Sanctify Yourselves

Sanctify Yourselves

Joshua 3

FBC, Cornelia

January 22, 2012

Walk of Faith Series #3

Eric's notes:  I've been influenced by the work of Reggie McNeal for over 13 years in the areas of prayer and preparation.  I'm thankful for the opportunity to share some of these ideas here.  

In the late 1980’s the red-on-yellow K logo of Kodak was a signature brand synonymous in every corner of the planet with capturing, collecting and sharing images.  Kodak played a role in pretty much everyone's life in the 20th century because it was the company we entrusted our most treasured possession to — our memories.  In the late 1980’s, though, a competitor from across the ocean, Fuji film, began to challenge Kodak’s monopoly.   Over the last 2 decades both of these large companies have watched their core cash cow – 35 MM film – disappear.  Last Thursday, Kodak filed for chapter 11 Bankruptcy while Fujifilm now thrives.  The story of these two firms demonstrates the choices of confronting an unknown future.    

            By 1990 both Kodak and Fujifilm realized the writing on wall – the world was going digital.  35 MM cameras would be disappearing and digital cameras would be replacing them.  For the next 10 years both companies worked to milk as much money from their film divisions as possible – struggling to figure out what came next.  In 10 years Fujifilm’s profits from film went from 60% of their income to basically nothing. 

            Both companies confronted the same circumstances – but they differed greatly in how they choose to respond to the future.  According to the Economist - Kodak choose the easy route.  They depended on their marketing and branding to save them.  They predicted their strong brand identity would save them as it had for over 100 years - and hen they planned as much as they always had – to meet that prediction.  They worked just as hard as Fuji – they just worked at the wrong things for the changing culture. 

            Fuji on the other hand, chose the harder route of developing new products and new businesses.  The world was changing and they chose to prepare themselves for the opportunities this world might offer.  To build these new projects, Fujifilm began applying its technologies in new areas.  They sought new ways to use what they did well.  They didn’t know what the unknown future held – but they would be prepared with new products as that world emerged. 

            Over course of our lives - the world has changed completely for all of us here in this sanctuary.  The world as we knew it – the culture that shaped us – the institutions we trusted – are no longer the same.  Most of us grew up in a film oriented world – we placed film in the camera, took 12,24, or 36 pictures at a time, rolled in back into its canister, took it out, drove over to a drug store, gave it to a professional film developer, and days later – picked up the film, pulled the pictures out of the envelope – and finally saw the memories our cameras had captured.  Our children and grandchildren will never have these memories.  If they cannot run to the photographer after the picture has been taken to see instantly the memory that has been captured, they are disappointed. 

            Like Kodak and Fujifilm - We all face choices in how we adjust to this new world. 

            Like Kodak - our typical approach to the future involves Predicting and planning.  We attempt to predict what will happen in the future and then we plan accordingly.  This way we have more control over what happens.  We do this often in our businesses, family and church.  This approached worked well when the world was not changing as rapidly as it has been over the last few decades.  In our film oriented world – we knew what would be happening over the next 10 years because it was the same as the last 10 with just a few modifications.  We could predict and plan for how to respond.  But what happens when our film oriented world turns digital.  Our businesses lose their profit margins, our family members disperse around the world, and our churches fight to stay the same – and end up dying and declining. 

           

            A different and more biblical approach to the future involves prayer and preparation.  Approaching the future through prayer and preparation recognizes God as the Master Weaver residing in the future and weaving his purposes through our lives.  Prayer and preparation requires us to relinquish control over our lives and our church – learning how to walk by faith and not by sight.  Prayer and preparation acknowledges a world in drastic realignment where we cannot predict what will happen tomorrow – let along plan for it.  Instead, prayer and preparation seeks listen to the Spirit of God and prepare ourselves for what God has in store for us. 

            Let’s examine the 3^rd chapter of Joshua as a model for approaching the future God has in store for each of us and our church.  Over the last 2 weeks, we’ve examined the importance of walking by faith, not by sight into God’s future – striving the reach our full kingdom potential.  This chapter reveals how we do this. 

Scripture Lesson

            In Joshua 3, we find a wandering nation - the People of Israel - on the banks of the Jordan River.  It’s been 40 years since a scared, mass of former slave refugees walked across the Red Sea.  Over these 40 years in the desert – God has nurtured, matured and transformed these former slaves into a new nation – a new people – the People of God.  

            Joshua leads the Israelites down from their camp at Shittim in the desert into the wadis beside the Jordan River in expectation of their crossing into the Promised Land.  Between them and their future lies the Jordan River overflowing its banks - at its highest, harvest levels.  Getting to God’s future seems dangerous and not simply downright impossible.  The People of Israel stay 3 days beside the raging river – looking out across a new land – questioning how they could achieve God’s future, afraid of what might happen to them, but still excited, wanting what God has prepared for them.

            v. 2 tells us what happens next: 

2At the end of three days the officers went through the camp 3and commanded the people, ‘When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God being carried by the levitical priests, then you shall set out from your place.

