Joshua 23-24 Bible Study (Joshua's Charge to Israel's Leaders) | Pastor Daniel Batarseh

If you have your Bibles, meet me in the book of Joshua chapter 23. Joshua chapter 23. And as you're turning there, trusting you have your Bibles, tonight a Bible study. As returning there, I wanna present a simple question for us tonight in light of this study. What do you do when your spiritual walk is at a place where you are experiencing consistent strength, a consistent devotion to the Lord?

What do you do when you're walking with God in such a manner that it's a prolonged season of discipline and delight in the things of God, where you almost come to a place where you believe that nothing can threaten that devotion to God? What do you do? That's an important question because oftentimes messages are geared towards those who are away from God, who have backslidden, who are not saved, but what about those who are walking with God? What do they need to hear? What do they need to do?

You might be thinking, well, doing what they were doing. They should just continue then if that's the case, and that's true. But Paul tells believers what they should do. If they are in a place where they think that they stand, you know this verse very well. He says, let them take heed lest they fall.

That's first Corinthians ten twelve. Therefore, if anyone thinks that he stands, let him take heed lest he fall. Let him pay attention. Let him be on alert. Let him be watchful.

Let him be careful. Let him do whatever it takes to protect that posture of heart so that it could remain throughout his days. You might be wondering why is that question brought forth in the beginning of this study, because that is exactly what Joshua is gonna do and tell his people at this point of this book. Joshua, since we last studied this book, we've known that they have entered, they have conquered, they have divided, but now as you know, we have come to the portion where he wants to instruct about how to remain and how to retain God's will and God's blessings and God's favor over your life. And at this point in Joshua 23, you know what's happened?

Israel, this generation, has known a lengthy, undisturbed, stable devotion to God. We're gonna see that in a moment. And what this leader in his wisdom wants to do is give them the necessary principles and commands to stay there. And everything that we're gonna hear tonight is applicable to you, believer, and to me. In fact, in this study, we're not gonna know if it's gonna be long or short, we're gonna discover that in a moment.

But what I want us to do tonight is draw at least five principles for the believer to remain strong and devoted in his walk with the Lord. If you were to just give God's word your full attention in the next few moments and you respond with humility and hunger, you can receive the necessary principles and pillars to know a constant victory in your walk with the Lord like you've never imagined. This is not the time to get distracted. This is not the time to talk to your friends. Give God your full attention in this moment, and it could potentially change the rest of your Christian experience.

So we read from verse one in Joshua 23, and it begins in the ESV this way, a long time afterward. Stop right there, please. A long time afterward. Those words are more important than we might imagine. On the surface level, it tells us something.

It tells us, as we've just heard, how the people were able to remain in the promised land without any sign of at least recorded evidence of rebellion or blatant disobedience to God. A long time has passed since when? Since they have divided the land to each of the tribes and they've inhabited those different portions, that is the mark of when this time is being described. So you know what's been happening with Israel between chapter 22 and chapter 23? An extended period of time of faithfulness, fervency, fruitfulness, constancy in God.

That's what's been happening. And here's a wonderful reminder from those few words. It's possible. It's possible for you to to remain fiery and passionate and devoted and a lover of truth and a lover of worship. It's possible for a long period of time.

Not sporadic, not seasonal. It's possible to stay there, and we've talked about that extensively last week. But it doesn't just tell us about the possibility. It tells us about the posture that these people are about to have and show. It shows that even after a long time of being obedient to God, they are still going to display humility to receive instruction.

Even though they are seasoned, so to speak, they are still going to now receive from Joshua more challenge, more exhortation, more warnings, and they have not come to the place, like, unfortunate some people who have come to this place, where they feel like they are all knowing. Been there, done that, got the t shirt. I've walked with the Lord. I've read my bible every day for ten years. I know exactly what I need to know, and I know what to do.

No. There's none of that kind of attitude from them. It's been a long time since they've made a commitment to the Lord, and still they are going to show that they still want God's word for their lives. You know, as a young believer, there are unique temptations that you will face, but there are unique temptations as a seasoned saint as well. And one of the lies that Satan or that your flesh will tell you is that you are at a point where you are beyond the need to change or to be challenged or to be informed.

That you have received enough truth, you're familiar with truth, and if you hear the same truth, you tune yourself out. And some people approach the Word of God that way even to the point, you ready for this, where after so long of walking with the Lord, their Bible, not that because they are disobedient or in sin, they just feel like I don't need to read this thing. I know it. Or they come in a setting like this and again, they completely block themselves from being open to how the Holy Spirit wants to speak to them. I'll never forget being at a youth conference and seeing a few parents there and after the session, one of the parents approached me and says, you know, I know this is for youth but I need it just as much.

I need God's word and God's truth just as much as these kids that are experiencing hellish temptations in their life. That's a person who's been walking with the Lord and still sees their need and is still open to receive what God wants them to receive. And that is certainly true with these people. A long time afterward, well, how long? Well, when you go to Joshua chapter 24 and you don't have to turn there, we realize that Joshua is how old?

Does anybody know at the top of their head? At what age did Joshua die? 110 years old. Now if Joshua was around the same age as Caleb, we know that at the beginning of the conquest, not entering in, but now receiving their inheritance, Joshua could have been 85 years old at the time. That's how old Caleb was.

And so we're talking about perhaps between twenty and twenty five years since chapter 22. That's a long time. And what Joshua is about to do is after these twenty five years of faithfulness, steadfastness, commitment to God, he's now going to deposit principles for another twenty five years for the remainder of their years to know how they can stand firm in God. And you and I are going to see that they are not limited to these principles. But oh, if you have these principles, despite what other people think about them, despite if people take them seriously, if you, believer, take these principles to heart, I can tell you one thing.

I haven't walked with the Lord long. It's been nine years, but I can tell you that I've seen many people come and go. Many people come and go. Even people that you thought would never go. People that you never thought would ever turn their back on Jesus.

It's unfortunate. It's one of the greatest pains of this Christian pilgrimage, but it's true nonetheless. And yet there are some still who are walking with the Lord, loving the Lord, honoring the Lord. And some again, I don't know where they are today. It's like they've disappeared from the face of the earth, even with all the social media.

Let's adopt these principles, and here's number one. First principle from this chapter about how to remain faithful to God in fervency and delight. Number one in verse three. Let's read it. We'll just read from verse two.

