Stepping Out in Faith: Life-Changing Examples from the History of Israel

Stepping Out in Faith: Life-Changing Examples from the History of Israel

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Overview

Discover the Life-Changing Relevance of the Old TestamentStepping Out in FaithThe wisest of people learn from the successes and struggles of others. Since history repeats itself, looking back on the journey of God's people and learning from their victories and pitfalls is one of the most valuable things we can ever do. As we look closely at the highs and lows of Israel's history, we will discover lessons that will transform and shape both our present and our future. Part of the Old Testament Challenge series, this teaching guide and resource book helps you craft seven messages on what the history of Israel has to say about living by faith. As never before, your congregation will discover God's unyielding commitment to lead his people forward to his plan for their present and future. A Communicator's Toolkit for Teaching the Old TestamentHaving the right resources gives you a powerful edge in communicating the message of the Old Testament effectively in this media-driven, sensory-intensive culture. The Stepping Out in Faith Teaching Guide helps you connect with minds, imaginations, and hearts. Designed to maximize your connection and impact, it is a communicator's toolbox for teaching your congregation lessons from the four-part Old Testament Challenge series.*Historical, cultural, and geographical backgrounds unlock the meanings of Bible passages. Transport your listeners thousands of years into the past so they can see, hear, smell, taste, and touch the ancient world.*Illustrations, humorous stories, and word pictures engage the imagination and emotions, bringing home the timeless message of the Old Testament with clarity and freshness.*Creative applications help listeners make the leap from learning Old Testament lessons to living the Christian life.The genius of this teaching guide is its flexibility. Customize your messages from a treasury of resources. This revolutionary tool provides up to sixteen categories of material for each message. No need to spend countless hours doing research---a wealth of ideas and resources lies at your fingertips Creating a New Community Teaching Guide includes: *Creative Message Ideas*Heart of the Message*Heart of the Messenger*Historical Context Notes*Illustrations*Interpretive Insights*Life Applications*Narrative on Life *Narrative on the Text*New Testament Connections*On the Lighter Side*Pause for Prayer*Pause for Reflection*Quotable Quotes*Significant Scriptures*Word StudiesOther Old Testament Challenge Teaching Guides 1---Creating a New Community: Life-Changing Stories from the Pentateuch (9 Sessions)3---Developing a Heart for God: Life-Changing Lessons from the Wisdom Books (8 Sessions)4---Pursuing Spiritual Authenticity: Life-Changing Words from the Prophets (8 Sessions)

Details

  • SKU 9780310249320
  • UPC 025986249328
  • SKU10 0310249325
  • Series Old Testament Challenge (Hardcover)
  • Publisher Zondervan
  • Date Published Oct 2003

Chapter Excerpt


Chapter One

SESSION 1

Joshua: The Law of the First Step

THE BOOK OF JOSHUA

The Heart of the MESSAGE

If we are going to follow God, we will have to live by faith. There is no other way. To walk with God is to walk in faith. The people of Israel had to learn this message over and over, and so do we!

In the book of Joshua God's people are called to take huge steps of faith. In some cases, their human minds cannot make sense of God's way of doing things. But they learn to follow even when his leading is beyond their understanding. What is the law of the first step? Sometimes God waits to act until we begin to move in faith! When we step out in faith, God reveals his power and presence. When we take the first step, God shows up and reveals his glorious might. However, if we stand still, paralyzed by fear, and refuse to take the first step, we may miss the faith-building experience of seeing God at work.

The Heart of the MESSENGER

As you prepare this message, take time to do a personal inventory of your own heart and life. Are there places God is calling you to step out in faith, but you are not responding? Is there fear in your heart that has caused you to freeze up and miss an opportunity to walk in faith? If you are going to teach about taking risky steps of faith, it may be time for you to walk with a new measure of boldness and confidence in God's power to act. As you prepare to bring this message to God's people, invite the Holy Spirit to infuse you with a boldness and a willingness to take a first step of faith in an area you have been resisting his leading.

1. God's Love for Every Generation

The generation of Israelites who left Egypt free from Pharaoh's clutch had died in the desert because of their refusal to trust God. They could not believe that God had the power to overcome the nations on the other side of the Jordan. They did not trust him to enable them to occupy the Promised Land. That lack of faith consigned them for the forty years of wandering in the desert. Now there is a new generation of Israelites, who must decide if they will have greater faith than those who came before them. They must determine whether they believe God can lead them into the Promised Land, even when it seems the odds are against them.

