Word & the Wild

This is Word and the Wild. It's a one year Bible adventure with friends, and my name is Owen. I am delighted to be your host and your guide as together we're on this 12 month journey as a podcast plus community, where we read the Bible for ourselves, but not by ourselves. Well gang, here we are week 13, and this week we're following along little bit, new part of the story.

We've got Joshua and the Israelites as they step into the promised land and move to clear out Canaan. And then we've got some unfinished business they're gonna face that puts their future at risk. They're in a life and death struggle, and the threats are closer than they think. So. Let's get going. Hello and welcome once again.

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With that my friend. Strap in. Let's find our place with Joshua and the Israelites as they cross the border into the promised land. We've been hearing so much about, here we go.

At the end of last week, after a long, long walk through the wilderness, the moment we've been waiting for a moment that's been anticipated since the story of Abraham, remember Abraham? Yeah. The moment has finally, finally arrived. The Israelites with Moses protege, a man named Joshua at the lead. They finally plant their sandals in the promised Land and it all started, they crossed the border with a miracle that mirrors really what happened at the Red Sea.

Remember that God parts the Jordan River, which is what forms the geographical boundary of the Promised Land. The Israelites cross over. To the West Bank of the river. It's a miracle how it happens. And they set up camp at a place called Gilgal and it was no small miracles. Alright, nowadays, if you've ever had a chance to visit the Jordan River, I've had a chance to stand there on the bank.

Alright? And what you find there, I will admit it's an underwhelming, muddy. Trickle of a little river. But before the extensive dams were placed along the Jordan River in the last a hundred years, the Jordan River was known to reach more than 10 feet high and a mile wide in flood season. So that's the exact season when the priests carried the arc, they stepped foot in the water and the whole thing parted and everyone walked across on drag ground.

Amazing. And just like that, we're officially in the Promised Land. The promised land feels promising, right? We got new places, new people, new adventures, all. But we got some of the same challenges and same themes in the story. The themes we've picked up on as we've watched the story of the Bible unfold.

These themes run right through the middle of this episode in the story. Just like that Mighty Jordan River runs right through the border of the promised Land. Yeah, see we've been down in the dust and the dirt here in the wilderness for a while now, and so I think it might be a good time for us to lift off from ground level.

Okay. Picture the shot in the movie where we get a high sweeping view of the whole landscape. You know, like one of those fancy drone shots. Okay. So we're just gonna lift up and as we drift upward. Hey, to let our minds drift backward a little bit to the big plot points in this story. All right, here we go.

Take a breath. Remember where the story starts. I. In the beginning. In the beginning, God, right. God's the main character of the story. He's the very first character we meet in the first four words of our Bible. And his story drives the story of the Bible itself. Yeah. From the early moments of creation, we picked up on some of these key ideas about God.

Remember this, first of all, we, we found that God is powerful. I mean, he speaks and the universe itself comes into existence. God is powerful. God is personal. He thinks he feels. He acts. He's interactive. He engages with his creation. He wants a relationship with it. He didn't just create it and step away watching it all from a distance.

Now he's right here. He's immediate and in the middle of it, and that includes especially his desire to have a relationship with humans. So God is powerful. God is personal. Another thing we learned about God in those early moments of the story. Is that God gives purpose. God gives everything. He creates a meaning.

He gives everything. He creates a role, and his love for his creation is what sets its value. And that holds true for human beings. Most of all, the, the, the pinnacle of his beautiful creation story, human beings come in. Are created to represent God and fill every corner of his world with awareness and appreciation of him.

God gives purpose. Okay? And then we also learned this about God. Remember, God has a plan. We saw this in the aftermath of Adam and Eve's fateful choice. They ate that forbidden fruit, chose to walk away from him. And in that moment, tragic moment, God reveals that he has a plan. It's a rescue plan, it's a restoration plan for his beloved creation, his beloved people and their relationship with him.

And, and, and that gives our story a plot. That's the plot. It's God's plan. God is powerful. God is personal. God gives purpose. God has a plan. And here's one more about God, our main character God makes. Promises, right? God moves his plan forward through very imperfect people, and he commits himself to them.

He makes promises to them. Noah, Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, and many others. Those are just the big ones. God speaks to these very, very ordinary people and he invites them to be part. Of his rescue plan, his restoration plan for creation, and then he promises to see that rescue plan through. Through those people.