Joshua summoned all Israel, its elders and heads, and judges and officers, and said to them, I am now old and well advanced in years. Verse three. And you have seen all that the Lord your God has done to all these nations for your sake, for it is the Lord your God who has fought for you. Now we're not gonna read the remainder of this chapter, but you know what Joshua does? He does something quite remarkable, and this is why we have to keep reading over a text to get revelation.

And here's one thing that you'll notice if you've read over this chapter over and over. Joshua chooses to refer to the Lord as the Lord your God 13 times. 13 times in this chapter, he continually repeats to the people and refers to God in this manner, the Lord your God, the Lord your God, the Lord your God, the Lord your God. You would think that perhaps he's doing so to drill a point into their hearts, and he is. And what could that be?

One of the reasons why Joshua is speaking in this manner is because of what we just read. He told the people, I am old and well advanced in years. That's how the ESV puts it. We've read that before, haven't we? In Joshua 13, we are told that Joshua was old and advanced in years.

Now you come to 23, and it tells us that he's not just old, he's well advanced in years. In fact, Joshua is giving his last message before he dies. Verse 14, look at it, it gives us that hint. He says, and now I'm about to go the way of all the earth. And now I'm about to go the way of all the earth.

What is he saying? I'm about to depart this world. Here are my final words to you. And as you know, the final words of a man or a woman are quite important to them if that's the last thing that they're gonna be able to speak into somebody else's life. And this is what Joshua is thinking as a wise leader.

I'm about to leave this world, so I need to do something with your percept perspective. I need to do something with your attention. I need to do something with your potential dependency. Joshua wants to divert any sense of attention, of glory, of need away from him and to God. He's about to leave the scene, and he doesn't want the people to feel what they potentially felt when Moses departed the scene.

Here's our leader leaving. We've known his voice, his wisdom, his guidance, his sermons, and now he's about to go into glory. What are we going to do? And it's very possible, just like all of us are capable of, of looking at somebody else, especially at a leader, and think that most of the reason why we are successful is because of their presence. And because of their investment and their example and their inspiration.

And Joshua knows that. Maybe even Joshua himself felt that when Moses was going to depart. And he knew the emotions and he knew the fears and the doubts, and that's why God spoke over his life and to make him confident. And now he knows he's about to now follow suit and he wants to speak to this younger generation. It's all about the Lord your God.

13 times, the Lord your God. The Lord your God has done this. The Lord your God is doing this. The Lord your God will do this. It's not about me.

It's not about me. I'm not staying here long, and that's okay because I'm not the source of your power or your grace or your strength. If you're a serious Christian, you have serious relationships in your life. I mean serious spiritual relationships. And what you and I will discover in this life, it's a very simple truth, is that people will come and go.

They are. Pastors will rise and fall. Churches will open and close. Ministers will graduate into glory. Your friends will move when they get married.

But here's what you need to know. All the victory that you have known, that you will know, is because of the Lord your God. That's exactly what Joshua is trying to say. And that is principle number one in knowing victory in the Lord. You gotta know where your strength comes from.

You gotta know who to cling to. You gotta know who to come to when things are bad. If you are too dependent upon others, you are actually setting yourself up for some kind of a failure. I can prove it in so many ways, and here's one of the ways in which people have not adopted this principle in their life. Just let a big name evangelical leader fall in sin, and see what happens to the apparent devotion of so many Christians.

What happens if a pastor of a local congregation is exposed in sin? Many Christians use that as a trigger to say, well, I'm going back into the world then if that's the case. You'd be amazed to know how many people believe like that. They turned their backs on God because one man did. And Satan will take advantage of that.

And that's why Joshua is presenting this. You're gonna have challenges. You're gonna face different oppositions. You're gonna know some things that are gonna test your faith. I know I've been with you all these years, but it's not the pattern for your faithfulness.

I'm moving on. So let me tell you about who really is the one behind all of your success. The Lord your God. Lord your God. And what's interesting is that this is not the first time strategically that a leader has used this phrase to speak into the hearts of God's people.

If you were with us during Deuteronomy, later on in that book in Deuteronomy chapter 30, you don't have to turn there, but Moses himself does the same thing. In the first 10 verses, count how many times he refers to them concerning the Lord your God, the Lord your God, the Lord your God. But it's a different context. In Deuteronomy 30, Moses was speaking to the Israelites in the sense if they were to be in exile because of their unfaithfulness, because of their lack of devotion, if they were to be removed, ambushed by the enemy, and kidnapped from their home, he gives instructions in that context of how to come back to God. And what's amazing is when he gives instructions to them in their fallen state, he refers to God as the Lord your God.

Here's a reminder. Why did Moses do that? Out of all the ways he could have related to the Lord, he chose to say the Lord your God in the context of their failure. Why? Because he wants to let them know that even though God foresees their failure, he still chooses to identify with them.

He still chooses to say, I'm still your God. I'm still your Lord. Even when you're in Babylon, even when you're in Assyria, I am the Lord your God. I did not divorce myself from identifying with you because of your failure, because of your sin. At the deepest point of your disgrace and your shame, I'm still your God, so come back to me.

So in the context of victory, it's the Lord your God. In the context of failure, he's still the Lord your God. Joshua is extremely wise here, and this is the beauty of this pillar of this truth. Men do not determine your devotion. If you keep your eyes on men too long and too strong, their failure will become yours.

Their failure will become yours. Some people have not recovered because men have failed them, even disappointed them. You keep your eyes on Jesus. You keep your eyes on the Lord. He'll never fail you.

He'll always empower you. Paul himself, that great apostle knew abandonment from all men, yet he said, the Lord stood by me. If you do not cultivate an understanding, if you do not cultivate a personal relationship with the Lord to this degree, you will not know longevity in your walk with the Lord. So what does Joshua first do? You have to understand that your victory comes from God and God alone.

I'm leaving. I'm old. God is from everlasting to everlasting. He's gonna remain with you. Then we come to the second point.

It's found in verse four and five. Behold, I have allotted to you as an inheritance for your tribes those nations that remain, along with all the nations that I have already cut off, from the Jordan to the Great Sea in the West. Look at verse five. The Lord your God, there it is again, will push them back before you and drive them out of your sight, and you shall possess their land just as the Lord your God promised you. Now, it is one thing to believe and to understand God as the most supreme and the most needed person in your life.

