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How does one transition from merely surviving to truly thriving in the land of promise? On this episode of the Jaime Luce Podcast, we explore the spiritual and historical journey of the Israelites as they step from the wilderness into the abundant expanse of the Promised Land. Our discussion uncovers the rich symbolism in Joshua 5:9-12, where God removes the reproach of Egypt from His people, signifying a new dawn. This pivotal moment emphasizes the necessity of understanding our past while eagerly preparing for the future, as the Israelites move from dependence on manna to living in the fullness of God’s promises.

Drawing inspiration from Jaime Luce’s insightful book, “You Don’t Need Money, You Just Need God,” we delve into the theme of divine provision amid modern economic challenges. By reflecting on the Israelites’ reliance on God’s daily manna, we uncover a metaphor for faith-driven living that transcends financial constraints. This episode challenges the notion of material dependence, illustrating how divine provision, coupled with obedience, fosters true freedom and protection. We explore the transition from spiritual infancy to maturity, focusing on aligning our lives with God’s purpose, much like Joshua’s encounter with the commander of the Lord’s army.

What does it mean to claim victory and blessing through obedience? Our discussion turns to the lessons from Jericho and the consequences of disobedience seen in Achan’s story. We examine the profound principle that God’s blessings require active participation and stewardship. As we navigate these biblical narratives, the importance of self-consecration and personal responsibility in our spiritual journey becomes clear. We encourage listeners to cultivate their faith with discipline, preparing to fully embrace God’s promises by aligning their actions with His will. Join us as we explore the beautiful interplay between divine provision and human responsibility, urging all to live in the transformative power of faith and obedience.

Where to dive in:

(0:00:01) – Generational Wisdom in Joshua’s Journey (14 Minutes)

This chapter takes us on a spiritual journey through the book of Joshua, specifically focusing on the significance of the transition from the wilderness to the Promised Land. We explore the generational shifts in identity and purpose, highlighting how each generation faces unique challenges and carries different legacies. The discussion centers on Joshua 5:9-12, where God rolls away the reproach of Egypt, symbolizing a new beginning for the Israelites. This chapter underscores the importance of understanding the past while embracing the future, emphasizing that while manna, a symbol of God’s provision, ceases, it marks the beginning of living in the abundance of God’s promises. By examining the historical and spiritual context, we draw parallels to how we must prepare ourselves to follow God’s instructions and fulfill our roles in our respective generations.

(0:13:55) – Lessons on God’s Generational Provision (13 Minutes)

This chapter focuses on the central theme of finding reliance and provision through faith rather than financial means, as introduced by Jaime Luce’s book “You Don’t Need Money, You Just Need God.” We explore the current economic challenges such as soaring gas prices, wars, and rising interest rates, highlighting the idea that the solution lies in spiritual reliance. By examining the biblical story of the second generation of Israelites who grew up in the desert, we learn how they depended on God’s daily provision of manna. This story serves as a metaphor for trusting divine guidance and the protective nature of God’s laws, which are designed to ensure a good and fulfilling life. Emphasizing the importance of obedience to these principles, we reflect on how they bring not restrictions, but freedom and protection, much like a parent nurturing a child.

(0:26:56) – The Next Generation’s Call to Action (6 Minutes)

This chapter addresses the journey of the Israelites as they transition from a generation that relied on divine provision to one that must actively work to claim their promised inheritance. We explore the biblical narrative of the second generation poised to enter the Promised Land, drawing parallels to the challenges faced by modern believers who must cultivate their faith actively. The discussion highlights the concept that while salvation is a free gift, the Christian life requires responsibility and action. By examining scriptural examples, we emphasize that God’s presence in our battles doesn’t negate the necessity of effort on our part. Additionally, we clarify the often-misquoted notion of God being on our side, explaining that it’s about aligning ourselves with God’s purpose, as demonstrated by Joshua’s encounter with the commander of the Lord’s army. This chapter ultimately encourages us to be proactive in our faith, embracing both the challenges and responsibilities that come with God’s promises.

(0:32:54) – God’s Instruction on Provision and Blessing (10 Minutes)

This chapter explores the concept of hearing and following God’s commands as a path to victory and blessing, drawing from the biblical story of Jericho. We discuss the importance of obedience to God’s instructions and how it aligns with the principle of being good stewards of what we have been given. The narrative emphasizes that God provides for us, but we must actively participate in His provision and be prepared to handle the blessings we seek. By examining the story of Jericho, we learn that the initial victory was devoted to God as a form of first fruits, teaching the Israelites about living blessed lives in new territories. The episode also touches on the nurturing relationship God has with new believers, likening them to baby Christians who experience God’s abundant provision and care as they grow in their faith.

(0:43:22) – The Consequences of Disobedience (10 Minutes)

This chapter explores the concept of faith through the lens of biblical scripture, specifically focusing on the Israelites’ journey to the Promised Land. We discuss the transition from reliance on daily manna to following God’s commands for taking new territory, emphasizing that faith is demonstrated through obedience to God’s instructions. Using the example of Jericho, we illustrate how God’s miracles occur when faith is expressed through action. However, when Achan disobeys God’s command by taking forbidden items, it results in Israel’s defeat at Ai, highlighting the consequences of breaking faith. We also touch on how this principle of obedience and faith extends to various aspects of life, including finances, urging that withholding what God requires is akin to robbing Him. Through these narratives, we underscore the importance of aligning actions with belief, defining true faith as walking in obedience to God’s word.

(0:53:47) – Preparing for God’s Blessings (5 Minutes)

This chapter focuses on the importance of self-consecration and personal responsibility in living out one’s faith and promises from God. We explore the biblical instruction to consecrate ourselves, emphasizing the need to remove destructive elements from our lives that hinder our spiritual journey. Drawing parallels with the story of Achan, I discuss the concept of breaking faith and how it impedes living in God’s promise. Furthermore, I challenge listeners to consider the promises they are believing for and to actively cultivate their “promised land” by taking responsibility, akin to how leaders and influencers order their lives with discipline. The discussion underscores the shift from reliance on divine provision, like manna, to personal stewardship of God’s blessings, encouraging a proactive approach to spiritual and personal growth.