God is powerful. He's personal. He gives purpose, he has a plan. He makes promises. This is our main character and this forms the skeleton for our story. There's the structure. So, you know, whenever you get a little lost or a little fuzzy as we walk through this journey you know, you can use that outline, that character outline to help you get your bearings.

It is all about God and those are true things about God, that, that help define who he is and shape our story. And that's where. The descendants of Abraham fit into that story. Remember Abraham? Of course you do. And, and it started out with God and Abraham and God's promises to Abraham to make his descendants like the, the stars in the sky, the sand on the seashore.

And he promised Abraham that, that all families on the earth would be blessed through him. Amazing promise. And then by the time we get to Jacob by the time we get to that point, they, they've started to, to grow. All right. There's just a few dozen people then, and then they continue to grow in Egypt, and we get down to where we've got a full scale people group that now go by a name.

The Israelites, they're all descendant of Jacob, which is, he's known as Israel, and they become the Israelites. Remember all this? This is review. We're just kind of, we're picking up where the plot's taken us. Okay? So then God's rescue plan for humanity. All the way back in Genesis three, God, God gave a clue about that plan.

We're watching the plan unfold and, and we see an exodus that, that God's rescue plan for humanity includes a rescue of the Israelites from Egypt. I. But God doesn't merely just spring the Israelites from enslavement in Egypt and then cut them loose. Now he sets them free to set them on a path that moves his plan forward, because God has a plan.

Remember this, this from Exodus 19. This is right after they've come out of Egypt and they've made their way to that famous mountain Mount Sinai. Listen to what God says to those Israelites. Remember this he said. You have seen what I did to the Egyptians. You know how I carried you on Eagle's wings and brought you to myself?

Now, if you will only obey me and keep my covenant, then you will be my own special treasure from among all the peoples on earth. For all the earth belongs to me, and you will be my kingdom of priests. It's my holy nation. That's Exodus 19 four through six, that God's plan for human beings. Is to love and represent him inside creation and that plan.

We learn in that moment, it's gonna run through the Israelites. Their, their, their, their part of the plan is they're gonna set up shop in the promised Land and they're going to function like priests for the world. And I'm not talking about the, the Catholic kind of priests. I'm talking about priests like Aaron and his sons and on down the line that the, what their job was to explain what life with God is like.

To teach people about God, to show people the joys of relationship with God and to help everyone connect with God. This is what priests do, and God, God's saying to the Israelites, their part in the plan is to be a whole. People like that. A nation that's set apart to represent God, to celebrate life with him, celebrate his goodness, his care, and to make a way for others to join them in their love for the creator God.

That's the Israelites part in this big plan. So what happens? Well, they, the Israelites, they leave Egypt, they camp out at Sinai. To learn what it means to live in healthy relationships with God and with each other. And then God walks 'em through the wilderness where they work out their divided loyalties and prepare to establish that physical presence to represent God in the promised land.

And then finally, the day arrives, the day when they set foot. In their new home, the Promised Land, and step into their destiny. And here we are. This is where the story has taken us. Now here we are standing with God's people, Joshua and the Israelites on the East Bank of the Jordan River, and we watched them cross over and stand.

On the West Bank, and as we stand here, it's clear what the Israelites need to focus on and exactly what they need to do based on their place. In the story. Okay. Now to, to really boil this down in simple terms. I'm gonna ask you to use your imagination for a second. Okay? Now, imagine a world for just a minute where Joshua and the Israelites, okay, maybe they're gonna hire a team.

Of modern day consultants to help them prepare for their launch into Canaan. All right. It's a big project. Got big stakes, perfect time to get some outside help. All right, now, all right, this, this is just a thought experiment. Imagine with me. All right? Now, these consultants, what they're gonna do is they're gonna run Joshua and his lead team.

Through a SWOT analysis you ever feel hear of a SWOT analysis? You're familiar with this? Well, SWOT is an acronym. It stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and Threats. A SWOT analysis helps you spot what could tank your project and helps explore what your potential successes might be. Okay, so a lot, this is very common thing.

You've run through a SWOT analysis at the start of a big project. So let's say these consultants run a swot. Analysis for the Israelites as they prepare to clear out Canaan that that SWOT analysis I know might go something like this. Okay. First strengths top strength. God has promise to lead the way and fight our battles for us.