INTERPRETIVE INSIGHT Understanding Hebrew Poetry

The only way we can make sense of Deuteronomy 5:8-10 is by taking some time to do a little background on how to read Hebrew poetry. The Old Testament is filled with examples of poetic structures that must be read in a specific way. Hebrew poetry is primarily characterized by something called parallelism. In English, we tend to recognize poems because the words rhyme or have a certain meter. In Hebrew poetry, however, the primary characteristic is how one word or sentence parallels another word or sentence. In its simplest form, Hebrew parallelism expresses the same thought, in different words, in two successive lines. See Psalm 19:1 as an example:

The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

"The heavens" in the first line is parallel to "the skies" in the second line, "declare" is parallel to "proclaim," and "the glory of God" is parallel to "the work of his hands." Both lines say the same thing with different words.

There are dozens of variations of Hebrew parallel structure in the Bible. One of them involves numbers. Sometimes to emphasize a key point the writer will use what is called numerical parallelism. Examples can be found in Proverbs 6:16 and 30:15b:

There are six things which the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him. (6:16)

There are three things that are never satisfied, four that never say, "Enough!" (30:15b)

In the second line of Proverbs 6:16 the writer is not saying that he just thought of another thing God hates. Rather, it is a way of giving poetic emphasis to a single point. It is meant to draw our attention to all seven things the Lord hates!

Another variation on Hebrew numerical parallelism occurs when the numbers draw out a dramatic contrast. In Genesis 4:24 we read:

If Cain is avenged seven times, then Lamech seventy-seven times.

Lamech says this as a way of pointing out a contrast. "If you think there was danger going after Cain, that's nothing compared to the danger of going after me." The point of these numbers is to draw out the difference between them.

Another example of numerical parallelism is found in 1 Samuel 18:8:

Saul was very angry; this refrain galled him. "They have credited David with tens of thousands," he thought, "but me with only thousands. What more can he get but the kingdom?"

King Saul of Israel is saying, "The people say that I've only slain thousands in battle, but David ten times that many." This song of the people is a form of numerical parallelism, and Saul does not miss the contrast-he gets the point so well that it angers him!

In Deuteronomy 5:9b-10 we read:

I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.

The numerical contrast captured here is not just ten or eleven times bigger; it's hundreds of times bigger. This is by far the most dramatic example in all of the Old Testament of Hebrew parallelism that draws out a numerical contrast. The key thing to realize is that this is not a statement of emphasis. Rather, it is clearly an expression of contrast. Notice in verse 10 God says, "I . am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but [here is the contrast] showing love to a thousand generations [or thousands of generations] of those who love me"

The teaching here is that God is ready to punish sin. We must not be deceived. He will judge evil. He will. But it's not what he longs to do. What he longs to do is show love. God is willing to punish, but he's longing to show love.

Notice the last phrase in verse 9, "punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me" (or "those who rebel against me"). This phrase is describing the third and fourth generation. In other words, God is not saying he will punish a future generation of innocent people who haven't done anything wrong, because their ancestors sinned. The punishment will come only if that third or fourth generation hates God. If they rebel against God like their ancestors, they too will be punished for their sin.

INTERPRETIVE INSIGHT Identifying Generational Sin There is an important warning in this passage about what is sometimes called "generational sin." This occurs when unresolved problems and sins of one generation tend to pop up again and plague the next generation, and the next one, and the one after that. Children who are victims of mismanaged anger or rage are much more likely to have anger problems of their own and pass them on to the next generation. Young people who grow up in a family where deceit is commonly practiced learn it, and they are much more likely to have problems telling the truth. The same is true for children in families where there is divorce or sexual addiction.

When we are growing up, we often look at the previous generation and see patterns of unhealthy behavior and sin and say to ourselves, "I'm never going to be like that." But what happens? We get caught in the same trap until somewhere along the line somebody in some generation makes a courageous decision to change.

LIFE APPLICATION Breaking the Chain

Many people are at a decisive point where they must make a decision to break the generational sin that is plaguing their life and family. What if you have deeply entrenched patterns of sin that go back a generation or two or three? What if you are seeing this same pattern develop in the lives of your children? What can you do when you realize that your sinful attitudes, choices, and actions are poisoning the lives of the next generation?

