Revering the Word
Joshua 19 God's promise to Abraham fulfilled. A historical account of Israel and the Church.
Good morning, everyone. This morning, we are in Joshua chapter 19. And this is the last section in Joshua where we are talking about the allotment of the land. And many tribes are gonna get their promised land today in Joshua 19. I wanna take you back for a moment to Genesis chapter 12 because really what we're seeing in Joshua 19 is God's covenant to Abraham being fulfilled and it began in Genesis chapter 12. Now, listen to what it says. Now, the Lord said to Abraham, go forth from your country and he's not in the promised land at this time. He's in a different land. Go forth from your country and from your relatives and from your father's house to the land which I will show you. And this is the land that now Israel is finally getting in the book of Joshua and I will make you a great nation and I will bless you and I will make your name great so that you shall be a blessing and I will bless those who bless you. And I'm the one who curses you, I will curse and in you, all the families of the earth will be blessed. This is a unilateral covenant promise that God is making to Abraham's family which became Israel. And you might recall that Abraham added Isaac, Isaac had Jacob and Jacob's name became Israel. And at one time in history, you would recall that Jacob's family was starving and as a result, they ended up going down to Egypt because through miraculous set of events, Joseph, Jacob's son was placed in Egypt and ended up saving grain because he knew of a famine that was going to take place in the land. And as a result, Joseph was already there ahead of time and when Jacob's family Israel began to really struggle because of the famine, they ended up going to Egypt and because Joseph was sent ahead of time through a miraculous story, Joseph ended up providing for Israel for Jacob's family so that they survived and indeed they went down to Egypt and they multiplied. But ultimately, God wanted to fulfill his promise to Abraham to give Israel the land. So that's when he began after many years in Egypt, bringing Israel out of Egypt and eventually through Passover and the parting of the sea they went through on dry ground. They ended up in the desert because of their unfaithfulness. They spent 40 years there, but after then they get out of the desert, they cross the Jordan River and then Joshua leads them into the promised land. So what we're reading in Joshua is a fulfillment of what God had promised. And there's so many miracles to the story because you might remember that Abraham and Sarah were barren and they waited a long, long time before they finally had Isaac. And so here a family that couldn't even have a child, God said, you're gonna have as many families, there are stars in the sky and they were childless, but yet they did and Israel expanded and Israel returned to the land and got the land just as God promised they would get. And now by extension, we're part of the family of Abraham through faith in Jesus. We're really part of those stars in the sky. It's not that we've replaced Israel, but we have come into the blessing of being a part of God's family through faith. Just as Abraham believed in this incredible promise and was accredited righteousness, now we who believe in Jesus are given righteousness and become part of God's family. So picking it up here again in Genesis chapter 12, we're gonna continue on just for a little bit in verse four. So Abraham went forth as the Lord had spoken to him and lot went with him. Now Abraham was 75 years old when he departed Iran. Abraham took Sarah, his wife and his lot, his nephew and all their possessions which they had accumulated and the persons which they had acquired in Iran and they set out for the land of Canaan. That's the land we're talking about right now that Israel is getting through Joshua's leadership. Thus they came to the land of Canaan. Abraham passed through the land as far as the side of Shechem to the oak of Mora. Now the Canaanite was then in the land. The Lord appeared to Abraham and said to your descendants, I will give this land. So he built an altar there to the Lord who had appeared to them. So God promised that Abraham, your descendants one day are gonna get this land. Now this was many years earlier and God is fulfilling his promise. That's really important to see. These people that we're reading about in Joshua who were in the desert and waited those years, they're waiting for the fulfillment of the promise that God made to Abraham. And now finally we have it here in the book of Joshua. These tribes who have waited and trusted God, they are now receiving the inheritance that God promised them. God is coming good on his promise. And it's incredible that it happened. And that's really what we're reading about. Now today in Joshua 19, Simeon gets their territories. Abouman gets their territory. Isaacar gets their territory. Asher gets their territory. Natali which ends up becoming where Galilee region is. He gets their territory and Dan gets their territory. And we come to a conclusion of the allotment of the land in the book of Joshua, the faithfulness of God, giving them that land. And this land is really important. God gave it to Israel. Now God later told Israel that if they're unfaithful he was gonna remove them from the land. And indeed he did remove them from the land through Assyria and then through Babylon and Israel was removed from the land. But I wanna take you to the book of Ezekiel for a moment