The Battle of Obedience: Following God When You Cannot See the Way

Who likes to follow orders? Nobody! If you had the choice of getting to do what you say or having to do whatever someone else says, which would you choose? You would choose what you want to do every time. You don’t know what they are going to tell you to do. They may make you look foolish and do something silly. You desire control. You want to know what the future holds and not leave it up to someone else.

But what about when it comes to God? Do you seek control in the same sort of way? You know, often we do. If you are here listening to me right now, there’s a good chance that you desire to follow God. We all want to follow God yet struggle at some point in living out the details of his plan. Sometimes his plans are difficult. Sometimes they seem silly. Sometimes they don’t add up on paper. Sometimes we don’t know the plans at all but are still called to follow.

That’s how it was with Joshua in the Old Testament. There’s a lot we can learn from him. He followed Moses for a long time. He trusted God early on, even when others didn’t. He was faithful and patient as God’s people wandered the wilderness for 40 years. Then there came a day when he was called to lead…but he was called to lead by following God. He was to lead God’s people in the Promised Land. But as they entered the land flowing with milk and honey, a land that signifies abundance of life, they were entering a warzone. There are battles in the Promised Land.

And we’re going to see one of the first battles that Joshua had to face before the great battles later. It’s a battle each one of us have to face daily. It’s the battle of obedience.

Joshua 1:2-9

We are called to obedience no matter what. Right at the beginning of this passage in Joshua 1, we see a command from God. Verse 2 says, “Arise, go.” Talking to Joshua, God is saying, your past is behind you. Moses is dead. There’s a future ahead of you. “Arise, go.” We know God calls us to walk in obedience to him. But often we get distracted by other things and miss the mark. We think that in order to be obedient, we must know God’s will and every detail of it first. Well, what is His will? What is His plan? Why doesn’t He just tell us what to do in an audible voice like he did with Joshua and Moses? Well, you know, he has specifically told us his will. We can read them every day.

1 Thessalonians 5:18 says, “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” And 1 Thessalonians 4:3, “For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality.” Micah 6:8 says, “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” 1 Peter 2:15 states, “For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people.” According to these verses, you know what God’s will is? It’s sanctification and purity and justice and gratitude.

We often think, surely God’s will for my life includes more than this! What about where I’m supposed to go to school? What about who I’m supposed to marry? What job am I supposed to pursue? Which direction do I go for this big decision? What is your will, God?! It’s sanctification and purity and justice and gratitude. God’s will for your life is that you live for him right now. And here’s the outcome of that. The outcome of our obedience is our good and God’s glory.

God tells Joshua to “Arise, go.” But he also tells him something else. He tells him that he is giving the land to him and all these people he is leading. The land that was long ago promised to Abraham when he packed up his family and followed God in obedience even though he didn’t know where he was going. It was the land promised to Moses and God’s people as they were enslaved in Egypt for 400 years. God tells Joshua to follow him in obedience, but he a