(0:58:26) – Living in God’s Blessings Through Obedience (6 Minutes)

This chapter explores the theme of responsibility and obedience in the context of living a blessed life. We discuss the idea that blessings and provisions from God are available, but they require a commitment to obedience and faithfulness. By drawing parallels to biblical stories, we highlight how relying solely on free provisions without understanding the importance of discipline and responsibility can lead to downfall. Obedience to God’s instructions, faith in His plans, and submitting one’s will to His are emphasized as key factors in sustaining and maintaining a life of abundance and protection. This chapter challenges listeners to reflect on their current state of obedience and to seek guidance on what God is asking of them, ensuring they align with His commands to fully experience His promises.

(1:04:53) – Cultivating Faith and Obedience (1 Minutes)

This chapter focuses on expressing gratitude for divine blessings and guidance. We emphasize the importance of trust, faith, and stewardship in our spiritual journey. By nurturing our relationship with God through prayer and studying His word, we align ourselves with His will and receive the wisdom needed to navigate our personal ‘promised land.’ Drawing inspiration from the biblical figure Joshua, we encourage listeners to seek and follow God’s instructions and strategies. As we achieve victories, we are reminded to give glory and praise to God, acknowledging that it is our alignment with His side that brings success. We conclude with a call to internalize and meditate on the word, allowing God’s ways to become our own, and witnessing the transformative power of faith in action.

Full Transcript

This transcript is auto-generated and not perfect. We hope it blesses you.

0:00:01 – Jaime Luce
Welcome to the Jamie Luce Podcast. How is everybody today? I’m hoping that today, so far, has been good for you. I’m praying that the rest of the day will end well for you today and that spending some time in the Word of God will replenish you and strengthen you for whatever is in front of you, you for whatever is in front of you, whether it be you’re taking a mountain, you’re taking things, you’re taking territory, or whether you are in the battle right now. God is with you. There is a plan. He is a good God. Stay in his command and all will go well with you. In fact, we’re going to talk about that in a roundabout way today. So do me a favor If you don’t already have your Bible out, get that out. We’re going to be in the book of Joshua.

I read one particular scripture that just when I read it you know, even when I’ve read it in the past its impact is so weighty to me. It’s just such a heavy scripture and I think you know if you were to just read, you may brush right over it and think nothing of it, and yet it tells so much in just one little sentence. There’s just so much there. So I want to dive into that today. I think that this little journey that we’re going to go on together in Joshua, like I said, will be something that strengthens you, will speak wisdom into your spirit, will give you what you need for what’s in front of you, maybe bring some clarity for some things, maybe bring some clarity for some things.

You know each generation is known by a different name or you know moniker, so to speak. So we had the greatest generation, we had the silent generation, we had the baby boomers, we had XYZ, I mean, you know, millennials. We have all these names for the generations and it seems that each generation is not given a name. That, for the most part, especially the earlier names, these earlier definitions, these earlier categories, were speaking to things very specific. If I think about the greatest generation, we’re talking about World War I, the Great Depression and World War II. If you’re talking about the silent generation, you’re talking about a group of people who went through this fear coming out of wars and this fear of communism and the way the government handled excuse me, the way the government handled this fear and it was mishandled, um, but it was sadly mishandled because of real fears, of real things that they have come through. And then you have a generation the baby boomers who basically come out and say we made it through these wars and we’ve made it through these seasons and we are ready to rebound and build. And they’re such builders and such. You know, so much of what we’re living in today was built by them. Them and the great, the greatest generation.

So much can be said for each generation, but they all experience things differently, even differently, even if the span of years that marks them is not really a very long time. It’s what impacts us in our thinking and on our growth of who we become, and it shapes our mindset that carries out for our whole lives. And I saw this represented in this particular scripture that we’re going to read. So I want you to go with me on this little journey. I want you to really think about this, because I think you’ll be able to understand, no matter what your age is, no matter what differentiates your generation from a previous generation or one that has come after you, we can see the value and understanding of how we need to follow the Lord’s instructions to do well in that generation where we each fit in the puzzle, so to speak. So let’s go to Joshua, chapter five. If you’ve been listening to this podcast over the last few weeks, we talked about what it meant to have in Joshua five, verse nine it it says and the Lord said to Joshua today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you, and we talked at length last time about what that meant that this is a generation that is having to have removed from them certain things, because they were now a generation removed from the generation that came out from Egypt. Yet the things that were on them from Egypt were still a part of them by way of their parents, and the Lord was removing some things to establish them as the ready generation to go in and take the promised land, and there were things they needed to do to make themselves ready for that.

If we go to verse 10, chapter 5, verse 10, this is the portion 10 through 12 is what I’d like to read from here. We’re going to read some other portions later, but this is immediately following God saying Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you, and so the name of that place is called Gilgal to this day. Verse 10, while the people of Israel were encamped at Gilgal, they kept the Passover on the 14th day of the month, in the evening on the plains of Jericho. So they’re getting ready to surround the area of Jericho, which will be the first territory they are to take by God’s command in taking their promised land Verse 11,. And the day after Passover, on that very day, on that very day, they ate of the produce of the land unleavened cakes and parched grain Verse 12. And the manna ceased. The day after they ate of the produce of the land and there was no longer manna for the people of Israel, but they ate of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year. And what words just kept rolling over in my spirit when I read this. And the manna ceased. And the manna ceased. Now, if all we’re doing is reading, historically speaking, and we know that they had been eating manna for 40 years, and now it’s the promised land, so no more manna. Now we’re entering our promised land. Excuse me, but I think we’re missing a lot if that’s all we think about it, if we give it any thought at all, you have to understand that the promised land represented God, not just God’s promise, but God’s blessing and provision for his people that he had called them out from.

