S1: All I'm trying to tell you is God's word never
S1: has an expiration date. It's as relevant today as it
S1: was back in that day. And if God took 700
S1: years to fulfill a promise about his son. Why are
S1: you crying? Because it's been a few years.
S2: Welcome to Treasure Truth with pastor and author James Ford Jr.
S2: Senior pastor of Christ Bible Church in Chicago. I'm Steve
S2: Hiller and glad that you're with us. And pastor, that
S2: is a convicting thought for some of us who tend
S2: to be very impatient. Um, but for others, as we
S2: try and patiently wait for the promises of God, I
S2: think one of the struggles is that while we wait,
S2: we may be experiencing pain. Whether that's physical or emotional, mental,
S2: whatever that pain may be. We tire in the waiting
S2: because of the circumstances that we have to wait in.
S2: So what would you say to the person who says,
S2: I'm trying to be faithful in my waiting, but it's
S2: so hard, it hurts.
S1: I would say Amen. Amen.
S2: So be it.
S1: Amen.
S2: Okay.
S1: That it's often difficult. It's often painful. We don't like it.
S1: We want to be out of it as quickly as possible. That's.
S1: That's just being human, right? I mean, you know, that's
S1: just being human. And the thing about it is that
S1: God even gives us a word for that. So to
S1: deal with the anxiety, to deal with, you know, he
S1: says in Philippians four six and seven, be anxious for nothing,
S1: but in everything with prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let
S1: your requests be made known unto God. And the peace
S1: of God that passeth all understanding shall keep your heart
S1: and mind in Christ Jesus. So even our Lord in
S1: the Garden of Gethsemane he prayed, uh, let this cup
S1: pass from me. Nevertheless, if it be thy will. And
S1: so it was all about the will of God. Jesus
S1: was in pain. He. He had not vain repetition, but
S1: painful reiteration. Three times he prayed that. And then it
S1: says this. He says to the disciples who had been sleeping,
S1: all right, you guys can wake up now it's time
S1: to go. Well, he had swept, as it were, great
S1: drops of blood, right. And he was in great agony
S1: about going to the cross. Well, well, the cross was
S1: still there. What made the difference? Conformity to the will
S1: of God. So Hebrews five eight, that even though he
S1: were the son. The Greek says he learned obedience by
S1: the things that he suffered. And so, yeah, suffering sometimes
S1: is redemptive for us.
S2: You think of the apostle Paul, the thorn in the flesh,
S2: repeatedly praying that God would take it away. And God says, no,
S2: my grace is sufficient for you. Even in the suffering.
S2: So hopefully that is just a quick word of encouragement
S2: as we begin today's program. We're in Joshua chapter.
S1: You know what? We grow in the pain, right? Tribulation
S1: worketh patience. Have you ever prayed for patience? Well, then
S1: you just ask for tribulation. Anybody ever prayed for love?
S1: I want to, I want more. Well, unconditional love means
S1: somebody has to in the colloquialism and the vernacular of
S1: my young people. Hate on you real bad just so
S1: that you can demonstrate unconditional love. You say you want
S1: to be like Jesus, then you just ask to be crucified,
S1: you know? And so it's part and parcel of growth
S1: in the Christian life.
S2: Well, we're in the book of Joshua today as we
S2: continue a message entitled takers. So if you can join
S2: us in Joshua chapter one, here's Pastor Ford.
S1: Rest on God's promises. Rest on God's promises. That is
S1: verses three and four. Look at verses three and four.
S1: Verses three and four. Every place that the sole of
S1: your foot shall tread upon, uh, that I have given
S1: unto you, as I said unto Moses, from this wilderness
S1: and this Lebanon, even until the great river, the river Euphrates,
S1: unto the great sea, toward the going down of the sun,
S1: shall be your coast. Now, God, what are you saying?
S1: What are you doing? God is letting them know. Listen, listen.
S1: You've got to rest on the promises I gave you. Promises.
S1: Now a lot of people make promises. Uh, you got
S1: some people who say, uh, loan me some money until
S1: payday Friday and somebody can testify. Don't raise your hand.
S1: You might be sitting next to him, or they may
S1: be in the sanctuary. Uh, but what did they do?
