Joshua Part 12 - The Christian's Inheritance

Andrew Grey continues the series on Joshua. This sermon is from Sunday 7th Dec 2025.

The Bible reference is Joshua 13v1-33

Transcript

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If we could all take a Bible and open up the book of Joshua, continuing to work our way through the book of Joshua this autumn and winter. And in the Black Church Bibles, that is on page 188. Page 188. Just a word of introduction before I pray and read for us. A question. What are you going to inherit from your family? Children, I wonder if you know that. What are you going to inherit from your family? Imagine for a moment you come from a royal family. One day you will inherit maybe a kingdom and a palace. That sounds good. Maybe you come from a very rich family. One day you will inherit a pile of gold. Maybe you will inherit an attic full of unsorted junk. Maybe that's what your parents are thinking right now. Now, Christian people, we have an inheritance. That is something we will receive simply because we belong to the family of Jesus. That is our inheritance. Something we will be given by God for no other reason than that we belong to the family of Jesus. So we are studying the book of Joshua, all about how God brought his Old Testament people all of those centuries ago into the promised land, the land of Canaan, which he said was their inheritance, his gift to them, simply because they belonged to him. And in reading this book, we're not just having a history lesson, it is God preaching his faithfulness to us. It's as if he says to us, learn from my dealings with my Old Testament church. Learn from that, that you might trust me and obey me as you come into your inheritance. The flow of the book of the Josh of the Book of Joshua goes like this. It goes, uh they enter the land, and then they conquer the land, and then chapters 13 to 22, they inherit the land. That's where we are now. Then the end of the book. Obey the Lord and keep the land. And so today, chapter 13, we've got two big questions. How do you get your inheritance? It's a good question to ask. How do you get your inheritance? Second, what is our inheritance? So, Bibles open, Joshua 13. Uh, let me pray. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for your word, the Bible, that you open up your lips and you speak to us, and you show us yourself, and you give us everything that we need to trust and obey and serve you. Open up our eyes, open up our ears and our hearts now that we might see wonderful things in your word. And we ask that for Jesus' name's sake. Amen. Amen. So, Joshua, uh, chapter 13. I'm gonna read the first chunk of the chapter and some verses from the end. Verse 1. Let's listen to the word of God. Now, Joshua was old and advanced in years, and the Lord said to him, You are old and advanced in years, and there remains yet very much land to possess. This is the land that yet remains, all the regions of the Philistines, and all those of the Gesherites, from the Shehor, that is, east of Egypt, northward to the boundary of Ekron, it is counted as Canaanite. There are five rulers of the Philistines, those of Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath, and Ekron, and those of the Avim. In the south, all of the land of the Canaanites and Mira that belongs to the Sidonians, to Afek, to the boundary of the Amorites, and the land of the Gebelites, and all Lebanon toward the sunrise, from Baelgad below Mount Hermon to Lebohamath, all the inhabitants of the hill country, from Lebanon to Misrafoth Mayim, even all the Sidonians. I myself will drive them out from before the people of Israel. Only allot the land to Israel for an inheritance as I have commanded you. Now therefore, divide this land for an inheritance to the nine tribes, and half the tribe of Manasseh. With the other half the tribe of Manasseh, the Reubenites and the Gadites received their inheritance which Moses gave them beyond the Jordan, eastward, as Moses the servant of the Lord gave them, from Aroa, which is on the edge of the valley of the Arnon, and the city that is in the middle of the valley, and all the tabland of Medeba as far as Dibon, and all the cities of Sion, king of the Amorites, who reigned in Heshbon, as far as the boundary of the Ammonites, and Gilead, and the region of the Gesherites and Makathites, and all Mount Hermon, and all Bashan to Salekah, all of the kingdom of Ogin, Bashan, who reigned in Ashtaroth and in Edray, he alone was left of the remnant of the Rephaim. These Moses had struck and driven out. Yet the people of Israel did not drive out the Gesherites or the Markathites, but Geshua and Makath dwell in the midst of Israel to this day. To the tribe of Levi alone Moses gave no inheritance. The offerings by fire to the Lord God of Israel are their inheritance, as he said to him. So in verse 15 we read of the inheritance to the tribe of Reuben, verse 24, the inheritance to the tribe of Gad, and we'll pick it up again at verse 29. And Moses gave an inheritance to the half tribe of Manasseh. It was allotted to the half tribe of the people of Manasseh