April: Stepping Into the Promise

It’s finally time.

40 years have passed, a generation has come and gone, their leader has died. And yet, the promise is still being fulfilled. Under the leadership of Joshua, now 80 years old, the Israelites are finally about to enter the Promised Land.

And the first command God gives Joshua regarding stepping into the promise? Be strong and courageous.

The directive is so strong that God repeats it three times total, the highest degree of repetition signifying the emphasis on the command. We now know that the first requirement of stepping into the promise of God is strength and courage.

The next directive is for Joshua to keep the Law on his lips, to meditate on it day and night so that he would be careful, so that he would be successful. The Law + obedience + strength & courage = successfully stepping into the promises of God.

See, the Israelites may have been tired. It’s been so long, Moses has died and yet they still haven’t entered this promise. Canaan was a pagan land, Egypt was ignoring it and the people were consumed with sin. And as usual with God, the timing was perfect.

This month, we will follow the journey of Joshua and the Israelites into the land of Canaan, so that we, too, will one day step boldly into the promises God has placed over our lives.