S1: They didn't tell you which Friday. And they didn't tell
S1: you which year? Some. Come on. Some of us know
S1: there's folk now trying to look away because they know
S1: they owe us money. And they look, they say, sitting
S1: over here and they and instead of looking at me,
S1: they're looking at the wall because they know you looking
S1: from over there, because you moved from over there, because
S1: they ain't paid you your money yet. And then walk
S1: up in here talking about praise the Lord, acting like
S1: they don't know they owe you money. Yeah, yeah. You
S1: saw us up here. Why do you think I said suppose?
S1: Because you never know what's going to happen? Because we
S1: made that promise. I so and so do take you
S1: so and so as my lawfully wedded spouse to have
S1: and to hold in sickness and in health, in poverty
S1: until death do us part. And I tell you all
S1: the time, some of us, it's just until death do
S1: us part. Yeah. People make promises. I'll call you back
S1: later on today. We going to hook up later on
S1: this week. Come on now. I mean, how many have
S1: been told that and and heard from the person yet?
S1: Come on, come on. Look, look look at the hands.
S1: Look at the hands. Yeah. And so what. Oh here's
S1: the here's one. I'll pray for you. Look at that.
S1: Look at that, everybody. Everybody's saying, man, what a farce,
S1: you know. And so we make promises. But we need
S1: to understand here. God makes them a promise. And he says, listen,
S1: I want you to understand two things. You've got to
S1: personalize the promise. And I told you what I do.
S1: I put my name there. I put my name there. Uh,
S1: pastor for can do all things through Christ who strengthens him.
S1: Pastor Ford has never seen the righteous forsaken nor his
S1: seed begging bread. Pastor Ford is the head and not
S1: the tail. Pastor Ford that knows the plans that God
S1: has for him. Plans for good and not for evil,
S1: to bring him to a desired end. Pastor Ford, pastor
S1: for I personalize it. But then. But then you got
S1: to participate. Notice what he told them. Walk in it.
S1: Walk in it. It's yours, but you're not walking in it.
S1: You're not possessing your possession. God says you gotta walk
S1: in it. Oh, yeah, I know the tests are hard,
S1: but you got to go to school in order to
S1: get that degree. You ain't going to get it at home.
S1: And so we need to do that. This neighborhood is ours.
S1: He's giving it to us. We're a lighthouse, a beacon. Man,
S1: we got to do it. We've got to do it. Yeah,
S1: because the Bible tells us in second Corinthians 120, all
S1: the promises of God in him are yea and Amen.
S1: Numbers 2319 God is not a man that he should lie.
S1: Isaiah 5511 so shall it be. The word that goeth
S1: forth from my mouth, it shall never return unto me void.
S1: It will always accomplish that which I set for it
S1: to do. I want to share this with you real
S1: quick now. Now get this. Remember in Micah five two,
S1: God made a promise. He said, O thou, Bethlehem Ephrata.
S1: He says, you're going to have a baby born in you.
S1: Who's going to be the Ancient of Days? So he
S1: talked about the humanity and the deity of Christ in
S1: Micah five two. I ain't got time to talk about
S1: all that because I gotta move on. But here's my point.
S1: When did God fulfill that promise? Anybody know how many
S1: hundreds of years later? 700 years. That's right. 700 years later.
S1: Now get this. He. He said, I promised you my word.
S1: But here's the problem. Jesus was in Nazareth. He's supposed
S1: to be going to Bethlehem to be born. So, God,
S1: your promise is going to be null and void because
S1: they live in Nazareth. His carpenter shop is in Nazareth. Now,
S1: all of a sudden, you know, she's pregnant and he
S1: needs to be born in Bethlehem. Luke two one and
S1: a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that everybody should
S1: be taxed in there. God used the greed of Caesar
S1: to fulfill a 700 year old promise. All I'm trying
S1: to tell you is God's word never has an expiration date.
S1: It's as relevant today as it was back in that day.
S1: And if God took 700 years to fulfill a promise
S1: about his son. Why are you crying? Because it's been
S1: a few years. He says, I have given listen to
S1: this are not yet is God's right now because they're
S1: not standing in the land. They're looking at it. The
S1: Jordan is flooding over. It's the obstacle that's stopping them.
S1: And God says, I want to get you over there
S1: so you can walk up, but we can't get over there. God,
S1: don't worry about it. I got you, I got you
S1: on this, and you'll get over there when you get
S1: over there. Walk. Because everywhere you walk. And it's a
S1: symbol of submission, of domination over this thing. It's submitting
S1: to you because you're walking on it. And this is
S1: what I really love. Because remember he said, he said
S1: that the seed of the woman will bruise the serpent's heel.
