WEBVTT 00:00:00.080 --> 00:00:05.519 Hey, as y'all are getting settled in this morning, grab your Bibles and turn now to the Old Testament book of Joshua. 00:00:05.679 --> 00:00:10.240 Today we're going to be in Joshua chapter 21 as we pick up where Pastor Jesse left us last week. 00:00:10.400 --> 00:00:15.359 I want to encourage you, if you don't have a Bible with you here this morning or you don't have a Bible at all, please raise your hand. 00:00:15.519 --> 00:00:20.160 We have ushers that are going to come from all sides of our worship center right now, and they would love to bring you a Bible. 00:00:20.239 --> 00:00:21.920 And the Bible they give you, that's your Bible. 00:00:22.079 --> 00:00:26.800 We want you to take it with you when you leave today, and we want you to bring it back with you when you come back every week. 00:00:27.039 --> 00:00:37.439 If you're newer to the Bible, you can find the book of Joshua either at the very beginning of your Bible in the table of contents in the Old Testament, or start at the very first page, and you're going to land in the book of Genesis. 00:00:37.600 --> 00:00:43.200 After Genesis is Exodus, and then you've got Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, and then Joshua. 00:00:43.359 --> 00:00:46.880 Today we're going to be in Joshua chapter 21. 00:00:47.039 --> 00:00:55.840 We're going to read together the first eight verses, 1 through 8, and then we're going to skip down to the back end and read together verse 42 through 45. 00:00:56.240 --> 00:01:05.519 And then together today, we're going to do a deep dive into verse 1 through 3 and verses 42 or 43 through 45. 00:01:05.760 --> 00:01:23.599 But I want to begin this morning by reading together from Joshua chapter 21 and verses 1 through 8, and then again on the back end, which says, Then the heads of the fathers' houses of the Levites came to Eliezer the priest, and to Joshua the son of Nun, and to the heads of the fathers' houses of the tribe of the people of Israel. 00:01:23.840 --> 00:01:32.799 And they said to them at Shiloh in the land of Canaan, The Lord commanded through Moses that we be given cities to dwell in, along with their pasture land, for our livestock. 00:01:33.040 --> 00:01:39.519 So by command of the Lord, the people of Israel gave to the Levites the following cities and pasture lands out of their inheritance. 00:01:39.760 --> 00:01:42.239 The lot came out from the clans of the Kohitites. 00:01:42.480 --> 00:01:50.959 So the Levites, who were descendants of Aaron the priest, received by lot from the tribes of Judah, Simeon, and Benjamin, thirteen cities. 00:01:51.200 --> 00:01:59.280 And the rest of the Kohathites received by lot from the clans of the tribe of Ephraim, from the tribe of Dan and the half tribe of Manasseh, ten cities. 00:01:59.519 --> 00:02:10.159 The Gershonites, they received by lot from the clans of the tribe of Issachar, from the tribe of Asher, and from the tribe of Naphtali, and from the half tribe of Manasseh in Bashan, thirteen cities. 00:02:10.319 --> 00:02:17.360 The Merorites, according to the clans, received from the tribe of Reuben, the tribe of Gad and the tribe of Zebulon, twelve cities. 00:02:17.599 --> 00:02:24.319 These cities and their pasture lands, the people of Israel gave by lot to the Levites, as the Lord had commanded through Moses. 00:02:24.800 --> 00:02:26.960 Now jump to verse forty-one. 00:02:28.719 --> 00:02:36.000 The cities of the Levites in the midst of the possession of the people of Israel were in all forty-eight cities with their pasture lands. 00:02:36.240 --> 00:02:39.039 These cities each had in its pasture land around it. 00:02:39.199 --> 00:02:41.360 So it was with all these cities. 00:02:41.599 --> 00:02:49.520 Thus the Lord gave to Israel all the land that he swore to give to their fathers, and they took possession of it, and they settled there. 00:02:49.759 --> 00:02:54.639 And the Lord gave them the rest on every side, just as he had sworn to their fathers. 00:02:54.879 --> 00:02:59.919 Not one of their enemies had withstood them, for the Lord had given all their enemies into their hands. 00:03:00.240 --> 00:03:06.719 Not one word of all the Lord, and the good promises that the Lord had made to the house of Israel had failed. 00:03:07.039 --> 00:03:08.800 All came to pass. 00:03:08.960 --> 00:03:10.080 This is the word of the Lord. 00:03:10.319 --> 00:03:23.439 Father, your word that is active, your word that is alive, your word that is sharper than any double-edged sword, your word that pierces the hearts and changes the lives. 00:03:24.240 --> 00:03:25.599 That we are your people. 00:03:26.000 --> 00:03:27.520 This is your sanctuary. 00:03:27.759 --> 00:03:29.759 And we offer our time up to you. 00:03:30.080 --> 00:03:37.280 God, I pray that you would empower me and equip me to preach from your anointing. 00:03:37.919 --> 00:03:44.879 That every word that proceeds from my mouth would be nothing more and nothing less than your words. 00:03:45.680 --> 00:03:51.039 God, I pray that as we commit our time to you, you'd receive it as our worship to you. 00:03:51.439 --> 00:03:54.639 And I pray that you would ready us for an encounter with you. 00:03:54.960 --> 00:04:04.240 Today, Lord, my prayer is that each one of us would remember that you are a God of promises, that you are a promise keeper. 00:04:04.800 --> 00:04:13.039 And I may the words of my mouth, the meditation of our hearts, be received as a gift, holy and pleasing to you alone, the author and the perfecter of our faith. 00:04:13.199 --> 00:04:29.199 And the whole church said, when I was 18 years old and about to graduate high school, my mom and dad had saved for quite some time to purchase a graduation gift for me. 00:04:29.839 --> 00:04:31.759 I was ecstatic. 00:04:32.319 --> 00:04:41.759 It was a 10-karat gold rope chain with a very unique pendant associated with it. 00:04:42.000 --> 00:04:44.399 The pendant was three-toned gold. 00:04:44.639 --> 00:04:48.319 It was in the shape of an anchor that was yellow gold. 00:04:48.560 --> 00:04:52.079 It had a rose gold crucifix or cross. 