Joshua 24:1-28

Joshua 24:23-24(NIV): “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.”

As Joshua prepared to die, he challenged the Israelites to choose to serve God. He instructed them to:

• Remember God’s faithfulness v2-11,  Hebrews 13:8
• Remember God’s provision v12-13, James 1:17
• Choose to serve God v14-15, Matthew 16:24-26

In this current environment of fear and uncertainty, we can trust God, we can rest in his love, and we can choose to serve him. He is “our shelter in the time of storm.”

Psalm 46:1-3(NIV)

God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.

Sermon Questions

1. Why did Joshua remind Israel of their faith journey? Psalm 103:1-5
2. How important is it to know of God’s faithfulness to us in Jesus? Romans 5:8
3. The Israelites received what they hadn’t worked for?  (V12-13). What does this tell us about God’s grace? Ephesians 2:8-9
4. Joshua challenges Israel to choose to serve God. (V14-15). He then reminds them of his personal choice (as for me and my house). How important are Christian role models? Hebrews 12:1-2

Joshua 6:1-21

Joshua 6:1-2(NIV): Now the gates of Jericho were securely barred because of the Israelites. No one went out and no one came in. Then the Lord said to Joshua, “See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its fighting men.

The Israelites faced the securely barred city of Jericho. There seemed to be no way in. But God gave them the hope of victory. He gave them:

 His Promise - v1-2, John 10:10, I John 4:4 - Who do we listen to?God or the “bad report”

 His Plan - v3-5, John 3:16, Proverbs 14:12 - Where are we going?Round and round in circles, or to a famous victory?

 His Path - v6-7, 14, Matthew 7:13-14,Luke 9:51 - Will we take the next step?Jesus turned his face toward Jerusalem

The victory came after a week of faithful obedience, of believing without seeing. 

Joshua 6:20(NIV):When the trumpets sounded, the army shouted, and at the sound of the trumpet, when the men gave a loud shout, the wall collapsed; so everyone charged straight in, and they took the city.

Our victory is assured, but it requires us walking by faith.

2 Corinthians 5:7(NIV): For we live by faith, not by sight.

Sermon notes not available :(

Joshua 2:1 (NIV2011): Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim. “Go, look over the land,” he said, “especially Jericho.” So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there.

Rahab was a prostitute, a liar and a traitor. She had significant character flaws, but her faith pleased God, and she was used by God to help Israel claim the Promised Land, and to redeem her own family. Rahab was:

· Chosen by God - v1, Mark 2:15-17

· Used by God - v2-7, 1 Corinthians 1:26-29

· Saved by God - v10-11, Hebrew 11:31

God uses unlikely people like us. Don’t limit what God can do in your life or our church. Nothing is too hard for him.

Psalm 51:7-13 (MSG): 7 Soak me in your laundry and I'll come out clean, scrub me and I'll have a snow-white life. 8 Tune me in to foot-tapping songs, set these once-broken bones to dancing. 9 Don't look too close for blemishes, give me a clean bill of health. 10 God, make a fresh start in me, shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life. 11 Don't throw me out with the trash, or fail to breathe holiness in me. 12 Bring me back from gray exile, put a fresh wind in my sails! 13 Give me a job teaching rebels your ways so the lost can find their way home.

The video at 02:50 can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TM1XusYVqNY - All credit to stpaulsartsandmedia via youtube.com

Sermon notes not available :(

Deuteronomy 6:1-9; Matthew 22:34-40

Deuteronomy 6:4-6(NIV): Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts.

Here we see God commanding Israel to love him. It’s a choice, but also a command. It’s different to our love for each other. God commands us to:

· Fear him - Deuteronomy 6:1-2, Acts 5:10-11 - “Fearing God means seeing the hand of God in every situation.” - The Best Yes | Lisa Turkeust

· Obey him - Deuteronomy 6:3, Philippians 3:7-11

· Love him - Deuteronomy 6:4-9, Matthew 22:37-39

God’s commandment to love him is a choice, but it’s the right choice. It’s what we were created to do.

“The remarkable thing about God is that when you fear God, you fear nothing else, whereas if you do not fear God, you fear everything else.” – Oswald Chambers

Mark 2:21-22, Revelation 3:14-22

Mark 2:21-22(NIV): “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. Otherwise, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse. And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins.”

Revelation 3:14-16(NIV):  “To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.

As we look at what the Spirit said to the church at Laodicea, we see the pitfalls for any church, including Naringal. “New Wine” means:

· New passion - v15-16, Psalm 42:1-2

· New awareness - v17, Luke 15:17

· New commitment - v18, Matthew 16:24

· New repentance - v19, Psalm 51:10-12

· New openness - v20, 1 Samuel 3:10-11

Familiarity breeds contempt, and this is part of the paradox of our faith. The church is built on Jesus Christ, the rock that never changes. But the the church is alive and organic, not static or dormant. We grow or we die. “The message never changes. The method has to change.”

In 2020 let’s commit to being open to receive the “New Wine” of the Holy Spirit at Naringal.

Revelation 3:19-20(NIV): Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent. Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.

Mark 2:21-22, Matthew 5:13-16, 1 Corinthians 13:1-3

Mark 2:21-22(NIV): “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. Otherwise, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse. And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins.

Matthew 5:14-16(NIV): “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

The church has lost its voice in our culture. It is seen as irrelevant, outdated, wowsers. How do we regain our place at the table of society?

“How would the Naringal Community be any better or worse off if this church ceased to exist?” – James Baker

If we are to be “New Wine” in the world, we will be known by our:

· Love - 1 Corinthians 13:1-3

· Good deeds - Matthew 5:14-16

· Good News - Mark 16:15-16

“Non-Christians no longer feel guilty. They feel anxious.” – Tim Costello

The world needs our love before it will listen to our doctrine.

Eg: Kid’s Hope

James 2:14-17(NIV): What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

Mark 2:21-22; Acts 2:42-47

Acts 2:42(NIV):They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.

The church is Australia has declined dramatically in the past 50 years. It needs the “new wine” of the Holy Spirit. Let’s look at how the church functioned when it was first established. In Acts 2:42-47, we see:

· Fellowship - v42, Hebrews 10:24-25

· Prayer - v42, Acts 4:31

· Signs and Wonders - v43, Acts 3:6

· Unity - v44, John 13:34-35

· Generosity - v45, Acts 4:32

· Authenticity - v46-47, Acts 5:3-5

· Growth - v47, Acts 2:41

What is the Spirit saying to the church today?

What needs to change?

What is the Spirit saying to us?

Acts 2:46-47(NIV): Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

Mark 2:21-22; Romans 12:1-5

Mark 2:21-22(NIV): “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. Otherwise, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse. And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins.”

The Holy Spirit is the wine, and we are the wine skins. New wine requires new/renewed wine skins, which are able to stretch and hold the new wine.

1 Timothy 4:8 (NIV): For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.

In Romans 12:1-5, Paul tells us godliness (spiritual fitness) requires a commitment to:

• Offer our bodies v1

- In sacrifice

- In holiness

• Renew our minds v2

- By not conforming

- By being transformed

• Change our thinking v3-5

- It’s not about me

- I need to belong to the body Of Christ

Our wine skin will naturally become brittle without ongoing renewal.

Has your wine skin become hard and inflexible?

What specific action can you take in 2020 in order to be refreshed and renewed?

Romans 12:2(NIV): Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is —his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Romans 12:1-2(The Message): So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.