himself who appeared to Joshua.9 In any case, it was a supernatural being sent from God to encourage Joshua on the eve of battle.
Our tendency is to pray for our selfish desires or for the way we would handle a situation in our own wisdom and with our own limited sight rather than praying for God’s kingdom agenda. Essentially, we tell God what His side should be. As a result, we often pray against the very will of God, believing that He is on our side! Instead, we should pray to have the attitude of Joshua in 5:14, our Thought to Cherish this week: “What does my master want to say to his servant?”
28. Sharing question: If you can think of a prayer that you prayed that you later realized was opposite of God’s will, share with your small group.
29. Sharing question: Think of one prayer request that you have right now that you can revise to be more kingdom-focused. If you need help, turn to the back of this study where I have put some kingdom prayers from the Scripture. Use one of these, or think of a way to pray for the situation that is clearly on God’s side. Share with your group your new prayer.
30. Responding to God: Spend quiet time before God asking Him to show you where you have attempted to mobilize Him on your side rather than showing allegiance to His. Pray Joshua’s prayer: “What does my master want to say to his servant?” Write out your new prayer below.
God gives dreams, but we often fight Him because we want what we want instead of being on His side and realizing that what He wants is best!
I was in a phase of my Christian life where I wanted God to do what I wanted to do. It is like if you have a house and you invite people to come and see the living room and kitchen, but keep all the doors closed to the other rooms. I wouldn’t acknowledge it to myself, but in hindsight, I wanted to keep God closed to the rooms of my dating life and work life.
There was a guy that I wanted to marry in my 20s, and I prayed for that. Then, I would pray for other relationships to also work out. I would date non-Christian men, thinking that they would see the light and become a believer and we would be happy ever after. Then, in my mid-30s, I actually did date a Christian man, but he had a lot of baggage and I realized that I just couldn’t go there.
So, lying in bed one night, I finally said “Lord, you may not want me to get married. But you have provided for me. And so I know that if marriage is in my future, it will be of your doing alone. I release my hold on it. Thank you that you have given me the ability to support myself if that is what I need to do.”
Three weeks later, I was set up on a blind date with the love of my life, who was a committed Christian man before I met him. Resolution may not happen so quickly for everyone, but the action of submitting changed my life, and still changes it today. I know that God’s plans are definitely for my good and more importantly, for His good pleasure.
“For it is God who works in you to will and to act according to His good purpose.”
Philippians 2:13
I'm not sure what my prayers were during the time my dad was ill with pancreatic cancer, but I know my mother's prayer. She prayed religiously that God would heal my dad. She desperately wanted the miracle. She wanted to live out the rest of her life with my dad and she wanted him to live beyond his 70 young years.
They had been married 47 years when the doctors diagnosed dad's illness during gall bladder surgery in the summer of 1981. For a while it appeared that perhaps the diagnosis was incorrect but in the fall, symptoms reappeared and it would be in August of 1982 when my dad went home to be with the Lord. He was a believer and a faithful servant.
My mother grieved and railed at God for not heeding her prayer. It would be some time before she would come to terms with God, and it would be a long time before I knew the rest of her prayer. You see, even though she prayed for dad's healing, she also prayed that he would not suffer the terrible pain that so often accompanies pancreatic cancer. And during the course of his illness, not one time did my dad require pain medication. He was never in pain; discomfort, yes, but he never took any kind of pain killer. What a blessing God bestowed on him and those around him. The thing my mother wanted most was for God to heal my dad, but the gift God gave my dad was freedom from crippling pain during the last year he was with us. God always answers prayer, not always the way we want. We lost my dad to this life, but he didn't have to suffer during the preparation for his home going. I miss him, but I'm so very grateful for God's blessing.
4 Note on Joshua 5:9
5 See Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance Greek reference #2781 and its root words.
6 Note 2 in NET Bible: New English Translation (Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C., 2003), 402.
7 James Montgomery Boice, Joshua: An Expositional Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2005), 46-47.
8 Ibid., 47.
9 See Boice (44), Davis (40), and Woudstra (105).
A Word from Kay Daigle on how to use the resources for this study…I want to encourage you to complete the personal lesson below before you click on any of the accompanying elements that may be found with this lesson (audio lecture, manuscript, PowerPoint, or handout). This study was written to help you maximize your personal spiritual growth. That means that you first spend time with God through His word, and then hopefully, discuss what you learned with a small group of women. After that, if you want to hear the audio (or read the manuscript) and follow the PowerPoint, filling in the handout, then that is a great time to do it! I cannot cover all the verses in depth, but you can read and study them for yourself. It is best for you to think through the passages before hearing what anyone else thinks, even me! You will find some lessons without lectures. At our church we use some of those weeks to spend extra time in our small groups sharing life stories, having a longer prayer time, or expressing how God is working in our lives.
Thought to Cherish
“The LORD told Joshua, ‘See, I am about to defeat Jericho for you, along with its king and warriors.’”
Joshua 6:2
In the past few years there has been a lot written and said about people having “control issues.” Some psychologists use the term “control freaks,” and I am sure that some people are more prone to insist upon control than others—who want it but are not quite so insistent!
I think the desire to be in control is a common malady for human beings, not simply a few; in fact, it’s the essence of sin. We desire to be in control, to do things our own way, and to be able to take credit for what we have done. God wants us to realize that He is in control, that we must do things His way, and that He should receive the glory for what happens. Often His way is not logical and definitely not the way we would do it, making it hard to follow Him! However, the truth is that the success of our dreams is dependent upon relying upon Him rather than ourselves.
Day One Lesson
Review Joshua 5:13-15 and read Joshua 6:1-5.
1. Why do you think that the commander of the LORD’s army appeared at this point of the story?
Digging for Diamonds: Look for verses that speak of the LORD of hosts, which is another way of saying the armies of heaven. The NET Bible often translates the phrase as “the Lord who commands armies.”10 Write down your insights and how it relates to this passage in Joshua.
Dr. Davis gives this explanation concerning chapter 6: “It appears that verse 1 of this chapter is parenthetical and verse 2, in effect, carries on the conversation between Joshua and the ‘captain of the Lord’s host’ (5:13-15).”11
2. What was the promise concerning Jericho (6:2)? Be sure and memorize it and remember the power of God!
3. How would the parenthetical statement about the situation in Jericho (6:1) encourage Joshua?
4. Sharing question: In what area of your life do you need encouragement today? How has God used small things to encourage you so far—people’s words, circumstances, reading His word? Share those with your small group. If there is a person who has encouraged you, write that person a note of thanks.
5. Responding to God: Write a prayer of thanks for the ways that God uses His word, circumstances, and other people to encourage you. Thank him for a specific person who has encouraged you.
Day Two Lesson
Read Joshua 6:6-11.
6. Describe the movement of the Israelite army or draw a picture of the groups as they marched around the walls.
7. If you had been Joshua, how would you have felt to give these orders to your battle-ready troops?
Read Joshua 6:12-15.
8. What did the Israelites do on the 2nd-6th days?
Digging for Diamonds: Use bible reference books or online resources to look up the city of Jericho. What do you learn about the city and its people?
9. Sharing question: What do you learn for your own life from Joshua’s example in 5:13-6:15?
10. Responding to God: Ask God if there is any area of your life where you are failing to follow Him because you want to be in control. If He shows you such a situation, confess that sin before Him. Write down your thoughts below.
Day Three Lesson
Read Joshua 6:15-19.
11. What were Joshua’s instructions and accompanying warning about the things in the city of Jericho?
12. Review Rahab’s words in Joshua 2:9-11. How did she describe the attitude of the people of Jericho toward the invaders who had come up from Egypt? How did this fulfill God’s promise in Deut. 2:25?
Dr. Woudstra gives us some insight into the march of the army: “In view of the large numbers of marchers one must assume that the head of the column had long returned to the camp when the others were still marching.”12
13. Keeping in mind Rahab’s words, what emotions would you as a resident of Jericho have had as you watched this army, which has marched around your city for six days, now keep on going around and around? Would their actions have caused you to question their abilities to defeat you or would you be more afraid? Why? How would you have felt if you were Rahab and her family?
Digging for Diamonds: Read Acts 10:9-48. This is another story where God’s instructions went against logic, but God moved greatly through obedience to his plans.
14. Sharing question: For six days the army of Israel marched in a seemingly pointless procession as nothing happened. Sometimes we experience situations where we cannot see God at work, either. We do what we think He wants us to do, but He appears to be absent or asleep. Share with your group the story of a time when appearances were later proven wrong; God was indeed at work but in ways that you didn’t expect or recognize. OR share a present situation where God appears asleep. You may want to ask for faith to trust God despite His seeming absence in the situation as you write a prayer request for your group.
15. Responding to God: Write a prayer asking God to lead you to some verses which will help increase your faith when you face such situations. Spend time looking for some and/or ask other believers for verses that help them. Once you find a couple that you really like, write them out and memorize them. Share the verses with your group.
Day Four Lesson
Read Joshua 6:15-17, 20-21.
16. Describe what happened the 7th day of the “battle”.
The army implemented the order that Joshua mentioned in 6:17, when he said that all was set apart or devoted to God. Dr. Woudstra explains this curse:
This curse (Heb. herem) meant that something or someone was absolutely and irrevocably consecrated so that it could not be redeemed (Lev. 27:28-29). It also meant that the object (person) was sentenced to utter destruction (Deut. 13:16). Both connotations are intended here. . . . The temporal destruction by the curse must be seen as a prelude and a foreshadowing of a more final judgment that God will mete out to those whose unrighteousness will be full (cf. Gen. 15:16) in the end of days (see Jer. 51:63-64; Rev. 18:20-21).13
Digging for Diamonds: Read all of the passages that Dr. Woudstra mentioned in the quote above. Write out your understanding of the herem as you would explain it to someone new to this concept.
17. Read these verses that give God’s instructions to Israel concerning the people in the land they were invading. Write down your insights as to how these relate to what happened at Jericho.
Read Joshua 6:22-25.
18. Because of Rahab’s faith, her entire family was spared destruction. The people of God are always called to influence those around them. In what ways are you to affect others according to these verses?
19. Sharing question: Consider the verses in the previous question. How are you doing influencing others in those ways? Rate yourself 1-10 and explain why you put yourself where you did.
20. Responding to God: Ask God to show you ways to be more influential to others in pointing them to Jesus. Write a prayer asking God to fulfill the dream of drawing others to Him, knowing that He must work through you. OR write a poem describing the person you dream to be with God’s help.
Day Five Lesson
Read Joshua 6:26-27.
21. How does 1 Ki. 16:34 relate to Joshua 6:26?
The translators of the NET Bible consider Joshua “to be announcing the certain punishment of the violator. 1 Ki. 16:34 . . . supports this. Casting Joshua in a prophetic role, it refers to Joshua’s statement as the ‘word of the LORD’ spoken through Joshua.”14
22. What was the secret of Joshua’s success (6:27)?
Digging for Diamonds: Use your Bible software or online Bible to search for the same phrase used in Joshua 6:27 to describe his success. See how often it is used of other successful biblical leaders.
