After the Death of Moses (Joshua 1:1)
Joshua lived his life in a shadow—not of disappointment or failure, but of a remarkable personality—his predecessor, Moses. People from our past can also dictate our present, even people of good influence who were disposed in our interest, like parents or teachers.
In the opening chapter of the book of the Bible that bears his name, Joshua is confronted by the Lord with these words: “Moses My servant is dead.” (1:2) God was saying to Joshua, “First, get hold of this: Your predecessor and anything that may have been intimidating to you in the past is dead.”
God wasn’t making a negative statement about Moses. There wasn’t anything negative Moses had done to Joshua. God was just acknowledging a fact: Moses is dead. Why? Because even for an outstanding leader like Joshua, coming behind a towering giant like Moses could be daunting and restrictive. In order for Joshua to lay hold of the tomorrow God wanted for him, he needed reinforcement: That past is over and dead.
The word of the Lord to us is the same: Whatever has shaped your life until this moment doesn’t have any claim on where He wants to take you from here on. Whatever has been intimidating, problematic or disappointing, the Lord calls us to come to terms with this: It’s dead! That’s what the Cross was all about—the nailing not only of all our sins, but also of everything that restricts us from stepping into tomorrow.
Where does “Moses” fit in your life? The starting place for laying hold of tomorrow is acknowledging the dead things of yesterday—not just the disappointing or painful, but also those things that were once glorious and good and have now served their purpose. After settling that fact, the Lord tells Joshua, “Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given you.” (1:3) God has already provided for him; all Joshua has to do is go and possess!
When God is ready to do something new in our lives, it’s up to us to choose: Will I possess the dimensions of what God has both promised and provided, or will I be satisfied with just a corner? Will I live in the shadow of the past? Or will I open to the possibility that the Lord has greater vistas and horizons for my life?
Will my tomorrows unfold or will they fold up? That is the question we all face. And everything rides on our response to the same things that the Lord says to Joshua.
