Thurs.’s Devo - Moses to Joshua

Read: Deuteronomy 34:1-Joshua 2:24; Luke 13:22-14:6; Psalm 79:1-13; Proverbs 12:26 Mount Nebo means “his prophecy” and Pisgah means “survey”. Moses was given a prophecy that God would take them to their own land. Moses was now being allowed to survey the fulfillment of that prophecy, though he would not actually get to enter in. Moses died there and the Lord buried him. Jude 9 tells us that the devil disputed with Michael about the body of Moses. Moses was 120 when he died and his eyesight had not failed nor his strength. He was mourned thirty days. No prophet had been like Moses because he knew the Lord face to face. *** The anointing of Moses was passed to Joshua to lead the people into the land. God encouraged Joshua to be strong and courageous. *** Joshua called together the tribes of Reuben, Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh and reminded them of their promise to help the other tribes cross the Jordan and possess their land. They agreed. *** Joshua only sent out two spies, probably because last time only two came back with a good report. They were to spy out the land and especially the land around Jericho. They stayed at the house of Rahab, the harlot. *** When the king of Jericho found out they had been there, they went to Rahab’s house to search for them. Rahab had hidden them but told the men searching for them that they had left the city. When they had gone she went to talk to Joshua’s men. *** She told them that she knew the Lord had given them this land. Her people had heard of how God opened the Red Sea for them to walk across and had given them victory over Sihon and Og, the Amorite kings. Everyone in Jericho was afraid of them and the supreme God of the heavens and the earth. *** She made them swear that when they came to attack the city that they would spare her and her family. The men swore to save them if she held up her end of the bargain and helped them escape. She agreed and sent let them down from her window by a rope since her house was built on the wall. They told her to leave the rope hanging from her window and they would save all who was in her house. *** They were able to escape to the hills and told Joshua how the whole land was afraid of them. *** In Luke, someone asked Jesus if only a few would be saved. He told them the fate of those who did not come through the narrow door. He was the narrow door. Those who refused to enter while there was still time would greatly be disappointed when they found the door shut. But others would come from all over the world to take their place in the Kingdom of God. There will be a complete flip of who is esteemed and who is not. *** The Pharisees warned Jesus that Herod Antipas wanted to kill him. Jesus told them to tell that fox that he would continue casting out demons and healing until the third day when he is perfected. Then Jesus predicted that he, like all the other prophets would die in Jerusalem. *** One Sabbath, Jesus went to eat at the home of a leader of the Pharisees. A man was there whose arms and legs were swollen with dropsy. The people watched to see if he would heal on the Sabbath. He asked them if their animal fell into a pit on that Sabbath if they would help it out. The answer was “yes”. So how was that different from Jesus healing one of his own on the Sabbath. *** Lord, help us to not stumble over silly laws we have set up in our mind and miss the bigger picture. May we help all who we are able to help and do the works you have ordained for us to do in this time.