23. Sharing question: Share a dream that God has given you, not a physical dream of wealth or status or marriage, but a dream for your spiritual future—a dream of trusting God no matter what, a dream of the nearness of His presence, a dream of overcoming a temptation, or maybe a dream of making a real difference with your life. If you aren’t sure what dreams God has for you, go to the promises of the New Testament and read verses that help you see what He desires for you. Or go back to #18 in this week’s Day Four lesson and see God’s dreams for you to influence others. Share what God impresses upon your heart as a possible dream.
24. Responding to God: Pray that God will put His hand upon you as you follow that dream, knowing that He alone can bring it to pass.
25. Responding to God: Pray that the same thing true of Joshua’s success would be true of the leaders of your church. Pray the same for your group’s missionary.
Following God’s dreams often means that we go against the crowd, or even a friend who is making a different decision. Our first story involves a woman who spent time each day listening to God and followed the path that He showed her to follow, even though it was difficult. The second story concerns a couple who followed God’s principles although it was the more difficult option.
Gretta’s Story
In one of my pastor’s messages, he asked, “Where does God want you to go against the crowd?” I knew immediately—He does not want me to sell my paintings inside a church—which I have done in the past!
At this time God began to use my daily Bible reading to speak to me. In John 2:16 Jesus said “Stop making My Father’s house a house of merchandise.”
I have been invited to be one of three or four artists in an art show which will be in another church. I knew that removing my name from the show would cause a big depletion in the number of paintings displayed. I also knew that I had to talk with my friend who had invited me into the show and explain the situation to her in a way that would not condemn her.
Psalm 105:19b says, “The word of the Lord tested him [Joseph].” I really felt that I was being tested also. Then I read in 1 Sam 1 that Hannah gave her most precious possession to the Lord and trusted him to take care of Samuel. I could trust God with my decision.
I really prayed about my decision regarding the show, and then I read that Jesus said that He could do nothing on his own. So I asked God to give me His words when I told my friend my decision. I really wanted her to know that the decision was mine, not my husband’s, and that it didn’t make me feel that she was doing something wrong by selling her own paintings in her church.
She listened as I talked and seemed to understand my point of view. She responded by asking if I would place some of my paintings in the show but mark them “not for sale”. That seemed like a good compromise to me. The rest of the story will be written in a few months.
Amy’s Story
My husband has always had an entrepreneurial spirit, which has brought with it both some exciting adventures during our marriage as well as some challenges. In fall of 2001 he started a business with a co-worker from another company that, in hindsight, he had no business going into business with. While we should have both taken a step back, we jumped into it with the prospect of what could be. During a short 6 month period, the partner maxed out the company credit card--which was in our name--and was involved in some self-destructive behavior that was affecting the company’s ability to succeed. We had also secured some investment money from friends that had become involved simply because of our good name.
One night my husband realized he needed to quickly sever ties and shut down the business before we were ruined even more financially. What this did was leave us with a significant amount of debt that was tied to us personally. My husband was distraught, and we knew there was no way we could come up with the money to cover the amount of debt that had been accumulated in such a short period of time.
Needless to say, it was a very trying time for us both. I felt strongly that we were obligated to pay back as much of the debt as we could, regardless of how long it took. The world, though, said we were legally allowed to declare bankruptcy especially since it was a business venture, and my husband was at the point where he also wanted to pursue bankruptcy because it seemed the path of least resistance.
We sought the counsel of an elder from church--who also happened to be an accountant—who really encouraged us to do everything in our power to pursue other options, with bankruptcy being the absolute last resort. We did so and settled with the credit card company and set up payment plans with the individual investors. To date, we have paid off most of the debt, and although we’re not there completely, we have been obedient to what we felt called to do. In looking back on a few of the years since then, we have no idea how we were able to pay all our bills while paying off the debt but we believe God was faithful to take care of us because we were obedient to Him.
The law and the world’s system justified us in declaring bankruptcy, but we felt led to follow the Lord’s calling on our lives. We are all the richer for it.
10 Look in an exhaustive concordance or do an advanced search on bible.org. You will need to use the words used in that translation in order to find the cross references.
11 Davis, 42.
12 Woudstra, 109.
13 Woudstra, 113.
14 Note 34 in NET Bible: New English Translation (Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C., 2003), 403.
A Word from Kay Daigle on how to use the resources for this study…I want to encourage you to complete the personal lesson below before you click on any of the accompanying elements that may be found with this lesson (audio lecture, manuscript, PowerPoint, or handout). This study was written to help you maximize your personal spiritual growth. That means that you first spend time with God through His word, and then hopefully, discuss what you learned with a small group of women. After that, if you want to hear the audio (or read the manuscript) and follow the PowerPoint, filling in the handout, then that is a great time to do it! I cannot cover all the verses in depth, but you can read and study them for yourself. It is best for you to think through the passages before hearing what anyone else thinks, even me! You will find some lessons without lectures. At our church we use some of those weeks to spend extra time in our small groups sharing life stories, having a longer prayer time, or expressing how God is working in our lives.
“Get up! Ritually consecrate yourselves for tomorrow, because the LORD God of Israel says, ‘You are contaminated, O Israel! You will not be able to stand before your enemies until you remove what is contaminating you.’”
Joshua 7:13
I have a good friend who recently fought off ecoli bacteria. Although it was only her mouth that took the contaminated food into her body, the truth is that it affected everything. She spent a couple of weeks in the hospital while the doctors worked to help her fight it off. Her usual positive and friendly disposition was gone, replaced by a hopelessness and fear. When she ingested these bacteria, it didn’t simply affect her mouth or stomach, but it polluted her entire body; even her emotions were affected.
In the spiritual realm, we are not loners but are part of a bigger reality called the church. What happens to one of us affects the whole. It was true of Israel during the days of Joshua as well.
Read Joshua 7:1-15. Be sure and memorize the Thought to Cherish, Josh. 7:13.
1. Summarize what happened when the army attacked Ai. Why did God take His hand off of the Israelites? If you like writing a newspaper type story, do that. Tell who, what, where, when, why, and how about the story if they are answered. Why don’t all of you at least write a headline?
Our American culture emphasizes individuality over group identity so it is hard for us to understand this story; however, God sees us not only as individuals but also as part of a whole, such as a family, nation, or church. The editors of the NET Bible say this about what happened at Ai: “This incident illustrates well the principle of corporate solidarity and corporate guilt. The sin of one man brought the LORD’s anger down upon the entire nation.”15
Dr. Woudstra comments, “Achan robbed the whole community of the purity and holiness which it ought to possess before God . . . Corporate guilt and individual responsibility go hand in hand in this story. Though all Israel is involved, Achan is singled out as the perpetrator of the sinful act.”16
Digging for Diamonds: Read Daniel’s prayer for the nation of Israel in Dan. 9:1-19. Although Daniel never personally committed these sins, he obviously understood that he shared the guilt as a member of the guilty nation. How did he reveal that attitude in his prayer? What do you learn for your prayers?
2. Read 1 Cor. 5:1-13. How does this passage relate to Achan’s story?
3. 1 Corinthians was written to a church which had failed to deal with the sin of the individual. What are you to do if you see sin within the body? Read Matt. 18:15-20 and write down the steps you should take.
Dr. Boice said, “. . .God takes sin seriously, even if we do not . . . sin is the real cause of defeat for God’s people.”17
4. Responding to God: Is there anything in your life that could be the reason that your God-given dream seems to have fallen apart or stalled? Is there some kind of contamination in your lifestyle or your heart—gossip, bitterness, judgmentalism, immorality, greed, etc.? Is there anything that you need to clean out before God can move? Spend time listening to God’s answers to these questions. Write down your response to Him, either to clean the contamination out or to spend more time listening for the answer with an open heart.
5. How did Joshua react to the defeat at Ai (vv.6-8)? What can we learn from Joshua about dealing with a defeat or set-back?
6. Sharing question: What situation have you seen or experienced in which the sin of one person eventually affected a whole—maybe a whole family, a church, or a business? OR tell about a time when you had to confront someone because of her/his sin. How did you feel, and what was the outcome?
Review Joshua 7:1-15, and read Joshua 7:16-21.
7. What steps did Achan take that led him to sin? (Hint—note what he says he did and how each step led to the next one. Consider the verbs!)
8. Compare Achan’s descent into sin to Eve’s in Gen. 3:6.
Digging for Diamonds: How does James 1:13-15 apply to Achan’s story? Feel free to read any commentaries that you have on the James passage.
9. In light of how Achan and Eve fell into sin, how would you explain the seriousness of the 10th of the Ten Commandments (Ex. 20:17) to someone who is unfamiliar with the Bible?
10. Sharing question: What do you “look at” that tempts you to sin? Perhaps you have never actually stolen anything, but what about the temptation to be discontent with what God has given you? Maybe shopping makes you want more than you need or can afford. Perhaps watching commercials or reading about the rich makes you long for a different place to live or wish for other luxuries. You may look at other women’s husbands and see yours come up short. Or maybe you just want a husband! Write down one thing you can do to flee such temptation. Ask your group to pray for you in this area this week.
11. Responding to God: Talk to God about your discontent or other sin that comes from what you see or read. Commit before Him to change a habit that leads you into temptation. Pray for His Spirit to give you strength to follow through instead of falling into temptation.
Review Joshua 7:1, 19-21 and read Joshua 7:22-23.
12. Despite Achan’s attempt to hide what he had stolen, God knew because He was right there with him! Read Psalm 139:1-12. How did the psalmist describe God’s omnipresence, the fact that He is everywhere and sees everything?
13. Sharing question: Which verse from Psalm 139 concerning God’s omnipresence is most meaningful to you? Why? How does God’s omnipresence give your encouragement, and how does it give you a healthy fear of Him?
Read Joshua 7:24-26.
Most English translations do not translate the word achor; however, the NET Bible does, using the name “Valley of Disaster”. The note says, “Or ‘Trouble’ the name is ‘Achor’ in Hebrew, which means ‘disaster’ or ‘trouble’”.18 It is the same word found twice in v. 25 when Joshua said to Achan, “Why have you brought disaster on us? The LORD will bring disaster on you today!” (NET),
14. What “disaster” or “trouble” did God bring on Achan that day?
15. Read Deut. 24:16. What does this suggest about Achan’s family in light of what happened to them?
We read in Joshua 4 that God had the people of Israel build a pile of stones to remind them of how He had brought them across the River Jordan. It was a token of the goodness, the power, and the grace of God. In this case they built a similar pile of stones to remind them of the story of Achan, a story where God’s dream for them seemed to be falling apart.
16. Sharing question: Imagine walking by the pile of stones that were put in the Valley of Achor to remind God’s people about Achan. What would the stones teach those who paid attention? What feelings would they evoke in you about yourself and about God?