If you go all the way back to Abraham. Abraham wasn’t born a Jew. Abraham was born into a family that served other gods who were in opposition to our God. But God called out to Abraham and when Abraham followed him by faith, he is known as the father of faith. When he followed him by faith, and we’re going to talk about faith in a little bit. But the substance of faith, it was because his actions followed that faith. It wasn’t just a belief system. So many will say I have my faith, and you’ll hear people in the media talk about their faith, and saying that phrase can mean anything nowadays. It could mean any God that you decide that you want to serve. It could mean that you do nothing but you think you’re spiritual because you believe that there is maybe a higher power, or you believe that there are spirits, or you believe you can talk to the dead, or you. I mean. There’s so many things you can believe and people lump it all into the category of faith. But the Bible is very specific about what faith means and God called to Abraham.

Abraham believed God, not just in thought, but enough to leave his family and leave his country and to follow a God that he cannot see and do according to what this God asks him to do, believing in the promises of this God totally. By the way he lived in his actions, I mean the way that he would go, fight battles and give tithes, the way that he would if he encountered the three men at his tent, and he believed him to be God in the conversation he had about Sodom and Gomorrah. Just so much about his life. Believing for the son Isaac to have someone to pass on Everything about his obedience and walk was not just believing in his mind that there was a God different than the God he grew up with, but that this God was truly God, god of everything, and that the Jews were a people that God birthed from Abraham’s loins. Coming from Abraham, then Isaac, then Jacob, jacob’s sons turned into Israel.

This whole process is that God was fulfilling a promise to Abraham. Now Abraham was wealthy. God took care of him from day one when he set out to follow God. God made sure that the provision and protection that Abraham needed was there. There were a couple times when Abraham was frightened and he wasn’t necessarily trusting the Lord. The best that he would lie and say that his wife was his sister. But all we know and the scripture doesn’t tell us he was right or wrong in his fear of what he thought these kings might do or how they might treat him or what might become of them, what he thought these kings might do or how they might treat him or what might become of them. We just know the facts. We’re just told the facts, but we know, according to his choice of hearing God’s voice and following it, abraham always followed God’s voice and this people was created. The Jews were created.

God took something that wasn’t just like we like when we are to proclaim something that isn’t as though it is. This is the way we were taught by Abraham. God did this, showing Abraham I will create something out of something that is not. When the earth and all that is in our galaxies and in the universe, and all that we don’t even know that’s out there, was created, it was created from nothing but the word of God, and this was the word spoken to Abraham. God spoke a word to him. God created, through Abraham’s life, a people called to himself to be in covenant with him, and this people was to then show forth who God was to the world.

We see I’m not going to go all the way through the history and take you then into Jesus and, of course, what he did for us. But I’m wanting you to get the picture of the promised land was not just a blessing. This is a fulfillment and a continuation that is continual in this relationship that God has with his people that, if they will trust him and follow after him, he protects them, he provides for them, he takes them to a place that is flowing with what is good, with milk and honey, the things that are even the extra, not just the things that are of necessity, that are of necessity. And most people who are waiting on a blessing don’t even understand fully the blessing they’re waiting on. There’s a promise, but they don’t fully know the depth, the width, the height, the breadth of what it is that God is going to take them into. Part of the mystery of God is trusting him and following him into things that we can’t possibly know. We can’t see him, but we know him and we trust him, and so that’s the process we live in. That’s part of this faith journey.

Hi, my name is Jamie Luce. I wanted to share with you some information about a brand new book entitled you Don’t Need Money, you Just Need God. It’s a playbook for miraculous provision, and I want to share it with you because it solves the problem we are all facing right now. The economy is going crazy, gas prices are soaring, there’s wars and rumors of wars. We’ve got everything hitting us all at once, with interest rates rising. You need to know what to do, and so many times we think we need the money, but you, you don’t need money. I’m telling you the answer is you need God, and that’s exactly what we want to teach you through this book. We’ll give you practical ways to know what to do and how to do it, so that you get answers now. You can find my book on Amazon. You can also go to. Jamie loose calm can also find this book at you don’t neededmoneyyoujustneedgodcom. This book is available today.

But this group, specifically this second generation I’m going to call them generation two coming out of Egypt, this isn’t the first generation. This isn’t necessarily the generation of deliverance. This is a generation that grew up in the desert. This generation was not a slave. Their whole life they were free, but they were nomads in the desert. They learned God based off of the laws that Moses received, and one of these laws had to do with how God provided for their food. And they were to go out every day, manna would fall from heaven. The provision of their sustenance and their health God provided every day. All they had to do was go out every day and take only what was needed, only what was necessary enough for them to eat for the day, except for the day before Sabbath. They were to collect twice as much because they would not be able to go out on the Sabbath and the Lord would not rain it down on the Sabbath. And they learned to trust the Lord’s provision that on the day that he tells you take double, you take double Because the next day you’re not going to see something and you don’t have to be afraid that there’s not going to be anything. That next day you get to rest. I’ve already made provision for you.

There’s so much in the beauty of how God does with us If we will learn his ways. Moses asked the Lord show me your glory, because in even David’s heart, god, I love your ways, I love your precepts. I love your laws. I meditate on them day and night. Precepts, I love your laws, I meditate on them day and night. Moses had made hearing and communicating with God. That was his life’s purpose, according to what God had for him. And the way that that was expressed to the people was through the laws and instructions that the Lord gave. But those instructions were not rules to live by for the sake of rules. They were a way to live in God’s blessing.

So if God said don’t do this, it’s because he knows if you do that you’re going to hurt yourself, you’re going to bring harm to yourself. That won’t be good for your life. That won’t be a blessing for your life. So we have our thou shalt nots not to keep us from bad, but to keep us protected in good, with provision and a good life and freedom from things that would harm us and hurt us. So my mother used to always say God doesn’t give us borders to keep us, to keep us from oh, how did she say it? I’m going to botch it. I’m going to botch it. He gave us borders to keep us from harming ourselves. It’s not from. I’m saying it wrong, I’m not even attempting it at this point. The main idea is he gives them to you for your goodness, not for your harm. Anyway, I’ll find out what it is and I’ll give it to you another day. I used to say it all the time when we were kids, but anyway I’ll mess it up.

