As we begin this great and historic book, please allow me to remind you that the book of Joshua is not only a revelation of what God has accomplished in a past time zone but it is also a revelation of what God can do through any man or woman wholly, fully and completely surrendered to him in this time zone.

This book is more than a history book!

Listen to what the apostle Paul says with respect to this time zone in 1 Cor.10 v 11.

So New Testament Christians are to draw application from Old Testament Christians they can follow in this present time zone.

So no new headings or titles today, nothing original, it has all been said before but it’s absolutely imperative we are reminded once again of it!

A young ordinand setting out for his first church said, "I will be original or nothing!" He was not long into his ministry when he discovered he was both original and nothing!

Yes, it’s all been said before, but oh, to make it mine!

Oh, to make this our own and take example from Joshua and the saints of God from this age will bring amazing benefit to our calling and life for the Lord.

Now there are four segments to this first chapter of Joshua and each of them has great import and worth our attention, so listen up, we are going on a journey with Joshua and I trust we thoroughly enjoy it.

What an honourable title! Moses is distinguished as "The Servant of Jehovah." He was this by choice, for he willed to be the servant of God rather than to be great in the land of the Pharaohs.

Such he was by perseverance throughout his whole life, such he was by complete submission for he waited upon God for his directions as a servant waits upon his master. Such he was for he endeavoured to do all things according to the pattern and plan shown him in the Holy Mount.

Though he was King in Jesurun, he never acted on his own authority, but was the lowly instrument of the Divine Will. Moses was most faithful to God in all, his house and as a servant. You neither see him overstepping his office nor neglecting it. His reverence for the Lord’s name was deep; his devotion to the Lord’s cause was complete, and his confidence in the Lord’s Word was constant.

He was a true servant of the Lord Jehovah from the time he was appointed at the burning bush until the hour when he surrendered his keys of office to his successor, and climbed the appointed mount to die.

That beloved is the mark of godly leadership, when the God of all Glory acknowledges us as his servant. "Moses my Servant is dead."

Oh that you and I may so live to be approved servants of God!

And the reason I say this was to be a land of rehearse is because this is to be the land into which God is calling his people to live a victorious life for his glory.

You see God has given us the possession of victory, but few of us seem to live a constant life of victory!

We look at the lives of men and women from Old Testament times and New Testament times, from generations past and say, oh, that I could be like them!

But what was it that made men and women great in the past? It was that they lived their lives from the standpoint of victory!

You say to me, well Pastor I don’t have that kind of victory most of the time! Well, I would have to say the same, but beloved that’s not God’s plan for us. God has given us victory and if we fail to live in victory we are living beneath our privileges. Now while the Bible admits the possibility of defeat and failure, it never assumes the necessity of failure. We can always live in triumph in Christ Jesus.

The power to have continual victory is built in to our salvation.

And that’s the very reason God, when Moses dies, looks to one of like mind for leadership, Joshua!

He is not placed in leadership because of who he is, but because of what he is, a faithful and true and powerful Servant of God.

And his task is daunting! Joshua is to lead the people of God into a place that is hostile to everything they are and believe, but God is telling them to go in and possess their possessions. This is your land and everything in it belongs to you, go in and claim what’s yours and live in the victory and blessing of it.

Now Canaan is a picture of the land of victory and blessing, not as some would tell us in hymn and storybooks, that Canaan is a picture of heaven.

We get our metaphors mixed up a little bit sometimes.

Like the preacher who was waxing eloquent in prayer and he prayed, "and Lord if there happens to be a spark of fire in this church, please water that spark."

Now that did not just come out right, he had mixed his metaphors somewhat!

Canaan is not a type of heaven because there is warfare in Canaan, there is sin in Canaan, there is a going in and a coming out in Canaan, and there are, giants in Canaan.

Rather Canaan is a picture of possessing our possessions while we journey through this difficult land.

We live as strangers and pilgrims in this land but we can possess victory while we do.

You see beloved; there are many that have come out of Egypt, yes! But they, sadly, like others, never did get Egypt out of themselves.