Digging for Diamonds: Can you think of other biblical stories that left examples of what not to do? What biblical characters had to deal with severe consequences because of their sins? If you can’t think of any such stories, read Acts 5:1-11, or review the story of Moses and the water that we considered in Week One of this study (Num. 20:2-13). Why do you think that God brought such severe consequences in these particular cases when we know situations where He seemingly let other people off the hook?
17. Responding to God: Draw a picture of a pile of stones. What has happened to you or those around you that serves as a warning in your life not to take sin lightly? Give your stones a name related to that story. Talk to God about how this reminder should affect you.
Read Joshua 8:1-29. This is a longer passage than I usually ask you to read in one day, but it completes the story of the city of Ai.
18. What did God promise before the second battle of Ai, and what instructions did He give Joshua? (8:1-2, 18)
God expected the Israelite army to fight. He could have simply destroyed the city and its people with fire, as He did Sodom and Gomorrah so many years before. So often we have trouble understanding that our God-given dreams still depend upon our implementation; we have to work toward the dream as if the realization depended totally upon us. Both are true—God is the One bringing the dream to fruition, and we have to work to bring it about. It’s somewhat of a paradox.
19. Read these verses and write down how they relate to these truths:
a. John 15:5
aa. Gal. 5:22-23
bb. Phil. 2:12-13
cc. Col. 1:28-2:1
Digging for Diamonds: How do all of the verses in #19 work together? Explain it as if you are teaching a new believer or a child to help them live out these truths. Feel free to use other verses with which you are familiar.
God has given us as His people the dream of His kingdom, both in us and for eternity. Just as the land of Canaan belonged to the people of Israel long before they set foot in it or owned a piece of it (Heb. 11:8-9, 13), we are citizens of God’s kingdom although it has not yet fully arrived. Although Jesus defeated our enemy at the cross (Heb. 2:14-15), we are left here to fight for the kingdom.
20. Read Eph. 6:10-20 and write down what you learn about fighting the enemy while you wait for the fulfillment of the promised kingdom.
21. Sharing question: How do you balance the truths that you must let God work and yet you must work? How do you keep from taking the credit even in your own heart when you have struggled to change or to do God’s work? How do you keep striving diligently to become the woman God desires you to be when you know He has to do it from within you? Share your struggle and the things that help you in this area with your group.
22. Responding to God: Write out a prayer based on one of the passages from #19.
Read Joshua 8:30-35.
23. What was the next event for the people of Israel after the victory at Ai? How does it relate to Deut. 27:1-13?
Imagine yourself at the scene with Joshua and the people. Dr. Woudstra finds great significance in the timing of this event: “In unmistakably clear symbolism the reader is told that the right of possessing the promised land is tied to the proclamation of, and subjection to, God’s covenant claims upon his people.“19
24. Read through the curses of Deut. 27:14-26. Then, read through the blessings of Deut. 28:1-14. Write down the curses and blessings that particularly strike you.
“Investigations have indicated that the acoustical qualities of that site are excellent for such a ceremony.”20
25. If you had been there, how would you have felt as part of this covenant renewal, particularly in light of the victories at both Jericho and Ai?
Digging for Diamonds: Read in a commentary, Bible encyclopedia, or dictionary about covenant-renewal ceremonies. If you don’t have any of these tools, see what you can find online. There is a related article about the covenant renewal of Deuteronomy on bible.org.21
We as New Covenant believers are not part of this covenant that included the blessings and the curses. We need not worry about God cursing us as He did Israel. Although ours is a covenant of grace, we know that God does ask us to align our lives to His will and His purposes. When we don’t, we risk His loving hand of discipline (Heb. 12:5-13).
26. Sharing question: The renewing of the covenant reminded the people of their responsibilities to the God they served, who had brought them to this land of God-given dream. It warned them not to take lightly the temptation to turn away from God. How do you as a believer under the New Covenant remind yourself of God’s will for you and of the risks of His discipline in your life? Share with your group a practical way you keep these things in mind. OR share with your group how God brought discipline into your life when you strayed from His path.
27. Responding to God: Write a prayer or poem about the love of God that reaches out and brings people into covenant relationship to Him.
BJ shares how God disciplined her because she was contaminated by the sin of gossip and contaminated others. She had to clean up both her heart and the mess she had made! As you read it, consider if you have completely cleaned up what you have contaminated!
I was at a church basketball league game many years ago and became quite agitated with the umpire (one of the church deacons). Unfortunately, I let my mouth run before my brain or the Holy Spirit. It wasn’t bad enough that I yelled some unkind things, I began to talk about him to others after the game.
The Holy Spirit began to convict me of my sin of gossip and slander, but I just “quenched Him” with all kinds of rationale and justifications. There were even some phone calls that ensued over the next day that brought up the subject.
The next Sunday was to be the Lord’s Supper and the Father had been dealing with me, but I continued on in my rebellion. Ever the loving Father, He had the deacon sit right in front of me during the service prior to the Lord’s Supper. All I had to do was lean over and ask his forgiveness. But no…I stubbornly held on to my “righteous indignation”. I completely ignored the scripture in 1 Corinthians 11:27-28 to “let a man examine himself” and “not drink unworthily”. I just charged on ahead and took the cup and the bread. That next morning I awakened with a VERY sore throat and no voice above a whisper! Having had no previous symptoms of being ill, the Lord took me to those passages and convicted me of my “unworthy taking” of the Lord’s Supper. He told me to call the deacon on the phone and ask his forgiveness. Yes, with only being able to whisper. Then He recalled all those I had gossiped to/with and they were to be called also!
After finishing all the phone calls and seeking forgiveness, my throat was fine and my voice returned. Now when the Lord’s Supper is offered, I do due diligence with the “examine” myself during those very quiet moments that are given during the service.
15 Note 7 in NET Bible, 404.
16 Woudstra, 120-121.
17 Boice, 58.
18 Note 11 in NET Bible, 405.
19 Woudstra, 144.
20 Woudstra, 149.
A Word from Kay Daigle on how to use the resources for this study…I want to encourage you to complete the personal lesson below before you click on any of the accompanying elements that may be found with this lesson (audio lecture, manuscript, PowerPoint, or handout). This study was written to help you maximize your personal spiritual growth. That means that you first spend time with God through His word, and then hopefully, discuss what you learned with a small group of women. After that, if you want to hear the audio (or read the manuscript) and follow the PowerPoint, filling in the handout, then that is a great time to do it! I cannot cover all the verses in depth, but you can read and study them for yourself. It is best for you to think through the passages before hearing what anyone else thinks, even me! You will find some lessons without lectures. At our church we use some of those weeks to spend extra time in our small groups sharing life stories, having a longer prayer time, or expressing how God is working in our lives.
The Lesson 7 Manuscript available for this lesson. The lecture audio, powerpoint and handout for Lesson 7 follows this page.
“Joshua captured in one campaign all these kings and their lands, for the LORD God of Israel fought for Israel.”
Joshua 10:42
If you are a mother or have been around young children much, you have probably figured out that time is very long in their eyes. Once they expect something to happen, they want it to happen NOW! Every child in his own way asks, “Are we there yet?” because waiting is so hard!
God’s dreams are often long in coming to pass, and we are forced to wait. Far too often we are like young children and grow tired of waiting. But God has a plan for our waiting—we are to grow in faith and in perseverance, expectantly looking toward the day that God answers our prayers and our dreams come true. We are to move forward as He leads, believing that He is the One who will bring it to pass in His way and in His time; however, as we wait, we must pray each step of the way to be sure we are following His dream!
Before continuing our story, we need to go back to God’s orders concerning the conquest.
1. Before the people of Israel ever invaded the land of their dreams, Moses gave them specific instructions. Read them in Deut. 7:1-6; 9:3-5; 20:10-18. What were they to do to the people of the land and why? What about groups who lived outside of the land? Why would they be treated differently?
Read Joshua 9:1-27.
2. At this point of the story of Joshua, all the kings in Canaan had heard of the invaders who had destroyed Jericho and Ai. As we have previously seen, God put them in fear of His people Israel. The Hivites of the town of Gibeon reacted by forming one plan to deal with the invading army while other kings used a different strategy. Contrast the two plans (vv. 1-13). (Feel free to write this as a newspaper article. That seems to work well with these stories!)
3. Once they discovered the deception, why did the Israelite leaders not break the treaty? Read these verses and write down your insights:
dd. Joshua 9:15, 18-20
ee. Psalm 15:1, 4b
ff. Ecc. 5:4-7
4. In case you missed it, what was the mistake that God’s people made (Joshua 9:14)? Read 2 Chron. 16:12-13. How does it relate?
God’s wisdom comes straight out of His word. The more we put it into us, the more wisdom we have to draw from as we live our lives day by day. The more we know the Word, the more we can sort out our own wisdom from God’s. As we diligently seek God’s wisdom, we have His promise to give it to us (Jam. 1:5).
Digging for Diamonds: Read Prov. 1:1-9. What do you learn about the purpose of the proverbs and about seeking God’s wisdom? Consider an area of your life where you need God’s wisdom now. Use a concordance to go to proverbs that may deal with that area. Consider what wisdom God is giving you.
5. Sharing question: Describe for your group how you use prayer, the word of God, and other believers to find God’s wisdom in a decision. If you are married, how do you and your husband work together in this area?
6. Responding to God: In what kinds of situations do you tend to think you have it figured out without prayer? Talk to God about those times. Ask Him to remind you of the story of Joshua when you begin to move ahead of Him. Write this down so that you can look back and remember to pray!
Read Joshua 10:1-11.
7. Why did the coalition of Amorite kings attack Gibeon (vv. 1-4)?
8. Covenants involve the promise to defend the other parties. Although the Israelites had been deceived into making this treaty, they had to act on their promise to protect. How did God use this battle to help fulfill His plans for His people? (The answer isn’t specifically given here, but you know the answer if you think about all we have learned!)
Digging for Diamonds: Read about King Jehoshaphat. If you have time, read all of 2 Chron. 17:1-20:37, but if not, at least read the story in 2 Chron. 18:1-19:3. Think about Jehoshaphat’s real ally and his loyalties as king. How do they relate to what we see about defending our covenant partners?
9. The covenant between Israel and Gibeon explains a later event during the days of King David, and it helps us recognize the importance of being true to our promises. Read 2 Sam. 21:1-6. Explain what happened and why.
10. Sharing question: Do you come to the defense of your covenant partner Jesus when He is attacked? Not in a rude or condescending way but in love? (See Col. 4:5-6; 1 Peter 3:15) Think of a time when you did and tell the group what happened.
11. Responding to God: Write down your commitment to defend the one whom you should love most of all, your covenant-partner Jesus.
Review Joshua 10:10-11 and read Joshua 10:12-27.
12. In what ways did God bring the victory that day?
Obviously, in these days of science we try to figure out exactly how God answered Joshua’s prayer. Those of us who believe in the truth of the Bible still have a number of options as to how and what happened. I like what Dr. Boice says, “What is certain is that God did something to give the Jewish armies a complete and decisive victory.”22 I have no problem accepting that the sun at least appeared to stand still or the day was somehow extended for the battle by God. I don’t need to know how God did it! He is capable of doing it any way He wanted!