When we face our sin and realize that it is infecting our children (and it always does), we must make a mammoth decision-to decide what we love more, our sin or our children! We have to ask, "Which one am I willing to sacrifice, my sin or my son? What do I love more, my daughter or my sin?" It is not enough just to do our best to hide the sin from our kids or to try to manage it. We have to repent and change the way we are living, thinking, and speaking. Such a decision takes a lot of courage. We must get ready to say, "I'm going to break the chain. It stops here. I'll do whatever I have to do. I'll bring this behavior or pattern or habit into the light. I will enter into accountable relationships. I'll go to a Christian counselor and get help if that's what I need to do. I'll do whatever it takes, but the legacy of sin stops here. I will not hand it on to my children. I love them too much."

God has not condemned us to suffer the fate of our ancestors. Our God's desire is to heal and show love. He'll wait a thousand generations if he has to. God cheers for every generation.

NARRATIVE ON THE TEXT A New Generation

A new generation stands on the banks of the Jordan. God does not want them to experience the pain of forty years in the desert as their parents did. The old generation suffered from a serious case of the grasshopper syndrome. They had said, "We're just grasshoppers in the eyes of our enemies and in our own eyes. We're small and inadequate. We could never occupy the Promised Land" (cf. Numbers 13:33). Although God had promised the previous generation that he would lead them and empower them to take the land, they stayed east of the Jordan and refused to enter into God's plan.

Now their children are looking west and wondering if they will have the faith to do what their parents did not. God speaks to the new generation and assures them that the land is theirs for the taking. He calls them to be "strong and courageous" and go up to take the land. God calls them to hold his law in their hearts and promises that he will be with them every step of the way. God's command to Joshua and the people is crystal clear: "Be strong, be courageous." Why? "I will be with you. Everywhere you set your foot, I've already gone ahead of you. I'll be right there." God is saying to Joshua and his generation, "Don't live in fear!"

God had given this same message to the parents of these people when Moses was their leader. Yet they were unable to take the step of faith needed to cross the Jordan and enter the land. Once again, God is ready to lead his people forward in victory. The question is, are they ready to follow?

INTERPRETIVE INSIGHT The Third Day

Joshua sends out the word to the Israelites that they will be crossing the Jordan. After forty years in the desert they hear the command: "Get your supplies ready. Three days from now you will cross the Jordan here to go in and take possession of the land the Lord your God is giving you for your own" (Joshua 1:11). The phrase we should notice is "three days from now." Often in the Old Testament, people are told they'll have to wait a short while for divine deliverance. Consistently the waiting period is three days. The three-day time period became a time of anticipation for God's people.

Joseph says to the cupbearer in prison that in three days Pharaoh will free him from prison and restore him to his job (Genesis 40:13).

ILLUSTRATION "You Are in Trouble!"

Some passages in the Bible are hard to understand. Through this Old Testament Challenge we refer to them as passages that make us say, "What's up with that?" These passages tend to confuse people if they read them quickly and don't take the time to dig in and discover what is actually being said. One such passage is Deuteronomy 5:8. All through the Bible we learn that God loves people. He is passionate about us. Yet, in this verse, it seems as if God is presented as unfair, harsh, and even unloving. Until we dig in and see what this passage is really saying, this misunderstanding will remain in the minds of many people.

Deuteronomy 5:8 can be a little confusing. Imagine a father sitting down with his little girl when she is five years old and saying, "Young lady, I just found out that your grandmother, your mother's mother, has been masterminding an auto theft ring in California. Your grandmother is breaking the law! She is out of control!" Then this little girl's daddy looks at her sternly and says, "Young lady, you are grounded! You can't play with your friends; you will have a very long time-out. If your grandmother does not straighten up, you might not be going to your senior prom in about thirteen years! You better hope your grandmother gets her act together or you're going to be in really deep water!"

This is quite a harsh scenario. The little girl would naturally feel the punishment is unfair and undeserved, and anyone who hears about this father's proposed punishment would probably agree with the little girl!

ON THE LIGHTER SIDE A Strange Prayer

A pastor once said that Jonah's prayer during those three days in the belly of the great fish may have been, "God, just let me go out the same way I came in." Think about that one, but don't think about it too much!

HISTORICAL CONTEXT Waiting for Deliverance

The expression "third day" is used so frequently in the Old Testament that it may have become a technical expression meaning the short time of waiting for God's deliverance. Often a word or term takes on a certain colloquial meaning that goes beyond the simple words. It may well have been that when the people of Israel heard the expression "third day," they began to anticipate some way that God's deliverance and power would be experienced soon. Hosea wrote:

After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will restore us, that we may live in his presence. (Hosea 6:2)

This verse uses Hebrew numerical parallelism to bring this point home. The third day was a time of restoration and revelation of the presence of God!

(Continues.)

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