00:04:52.399 --> 00:04:58.240 And sandwiched between the cross and the anchor was a white gold stern. 00:04:58.879 --> 00:05:04.800 The stern has the ability to rotate or to turn, to swivel from side to side. 00:05:05.120 --> 00:05:16.480 As my parents gave me this graduation present, they reminded me that the pennant represented how Jesus Christ was my anchor. 00:05:16.720 --> 00:05:22.720 And as the stern turns, that he guides me every step that I take. 00:05:22.959 --> 00:05:28.000 That Jesus Christ is the anchor of my life and he guides me every step that I take. 00:05:28.560 --> 00:05:33.600 Church, I wore that pennant from age 18 until age 40. 00:05:33.920 --> 00:05:42.399 Every moment of every day of my life, I wore the gold chain clean off and had to buy a replacement chain for the pennant. 00:05:42.800 --> 00:05:49.279 The only time I would ever take that off is if I was at wrestling practice because I didn't want it to break. 00:05:49.600 --> 00:05:59.680 When my son Caden turned 16 years old, I invited him into our bedroom and I took that necklace off of my neck. 00:06:00.240 --> 00:06:10.800 And I remembered in that moment the promise that my parents had made to me about Jesus Christ being my anchor and guiding me everywhere I go. 00:06:11.199 --> 00:06:26.160 And as I exchanged ownership, as I gave my son that necklace and that pennant, I challenged him to remember and to hold tight to the promise that Jesus Christ is his anchor and guides him everywhere he goes. 00:06:26.319 --> 00:06:30.399 And church, that was 12 years ago. 00:06:30.720 --> 00:06:43.360 He has worn that necklace, except for the time in which the pennant wore out from 30 years of wear between Caden and me, and we had to have that fixed and replaced. 00:06:43.519 --> 00:06:44.240 He has it on. 00:06:44.319 --> 00:06:59.519 I bet if you find him this morning, wandering the halls or in between services, you'll see that necklace that he has on that's been in our family since 1997 as a promise, as a reminder of the promises of whose we are and what that means to us. 00:06:59.920 --> 00:07:14.000 Each one of our girls, as a coming of age or rite of passage, when they get to that point, my wife Stacy and I will take each one of them out individually, and we will get them a unique promise ring. 00:07:14.240 --> 00:07:17.600 Not one of our daughters has received the same ring. 00:07:17.839 --> 00:07:28.319 We pray about it, we think about it, we process, and we consider what kind of a ring makes the most sense for the dynamics of each one of our daughters. 00:07:28.560 --> 00:07:40.319 And I can tell you, for all the daughters that we've had and that we've exchanged this promise ring with, where we were at, and the genesis, the nature, the ethos of that conversation. 00:07:40.800 --> 00:07:47.759 Where in that exchange, where we gave them this promise ring as a gift, we expressed the promises of God to them. 00:07:48.720 --> 00:07:54.160 We also exchanged promises with them in terms of our responsibility as their parents. 00:07:54.560 --> 00:07:58.319 And more specifically, can I tell you my responsibility as their father? 00:07:58.639 --> 00:08:17.279 How I would protect them, love them, lead them, cherish them, guard them, guide them, and at some point, God willing, and I don't kill them first, give them away to whoever earns the right to call my daughter their wife. 00:08:17.759 --> 00:08:20.399 And in turn, we ask them to make some promises. 00:08:21.439 --> 00:08:29.519 That they promise to give their whole life to Jesus, that they promise to make him the author and perfecter of their faith. 00:08:29.759 --> 00:08:34.799 That they promise to keep themselves pure for their husband. 00:08:35.039 --> 00:08:40.159 And they promise to remember the commitments that we make as their parents for them. 00:08:40.399 --> 00:08:51.600 If you find my two older daughters wandering the halls in between services, I would guarantee you that they both have their promise ring on right now and can tell you about that moment. 00:08:52.399 --> 00:09:02.480 As I think about these examples, the intention of me sharing this is the same as it is for my daughters and my son. 00:09:03.039 --> 00:09:22.480 That every time my son sees that necklace hanging off of his neck in the mirror, or when he takes it off or puts it on, or every time my daughters look down and they feel or they adjust their ring or they see it, that they will be reminded of the promises that have been made by us, by them, and most importantly, by God. 00:09:23.200 --> 00:09:31.840 Today we're gonna talk about the promises of God and more specifically that God is our promise keeper. 00:09:32.399 --> 00:09:39.440 As we study these verses together, we're gonna look at the promises of God and more specifically that God is our promise keeper. 00:09:39.679 --> 00:09:46.320 As we think back to where this series started, we've got to think back even before the book of Joshua. 00:09:46.720 --> 00:09:54.480 Because if we're gonna talk about the nature and the character of God as a promise keeper, we need to know then what promise we're referring to. 00:09:54.720 --> 00:09:57.519 I've got a graphic that I want to show you. 00:09:57.679 --> 00:09:59.440 It shows six different movements. 00:09:59.519 --> 00:10:04.480 It starts in Genesis chapter 15, in what's known as the Abrahamic covenant. 00:10:04.720 --> 00:10:28.399 And in this covenant, where God calls Abram and his wife Sarai to leave their land and to go where God is going to take them, God promises three things: that the descendants of Abraham, that they would inherit land, that they would be a great nation, outnumbering the stars in the sky, and the blessings, that they would be a blessing and that they would be blessed. 