Digging for Diamonds: Use any biblical and online resources on the miracles at Gibeon, but just be sure to check them out before believing them. There has been an email going around for years that says NASA has proven a missing day.23 The email is a pure hoax, but many Christians are so willing to believe anything that supports their view, they are easily taken in and then pass it on to others. I suggest you always check out anything online or by email.
13. God is in the business of working on our behalf and asking us to trust Him rather than ourselves. Look up these verses and write down your insights:
a. Ps. 20:7
gg. Ps. 33:17
hh. Prov. 21:31
ii. Isa. 31:1
14. Sharing question: Because we are in a spiritual battle not a physical one, we must never depend upon ourselves, but we must depend upon our God to fight for us. Of the verses in the previous question, which one is most helpful to you in dealing with a specific situation in your life today? Share the situation and the verse with your group.
15. Responding to God: Use Psalm 20 as the outline of your prayer. Write it out.
We have read how Joshua and his army moved into the land of Canaan, destroying the cities of Jericho and Ai and how they faced a coalition of Amorite kings and defeated them. The rest of Joshua 10 describes his military campaign against a number of cities in the south. We aren’t going to read all of the passages on the battles; however, you should read Joshua 10:40-43, which summarizes this series of victories.
Digging for Diamonds: Read all of Joshua 10:28-12:24 instead of skipping portions of this section. We will also be skipping much of chapter 13, which you may want to read. If you desire, go to commentaries or a Bible atlas to better understand the geographic areas that Israel conquered and settled.
Then, a coalition of northern kings came out to fight the Israelites, but God once again defeated them. Read the summary in Joshua 11:16-20, 23. Note the lengthy list of the defeated kings in Joshua 12:7-24.
Joshua 11:23 says that Joshua conquered the entire land; yet, we know from what follows that many cities were yet to be taken. So how did he take the whole land? Dr. Davis says this: “The children of Israel at this time occupied very little of the land of Canaan. However, Joshua had been successful in removing the significant military threats to Israel’s existence. It would now be the responsibility of the tribes to conquer and to colonize their designated territories.”24
Dr. Woudstra has this to say:
On the one hand, the book presents the Conquest as essentially completed (see 11:23; ch.12). Compared to the promise made to the forefathers, from Gen. 12 onward, this was a proper point of view from which to describe the events. However, the book features another emphasis particularly in the section at hand [chapter 13 ff.]. It speaks of a task yet undone and of a land yet to be occupied and possessed. There remains an assignment that is unfulfilled (see, e.g., 15:63; 17:12). . . . Apparently these two emphases are meant to complement each other.25
Read Joshua 13:1, 6-7; 14:1-5.
16. Read Deut. 7:20-22 to help you understand why God had them complete the taking of the land in pieces rather than Joshua complete it all himself. Write down your thoughts.
Read Joshua 14:6-15.
17. Caleb’s request would fulfill his dream of a particular land. What land was it, and why had Moses promised it to him? (This happened at Kadesh Barnea but that was not the land promised so read carefully!)
Caleb’s words here help us calculate how long the Israelite army under Joshua had been fighting for the land. Caleb was forty years old when he and Joshua spied out the land. Then, because of the lack of faith of the people, they continued living in the wilderness for thirty-eight more years. (They had already spent two years there beforehand for a total of forty years.) That means that Caleb was seventy-eight years old when the people finally entered the land. Now he was eighty-five, which means that the Israelite army under Joshua had been fighting for seven years before the land was allocated.
18. Finally, Caleb would see his dream fulfilled. From his own words, in what ways did he see God’s faithfulness to him through all of those years?
Sometimes it takes a long time for God to bring our dreams to fulfillment. Caleb never stopped believing that it would happen, and he was faithful to God and waited on Him to bring it about.
19. Sharing question: How hard is it for you to wait on God to bring the dreams that He has given you to fulfillment? Share with your group your struggle to remain faithful and wait for God to bring the dream about. Have you given up the dream? Maybe you have a spouse, a parent, or a sibling who doesn’t share your faith and you have given up praying. Maybe you have prayed for a prodigal child but have given up rather than persevere in faith. Maybe you have allowed logic to replace faith and consequently substituted other life plans for God’s.
20. Read these verses and write down how they can help you wait and persevere until the dream that God has given you comes true. Put a star next to the one which is most helpful to you. Memorize it!
jj. Num. 23:19
kk. Lam. 3:22-26
ll. Zech. 4:6
mm. Luke 18:1-8
nn. Rom. 8:28-29
oo. Eph. 3:20
pp. Phil. 1:6
qq. 1 John 5:14-15
21. Responding to God: If you have lost hope or totally given up God’s dream, confess your lack of faith. Ask if you misunderstood the dream, or if you lack the faith that it takes to persevere. Write down God’s answer.
Read Joshua 15:13-17, 63; 16:10; 17:12-13.
Digging for Diamonds: Read all of Joshua 15-21 and use commentaries or a Bible atlas to better understand where the allotted land was.
22. When left on their own, how well did the individual tribes do in conquering the areas they were allotted? Based on all that we have seen in this study, why would this have happened? Review Joshua 1:3.
Dr. Boice explains the next section of the book: “Toward the end of this period, Israel’s camp was moved from Gilgal to Shiloh, which was in the high country between Ai and Gerizim. It was probably changed for military reasons, since the frontiers of the nation were now secured. Here the second stage of the division took place. . . Then, the remaining tribes were assigned their portions by the casting of lots, which means that the choice was God’s.”26
Read Joshua 18:1-10.
23. What was Joshua’s rebuke to the tribes?
Read Joshua 21:43-45.
24. This book continues to remind us that God is faithful to His promises. Imagine yourself as part of the great army that had been fighting off and on for seven years. Now you had been given your own land to occupy. How would you have felt? Why?
25. Sharing question: Is there a part of your dream that you have failed to “occupy”? Something that you have not had the faith to do? What is it? How can you move from unbelief to faith?
26. Responding to God: Focus on the greatness of God and His faithfulness to His promises. Go back to the verses that you read yesterday in #20 and use them to thank God for who He is and for His faithfulness. Write down your prayer or poem.
Debi shares how she told God what to do rather than wait in faith for His direction.
My husband and I have been raising our three children in Dallas for the last 16 years. I was born and raised here in the same area where we now live. Each year we have been going back and forth on trying to decide whether or not to move north to ease the pain of private school tuition. The move would take my husband farther away from work, me farther away from my Mom and sister, and the kids away from the Christian school environment that we love. I had been praying for some time with my husband and my small group on making the right decision.
Summer was fast approaching and we finally decided to make a move even though I was not at peace. We told all of our family and friends of our plans. After looking at many, many houses we found one that seemed just perfect. I was excited yet felt like something wasn’t right but couldn’t put my finger on it. My prayers went from asking God to help us make the right decision to getting God to help us purchase our new found home. We had an inspection done on the house and found that it needed thousands of dollars worth of work done on it. Bump #1: We justified the extra cost and decided to do things in phases. Next we put our house on the market and the unsettlement of seeing the “For Sale” sign in my front yard was horrible. Bump #2: We rented a storage unit out where we were going to move and started storing a bunch of our belongings. The next news we had was that the house we were trying to purchase had some unpaid liens on it, and we couldn’t get clear title. Bump #3: My prayers were now “instructing” God to open the door for us to get clear title so we could move on with the paper work. We then got a low offer on our home the first week and countered and got no response. Bump #4: Then we got the news that the bank was taking over the loan for the house we were trying to buy. We couldn’t purchase it. Bump #5: We decided to keep our house on the market and hope to find another home quickly.
The days were going by and the unsettlement in my heart had deepened. I tried to stay strong and dismissed my uneasiness as a case of the jitters because of all the change we were about to experience. The next week I broke out in hives that were all over my body and was miserable. I remember sitting in my window seat in tears and praying for peace. I realized then that God was trying to tell me to listen to Him, and that the uneasiness was the Holy Spirit talking to me. I called my husband and told him what the Holy Spirit had told me and insisted that he come home and take down the “For Sale” sign.
I was praying for something and then not listening to God when he was trying to answer. Now when I run into “Bumps”, I pray and listen to the Spirit without questioning it or dismissing it when He is trying to speak to me. Some people thought we were a little crazy for shutting down all of our plans, but God’s timing is always right.
Just an update….. This all took place two years ago. My oldest son got a transfer to a public school that has an incredible AP and choir program and is doing quite well. My middle son graduated from the Christian School he had attended since Kindergarten and is moving on to a new public middle school with three of his friends and is very excited about it. My youngest is still at the Christian School learning about and praying to our Savior. My husband was able to coach two of our sons baseball teams because his work was so close to home. As for me, I don’t have the hives, and my business is doing great. I get to walk almost every morning with my Mom who retired recently and lives just blocks away. I know God wanted us here a while longer. We still may be making a move someday, but this time God will let us know when He is ready.
22 Boice, 82.
23 Read about it at http://www.snopes.com/religion/lostday.asp.
24 Davis, 77.
25 Woudstra,
26 Boice, 96.
This lecture page is designed to go after the student has followed the workbook and done the homework for Lesson 7. A powerpoint to accompany the audio lecture is available, as well as a handout.
Last year over 700,000 immigrants became U.S. citizens. To do so, they had to apply and qualify in a number of areas, including passing a civics test. Finally, they had to swear an oath to be loyal to the United States:
I hereby declare, on oath, that I absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty, of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen;
By taking this oath, the person promises to take on a new relationship, to be faithful to that relationship above others, and to be loyal to that relationship by fighting for it when necessary. On the flip side, the person who becomes a citizen can now freely partake of all the benefits of that new relationship.
This week we looked into the story of Joshua and the Gibeonites, which hinges on the taking of an oath, similar to the oath of citizenship. Today we are going to look at such oaths, which are called covenants. As we do, we will see that they also involve a new relationship that brings both responsibilities and benefits.
Before we turn to our story in Joshua 9, we need to understand this kind of oath, called a covenant.
What is a covenant? Covenants are agreements involving solemn vows.
Before we see how covenants affect our story, we need to look at the nature of covenants. Because of covenant, we have certain responsibilities and privileges.
We find covenants throughout the Bible. If you were here a couple of weeks ago, Shelley talked about the fact that covenants are more than business agreements or contracts because they involve relationships, not simply business deals. The first thing we see about covenants is that they actually bring the parties into a new relationship.
We just saw that the oath of citizenship means that the person is now a citizen instead of an alien. Similarly, when God brought Israel into covenant with Him, He gave them a special relationship as His own chosen people.
Look at Ex. 19:3-6, which took place just before God gave the Law, or the Old Covenant, to Israel.
Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain, “Thus you will tell the house of Jacob, and declare to the people of Israel: ‘You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt and how I lifted you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. And now, if you will diligently listen to me and keep my covenant, then you will be my special possession out of all the nations, for all the earth is mine, and you will be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you will speak to the Israelites.”