S1: And so what did he do? Jesus says this. He says,
S1: what I will do is this. He said, he has
S1: put Satan under our feet. Under our feet, man, don't
S1: you sell your future to Satan. You want to know
S1: why I say why? Because the check's gonna bounce. Amen.
S1: But don't let the devil put a question mark where
S1: God has put an exclamation point. And so he says, yeah,
S1: we we're working on this thing. Uh, we personalize it.
S1: We participate. Why? Because if you have both hands on
S1: the promises, you can't have any hands on the problem.
S1: Let's see if we can finish this today. I'm going
S1: to drop off. I'm not going to push him. Notice. Thirdly.
S1: Then we are to rest in God's protective power. Verse five.
S1: Listen to this. Listen to verse five. How do we
S1: get this? How do I possess my possessions? Glad you asked.
S1: You ask intelligent questions. Respond to God's plan. Uh. Rely
S1: on God's promises. Now, thirdly, rest in God's protective power.
S1: Verse five. Let me read it. There shall not any
S1: man be able to stand before thee all the days
S1: of thy life, as I was with Moses. So I
S1: will be with thee. I will not fail thee, nor
S1: forsake thee. Do you see that God is promising them
S1: protection in three areas? Let me give it to you.
S1: I'm just going to drop it. I'm not going to
S1: push them. Protection against foes. Protection against failure and protection
S1: against fear. What's he going to protect him against? Foes.
S1: Failure and fears. Now Moses's name keeps coming up all
S1: over the place, and it's coming up in every category.
S1: Have you noticed that? Why? Because I want you to
S1: be able to look back and say this. If God
S1: did it before, he can do it again. Hey, anybody
S1: ever been healed? Okay. If he did it before, he
S1: can do it again. Anybody ever been broke and God provided.
S1: If he did it, then he could. He did it.
S1: Then he could do it again. Anybody ever have haters
S1: and you thought that they were going to overcome you,
S1: but God got you out of it. If he did it,
S1: then he can do it now. See, whatever God has done,
S1: God can do. And all we got to do is
S1: believe that he protects us. So he wants you to
S1: know it's different leader. Same power, different church, same power,
S1: different everything. Same power. It's the same protective power that
S1: protected Moses and brought him through the Red sea. It's
S1: going to be the same power that take you through
S1: the Jordan River. It's a it's like a a young
S1: Navy lieutenant who's first time. And he said, uh, uh,
S1: the captain said, I got an interview. He said, okay.
S1: He said, there is a storm coming up on the
S1: starboard bow. What would you do? He said, I throw
S1: out an anchor. He said, okay, there's a storm coming
S1: out in the aft bow. What would you do? I
S1: throw out an anchor. He said, there's a storm coming
S1: in the forward bow. What would you do? He said,
S1: I throw out an anchor. He said there is a
S1: storm coming at the end of the ship. What would you.
S1: He said, I thought anchor captain said, where are you
S1: getting all these anchors? He said the same place. You're
S1: getting all them storms. Same place you're getting all them storms.
S1: It's the same power that you and I understand that.
S1: The same power that protected Moses and brought the children
S1: of Israel where they had to go to possess their possession.
S1: If he could do it back then with Pharaoh, he
S1: could do it with the gangbangers. He can do it
S1: with all the other obstacles that face us. I want
S1: some people who will be willing to say, God, I
S1: understand that I am invincible as long as I am
S1: in your will that nobody can take me out, take
S1: me over, turn me in unless you allow it. I
S1: am the peculiar people of God, that is. I have
S1: been circled about and nothing and no one can get
S1: in unless you say so. I am invincible until God
S1: is finished with me. And Warren Wiersbe said he was
S1: preaching that, and a guy walked up to him and said,
S1: doctor Wesby, I got it, I got it. He said,
S1: I realize I'm invincible, that I could walk in the
S1: busiest intersection in this city, and nothing will happen to
S1: me if it's not my time. Doctor Warren Wiersbe said,
S1: I said to him, sir, if you walk in the
S1: busiest intersection in this city, it is your time.
