 |
|
| Volume 26 Number 4 April 2024 |
Page 6 |
|
|
| Volume 26 Number 4 April 2024 |
Page 6 |
Gary C. Hampton
We can learn what God desires in and from a leader by looking at Joshua, Moses’ successor and a man of faith. He, along with Caleb, rejected the report of the ten faithless spies and urged the people to go up at once to take the land (Numbers 13:11-14:10). Their confidence was based on their trust in the Lord’s ability to deliver them.
God prepared Joshua for leadership through a series of events. It was he who led the people in battle against Amalek (Exodus 17:8-16). He was with Moses when he went up to God on the mount (Exodus 24:12-13) and when Moses came down and found the people worshiping the golden calf (32:15-20). He witnessed the unselfish nature of Moses when he would not forbid Eldad and Medad to speak for God in the camp (Numbers 11:24-30). The Father directed Moses to lay hands on Joshua to symbolize the transfer of authority (27:15-23).
Joshua’s first instruction was to lead the people, their flocks and herds over Jordan (Joshua 1:1-2), which can reach up to a mile in width at flood stage. God promised to give the people all the land He had promised Abraham (1:3-4). The land was promised to them on the condition that they would receive only that upon which they walked with the soles of their feet. It was theirs for the taking from the Arabian Desert on the south to the mountains of Lebanon on the north and from the Euphrates River on the east to the Mediterranean Sea on the west.
God promised to sustain Joshua just as he had supported Moses in all the works he did under the direction of the Almighty. Joshua knew no man, even powerful Pharaoh, had been able to successfully oppose Moses. God promised none would be able to oppose him either. God’s strength was his as long as he obeyed the Lord’s commandments. Prosperity and success would arise from keeping the law which was designed for man’s good (1:5-9).