God brought Israel into this new relationship as part of His covenant with them. They were now His covenant people. Beginning in Ex. 19 God explained the covenant to the people in the Ten Commandments and other laws. In Ex. 24, the people and God ratified that covenant.
Moses came and told the people all the Lord’s words and all the decisions. All the people answered together, “We are willing to do all the words that the Lord has said,” and Moses wrote down all the words of the Lord. Early in the morning he built an altar at the foot of the mountain and arranged twelve standing stones – according to the twelve tribes of Israel. He sent young Israelite men, and they offered burnt offerings and sacrificed young bulls for peace offerings to the Lord. Moses took half of the blood and put it in bowls, and half of the blood he splashed on the altar. He took the Book of the Covenant and read it aloud to the people, and they said, “We are willing to do and obey all that the Lord has spoken.” So Moses took the blood and splashed it on the people and said, “This is the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you in accordance with all these words.”
It is at this point that Israel became God’s special people because they entered covenant with Him. We see here some of the practices of covenant-making that were used in those days: memorial stones, sacrifices and offerings, reading the covenant agreement, and sprinkling blood.
Over and over throughout the scriptures, God reminded Israel of their special relationship, which came about because of the covenant with Him. It was the basis of their relationship and the reason that God worked with them so uniquely.
As people of God’s new covenant, we too enter into a new relationship with Him. That relationship is described in many ways in the Bible; we are called God’s people, His children, His heirs, and His own possession.
Covenants bring new relationships. What else do we need to understand about covenants before we get into our story? Covenants are built upon the reliability of the character of the parties. They make oaths and swear to one another. Then, they base their actions in faith that the other party will follow through with his promises. The oath of citizenship means little if the new citizen is lying and planning on being a traitor instead. A covenant is only good if the parties fulfill their promises.
Now when God made his promise to Abraham, since he could swear by no one greater, he swore by himself, saying, “Surely I will bless you greatly and multiply your descendants abundantly.” And so by persevering, Abraham inherited the promise. For people swear by something greater than themselves, and the oath serves as a confirmation to end all dispute. In the same way God wanted to demonstrate more clearly to the heirs of the promise that his purpose was unchangeable, and so he intervened with an oath, so that we who have found refuge in him may find strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us through two unchangeable things, since it is impossible for God to lie.
God didn’t really need to swear when He made promises to Abraham because God’s character is so perfect that He keeps His word without an oath. The author of Hebrews tells us that He swore only so that the people would realize that there were 2 unchangeables involved in His promise—His oath and His own character, which makes it impossible for Him to lie. We see here that an oath should be so certain that it ends all disputes. We should be able to rely upon the word of the one who swears.
However, that brings up the third point about covenants. Because they are based upon the reliability of our words, we are bound though it sometimes hurts.
You saw this in your lesson, but it is extremely important as we talk about covenants. Ps. 15:1, 4b says, “Lord, who may be a guest in your home?
Who may live on your holy hill?” [Then God explains the character of that person and we’ll look at what He said at the end of v. 4] “He makes firm commitments and does not renege on his promise.” Or I like the way that the NIV says it: “Who keeps his oath even when it hurts.” The Message puts it this way: “Keep your word even when it costs you.”
That means that we are bound to our words even when we realize it will be costly to fulfill our promises. This is true of the oaths that citizens take. They will fight, even sacrificing their lives if need be.
So we see that covenants bring new relationships, are built on the character of the parties, and bind us though it hurts. Finally, they may bring consequences from God when they are broken.
Look at Gen. 15:9-10, where God made His covenant with Abram, who was later re-named Abraham:
“The Lord said to him, “Take for me a heifer, a goat, and a ram, each three years old, along with a dove and a young pigeon.” So Abram took all these for him and then cut them in two and placed each half opposite the other, but he did not cut the birds in half.”
When the sun had gone down and it was dark, a smoking firepot with a flaming torch passed between the animal parts. That day the Lord made a covenant with Abram: “To your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates River –the land of . . . ” [And I won’t read all the names.]
This covenant ceremony seems quite strange to us in our culture. We have very few remnants of these ceremonies left, but similar rites were still practiced recently in isolated places around the world. The verb for making covenant in Hebrew is the word bariyth, which means “to cut”, and is based upon this ceremony. When the parties ratified their covenant, they killed some animals and cut them in halves; then, they walked between the pieces of the animals, asking God to do the same to them, that is to kill them, if they broke the covenant. The two basins of blood that were sprinkled on the Israelites when they ratified the Law represented the halves of the animals. Because a covenant was a solemn, binding agreement, God was a party to the covenant. He was the one to watch over the promises and make sure that the people were faithful to their promises and their new relationship.
We have lost the sense of the seriousness of oaths and promises today. We don’t realize that when we swear to God, we bring Him as a party into our covenant agreement. We essentially ask Him to watch us to be sure we are true. When we say “so help me God”, we call Him as a witness to the truth.
I thought about President Clinton lying under oath. I think this simply reflects a culture that has no sense of the seriousness of swearing before God. Our court system takes it seriously, but God takes it even more seriously. We have to be careful what we swear.
There is a great example of bringing God in as witness in Gen. 31:44-54 where Jacob and Laban made a covenant. I wish we had time to read the whole passage, but I hope you will do so later.
Laban said, “This pile of stones is a witness of our agreement today.” That is why it was called Galeed. It was also called Mizpah because he said, “May the Lord watch between us when we are out of sight of one another. If you mistreat my daughters or if you take wives besides my daughters, although no one else is with us, realize that God is witness to your actions.”
“Here is this pile of stones and this pillar I have set up between me and you,” Laban said to Jacob. “This pile of stones and the pillar are reminders that I will not pass beyond this pile to come to harm you and that you will not pass beyond this pile and this pillar to come to harm me. May the God of Abraham and the god of Nahor, the gods of their father, judge between us.”
There are so many elements of covenant mentioned here, but the primary one that we want to note now is that God was the witness between them. If one of them broke the covenant by coming to harm the other, God was to bring consequences.
In covenant there are responsibilities and benefits, and we are called by God to them. Our story will more clearly show us what they are.
So let’s finally look in Joshua 9. We won’t read it all since you studied it and discussed it together. You know what happened. The Gibeonites decided that they would deceive the leaders of Israel into making a covenant with them. They had heard that God had required His people to destroy all the people of the land; only those outside of the land could make peace and be saved. So they determined to pretend to live far away so that Israel would make a covenant with them—and the word in v. 15 is that word bariyth, which means to cut covenant. And the plan worked. Israel never consulted God about the situation and went right ahead and made this covenant, which brought them into a new relationship with these people.
Three days after they made the treaty with them, the Israelites found out they were from the local area and lived nearby. So the Israelites set out and on the third day arrived at their cities – Gibeon, Kephirah, Beeroth, and Kiriath Jearim. The Israelites did not attack them because the leaders of the community had sworn an oath to them in the name of the Lord God of Israel. The whole community criticized the leaders, but all the leaders told the whole community, “We swore an oath to them in the name of the Lord God of Israel. So now we can’t hurt them! We must let them live so we can escape the curse attached to the oath we swore to them.” The leaders then added, “Let them live.” So they became woodcutters and water carriers for the whole community, as the leaders had decided.
The next thing we read is that an alliance of kings attacked Gibeon when they heard that they were now allied with Israel, but the Gibeonites called out to Joshua and he and his army came to their aid.
So because of covenant, we see Joshua and the people of Israel act in certain ways; in fact, they parallel the ways God acted toward Israel; and they should parallel the ways we act toward God, our covenant partner, and toward our husbands who are in a covenant relationship with us.
Because of covenant, God calls us to be faithful, as He does all covenant parties. We are to keep the promises we have made to our covenant partners, even to our own hurt. We have seen that over and over in Joshua that God is always faithful to His promises. What He promises, He delivers. Because his character is faithful, He can be trusted with His words. He kept His promises to Israel and will keep His promises to the church, His covenant people.
2 Timothy 2:13 says, “If we are unfaithful, he remains faithful, since he cannot deny himself.”
God will be ever faithful to us when we enter covenant with Him by believing in His Son. However, we will all be unfaithful to Him at some time in some way, but He will not use that as an excuse to be unfaithful to us.
Similarly, we have just seen in our story that the Israelites did not kill the Gibeonites although the Gibeonites had deceived them. They had sworn an oath to them, and they had to keep the oath.
I think this story is an important example, particularly for married women. So many women give themselves an out in their marriages because they feel they were deceived in some way or that they made a mistake when they married that person. Some may have chosen to marry someone out of God’s will, maybe a non-Christian; or maybe they failed to really pray about it.
But we wives have sworn though it hurts, just as Israel did with the Gibeonites who deceived them. Once we marry that man, he is God’s will for us; whatever that costs, we are to keep our promises. Jesus even told us in Mt. 5:33-37 that our word is just as much a promise as an oath. He said, “Let your word be ‘Yes, yes’ or ‘No, no.’ More than this is from the evil one.”
Faithfulness is part of the character of God. If we are to be like Him, we must be faithful to our words and to our relationships. Covenant is very serious and requires faithfulness. What did you promise your husband? In most marriage ceremonies, you promise to love and cherish, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, forsaking all other men so long as you both shall live. Not much wiggle room, is there? Although couples often write their own vows today, these elements are usually there somewhere. And God sees a marriage covenant as a permanent union of man and woman.
I do want to add one word here, though, so there is no misunderstanding. When I say it hurts, that doesn’t mean that you don’t seek help in serious situations. If you are being physically abused, you need to remove yourself physically from the situation, but you need to work to keep the covenant. Don’t allow your husband to sin against you, but continue to be true to your covenant to him.
Well, not only are covenant parties to be faithful, they are to be loyal. Our covenants have placed us in new relationships, and they take priority over all others. Our relationship in covenant with God means that He is our God and we are to have no other. Your relationship with your husband means that he is your husband; you are to have no other love. That is why James 4:4 calls Christians adulterers when we put anything else before God.
Loyalty means that we fight with and for our covenant partners. We have seen God fight for Israel all the way through Joshua and also here when they protected the Gibeonites. Joshua 10:14 says that the Lord fought for Israel. In that same battle, Israel fought for Gibeon out of loyalty.
In the same way we are to fight for God. Ephesians 6:10-20 tells us to fight God’s enemy with the armor of God. We are to take sides and to fight when our covenant partner needs us.
How does that apply to your marriage? Your husband is your covenant partner, and you are on his side and are even one with him. That means that you stand for him, even against your family and your friends. You are to be loyal to him. Just as our citizenship means that we side with our country against all others—even our country of birth. As a wife, you side with your husband over all others, even our parents. He is your husband, and it is to him that you owe your loyalty. Sometimes that means that you say no to your parents because it is best for your husband or because of his wishes.
You are responsible to be faithful and loyal in covenant. But you also have privileges. You can boldly ask your covenant partner for help.
