Only be strong and very courageous

Joshua, who has played second in command to Moses for the last 40 years is now commanding the nation of Israel. Whilst before this point Moses made the decisions and spoke to God, now it is Joshua’s responsibility.

God’s instruction to Joshua (Joshua 1: 6-9) is repeated 3 times. “Be strong and courageous.” Both are prerequisites for leadership. Courage is required to face the task ahead, trusting in God’s grace to help us through. Strength is required in order to be able to win the day.

We are encouraged through the Bible that we are to be strong in the Lord, not in our own strength. This is not a case of the strong in this world taking over leadership. But the meek and godly leaders in our churches need to understand that in the Lord they are to be strong: they are to stand up for what they believe to be God’s mandate for their church and they are to maintain that in the face of all opposition.

Joshua was to meditate on God’s word in order to be strong in his leadership. We need to seek out godly courageous and strong leaders for our churches if the Church of the 21st century is to win the battles it faces today.