and in the book of Ezekiel, it talks about in chapter 36 of Ezekiel. And let's pick it up here. So now remember, this is an Old Testament book what written way before Jesus ever came. And it's talking about Israel in verse 30, chapter 36 verse 22 of Ezekiel, it says this. "Therefore say to the house of Israel, 'Thus says the Lord God, it is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for my holy name which you have profaned among the nations where you went. I will vindicate the holiness of my great name which has been profaned among the nations. And it's been profaned because, you know, Israel was deported and they no longer hand a land which you had profaned in their midst. And he's saying basically it was your fault that this happened. Then the nations will know that I am the Lord, declares the Lord God, when I prove myself holy among you in their sight, for I will take you from all the nations, gather you from all the lands and bring you into your own land." So in Ezekiel chapter 36 verse 24 is the promise that one day Israel is going to return to their land. And indeed, that's what we have today. And that's, you know, I've referred to this many times in our teaching that it's incredible that Israel's back because they did not have a country for, you know, 2300-ish years. And in 1948, they got their country back and God gathered them from all the nations. Now that was only so to speak a down payment on a future promise because Israel as a nation is still not receiving their Messiah, which is Jesus. And they still are needed to come to Jesus by faith. And they still have tribulation coming upon them because of their rejection of the Messiah. So although in verse 24, we have a return to the land, if you keep reading in the chapter, it's talking really about the millennium. And one day when Jesus is going to come back and be with them again, and they will finally receive him and then they're gonna receive the blessing of falling under the faith of their Messiah Jesus, but that's not gonna happen immediately. So what we have is a partial fulfillment of Israel being in the land again now, but a future fulfillment when they're king whom they're not recognizing right now. Jesus comes back to ruin rank. 'Cause you might recall that even in the days of Jesus, they were looking for a Messiah king to come and throw off the Roman Empire and to be in charge again. And they were right, but they were wrong. They were right, and that is going to happen one day. Their king Messiah is going to return, but they're wrong in that they didn't recognize this dispensation, this season of history where Jesus came back as a suffering servant to usher in a kingdom, a spiritual kingdom to those who believe in him, Israel's missing that. They're missing out on the forgiveness of sins and the promise of eternal life through Jesus who came. They're still looking for the return of Jesus, which we are to as Christians, but Jews who have not accepted Jesus in this season are missing out on what we have today by having the forgiveness of sins and the promise of eternal life. And this is one of the reasons, there's a difference between the church and Israel, even though we've been grafted into the family of God through faith in Jesus. There's still future plans for Israel and future punishment on Israel. And this is where there's a difference in belief system by some people that don't see this difference. And this is one of the reasons why, you know, I believe in a pre-tribulation rapture because we have been given a promise. We're part of God's family through faith in the Messiah Jesus. And before the terrible time of tribulation is going to come, I believe he's gonna remove the church and he still has punishment in store for Israel for not recognizing the Messiah. And I believe the tribulation is going to be for the unbelievers and for Israel who have rejected their Messiah, the church is going to be removed and caught up to heaven. And then one day when Jesus is coming back, there is going to be a millennial reign and the Jews who are alive at that time will recognize the Messiah Jesus and we will reign with him in the millennia and in the new heaven and the new earth. So it's very important to recognize that although God has restored them to their land today, they are still not without punishment that is due them for rejecting their Messiah. But Jesus looks at us differently and that's why we're gonna be treated differently because we've become his bride through faith in Jesus Christ. And that's why there's different set of promises that are given to us, a different set of comfort, a different set of hope because we have accepted the Messiah and the Jews have not. That's why I believe there's gonna be different treatments in the future. Well, anyways, one of the reasons, but anyways, all that to say that this land and Israel is important and in Joshua completing in Joshua chapter 19, God is being faithful to his promise to Abraham to give him that land and all the things that God said that one day they were gonna get taken from their land happened and one day they were gonna get restored to their land happened. And the fact that he's coming back again one day will happen. The fact that he came as a babe and he came as a suffering servant and that he died for our sins. All of that happened. All these things that were prophetically said to happen in the Old Testament have happened. That's why you can trust in the fact that he is coming again, Hallelujah. May this increase all of our faith. God bless you all.