00:10:28.799 --> 00:10:53.440 As they move through multiple movements, we end up in Exodus chapter 1, where Joseph, who is a descendant and a part of the promise, is deceased, and Pharaoh has no more remembered the promises that were made, which means that the nation of Israel ends up in captivity as slaves in Egypt for more than 400 years. 00:10:53.759 --> 00:10:57.759 In Exodus chapter 3, we're introduced to Moses. 00:10:58.399 --> 00:11:02.960 Moses, Aaron, and Miriam are all descendants of the promise. 00:11:03.360 --> 00:11:10.320 And God says to Moses in a miraculous manner, a supernatural way, Moses, I've heard the cries of my people. 00:11:10.720 --> 00:11:17.120 They haven't gone unheard, they haven't gone unnoticed, and through you, I am going to see that this promise is fulfilled. 00:11:17.279 --> 00:11:20.720 Moses, go to Pharaoh and tell him, Let my people go. 00:11:21.759 --> 00:11:25.360 From there we see the Exodus emerge. 00:11:25.919 --> 00:11:37.840 After multiple plagues and conversations and pleading, God delivers the nation of Israel from Pharaoh and the hands of the Egyptians and out of captivity and slavery and into a season where they're moving into the promised land. 00:11:37.919 --> 00:11:43.039 And in that, in Exodus chapter 24, and again in Exodus chapter 34, it's a doubling down. 00:11:43.440 --> 00:11:47.519 The relationship covenant is established between God and his people. 00:11:47.919 --> 00:11:54.159 These are the guardrails, the parameters, the boundaries, the borders that will establish what this relationship looks like. 00:11:54.320 --> 00:11:56.159 It's a part of the promise. 00:11:56.720 --> 00:12:10.639 And from there, we're going to see how the Israelites, God's chosen people, have forgotten or chosen to ignore their commitment in the covenant to God's promise. 00:12:10.799 --> 00:12:23.919 And they're going to spend over 40 years wandering, wandering in a very close proximity to the promised land, but never going into it because of their own doubt and their own disbelief and their own disobedience. 00:12:24.159 --> 00:12:38.320 And ultimately we see in Joshua chapter 1 this exchange of the mantle, where Moses has now died, the promised land is within eyeshot, and the command is clear: be strong and courageous. 00:12:38.559 --> 00:12:55.360 Be strong and courageous, be very strong and courageous, which is the genesis of this series, Uncommon Strength, where Moses dies and he hands off to his mighty military commander and right-hand man Joshua, son of Nun, the leadership reigns for the nation of Israel. 00:12:55.600 --> 00:13:01.440 The second graphic I'm going to show you is the movements in the book of Joshua. 00:13:01.759 --> 00:13:10.240 A couple of weeks ago, I described it like in a season of your favorite show with episodes. 00:13:10.720 --> 00:13:19.440 We're going to call it movements today, but in this, there are five seasons or five movements with multiple episodes or happenings all along the way. 00:13:19.840 --> 00:13:25.200 In the first movement, it's God preparing the nation of Israel to enter the promised land. 00:13:26.000 --> 00:13:38.639 The second movement is the actual step of faith where they cross the Jordan River miraculously and they begin to take steps into Canaan, the promised land. 00:13:39.200 --> 00:13:41.840 The third is going to be conquering the land. 00:13:42.000 --> 00:13:52.559 These are all the battles, the conquests, the victories and defeats, and God showing up in miraculous supernatural ways through the conquest of the land or conquering the land. 00:13:52.960 --> 00:13:55.200 We've been and are going to finish today. 00:13:55.279 --> 00:14:01.840 I told you a few weeks ago that this was the fourth of five movements, which is inhabiting the land, or it's the division of the land. 00:14:02.000 --> 00:14:15.120 Whereas part of God's promise from Numbers chapter 32, we see how the divisions are going to line up and what had already been given in Deuteronomy preemptively and what is now being fulfilled. 00:14:15.360 --> 00:14:30.080 This is where we're going to finish out today, and it's going to lead us to the fifth and final movement or season with multiple episodes, which is a covenant renewal in a relationship between God's people and God. 00:14:31.039 --> 00:14:51.120 As we study this today, I want you to know up front that we don't have time to get into the weeds on all 48 of the cities that were not continuous land, but were part of the promise that God gives the Levites, including six cities of refuge, which Pastor Jesse talked about last week and how God is our refuge. 00:14:51.360 --> 00:14:59.519 So there are going to be verses from 4 and to 42 that I'm going to encourage you to go study on your own this week. 00:14:59.759 --> 00:15:12.320 What we're going to do today is we're going to get into the weeds on Joshua 21, verses 1, 2, and 3, and then we're going to jump down to the end and spend our final moments in Joshua 43, Joshua 21, 43, 44, and 45. 00:15:12.399 --> 00:15:15.039 So let's begin again in Joshua chapter 21 and verse 1. 00:15:15.120 --> 00:15:16.320 If you're ready, say I'm ready. 00:15:16.960 --> 00:15:17.360 Love it. 00:15:17.600 --> 00:15:27.279 Then, after then, then is the refuge cities, then is the place where they recognize that God is their refuge. 00:15:27.440 --> 00:15:40.639 Then the heads of the fathers' houses of the Levites came to Eliezer the priest, and to Joshua the son of Nun, and to the heads of the father's houses of the tribes of the people of Israel. 00:15:40.799 --> 00:15:44.799 Let's unpack this for a moment because this is significant. 00:15:45.519 --> 00:15:58.879 This would be the equivalent of having all of the critical leaders of the nation as part of a cabinet in the same room at the same time, working with the same set of information. 00:15:59.039 --> 00:16:03.919 So let's just let's just dissect a little bit these three groups that are mentioned. 00:16:04.240 --> 00:16:09.200 There are the fathers of the households or the houses of Levi. 00:16:09.679 --> 00:16:15.279 So Levi had three sons Gershin, Kohath, and Morari. 