That's important, but here's the next step. You can't just understand God as the most valuable person to your existence. You have to also understand God's plan for your existence. You got to really grasp the truth of the future that God has in mind for your life. If you do not have vision according to the word of God, if you do not have faith, if you don't have expectation, you don't have much to work with in terms of motivation.

If your Christianity is summed down to a week by week experience, hoping that the next sermon will stir you more emotionally than the last one, that is not the way you are to live. If you're waiting for the next time you will be stirred at a conference, knowing in yourself that that's only gonna last a couple months, that is not the way your way to live your Christian life. What Joshua is reminding the people is that there's still work to be done. What he's speaking into their hearts is a word to look forward to what God is going to display in and through them. You've seen God do much, but God still has a plan.

God still wants to manifest his wisdom and his ability and his provision and his protection. I want you to live with that kind of expectation and anticipation. Look forward. No matter what you've known in the past, there's still more to come. And God is going to be committed to you until the mission is complete.

Now this is where we differ from the Israelites to us in the new covenant. In their sense, the mission is complete when every acre, every quarter, every piece of land has been conquered. You and I have a different end goal. There is never a point in your Christian life where God so works with you or you so work with God where you have arrived and said, wow, I can't believe it all ended here at 42 years old. Oh, look, I have kids, I have I have a wife, I have a husband and everything seems to be fine.

Looks like looks like it's all done. Now let's just go on cruise control. Never. Because that's not what Paul said to the believers in Philippians. He didn't say that there is a point of completion where it all ends in this life.

No. There is an end mark, and I hope you know it, that he who began a good work in you is faithful to bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. That's the finish mark. At the day of Jesus Christ, when either you give your last breath in your frail body or through an accident or however you get to go to glory, and then how, or if Jesus comes back, that's when this continual work and effort and plan and fruit ceases. Ceases.

So what does that mean for you and I? That means that we have never come to a place, nor will we ever come to a place, where we think that there is nothing left in store in my walk. I know this is very simple. You'd be amazed to know how many people don't believe it. What's gonna fuel your prayer life?

What do you have look forward to in life? Do you know why so many Christians are caught up and their main motivation in this life is to get the bigger house and the next vacation spot and the and the more comfortable this and the newest that? Do you know why they're so consumed with that and their joy is dependent upon the newest and the latest and the greatest? You know why? Because they don't have this vision.

That's why. They're not mission minded. They they don't pray and include in their prayer life, God, I know that there must be more. Use me to touch other people's lives. I was just I like to take my time driving and listening to sermons, and I was listening to a pastor that I really, really, really look up to and and admire.

And he was, in the beginning of his message, giving examples of letters that he would receive as a ministry. And he gave the example of people in their nineties writing to him for prayer requests. And he was speaking about just quoting them how these ladies in their nineties asking, pastor, I'm 92 years old, so what? I need you to pray for me for strength so that I can continue to win souls for the lost at this old folks home that I'm attending. Pastor, my ears are completely deaf, but could you ask God to open my ears so that I can know the needs of the people in my family and pray for them?

That's what we're talking about here. Those are the types of Christians that burn until they give out. They have vision. They have faith. They have a mission in life.

Most people's mission in life at this point in their life is just to get married. Nothing wrong with that, but I'll tell you this, once you get married, you're gonna realize that there's much more to life. But when you understand that there's still work to be done, that God still has a plan for you, that he still wants to show you marvelous things, he still wants to answer your prayers and use your gifts, and he still wants to wring you dry in a good way until you give every part of your breath to his glory, you will not know longevity. You will reduce your life to just being entertained. You just wanna hop from one entertainment to the next, the next entertainment thrill to the next, and you'll have no true joy, no true heavenly joy.

Is this true in your life? Do you have that vision in your heart? You don't have to say yes, you don't have to nod your head. All you have to do is just peek back and see how you pray. What do you dream about?

What's your meditation? What's your hope in God? What do you look forward God to do? See, you talk like this and believers don't have answers. Believers don't have answers.

But what Joshua wants to do is make sure that they don't fail to realize that no matter how far they have been in God, there's still things to see. I quoted this verse in last Wednesday's prayer meeting. I wanna quote it again if you weren't there because it's so precious. It touched my heart so deeply. It speaks about God as a refiner, and he says in Malachi three three, just listen to these words.

In Malachi three three, he being God, will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and they will bring offerings and righteousness to the Lord. You see what he's saying? That he has a mission for those who are in covenant with him, that I would refine you continually. And if you know how refiners work with this kind of material, they put it in the fire and they turn the temperature up, And when that temperature is at a certain degree, that dross comes up, that froth, that dirt, that filth, only for that refiner to scrape it off and to increase the temperature so that more can come out. And that process goes through and through until it is so pure to his liking.

And in the context of God, it is so pure that when God looks into your heart, he sees the reflection of his face. And how does God refine? We talked about this Wednesday quickly. He turns up the heat in your life. The end goal of refining is really wonderful.

The means is not so pleasant. And some of you who are true believers filled with the spirit, you know this feeling that when you go through a certain season or circumstance or you know somebody in your life that really get the heat going, you begin to say things and think things and react in ways where you go, where did that come from? And you know who is delighted to some degree? The refiner. Because the things that are in you that you didn't even know were in you, God wants to get out of you.

And so he turns up the heat and he allows things to go not the way you planned for one sole purpose, to purify you. You're too precious to him to leave in the state that you are. No goldsmith is a true goldsmith if he takes the material as it is and puts it on the shelf. No. He wants to do something with that material because he has a desire with that material.

He has a plan. He has a goal. And you read Timothy about how God has different types of vessels, some for honorable use and some for dishonorable use. God wants to use you, but he has to do some work in you. You know what I love about this verse in Malachi?

My favorite part is when it says, He will sit as a refiner. It doesn't say he will stand. It doesn't say he will rush. When it says he will sit means he's gonna be very patient with the process. He's gonna take his time with you, and it's gonna hurt some days, and you're gonna cry some days, and sometimes you're gonna feel like you wanna give up, but he's sitting, and he's waiting, and he's watching, and he's always there for you to cry out to, but he is going to be committed to sanctifying you.

He will sit as a refiner. That is God's desire in your life. He wants to make you a trophy of gold and silver of his grace. Never forget that. Pray that.

Seek that. Expect that. God will find ways to do that in your life Because this refining isn't for the sake of refining. It isn't for the sake of just making you just in character. It's so to make you usable.