S2: You're listening to Treasure Truth, a message entitled takers, and
S2: we're going to get back to this teaching in just
S2: one moment. Hey, if you're listening in another part of
S2: the world, we would love to hear from you. That's
S2: one of the cool things about being online is we
S2: get responses literally from around the globe. So let us
S2: know where you're listening, why you're listening, and why. Pastor
S2: Ford's teaching is making a difference in your life. Give
S2: us your feedback by coming to Treasure Truth radio.org and
S2: clicking on the contact link. Let's get back to the
S2: message takers again. Here's Pastor Ford.
S1: And so here it is. We understand that God has
S1: an anchor for our every storm. You see, they need protection.
S1: They were slaves, but the people in the land, they
S1: were warriors. And so now this was called the central Campaign,
S1: that he didn't give them the southern campaign first or
S1: the northern campaign. He gave him the central campaign first. Now, now,
S1: here's what got me. Why give them the central campaign?
S1: Because it's Jericho. Well, what's so significant about Jericho? Because
S1: of all the bangers in the land. These were the
S1: number one bangers. I don't know what the toughest gang
S1: is in Chicago, but whatever it is, that's who they
S1: would be. Everybody else was afraid of the Jericho ites. Why?
S1: Because of their wall. How high was it? That's right. 60ft.
S1: How wide was it? That's right, 30ft. Now, how many
S1: chariots could ride side by side? Two. That's right. And
S1: they were bad. These guys were slaves. They were farmers.
S1: And they didn't have weapons between them. And now he says,
S1: I want you to go in there and deal with them.
S1: You have inadequate resources and inadequate people don't have enough money,
S1: don't have enough people. I want you to go in
S1: there anyway because I have protective power. This is a
S1: true story. Let me tell you what happened in Beatrice, Nebraska.
S1: Listen to this. This. I saw this, and I said,
S1: I've got to share this with them about God's protective power.
S1: The pastor went to church Saturday afternoon to prepare for
S1: the evening choir practice. Most members arrived between 715 and 730. However,
S1: a few members get there at 7:00 for a 730 rehearsal.
S1: So here it is. He went home, had a quick supper,
S1: was ready to leave, but it was discovered that his
S1: daughter's dress was soiled, which required a change of dress
S1: which required ironing. So they were late. High school sophomore
S1: LaDonna had problems with geometry and had to stay until
S1: she had it cleared up. She usually always early for rehearsal,
S1: but that day she was late. Two sisters car wouldn't start.
S1: They were the ones that arrived at seven, but they
S1: had to call someone to pick them up and they
S1: were late. Mr. Schuster and her small daughter usually arrived
S1: about 720. But that night her her mother needed her
S1: to drop by and she went by. Her mother's house
S1: and she was late. A lathe operator wanted to stop to.
S1: Put an important letter in the mailbox and he doesn't
S1: know why, but he was late. Stenographer Joyce Black was
S1: just feeling lazy. She actually told the truth. Stayed until
S1: the last possible moment. She was all ready to go
S1: when it happened. Machinist Harry was going to take his
S1: two boys to choir rehearsal since his wife was away,
S1: but started talking to someone, and when he looked at
S1: his watch, it was already too late. The pianist Marilyn Paul,
S1: who had never been late in the 19 year history
S1: of her being a musician. Wow. Uh, but fell asleep
S1: after dinner and woke up and was late for the
S1: first time in all those years. The choir director was
S1: late because of her daughter. She had tried unsuccessfully to
S1: wake her daughter, but she wouldn't wake up. Two high
S1: school girls went together, but one was listening to a
S1: program that was 7 to 730 and usually would break off.
S1: But the message was so good to them. They said,
S1: we gotta listen to this. At 725, the West Side
S1: Baptist Church blew up. The roof caved in, the walls
S1: fell in. It was totally obliterated because of leaking gas.
S1: None of the members of the choir were there. All
S1: were late, which had never occurred before. You know what
S1: it reminded me of? Isaiah 5417 no weapon formed against
S1: you shall prosper. And God tells them, listen, I'm going
S1: to protect you. Notice, notice with me. Notice because then
S1: not just God's protective power, God's plan and God's promise.