00:16:16.240 --> 00:16:19.919 I expect you to remember that and recite it on your way out. 00:16:20.240 --> 00:16:23.120 Gershan, Kohath, and Morari. 00:16:24.320 --> 00:16:27.840 Each one of these are a part of the priestly line. 00:16:28.159 --> 00:16:30.399 Here's something that you have to know. 00:16:30.960 --> 00:16:39.440 All of the priests are always Levites, but not all of the Levites are always priests. 00:16:40.000 --> 00:16:47.519 They come from the priestly line of Aaron, but they have different responsibilities. 00:16:48.480 --> 00:17:00.159 For the Levites that were not priests, so when you think about the three sons of Levi who are a part of the priestly clan, they were the groundskeepers. 00:17:00.559 --> 00:17:04.400 They were the ones who prepared the worship services. 00:17:04.640 --> 00:17:06.480 They were the worship leaders. 00:17:06.720 --> 00:17:10.480 They were the ones who assisted with the scriptures. 00:17:10.640 --> 00:17:16.079 They were the ones who made sure that the people were being ministered to and cared for very well. 00:17:16.480 --> 00:17:23.920 They were the support staff, if you will, of the church using common speak and vernacular that we understand. 00:17:24.400 --> 00:17:27.200 These are the three sons of Levi. 00:17:27.599 --> 00:17:29.920 These are their responsibilities. 00:17:30.559 --> 00:17:34.720 The second is Eliezar, the priest. 00:17:37.599 --> 00:17:41.759 Eliezer is actually the first high priest of Israel. 00:17:42.079 --> 00:17:45.359 His responsibility was very specific. 00:17:45.759 --> 00:17:52.559 He was responsible for the teaching primarily, but he was responsible for the Day of Atonement. 00:17:52.799 --> 00:18:18.079 Whereas the tabernacle is established, and you have the entrance, and from the entrance, you have the holy place, and past the holy place, you have the holy of holies, where the Ark of the Covenant resides, which is the presence of God and its contents, its possessions, the manna, Aaron's rod, and uh the tablets, the law are kept between Seraphim and cherubim right there. 00:18:18.319 --> 00:18:30.240 God's presence resides there, that annually there would be this moment, this atonement, this day of reckoning or reconciliation, where only the high priest would go into the Holy of Holies. 00:18:30.319 --> 00:18:46.400 And it was such a powerful moment that he would have a rope tethered around his waist in case he died in the presence of God, that the people could drag his dead body out, because if they went into the holy place or the holy of holies, they themselves too would die. 00:18:46.720 --> 00:18:50.880 The high priest, in this case Eliezer, was responsible for the Day of Atonement. 00:18:51.519 --> 00:18:54.880 Eliezer was responsible for the sacrifice. 00:18:55.119 --> 00:18:58.880 He was responsible to lead the leaders of the church. 00:18:59.039 --> 00:19:14.720 He was using our speech like a lead pastor with a staff, the three sons of Levi, who were the Levitical portion, and they led the church, or they led the, they led the congregation and they led the community. 00:19:15.039 --> 00:19:21.039 The third faction is Joshua, the son of Nun, who's of the tribe of Ephraim. 00:19:21.200 --> 00:19:22.799 He's a military commander. 00:19:22.960 --> 00:19:24.079 That's his background. 00:19:24.319 --> 00:19:26.079 Born and bred warrior. 00:19:26.319 --> 00:19:30.640 But he's also a former right-hand man of Moses. 00:19:31.039 --> 00:19:37.200 He's been given the mantle of leadership politically for the nation of Israel. 00:19:37.359 --> 00:19:45.759 And so what you're going to see in a moment as we talk about Shiloh is that you've got three factions of people that represent all facets of life. 00:19:46.160 --> 00:19:52.880 You've got three factions of people that represent all facets of life across the nation of Israel. 00:19:52.960 --> 00:19:56.160 And they're all together leading. 00:19:56.559 --> 00:20:03.599 As they're together leading, verse one tells us that there's this transition that's about to take place. 00:20:03.759 --> 00:20:06.000 Verse 2 tells us what that transition is. 00:20:06.240 --> 00:20:16.559 They, being the Levites, they said to them, being the house's leadership, and Eliezer the high priest, and Joshua the son of them. 00:20:16.640 --> 00:20:21.759 And then they said to them, at Shiloh, in the land of Canaan, here's what they said. 00:20:22.000 --> 00:20:28.640 The Lord, highlight underlined circle circle, or whatever you need to do, the word Lord, that it's all uppercase. 00:20:28.799 --> 00:20:32.240 I'm going to come back to that because that's really important for our conversation today. 00:20:32.480 --> 00:20:43.519 The Lord commanded through Moses that we be given cities to dwell in, along with their pasture lands for our livestock. 00:20:43.759 --> 00:20:53.839 Okay, so prior to this, Gilgal, which is on the far eastern side of Israel, is the initial hub. 00:20:54.400 --> 00:20:57.119 It's the initial outpost for the nation of Israel. 00:20:57.279 --> 00:21:03.680 It's where they'll have their military outposts, it's where they'll set up the temporary dwelling, it's where they'll gather together initially. 00:21:03.839 --> 00:21:15.279 But now there's this significant change in location, which represents a significant change in the season of life, of the fulfillment of God's promise. 00:21:15.519 --> 00:21:23.359 You see, sometimes when God fulfills his promises, there's a season of change that takes occur, that occurs first, that takes place first. 00:21:23.839 --> 00:21:28.559 So many of us have yet to receive the fullness of God's promise because we resist the change. 00:21:28.799 --> 00:21:33.119 80% of you sitting here in front of me, you are change resistors. 00:21:33.359 --> 00:21:37.039 20% of you are God's chosen, you are change agents. 00:21:37.599 --> 00:21:38.880 No one left. 00:21:39.680 --> 00:21:42.799 20% of you look forward to and like change. 