It's to make you usable. God has to do some things in us before he puts something in us and then allows us to be poured out into some other things. Us in the natural sense, we don't go and grab a cup to drink water out of it when it's filled with stains and gunk and junk. No, we we have enough sense to take it and wanna use it, but we clean it first. And God does the same with us.

He continually wants to wash us so that he can use us. That's the end goal in mind here. Yes, to reflect him, but to also be used for him. Do you believe that about your life? It will show in the way you see him and how you pray to him.

And one of the prayers of those who know that this is how God works was, Lord, purge me inside and cleanse me. Cleanse this tongue, these thoughts, my heart. God, wash me and purify me for your glory. I know that as long as I have this vessel and it is moving and it has the ability to do things, that you have a mind for me and a plan for me. So Lord, do whatever you need to do in me for your glory.

You have to believe that God has future victories in mind for you, or else you have nothing to look forward to, And that's when other delights and desires and dreams take over. And that's where Christians get worldly, and they look no different than this world. That's number two, but let's move on to the third principle. Let's read verse six down. Therefore, Joshua says, therefore be very strong to keep and to do all that is written in the book of the law of Moses, turning aside from it neither to the right hand nor to the left.

Now just stop there. This is probably an obvious truth. This is probably an obvious pillar, but there's a detail in here that maybe we haven't explored as much. Keep and do all that is written. And the word he uses, be very strong to keep.

This is a call to be very familiar with your Bible. This is a call to be very, very familiar with the truths in this word from cover to cover. Notice he didn't say, be sure to keep some of it or three quarters of it or this portion of it. No. All of it.

All of it. God has given us a library. This is the most important book we would confess, and you'd be amazed to know how many believers have been believers for x amount of years, and they've never even read through this book once. Been believers for ten years, fifteen years, twenty years. They've never read through the entire bible, and yet in the same breath, they'll say, this is the most important book in the world.

This is how we know God, and this is how we know God's will for our lives. And they haven't read through the bible at least once. You're saying, brother, are you saying that if you're a true Christian, you read the bible once? No. I'm saying if you've been a believer for a long time, how can you have not read through this book at least once?

You'd be amazed to know how devoted other people are to their false gods. Do you know witches and Wiccans have all night prayer meetings? Do you know witches and Wiccans around the New Year time? They gather together and they strategize how they can take over different areas and curse it, and how they can hinder Christians. A pastor once said, after a church meeting, that he was introduced to a a witch.

She introduced herself that way, and he asked, what are you doing here? And she says, well, we witches, we we gather and we pray and we we find ways to come into churches and seduce pastors to commit adultery. Do you know how determined and devoted cults are? He says, Be very strong to keep all that is written in here. And you know why this is extra special from Joshua's lips?

This is extra special because Joshua's teaching from experience. Notice what he says, be very strong, some translations, be very courageous to keep and do all that is written in the book of the law, turning aside neither from the right hand nor to the left. Where did we hear that before? We're at the end of the book. Go to Joshua one verse seven, and look what God says to Joshua.

This is what God speaks over Joshua. Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you. Do not turn from it to the right or to the left that you may be successful wherever you go. So here's Joshua receiving this instruction at the beginning of his ministry, and now he is old and advanced in years, and he is repeating and echoing what he had received from God to his own audience.

Why? Listen, if a man who is a 110 years old is looking you in the eye and is giving you advice on life and you've seen his life and you see the end result of his life, it would be very wise for us to pay attention to such a man. And this is what he's saying. You know God's word? It works.

It works. God told me to be very strong in the word, to keep it, not to veer off to the left or the right, and I can tell you it actually works. There is no better way for your life, not just your eternal life, but your life now, there's no better way to frame it than according to the written scriptures. And the more you are willing to allow the word of God to determine and frame an area of your life, the more you will know blessing in that area of your life. All.

Know all because all scripture has been breathed out by God for the end result that the man of God may be complete. So if I, if I'm not going to give myself to the whole scripture, then I'm going to be incomplete in some area, Whether it's in my revelation of God or certain truths that I need to know for my own life. So that is the hope when you come to a certain book that you may not be so excited to read, you have to believe by faith God has something in here. He's breathed, he's spoken something in here that's gonna make me more complete, more complete. And Joshua knew it for his own life, and Joshua's speaking from experience.

And what kind of authority did this man have when he said those words? You know what Paul says in Colossians three sixteen? Let the word of Christ dwell in you, what? What's the word? Richly.

Richly. You know, every time I read that word, I ask myself whenever I come to that verse, Lord, does your word dwell in me richly? Not just dwell in me. Do I is it rich in my soul? Is it rich in my mind?

Or is it just peppered? Is it healthy in me? Is it flowing in me? You know, what's so amazing is that there are people who think they can know a spiritual life apart from the Bible. Here's a little experiment for you to do.

You know that scripture that says, do not get drunk off wine but be filled with the spirit? I want you to take that verse in Ephesians and look at the results. Just read the verses that follow that and you'll see the results of being filled with the Spirit. K? It speaks about being able to give thanks, submitting to one another, singing Psalms and and all these spiritual songs, all these wonderful truths that come from being filled with the Spirit.

Now, when you go to Ephesians and you see that verse and you see the results of being filled with the spirit, go to Colossians and follow the results after Paul says, let the word of Christ dwell in you richly. And you know what you're gonna realize? It's the same results. The same outcomes. The same consequences.

What does that mean? You can't separate being filled with the spirit and being filled with the word of God. You can't separate those realities. Those who say, you know, there are people who say, we're spirit we're not word people. We're not bible people.

We're spirit people. What does that mean when these words are spirit and they give life? Authored by the spirit, inspired by the spirit. Look at the comparison. Yes, we can ask to be filled with the Holy Spirit and a prayer, but you can't just walk in that and not know a greater knowledge of the word of God.

The same outcomes because they work together. This is the point I want to focus on though. You can come to a place where you are at least convinced that you need the Bible in your life, you need to know the word of God, you need to obey the word of God. You can come to a point where you're convinced of that. But listen to this.

This is how tricky the flesh is. Even if you are convinced to live in such a way, you can endeavor to pursue that and still find yourself in great danger. And here's the danger. Look what he says here. So he says, be strong, very strong to keep and to do all that is written in the book of the law of Moses, turning aside from it neither to the right hand nor to the left.