according to their clans. Their region extended from Mahanayim all through Bashan, the whole kingdom of Og, king of Bashan, and all the towns of Jaah, which are in Bashan, sixty cities, and half Gilead and Ashtaroth and Edray, the cities of the kingdom of Og in Bashan. These were allotted to the people of Machia, the son of Manasseh, for the half of the people of Machiah, according to their clans. These are the inheritances that Moses distributed in the plains of Moab beyond the Jordan east of Jericho. But to the tribe of Levi, Moses gave no inheritance. The Lord God of Israel is their inheritance, just as he said to them. The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God it stands forever. You see why I said this chapter is about inheritance. We see that word, it comes first at the end of verse 6, and then I think 13 times in the chapter, inheritance. How do you get your inheritance? There's a problem at the start of the chapter. You can spot it in verse 1. I think verse 1 is quite a funny verse. I don't know how Joshua would have heard that. Now Joshua was old and advanced in years, and the Lord told him so. You are old. Had you noticed Joshua? We are frail. Indeed, the grass withers and the flowers fall. The book of Joshua begins with the death of Moses. The human hero of Exodus has died. Joshua, you will soon go the way of all the earth. So Joshua, he is sometimes a type of Christ, he's a picture of Jesus, but he's also not the Christ. He's just a frail man and he is going to die. In their generation, Joshua and his fellow old faithful Caleb, they were the extreme oldies in their generation. Everyone else had died in the wilderness. They are now in old age, but there is still so much work to do. Now, just by the by, it's a little reminder, isn't it, not to place our hopes in human leaders. God's servants die. And there is still so much work to do. Verse 1, there is very much land to possess. And then the Lord lists it. Here is the unfinished job of work, and it's it's basically the Philistine fringe that remains. But in verse 6, we are given this wonderful assurance, and here is the answer to the question: how do you get your inheritance? Okay, God's plan, it will be completed. God's people will get what they are promised. How? Verse 6 I myself will drive them out from before the people of Israel. I myself, says the Lord, I will do it. And it's a little reminder, isn't it? The work of God, it outlasts Joshua's lifetime. It's bigger than any one person. It does not depend ultimately on any one of us. It is not because of us that we will inherit what God has promised. God will give his people their inheritance. And that work of God, it will go on until the day he completes it. And in it all, well, we are really there, just there for a blink of an eye, aren't we? Amazing, though, isn't it, that the Lord still uses his human servants. He still uses our service of him. He still used a frail and limited and sinful man like Joshua. You know, his work, his service, he cares about it. Even though he is the one who actually gives what is promised, it matters. Our service, though it be small and brief. And that should really encourage Christian people to play our part in the work of God. And so too with Joshua. You are old and advanced in years, but there is still a job for you to do. And did you spot that in verse 6? Allot the land to Israel as an inheritance, as I have commanded you. I think we should take from that. The Lord is saying, your days of wielding a sword, those days are now over. But until the moment you draw your last breath, keep on trusting and obeying, keep on serving. And there is a specific job for him to do. And for Joshua, his remaining job was this: it was allot the land. And when we understand this, that was actually an amazing act of faith. So God gave to Joshua the job of dividing up the promised land to the different tribes, even though he would never get to see them possess it all. You know, he would see some of the success of the campaign, but you will be long gone before the end of it all. In fact, it would never really be perfectly and fully completed. Not until the coming of Christ. More on that in a few minutes. But in the meanwhile, Joshua, crack on, obey, trust, serve for the good of my people who will come after you. So it's an amazing act of trust, isn't it? Trust in the purposes of God, which you will not see fulfilled in your lifetime. Some of you know the story of Frodo in the Lord of the Rings, isn't it? A little bit like at the very end, you know, he's laboured to save the Shire. But he doesn't get to enjoy it, does he? Same with Joshua. And the point here, it's wonderful. You can trust him with this. We Christians, with a powerful God, we can get on with whatever work we have been given to do. And I hope that is an encouragement to us, you know, serving the cause of Christ now, such as we're able, because of a long-term future, a long-distant future that we will never see, I will never see. And it's wonderful, isn't it, to be part of something, something so big. We sometimes talk about leaving a meaningful inheritance