00:21:42.960 --> 00:21:44.000 We're the anomaly. 00:21:44.079 --> 00:21:45.200 I'm one of that 20%. 00:21:46.079 --> 00:21:49.279 But the majority of the world are change resistant. 00:21:49.519 --> 00:21:52.160 They prefer to feel stable. 00:21:52.400 --> 00:21:59.759 They prefer to feel secure, and yet sometimes in our stability and our security, it keeps us from the fullness of what God wants to do in us because we're not willing to. 00:22:00.319 --> 00:22:00.960 Change. 00:22:01.759 --> 00:22:05.920 In this instance, Gilgal is a thing of the past. 00:22:06.559 --> 00:22:12.559 Shiloh will be the new permanent dwelling place for the tabernacle. 00:22:12.720 --> 00:22:17.599 And that tabernacle will reside in Shiloh for over 300 years. 00:22:18.880 --> 00:22:22.880 This will become the epicenter for the nation of Israel. 00:22:23.119 --> 00:22:25.119 This will become the political center. 00:22:25.279 --> 00:22:28.640 This will become the worship center. 00:22:28.960 --> 00:22:32.319 This will become the community center for the nation of Israel. 00:22:32.480 --> 00:22:38.640 This is where, across all of Israel, pilgrimages will be made annually, multiple times. 00:22:38.720 --> 00:22:46.960 This is where people will gather together in collaboration and celebration to Yahweh, to the covenant-keeping God. 00:22:47.680 --> 00:23:27.680 So here at Shiloh, in this new permanent dwelling place, the Levites are there, and as they're looking out at the established lands that have been divided by lot, this divine, sacred casting of lots, where God after Joshua instructs the 21 men from the seven tribes, seven and a half that hadn't received allotment yet, go out and they create this massive blueprint of all the lands and the landscape and the topography and the geography and all the things out there that they bring it before the Lord and Eliezer casts lots there and the land is divided equally amongst the people according to God and his sovereign direction. 00:23:28.640 --> 00:23:32.319 The Levites are not a part of that initial allotment. 00:23:32.559 --> 00:23:40.000 The Levites are the only group of the 12 tribes of Israel that will not have a contiguous portion of land. 00:23:41.680 --> 00:23:46.799 The reason for this we've talked about is because their portion is God. 00:23:48.079 --> 00:23:51.519 But church, do you know that ministers still have needs? 00:23:51.759 --> 00:23:54.559 Do you know that pastors still eat? 00:23:56.960 --> 00:24:00.160 And pastors, they still live in houses. 00:24:00.960 --> 00:24:07.440 And pastors still, whether horse and buggy or Ford F-150, have to get from A to B. 00:24:08.480 --> 00:24:17.279 And so the nation of Israel has been held responsible and now accountable to caring for the Levites according to God's promise. 00:24:17.599 --> 00:24:20.880 The Levites come and not in a manipulative way. 00:24:21.039 --> 00:24:23.119 The Levites come not in a condescending way. 00:24:23.200 --> 00:24:28.240 The Levites come not in a contentious way, but as a people of promise. 00:24:28.400 --> 00:24:30.559 Oh, that's really good right there. 00:24:32.400 --> 00:24:36.799 We need to come to church as a people of promise. 00:24:40.000 --> 00:24:52.559 And they present to the leaders of the community this opportunity to remember what God had instructed them through Abraham and through Moses. 00:24:55.599 --> 00:24:59.440 And they asked them to take responsibility for their needs. 00:25:00.720 --> 00:25:03.279 This is an incredible shift. 00:25:03.359 --> 00:25:04.799 This is an incredible movement. 00:25:04.960 --> 00:25:06.240 I want to show you now. 00:25:06.400 --> 00:25:10.079 We're going to look at verse 3, and then I'm going to show you the actual landscape. 00:25:10.240 --> 00:25:11.839 So by command, listen to this. 00:25:12.079 --> 00:25:20.640 By command of the Lord, not manipulation of the Levites, not any one person, but because of God. 00:25:21.279 --> 00:25:28.000 Because of God, the people of Israel gave to the Levites the following cities and pasture lands out of their inheritance. 00:25:28.160 --> 00:25:33.119 Here is a graphic image of the 48 cities. 00:25:33.759 --> 00:25:48.799 There's a detailed map here that outlines this of the Koathites, the Gersonites, and the Memorites of how the land is going to be subdivided and includes the six cities of refuge. 00:25:48.880 --> 00:25:54.880 And you can see based on the large print that's emboldened, the tribe, the tribal land. 00:25:55.039 --> 00:26:18.160 It is in these spaces that they will set up homes and that they will set up communities and that they will be given an allotment, not of their land, but an allotment to reside in where they can have cattle and they can have homes and they can experience the fullness of community, but not have the responsibility of land ownership. 00:26:18.480 --> 00:26:22.559 Again, for the Levites, God is their portion. 00:26:22.720 --> 00:26:35.519 And so the Levites are trusting and they're relying on the sacrificial and intentional obedience of God's people to fulfill his promise. 00:26:36.240 --> 00:26:37.759 They can't do it on their own. 00:26:37.920 --> 00:26:41.359 They need one another to care for them. 00:26:43.279 --> 00:26:48.000 I need us to see that as a part of God's ultimate design. 00:26:48.960 --> 00:26:55.519 God divinely instructs that we're better together, that we need each other. 00:26:56.240 --> 00:27:01.119 Initially, we see this take place for the Levites, but this is carried over into the New Testament. 00:27:01.279 --> 00:27:06.240 When we are called to care for the orphans and the widows and the least of these. 00:27:07.200 --> 00:27:14.400 This is carried over in Jesus' own message when he says, Where were you when I was hungry, thirsty, naked in prison or dying? 00:27:15.039 --> 00:27:21.200 Jesus doubles down and he says, Whatever you do to the least of these, my brothers and sisters, you're doing it to me. 00:27:22.079 --> 00:27:36.240 Friends, a part of our worship as fully devoted followers of Jesus is an understanding that we are responsible for one another. 