Victory’s Battle Cry-A Study in Joshua Part 20—Steps to Remain Victorious
As we have read in Joshua, they entered the Promised Land with God’s guidance each step of the way. The people had been very diligent to do all of what God commanded. The men from the Gadites, Reubenites and the half-tribe of Manessah had remained faithful to their promise to stay and fight alongside the remaining tribes until all had been accomplished. Since their inheritance had been on the east of Jordan, this meant they had left behind all their possessions, their children, and their wives to fulfill their obligations as God had commanded. We are not told how many years this was; but, we know that it was years. Now it was time to return to their homes. They had been faithful to God and to His commands. Joshua calls them to tell them that it was now time for them to return to their home land east of the Jordan. When he does he then tells them:
Joshua 22(KJV) “ 5 But take diligent heed to do the commandment and the law, which Moses the servant of the Lord charged you, to love the Lord your God, and to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and to cleave unto him, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul.”
Why would he tell them this? Hadn’t they shown their devotion all of these years?When are you and I most vulnerable to drifting? It is during the moments of rest and prosperous times that we tend to forget. When we no longer are confronting the heat of the battle, we tend to get complacent.
photo courtesy of @istockphoto.com
Whatever the season you are in can you say? Psalm 42: “As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. 2 My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God”
What are the steps Joshua instructs us to take so as to ascertain our continuing victory during the times of rest?
1. Diligence to continue exercising our faith through studying the word of God. We need to know God’s Word. (Psalm 119:11 Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.) This does take diligence and discipline to continue to study when all is going well.
2. Fan the flames of love that you have for God. It is too easy to let things become “contented”. You need to “fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you” (2 Timothy 1:6 NIV). You need to remember what it was like to “fall in Love with Christ”. Capture that moment each and every day through song, meditation and prayer.
3. Seek His guidance every step of this journey. Sometimes, this does mean that quietly we fast to demonstrate our humility and our desire. Ezra 8:20 (GNV) “And there at the river, by Ahava, I proclaimed a fast, that we might humble [h]ourselves before our God, and seek of him a right way for us, and for our children, and for all our substance.”
4. Obey God as an act of worship of devotion. I love this quote of Charles Stanley which rings through my head whenever I am considering a situation. “Obey God and leave all the consequences to Him.” Obedience should be a natural act of trust, devotion and worship with a desire to honor God as our greatest treasure and by our act of obedience place His Glory on display to the world. Deuteronomy 30: (KJV) 19 I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:20 That thou mayest love the Lord thy God, and that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he is thy life”
5. Cleave to Him with all your heart and soul. Just as you need to breath or drink, desire Him with that same passion, knowing you cannot live without Him. Psalm 63:1 (NIV) You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water.
6. Serve Him- Should we not desire our introduction to be that as Paul used in Romans 1 “Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God,” Is there any greater place of honor than to be given the opportunity to serve Him, the King above all Kings?
Let us each be diligent to follow these steps, whether we are in the midst of a spiritual battle or during those moments of rest and retreat; because only then may we remain victorious.
Meditate on the words of this beautiful song. As the Deer
New International Version(NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.®Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
1599 Geneva Bible (GNV)
Geneva Bible, 1599 Edition. Published by Tolle Lege Press. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations in articles, reviews, and broadcasts.
© 2014 Effie Darlene Barba
Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to any brands, products or services that I have mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides regarding the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”