The God Who Makes Me Remembrance
Title: God of Remembrance (Joshua 3:7-12)
An example of a sermon handbook, an advertisement appeared in a newspaper in Ohio, USA in 1979. A free escape from everyday life, a lively old age! Eligibility: Late 70's early 80's Men's job: 7 days 6 nights and in-depth discussion about memories Membership Fee: None (a small activity fee is paid) Benefit: Free all travel expenses
Many people gathered after seeing this advertisement, and 8 seniors were selected through high competition. These people, who seemed difficult even to stand, were given a mission to spend 7 days together, but there were only two things they had to keep. The first is to go back to 1959, 20 years ago. I only had to watch TV shows that aired 20 years ago and movies that were released at the time. The topic of conversation should only be about politics, economy, and society 20 years ago. The second condition is to do household chores such as cleaning and washing dishes yourself. Watching a movie 20 years ago and talking about it at the time would have been welcome, but cleaning was a daunting task for those who could not even walk with a cane.
However, as a day or two passed, something surprising happened. Those who spoke of Marilyn Monroe at that time and the baseball team at the time were surprisingly energized in their lives. Gradually, I gained strength to clean and walk on my own. He even did exercises to climb the stairs. A week later, it was announced that this was Harvard University's psychology professor Ellen Langer's "Turn the Clock Study," and all the programs ended. As a result of this experiment, the physical age of the eight participants, such as sight, hearing, memory, intelligence, and grip, improved to the level of their 50s.
I hope that we too will remember the grace of Jehovah God and believe that more abundant grace will abound.
The content of this text shows that the people of Israel forget God's grace, but God is a God who loves us to the end and makes us realize and remember God's grace.
7 “And the LORD said to Joshua, I will make you great in the sight of all Israel from this day on, that they may know that I am with you as I was with Moses.”
These words are close to fulfilling the promise of being with Joshua in Joshua chapter 1. At the beginning of Chapter 1, God, who succeeded Moses and ushered in a new era, the first thing Joshua did was command him to go to the promised land. But he did not command without help. God promised that He would help Himself, and He blessed us with the blessing of prosperity wherever we go. And at this point in time when he crossed the Jordan River, he fulfilled the promise of prosperity.
God set Joshua before the people by dividing the Jordan River. This was not achieved by Joshua's heroic actions, nor by winning the respect of the people by his own power. It was entirely dependent on God's plan and the realization of that plan. Once God makes a promise, if necessary, He does not delay and fulfills it immediately.
God will immediately fulfill what He has promised in the field of life right now. When Moses stood before Pharaoh, as God had promised, Pharaoh knelt down and delivered the Israelites out of Egypt through God's work. Also, when he stood in front of the Red Sea, he divided the Red Sea to cross the Red Sea as if it were a straight floor. He made the rock drink water, and when there was no water, he gave the rock a command, so water gushed out of the rock. He fed the Israelites with manna and quail, and guided and protected them with a pillar of fire by night and a pillar of cloud by day.
God makes the promises come true in the field of life.
Jesus, the Son of God, was also Emmanuel God, who keeps and guides the promises to the people.
Jesus with his disciples
Matthew 14:13 When Jesus heard this, he set out in a boat and went by himself to an empty field. When the crowd heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns, and he healed the sick on the spot.
15 When evening came, the disciples came and said to them, “This is a deserted place, and it is already evening. Send the crowds away to go into the village and buy food to eat.” 16 Jesus said to him, “I have nothing to go, give me something to eat. Bring it to me.
The Lord is our shepherd, leading us to green pastures and still waters, and He is the God who keeps His promises to help us.
I will surely bless you (3210) When you keep the law and the ordinances, God always keeps the promise of blessing promised to Abraham.
The God who keeps his promises is a God with us. God came to Joshua as a reminder of Moses. And this naturally brought to mind the mind of the people who were with God with Moses, “They will know that I am with you as I was with Moses” verse 7
God's intention is clearly for the people to know that the God who was with Moses is also with Joshua. “They will know” does not mean that Joshua has any special powers. What's even worse is that he wants to let Joshua know that he can stand as Moses' successor because he has received leadership training. It is enough for the people to remember that God is with them. What could be more reliable than the presence of a God who has no limits in his power?
The Lord is Emmanuel God.
Matthew 1:23 Behold, a virgin will conceive and bear a son, and they will call his name Immanuel, which is translated, “God with us.”
God has granted leaders special powers and wisdom through history, but the most powerful power is the fact that God is with them. When he called Moses, he promised that he would surely be with Moses, who was afraid.
Exodus 3:12 "I will be with you," said God, "and after you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will serve God on this mountain, and this is the proof that I sent you.
He didn't tell us to send an army, nor gave him the diplomatic secret that Moses shed. Believing in this one promise, Moses stood before Pharaoh and accomplished great things. Pharaoh called himself a god, and his servants around him supported him as well, but he was not able to withstand Moses, who opposed Moses with only one promise that the true God would be with him.
Our Lord is always with us.
Matthew 28:18 Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 of all that I have commanded you. Teach them to observe them. Behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the world.
David, trusting in the God who was also with him, took five slings and went before Goliath, confessing, 1 Samuel 17:45 David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with sword, spear, and javelin, but I am the name of the LORD of hosts, you have insulted me. I come to you in the name of the God of the armies of Israel, Hallelujah!
We want our Lord to believe in a God who is with us wherever he goes. Psalm 23:4 Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your staff and staff comfort me.
We believe in God who is with us and hope that we will go ahead and win.
Our God always remembers us, grants us the blessings He has promised us, and is with us.
Therefore, let us always remember the grace of the Lord and live. I pray for the precious work of living a life of walking with God, thinking of God's grace that reminds us like the sayings to engrave enemies in water and to engrave grace in stones. (Excerpt from the formal sermon handbook)