Josh 1:5, No man will be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I have been with Moses, I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you. 
    	This morning, we find ourselves at the beginning of the Book of Joshua. In it, we will see both the triumphs of Israel when they obey the Lord, and their awful stumbling when they forget Him. It will be a book that details the conquering of the Promised Land with the very specific and precise apportionment and distribution of the land as per the Lord’s direction. 
	As well, we will see the growth and the development of Joshua as the Lord’s appointed one to lead the people into the Promised Land. Just as we watched the development of Moses as the mighty prophet and servant of the Lord, so we will see the work of the Lord through the leadership of Joshua. Joshua, whose name means the “Lord saves”, will also become near and dear to us as he grows in his relationship and his dependence on the Lord. He is the Old Testament forerunner of Our Lord Jesus Christ. 
Joshua’s role in the plan and purpose of God was to conquer and dispossess those nations who were anathema to the Holiness and the Righteousness of the Sovereign and Supreme Lord God Almighty. Through the work of the Lord evidenced in the leadership of Joshua, the people were brought into the Promised Land. They had been wandering and restless nomads without a place to find ease and comfort. After the conquest of the land across the Jordan River, they will receive the peace and safety and rest and a homeland as their portion in the Lord.
	As with many of these Old Testament books, we need a little more introductory information to help guide us into a more precise understanding of some of the specifics that the Lord would have His Church know in His Word. This morning, if you will bear with me again, we have an intense introduction as to the Theological Values presented to us in this amazing Book of Joshua. 
It is presented by Dr. Donald H. Madvig in the Expositor’s Bible Commentary with the General Editor, Frank E. Gaebelein. Dr. Madvig makes a number of studied observations as to the purpose and the validity of this remarkable Book of scripture. 
	Quote, The Book of Joshua, like all other books of the Bible, is primarily a book of theology. Through it God has revealed Himself and continues to do so.
	God is the God of Israel. When He said, “I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God” (Exod 6:7…) He entered into a covenant relationship with His people. In giving Israel the land, He was fulfilling the promises that He made to Abraham and which He reaffirmed to the people of Israel at the time of the Exodus. Thus He entered into covenant with some human beings, but not all. Here we see elements of a doctrine of election. Since God is the God of Israel, He was acting within His rights when He appointed Joshua as successor to Moses. By keeping His covenant with Israel, God reveals His great faithfulness.
	God is holy. He does not tolerate wickedness and rebellion. The Canaanites were driven out because of their sin and disobedience. He treated Israel the same way. When one of their number violated the covenant with God, all progress in the Conquest was halted (Ch. 7). God would not continue to bless His people unless that sin was dealt with. God rewards obedience. Whether God blesses or withholds His blessing is dependent on human response. He is no respecter of persons.
	God is gracious. His grace, however, is not limited to Israel; for all who are willing to turn from their pagan ways and acknowledge Him are spared (e.g. Rahab, the Gibeonites). Although God had given specific commands forbidding the assimilation of foreigners into Israel, His saving purpose prevailed: “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (Rom 10:13). 
	God is the God of creation. All creation is subject to His sovereign control. Therefore He works mighty miracles: e.g., the drying up of the Jordan, the destruction of the walls of Jericho, the great hailstones that destroyed Israel’s enemies, etc.
	God is the God of the universe. The writer produced a beautiful testimony to God’s universal reign from the mouth of the pagan woman Rahab, who said, “For the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below” (Chapter2, verse 11). The land is His to take, and He can give it to whomever He pleases. In this same vein, J.L. Kelso sees the nature miracles as evidence of the Lord’s victory over the gods of Canaan:
The crossing of the Jordan at high flood and the cyclonic hail storm at Aijalon are of special theological significance, for Baal was the great Canaanite storm god who was supposed to control the rain, the hail, the snow and the floods of Palestine. These episodes proved that Baal was as powerless before Yahweh in Palestine as he had been in the episode of the plagues in Egypt.
	God is a man of war (cf. Exod 15:3, The Lord is a warrior; The Lord is His name). He fought for Israel: He commanded the attack; He provided the strategy; He assisted with supernatural acts; He hardened the hearts of the enemies so that they would not surrender; He gave victory to Israel. Joshua courted disaster when he neglected to consult with God before battle. The presence of the Ark of the Covenant with the Israelite army was truly the presence of God and a sign indicating that the Conquest was a religious event. In the Conquest God was marching triumphantly into Canaan to take possession of His land. 
	One of the many close links between Joshua and Deuteronomy is a common theological outlook in which the most distinctive element is the conviction that God rewards the faithful and punishes the wicked.
	The book affirms both the complete fulfillment of all God’s great promises and at the same time acknowledges the incomplete nature of the Conquest. This indicates that God had been faithful to His people and that the memory of His faithfulness was a promise for the future: He would complete the work that He had begun.
	The dangers of apostasy were ever present. In every act of covenant renewal, Israel was admonished to remain faithful. She was warned of the perils of unfaithfulness and informed how difficult it is to remain faithful.
	Two themes from the Book of Joshua are developed in other parts of the Bible. The first is the promise of the land. Paul interpreted Romans 4:13-18 to mean that God promised to give the entire world to those who believe. (For the promise to Abraham or to his descendants that he would be heir of the world was not through the Law, but through the righteousness of faith. For if those who are of the Law are heirs, faith is made void and the promise is nullified; for the Law brings about wrath, but where there is no law, neither is there violation. For this reason it is by faith, that it might be in accordance with grace, in order that the promise may be certain to all the descendants, not only to those who are of the Law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all, (as it is written, "A father of many nations have I made you") in the sight of Him whom he believed, even God, who gives life to the dead and calls into being that which does not exist. In hope against hope he believed, in order that he might become a father of many nations, according to that which had been spoken, "So shall your descendants be.") 
