July 23,2023
Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church
Lakeland, Florida
Grace to you and peace from God and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Please pray with me. May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, our Rock and our Redeemer. Amen.
What a man Joshua was! And oh the stories that he had to tell. Some of them are hard for our 21st century ears to hear. The violence, the carnage and all that seems to be raw nationalistic greed. It’s easy to stop there and miss the human being for which this book of the Bible is named.
In Hebrew, his name is “Yehoshua” which is often translated as “Yahweh is salvation.” And seeing the unfolding of his life, we can see that God indeed worked salvation for the Israelites through Joshua’s life and leadership.
What can we take away from the story of his leadership and life for the life that we live today. Well, there are a few things. First, we see that Joshua was a leader under Moses and undoubtedly was a witness to Moses last words to the Israelites before he died. We heard them last week. Moses reminded the people of all that God had done for them, of God’s persistent presence with them from the days of Egypt to the days
Joshua heard those words and then those that God spoke to him - “be strong and courageous.” “Do not fear I am with you.” “Be strong and courageous and follow all that you have been taught.” And the Scriptures show us that Joshua was strong and courageous and he faithfully led God’s people.
Please remember that while we have this book of Holy Scripture lauding this leader of the Israelites, it is not intended to be a biography of Joshua. It does not recount the whole of his life. It makes no references to any of his failures, any of his mistakes, any wrongdoing. Yet, we know that those existed because he was human. He didn’t lead a charmed life any more than any of us do.
Certainly there were times when he said, “Really God?? Really? THIS is what you want me to do.” Or, “God, this just seems far too hard. I cannot bear it.” OR, “Why did you have to ask THIS of me??”
So we too have questions and doubts, wonderings and frustrations. There are times when despite the assurance of God’s presence with us, God seems far away. Times when the task at hand seems as large as getting the walls of Jericho to fall. Where do we turn then?
Think about a time where there was a “next thing” ahead of you. When that next thing you were facing seemed as large as a mountain and as daunting as can be. When that next thing required a decision and the challenges seemed too difficult and the cost seemed too high. Like Moses, Joshua knew that the people he was leading would face those times. And so he implored them to remember, to call to mind God’s faithfulness in years past. And not just God’s faithfulness but also the community of faith that they were living in as they remembered and observed all the ways that God told them to live together, even in the wanderings in the wilderness and as they entered a strange new land. And then because of all that, he said something that parents often say to their children - “make good choices.” Joshua urged them as did Moses before him, to choose that which brings life.
In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus sent his disciples out to villages and towns nearby and to tell them all about the good news that they were witnessing. Quite the undertaking. And when they returned, the crowds gathered around and they wondered how they would be fed. Then Jesus showed them how - and thousands were fed. And then Jesus told them that following him means making choices. That whoever wanted to follow him must daily take up their cross.
So, our lives are full of choices. Some big as a mountain and daunting as can be. Others come in the very small and mundane decisions that we
make every day. But, you see, just as the Israelites were a people whom God had called together and was shaping and teaching what it meant to live together as people of faith, so too has God called us together through the waters of our baptisms. Called us and drawn us into faith. Washed us and marked us with the sign of the cross of Christ - forever. Made covenant promises to and with us.
Because of this we too are called to be strong and courageous, to not fear that which we face, and to choose that which gives life.
Thanks be to God.