Before the Israelites go into the Promised Land of their future they are instructed to:

1.  Wait til God moves. 

            Before they walk into the future ahead of them – they must wait for God to move.  The Ark of the Covenant represented the Presence of God for the People of Israel.  It usually sat in the holiest spot in the traveling tabernacle in the middle of God’s people.  Now as they prepare to walk into God’s future they must attune themselves to a new way of experiencing God’s presence.   “When you see the ark move – then you are to start moving.” 

            In our typical approach to the future - Waiting til God moves sounds like a cope out.  We tend to see waiting as inaction rather than an action.  “Let’s get started,” we say.  “Let’s plunge ahead.”  We would rather see Joshua testing the river’s depths and making for getting thousands of people over or through it.   

            Rather than inaction, though, waiting for God to move requires much action - Just a different kind of action.  It requires us to pay attention to God.  This requires attuning our senses to God’s ways.  This requires us to spend time in prayer, to spend time meditating and listening to scripture, to make worship a priority in our lives.  When we do these spiritually oriented things – we are prepared to notice when God moves.  Otherwise – we might be just sitting around camp – and miss the Presence of God passing us - missing the future God has in store for us. 

            This year as part of our Walking by Faith initiative – our church has been challenged to build spiritual disciplines into our lives.  We are challenged to read through the books of Luke and Acts, to make worship a priority in our lives, and to pray for FBC.  These spiritual actions are designed to attune us to the movement of God – as we wait til he moves. 

Follow … God’s New Paths

            After the People of Israel are instructed to wait til God moves – they are next told to Follow … God’s new paths.  Look at verses 3-4:

When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God being carried by the levitical priests, then you shall set out from your place. Follow it, 4so that you may know the way you should go, for you have not passed this way before.            Besides being attuned to the Presence of God moving – the People of Israel must have the courage to follow God’s Presence where it goes – into the unknown future. 

            These verses represent the whole principle of walking by faith, not by sight for me.  Remember – everyone in camp knows where they are headed – to this new future in the uncharted territory of the Promised Land.  They also know what lies between them – the Raging Jordan River.  They have not seen bridge builders out there building a bridge to get them safely across.  Joshua simply says – wait for God to move – then follow God’s new path.  Walk by faith – following the presence of God – because you have not passed this way before. 

            Think about why walking by faith is so important.  Over the course of the next several years – as the People of Israel make their way into their promised future – life will not always be easy. They will have to trust God in this new future.  In order to face the challenges of the future – the People of Israel needed to see what God could do when they trusted him.  What would happen whey the walked by faith and followed him. 

            As we listen and attune ourselves to God – eventually God tells us to follow him - To walk by faith – in God’s new paths because we have not passed this way before.  As we do – we are to:

3.  Expect … God to amaze us. 

            When we wait til God moves and follow God’s new paths, we can expect God to amaze us.  Look at verse 5

5Then Joshua said to the people, ‘Sanctify yourselves; for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.’

            As they People of Israel wait to follow God – Joshua instructs them to ritually purify themselves – consecrate themselves – make themselves spiritually ready – for the wonders they are about to experience.  So – over the next day – the People of Israel prepare themselves for the miracle God has in store for them by anointing their families with oil.  They organize themselves for a future they could not control.  They didn’t know what would happen, but they would be prepared when it did.

            In order for us to expect God to amaze us – we must sanctify – prepare - ourselves for God’s future as well.  While we do not know the future and we do not know where God will lead us – there are things we can do now to prepare ourselves for it. 

            For example – we do not know God’s future of FBC, but we do know we must retire our debt in order to be unencumbered to follow God where he leads.  When the debt of our Family Ministry Center is released from our necks – imagine how quickly we can follow God. 

            Another example – we do not know the future, but we do know, we must understand our identity as the People of God at FBC and understand the mission field of Cornelia, GA if we are ever to follow God.  That’s why a focused process of listening, discerning, and dreaming is so important to us.  It’s our way of sanctifying – preparing ourselves when God’s presence walks forward out into the world and we are called to follow! 

            In a world that changes quickly – God calls us to abandon our predict and plan approach to the future and choose to pray and prepare:  To wait, follow and expect! 

            I picture it this way:  Like a surfer waiting for the perfect wave.  When we lived on the coast of SC – I had several good friends who lived to surf.              I loved to watch them in the ocean.  These guys never planned a single wave. They never said, “I predict that movement of water 100 yards from here will be a 5 foot wave and I plan to ride it forward then cut backwards as I get to the shore.”  No, instead, my surfer friends who simply paddle out to the deeper water and wait.  Sitting on top of their boards til they saw just the right swell begin to rise.  Then they would start paddling and at just the right moment they would stand and ride the power of the wave with as much creativity as possible.  They never controlled the wave – they simply attempted to ride it. 

            Getting to the point of riding that wave, though, required much time and preparation.  Before they ever found themselves on the ocean, they had waxed their boards, practiced their stances, monitored the weather and tides and gotten into the water.  These steps of preparation – allowed them to be ready with the power of surf rose beneath them to amaze them. 

            You see – God wants to amaze us - in our lives and in our church.  To do so, God calls us to sanctify ourselves – so we may be ready when the opportunities of God’s future rise beneath us.   Amen!