1 After the death of the Lord's servant Moses, the Lord spoke to Moses' helper, Joshua son of Nun. 2 He said, “My servant Moses is dead. Get ready now, you and all the people of Israel, and cross the Jordan River into the land that I am giving them. 3 As I told Moses, I have given you and all my people the entire land that you will be marching over. 4 Your borders will reach from the desert in the south to the Lebanon Mountains in the north; from the great Euphrates River in the east, through the Hittite country, to the Mediterranean Sea in the west. 5 Joshua, no one will be able to defeat you as long as you live. I will be with you as I was with Moses. I will always be with you; I will never abandon you. 6 Be determined and confident, for you will be the leader of these people as they occupy this land which I promised their ancestors. 7 Just be determined, be confident; and make sure that you obey the whole Law that my servant Moses gave you. Do not neglect any part of it and you will succeed wherever you go. 8 Be sure that the book of the Law is always read in your worship. Study it day and night, and make sure that you obey everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. 9 Remember that I have commanded you to be determined and confident! Do not be afraid or discouraged, for I, the Lord your God, am with you wherever you go.” 10 Then Joshua ordered the leaders to 11 go through the camp and say to the people, “Get some food ready, because in three days you are going to cross the Jordan River to occupy the land that the Lord your God is giving you.” (Joshua 1:1-11)
Anyone who has ever followed on the heels of a great leader knows how hard it is to succeed someone who was so beloved. Imagine having to follow on the heels of one of the greatest leaders of all time. Imagine having to follow on the heels of Moses. That was what Joshua was called to do. Moses was the one used by God to lead the nation of Israel out of slavery from Egypt. But now, Moses was dead. The author of Joshua even makes the distinction in v. 1, calling Moses the servant of the Lord, yet calling Joshua, Moses’ assistant. How does one follow on the heels of such a great and beloved leader?
Maybe the better question to ask is what made Moses such a great leader? Moses became a great leader because he followed the Lord. It wasn’t Moses who brought the Israelites out of Egypt, freeing them from slavery. It was God who brought them out, using Moses as God’s mouthpiece. It was God who led and took care of the Israelites in the desert after leaving Egypt. It was God who had brought the Israelites to the verge of entering the Promised Land. And it was God who was calling Joshua to be God’s mouthpiece and lead the Israelites by following God. V. 3-5 are the promises that God made to Joshua. “I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses. Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the great river, the Euphrates – all the Hittite country – to the Mediterranean Sea in the west. No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
Those are some amazing promises made to Joshua by the Lord. I think anyone would be more than happy to have those promises made to us by the Lord. But after making those promises, the Lord also instructed Joshua on how to be a good leader to the Israelites. V.6-9 says, “Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their ancestors to give them. Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”
Joshua was told to obey the law that Moses gave him (v. 7). Joshua was to obey the law, not to ruin Joshua’s fun, but so that Joshua could draw closer to the Lord. That’s why the Law was given to the people of Israel. They could not draw close to the Lord on their own because of their sin. So God in His grace, gave them the law, so that through the law, the people could draw a little closer to the Lord. Joshua was also told to “Keep this Book of the law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it” (v. 8). He did not have to do these things for God to keep His promise to Joshua. God already made the promises and there were no conditions on the promises. These commands were what Joshua needed to do to be a better leader. To be a better leader, Joshua needed to draw close to the Lord.
Laws and rules weren’t given to us to ruin our fun and make life difficult for us. They weren’t given in exchange for our salvation. Rules and laws were given to the Israelites to help them draw closer to God. And while we may not need the laws to draw closer to God because of Jesus, Jesus also said he did not come to abolish the law but to fulfill them (Matthew 5:17). They can help us draw closer to the Lord by keeping us away from sin. And God’s word helps us draw closer to the Lord because it helps us know our Lord a little better.
We may not all be looking to be better leaders, but we should all be looking to be better Christians. And the Lord’s commands on how to be a better leader help us to be better Christians as well. We need to spend time in God’s word so that we can know Him better and draw closer to Him. And as we spend time in God’s word, His word transforms us to be more like Jesus, to want to follow Jesus and to live like Jesus. We don’t obey to earn our salvation, but we do obey because that was what Jesus did and we are called to follow Jesus. Good leaders become good leaders by following first. Christians become good Christians by following Christ.