or legacy. Often we speak, being honest, in pretty worldly ways. But a Christian, you know, Christian, we can actually leave a meaningful inheritance because we are part of the work of God and his inheritance, which he is bringing. So we Christians with a powerful God, well, we can get on with the work that we have been given to do. What though will we inherit? We still haven't actually answered that question. What will we inherit? What is our inheritance? Now I don't know how you feel about lists. Um, I know some people in this room love a good list. From chapter 13 in the book of Joshua down to chapter 22 is almost entirely a list, and it's a list of places. Umsheet, I suspect these chapters would probably most naturally lend themselves to that. And for some of you, uh, you're excited by that thought, I know, which is very strange. So Joshua uh he he gets out his map and he does what verse 7 says. That is, he divides this land for an inheritance to the nine tribes and half the tribe of Manasseh. That is, those of the twelve tribes whose inheritance, whose lands were over the Jordan and in the promised land. Now, actually, the rest of our chapter, chapter 13, from verse 8 to verse 33, is actually going back over old history. These are the lands God had already given through Moses to Reuben and Gad and the half of the half tribe of Manasseh. So, first of all, what is here is a record, it's a record of the inheritance which went to them. So as we as we feed on this chapter and we receive it, we've got to first remember for them back then, they received the promised land. And probably, therefore, for us now, this is not the most exciting read. Okay, when we go through something like the the end of Joshua 13, and then all of these chapters that then follow, it's okay to say this is not the most exciting read. It's not like reading about the fall of Jericho or even about the scariness of Achan's sin and death. After all, it is just a list, um, it is a list of places. In practice, Joshua was told to allot the land by means of lots. Lots and lots of lots. So if you just look into the start of chapter 14, have a look at chapter 14 and verse 2. Their inheritance was by lot, just as the Lord had commanded. So lots. And we had the uh World Cup football draw on Friday. It was done by lots, uh, randomly, it was not chosen by man. Now, the point here: the lands that were given to the different tribes, they were not chosen randomly. And by the way, there is no such thing as luck, does not exist. This mode of distribution that the Lord chose, it said really clearly, it said really clearly, this is my choice, this is God's choice. Who lives where? It is my sovereign decision. He he decides not just where each tribe will live, but actually where each clan, where each family will live. So imagine for a moment you are there when when Joshua is doing this, and and you're listening out for your place. There is a patch of land out there with your family name attached to it by the gift of God. You've never had a home of your own ever, and you are going to live there and build a home, and you will farm it, and you will raise your kids there, and they will raise their kids there. Now, if that were the case, that would actually make you sit up, I think. It makes a difference, doesn't it? And hearing these names, cities, yeah, and the rivers and the landmarks and the boundaries, it's your inheritance, it's yours. And the Lord He has a specific and a perfect gift for each and every family and clan. He has such care and kindness toward his people. One of the Psalms, it reflects on this, Psalm 16, verse 6. The lines have fallen in me in pleasant places. That's what it means. Literally, you know, the lines, you know, the boundaries, what God has given me, literally, but also metaphorically, my life, the lines have fallen for me in pleasant places. I have a beautiful inheritance. So these verses they actually say to us, see the goodness of God. And you know, as people receive from God in this way, they would say to him, they would sing of him, You are so good, you are so faithful. And these names, they they tell us that these are real lands and real fields and hills and cities and rivers, a real and concrete and physical and good gift of God. So he says to his people, I will give you a land, trust me. And the names at the end of chapter 13, I've already given these lands. I've already been good to these tribes. Now the rest of you trust me with the rest. There is a warning note in our passage, and I wonder if you spotted it. There is a warning note, and it's down in verse 13. Yet. Yet the people of Israel did not drive out the Gesherites, the Markathites, but Gesher and Makath dwell in the midst of Israel to this day. God had commanded one thing, but the people of God did not fully obey. Sin was allowed to take a little root, and in time what was sown in that small disobedience would grow into seeds of disaster and apostasy. And that is ultimately why this land, these places, this territory would be lost. You know, the Lord would actually spit his people out of the land because in years to