In our story we saw the Gibeonites boldly cry out for the Israelites to come to their defense. It was their privilege. Joshua 10:6 says, “The men of Gibeon sent this message to Joshua at the camp in Gilgal, ‘do not abandon your subjects! Rescue us! Help us! For all the Amorite kings living in the hill country are attacking us.’ ”
In the same say, Joshua cried out to God on the day of that battle. Look at Josh. 10:14: “There has not been a day like it before or since. The Lord obeyed a man, for the Lord fought for Israel!” In the Hebrew obeyed means that the Lord “listened to the voice of a man.” It was because they were in covenant. God had promised to fight for His covenant people, and Joshua boldly asked Him to do it.
We see the same boldness in Josh. 14:6-12, which you read this week. In this passage Caleb cried out for the land that God had promised him after he was faithful to God when spying out the land, more than 40 years before. Look at Josh. 14:12: “Now, assign me this hill country which the Lord promised me at that time! No doubt you heard at that time that the Anakites live there in large, fortified cities. But, assuming the Lord is with me, I will conquer them, as the Lord promised.”
Because God is a promise-keeping God, and because Caleb was in covenant relationship with Him as one of God’s chosen people, he could boldly ask God for what was his by promise.
So, too, we have the privilege of boldly asking for help from our covenant partner. God calls us as His covenant people to do the same in Heb. 4:16:
“Therefore let us confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and find grace whenever we need help.” Although the context is about Jesus as our High Priest, the truth is still there. We can boldly go before God because we are part of that New Covenant where Jesus is the High Priest.
What has God promised you? You’ll find those promises in His word. Call on Him to fulfill them. Ask Him according to His faithfulness to His covenant. Just be sure you base those promises on New Covenant promises and not on those given to Israel. Read them in context to understand them. But once you do, cry out to your covenant partner to fulfill His promises—His peace, His provision, or His wisdom! I think God is pleased when we cry out to Him and call on His faithfulness to answer!
I have some family members who are not walking with God as closely as they should be. So as I pray for them, I cry out to my covenant-keeping God and their covenant-keeping God to fulfill the promises He has given. I pray Phil. 2:12-13 asking God to give them the desire within to work out their salvation. I cry out Phil. 1:6 for God to complete the good work that He has begun in them, a work that I have seen. But I don’t give Him deadlines and I don’t give Him “how to’s”. I simply ask Him to do this work because of His relationship with them, His loyalty to them, and His faithfulness to His promises. I ask it based on His character, not because they or I deserve it. I am confident that someday I will see God’s answer to my cries!
You are in covenant with God. What a wonderful privilege! You are now in a new relationship with Him which requires you to be faithful and loyal, whatever the cost, just as the new citizens of the United States must now be loyal and faithful, even sacrificing their lives if needed! How exciting to be able to cry out to God to defend you when you are in trouble! What great responsibility to show forth the same faithfulness and loyalty to those with whom you are in covenant so that the world can see the greatness of our God!
A Word from Kay Daigle on how to use the resources for this study…I want to encourage you to complete the personal lesson below before you click on any of the accompanying elements that may be found with this lesson (audio lecture, manuscript, PowerPoint, or handout). This study was written to help you maximize your personal spiritual growth. That means that you first spend time with God through His word, and then hopefully, discuss what you learned with a small group of women. After that, if you want to hear the audio (or read the manuscript) and follow the PowerPoint, filling in the handout, then that is a great time to do it! I cannot cover all the verses in depth, but you can read and study them for yourself. It is best for you to think through the passages before hearing what anyone else thinks, even me! You will find some lessons without lectures. At our church we use some of those weeks to spend extra time in our small groups sharing life stories, having a longer prayer time, or expressing how God is working in our lives.
The Lesson 8 Manuscript available for this lesson. The lecture audio, powerpoint and handout for Lesson 8 follows this page.
“. . . Choose today whom you will worship . . . But I and my family will worship the LORD.”
Joshua 24:15
Standing alone if need be, Joshua pledged to be faithful to the end to Yahweh, and he kept that promise.
Last words are always significant because they show the heart of the one who speaks. What would you say to your loved ones if you knew your words were your last?
This week our study of Joshua ends with his last words, but the power and goodness of God continues on in our lives, bringing to pass those dreams that He has given us.
Read Joshua 22:1-6.
1. As Joshua sent the tribes out to their own lands to occupy them, he sent home the tribes that had settled on the east bank of the Jordan River. What was his final reminder to them before they departed (22:5)? Copy it below!
Read Joshua 22:10-12, 16-34.
Digging for Diamonds: Read all of Joshua 22 rather than skipping parts.
2. Why were the 9½ tribes upset when they heard about the altar that the other 2½ tribes had built across the Jordan (22:19-20)? What had they learned from the situation with Achan that we studied two weeks ago?
3. Why had the tribes built this large, conspicuous altar (22:22-29)?
We have seen a number of times in this study that the Israelites built things or named things as reminders of the past. This time they not only built something but named it so that they would be sure everyone knew what it was for (22:34).
4. Sharing question: Can you think of a way to use a name to help you remember God’s goodness, power, answered prayer, etc.? Is there anything that God has done for you through this study that you need to remember? Is there a physical reminder that you could make or use?
5. Sharing question: Just as the people of Israel learned from the sin of Achan, think about what you have learned from the stories in Joshua that you need to remember. What lessons are important for you to keep in mind?
6. Responding to God: If nothing has come to mind for #4 or #5, ask God what He wants you to remember. If you have thought of something, talk to Him about how to best give yourself a physical reminder of that lesson or event.
Read Joshua 23:1-16.
7. Give a brief report of this assembly—who was there and when this took place. Why did Joshua call them together (23:2, 14)? Write down the instructions that Joshua gave them.
8. What warnings did Joshua stress to this group and why would he have been concerned to give them these warnings?
Digging for Diamonds: Compare parts of Moses’ farewell speech in Deut. 6:10-8:1; 20: 31:1-8 or other parts of Deuteronomy to Joshua’s speech.
9. Sharing question: Are there places in your life where you have failed to fully drive out a sin and are trying instead to co-exist with it? Have you failed to get totally rid of something that doesn’t please God but comes from the enemy of your soul? It may not seem big enough to be a bother, but God knows that it can become a snare and a trap to you, just as the inhabitants of Canaan became to the people of Israel. Even sins that seem small to us break our fellowship with the One who created and loves us. Share with your group your commitment to deal completely with that sin and the things that cause you to be tempted in that area. You may want to make it your prayer request for the week. Write down your commitment below.
10. What did Joshua emphasize about God and His character to this group?
11. Responding to God: Talk to God about the commitment to fully deal with whatever sin He has shown you. If you couldn’t think of one when you answered #9, sit quietly before Him with His word and He will show you one! You can count on that! Write down your thoughts.
Read Joshua 24:1-28.
12. How was the audience at this assembly different from the previous group in Joshua 23?
13. What was different in Joshua’s emphasis with this group? (You’ll have to review Joshua 23:3-16.) Why would Joshua have changed his emphasis with this particular group?
Digging for Diamonds: Look in commentaries and/or other online helps and read about how chapter 24 resembles the kinds of treaties common in that day.
14. What characteristics of God did Joshua stress in this second assembly?
15. Sharing question: How do these reminders about God in both chapters 23 (review #10 in yesterday’s lesson) and 24 help you as you deal with trials in your life? What can you erect in your heart and mind to remember the greatness of God? Maybe you would like to draw a picture of something to remind you! Maybe you should set a small rock on your desk or a prominent place where you will see it. Maybe you can get a picture to put up.
16. Responding to God: Write a prayer or poem extolling these characteristics of our great God!
Read Joshua 24:29-31.
17. How was Joshua described? This is the first time in the scriptures that description was used for him. In light of its previous use in Joshua 1:1, 7, 15, why would its ascription for Joshua be significant, particularly to his contemporaries?
Joshua lived a long and faithful life before God. He was truly a hero of the faith who followed God’s dream, believing in it for himself and his people.
Digging for Diamonds: Use a concordance or bible.org to find other verses using servant or slave to describe believers. What do you learn from them?
18. Read Mt. 25:14-30. When the master responds to the servants’ deeds (vv. 21, 23), some translations use the term servant while others use the word slave. What is the point of this parable for us?
19. Sharing question: Think about how you will feel if you heard Jesus say the words used by the master in the previous parable in Mt. 25:21, 23. What do you need to do differently to hear that from Him? (Remember this is about rewards, not salvation!)
Read Joshua 24:32-33.
20. Read Gen. 50:24-26. What was so significant about the burial of Joseph’s bones? What did this show about God and about Joseph? What does it show about the dreams that God gives?
21. Responding to God: Talk to God about trusting Him with your dreams and about having the kind of faith that Joseph, Moses, and Joshua had, believing that God will bring about the dreams that He gives, even if they are delayed beyond your lifetime. Write down your thoughts.
Unbelievably, this is your last day’s study in the book of Joshua! I pray that it has been a blessing in your life and that you have been challenged to follow your God-given dreams. If you have had to skip any lessons or days’ work, you may want to go back and do those while your small group is not meeting for a few weeks. Or you may desire to reread the entire book and pray through it for application to your own life.
Go back through this study and review the lessons that we have covered in Joshua. Particularly focus on your answers to the Sharing Questions and the Responding to God questions. Look back at the Thought to Cherish verses. As you review, think about your answers to the following questions:
22. Describe the man Joshua. What have you learned from him for your life?
23. What characteristic of God has stood out to you? Why?
24. What has been most meaningful to you through this study?
25. What have you changed in your thinking or in your living because you have spent time with God and His word?
26. Responding to God: Write out a prayer of thanks to God for His word and for those things that you have written down. Thank Him for how He has used this time in your life. Writing this out can become a stone of remembrance for you if you will write it in a prominent spot.
Joshua was faithful to the end of his life. He chose to follow God whether or not anyone else did. Here are two stories about standing alone to be faithful to God.
I grew up in what most people would see as a “good Christian home”. My parent’s lives resembled that of good people who went to church and followed the rules of a moral life. As an adult I have seen that this status is no foundation to stand on. Christ is our only true foundation. I began to see as a teenager and college student that as cultural values changed and people around us changed, my parents’ actions and views on things began to change, too.
During this same time period of shifting values and standards in my family, the Lord was doing a work in my heart. What evidence of his faithfulness in my life! I began to see the reason behind “moral values” and what really mattered in faith. Through studying God’s word on my own, much prayer, biblical teaching and through sweet older women who mentored me I had a growing desire to know my heavenly Father even more. Along with these changes came new convictions and a stronger desire to please God more than people. I broke up with a long-time boyfriend and had to walk away from some close but destructive friendships. I even found myself wanting to steer away from conversations that were not edifying during family get-togethers.
This change in my life created new tensions with my family. Many people in my family and some friends began to see me as close-minded and prudish. Their lives continued to be the same, some even on a path to destruction. It was a lonely time for me feeling rejected by my family and close friends. Though, the whole time God was so merciful to provide friendships and encouragement that helped me to not turn back.