We don't have to worry about being outmanned, outgunned, outmaneuvered. If we are with God, we are unstoppable. That is a hundred percent clear. Big time strength. I. Okay. Now, what would be the weaknesses in the SWOT analysis? Well, weaknesses a big one. Our safety and success depends entirely on maintaining our relationship with God.

It's that covenant relationship. It's a contract and parts of this, the success that God's promised if we follow him. It really is. It takes both sides. To maintain this contract, this covenant, this relationship. If we neglect and abandon that relationship, we will be on our own in a fight against overwhelming odds.

Okay? So, so put that in the category of a weakness. This is where things could go wrong for us. This is, this is a weak point for us. We're, we're not strong enough to do this without God's help. Okay. Okay, so SWOT analysis, strengths, weaknesses. Next one is opportunities. All right. Opportunities. What's our opportunities here?

Well, if we succeed, we're the Israelites. We're Joshua. Now we have a chance to play a major role in God's plan for human history. We will, we will literally be at the epicenter of representing God and spreading awareness and love for him. All through the world, which gets us back to fulfilling our purpose as human beings.

That's spoken over us and planned for us by God in that very first moments of creation. That's a big opportunity. And here's the threats. Okay? We got strengths, weaknesses, opportunities. What are the threats? Well. Threats are memory lapses and stubborn selfishness that could put our relationship with God at risk.

Okay? That's what that SWOT analysis might look like for Joshua and the Israelites, and that SWOT analysis would be spot on. All of that comes from what Moses has already told them. Remember this? I mean, of course you do. The point of Deuteronomy, which we just crawled out of last week, it's a very detailed recap by Moses of the Israelites relationship with God, all the ups and all the downs.

The point of Deuteronomy was to highlight those two exact threats. Threat number one. Failure to remember threat number two, failure to choose to love and obey God. See, God will never fail his people or abandon them, but the question on the table will his people fail to remember their checkered history?

Learn from it. Choose to follow the path of making their relationship with God their top priority. That's the question on the table in some of his final words to the Israelites, Moses poses this very question, listen to. Listen to these statements from Moses. Comes from Deuteronomy chapter 30. Here's what he says.

If your heart turns away and you refuse to listen, and if you're drawn away to serve and worship other gods. Then I warn you now that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live a long, good life in the land You are crossing the Jordan to occupy. Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses, and now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make.

Oh, that you would choose life so that you and your descendants might live. Moses concludes his remarks. You can make this choice by loving the Lord your God, obeying him and committing yourself firmly to him. This is the key to your life, verses 17 through 20, Deuteronomy 30. Now, this week in the story, Israelites crossover into the Promised Land and they enter into a life and death struggle as they work their way through their battle for Canaan.

But that struggle. And it's not so much between their soldiers and the soldiers of the hostile people groups they encounter along the way. Those, those physical threats, they're really no threat at all. God has promised all along, he's gonna handle that for them. Now, the real struggle, the real battle will be one and lost in their hearts.

Will they forget their history will lapse in memory, result in lapse of judgment. Will they make the all in commitment to love and obey their God or not? It's a life and death choice. Question on the table as we stand with them on the banks of the Jordan River, will Joshua and the Israelites choose life?

Well, there's only one way to find out and answer that question. We gotta jump into the journey this week, so jump in with us. Ready, set and go. Word in the wild is a one year Bible adventure with friends. Man, I'm just having a blast with this, and I hope you are as well. Let me know how it's going for you.

I'd love to hear from you. And all you word in the wild plus community members I'll be seeing you there in the wild this week. Our online private community space, everybody else. Don't be a stranger. Subscribe to this podcast and follow Word and the Wild on Facebook. We'll get into some interaction there.

You can always send me a message or a note through there. I'd love to know how things are going for you. Word and the Wild is a LineHouse community. It's part of the LineHouse Community Network. It's a non-profit organization with a mission to bring neighbors together to promote awareness, appreciation, and understanding of the Bible.

Because friendship and God's word, change lives and change cities.

Word and the Wild is presented by the LumaVoz Podcast Network. As always, many thanks to our friends at LumaVoz. They are great hosts to us.

And with that, my friend, we're out. I'm Owen, your host and your guide. Until next time, I'll see you out there on the trail.

In the word and the wild. Happy reading. Have a great week.