Having just preached on Esther – it seemed appropriate to go back to the book of Joshua.
Esther deals with the OT people of God in their final state before the incarnation (diaspora). Joshua contains all the things that Esther is lacking. It's all about the inheritance.
Joshua begins – "After the death of Moses..."
Deuteronomy ends with the death of Moses. But Moses' work is only half finished. He has brought Israel out of Egypt, but he has not yet brought them into the land flowing with milk and honey (Ex. 3:8). The promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob has not yet been fulfilled. The children of Israel have not yet received their inheritance.
In the last chapters of Deuteronomy, God promises that he will bring the people into the land and give them an inheritance. Joshua is the fulfillment of the promise of Deuteronomy.
But God also warns that if Israel fails, he will judge them with the curses of Egypt. Judges is the fulfillment of the warnings! (Though even within Joshua there are clear signals that the unconditional promise is still conditioned on faithfulness.)
You might wonder – how can an unconditional promise have conditions?!
There is a tension in Joshua between the success of the conquest - but also that it was incomplete. Some commenters say this indicates two different authors.
But the tension in Joshua is not rooted in contradictory texts, but in the two sides of the covenant. In Joshua we have a unified narrative that is deeply rooted in the tension already stated between covenant faithfulness and rebellion. "The dynamics that would eventually lead to exile are already in place in Joshua" (as we will see at Jericho and again at Ai).
Featuring a sermon puts it on the front page of the site and is the most effective way to bring this sermon to the attention of thousands including all mobile platforms + newsletter.
Text-Featuring a sermon is a less expensive way to bring this sermon to the attention of thousands on the right bar with optional newsletter inclusion. As low as $30/day.