So we have the second generation, though, who they learned to live according to those laws, and they did that for an entire generation of time of 40 years. So for 40 years they were almost as if if you think of a newborn child up through being a toddler age, and they are completely dependent upon their parent to protect them and to make sure they have food to nourish them. Um, you know all of those nurturing things that give them life and protect them and feed them, help them grow. That is given by a parent, because the child cannot do it for themselves until they are older. That is how the Lord protected the people. He said not even the shoes of their feet wore out, though they were in this desert walking for 40 years that there was none who was feeble.

God made sure that their health was completely intact. The only time their health was not intact was when they were disobedient, and then there were consequences to their disobedience, but if they did according to what God had told them to do, they didn’t have to fear. God had promised them. I won’t put on you if you’ll do what I tell you to do. I won’t put on you the diseases that came on the Egyptians and it was a God’s instructions are for life. They’re not for bondage, they’re for life. They’re to give you a good, long life, to give you a protected life.

And so they literally had their food provided for them, even if they got sick of it, even if they wish they had other foods, even you know, no matter what the weather was, no matter if they picked up from one place and went to the other, that food was made available for them every day, according to what God had told them it would do. Six days you gather the food. On the sixth day you gather twice as much for the seventh day. But these practices God’s provision and the practices of doing them are what taught them to trust the Lord that he always provides. You never feared that the manna wasn’t going to be there the next day. You had no reason to fear. God had taught them to trust him. But to trust him means you trust his instructions so that the outcomes are what they need to be. So to go from manna, which is all you’ve ever known, the only thing you’ve ever experienced your normal, what came easy for them and, in its own right, the desert, the wilderness, had provided a means of blessing for them. It was one form of blessing they never went without. We know that we have the promise with our Good Shepherd that I shall not want. He takes care of my needs, he provides for my needs, and what they’re seeing, what they had seen for their entire generation, was that God always provided for their needs and that he blessed them. The food they ate was easy. It was provided for them, for the children of Israel. They lived in that provision, in that ease. Now other things were more difficult for them, but in that ease for 40 years.

They were the children of a generation that came out of Egypt who knew hard labor. So here’s the difference in generations. You had the generation before them who had to make bricks out of straw and out of having to gather the straw and how to being beaten. Everything about their experience, their parents’ experience, was completely opposite of their experience as Gen 2. So Generation 1 knew very much what it was to work hard labor, to have to make and earn and provide right. This is how they were slaves and they were forced into labor and you had to work very hard in that labor if you wanted to keep yourself in a whole, unbeaten and eating food to keep you healthy state. There was a lot of work involved. It was up to you. It was the labor that you did, the labor that you produced. They knew what it was to work the fields, so to speak. So they had the leeks and the onions and the garlics and the melons and the things that were mentioned in scripture. These were the things that they were used to having.

So, for them, going into the wilderness and only having manna was a huge change. Where, in that generation, the Lord had to cut something away from them. He was trying to get Egypt out of them, to prepare them to go into the promised land and into a completely different way of living that God himself was providing for them, where he told them that you would have land you’ve never had to till. You’ve had houses that you won’t have to build. They’ll already be provided for you. God was still going to provide, his blessing was still going to be there, but it would be in a different way.

And so the Lord was doing a work, but this first generation didn’t want to take instructions from God. They wanted to do it their way. In their wanting to break from slavery, they didn’t want to hear and do what God was instructing them to do. They were used to living off of their senses. So they saw this large group of people, large in stature, and feared for their lives. And in that fear and those sensations of being afraid, thinking they’re too small, they’re too weak, we are grasshoppers in their sight, they then despised the blessing that God had set out for them and did not want to go in. Instead, they grumbled against Moses and said you brought us here to die. So they were forced to live without ever inheriting the blessing.

And now Gen 2 comes up. They’ve never been slaves. They don’t have to be broken free from those things, but they have the ways and manners of their parents, who were teaching them and they were in this struggle, this tug of war of what was before them. But what they’re living in and what God is promising them, that looks different. So if you think about a farmer or a shepherd or someone whose occupation is like a chef, there is much work, much effort, much cost into going into the provision of food, just the provision of food, because we’re talking about the man of ceased. Can you imagine yourself living one way for 40 years, knowing the provision of God, as a child relies um and relying on God’s provision, but the parent, for 40 years, had to try to learn to depend on God when they were used to depending on themselves. Boy, there’s such a big lesson in that, but that’s not the lesson for today.

And in a moment everything changes. Everything that you’ve heard about, everything that you’ve dreamed of from your parents, who had talked about the promised land because they went in and viewed it. They know it flowed with milk and honey. They know the fruit was so abundant and so huge that they had to carry just a sample of it between two men on a post just to show the abundance of what was in front of them. And you have this generation preparing Gen 2, for this promised land. Everything you’ve only heard about, heard explained, is now a possibility for you and it’s a blessing. And yet it is completely unknown to you and can and could actually be overwhelming.

The I don’t knows, the you know, so many times we have fear of the unknown, what’s in front of us that we don’t understand. They’re going to have to learn how to care for everything that God is giving them. They’ve never had to do that before. It was always just provided for them. So now you’re teaching a generation who has been the scripture says, like at the breast. So a child who’s nursing who. Everything comes from the parent, from the mother. The nourishment comes, the provision is always there, the protection is always there. And now you’re being weaned and you’re going to have to learn how to now work for this.

Now we don’t earn our salvation. So please do not hear what I am not saying. We do not earn our salvation. Our salvation is a free gift from God. But what we do have to do is be responsible for the Christian life Paul talked so much about. When he’s explaining grace, he explains we don’t live according to the law. Now we live according to grace, but do I keep sinning so that grace can abound? And he says God forbid, absolutely not. That’s not how this works. It’s like how James tells us you’re going to know what I believe because you’re going to see me walk it out that faith without works is dead. You’re going to see my works and you’re going to know my faith based off of the actions that I take.

So this new generation, this next generation Gen 2, is going to take the promised land. They are literally on the outskirts of Jericho, surrounding Jericho, getting ready for this first land takeover, the first victory. They’re going to have their own land, no more wandering, no more desert, but no more manna. No more manna. They have a Passover feast. They remember where they have come from. They remember the stories and what their parents told them and how they were delivered, how God was so miraculously present, in power to deliver them from such a horrible condition. And here they are, ready to go in and take this land and they celebrate the Passover.

