September
22- 23, 2007 The
Ripple Effect! Joshua
3-4
The Way Less Traveled!
(Senior Pastor Roger Storms)
“Risk Aversion!”
• To Abraham: Genesis 15:1 “The word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: "Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward." [NIV]
• To Moses: Exodus 14:13 “Moses answered the people, "Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. ” [NIV]
• To Elijah: 2 Kings 1:15 “The angel of the Lord said to Elijah, "Go down with him; do not be afraid of him." [New International Version]
• To Daniel: Daniel 10:12 “Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them.” [NIV]
• To Paul: Acts 18:9 “One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision: "Do not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent.” [NIV]
• To You: John 14:27 “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” [NIV]
It Takes Faith to Go the Way Less Traveled!
*** Joshua 3:3-4a “When you see the priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord your God, follow them. [4] Since you have never traveled this way before, they will guide you." [NLT]
*** Joshua 3:5 “Then Joshua told the people, "Purify yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do great wonders among you." [New Living Translation]
*** Joshua 3:6, 8 “In the morning Joshua said
to the priests, "Lift up the Ark of the Covenant and lead the people
across the river." And so they started out [8] Give these instructions
to the priests who are carrying the Ark… "When you reach the banks of
the Jordan River, take a few steps into the river and stop.'"
*** Joshua 3:15 “It was the harvest season, and the Jordan was overflowing
its banks.” [NLT]
*** Joshua 3:13 “The priests will be carrying the Ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth. When their feet touch the water, the flow of water will be cut off upstream, and the river will pile up there in one heap." [NLT]
*** Joshua 3:14-16 “When the people set out to cross the Jordan, the priests who were carrying the Ark of the Covenant went ahead of them. [15] Now it was the harvest season, and the Jordan was overflowing its banks. But as soon as the feet of the priests who were carrying the Ark touched the water at the river's edge, [16] the water began piling up at a town upstream called Adam, which is near Zarethan. And the water below that point flowed on to the Dead Sea until the riverbed was dry. Then all the people crossed over near the city of Jericho.” [NLT]
*** Joshua 3:17 “Meanwhile, the priests who were carrying the Ark of the Lord's covenant stood on dry ground in the middle of the riverbed as the people passed by them. They waited there until everyone had crossed the Jordan on dry ground.”
PRINCIPLE #1 To Live By Faith, Follow God!
*** Joshua 3:3 “When you see the priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant
of the Lord your God, follow them.” [NLT]
PRINCIPLE #2 To Live By Faith, Follow God’s
Leaders!
*** Joshua 3:3 “When you see the priests carrying the Ark… follow them.
“ [NLT]
PRINCIPLE #3 To Live By Faith, Trust God’s Directions!
*** Joshua 3:4a “Since you have never traveled this way before, they will
guide you." [NLT]
PRINCIPLE #4 To Live By Faith, Do A Heart Check!
*** Joshua 3:5 “Then Joshua told the people, "Purify yourselves,
for tomorrow the Lord will do great wonders among you." [NLT]
*** Proverbs 4:23 “Above all else, guard your heart, for it affects everything you do.” [NLT]
*** Matthew 6:19-21 “Don't store up treasures here on earth, where they can be eaten by moths and get rusty, and where thieves break in and steal. [20] Store your treasures in heaven, where they will never become moth-eaten or rusty and where they will be safe from thieves. [21] Wherever your treasure is, there your heart and thoughts will also be.” [NLT]
It Takes Faith to Go the Way Less Traveled!
• WHY? To Love People and Lead
Them to Jesus!
• WHAT?
*** Joshua 4:1-3 “When all the people were safely across the river, the Lord said to Joshua, [2] "Now choose twelve men, one from each tribe. [3] Tell the men to take twelve stones from where the priests are standing in the middle of the Jordan and pile them up at the place where you camp tonight." [NLT]
*** Joshua 4:21-24 “Then Joshua said to the Israelites, "In the future, your children will ask, 'What do these stones mean?' [22] Then you can tell them, 'This is where the Israelites crossed the Jordan on dry ground.' [23] For the Lord your God dried up the river right before your eyes, and he kept it dry until you were all across, just as he did at the Red Sea when he dried it up until we had all crossed over. [24] He did this so that all the nations of the earth might know the power of the Lord, and that you might fear the Lord your God forever." [NLT]
You’ll never know what God can do through
you until you Live and Give by Faith!