Now from the simple reading, we can say, like, just stay focused, stay committed. Don't don't go here, don't go there. But for the Christian, there are two pitfalls on the narrow path. There are two dangers, there are two things that we have to avoid as we walk on this very narrow path. The one danger is legalism, and the other is lawlessness.

Legalism meaning that you add to the commands of God as necessities, though they are not approved by God as necessities. Lawlessness, dismissing clear commands of God, though they are necessities. And you can come to this bible, and you can go to the right, or you can go to the left and find yourself in great danger, even though you initially have pursued this word. In fact, there's a verse that speaks on this and I would encourage you to turn your bibles there because it came from a man who was the wisest man other than Jesus. Ecclesiastes seven, listen to these words.

Go to the book of Ecclesiastes and go to chapter seven with me. These are interesting words in Ecclesiastes seven verse 16, and they can be misinterpreted if we don't understand them rightly. Look what Solomon says. Do not be overrighteous, neither be overwise. Why destroy yourself?

Look at verse 17. Be not overly wicked, neither be a fool. Why should you die before your time? In those two verses are presented the two pitfalls on the narrow path. One is legalism, one is lawlessness.

Now, we go back to verse 16 and let's understand what he's trying to say. Solomon is not saying you you you can be too holy and you can be too righteous. That is a gross misrepresentation and misinterpretation of that verse. What he is speaking about though is that you have adopted or convinced yourself or set a standard of holiness and righteousness so high that it is not even attainable. You you have set a lever level of a conduct of life that you thought was actually spiritual, when in fact, is not even realistic.

And you have added, you have you have convinced yourself that there is more there is more to walk in like the Pharisees, and all the while the more you're adding, the more burden you have in your life. And you know what's so amazing about this is the consequence of a person who lives in such a way. And this is the consequence, why should you destroy yourself? That is not a light consequence. That is not something that is Well, if a person lives that way they just No.

The end result of self destruction. People who are legalistic, people who make affairs in life that are not clear cut in the bible as convictions for all men, they destroy themselves in the end. They do. They destroy themselves emotionally. They destroy their relationships.

They destroy their spirituality. When they've been convinced that this is actually going to make them more spiritual, it's actually destroyed sincere, genuine godliness. It happens all the time. And what he's saying here is do not go above what is written. Do not come to a place where you interpret what true spirituality is thinking that you are more elite or superior to others because you adhere to these things while others don't.

But you know what's dangerous about a legalistic person? Because all of us in here, according to the Bible, can have certain convictions that are not written in the Bible. And you know what the Bible says? If your conscience tells you not to do it, don't do it. If you actually go against your conscience, you're sinning.

So God has given something in our hearts and our minds as an alarm, so to speak. When it comes to gray areas in the bible, each person's gonna be different. But what a legalistic person does is that the things that he thinks are wrong, he makes it wrong for all men. And a pastor who is legalistic will come up and be like, You can't do this. You can't do that.

You can't wear this. You can't listen to that. You can't watch this. And what happens? He puts people into bondage.

And in the end, oftentimes, those people who set such a standard can't even keep it themselves and they destroy everybody else who can't do it either. It is self destructive. And so what do you do? Well, we're gonna come to the solution in a moment, but Solomon has the other pit in mind, and that's in verse 17. He says, don't be over wicked.

And again, he's not saying that you can be a little wicked. He's not saying, loosen up a little bit. You can sin here and there. This is why you interpret the Bible with the Bible. What he is saying though is that you are in great danger if you have set yourself to live in unrestrained, unconcerned, unmoved by a lifestyle of sin.

You who have committed yourself to live according to the flesh, instead of like a true Christian living to fight against the flesh, and if you fall you get back up, yes. But you who have convinced yourself, I can live in the flesh continually and without a heart of repentance, why will you die before your time? Why will you die? You know what that tells me? There's an insight in that phrase, that you can die before God wants you to die.

You have these philosophical debates with people. Is every person's death determined? I believe this, that you can live in such a way where you die prematurely, even as a Christian. How do you stay in the place where you die where and when God wants you to die? When you live obediently.

And the moment you veer off and you live disobediently is the moment you expose yourself and open yourself to being what? Dead before God wants you to be dead. Why should you die before your time? Do you know all many many deaths by the wicked and even by those who live disobediently? Many many deaths were premature.

And so this is what we get. Here's the narrow path, legalism, lawlessness, both are equally as deadly. So then here's the question, how do I avoid those two pits as I come to this word and as I desire to live very strong in keeping God's word? Let's read the next verse in verse 18. This is the answer to this.

It is good that you should take hold of this, meaning it's very good that you should consider what I'm saying. And from that withhold not your hand, for the one who fears God shall come out from both of them. One translation says it this way, for the one who fears God shall avoid both extremes. Would you have ever thought that the answer to avoiding extremes in Christianity comes from fearing God? For the longest time, I'll be honest, I thought the fear of God was the answer to lawlessness, and it is.

To to to shield yourself and to anchor yourself from being pulled by the tides of temptation and to live in a lukewarm lifestyle. That's what I thought the fear of God was mainly for. But according to Solomon, not only is it your protection against lawlessness, it's your protection against legalism. Have we ever thought that? Or have we ever thought, yeah, a person we think the person who fears God is legalistic.

Look at that person living so seriously for God. No. A person who really, really, really fears God will not allow himself to go in that extreme either. How? Because he would never dare to add to God's word or he would never dare to take his personal convictions and shove them down the throat of other Christians.

He will know how to live balanced. He will know how to fight for what he needs to fight for, and he will know how to wisely and carefully live the way he needs to live, while at the same time allowing people to walk in their convictions as well. That's the beauty of a man who fears God. He's not just concerned, Lord, don't let me be so loose. He's he's also concerned, Lord, don't let my don't let my life or my message be too burdensome.

Help me be careful that when I preach even a strong message, it won't overwhelm the people, make them feel hopeless. That's a person who fears God. And that's the answer. You just take what God has to say, you walk in God's wisdom because the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom, and you'll be safe from these pits. You will not veer off to the right hand nor to the left.

You'll be exactly where God wants you to be. Now, we come down to the fourth point of pillars to walking with the Lord, and it's in verse 11 of chapter 23 of Joshua. Here's another strong admonition exhortation. Be very careful, therefore, to love the Lord your God. Full stop.