And the very next day the manna ceased. No more could you go out and, with ease, just pick up the bread and eat it, just pick up the manna and eat it. Now there’s a land of plenty in front of you, but you’re going to have to learn how to care for that. You’re going to have to learn how to till that ground. You’re going to have to learn how to cultivate the things that produce a land flowing with milk and honey, not things that you necessarily had, not experience, that you’ve gained, nor a lifetime of doing behind you. Your parents knew how, but you don’t know how, and I think so many times we miss out on blessings, and I think so many times we miss out on blessings because we think that if God does it, that God’s just going to poof do something and there’s no work involved and we rob ourselves of the blessing.

That first generation robbed themselves of the blessing because they were afraid to fight, they were afraid to take it. The slavery they had been under for 400 years had put a mentality in them and put a mindset in them of fear of fighting back, fear of speaking up, fear of doing something. That was the silent generation for us as a picture to look at. Because of communism, because of what had taken place and the wars that had taken place, these people were afraid to stand up against a voice that was standing against communism. But even if you were innocent of it and accused of it, you were afraid to stand. Well, this reminds me of these people. The first generation, you were afraid to stand. Well, this reminds me of these people. They’re afraid. The first generation, they were afraid to go in. Well, now we have a second generation. They’re not afraid to go in, they’re not afraid to speak up, they’re not afraid to do something, but they’re going to have to work and stay awake, so to speak, be on alert. This is just the first land that they’re going to have to conquer and from here on out they’re going to have to fight battles to gain that territory.

That doesn’t mean that God’s not with you. You fighting a battle doesn’t mean that God’s not on your side, that God isn’t with you. That’s just not the truth. God is with you, god is for you. Actually, according to Joshua you know we quote this wrong all the time we always say God is on my side. That’s not really accurate. I’m not saying that you and God are not on the same team, but that’s not an accurate statement.

When Joshua was preparing in fact, let me read it to you when Joshua was by Jericho, he lifted up his eyes and looked and behold, a man was standing before him with his drawn sword in his hand. And Joshua went to him and said to him Are you for us or are you for our adversaries? So on my side or their side? And he said no, I’m not on either side. No, but I am the commander of the army of the Lord. Now I have come. So what he’s saying is you need to be on my side. I’m the commander of God’s army. You choose to be with me or stand against me. This is not. I’m not on your side, you’re on my side. So technically, we need to say I’m on God’s side. So I know we’re good.

As long as you are hearing God’s commands and following God’s commands, you can know that God is with you. Because you are with God. Okay, as long as you are with God, you will have victory. But God gave a very specific command. Now, this is really interesting. He told them that they were not. In fact. Let’s read it. Which scripture do I want to give you? Okay, so they prepare to go after Jericho. They are now going to be living without manna.

Okay, the lesson that’s being taught is I have provided for you. I’ve always provided for you. I am still providing for you. I am providing for you victories in a land that’s flowing with milk and honey. I am providing, I’m going to be with you. You’ll win the battle, but this time I’m not just putting the bread right around your tent on the outside like a baby having pacifiers around their head and you can just grab one. You’re going to have to go fight this battle, but you’re going to win, and all of this extra blessing belongs to you.

Do you know? God can only bless you at your capacity. Your capacity is what determines how much blessing you can actually hold, and I’m talking about blessing of every kind. Do you need a bigger home? Is your house bursting? You filled every corner. You need more space? Well, god’s not going to give you a bigger space if you can’t take care of the space you have. Your capacity determines what more you can handle.

So if I am not good at handling something that God’s given me, I shouldn’t want more, because I won’t be able to handle that any better. In fact, it’ll be worse. I have to be in control of that. God expects me to be responsible with what he’s given me, to be a good steward. And so God tells them now I want you to see this whole picture here. He’s teaching them about provision, how he’s provided. He’s taking them into this new provision, but now they’re going to be actively participating in that provision. Okay. And he tells them in chapter six, verse 17,. Let’s start at 15.

On the seventh day, they rose early at the dawn of day and marched around the city in the same matter seven times. It was only on that day that they marched around the city seven times and at the seventh time, when the priests had blown the trumpets, joshua said to the people shout, for the Lord has given you the city. So this is when they’re taking Jericho verse 17 and the city and all that was within it shall be devoted to the Lord for destruction. Okay, devoted to the Lord for destruction. Only Rahab the prostitute, and all who are with her in her house shall live, because she hid the messengers whom we sent Verse 18. But you keep yourselves from the things devoted to destruction, destruction, lest, when you have devoted them, you take any of the devoted things and make the camp of Israel a thing for destruction and bring trouble upon it. But all silver and gold and every vessel of bronze and iron are holy to the Lord. They shall go into the treasury of the Lord.

So there is a very specific instruction that’s being given to them this first territory that they are taking. God is saying I have this territory that is devoted to me. It’s like a form of first fruits. Okay, it’s a, it’s a. It’s like a symbol of first fruits. This first one gets devoted to me, but that’s because this people is and their land is an accursed land, depending on which translation you’re reading. When it says the devoted things, the devoted things, that same word, devoted, is actually translated accursed things, that they were not to touch. The accursed things, the devoted things and accursed. You would not realize that those two words mean the same thing, but they do. They were cursed. And so God was saying this is mine. I have devoted it to destruction so he could cleanse everything that they’re going to be taking from then on out. This first land, this first portion, this first conqueror of territory was taken for the Lord first. So I hope you can see this with me. So God is giving them an instruction to teach them how to live blessed in the blessing, when all they’ve known before is everything is handed to them.