S1: But then notice. Then the text tells us that God
S1: also wants us to realize that he will allow us
S1: to possess our God given possessions. When we readily obey
S1: God's precepts, when we readily obey God's precepts. Just look
S1: at verses six and seven. Be strong and of a
S1: good courage, for unto this people thou shalt divide for
S1: an inheritance the land which I sware unto their fathers
S1: to give them. Only be thou strong and very courageous,
S1: that thou may observe to do according to all the
S1: law which Moses my servant commanded thee. Turn not from
S1: it to the right hand to the left, that thou
S1: mayest prosper whithersoever thou goest. Now get this. Get this
S1: with me. Let me let me do a couple of things.
S1: Let me show you some things. Three times he says
S1: to him, be strong and of good courage. Three times.
S1: Now notice he says it in verse six. He says
S1: it in verse seven, and he says it in verse nine.
S1: Here's all I want you to see. Every time he
S1: tells him to be strong and of a good courage.
S1: It's about something different. It's not the same thing. Look
S1: at what he says. Be strong and of a good
S1: courage that has to do with his provision. You see that?
S1: Be strong when it comes to your provision. But wait
S1: a minute. Look at verse seven. Only be strong and
S1: courageous about my precepts, obeying my precepts. So be strong
S1: about obtaining your possession. Be strong about obeying my precepts.
S1: Then look at verse nine, have I not commanded thee?
S1: Be strong and of good courage. Be not afraid, neither
S1: be thou dismayed. For the Lord is with you. So
S1: be strong against persecution. So, so, so. He's trying to
S1: cover all the bases. What? Why is he telling Joshua that?
S1: Because he knows that Joshua is feeling the fear. God
S1: says you don't have to be afraid. And that's what's
S1: stopping us. What is fear? Come on, everybody say it together.
S1: False evidence appearing real. That's all it is. And how
S1: many fear knots are there in the Bible? Somebody said
S1: a lot. How many? 365. Somebody counted them. 300. Now,
S1: what does that tell you? One for every day of
S1: the year. God said, you know, my people are going
S1: to be afraid. They have a tendency to do that.
S1: But we know perfect love casts out fear because fear,
S1: fear and faith are like oil and water. They cannot coexist.
S1: If you fear, you rule out faith. If you have faith,
S1: you rule out fear. And so fear knocked on the door.
S1: Faith answered, nobody was there. That's what Doctor King said.
S1: And so we have to launch out and step out
S1: in faith. And he says, I don't want you to
S1: be afraid. And the word be strong and courageous literally
S1: speaks of not allowing other things to stop you from
S1: the things that God. And let me put it this way.
S1: Don't let the little things stop you from the everything
S1: that God has for you. Amen. And so he says, listen,
S1: here's what I want you to do. I want you
S1: to readily obey my precepts. Mm. I had two dogs.
S1: They were pitbulls, Angel and Toby. And Angel was white.
S1: Toby was brown. And I had them trained to nonverbal commands.
S1: I did like that. No matter where they were, that
S1: Angel would come and heal at my left. Toby would
S1: come and heal at my right, and they would look
S1: up in my face to await my next command. I
S1: go like this. They roll over. I go like this.
S1: They sit. If I ever point it at you better run.
S1: That's all I have to do to have them. I
S1: don't have to say sic em, just point. And they
S1: would attack. I often thought, boy, it would be nice
S1: if I could get my wife and children to respond
S1: like that. That would really be a great thing, you say.
S1: What's your point? My point is that these dogs waited
S1: on their master's command, that they didn't do anything. Like,
S1: for example, if they were hungry and my children or
S1: my wife said, here, come and get to eat. And
S1: I had told them to come in and I had
S1: done this, they would not move. They keep looking at me.
S1: Don't look at them. Come here, come here, come here.
S1: And they look at me. And if I didn't release them,
S1: they wouldn't go. I said, man, wouldn't it be something
S1: if we treated our master like that?
S2: That's quite the visual image of the picture. Isn't it
S2: a great point as well. You're listening to Treasure Truth
S2: with Pastor Ford, a message entitled takers. It's a longer
S2: series from Joshua chapter one that we're in, and if
S2: you've missed any of the previous broadcasts, you can always
S2: listen online. Come to Treasure Truth radio.org, and I do
S2: hope you make it a point to tune in next
S2: time as we continue this teaching. Well, thanks for listening today.
S2: Thanks also to our producer, Amy Rios for Pastor Ford,
S2: I'm Steve Hiller. Treasure truth is a production of Moody Radio,
S2: a ministry of Moody Bible Institute.