And the idea of living in this present evil world is that we might rehearse a life of godliness and holiness while struggling with the threefold enemy that troubles us so much.

The external foe, the world! The internal foe, the flesh! The infernal foe, the devil!

But as we rehearse a life of godliness and holiness we can know victory and possess all God wants to bless us with!

You see up until this time they had been a nation of slaves, but now the command comes to set them free, they are from now on to live as free people!

After their liberation out of Egypt they were brought into the wilderness to await God’s timing to enter the land of blessing, and remember it all did happen, but only in God’s planned time, not before!

We have such a tendency to want everything we think God should have for us yesterday.

Now it’s interesting, they had been delivered out of Egypt by a miracle, but God brought them into a wilderness. And by the way, they spent forty years in this wilderness, and by the way again, only two of the original crowd that went into the wilderness came out, Joshua and Caleb!

The reason being, although they had been delivered from Egypt, it would seem they could not find deliverance over the bondage into which sin had brought them.

Just like so many dear Christians today, we have been delivered from sin but somehow we are still in bondage to it. We never seem to know victory over temper, lies, duplicity, deceit, criticism, backbiting, jealousy, fear, depression, doubt, etc. etc.

And that beloved is because we are in a battle and yet we treat the Christian life like a picnic.

Here’s something worth considering, James reminds us in chapter one how free men and women act!

Your answer to those four, test questions reveal just how free you are, or indeed how much in bondage you are!

And just as this was a land of release for God’s ancient people so he wants that this be a life of release for his present day people. Man is born free, yet everywhere he is in chains.

There is only one answer to the anguished question asked long ago: Romans 7 v 24.

All this time they were in the wilderness, do you know what they had to eat?

Of course you do! Manna! Manna! Manna!

Three times per day, seven days per week, every week of the year, for forty years!

Manna in the morning, manna in the evening, manna at supper time.

Let me tell you they were sick and tired of manna, they were fed up to back teeth with manna! Numbers 21 v 5.

Hey folks! Canaan was the land of corn and wine, milk and honey, grapes and pomegranates, a land of abundance. Why should they go in and possess the land?

Because it was a land in which, at long last they would get some real refreshment, some real blessing!

Now, we can understand, to some degree at least, their moans and groans in the wilderness, but here’s the point, they were not long into this new land of refreshment until they were at the complaining again.

Would I surprise you by saying we do the same today!

We sit in for a spiritual meal at this table of God’s precious Word yet we never seem to be satisfied with what God is feeding us. We moan and groan like the children of Israel in the wilderness and we come away from the feast spread and are totally dissatisfied. Why so? Why is it we react this way? I believe it’s because we are just living on the scraps thrown to us from this meeting or that meeting, we are forever in the cafeteria living on titbits we like instead of feasting on the finest of the wheat God has provided for us.

Our gracious heavenly father steps in, gives us a feeding and leading shepherd to feed and lead us, at first it is sweet to the taste, but it’s not long before we are back at our old habits, carping and complaining about the spiritual food we are given to eat!

What’s wrong with us in this country with respect to God’s word beloved?

Would I surprise you again by saying, the reason is I believe people are sick and tired of their Christianity. They just have enough Christianity to make them miserable.

They have come out of Egypt, out of the world, yes! But never have entered the blessed refreshment God intended they would have.

Instead of partaking of the refreshment spread on the father’s table, like the prodigal son, they still try to satisfy their soul at the hog pens of this world. And you know what? All that does is make them more miserable and contrary.

Hey folks! It ought not so to be, we are dealing with divine dynamite and everyone who hears God’s word should be affected by it. How can it affect others if it first does not affect you? Your theology must have doxology! If it doesn’t give you a song in your heart it won’t bring a song to the hearts of others.

Listen dear people, this world is growing awfully tired of this dry as dust, dead as old King Tutu Christianity.

And before we start blaming the church for being dry and dead and boring and dull, remember the church is just as alive as you are, as alert as you are, as awake as you are, why, you are the church!