00:27:36.640 --> 00:27:38.400 We are better together. 00:27:38.720 --> 00:27:40.240 We need each other. 00:27:41.039 --> 00:27:56.880 We need to proactively and intentionally budget and build into our lives a desire and a discipline to set aside resources to care for those that God calls us to care for. 00:27:57.119 --> 00:28:02.000 And he begins in the congregation, in the church, with the church leaders. 00:28:02.240 --> 00:28:05.039 And we see it carried throughout the Bible. 00:28:05.440 --> 00:28:08.240 So we want to jump now. 00:28:08.559 --> 00:28:14.559 I want you to again, I want you to read on your own this week, Joshua 21, verses 4 through 42. 00:28:15.119 --> 00:28:19.039 And that image that came up, I can make sure you guys have access to it. 00:28:19.119 --> 00:28:22.160 You can pull it up and see how the land is distributed. 00:28:22.240 --> 00:28:37.599 And there's a lot of nuance in there that's really cool that we don't have time to get into the weeds on, or the nursery and children workers will have an uproar and charge the gates of the church and they'll kill me. 00:28:37.759 --> 00:28:40.720 So we're gonna jump to verse 43. 00:28:42.480 --> 00:28:51.920 Lord, I pray that as we read now verses 43, 44, and 45, you would illuminate our minds, that you would open our hearts, and that we would have an encounter with you right now in a fresh way. 00:28:52.160 --> 00:28:54.480 May we be a people of your promise. 00:28:56.240 --> 00:29:00.240 In verse 43, thus the Lord. 00:29:01.200 --> 00:29:11.680 The Lord gave to Israel all the land that he swore to give to their fathers, and they took possession of it and they settled there. 00:29:12.240 --> 00:29:16.880 Friends, I asked you to highlight, circle, underline, italicize the word Lord that was all capitalized. 00:29:17.039 --> 00:29:20.160 The reason I wanted you to do that is actually right here in verse 43. 00:29:20.720 --> 00:29:30.640 There are multiple characters, or characteristics, rather, and names assigned and associated with God, specifically to a nature or a characteristic of God. 00:29:30.880 --> 00:29:36.799 There are three primary, and this is the most primary or the principal name of God. 00:29:37.039 --> 00:29:42.799 You have Adonai, you have Elohim, but in this case you have Yahweh. 00:29:43.200 --> 00:29:46.079 Aronai means master or Lord. 00:29:46.400 --> 00:29:53.759 Elohim means creator God, but Yahweh means covenant keeper. 00:29:55.039 --> 00:29:56.559 Covenant keeper. 00:29:57.519 --> 00:30:02.240 This is important because in place of covenant, you can put promise. 00:30:03.039 --> 00:30:06.160 It's symbiotic. 00:30:06.799 --> 00:30:10.400 One and the same, that he is a promise keeper. 00:30:10.799 --> 00:30:16.079 So when we understand that, and we read this, we read it in context in verse 43. 00:30:16.400 --> 00:30:25.920 Thus the promise keeper gave to Israel all the land that he swore to give to their fathers, and they took possession of it and they settled there. 00:30:26.960 --> 00:30:39.759 You see, the Levites knew the promise of God, and they reminded the nation of Israel, going all the way back to Numbers and again to Deuteronomy and even Joshua 13, of the promise that God had bestowed upon the people from the Abrahamic covenant. 00:30:39.839 --> 00:30:43.359 This goes back generations and generations and generations. 00:30:43.519 --> 00:30:47.519 This had been carried on and on and on and on and on. 00:30:47.680 --> 00:30:52.640 And it hadn't been settled during Abraham's time, and it hadn't been settled even during Moses' time. 00:30:52.799 --> 00:30:58.799 In fact, Moses saw the promised land, but he knew because of his disobedience that he wouldn't enter the promised land. 00:30:58.880 --> 00:31:05.119 And so he was responsible to charge or to task or to give the mental leadership off to Joshua. 00:31:05.279 --> 00:31:07.119 But he did not doubt God's promises. 00:31:07.359 --> 00:31:11.200 He just wasn't the one who was going to experience the fullness of this. 00:31:11.359 --> 00:31:14.640 But the Levites in all of this never lost sight of the promise. 00:31:14.799 --> 00:31:30.480 Through all the wandering years, through all the desert years, through all the 400 years of slavery and captivity in Egypt, through all the hardships and the battles that they had lost and all the things that had gone on, they never lost sight of the fact that God was still a promise keeper. 00:31:31.200 --> 00:31:48.319 I think sometimes we get so caught up in our circumstances, or we get so disillusioned by the things around us that we can lose sight of the promises of God and lose hope that He is a promise keeper. 00:31:48.799 --> 00:31:56.400 In this moment, church, I need us to see, verse 43, it wasn't Joshua who gave the Levites their land. 00:31:56.559 --> 00:32:06.240 It wasn't Eliezer the high priest who gave the Levites the land, and it wasn't the three heads of the houses of the Levites that gave the Levitical people their land. 00:32:06.400 --> 00:32:07.359 It was God. 00:32:08.400 --> 00:32:15.359 In this moment, divinely, sovereignly, and purposefully gave the people this land. 00:32:15.440 --> 00:32:16.720 He fulfilled his promise. 00:32:16.880 --> 00:32:27.119 Verse 43, thus the Lord, the covenant keeper, the promise keeper, gave to Israel all the land that he swore to give their fathers, and they took possession of it. 00:32:27.359 --> 00:32:29.759 We talked about that just a couple of weeks ago. 00:32:30.000 --> 00:32:32.960 How we need to take possession of the promise. 00:32:33.599 --> 00:32:36.400 They take possession of it and they settle there. 00:32:36.559 --> 00:32:49.599 In other words, they build for themselves homes, they build for themselves lives, they build for themselves community, they build for themselves vocations and they build for themselves relationships. 