Today's Passage - Joshua 1:1-4

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english Joshua 1:1-4   After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses' aide: "Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them - to the Israelites. I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses.  Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the great river, the Euphrates - all the Hittite country - to the Great Sea on the west.       Israelites were at a critical juncture in their history. God had chosen Joshua. In that whole historical salvation, whenever God worked, He was never alone: it is God's will to always work with men; not just ordinary men, but men who are willing to be changed by God. Joshua was not as charismatic as Moses was. During the exodus in the wildness, we didn't see the role Joshua undertook. He merely performed the work that Moses assigned to him loyally and silently. To the Israelis of that time, he was merely a Moses's helper. If one reads Joshua carefully, one will discover that he was in fact not a brave person. Otherwise, God would not have said to him a few times, "Be strong and courageous." No only did God said this to him, Moses said to him, even common Israelis encouraged him such as well.    When God uses a person, it has never been because he was brave, nor because he had talents. The person that God uses is the one who is willing to be shaped by God's hands. Joshua was such person. When he surrendered himself in God's hands, God made a covenant with him. In verse 3, the Lord said, "I will give you every place where you set your foot" God was with him. More importantly, when Joshua learned to put himself in the hands of God, his relationship with God changed. In verse 9, God was no longer God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, no longer God of Moses, but "the Lord your God."   God is happy to be close to those who are willing to put themselves in the hands of God. From Moses' helper to God's co-worker, Joshua had been changed during the process. He started seeing the work that God was doing in time of change. He heard the commission that God gave to himself. God said to him, "Now rise up."  Not waiting until the circumstance gets better, not waiting until the mood gets better, or waiting until all problems have been solved, but right now!  God's promise will always be now. Following Jesus' commands shall always be now. In our lives, no matter what kind of change or breakthrough we encounter, the moment is always in the hands of God. It's God's will for us to rise up right now, grasp His promise and bravely move forward!      Pray with Pastor Tong      Lord, we thank you because your promise is for now, and your command is for now. May God bless us with strong and courageous hearts, like that of Joshua, to be a witness of your glorious beauty in this generation. I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!