March 3, 2014 - Monday

Start Time: 5:08 A.M.

End Time: 5:42 A.M.

Title: The Covenant Renewed at Shechem

Scripture: Joshua 24:1 – 33

God’s Message / God’s Promise / God’s Commands:

→ Then Joshua assembled all the tribes of Israel at Shechem. He summoned the elders, leaders, judges and officials of Israel, and they presented themselves before God. Joshua said to all the people, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Long ago your ancestors, including Terah the father of Abraham and Nahor, lived beyond the Euphrates River and worshiped other gods. But I took your father Abraham from the land beyond the Euphrates and led him throughout Canaan and gave him many descendants. I gave him Isaac, and to Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau. I assigned the hill country of Seir to Esau, but Jacob and his family went down to Egypt.  “‘Then I sent Moses and Aaron, and I afflicted the Egyptians by what I did there, and I brought you out. When I brought your people out of Egypt, you came to the sea, and the Egyptians pursued them with chariots and horsemen^[a] as far as the Red Sea.^[b]  But they cried to the Lord for help, and he put darkness between you and the Egyptians; he brought the sea over them and covered them. You saw with your own eyes what I did to the Egyptians. Then you lived in the wilderness for a long time. “‘I brought you to the land of the Amorites who lived east of the Jordan. They fought against you, but I gave them into your hands. I destroyed them from before you, and you took possession of their land.  When Balak son of Zippor, the king of Moab, prepared to fight against Israel, he sent for Balaam son of Beor to put a curse on you.  But I would not listen to Balaam, so he blessed youagain and again, and I delivered you out of his hand.  “‘Then you crossed the Jordan and came to Jericho. The citizens of Jericho fought against you, as did also the Amorites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites and Jebusites, but I gave them into your hands.  I sent the hornet ahead of you, which drove them out before you—also the two Amorite kings. You did not do it with your own sword and bow. So I gave you a land on which you did not toil and cities you did not build; and you live in them and eat from vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant.’

NOTES:

Ø God is a Positive God!  The passage above shows that God told the people everything He did for them from Terah, Abaraham’s father, to their generation on that time.  Noticed how positive God is when He talks about History?  He focuses on the good things and the positive works happened in the lives of His people and did not mention the sins they made (specifically).  As God’s children, we ought to be like God.  We are to find the positive and good things in our lives and not the bad ones.  We are not to linger on the negative but nurture and build ourselves in the good and perfect works of God in our lives.

→  “Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord.  But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” Then the people answered, “Far be it from us to forsake the Lord to serve other gods!  It was the Lord our God himself who brought us and our parents up out of Egypt, from that land of slavery, and performed those great signs before our eyes. He protected us on our entire journey and among all the nations through which we traveled.  And the Lord drove out before us all the nations, including the Amorites, who lived in the land. We too will serve the Lord, because he is our God.” Joshua said to the people, “You are not able to serve the Lord. He is a holy God; he is a jealous God. He will not forgive your rebellion and your sins. If you forsake the Lord and serve foreign gods, he will turn and bring disaster on you and make an end of you, after he has been good to you.”But the people said to Joshua, “No! We will serve the Lord.”

NOTES:

Ø God is a holy God and to serve Him, holiness is required from us that’s why Jesus died so He can give us His righteousness and cover our flaws so that we may be worthy to serve the most Holy God!  We are unworthy and will never be good enough to serve the King of Kings and Lord or Lords because of our fleshly nature.  Yet God knows our hearts and our desire to serve Him even if that desire is also tainted, so Jesus came down and gave Himself up that we may become worthy to set foot in His presence!  Hallelujah!  Thank You Jesus for Your wonderful gift and I am amazed that because of what You did, I can now come boldly into God and serve Him!

Ø God is a God who seeks humility and willingness! God does not force anyone and even though our current desire to serve Him is tainted, He hears our hearts and gives our desires so long as we are volunteering to do so.  God is not a dictator and He does not want us to be in a position that we do not want to that’s why we are to make a choice to serve Him.  He does not impose that on us but it is us who will make that decision.  Thank You Lord because You value our Freedom and You allow us to make choices.

→  Then Joshua said, “You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen to serve the Lord.” “Yes, we are witnesses,” they replied. “Now then,” said Joshua, “throw away the foreign gods that are among you and yield your hearts to the Lord, the God of Israel.”  And the people said to Joshua, “We will serve the Lord our God and obey him.”  On that day Joshua made a covenant for the people, and there at Shechem he reaffirmed for them decrees and laws. And Joshua recorded these things in the Book of the Law of God. Then he took a large stone and set it up there under the oak near the holy place of the Lord.  “See!” he said to all the people. “This stone will be a witness against us. It has heard all the words the Lord has said to us. It will be a witness against you if you are untrue to your God.”  Then Joshua dismissed the people, each to their own inheritance. After these things, Joshua son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died at the age of a hundred and ten. And they buried him in the land of his inheritance, at Timnath Serah^[c] in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash. Israel served the Lord throughout the lifetime of Joshua and of the elders who outlived him and who had experienced everything the Lord had done for Israel. And Joseph’s bones, which the Israelites had brought up from Egypt, were buried at Shechem in the tract of land that Jacob bought for a hundred pieces of silver^[d] from the sons of Hamor, the father of Shechem. This became the inheritance of Joseph’s descendants. And Eleazar son of Aaron died and was buried at Gibeah, which had been allotted to his son Phinehas in the hill country of Ephraim.

NOTES:

Ø God requires witnesses when He makes a covenant with us!  His witnesses include every living creature such as plants, animals, etc.  Our promises are void Yet His promises are true and when we make a covenant with Him, nature becomes His witness for the promises He made for us.  He hold on to our words yet He knows how irresponsible we are and at times, we back out on our words…that’s why He requires witnesses not for us but for Him, so that He will continue to do as He has promise even when we fail to do our part because we have witnesses on our covenant with Him.  Praise Jesus!

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, Praise Your Holy Name!  You are Marvelous and good at all times!  Thank You for Your existence in my life and Your visibility in my surroundings every day.  Thank You because You are a God who is positive and as an example, You made sure that You focus on the positive of our experiences so we may see it with Your eyes every day.  Lord continue to open my eyes every day and let my vision be as clear as Yours that I will continue to see the positive things in life and the work of Your hands daily.  Lord thank You because You died so that I may have Your righteousness and then I can be bold in entering Your presence to serve You.  Thank You Jesus for Your love that continues to amaze me every day!  Thank You because You ensure that there’s witnesses when we make covenant with You, not that it will remind us of our promises because we always fall short from what we say but to remind us that Your word and promises are true and what You say, You do.  Thank You Jesus because You seek for our willingness and today I say I am willing but I cannot do it on my own for my effort always fall short and I always fail.  But because You are with me Jesus, I can and will be able to accomplish my promises and words.  Thank You Lord.  In Jesus’ Name, Amen!