Don’t you want something that’s alive and refreshing, not a man made refreshment that loses it’s Saviour so quickly, but that which flows from God, don’t you, then it’s got to come through you.

I’m feeding on the living bread; I’m drinking at the fountainhead;

And whoso drinketh, Jesus said, shall never, never thirst again.

What, never thirst again? No, never thirst again.

What never thirst again? No, never thirst again.

And whoso drinketh, Jesus said, shall never, never thirst again.

Therefore, life is wonderful, yes; it’s wonderful;

Life is wonderful now to me.

I let Jesus in, he changed everything, life, is wonderful now.

Since his blessings came into my heart,

Joy unspeakable fills every part,

And I want to live for my Lord, life is wonderful now!

Is that true of you and me?

Or am I robbing myself and others of the blessing of this refreshment because I am not enjoying it myself?

The unknown penman writing in the book of Hebrews call this land a place of rest!

Bringing with it a timely reminder! Heb. 4 v 1-2.

Not rest, of course, from work but rest in work!

Jesus said, "Come unto me and I will give you rest." But He did not mean we would have rest from work but rather we would have the rest of the Lord while working, and that brothers and sisters is worth having.

You know, you very soon find in this work that people love you today and loath you tomorrow and if you didn’t have that rest you would fold up under the awful strain which that places you under.

But oh, my, the rest of the Lord while you work allows you the privilege of simply leaving those people to the Lord and allowing him to do what is necessary with them!

In Egypt there was no rest! In the wilderness there was no rest.

In Egypt they were sorely oppressed, in the wilderness they were just going round and round in ever increasing circles.

They knew every grain of sand; they had been pricked with every cactus in the place!

Why possess their possessions? Why, because it’s a land of rest!

Why give up all to God and serve with your whole heart?

Why because there is a wonderful rest in serving the Lord.

1 Thess. 1 v 1-10. Look at the marks of reality in this infant church.

They are not living on a nerve edge, they are simply enjoying being Christians and telling others so.

You see beloved, when you serve the Lord like that you don’t have to force doors open looking for something to do.

You don’t have to chase key men around if you know the keeper of the keys.

We come to church and sit, but we should also come to church to serve, in worship, praise, prayer, preaching, giving, remembering the Lord. It’s in the doing of these things that true rest comes.

You see, to date all they had known of Canaan was what they had heard by way of sermon from the elders as they sat around the campfires in the evening.

But they had no hands on experience for themselves; they had not yet experienced the wonder of this land. And folks, many Christians have never yet experienced the hands on experience of personal involvement in the work of the Lord, and therefore it’s all second hand experience to them, it’s all hear say!

Aren’t you tired of just listening to sermons about victory and blessing, don’t you want to experience it all for yourself.

Would you not like for some of what you hear to be reality? Do you know there are folks who come to church on a regular basis but have no more notion of applying what they hear, they simply listen and may even pass comment now and again. Oh, he wasn’t as good today as he was last week.

Or, I really love it when your man from down the road comes, and you want to hear Dr. Thunderbolt when he comes, but as for turning teaching into reality, don’t annoy me please!

Listen folks, God wants his dear people to live in victory, he does!

And here I believe is the key. God has already given us the victory, do you hear me today! God has already given us the victory.

You say, well why don’t I have it then? Oh, beloved, God has given the victory but we have not yet possessed our possessions. Joshua 1 v 3.

They were not even in the land yet but here was God’s promise.

Not, I am going to give it to you, I have given you!

Listen! Listen! Dear people, it’s finished, the victory is won, the devil is already defeated.

You say to me, well he does not act like it, and I’ll tell you something, he hopes you never find out and truly believe it.

Our Lord Jesus on the cross defeated the power of Satan by the power of his redemptive work and has given you and me authority over all the power of the enemy.

Put the feet of faith on the promise of God and say this is mine.

Make an announcement about it before God and Satan, this is mine, and in the Saviour's name I Take God at His Word and I am going to live in the blessing of it!

He with the king of glory shall reign eternally.

Email Pastor Kenneth Humphries


Return to Pastor Humphries' Sermon Index Page