Here's point number four. A person who wants to know longevity in their walk with the Lord will watch over their love for God. You know, for for Joshua, they say this implies that you can lose your love for God. You can dwindle in your love for God. And love not just in the way we understand it, love in the sense of obedience, love even in affection.

Love in affection. Like true delight and wonderment and amazement and astonishment and desire for God, like a real passion for God, that kind of love. What he's saying here is that it is possible and some of us know way too much about this, and we're all susceptible and we're all tempted into this, is that we can forfeit that, or it can be replaced. Let me put it this way, you can get bored with your Christianity. Like, it's not appealing to you anymore.

It's just dry. And I'm not saying that we ought to live for our emotions and to be kept by our emotions, but passion for God. A passion for God is so real, it doesn't need emotions. It's driven by truth. But let's just make this very practical.

If a couple were to sit before you and to ask for your advice, and they both admit that there was, especially in the beginning of the relationship, a spark that attracted both of them to one another, But at this point, as they're sitting with you, that spark is gone and there's actually no affection between between them at all. The the best thing to do if you are receiving that kind of information and you wanting to counsel them is to ask, what happened between that time of affection and shared love to the time now? What happened in between? And if they were honest, perhaps they would say something along the lines of, well, listen, we've been really busy, and we talk over the phone maybe like once or twice every month. And she hangs out with her friends multiple times a week, and I hang out with my friends multiple times a week, and I have my own hobbies, and she has her own hobbies, and, honey, when's the last time we went out went out on a date?

That long ago? It's been eight months since we went on a date. We haven't had a heart to heart since. When's the last time we had a heart to heart? And then they start arguing about when the last time they had a heart to heart?

You don't have to have a counseling degree to sit and to hear this and to realize that the assessment of the matter is you have not nurtured your love. You've not invested in your love. And perhaps you could even say, maybe you thought that this love would just grow without any investment. That it was just something that was just gonna happen. It was there in the beginning and it's just gonna naturally grow as time grows.

And you and I never expect that on a human to human level. It's unrealistic. Even the best of relationships require communication, require quality time, require to sit down and be honest, require you to pour out your heart, require you to push all things out of your schedule so that you can invest in what you prioritize. And we say amen, and we say yes, and we pay counselors for it. And then when we bring it in terms of your relationship with God, we all get stiff.

Because we would never dare to think that our love for people does not require energy and focus and discipline, but when it comes to our love for God, we think it's just gonna happen. It's just gonna happen. Like, one day I feel like I love God, and if I don't, well, I'm just gonna wait for that sensation to come back. And hopefully the pastor will give me something to work with. Isn't that amazing?

I saw this illustration and it touched my heart. It was almost like a comic, and it was of Jesus sitting at the coffee table of somebody's house. And there was this man who morning after morning would just walk by him, walk by him, walk by him. He was sitting there waiting to just have coffee with him. And then, I guess they included a waiter in there for some reason, and the waiter came and says, Jesus, like, do you wanna stay?

Do you wanna wait? And he's saying, yes, I'm still waiting for so and so. And so, finally, the person comes and when the person comes, he says, oh, hi, Jesus. Sorry, I've been so busy. I've been so busy.

But I wanna tell you, Jesus, okay, before I go, listen, I I have, I have this new house that I'm thinking of buying. Can you bless that? Can you open the door? And I saw a really cute girl at church. I don't know if it's God's will, but can you make that known too?

And and and and there's also my my my problem here with this, and I really need to get things done by this deadline. Okay. Jesus, thank you so much. We'll see you next time it walks away. And then this comic ended this way where the waiter came back and said, same time tomorrow?

And Jesus says, yeah, same time tomorrow. It's true. It can happen to the best of us. But what Joshua is saying to his people is, be very careful. Watch.

Watch that love. Measure it. And not only that, we would be fools to think that this world will not attempt to draw our affections away from Christ, whether from association with others or activities, our own activities. In fact, not only are we fools, we're actually deceived. We're deceived if we think that nothing will threaten our love for the Lord, and that's the last and final point that Joshua makes.

From verse 12 to verse 13, we must watch over those who we associate with. Look at verse 12. For if you turn back and cling to the remnant of these nations remaining among you and make marriages with them, so that you associate with them and they you, know for certain, it's like it's guaranteed, that the Lord your God will no longer drive out these nations before you, but they shall be a snare and a trap for you, a whip on your sides and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from off this good ground that the Lord your God has given you. Be careful who you associate yourself with. And when I mean association, I am not speaking about interaction.

Interaction with those who don't know God or even those who are not walking right with God is not what God is asking of. It's unrealistic, and it eliminates the possibility of influence. When I mean association, I mean deep intimate bond. And what Joshua's concerned with the most here is marriages, but it's not limited to marriages. It's any frame of relationship that you choose to link yourself with in a manner in which you open your heart to them and they open their heart to you in which you almost become a partner in life.

And the warning is very clear. Know this, that if you link yourself to somebody that you should not be linking yourself to, it's gonna get bad. Listen to how powerful this is. This last point is so powerful that it can actually eliminate the power of the first four points. I can tell you that one of the greatest hindrances to many Christians that I've seen in this generation in walking in the spirit is because they walk with the wrong people.

Guaranteed. There is no question. If the devil found any success in ruining a man's soul, much success has come from him introducing people to the wrong ones. And it's no wonder that Joshua is taking the time to lay out this principle in this context of staying anchored in the will of God. Can I just ask you one last question, maybe a few more after this?

And please answer honestly in your own heart. If you haven't been paying attention at all, pay attention now. One simple question for you, dear Christian, do you really believe that you can just hang out with anybody and not think it will affect you? Do you really believe that you can just befriend anybody and not think that it will determine your course of life. If you think that, Paul has a word for you and you may not like it, but it could set you free.

Paul says in first Corinthians 15 verse 33, be not deceived. Bad company ruins good morals. He's telling Christians, don't be deceived. Why would he say that? Because Christians are deceived in this area.

They think that they can just have any relationship on a friendship level or even on a romantic level and think it will not affect them, and the Holy Spirit is saying, you're deceived. You have deceived yourself. In fact, it's amazing to study human behavior. One of the things that you will know in studying human behavior is how easily we are influenced and how easy we are to imitate others. Without much awareness, it's amazing.