00:32:49.839 --> 00:32:54.000 They take possession of the land and they establish it as their own. 00:32:54.160 --> 00:32:55.039 They settle there. 00:32:55.200 --> 00:32:56.160 Do you know, church? 00:32:56.240 --> 00:33:11.200 I've said it, but I want you to know again if you aren't aware that before we moved here, one of the prayers that I prayed over our family is that God would give us a love for people and place. 00:33:14.640 --> 00:33:17.440 I am a buckeye through and through. 00:33:18.720 --> 00:33:25.119 And especially the way organ played yesterday, it's easy for me to say, oh H. 00:33:28.319 --> 00:33:33.119 In all seriousness, I bring levity to it, but it's true. 00:33:35.680 --> 00:33:45.119 I love you, and I love this church, and I love the communities that God has entrusted us with, and I love this state. 00:33:46.400 --> 00:33:47.839 I'm certain of that. 00:33:48.160 --> 00:33:56.480 Because last week, on Friday, my wife Stacy and I flew out to Oregon, and we spent five days. 00:33:56.640 --> 00:34:04.960 My youngest cousin got married, and I have never in all of my 48 years of life been in the Northwest with the kind of weather we had there. 00:34:05.200 --> 00:34:12.559 It was 70 to 80 degrees every day, clear blue skies, pristine landscaping. 00:34:12.719 --> 00:34:13.840 Every day I woke up. 00:34:13.920 --> 00:34:17.119 In front of me, I saw Mount Hood, just to the left, I saw Mount St. 00:34:17.199 --> 00:34:19.679 Helens, and off in the distance I saw Mount Rainier. 00:34:21.519 --> 00:34:28.880 On Monday, my wife and I went on about a five-mile hike up to Multnomah Falls in the upper falls, and we looked out at the beauty of the North. 00:34:29.280 --> 00:34:29.920 It's incredible. 00:34:30.079 --> 00:34:38.320 I've been to 47 states, I've lived in nine, and I have never seen a more beautiful state in all of my life than Oregon. 00:34:38.559 --> 00:34:43.280 And my wife and I, as we were coming down the mountain and we were looking out at all of it. 00:34:43.519 --> 00:34:45.840 I asked my wife, I said, How does it feel to be home? 00:34:46.000 --> 00:34:48.320 And my wife said, This isn't our home. 00:34:49.199 --> 00:34:50.719 We're just visiting. 00:34:51.039 --> 00:34:52.960 Ohio is where we're from. 00:34:55.440 --> 00:35:00.960 We begged God to give us a love for people in place, and so we have chosen to settle here. 00:35:03.039 --> 00:35:06.960 Are you settled where God has placed you? 00:35:07.920 --> 00:35:10.400 Do you know your neighbors by name? 00:35:11.760 --> 00:35:13.519 Do you know what they do vocationally? 00:35:13.679 --> 00:35:14.880 Do you know what passions they have? 00:35:15.039 --> 00:35:17.519 Do you know what their background is? 00:35:17.679 --> 00:35:18.960 Do you know your neighbors? 00:35:19.679 --> 00:35:24.079 That's an interesting question because Jesus says, love your neighbor as yourself. 00:35:24.559 --> 00:35:30.159 All the law and the prophets, hang on, those two things that you love God with everything you have, and you love your neighbors as yourself. 00:35:30.639 --> 00:35:33.119 Yet you can't love those you don't know. 00:35:34.239 --> 00:35:36.960 And you can't reach those you don't know. 00:35:39.519 --> 00:35:42.159 I think this is one of the most beautiful parts of this passage. 00:35:42.239 --> 00:35:48.400 Verse 44 says, And the Lord, Yahweh, the promise keeper, gave them rest. 00:35:49.679 --> 00:35:52.400 That word there is the Hebrew is nuach. 00:35:53.760 --> 00:35:54.800 Sounds great, right? 00:35:55.119 --> 00:35:56.960 Like you just nuwach. 00:35:57.920 --> 00:36:04.079 When we think about rest, we think about maybe going out for a long run and how terrible that sounds. 00:36:04.559 --> 00:36:07.760 And you get done and you're like, finally I can rest. 00:36:08.239 --> 00:36:20.639 Or you think about studying for an exam or a test or a final, and you get through that final and you can rest, or you think think about whatever it is you've got in front of you that requires work and effort, and then you get through with it, and then you can rest. 00:36:20.800 --> 00:36:22.000 That's not this at all. 00:36:22.159 --> 00:36:26.880 We look at this, and it might be easy for us to think that he's talking about rest from war, but it's not. 00:36:26.960 --> 00:36:30.719 That word nuak literally means a complete peace. 00:36:33.119 --> 00:36:35.119 Their lives were at peace. 00:36:35.360 --> 00:36:51.840 They were at peace with one another, they were not at war with any other enemies, they were at peace with God, they were at that that song, It Is Well with My Soul, they were, regardless of all the things that had happened up until that point, they were at a complete peace. 00:36:52.559 --> 00:37:00.719 And friends, it's important that we understand that original word there, Nuak, because that is only a peace that comes from a divine God. 00:37:03.119 --> 00:37:07.840 Not circumstances, not abilities, but God. 00:37:08.880 --> 00:37:10.400 And did you know this? 00:37:10.719 --> 00:37:16.239 Did you know that one of the promises of God is that we can be a people of peace? 00:37:17.199 --> 00:37:19.599 In the New Testament, that word is shalom. 00:37:21.599 --> 00:37:31.840 It is it represents a a circle, a concentric circle that is complete, it's closed, no beginning, no end, it's just it's done, it's finished. 00:37:32.480 --> 00:37:34.079 That you can have a complete peace. 00:37:34.239 --> 00:37:36.880 Did you know that that's actually one of the promises of God? 00:37:37.599 --> 00:37:39.920 In this world, here's where we get confused. 00:37:40.079 --> 00:37:43.679 In this world, you will have troubles of many kinds, Jesus says. 00:37:43.920 --> 00:37:45.440 And we leave it at that. 00:37:45.679 --> 00:37:47.440 And we focus on the problem. 00:37:47.760 --> 00:38:01.280 We focus on the diagnosis, we focus on this the bank statement, we focus on the market, we focus on the news medias, we focus on the gas prices, we focus on the brokenness of the depravity of humanity. 