We begin our study at the banks of Jordan, a crossroad in the history of the Hebrews. They were on their way to the promised land. 40 years had gone by in their wanderings through the desert. A new generation had emerged that never saw any of the miraculous display of God’s power in Egypt. They had only heard about them.

The situation before them was totally unique. They were at the close of one era and at the beginning of another.

Some of us may identify with this. We have also come through one era and are facing another, because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

As we examine the event surrounding Joshua’s commission and command to lead the children of Israel. There are many crucial nuggets you and I must know and commit to memory. Your attention to detail will guarantee your success!

What you hear determines what you perceive; and what you perceive determines what you see; and what you see determines your actions. And finally, your actions determine what you will receive! What you hear determines what you perceive; and what you perceive determines what you see; and what you see determines your actions. And finally, your actions determine what you will receive!

How good is your word? I mean the promise you make. Is it reliable?

What about the promise others have made to you? Were they reliable? Have you been betrayed by a broken promise?

Well, this is what Joshua had to go on. For him, it was a promise given; a covenant spoken; trust commanded, from the one whose integrity was impeccable and unshakeable. God had spoken!

The Lord God has given Joshua something timeless – His Word.

There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, not forsake thee. – Joshua 1:5

Through this word, He had presented a word picture whose purpose was to remove every boundary that could serve as an impediment or limitation.

Tonight, we are looking at a particular phrase in the Lord’s guidance of Joshua and the children of Israel. A phrase that packs a complex punch. That phrase is - Observe to do!

What does it mean?

There is so much attached to this phrase that the sincere Christian simply has not stopped to meditate and fully grasp its impactful meaning, and how much of our understanding of it weighs on our success.

The phrase conveys the idea, that our prosperity and good success depends entirely on our adherence to it.

Hmmm! Think for a moment, that the Lord God will mention this phrase 17 other times in Scripture.

What must we do to enter the provision the Lord has for you? 

Well, Joshua 3 & 4 leaves clues in the sands to time for us to rehearse as we make ready to enter the exceeding great and precious promises. These clues are things we should readily keep before us and rehearse them so they are known, and put into practice. The active student will see that the swelling of the Jordan is no match for what they already know and believe to be true about what the Father has told them. 

...Come hither, and hear the words of the Lord your God – Joshua 3:9

In this study we will understand why:

• Joshua rose early in the morning
• Removed from Shittim
• The importance of when ye see!
• What to look for, when ye see!
• What you do, when ye see!
• When you move!
• Keep the distance in order to go the distance
• Don’t get ahead of the plan, follow the plan
• Prepare yourself too!

We begin our study tonight in the River Jordan –

We have seen what preparations were necessary to arm the minds of all the Israelites for such a journey.  

The constant reminder and display of the ark of the covenant at critical junctions in their journey was to assure them of the Lord’s presence and cement their courage to go forward. This is a necessity for us in our daily walk today, if we are to possess our inheritance.

We shall look at the significance of such presentations and the power of the messages behind their display.

You will vicariously pass through your Jordan river(s)!

There was an urgency with this historic passage into their inheritance and there was an ultimate location beyond the Jordan river they had to reach!

See, I have given into thine hand Jericho, and the king thereof, and the mighty men of valor.– this was said to the children of Israel even before they physically took Jericho!

That is the faith language of God! God is speaking to Joshua from the place of victory!

The fall of Jericho was supposed to be behind them and their advance into the surrounding territories was their next move.

Yet, Israel finds himself bogged down and defeated by a small community of people. Why?

Their defeat precipitated a huge embarrassment, an unfortunate encounter with loss of lives and an unplanned delay in their journey.

In today's study we will examine the Setups, Setbacks, and Comebacks of the Joshua and the children of Israel. We will see their reaction to the troubles they encountered and their ultimate purpose and determination to deal with it in order to move forward.

Although perturbed by the failure of the first attempt (That attempt, by the way, ended in failure because of Achan’s sin), Joshua and the children of Israel were once again strengthened by the command of the Lord to move forward.

Joshua and the children of Israel were to go up against Ai for the second time.

Speaking of second chances, most of us could use another attempt or a second wind of opportunity in accomplishing a desired task.

Their advance into Ai will require a new strategy, ample preparations and the matchless and measureless support of the Most High God!

Did you know you can recover from failure? Did you know failure does not have to your result and testimony?

Well, what can we learn from Joshua’s second attempt to take the land of Ai?  I would have you know that there are many nuggets here for you and me!

Now strengthen in their resolve after taking Ai and succumbing to the subtlety of the Gibeonites, Joshua and the children of Israel find themselves before 5 formidable kings whose quest was to eliminate the so called Israelite problem.

The power of faith can never be over emphasized in the journey of life.

Faith releases the overwhelming support of the Lord of Host.

Most of us have never ever considered what impact providences has in our decisions of daily living and in our aspirations of the future.

Providence is that God Factor that is present in the arena of faith.

God does not disappoint the child who walks by faith. This is the paramount key with our adventures in the Lord.

There is something outstandingly unique about those who do exploits.

By that I mean, there is a profound disposition of go getters – You may know what I am talking about!

Let me ask you…. Do you know how to contend for what belongs to you? Or do you simply patiently await the candor and goodwill of others for it.

I have found that when it comes to what belongs to us, the well-meaning and good-natured persons behind our advance simply develop amnesia

Most of us will rather await a promotion than contend for it.

We must be persuaded about what belongs to us to get what is ours!

Why are there so are few who contend for what is theirs?

In today’s study we will examine a few of these Biblical heros…

Can you imagine a world without standards?

Take for example a world without manufacturing and building codes and standards – We will never be able to maintain order and fix broken appliances?

Will you dare enter an aircraft built with no adherence to standards?

So we see... Standards matters!

The book highlights the mercy of the Lord towards the prone-to-wandering-nature of the children of Israel. The Lord finally leaves them to their choices even though He made many attempts to reconcile a very forgetful people. In the book we also begin to see the exploits of problem solvers.

There are myriad similarities between the culture of that day and the one you and I live in. Our clear choices will take us down the path we have chosen.

It was a time when everyone did as they pleased or as it was right in their own eyes.

The Urgency and timeliness of the question by the children of Israel and the leadership vacuum

Sold out but not to God. - Deeds, Drifting, Ditches and Deliverances

Deliverance from an unlikely source

• Where there is vision there is discipline
• Where there is no discipline there is no courage
• You will not have courage to will and to do if you do not believe

Today, we will look at the story of Samson. Most Hollywood portrayal of the story leaves little doubt about the size of his frame and his strength, but the Bible shares a different story. The Samson of the Bible is pretty much like you and I in this present world. There is a lot to unpack through this study, but first, the circumstances.

In this lesson:

• Comfort
• Charge
• Consecration
• Culture

Today, we look further into the story of Samson as we study how our choices affect our destiny. This is a very important study especially in these times.

In this lesson:

Spiraling out of Control

• Choices
• Compromises
• Customs and Mind games
• Control, Coercion and Compulsions
• Contrariness and Conflict
• Collusions
• Conviction and Commitment

Patterns and Patents

Today we look at the dangers of patterning our lives by the successes of others without the counsel of the Lord. We will also begin to examine the beginning of Samson’s downfall although he experienced such powerful victories from the Lord.

Today, we put together the pieces surrounding the fall of Samson and the very important lessons therein. The story of Samson is one of those stories we read about that leaves all of us with the thought, what could have been his story if he had focused on his call?

Although we will never pattern our lives by his decisions and excesses, there are still so many life lessons for us to learn from his failures.

There is a promise in compromise - you will be found out!