come they would break faith with him. And in God's plan and in God's purposes, this land of Canaan that we see delineated here, it was never the final home for the people of God. God's plan was always much, much, much bigger. In Christ, a plan for a new heavens and a new earth. That was always the plan. And for all things to be made new, for this creation, this whole creation to be renewed. The Bible says things like, um, the Lord will bring about the whole earth being filled with the knowledge of God's glory, just like the waters fill and cover the sea. Not just a small thing, not just a particular patch of land in the Middle East. And when we and when we sort of look out of this passage and we sort of step back and look at the Bible as a whole, we find out that the Old Testament saints knew it. People like Joshua, people like Abraham. Hebrews 11 tells us. That they were looking forward to something else, something bigger, a city and a home which would be faithful and permanent. And that would actually only be given to the one faithful son of Abraham, who is the Lord Jesus, who will inherit everything. And then wonderfully, this Jesus, he comes to us in the gospel and he says things like, The meek will inherit the earth. And that idea of inheriting, it doesn't come from nowhere. It has always been God's plan in the covenant to give his people a home, a home with him. And he says the meek will inherit the earth. And he and he means it. So if you are joined to the Lord Jesus Christ, the one who owns everything, who owns every single corner of this created universe, everything is given to him. Well, if you are in him, well, he shares it all with you, the meek will inherit the earth. And actually, you know, our future, uh, don't think of the future as being floaty and ethereal. Uh, there will be a real and physical and concrete, tangible, tastable, touchable, renewed creation, as real as their inheritance back then, but infinitely more wonderful because no sin, no brokenness, no remnants of the fall. And so, Christian people, we can take that psalm on our lips, can't we? I have a beautiful inheritance. I have a beautiful inheritance because I belong to Christ. And that is a wonderful thought, isn't it? As we live in the here and now. Yes, with joys and beauties, but also with sin and brokenness and mess. What though about that tribe which did not get an inheritance in the land? Did you spot them? There was a tribe who got no land, nothing at all. Was that a bit unfair? It was the Levites, wasn't it? Verse 14. To the tribe of Levi alone, Moses gave no inheritance. Simply the offerings by fire. Verse 33, the end of the chapter. So the tribe of Levi, Moses gave no inheritance. The Lord God of Israel is their inheritance. So here's here are the Levites. This one tribe out of the twelve, given this particular job. What was their job? It was to operate the tabernacle, the place where God met his people, and to teach people the law of the Lord. And they were given no land. Of course, God provided for them. You know, some of those sacrifices that people brought to the tabernacle they could eat. But the point is that very last verse of the chapter. Yeah, they were promised something special from the Lord. As they served him in that particular way, their inheritance was him. And this is what the Levites teach us that God, not his gifts, is the greatest inheritance of all. Okay, God, not his gifts, is the greatest inheritance of all. And through the Lord Jesus Christ, he is ours. So it's not that the land didn't matter. It did. The Levites, they had bodies, they had families, they had physical needs, just like we do, and the Lord provided for them. But that was not the best thing that the Lord had for them. Here's how King David puts it in Psalm 16. And I wonder if actually we might all just turn there before we finish. So turn on in your Bibles to Psalm 16. Have a look at verse 5. Here's how King David put it. He said, The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup. You hold my lot, the lines have fallen for me in pleasant places. Indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance. The Lord is my chosen portion. So, Christian people, the new creation to which we look forward, it will be entirely physical, tangible, concrete, real, and glorious, but it will not be the best thing. The Lord will be, or it will only be glorious, rather, because he is there and at the centre of it all. And the best thing will be seeing him, you know, being in the Saviour's presence, seeing Christ face to face, and that will be the heaven of heavens. And if we are in Christ, then that is our hope, that is our inheritance. Let's bow our heads. I'm going to pray. Let's pray. Father, we thank you for your goodness, that you delight to give good things to undeserving people. We thank you that in Christ you store up all treasures. Encourage our hearts now, we pray, to trust and obey and to serve. Sustain us with your word and your truth about the future home which you have prepared for us and that sure and certain sight of our Saviour's face. And we pray in his name. Amen. Amen.