Echoes of Joshua can be heard also in Jesus’ beatitude: “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth” (Matt 5:5).
	The second theme from Joshua that is developed elsewhere in Scripture is the concept of “rest”. It refers to secure borders that eliminate all danger of attack from without. In the Epistle to the Hebrews, this rest is linked to the seventh day of Creation, which was a day of rest; and this rest is projected into the future when in the new creation Jesus will give rest to all believers. End quote. 
The faithfulness of the Lord to do all that He has promised and to be with us always is highlighted and reinforced for us in the passage of this morning. The Lord made a very definite and vital promise to Joshua that would stand the test of time for all those who belong to the Lord. It is one that we need to have fully grounded in our lives as we go through the trials and the storms and the tribulations and the pandemics of this realm. No man will be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I have been with Moses, I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you. 
     	This promise is so important; it was repeatedly reinforced to Joshua and to us, as in Deut 31:6-8. Please open to it so we can revel together in the gracious faithfulness and presence of the Lord. This needs to be embedded in such certainty in every one of us to not fear but to know that God will never fail or forsake us! This is the call to His Church today as we are facing the upheaval and the distress and the anger boiling up as a result of this current crisis!
	Deut 31:6-8, Be strong and courageous, do not be afraid or tremble at them, for the Lord your God is the one who goes with you. He will not fail you or forsake you." Then Moses called to Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, "Be strong and courageous, for you shall go with this people into the land which the Lord has sworn to their fathers to give them, and you shall give it to them as an inheritance. And the Lord is the one who goes ahead of you; He will be with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear, or be dismayed." 
    	Consider all the fear and the chaos and the anxiety and the frustration that infests the population of this entire globe. This international pandemic has shaken to the core all the plans and intentions and hopes of humanity across the entire globe with its seemingly unstoppable and deadly spreading virus. We see utter hopelessness and disruption and economic collapse on such a tremendous scale that is devastating nations and livelihoods as never before. Yet, we can stand firmly rooted in the Lord with the confident assurance, from His very mouth of His promise that He …is the one who goes ahead of you; He will be with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear, or be dismayed. 
Now please turn to Isa 41:8-14. The Prophet Isaiah was given this message to encourage the nation in the declaration of the fact that God is the One Who is the Redeemer. Just as He redeemed Israel, so has He redeemed us now in Jesus Christ! Therefore we must not be afraid! Rather we hold firmly to the Lord Who is the Sovereign Savior and Victor over all the threats and abuse and anger and animosity and viral tribulations with which this age continues to assault us!
	Isa 41:8-14, "But you, Israel, My servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, Descendant of Abraham My friend, You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, And called from its remotest parts, And said to you, 'You are My servant, I have chosen you and not rejected you. 'Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.' "Behold, all those who are angered at you will be shamed and dishonored; Those who contend with you will be as nothing, and will perish. "You will seek those who quarrel with you, but will not find them, Those who war with you will be as nothing, and non-existent. "For I am the Lord your God, who upholds your right hand, Who says to you, 'Do not fear, I will help you.' "Do not fear, you worm Jacob, you men of Israel; I will help you," declares the Lord, "and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel. 
	The course of this promise is further reinforced as we can read together in Isa 43:1-7. It is God Who makes this promise! It is God Who carries it forward throughout His Word! It is God Who is Our Redeemer! It is God in Whom we can fully and absolutely put our trust and our hope and our belief! He is our rest in the midst of every trial and circumstance and situation and tribulation! God is the Rock of Our Salvation!
	Isa 43:1-7, But now, thus says the Lord, your Creator, O Jacob, And He who formed you, O Israel, "Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are Mine! "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they will not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched, Nor will the flame burn you. "For I am the Lord your God, The Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I have given Egypt as your ransom, Cush and Seba in your place. "Since you are precious in My sight, Since you are honored and I love you, I will give other men in your place and other peoples in exchange for your life. "Do not fear, for I am with you; I will bring your offspring from the east, And gather you from the west. "I will say to the north, 'Give them up!' And to the south, 'Do not hold them back.' Bring My sons from afar, And My daughters from the ends of the earth, Everyone who is called by My name, And whom I have created for My glory, Whom I have formed, even whom I have made."
    	The Writer to the Hebrews, in Heb 13:5+6, finalizes this morning’s consideration with the encouragement to the church to hold firm to the fact that God will never leave us or forsake us, no matter what is taking place! We need to honor Him in the every detail of our heart’s desire and trust. We must absolutely and unwaveringly count on Him to supply our every need! We are also to learn to be content in Him and thankful for all that He provides in His abiding presence and care for us.
	Heb 13:5+6, Let your character be free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, "I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you," so that we confidently say, "The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid. What shall man do to me?" 
	The inherent truth of this promise of God is that we do not need to be in fear of whatever mankind and this age may do to us. While this world, with all its ills and hatred, may torment and even kill our physical beings, our spiritual life is secure and sure and held by the One Who is with us, no matter what! Our stand today and forever is that "The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid. What shall man do to me?" So be it!

No man will be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I have been with Moses, I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you. Amen.

This morning’s benediction is Ps 68:35. O God, Thou art awesome from Thy sanctuary. The God of Israel Himself gives strength and power to the people. Blessed be God! Amen.