I got married shortly after graduating from college to a godly man who desired to raise a family that glorified the Lord. We continue to see my family on a regular basis. It still is not easy. My brother and sister might still be questioning reasons behind changes in my life. But I have definitely seen my parents take notice. During time visiting with my mom and dad together and individually, we have been able to talk about matters of faith in a way we never did growing up. I have had opportunities to love my dad through some difficult times in his life by praying for him and with him. I have been able to challenge my mom in gentle ways to lift others up with words instead of tear them down.
I know in my heart that God wanted to do a work in my life through those times of change. But I also know that he wants to do the same in the lives of my family. I am so glad I responded with obedience when He called my name even though it was hard to take a different path. Now my relationship with my Savior is closer than ever before and my family has been challenged and encouraged in their faith as well.
God has given me many unique experiences which have caused me to follow a different path from that of my immediate family and friends. About 8 years ago I went on my first mission trip to the border of Mexico. I saw people who were sifting through garbage and eating leftovers because of poverty. I heard the stories of despair and saw illnesses for which people could not afford medications. I also saw the hopelessness in my countrymen and was able to pray with many of them and tell them about Jesus Christ. I went on 4 of these trips to Mexico and then 2 to India. I couldn’t get the poverty and despair out of my mind and realized that there is so much suffering in this world, for which Jesus is the only hope. I then began participating in the Hidalgo ministry here in Dallas and found people in need right here in my city and began to think about them a lot and pray for many of them. Some of the most sincere and kind people I met had little money or education but were rich spiritually. Through these experiences I began to have less interest in material things and derived great pleasure from counseling and praying for others. I became even more involved with Bible study, devotions, and church ministry activities, which gave me fulfillment.
As I have gone through this process, I have noted some criticism and distancing from some of my family members and friends. They can’t understand why I have been focusing so much on others, especially those who are poor, involved in addictions, in dysfunctional families, the elderly and those with mental disorders. They view me as different or weird and do not approve of some of these activities, but I see it as a great way to follow the teachings of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I pray that these family members and friends will one day experience the great joy I have felt over the last few years by focusing more on Jesus. I have learned that I can never please the world but that it is more important to please the Lord and to focus on eternity rather than the things of this world.
This lecture page is designed to go after the student has followed the workbook and done the homework for Lesson 7. A powerpoint to accompany the audio lecture is available, as well as a handout.
How many of you wear glasses or contacts or have had some sort of corrective surgery for your vision? I began wearing glasses when I was about 12 because I wasn’t seeing things in the distance clearly; they were blurred. I wondered how it was that my friends seemed to recognize people in other cars as we passed them; I couldn’t make out who they were. At school I had to strain to figure out what was on the board. Eventually (I was slow to get this), such clues made it clear that I needed help. Today, when I wear my contacts for distance, I have to wear these reading glasses in order to see what is close. If I don’t wear either contacts or glasses, I can read fine but can’t see beyond my hand with clarity. Without help, I cannot focus correctly.
In a similar way we need help to focus our lives on God; otherwise, we end up missing what is most important in life because our vision is blurry. We cannot follow that dream for the course of our lives without that focus. We must make an effort to see God clearly; it doesn’t just happen; we must work on it.
Joshua kept his vision focused on God for his entire life. Only once did Joshua fail to focus on God, when he did not consult Him about making a covenant with the people of Gibeon, as we discussed last week. Every other time that the Bible mentions Joshua, we see him following that dream by walking closely with God.
So today we want to learn from Joshua about focusing our vision on God. We will look at his last two public addresses in Joshua 23 and 24. His words here are merely examples of what we have seen week after week as we have studied the life of this man of God because Joshua had lived out what he told Israel. In these speeches, Joshua re-focused the people on their God.
As you saw in your lesson, there were two separate gatherings of people to whom Joshua gave his last words. The way the scripture reads sounds like they were two very similar groups. The scholars tend to feel that the first group was the leadership, which represented the entire nation, while the second included everyone. As Joshua addressed each group, his messages were similar although he stressed different things. As we noted in the lesson, a person’s last words are extremely significant; they reveal what that person believes is important for the next generation to hear.
So how did Joshua focus the people on God so they would continue to follow God’s dream? Joshua pointed them to the past, in particular he helped them remember God’s faithful deeds on their behalf.
Turn with me to Joshua 23:1, the beginning of the speech to the leaders.
“A long time passed after the Lord made Israel secure from all their enemies, and Joshua was very old. So Joshua summoned all Israel, including the elders, rulers, judges, and leaders, and told them: “I am very old. You saw everything the Lord your God did to all these nations on your behalf, for the Lord your God fights for you.”
Joshua reminded them that God had brought victories because he was doing it for them. Joshua summarized in this one verse all that this group had watched God do for them.
However, when Joshua went before the larger group, he went into greater detail of God’s faithful deeds.
Joshua assembled all the Israelite tribes at Shechem. He summoned Israel’s elders, rulers, judges, and leaders, and they appeared before God. Joshua told all the people, “Here is what the Lord God of Israel says: ‘In the distant past your ancestors lived beyond the Euphrates River, including Terah the father of Abraham and Nahor. They worshiped other gods, but I took your father Abraham from beyond the Euphrates and brought him into the entire land of Canaan. I made his descendants numerous; I gave him Isaac, and to Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau. To Esau I assigned Mount Seir, while Jacob and his sons went down to Egypt. I sent Moses and Aaron, and I struck Egypt down when I intervened in their land. Then I brought you out. When I brought your fathers out of Egypt, you arrived at the sea. The Egyptians chased your fathers with chariots and horsemen to the Red Sea. Your fathers cried out for help to the Lord; he made the area between you and the Egyptians dark, and then drowned them in the sea. You witnessed with your very own eyes what I did in Egypt. You lived in the wilderness for a long time. Then I brought you to the land of the Amorites who lived east of the Jordan. They fought with you, but I handed them over to you; you conquered their land and I destroyed them from before you. Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab, launched an attack against Israel. He summoned Balaam son of Beor to call down judgment on you. I refused to respond to Balaam; he kept prophesying good things about you, and I rescued you from his power. You crossed the Jordan and came to Jericho. The leaders of Jericho, as well as the Amorites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites, and Jebusites, fought with you, but I handed them over to you. I sent terror ahead of you to drive out before you the two Amorite kings. I gave you the victory; it was not by your swords or bows. I gave you a land in which you had not worked hard; you took up residence in cities you did not build and you are eating the produce of vineyards and olive groves you did not plant.’
As I was studying this, I was struck with the heritage that Joshua recounted to them. He reminded them of God’s work in the lives of their ancestors, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and went on from there to what He had just done for them.
What is your spiritual heritage? What faithful deeds has God done, not only in your own life but what did He do in your family that gives you a spiritual heritage? Or maybe you are the Abraham of your family, the first to have faith in the God of the Bible. Maybe, you like Abraham will begin a spiritual heritage for your children and their children. But you have a spiritual heritage. By whom were you influenced? Whom did God put into your life to draw you to Himself?
One of the great emphases that we have seen throughout this book is that of remembering God’s mighty deeds. Moses had recorded some of those deeds in the books that he wrote—in Genesis through Deuteronomy. That is a way to remember God’s deeds—to write them down for future generations to read. Joshua not only used the scriptures, as we saw when they read the blessings and cursings on Mt. Gerizim and Mt. Ebal, but Joshua also used stones and place names to help ignite their memories.
We, too, need to be sure that we remember all of the great deeds that God has done for us. We need to read the stories of what He did in the days of the Bible; we need to record the things that He has done for us, possibly all the way back to our spiritual heritage. We may need other physical reminders, like the stones that we gave you a few weeks ago.
If you were in our study of the minor prophets last fall, you probably remember how often God said that His own people had forgotten Him. God’s people are prone to forget Him instead of remembering what He has done. We are no exception; without reminders we will forget the faithful and mighty deeds of God.
As we do that, as we focus on the faithful deeds that God has done, we grow in faith and gratitude. The only way to trust God is to know that He is trustworthy. If we are to have faith in Him when we reach the hard times in life or when our dreams are slow to come true, we must know that He is trustworthy and mighty from our past experience. When we forget and begin to focus on the hardship or the delay, we are not seeing clearly; our vision has blurred, and we can easily move in the wrong direction.
Some years back when my husband had the problem with his eye that I have mentioned in here before, I had to rely upon what I had learned about God in previous trials. I had to remember that He was faithful to me before, that He had kept His promises before, that He had proven Himself wise before. I remembered how He had carried me when I grieved over my father’s death. That is how I had the faith that I needed to go through the present experience. And remembering those things in the midst of a hard time helped me be grateful; even though we were struggling with a difficult situation, I could be thankful for the little ways that I saw God at work, believing that He was at work now as He had been in the past.
So the first thing that we see from Joshua’s example is to focus on God by remembering the past, the faithful deeds that He has done in our lives and for our families.
Secondly, we see that Joshua teaches us to follow that dream, focusing on God in the present—to revere His majestic power. As we read in Josh. 23:6-16, think of how Joshua describes the greatness and power of God.
Joshua 23:6-16
Be very strong! Carefully obey all that is written in the law scroll of Moses so you won’t swerve from it to the right or the left, or associate with these nations that remain near you. You must not invoke or make solemn declarations by the names of their gods! You must not worship or bow down to them! But you must be loyal to the Lord your God, as you have been to this very day.
“The Lord drove out from before you great and mighty nations; no one has been able to resist you to this very day. One of you makes a thousand run away, for the Lord your God fights for you as he promised you he would. Watch yourselves carefully! Love the Lord your God! But if you ever turn away and make alliances with these nations that remain near you, and intermarry with them and establish friendly relations with them, know for certain that the Lord our God will no longer drive out these nations from before you. They will trap and ensnare you; they will be a whip that tears your sides and thorns that blind your eyes until you disappear from this good land the Lord your God gave you.
“Look, today I am about to die. You know with all your heart and being that not even one of all the faithful promises the Lord your God made to you is left unfulfilled; every one was realized – not one promise is unfulfilled! But in the same way every faithful promise the Lord your God made to you has been realized, it is just as certain, if you disobey, that the Lord will bring on you every judgment until he destroys you from this good land which the Lord your God gave you. If you violate the covenantal laws of the Lord your God which he commanded you to keep, and follow, worship, and bow down to other gods, the Lord will be very angry with you and you will disappear quickly from the good land which he gave to you.”
In this address to the leaders, Joshua not only recounted God’s great deeds of the past, but he also clearly warned them that God in His greatness will bring consequences if they forget Him. God is God; and He is able and willing to deal with His people who are drawn away from their allegiance to Him. In 23:16 Joshua reminded them that they were in a covenant with God, as we discussed last week, and that God expected them to be loyal to Him alone in their worship. God is majestic and great and expects His people to worship Him alone because they recognize it. The reason we focus on the present, revering the majestic power of God is so that we remember to obey and serve Him alone.