The Lord is saying, just like he would say on the sixth day you gather twice as much, because on the seventh day we’re not going to gather. That day that’s the Lord’s day, that day is devoted to the Lord, so that’s his this first territory. He’s saying don’t take of this, don’t partake of this. It’s like saying, on this day don’t go out and try to gather. This day’s mind, this belongs to me, but if you can follow my instructions here, then you get to receive the blessing and understand my provision moving forward. I hope you can. I hope I’m being able to articulate this. Holy Spirit, help me to articulate this so that they understand the Lord is saying I have a way and if you’ll do it my way, you have my provision going forward. The way you trusted me for your food every day, you can trust me to take all these new territories. So if you’re waiting on God’s blessing, first we have to understand where am I at in this journey. Am I someone that the Lord is saying follow these examples?

Is the Lord treating you kind of like an infant? And he’s just, he’s just constantly like a baby Christian. And they he just feeds them. They’re just a baby Christian. So God is so good to baby Christians, boy, I, I. They’re so blessed. Baby Christians are so because God is just showing them his provision, his goodness, his love. He’s nurturing them, he’s growing them. They need that. They’re infants. They need that constant care, that constant feeding.

If you’ve ever known somebody who has just recently given their life to the Lord and you just see God do stuff all over the place for them and they just see the goodness of God everywhere. This is what they’re used to. This is what the children of Israel are used to. And now they’re growing up and he’s saying okay, it’s time to wean you, but you still need to follow my instructions. These commandments I give you are just like what I’ve done in the wilderness. You have my 10 commandments to live by, not to keep anything from you, but to keep you living, blessed and protected. He tells them don’t take of anything, because this whole city is devoted to the Lord for destruction. This is all God’s. He’s going to destroy it all with fire. He’s going to burn it all up. He’s going to purify all this. This is God’s. Don’t take anything. Don’t go out there and try to gather more.

When the children of Israel were learning about the provision of manna, god told them don’t take more than what you need. If you do, it’s going to turn to worms and be unedible. And those who tried it did exactly that. If they took more than what was actually necessary, more than what they actually needed, it was disgusting, it was putrefied, it was filled with worms, and disgusting. They couldn’t eat it. But that didn’t happen on the sixth day, because God told them to do that. That’s why you can’t put God in a box. You can say he told me to do this here, but now over here he’s telling me to do that. I don’t know, I don’t understand it, I don’t know. But I trust God. You need to trust his instructions to you. Don’t worry what people think about it. If God is giving you instructions, follow God’s instructions. He’s leading you into a place of blessing. So what happens? Okay, everything that was devoted the city and all that was within shall be devoted to the Lord for destruction. So he says the warning if you touch anything, if you take anything that God says, just like turning to worms, you’re going to bring the whole thing of this that you took is going to bring destruction on Israel. It’s accursed, it’s devoted to the Lord. So if you take of that, you’re bringing the devotion of destruction onto you and the children of Israel. He was. He was helping them understand the concept of the church at large.

We are a body. What one of us does? We’re all affected. If a minister falls into sin, look how much it affects the people, and not just the people who attended, who was their flock. They get affected the most, those who were the closest, but the whole body feels it. We feel the shame of it, we feel the pain of it, we feel the the um, the ridicule of it. It harms all of us. Our actions affect one another. We are knitly joined to. We are how does it? We are, um, knit together and we are joined together so that each joint supplies. Okay, what we do affects everybody else. It affects our family, it affects, maybe, our coworkers, it affects, um, maybe our school, maybe friendships. It affects the body of Christ and we see what happened. So let’s look at what happened. There was a man named Achan who took, who partook, the sin of Achan.

Let’s go to chapter seven. I want to read this to you quickly, and we’re going to start in verse 10. Because what has happened? Okay, I skipped something and I don’t want to skip this because this is too important. I already I explained to you at the beginning of this podcast what it was to have faith, faith that was in action.

We know the scripture says that faith is the substance of things hoped for. So something I’m believing that I can’t see, just like the God that I believe in that I can’t see. There is something I’m believing for. Their promised land for two generations was out in front of them something they couldn’t lay hold of, but there was the hope of it. So it’s the substance of things hoped for, but the evidence of things that is not seen yet. Okay, they showed faith in the way they took and ate of the provided manna, but now the manna has ceased and now it’s going to be the way that they follow God’s instructions in front of them. How are they going to handle taking the new territory and actually living in the promise that God has provided this faith, god, so that you have to understand God is giving them an instruction how to live, how to take this territory and what to do with it.

God calls that faith. God calls that faith the instruction that he gave and the obedience to that instruction God calls faith. So it was faith to believe that the manna would be provided every day and your faith was expressed by your obedience to that word to only take what was necessary or, on the sixth day, to take double. That was the covenant relationship, and the faith they expressed was in their actions of obedience. Okay, they, when they went into Jericho and God gave them the city, miraculously, the walls fall down with not even a fight and they literally could just move straight ahead. I mean the walls fall flat so that they can move straight in and take this territory Full on miracle of God. And God says everything in that city, save Rahab and her family, everything in that city is devoted to me and to destruction. It’s devoted to destruction. Do not take it, do not partake of it, don’t try to take anything. You see, if you do, you bring destruction on the people.

So in chapter seven, let’s read verse 1. Look what God says. But the people of Israel broke faith, broke faith. Disobedience was breaking faith. So it’s interesting that people constantly like to throw around the phrase and say I have my faith, you don’t have anything, you don’t have real faith unless you’re walking in obedience to God’s commands. That’s what faith is. If you don’t hear God’s commands, which is this book? Not man’s commands, it’s this book. This book, god’s book, tells us what God expects from us and how to live in accordance to his word. When we do that, when we walk in obedience, we are walking in faith. That is the walk of faith. We walk by faith and not by sight. We walk according to what God tells us, not because we can see it, but because we believe and we take actions on that belief, those actions of obedience on that belief is faith.

This verse says but the people of Israel broke faith in regard to the devoted things or the accursed things. For Achan, the son of Carmi, son of Zabdi, son of Zerah of the tribe of Judah, took some of the devoted things. They were commanded not to take anything, and the anger of the Lord burned against the people of Israel. Now nobody in Israel knows this except Achan and whoever he got to help him bury that stuff. Nobody knows. Yet. Joshua doesn’t know.

