THE LORD SPEAKS TO JOSHUA ABOUT THE BIBLE
Part 33
Joshua 1:8-9
Morning Meditation 12/4/16
Verses 8-9 say, “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.”
This is a great chapter and reveals the LORD’s commission to Joshua as His man to lead Israel the remainder of the way into the promised land. Joshua as a type of Christ is the only one who can lead us into the fulness of the blessing. Oh that we might follow Him and know Him intimately.
The words “This book of the law” us referring to the Bible. The word “book” translates “cepher” and means “a book or legal document.” They had the Word of God in written form in that day. The word “law” translates “torah” and is the word used by the Jews today to refer to the first five books of the Bible. The American Heritage Dictionary defines it as “1. The entire body of religious law and learning including both sacred literature and oral tradition. 2. A scroll of parchment containing the first five books of the Hebrew Scriptures, used in a synagogue during services.”
I have had the question ask, “How long has the Word of God been available in written form?” Verses like this help us to understand. Most scholars believe that Job was the first written book of the Bible. Moses wrote the first five books of the Bible. The other writers are identified with their books for the most part. The Bible in that day was equivalent to God’s speaking voice. We might ask ourselves the question, “If the Lord spoke audibly to us would we give more reverence, respect, and obedience to His spoken voice or His written Word?” This question helps to clarify the difference. The truth is that there is no difference. I’m not saying that you would not be a little more impressed at His spoken Word! Read this line carefully: if Jesus were to come to the pulpit in the church where you attend next Sunday, He would not say it any different than He says it in your Bible. That is, if you have the right one!
The LORD is telling Joshua that “you have my Word in written form, and I am not going to change my mind, so, when you need to know what My will is in a matter that has already been covered, go to the Book.” This means a lot of prayer is simply people trying to get God to change His mind. It is a waste of time. He was right to start with!
The LORD says to Joshua, “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth . . .” This means that when people come to Joshua for guidance or help he tells them “This is what the Bible says.” The words “shall not depart” means that Joshua is never to speak “off the record.” He is never to go to human sources, i.e., the wisdom writings of men. He is always to say, “The Bible says . . .” This can really be annoying to the person who doesn’t want to obey God. There was a fundamental preacher on a panel of preachers being interviewed by a TV network. The subjects brought up were those that the Bible is against. This fundamentalist preacher was right in the middle of the debate and was constantly saying, “The Bible says” and would quote the Scripture. There was a real liberal preacher on the panel that got so upset with this fundamentalist that he blurted out, “I don’t care what that d___ book says.” If that liberal preacher had been my grandmother’s son, she would have washed his mouth out with soap. On second thought, if he had been my grandmother’s son, he would have been a fundamentalist! The LORD told Joshua to keep his MOUTH full of the Bible.
Then He tells him to keep his MIND full of the Bible. The LORD says, “ . . . but thou shalt meditate therein day and night. . .” It sounds a lot like fanaticism doesn’t it? Do you know what a fanatic is? He is an extreme fan. I plead guilty. This is what the world calls brain washing. The fact is our brains do need washed. At least mine does! Of course, technically, it is not the same. Brainwashing is where possession of the mind is taken through a process and the will is submitted to another for evil purposes. In serving the Lord, our will is submitted to Him voluntarily. We are free to change our minds any time. The word “meditate” translates “hagah” and means “to moan, growl, muse, mutter, meditate, devise, plot.” Someone has explained the meaning of this as being like a cow chewing her cud. It means to go over and over a thing. It is like working on a plan in your mind while you are at work. It may have nothing to do with your work. It may be a dream home you are planning. You visualize, you plan in your mind just how you want it. It may become so vivid that you will find yourself mumbling to yourself. Your friends may hear you and wonder about you! Joshua is to go over and over the Word in his mind. He is to think about certain situations and find Scriptures that apply. This way the Word literally becomes a part of Joshua’s thinking. Many times when I taught a truth to my daughter, something later would arise where that truth had an application, and I would say, “this is what I meant when we talked about this verse or this truth.”
The LORD does not only teach Joshua that the Bible is to be in the MOUTH, and the MIND, but also, the HANDS. Our DOING TOOLS are our hands. It is not enough for Joshua to talk the Bible, and to memorize the Bible, he must “do” (practice) the Bible. Joshua is to be a Bible practicing leader. Amen. It is not just for leaders. It is for all. But if the leader does not practice the Scriptures, he will be hard pressed to get others to believe the message. The practice is to be “according to all that is written therein. . .” A lot of Christianity is like a half plucked chicken. There are feathers here and there and the poor thing looks horrible. When one who calls himself a Christian decides what parts of the Scripture he is going to believe and practice and what he is not, his Christianity looks like a plucked chicken. It is either all inspired or it is not inspired at all.
The Bible claims this for itself. Psalm 19:7 says, “The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.” David said that the Word of God is PERFECT.
Paul taught his preacher boys that the Bible is perfect. He told Timothy, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works” (2 Tim. 3:16-17).
” This means that the Word of God is not just a human author writing what he thinks God would say if He were saying it. It is God breathing into the man of God His Word and on the exhale It comes out through the inspired pen of those human authors. The Bible is not a book of opinions, It is a Book that reveals the very Words of God. It is inerrant and verbally inspired. It does not have a single solitary error in It.
How did early Christianity receive the Word when it was preached? What were they taught to believe about the inspiration of Scripture? Paul writes the Church at Thessalonica and says, “For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe” (1 Thess. 2:13). Paul commends these Christians for accepting what he said as the inspired Word of God.
The LORD told Joshua that he needed the Bible in his MOUTH, on his MIND, in his HANDS, and He said, if you do, “ . . . thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.” This is success from God’s point of view.
Then the LORD encouraged him with a promise: “ . . . for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.” It sounds like the last statement in the Great Commission doesn’t it?
May the Lord bless these words to our hearts.
In Christ
Bro. White