It doesn't take much. And without you even knowing it, just because of your company, you begin to adopt their same opinions and their same tastes. And the more you like them, the more you're willing to compromise and to allow their convictions to be your convictions, and their outlook on life to be your outlook on life. And listen, we are so we are so able to be impressed that not only in those areas of of world view, but even in manners. Even in matters of speech.

And the the closer and the more you like somebody, the more you allow them to affect you without even you noticing it. It is profound. I You can hear people laughing the same way, talking the same way, same phraseology. And it's because we are so easily impressed. And because of our human nature Here here's a very important point.

Because of our human nature, we are more susceptible to adopting the bad from people than the good. We are more susceptible of adopting the evil from another person than any good they might have. So listen to this. This is J. C.

Ryle and his book for young men. It's applicable to all, but really focus on young men. It's a book called Thoughts for Young Men, and he said this. Listen to this very carefully. Health, unhappily is not contagious, but disease is.

Can I say that one more time? Health unhappily is not contagious, but disease is. You know what he's trying to say? When you're healthy, that's not easily transferable to somebody else. But you know what is when you have a cold?

When you're sick. And he uses that to say what? It is far more easy to catch a chill than to impart a glow, and to make each other's religion dwindle away than grow and prosper. What's his point? Like our bodies, that when we're around a person who's sick, we are more easily to absorb their sickness and be infected than we are to you can't transfer health by the presence of another person.

You can see their lifestyle and adopt it, but disease, it doesn't take much for it to be transferred to you. Doesn't nature testify of such a truth in so many areas? Here's one example, fruit. Put a rotten fruit in a basket with other good fruit, and what's gonna happen? Is that rotten fruit gonna become good?

Or is that rotten fruit going to make other fruit rotten? And so it is with attitudes and outlooks on life. Whether you wanna believe it or not, if you hang around somebody who is not walking with God, you are more likely to adopt that attitude than you influence them. I know this is shocking. I agree with him when he says that you are more probable to be a good person going down with the bad rather than the bad going up with you and being good.

It's true. The same way that you are more probable to get a disease from somebody than to receive their health in their presence. You're saying, hold on. So then how am I going to influence people for Christ? How am I going to, by my association with other people, win them over to the kingdom of God?

How do I know if I'm winning in that? The same way you would know if you're winning in tug of war. That's how. Because you're holding one side of the rope and somebody else is holding the other. And let me ask you this, are they pulling you towards them or are you pulling them towards you?

And the moment you begin to feel like your feet is losing grip, and that your hands are getting weak, and that you're being pulled towards them, and you're getting closer to that line, it's time to jump ship. You're not winning them, they're winning you. And just because you wanna win somebody to Christ doesn't mean you need to be their friend. We've used that word so loosely these days. You know what the Bible says about friendship?

I'm talking about doing life with people. I'm talking about the people that you are partners with in this world. Here's what the Bible says. Proverbs twenty four twenty one and twenty two, my son, fear the Lord and the king, and do not join with those who do otherwise. My son, fear the Lord and the king, your government, your authorities in life.

Fear God and them. And listen, we say amen, fear the Lord, fear the king, yes, I will fear him, I will respect, I will be in awe and I will be No, no, no. Don't join with those who do not fear God. I've always seen that verse, I never really took into consideration the verse after that. Why?

Verse 22, for disaster will arise suddenly from them, and who knows the ruin that will come from them both? Pay attention tonight. You may not like this point, but it will save your Christian life. You want to know the Bible measure for you having friendships? Ask yourself this, do my best friends fear God?

If not, if they don't fear God Then notice it didn't say, my son, fear the Lord and the king and join with those who call themselves Christians, and join with those who attend church. You can call yourself a Christian and you can come to church and not fear God. Those who fear God. You're saying, brother, you're making my list of friendship very small. That's okay.

It will save your life. You can associate. You can be kind. We are called to to to be like Jesus that we interact with the world so much that the world would say, this looks like a friend of sinners. But the Bible at the same time says, you who walk in this life with those who walk in this life, be careful who you choose to put your hand in hand with.

Because this is what the Proverbs says, who knows what kind of destruction they will invite in their life, and because of your association with them, they can destroy you without you wanting it to. Amnon, you don't have to turn there, was a son of the king. And there's a famous verse in second Samuel thirteen three where it says Amnon, who is, by the way, who raped his half sister and was later killed by his brother. You know how it all started? One simple verse.

But Amnon had a friend. That was the literal turning point in his life, but Amnon had a friend. You're saying, yeah, but who was he? This is with his cousin. Jonadab was his cousin, family friend, probably grew up together, probably had memories.

Yeah. Jonadab destroyed the man's life because he chose to associate himself with him, and to live life with him, and to take his advice. And here's where you're deceived. Oh, yeah. But I know they don't fear God, but I'll never let them influence me.

You know what Paul says? You're deceived. You're deceived. You're in deception. You're under a spell.

You've convinced yourself of something that is not true. Oh, I'll never let them I know they're lukewarm and I know they're not serious about God, but I'll never let them affect my walk with the Lord. You're deceived. You're deceived. And how many Christians have ruined their lives or at least have hindered the potential of walking in the fullness of the will of God, who are less spiritual than they could be, who are less effective and fruitful than they could be, simply because they failed to watch over who they associate themselves with.

And so, look at the danger, according to Joshua as we close, of those who would not take hold of this command. Listen, he said, we read it, if you don't stop, if you don't cut it off, if you don't remove yourself, what will those people who you marry and you befriend? The very same people that you were so attracted to. Listen. The very same people that you were drawn to even to the point where you've convinced yourself, I wanna marry this person.

The very same people, look what they will become to you, they shall be a snare and a trap for you, a whip on your sides and thorns in your eyes. You know what's mind boggling about that? I'm sure none of them would have thought this was the case when they first had met these people. When they first met them, perhaps they saw them as kind, as funny, as entertaining, as gentle, as innocent. But listen, all those things are dandy and all those things are great, but if their soul is not dealt with God, if they are not walking with God, they will affect your walk with God.

And he says the very same people you were drawn to and attracted to. Why would you marry somebody you're not attracted to? This is the context. Why would you be drawn to friendships and close bonds that you did did not find something in it? He goes, the very same thing that you thought was harmless and innocent and pure, it will be one day like thorns in your eyes and a whip to your side.

And this relationship that you thought was fine will actually be a snare and a trap. Wow. And so Joshua's summary for a successful spiritual life in God are these points. If you draw your strength and grace from the Lord your God, you'll be safe. If you believe that he has a greater work to do in and through you, you will be safe.