Yet they come up on the next territory. They believe God, they’re moving in faith. They took the first territory and God knocked the walls down. Just like he said, god’s providing, he’s doing it, he’s taking us into the promised land. And they go to take Ai. They find out that Ai I’m not sure if I’m saying that right, but anyway Ai is the city that only has a few people. So they say don’t even bother all of Israel, just send a few troops up there, you’ll be able to take it. And instead what happens is Israel is chased away and several men are killed that day. Let me see if I can find out how many. I think it was something like 36 men. If I can find out how many, I think it was something like 36 men. Uh yeah, 36 of their men were killed that day, retreating and running from this small group of people not the giants, you know, the small group of people and they come back and Joshua is beside himself.

He cannot understand this. He has followed God’s commands. He has done what God told him to do. God has shown himself strong on their behalf. God’s told Joshua what he’s going to do. He said I’m raising you up today in the eyes of all people. They’re going to fear you. The same way they give honor and listen to the voice of Moses. Just like I was to Moses, I’ll be to you and the people will treat you the same way. They’re going to fear you.

And this is what Joshua does. He’s like, alas. Joshua said alas, o Lord, why have you brought this people over the Jordan at all? He begins to not. He doesn’t understand any of this. Why did you bring us on this journey If we’re going to be defeated by these few thousand people?

And so, in verse 10, the Lord said to Joshua get up. Why have you fallen on your face? Israel has sinned that. They have transgressed my covenant that I commanded them. They have taken some of the devoted things. They have stolen and lied and put them among their own belongings. So not only did they touch the accursed thing, but god says that this was stealing. It belonged to god, it was devoted to god. Folks, this even works. This is going to scare many people and I might lose some followers because of this, but this works also in your finances. If God requires something of us and we refuse to give it and I’m not even doing an argument on type just if God asks you to give, no matter what that is if you hold back your finances, you are robbing God. The prophet told us that he, they said basically, you’ve got holes in your pockets, the money can’t stay, you can never have enough. Everything’s fallen apart. And he tells him why. He says because you’ve robbed God, you robbed him, you’ve stolen from him. That’s his, that was devoted to him, says, and you’ve taken it. That’s thievery. And this is what God is saying in Joshua. They have stolen and lied and put them among their own belongings. Therefore, the people of Israel cannot stand before their enemies.

If you’re fighting a battle and you feel like you just cannot win this battle now. I’m not putting, I’m not putting this on you. Please do not again. Don’t hear what I’m not saying. Not every battle that we face are we going to see victory right away. Some battles are a battle and you’ve got to fight them through to the victory, please hear me. But we have to make sure that we are fighting that battle in obedience. We need to fight that battle in obedience.

If I’m fighting it in my own strength, if I’m fighting it on my own terms, if I’m fighting it in my flesh because of what I want, what I think I’m going to take, and you wonder why you’re getting beat, because of what I want, what I think I’m going to take, and you wonder why you’re getting beat. Maybe it’s because Israel cannot stand before her enemies. Maybe we can’t stand before our enemy because we’re walking in disobedience. Now, of course, you would know if you are. So this is not oh, if you, if you have to think oh God, am I walking in disobedience? Am I doing wrong? I’m not, I’m not putting something on you.

People who are in disobedience usually know pretty quickly they’re walking in disobedience. Now you may be surprised. You could say Lord, if I, if, search my heart, search my heart. Oh God, look and see if there’s any wicked way in me, if I’m doing any of this in my flesh. I want you to show me. I humble myself before you, lord. You know, we’re supposed to throw ourself on the rock so that we aren’t crushed by the rock. We humble ourselves so he can lift us up, so we can say okay, lord, if there’s something I need to know, if there’s an instruction.

I didn’t hear Father align me. I want you to stand with me. I want to stand on your side. I want the victory in this battle. Bring me the victory. Show me the strategy. What do you want me to do? What do I need to devote to you? What do you want me not to touch? What do you want me not to say? What do you want me to say? Let’s keep reading. Let’s go to verse 12.

Therefore, the people of Israel cannot stand before their enemies. They turn their backs before their enemies because they have become devoted for destruction. He told them the reason these people were killed and destroyed was because of this disobedience. If you take anything that belongs to me, that’s devoted to me, which I clearly stated was devoted for destruction, you take it. You take that to yourself. You take that for yourself. You disobey me and do what I tell you not to do. That destruction now is devoted on you. You’re now devoted to destruction. He told them Israel, if you touch this stuff, israel will be devoted for destruction. And that’s exactly what he did. I will be with you no more unless you destroy the devoted things from among you. That is so scary, that is so sobering. God is telling Joshua and all of this people, israel at this point, I will be with you no more unless you destroy the devoted things from among you. And he gives them the strategy then. So, if that, if that has happened, you can know okay, I’m not. Yes, lord, forgive me, there’s a way out. There’s a way out. There’s a way through. There’s a way into promised land.

Verse 13,. Get up, consecrate the people and say consecrate yourselves for tomorrow, consecrate yourselves for tomorrow. And, folks, I want to give you the same instruction, no matter what is behind us, no matter what mistakes we have made. I spoke about this in our podcast last time. God continually would tell the people consecrate yourself. Quit waiting for me to do some poof on you. You know what you need to do. You consecrate yourself. You set yourself right in front of me, you set it up, you do what you need to do. You cleanse and get rid of what you need to cleanse and get rid of, make yourself ready before me.

We know what that is. We know what it is to have the conviction of the Holy Spirit to speak to our hearts, to convict us and to say I don’t want you touching that that’s considered devoted to destruction in your life. So many times we destroy ourselves because we touch the things that destroy us. When those were devoted to destruction, the Lord says that’s not for you. I’m not, that’s not what I have for you, not because the thing in itself is even necessarily bad, just because that thing will bring destruction in your life. So we have to remove and get rid of those things devoted to destruction. You need to let the Lord speak to you. What is he speaking to you specifically about? God gave them what they needed to do and they had to deal with Achan, all that belonged to Achan, everything that he had, everything he owned.

