Passing the Torch

My Final Charge this past Sunday night to the Young Professional Group at Central as Kevin and Kristen Johnston become the new ministry leaders..........................

I remember just a few short years ago Jeff and Santhi visiting with Debbie and I about participating in a very special ministry. Jeff and Santhi were about ready to move to New York City and they were seeking a new teacher for the Young Professional Class. Debbie and I prayed about it. We were asking God to give us a special ministry at that time and he did.

That torch was passed almost 5 years ago.

Joshua passed the torch of leadership to a new generation. Joshua’s final charge to that new generation is found in Joshua 23. Joshua knew that he would soon pass from the scene, and he was concerned for the new leaders that God would raise up to follow him. His words to them that day apply to each one of us today who desires to be the kind of servant God wants us to be. This passage is a reminder to us of what God cares about.

Joshua 23:1-19

1 After a long time had passed and the LORD had given Israel rest from all their enemies around them, Joshua, by then old and well advanced in years, 2 summoned all Israel—their elders, leaders, judges and officials—and said to them: "I am old and well advanced in years. 3 You yourselves have seen everything the LORD your God has done to all these nations for your sake; it was the LORD your God who fought for you. 4 Remember how I have allotted as an inheritance for your tribes all the land of the nations that remain—the nations I conquered—between the Jordan and the Great Sea in the west. 5 The LORD your God himself will drive them out of your way. He will push them out before you, and you will take possession of their land, as the LORD your God promised you.
6 "Be very strong; be careful to obey all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, without turning aside to the right or to the left. 7 Do not associate with these nations that remain among you; do not invoke the names of their gods or swear by them. You must not serve them or bow down to them. 8 But you are to hold fast to the LORD your God, as you have until now.
9 "The LORD has driven out before you great and powerful nations; to this day no one has been able to withstand you.
10 One of you routs a thousand, because the LORD your God fights for you, just as he promised. 11 So be very careful to love the LORD your God.

In these verses I want to focus on four principles:
· Give God all the credit
· Obey his Word completely
· Cleave to him only
· Love him more than anything else

The first principle is:

1. GIVE GOD ALL THE CREDIT
This principle is found in verse 3: “…You yourselves have seen everything the LORD your God has done to all these nations for your sake; it was the LORD your God who fought for you.”

The thing that impresses me throughout the book of Joshua is that Joshua was a man of tremendous humility. He was a leader who did not draw attention to himself. Joshua constantly centered the attention of the people on the CHARACTER of God, rather than his own personal CHARISMA. The important thing for Joshua was what God had done and what God could be trusted for, not what Joshua did. Joshua gave all his successes back to God as His accomplishments.

We need to learn this same lesson. It is often easy to begin our Christian lives giving God the credit. But as we grow older and as our accomplishments increase, our tendency is to forget the source of our strength, our abilities, and our achievements. But if we are putting God first we
will always reflect with humility that it is God who is responsible for all we are and have.

Let me mention something else that is very important: When you give all your successes back to God as His accomplishments—then you don’t have to be depressed and discouraged over the opinions and criticisms of other people. When you give all your successes back to God as His accomplishments through you, you are free from being demoralized by any superficial evaluation of failure in your life. Because you were not doing it to seek credit for yourself. You were doing it for the glory of God. Since it was all for Him and for His glory, the only judgement and opinion of your life that ultimately matters is the judgement and estimate and opinion of the Lord himself.

The SECOND PRINCIPLE is found in verse 6. “Be very strong; be careful to OBEY all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, without turning aside to the right or to the left.”
If you want to be successful in life…

2. OBEY GOD'S WORD COMPLETELY
In chapter 1 God commanded Joshua: “Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful” (Joshua 1:8). This became most important in Joshua’s life. He committed himself to a life of obedience to the Law of God. Now he urges this same commitment on a new generation of leaders in verse 6: “Be very strong; be careful to obey all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, without turning aside to the right or to the left.”

What is it that most honors God and which God most delights to honor? Is God most honored by an eloquent profession of faith? No. Many have called Jesus “Lord, Lord” but have later fallen away and stopped serving him. Is God most honored by great natural abilities or talents? No. There are many who have had great abilities and talents but have wasted them on worthless goals. Is God most honored by an attractive appearance or a winsome personality? No. Saul stood head and shoulders above his countrymen. He seemed to have everything going for him. He was called by God, gifted by God, and anointed by God. But he failed miserably.

The true answer to the question “What most honors God and what does God most delight to honor is found in Samuel’s words to Saul after Saul had sinned: “Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams” (I Samuel 15:22). That’s the answer. The thing that most honors God and that God most delights to honor is OBEDIENCE.
If you want to be successful in life, immerse yourself in the Word of God, and live in uncompromising OBEDIENCE to it. Then you will experience God’s power and blessing on your life and ministry. There is no substitute for OBEDIENCE.

The THIRD key to spiritual success is found in verse 8…
3. CLEAVE TO THE LORD ONLY
“Do not associate with these nations that remain among you; do not invoke the names of their gods or swear by them. You must not serve them or bow down to them. But you are to CLEAVE to the LORD your God, as you have until now” (v. 7-8).

The term “CLEAVE” means to hang on tight, to stick like glue. The same word is used in Genesis 1 about the exclusive relationship between a husband and wife. Here we are called to trust God and not to trust any other resources but God.

Just as Israel had to constantly contend with the influence of the Canaanites and their gods, we also have many other philosophies of success in the world competing for our attention and trying to seduce us with false promises. There are many temptations, even when we're trying to do the Lord's work, not to rely on the Lord. There will be temptations to water down His word, to give up because of discouragement, or to pursue methods that are not pleasing to Him. But Joshua calls us to hold fast to the Lord. The promise is that as long as we are cleaving to the Lord in willing, practical obedience, God will honor what we do. This is true of an institution as well as an individual.

The FOURTH principle is found in verses 9-11: “The LORD has driven out before you great and powerful nations; to this day no one has been able to withstand you. One of you routs a thousand, because the LORD your God fights for you, just as he promised. So be very careful to love the LORD your God.”

The final principle of spiritual success found in these verses is:

4. LOVE GOD MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE

This is an intense call to self examination: Do I really love God more than anything? Do I love him more than my family, job and all my stuff?

One statement that I often remember someone telling me when I was young was to “Never love people more than you love the Lord.”

Jesus said to Peter, "Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?" (John 21:15-19.) Everything depends on that. As we grow more deeply in love with the Lord Jesus, everything else in our life will find its proper place. Relationships will work the way they're supposed to work. Loving him with all our hearts will result in spiritual success in the things that really matter from God's perspective.

So Central Young Professional Group let me leave you today with the same charge that Joshua gave to the new generation of leaders in Israel. If you want to be successful in life, it is laid out in this passage: Give God all the credit—give all your successes back to God as His accomplishments; submit yourself to His Word; stick to Him like glue in willing, practical obedience; and love him with everything you’ve got. As you do this you will find that God will do wonderful things in and through your life.

Debbie and I pass this on to you as Joshua did for those that he loved.