If you know God's word and avoid extremes by fearing him as you approach his word, you will be safe. If you watch over your love for God and protect it, if you are careful of who you associate yourself with, you will know the fullness of the promised land. You'll be safe, and you'll flourish, and you'll be effective, and you'll know God's favor over your life. You will avoid mistakes that you will regret. You will not waste time when other people waste their time.

You will be just okay, not just okay. You will know God's perfect will for your existence. You will know it. And the reason why so many don't, is because the things that I just mentioned, especially the last one. You've stepped too far, preacher.

I'm just giving you the word of God. Just giving you the Bible. I'm telling you why so many youth that I knew, so many young people that I knew that could have been potential theologians, evangelists, missionaries, godly influencers in the culture, using their creativity, their gifts, their voices, their talents for the glory of God, are nobodies. Because their friends were worldly, lukewarm, unconcerned about the things of God, and I can tell you this, the ratio of that person influencing others is much less than those people influencing him. I didn't say it.

Paul didn't say be encouraged, good morals influences corrupt behavior. He says be not deceived. Bad company ruins good morals. That's the danger. But here's the thing.

Let's end on a lighter note. If you walk with the Lord, he'll give you the best as a friends in this life. He'll give you the bestest of friends in this life. Because here's how you have to look at it. If you're running after God with everything within you, and I've given this illustration before, but let's just say you're running after God with everything within you.

If other people aren't, you're gonna outrun them and they're gonna stay behind. I've talked to so many people that says, brother, I heard what you have to say about friendships and relationships, this and this and this and that, but I have to ask you, how do I tell my friends? Do I walk away with my friends? How do I say that I'm gonna be serious about God? I said, don't say anything.

Don't tell them anything. Don't have a meeting. You don't need to do any of that. Just run after God with everything within you. What do you mean?

I'm saying, run after God with everything within you. What's gonna happen? Well, if they're not gonna join you, naturally, you're just gonna part ways. It's a lot easier that way, by the way. And I remember one person at one conference who came up to me, that was their altar call, so to speak.

They came up, they didn't cry, they didn't anything, they had a solid man to man conversation. Brother, let me just be real with you. I have three, four friends from my university, they're not saved, they don't love God, I want to love God and I know that I gotta walk away from them. And I gave that advice. I gave that advice.

We're not gonna pray your friends away. We're not gonna do any of that. You're gonna make a choice to live for God and then God will deal with that as he deals with you. Okay. A few months later, I didn't know how or or just this was the Lord.

I bumped into him again at a different place, and it wasn't really a big conference, it was just a and he was there. And this is a few months later and he came up to me and he says, do you remember me? I says, I think so. Tell me about you. And he says, I was the guy with the friends.

I said, tell me about it. He said, my life's changed. I so chased after God that my friends had to sit me down and ask me what happened to me. And so I explained, I'm living for God wholeheartedly. And I had a chance to witness to two of them.

I had a chance to sit down with them and just tell them about the Lord Jesus and how wonderful he is. I didn't have to sit down with them. I mean, sometimes you might have to do that, but in this case, I didn't have to. They came and sat me down. And I can tell you I've never known the presence and the joy I have of Jesus Christ like I do now.

And as you're running and other people choose not to run with you, they just wanna live in the world and they wanna be materialistic and they wanna live for the flesh and they just as long as they go to church but they want nothing of God, as you run after God, you know what will happen eventually? You're gonna look over to the left, you're gonna look over to the right, you're gonna see other people running after God at the same pace. And there might be a stretch of time where you feel like you're running alone, But I can guarantee you this, just like Elijah who felt alone. Elijah felt alone. He says, Lord, I'm the only prophet in Israel that's standing up for you.

Everybody's bowing down and kissing Baal. And the Lord said, Elijah, I have set apart 7,000 who have not bowed down or kissed Baal. You're not the only one. You're not the only one. And you'll be amazed to know how God and his providence, as you pursue him with everything in your heart, will allow you to bump into these people.

It's amazing. You want a testimony in your life? Just do it. Adopt these principles, brothers and sisters. They're very very simple.

They're not complicated at all. We've complicated them, and like what we've just learned, the extremes, we want the extreme stuff. We want the, like, tell me how much I need to watch of this, and tell me what I need Just watch over your love for the Lord. Know his word. Avoid the extremes.

See him as the most important. Ask him to open your eyes to see the value of who he is, how you can draw strength in him. Be careful who you do life with. You will know abundance in the spirit. It's very simple.

Isn't God made it very easy? We don't have to complicate this thing. You take what these truths were. You adopt them tonight. Give it a little bit of time and watch what you will know in God.

Let's pray. Father, we believe that you love us so much, that you've given us not just the truths of your grace that allow us to come into covenant with you, but you give us the practical truths to know how to walk in fellowship with you. We say yes to all of them, Every single principle. And we believe, like the Israelites, we can know after many, many, many days, we still find ourselves in your promises. We still find ourselves under the waterfall of your blessings.

We still find ourselves bearing fruit and seeing promotions in the spirit. We still find ourselves delighting in God and knowing your your presence and your goodness. Lord, we pray that every person in here would take heed to the words of this bible study. For those who have been walking with you faithfully, may these truths only further fuel their love for you, only confirm, only cause them to be more alert and aware. For those who have maybe heard some of these points and said, I failed in these areas.

I've I've walked away from that. I I I've forgotten them or I've been deceived. Lord, from what we heard in the beginning, you say in Deuteronomy 30, even after the Israelites failed to hear these truths and adopt them, you said I'm still the Lord your God. I'm still the Lord your God. I still want you to come back.

I still have a plan for you. I still want you to know the promised land. Help us believe that. Lord, you're so good to us. You are the friend of friends.

You are the king of kings. You're the lord of lords. We surrender to you, God. Forgive us if we've loved other things more than you. Forgive us if we've failed to watch over our affections toward you.

Forgive us for failing to feed it. Lord, we don't feel your condemnation tonight. We sense your invitation. And, Lord, we choose to to say yes to these things, and we worship you. We worship you.

Lord, we delight in you, and we thank you that you spoken into our hearts to know how to know from this point twenty five years down to burn for Christ. Yes. Lord, we look forward to it, and we believe you. So we sing to you in Jesus' name. Amen.