Leaving a Legacy of Leading a Faithful Life as God's Servant
Scripture Passage: Joshua 24:29-33 (NASB)
29 Now it came about after these things that Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died, being 110 years old. 30 And they buried him in the territory of his inheritance, in Timnath-serah, which is in the hill country of Ephraim, on the north of Mount Gaash.
31 Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua and all the days of the elders who survived Joshua, and had known every deed of the Lord which He had done for Israel.
32 Now they buried the bones of Joseph, which the sons of Israel brought up from Egypt, at Shechem, in the plot of land which Jacob had bought from the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem for a hundred pieces of money; and they became the inheritance of Joseph’s sons. 33 And Eleazar the son of Aaron died; and they buried him at Gibeah, the town of his son Phinehas, which was given to him in the hill country of Ephraim.
SUMMARY
At the end of a long life spent serving the Lord, Joshua dies at the age of 110 and is buried in the land he inherited in Ephraim. The passage notes that Israel served the Lord during Joshua’s lifetime as well as the lifetime of the elders who outlived Joshua and saw what God had done for Israel. Joseph’s bones, which the Israelites brought to the Promised Land, are buried in Shechem in land that Joseph’s descendants inherited. Eleazor son of Aaron dies and is buried at Gibeah, which belongs to his son.
REFLECTION
Joshua receives perhaps the greatest testament that a follower of God can receive. This passage states that not only did Joshua follow the Lord, but the people of Israel followed the Lord during his lifetime. Joshua’s Godly influence on his people is evident throughout the book of Joshua. Earlier in this chapter, Joshua, now advanced in age, gathers the people of Israel, gives them a final reminder of all the Lord did for them, and tells the Israelites to choose who they will follow – the true Lord or some other God. And all the Israelites take an oath to follow the true God. To the very end of his life, Joshua was a witness to his people of God’s goodness.
Joshua was not a perfect man by any means – we’ve seen examples where he doubted or questioned God. But because he ultimately sought after God’s heart and obeyed Him, he is rewarded with this unique place in history as God’s conqueror.
APPLICATION
All the things I do on a daily basis, the choices I make in each difficult situation or when I am tempted to give into my sinful nature, all of those things combined add up to who I am as a follower of Christ. Joshua didn’t set out to become renowned in history as a spiritual warrior. He made a series of independent decisions throughout his life, with the goal of following God’s instruction.
I tend to divide my life up into “spiritual” issues and “non-spiritual” issues. But the truth is that every decision, every place I am in, every relationship I have, is a reflection of my faith in Christ. I need to take every decision, every moment equally seriously and commit it to God, no matter how small a matter I think it is.
PRAYER
Lord, I pray that Your Word can sink as deeply into my heart as it did into Joshua’s heart, so that I automatically turn to You when faced with any decision. I thank You Lord that You don’t demand perfection because I can’t give it, You just ask for obedience. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit, so that my nature will be to obey You. Help me to find Your Word whenever doubt enters my mind or I am tempted to sin. Help me to find the pleasure, the joy of obeying You each day, of being free from sin. In Jesus’s name I pray. Amen.
Please share your personal meditations on this Scripture passage with the HolyWave community in the comments section below. (We reserve the right to moderate comments.)