But part of what I want you to take away with this is understanding that when Achan did this, when he disobeyed, when he didn’t follow the instruction of the Lord, that the Lord said this is breaking faith. If I break faith, I am my worst enemy in being able to live in the promise that God has given me. We started this podcast and I explained to you the difference in understanding generationally what the blessing was and how that would be different from what they’ve experienced before. And I want to challenge you today. I want to challenge you to be thinking yourself about the thing that God has promised you, or the thing that you’re believing God for, the thing that it takes faith to call those things that are not as though they are, whatever those things are, that you are walking by faith and not by sight.

In that faith is the substance of being able to take care and live in the blessing of the promised land, because to go into the promised land means that the manna has ceased. The responsibility is now on us, the onus, you, you would. It would not be hard I’ll put it that way it will not be hard to get on your phone and scroll on your phone and to see all the different influencers who talk about how to be a leader, how to be somebody who goes after it, makes it happen, brings you, know, financial prosperity into their life and the way that they have to live, the way that they have to order their days and their schedules, the way that they have to live, disciplined all of those things are actually really good, right principles, and the reason they’re achieving what they’re achieving is because they actually live by those, and part of what I’m trying to explain to you is this that if God wants to give you and take you into your promise, you’re now going to have to. You is this that if God wants to give you and take you into your promise, you’re now going to have to cultivate that land. The manna has ceased. You can’t be somebody who sits and waits for a handout and think you’re going to live in the blessing of God. You can’t be somebody we have generations living right now that are so we call them entitled.

They just think things should be given to them. They just think everyone should continue to provide for them and they think they should live in a blessed state, a blessed way, that all of their food should be provided for, all of their costs of education should be provided for, all of their costs of education should be provided for their cars and and what they do. Everything should come from freebies and their phones are given to them for free and and you can come to this country and not care about this country and we’ll give you money and housing. And people just think everything should be given to them like manna. People just think everything should be given to them like manna and they don’t realize that to live in the promise, the manna ceased, that if you want to live in the promise, then you need to be someone who understands what it is to be disciplined and cultivate and have the capacity to care for this new blessing. You will be responsible to grow the crops, to till the ground, to water the seed, to plant the seed, to wait in the time of winter and to care for it and make sure in the summer that it doesn’t die. I mean, you have to understand the processes and you have to care for that.

Now God may provide the house you didn’t build and crops you didn’t plant, but to keep them producing, god could take you into the promise. Yes, by supernatural means. Yes, by taking the walls of Jericho down. Yes, but it will take obedience and you walking out by obedience to sustain living in that blessed place. Because if you let go of the obedience and you let go of God’s instruction and you let go of your responsibility in your relationship with the Lord and that blessing, then you will find yourself like Achan did and God saying I won’t go with you anymore and you won’t be able to stand against your enemies, your backs will be to them, you will lose.

God’s ways are not to keep you bound, they are to keep you in a place of abounding. That’s why he said I came to give them life and life more abundantly. But that means we walk in faith. Faith is not a mind game. Faith is obedient actions according to a word about something that you may not even be able to see and articulate. I believe in god, I know he’s real and yet, at my very best, I would barely be able to articulate the few things that I have come to know and understand about god, because he’s so big. He’s so much bigger than I can imagine, so much more than I could ever dream of.

And your blessing may be that big, what God’s called you to may be that big, but you have to be able to obey the Lord in his instructions for living the walk of faith in order to maintain and sustain that blessing. So is the blessing available, absolutely, absolutely. It’s available for you today, but it will take your willingness to submit your will to his and to do what he’s called you to do the way he’s called you to do it. If you want to live a blessed life, you will need to live your life and lead your life in obedience to him. You can’t do it running off rogue and doing it your way. You don’t get to sing Frank Sinatra’s song. I did it my way and think you’re going to live in God’s blessing. If your way is God’s way and it doesn’t look like anybody else’s, bravo.

But we have to make sure that we are following God’s commands. He loves you, he has provision for you, he has protection for you. He has protection for you, but those are found in the place of obedience. So today I challenge you, ask the Lord, make sure that you are in that place of obedience. Make sure that you are in that place of submission, in that place of what is God asking of me? Is he asking me to devote anything to him? Is there anything that he wants me not to touch? Is there anything that I need to do to make sure even the instructions God gave them for the walls to fall down was very specific. It was as if they were doing the same kind of mantra walk around these walls one time for six days, do it the same for six days, but on the seventh time you’re going to march around them walls seven times and you’re going to shout His patterns.

You can see God’s ways and his patterns. He wants us to understand. He’s there, he provides, he is, he loves us, he is good, he has a good blessing, he has promise for you. But they are found in the obedience. That obedience is your protection. It’s like the cloak you put on to protect you. It is what will sustain you. It’s what will keep you standing in front of your enemies, not running in defeat from them. So, no matter what you face today, this says consecrate yourselves for tomorrow.

For tomorrow I may not be able to change Now. There’s time in today. Let’s do it today, if we’ve got more time today, but if this day is spent for you, if you’ve done all you can do today, there is tomorrow. Consecrate yourself for tomorrow, make it right, get the instructions, prepare your heart for obedience and do what God’s called you to do. And, if you will, your heart for obedience and do what God’s called you to do and if you will, you will see the blessing of the Lord that makes rich and adds no sorrow.

Let me pray for you, father.

We just thank you for your blessing, for your provision. You are always there for us. You are always making good on your promises. I thank you that you have taught us your ways in your word. You have taught us how to trust you, how to walk by faith, so that we could actually lay hold of and hold onto and keep the good land, the promised land, the blessing that you have for us. May we be good stewards of what you’ve given us, cultivating our walk with you, cultivating our prayer time, cultivating our time in the word.

Lord, that we are able to know you and able to hear your voice, the way you would give instruction and correction to Joshua. Father, I pray today that every ear who desires to hear from you will hear your instructions clearly and be able to see the instruction and the strategy to take their promised land. Father, we promise that we will give you all the glory for every victory we win, knowing that it is not you who is on our side, but we who is on your side, and we give you all the glory and praise for it in Jesus name. Amen. Thank you for spending time in the word today. Let the word sink in, chew on it, meditate on it, make God’s ways your ways and watch what God will do for you. We’ll see you next time. Bye-bye.