Now obey the Lord and worship him with integrity and loyalty. Put aside the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates and in Egypt and worship the Lord. If you have no desire to worship the Lord, choose today whom you will worship, whether it be the gods whom your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living. But I and my The people responded, “Far be it from us to abandon the Lord so we can worship other gods! For the Lord our God took us and our fathers out of slavery in the land of Egypt and performed these awesome miracles before our very eyes. He continually protected us as we traveled and when we passed through nations. The Lord drove out from before us all the nations, including the Amorites who lived in the land. So we too will worship the Lord, for he is our God!”
Joshua warned the people, “You will not keep worshiping the Lord, for he is a holy God. He is a jealous God who will not forgive your rebellion or your sins. If you abandon the Lord and worship foreign gods, he will turn against you; he will bring disaster on you and destroy you, though he once treated you well.”
The people said to Joshua, “No! We really will worship the Lord!” Joshua said to the people, “Do you agree to be witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen to worship the Lord?” They replied, “We are witnesses!” Joshua said, “Now put aside the foreign gods that are among you and submit to the Lord God of Israel.”
The people said to Joshua, “We will worship the Lord our God and obey him.”
That day Joshua drew up an agreement for the people, and he established rules and regulations for them in Shechem. Joshua wrote these words in the Law Scroll of God. He then took a large stone and set it up there under the oak tree near the Lord’s shrine. Joshua said to all the people, “Look, this stone will be a witness against you, for it has heard everything the Lord said to us. It will be a witness against you if you deny your God.” When Joshua dismissed the people, they went to their allotted portions of land.
In this second address, Joshua renewed the covenant that their parents had already made with God at Mt. Sinai. Joshua told the crowd that he and his family would worship Yahweh, even if everyone else turned away from Him, but the people committed to worship and obey the Lord God of Israel. They even agreed to be witnesses against themselves if they failed to keep the covenant. Then, Joshua wrote it all down and set up another stone as a witness to the covenant. These people left stones all over the place, didn’t they?
“Israel worshiped the Lord throughout Joshua’s lifetime and as long as the elderly men who outlived him remained alive. These men had experienced firsthand everything the Lord had done for Israel.”
It is our firsthand experience of the majestic power of God that will hold us faithful throughout our lifetimes, that will help us obey and serve God and not replace Him with the gods of money, or children, or husbands, or success, or even ministry. God alone is majestic and worthy of our worship, but it is keeping those firsthand experiences with God in focus that help us do so.
As we have read Joshua’s final words, you have probably noticed how all of these elements or focusing on the past and present are mixed together. I couldn’t just pull out remembering the past from considering God’s majestic power in the present. Focusing on both past and present work together to keep us faithful to Him.
I have to admit that there are days when I would love to just quit what I am doing and take it easy for awhile. Just not have to think about the next Bible study or the next women’s event or hear about the troubles of this life! Just enjoy life for awhile—relax and take it easy! I would love to just take pleasure in what I have already done and leave it to someone else to do the rest!
I think that was what happened to the Israelites. They had apparently fought for over seven years when Joshua sent them to settle down in the land and take the rest of their territory tribe by tribe. I can just imagine them wanting to simply enjoy life for a while, and so they became content with what they had. Instead of focusing on God’s plan to take the whole land, they decided to sit back and enjoy what they had. It seemed to be enough!
Those kinds of thoughts are so deceiving, especially when we have already been doing things for God. We begin to feel that we are entitled to retire and let others fight the battles, let them finish the dream. As Christians, we are fighting spiritually on behalf of a people of God, just as Joshua and his army fought for a land. We can never say that we have done our part because there is always more to do. As long as we live on earth, our desire should be to persevere in God’s work. And that brings us to the final focus that we need in order to do that.
We not only focus on the past, those faithful deeds that God has done, and the present, the majestic power of God who alone deserves our worship, we also must focus on the future—trusting His promise to fulfill the dreams that He has given us so that we persevere in hope.
Look again at Josh. 23:5. Although at this point most of the dreams that God had given them had already come true, as you know, they had still not totally occupied the land. They had taken most of it, but there were still large pockets of inhabitants left in the land. So Joshua focused them on the future:
Josh. 23:5: “The Lord your God will drive them out from before you and remove them, so you can occupy their land as the Lord your God promised you.”
There was still work to be done to complete the dream; they had the promise that God would fulfill it, but they had to move forward to do it. If they trusted God and fought their enemies as He had asked them to do, they would have success. It was His promise.
When I begin to feel that I wish I could just hang it up for awhile, I need to focus on the future and on God’s promises to fulfill those dreams. That focus will help me when I am tempted to become content with what God has already done and think that I have already arrived.
A dream that God gave me long ago was to teach the Bible, not to a large group like this but simply to a group like a Sunday School class. I had grown up in the church hearing the Bible taught for all of my life. But as a young wife and mother, I finally had a teacher who was truly gifted in that area. She was wonderful. And at that time the thought came to me that I wish I could do that. I certainly didn’t think it was a dream from God then. But in time and with experience, God showed me that it was His dream for me. Everything that He opened up for me pointed to this being His dream. I never volunteered to teach anything; God always opened the door of opportunity. But more and more I began to make choices about my time and my energy and my ministry that allowed me to follow this dream.
But the temptation now is to decide that what I have done is enough. I don’t need to study more; I don’t need to take on new challenges; I don’t need to write any new studies; I don’t need to work so hard; I could just be content with what I have already done.
Maybe it is harder to focus on the future and what God wants to do with us when a lot of the dream has already become reality. God has fulfilled the dream, for the most part. But does He have more for us? Is the dream over after a certain point? When I get so old that I am unable to teach, I’ll know that I have done all that I can to fulfill the dream, but until that time, I need to continue pressing forward. The only way to persevere in faith for a lifetime is to continue moving forward in hope that there is more to come in the dream. God has more if we don’t become discouraged or content. There is still more to do for His kingdom.
“Now to him who by the power that is working within us is able to do far beyond all that we ask or think, to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”
God has planned even more to this dream than I have imagined. He has already proven that to be the case. As far as I could imagine with this dream was to teach a Sunday School class or a small group, but God has already done exceedingly above what I thought. I never imagined being on a church staff or leading a women’s ministry or writing a Bible study. I simply followed Him step by step and day by day into the dream, and He has led me to where I am today.
So I can’t say that I’ve done it and that it’s all fulfilled; God has more in mind than I can imagine. By focusing on the past, God’s mighty deeds in my life and on the present, God’s majestic power, I move toward realizing God’s dreams for me. But if I fail to continue looking ahead and believing that there is more to come out of that dream, there is the rest of the land to take, I will not persevere.
I need to hope in a greater future for the dreams that God has given me. And I need your encouragement to do so, just as you need the encouragement of others to see your dream realized. They can help you identify God’s dream if you aren’t sure; sometimes we want something that God doesn’t want for us. Once you do identify God’s dream for you, you will need others to encourage you, as Joshua encouraged the people of Israel; otherwise, it will be difficult to persevere to the end, serving and worshipping God, as Joshua did.
What is your dream? What has God shown you that He has in store for you? It’s time to follow that dream. Even if you are a young mom with small kids, there are ways to follow God’s dream. That is never an excuse to fail to move toward the place that God’s will is sending you. It may look a bit different now but you need to move toward the dream. When my kids were pre-schoolers, I began to lead small groups of women in various Bible studies. The dream looked a bit different then than it does today, but I was following God’s dream where He opened doors of opportunity for me that fit with the needs of my family.
Maybe you dream of becoming a spiritual influence on others. Maybe you thought you would be a missionary in a foreign place but find yourself at home with kids or barely making it in a work situation. Have you thought that maybe God is calling you to influence your workplace or your neighborhood or your children? Maybe you should be mentoring younger women. Jesus said that to those who are faithful, more will be given. Where are you following God’s dream now? What do you need to do about your own character and behavior so that you can be that influence—so that you can be a person whom others want to emulate? Maybe that is the first step in following that dream.
Maybe you dream of ministering to those who need it most—to the sick or the poor or the outcast. How can you begin to follow that dream? Have you gone to Vickery to minister to the refugees over there? Have you agreed to serve as a hospital visitor—to go visit those who are in need of an encouraging word and prayer?
Is your dream of a home where God is exalted? What do you need to do to make it that way, knowing that you can’t change anyone but yourself? How do you follow God in a way that speaks to the rest of your household because it changes the atmosphere of your home? What do you need to do to accept your family or roommates as they are instead of trying to manipulate them and God into changing them? How can you love them unconditionally as God does and simply provide a loving, safe home for them?
Essentially, as believers our ultimate dream is of hearing Jesus say on the other side, “Well done, my good and faithful servant.” Whether anyone on earth ever recognizes what we do here or the dreams that we have, we know that He sees it all. His approval is all that we really should seek. To win that, we simply remain faithful to follow that dream for all the days of our lives. What changes can you make in your life now so that when you stand before Him, He calls you His faithful servant? How do you live for eternity now?
As you follow that dream, keep your focus on God so that your vision is not blurred by the things of this world. This is not a one time focus, ladies; we have to re-focus every day of our lives. That is why we come to a study like this, because it helps us do that and gives us others to help us when our spiritual eyes get blurry.
On the back of your handout are some questions to follow up with our study of Joshua and our lesson today in particular. Take time this week to work through them since we have completed our study of Joshua.
This will help you focus on the past by remembering God’s mighty deeds; focus on the present by revering His majestic power; and focus on the future, trusting His promise to fulfill the dreams that He has given you.
Help focus your prayers to the bigger issues of the kingdom, knowing the coming of the kingdom is the will of God for you—“Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven”. Study the prayers of the New Testament and see how they involved kingdom issues: character-building in those who suffered, the glory of God in the midst of persecution, and the knowledge of Jesus in the world. Use these prayers to submit your will to the will of the Father.
Mt. 6:33-34: That I might seek God’s kingdom first in my life. (If there are monetary or physical needs involved, this is a condition necessary for God’s promise to supply to kick in.)
Jas. 1:2-4, 12: That God would use this difficulty to produce endurance, completion, and blessing in my life.
Jas. 1:17-18; 4:3: That I would trust that God gives good gifts and realize that His gifts are better than those I desire.
Eph. 1:17-21: That God would give me wisdom and the revelation of Him in the midst of this time.
Eph. 4:1-3: That I would walk worthy and show forth these qualities to others with whom I am having difficulty. (Look at the list of qualities)
Col. 1:9-12: That God would fill me with the knowledge of His will that I may walk worthy.
Col. 3:1-4: That God will give me the grace to set my mind on the things above rather than the circumstances.
Rom. 8:28-29: That I will trust that God is at work in the midst of these difficulties for my good, not for my destruction; that God will use this time to mold me more into the image of Jesus.
Boice, James Montgomery. Joshua: An Expositional Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2005.
Davis, John J. Conquest and Crisis: Studies in Joshua, Judges, and Ruth. Eugene, OR: Wiph and Stock Publishers, 2001.
NET Bible: New English Translation. Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C., 2003.
Woudstra, Marten H. The Book of Joshua: The New International Commentary on the Old Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1981.
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