Sermon notes from February 5, 2006

Joshua 1:6-9

“Be Strong”

Do you want to be successful everywhere you go?  AMEN!

How can we achieve this?  Today’s Scripture gives us the answer.

Who did God say these words to in today’s Scripture?  Joshua. 

Who is Joshua?  Joshua was the successor of Moses.  God appointed Joshua as the new leader of Israel into the land of Canaan. 

Joshua is the 6^th book of the Old Testament.  Books 1-5 are called the book of Moses.  Books 1-5 are from Adam and Eve to Moses.  Then the 6^th book begins after Moses dies and Joshua is placed as the new leader. 

How did Joshua feel about this new leadership position?  He could have felt both good and bad.  He was afraid as well because all of the Israelites were supposed to follow his words now.  He had authority over all the people. 

Joshua questioned his leadership, wondering if he could lead like Moses did.  Then God said to Joshua, “Be strong and courageous.”  God promised Joshua that he would be able to be the leader of the new land.  His feet would be the first to step into the promised land of Canaan.  God said that Joshua would be successful in whatever he did because God would be with him.

This shows that we can be successful in everything and anything we do.  We need to be strong and courageous.  But how can we be strong and courageous? 

How to be strong and courageous:

1)      Be careful to obey all the laws that my servant, Moses, gave you.  (10 Commandments)  1-4 = Love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, soul and mind.  5-10 = Love your neighbor as you love yourself.  This is one way we can be strong and courageous.  Martyrs are strong and courageous because they love God with their whole hearts and love their neighbors.  They love God so much that they do not fear death. 

2)      Do not turn from it [the law] to the left or the right.  3 things we must do as Christians:  1) God – worship God  2) People – Love people  3) Money – use money wisely.  These three cannot be mixed up or put out of order.  We cannot use God or people.  We must worship God and love people.  We cannot love money.  We must love God and people.  This is an example of not turning to the left or right from the law.  This is how we can be strong.  If we follow those three steps, then we can be strong and courageous. 

3)      Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth.  Meditate on it night and day.  We must set aside a time to have quiet time with God so we can meditate on His word and what He says to us.  We can find out God’s will for us everyday by meeting with Him and hearing from Him.  If we read His word and meditate upon it everyday, we can become strong and courageous.  If we just hear His words once a week and simply think of it as good words, it will not turn into strength for us.  We need to meditate upon the words so that it can transform into power for us.  This will give us strength and success. 

Joshua was really afraid in the beginning, but as he obeyed God and the laws given to him, he became a strong and courageous leader that led the Israelites in the Promised Land, Canaan. 

God’s promises include that we will be strong and courageous, successful and that He will be with us everywhere we go. 

Announcements

1. We had a great time bowling on Sunday.  Kim Jung Doo mksn ended up being our big winner!  Congratulations!  And congratulations to the Steelers!  =P
2. If you have not yet handed in your prayer card, and would still like to receive prayer, please e-mail Liz Yoon at elizabeth.yoon@gmail.com and she will include you in this month's prayer card.
3. Please don't forget to pay your dues.  Your small group leader will remind you about this, but try to remember on your own. 
4. Our next Friday meeting will be on the 17th.  Join us for oodles and oodles of fun with praise and game time!  =)  BE THERE OR BE SQUARE!

If you have any other announcements, please feel free to update this entry. 

Have an amazingly blessing week y'all!