Keys to Victory

The opening words of Joshua 1 would become the keys to unlocking future victories for Joshua as he led the Israelites to a place of partnership and ownership in the promises of God.  In the same way they will help us enjoy as it says in the text, “…good success…” and to live victorious lives in Christ.   

There are three of them…

Key # 1 – Live like God’s promises are present realities (v. 1 – 3).   In this way we claim God’s will for our lives.  Having received His promises, and believing them, we live by faith as if they have already happened.  There is one key phrase that jumps of the page from verse 3, “…just as I promised to Moses.”  In God’s economy, it had already been done.  We by faith possess “all spiritual blessings in Christ” (Eph. 1:3).  By faith we can enjoy them.  By faith those blessings are a reality in the present.  We have the responsibility to live like it.    

Key # 2 – Remember the past in order to connect to God’s power in the future (v. 4 – 6).  God is saying, “I will not abandon you in the middle of the task I’ve given to you.”  And in this way, God is moving Joshua forward.  To be in step with what God had planned, he had to connect the power of what God had done through Moses to what He was about to do through him.  From this we learn that the proper way to revere the past is through the understanding that as God was with our forbearers, He will be with us.  His providence and grace toward them is a reminder that He will provide for and be gracious to us.  As Jesus used them to build His church, He too will use us as we walk with Him in faith. 

Key # 3 – Ongoing obedience is the only guarantee of future success (v. 7 – 9).  You will see that God’s commandments become His enablements.  Joshua was to be careful to do what God said, not in the sense that he was worried about making a mistake, but in the sense that it was his priority as a leader.  He was also to meditate on the Word, making it part of who he was, his daily routine, even his speech was to be seasoned with it (v. 8). Obeying it in faith gave Joshua the power to do his job and it redefined success for him.  It will do the same for us as well. 

God has promised to never leave us of forsake us so let us be strong and very courageous! And may we live victoriously in Him!