00:38:01.440 --> 00:38:07.119 But there's the second part to Jesus' statement when he says, In this world you'll have trouble of many kinds. 00:38:07.280 --> 00:38:09.360 He says, But take heart. 00:38:10.159 --> 00:38:12.480 I have overcome the world. 00:38:12.800 --> 00:38:19.280 And in Jesus, we are guaranteed, as part of the promise, perfect peace. 00:38:24.079 --> 00:38:27.119 Do you know the fulfillment of God's promise in your life this morning? 00:38:28.400 --> 00:38:29.599 The land has been distributed. 00:38:29.760 --> 00:38:35.280 Verse 44 says, the Lord gave them perfect peace, complete rest. 00:38:38.639 --> 00:38:40.159 On every side. 00:38:41.199 --> 00:38:42.639 On every side. 00:38:43.440 --> 00:38:46.000 Just as he had sworn to their fathers. 00:38:46.239 --> 00:38:49.920 Not one of their enemies had withstood them, for the Lord had given all their enemies into their hands. 00:38:50.000 --> 00:38:50.880 Verse 45. 00:38:51.199 --> 00:38:53.599 This is the crucible, if you will. 00:38:54.000 --> 00:38:58.400 The zenith or the climax of this entire chapter. 00:38:59.280 --> 00:39:06.960 This is actually, if I had to, if you told me, Pastor, would you pick one verse to sum up the entire book of Joshua? 00:39:07.119 --> 00:39:08.719 This would be in contention. 00:39:11.840 --> 00:39:13.039 Verse 45. 00:39:14.079 --> 00:39:24.480 Not one word of all the good promises that the promise keeper the Lord had made to the house of Israel, that means the entire nation, had failed. 00:39:25.199 --> 00:39:28.159 All came to pass. 00:39:32.719 --> 00:39:34.639 God is a promise keeper. 00:39:35.760 --> 00:39:37.840 And he is keeping his promises. 00:39:39.840 --> 00:39:51.840 My biggest fear and frustration for us as followers of Jesus and others is that we don't know the promises of God to recognize when they're being kept or upheld. 00:39:54.960 --> 00:40:00.960 I want to share four concluding thoughts or ideas with you. 00:40:03.519 --> 00:40:11.440 As I think about this text, I'm reminded of all of the wandering years in the desert. 00:40:11.920 --> 00:40:13.280 Have you ever been there? 00:40:13.920 --> 00:40:17.119 Have you ever had your 40 years of wandering around in the desert? 00:40:19.360 --> 00:40:29.760 Years of doubt, years of discouragement, years of desperation, your years of depression? 00:40:30.880 --> 00:40:33.280 Have you ever had your years of idolatry? 00:40:34.480 --> 00:40:45.519 You know, when Aaron, Moses' brother, creates a golden calf for the people to worship, even though Moses is up on Sinai communing with God, bringing down God's word for the people. 00:40:46.159 --> 00:40:49.760 Even in the middle of worship. 00:40:50.079 --> 00:40:50.719 Idolatry. 00:40:50.880 --> 00:40:56.000 Have you ever had those years of chasing things that were far from God in the heart of God? 00:40:58.000 --> 00:41:00.800 Have you ever had those years of faults and failures? 00:41:03.280 --> 00:41:13.199 Have you ever had years of being held captive by a habit or an addiction or a failure? 00:41:14.480 --> 00:41:19.119 Have you had those seasons in your life where you're constantly reminded of your brokenness? 00:41:24.719 --> 00:41:26.639 That's the nation of Israel. 00:41:28.000 --> 00:41:33.599 And in Joshua 21, we see God's address for all of those years. 00:41:34.000 --> 00:41:36.480 For all the doubts, faults, and failures. 00:41:37.119 --> 00:41:39.920 Four things we can see and take from this passage. 00:41:40.079 --> 00:41:41.440 Number one is remember. 00:41:42.159 --> 00:41:52.800 In verse 1 and 2 of Joshua 21, the Levites come before the chief leaders of the nation of Israel and they say, Remember what God said? 00:41:54.000 --> 00:41:56.400 You remember the promises that God made? 00:41:56.639 --> 00:41:59.039 And again, they weren't being condescending. 00:41:59.840 --> 00:42:01.599 They weren't being manipulative. 00:42:03.199 --> 00:42:12.960 I I envision a little bit of conjecture, but I I just envision the Levites with joy in their hearts after all the land has been settled. 00:42:13.199 --> 00:42:16.719 The sacred lots have been divinely cast and received. 00:42:16.880 --> 00:42:21.840 The Levites saying, Yes, it's our turn to take hold of the promise. 00:42:22.559 --> 00:42:26.480 Yes, it's our turn to know the fullness of God's promise. 00:42:26.719 --> 00:42:28.400 Hey guys, remember? 00:42:28.800 --> 00:42:30.320 Remember what God said? 00:42:30.639 --> 00:42:32.559 How he would take care of us? 00:42:35.280 --> 00:42:39.679 There's some of you this morning that that's the space you need to reside in. 00:42:39.760 --> 00:42:42.320 You need to remember God's promise. 00:42:44.880 --> 00:42:52.559 It may look like everybody else around you is being taken care of, but that may be God just positioning them while at the same time positioning you. 00:42:52.719 --> 00:42:59.440 And instead of grievance, we're called to gratitude. 00:43:02.159 --> 00:43:05.920 And it's a time, it's a season for us just to remember the promises of God. 00:43:07.920 --> 00:43:13.920 The second thing that I see in verse 3 is recognize. 00:43:15.280 --> 00:43:18.880 The nation of Israel had to recognize their responsibility. 00:43:19.840 --> 00:43:22.079 God had given them this promise. 00:43:22.960 --> 00:43:31.519 And the promise was in front of them, but God chose to use humanity to realize the fullness of his promise. 00:43:33.199 --> 00:43:55.199 Joshua, son of Nun, Eliezer, the high priest, the houses of all the tribes of Israel, all the 11 other tribes, they all had to look at their land and they had to intentionally, selflessly, sacrificially choose to give away what rightly belonged to them in a way that was consistent with the promise of God. 00:43:55.360 --> 00:43:59.760 In order for the Levites to receive the fullness of their promise, it required the other 11 tribes to do. 00:44:00.320 --> 00:44:01.119 Their part. 00:44:01.599 --> 00:44:08.239