The Passing of the Torch!
Every day the roll is being called. Servants of the Most High God go to return to the dust, just as the way of all men. A couple of questions are raised, where are they going and what did they leave behind? For people of faith, the first question is settled the day they lay hold of the promises of God – they. will return to their Creator to live eternally as a result of the finished work of Jesus Christ. The second question cannot receive one answer. Every man’s work speaks for itself.
Moses has been said to be the greatest man outside of Jesus Christ He did not possess the divine nature of Christ, but in his humanity he served God well in his generation. When his time came to die, this was said of him;
After the death of Moses the servant of God, God spoke to Joshua, Moses’ assistant: "Moses my servant is dead. Get going. Cross this Jordan River, you and all the people. Cross to the country I’m giving to the People of Israel. I’m giving you every square inch of the land you set your foot on—just as I promised Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanon east to the Great River, the Euphrates River—all the Hittite country—and then west to the Great Sea. It’s all yours. All your life, no one will be able to hold out against you. In the same way I was with Moses, I’ll be with you. I won’t give up on you; I won’t leave you. Strength! Courage! You are going to lead this people to inherit the land that I promised to give their ancestors. Give it everything you have, heart and soul. Make sure you carry out The Revelation that Moses commanded you, every bit of it. Don’t get off track, either left or right, so as to make sure you get to where you’re going. And don’t for a minute let this Book of The Revelation be out of mind. Ponder and meditate on it day and night, making sure you practice everything written in it. Then you’ll get where you’re going; then you’ll succeed. Haven’t I commanded you? Strength! Courage! Don’t be timid; don’t get discouraged. God, your God, is with you every step you take." Joshua. 1:9 (MSG)
Joshua was commissioned to complete the work that Moses began, but look what God said to him: "in the same way that I was with Moses, I’ll be with you", Then he emphasizes the traits that Moses possessed, strength, courage, stamina – Joshua could identify with these commands because he knew what they looked like, he had waked forty years with Moses. He knew what leadership was, because he was mentored by a real leader.
Most of us will never be called upon to lead anywhere from 600,000 to two million people as has been said that Moses led out of Egypt. Many of us will only have the assignment of leading our families, and then for only a very few short years. Yet what are we leaving them to follow? Are we leaving them examples of strength, courage, commitment, determination, steadfastness? Are we showing them what love is? What forgiveness is? Have we showed them that we won’t give up until we reach our promise land, and even after reaching it, that we will fight the giants in the land, near giving up?
God told Joshua that all his life, no one would be able to stand against him. He gave certain promises that were specific. He only asked one thing – "make sure you carry the Revelation that Moses commanded you, every bit of it". Yes, Moses is dead, Joshua is dead, and many others that came after them. Yet the Revelation still stands for it was fulfilled in Jesus Christ. God still wants us to keep it, in our mind, to meditate on it day and night, then to get up and get going, knowing that God is with us every step we take.
Maria