Student Connect

Hello dexjoseph35

I am Catherine Luke I am new to the class my first day. Good to meet you. Joshuna is a good book to read. of the promise land

What importance does the physical land of Israel (Palestine) now have for God's plan for His people? I believe that the physical land of Israel is important because it is connected to a promise of God to His special people to have a base from which to proclaim and extend the kingdom of God. When God told Abraham to go to the land of Canaan, it showed that He wanted to take the land from those who were worshipping false gods and to grant it to a people who worshipped the one true GOD. Today, we seem so distant from the past promises, but God has not forgotten His promise. Do you think the return of the Jews to that land is the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies? Yes, I believe that the return to that land is in fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies. But I believe it is conditionally based upon the loyalty and obedience of the people of Israel. I think that many in Israel are partially obedient, and therefore can only have a partial blessing. Until Israel is completely or mostly obedient, it may be a long and very difficult process that many may not live to see in their lifetime. How should Christians respond to the current conflicts in that area of the world? Pray for these conflicts. I believe that a nation has the right to defend themselves against others who may attack them. I do not agree with everything that has happened, but I try understanding it as if I were in that situation. One must be careful not to start a war, because one never knows what the response or outcome will be. I want to borrow from the words found in Hosea 8:7, "They sow the wind, and reap the whirlwind." When a seed is sown, the harvest always yields more than what was planted. I hope it ends soon. I believe that God will put an end to every conflict when He comes back again. Should we "take sides"? We should pray for a peaceful outcome.

CC Varner-Halback

How does the book of Joshua help you know Jesus better? Seeing how God dealt with His people through Joshua's leadership was enlightening. Joshua in the Old Testament means Jesus in the New Testament. Joshua led the children of Israel into the earthly Promised Land. Jesus is leading and will lead us into the Heavenly Promised Land. So much of Joshua's ministry of integrity reminds us of the righteous life and leadership of Jesus. The divine authority of God causes me to see how Jesus comes into my life as my God, Lord, Creator and Redeemer. He is the God I worship. He is the Lord who aids me in handling my life's choices. He is the reason I exist at all. And Jesus lived a perfect life for me and then died a terrible death in my place.

I know Jesus better because I understand better the importance of the covenant between us. God has given us his grace and in response I am to give to Him my loyalty and obedience. I want my life to bring joy to God's heart. I realize that the law of God is the standard for my life. Jesus said in John 14:15, "If you love Me, keep My commandments." His statement is conditional. It implies if you do not love Me, then you will not keep My commandments. As I heard a preacher over 40 years ago, "We don't keep the commandments to be saved, we keep them because we are saved!" I am saved by God's grace. That is why I want to live for the One who loved me enough to die in my stead. I am grateful for the power of God in My life through the Holy Spirit. By myself, I cannot live a decent life before God and people. But the Holy Spirit creates in me the will to do the will of God.

I realize that God wants me to be a part of the plan to take this gospel to the world. I realize that He has given me a gift that He desires me to use in His kingdom. It will make a major positive difference if everyone were to do, his or her part. Are there any aspects of His ministry or His kingdom that you appreciate more now, after studying the lesson? It is so good to be able to properly organize the book of Joshua. Understanding that the conquests led to victories that allowed for the inheritances to be able to happen. It makes sense to have covenants in order to protect the inheritances that were given to them. Jesus has won the victory for me. He has given me a divine inheritance. His covenants will help me to understand God's part and my part in His plan.

CC Varner-Halback

After considering how I might teach or preach on the book of Joshua, I would approach it by first discussing God’s previous promises given to Abraham and how those were being fulfilled through the conquest and settlement of the Promised Land from Genesis 12:7. I would also emphasize in my lessons that Joshua is a book about God's faithfulness to His covenant and Israel's obedience to Him, not just a story of military conquests.

The things that I would emphasize would include God’s immense sovereignty as shown in Joshua 6 through His role in Israel’s great victories, as well as the immense courage and strength that were modeled by Joshua, who was truly grounded in God’s promises as illustrated in Joshua 1:6-9. I would also like to draw attention to Joshua 7, where Ache is sin teaches us the consequences of disobedience and makes it clear that following God's instructions is essential to success. Last but not least, I would remind those receiving instruction of the significance of our loyalty and decision to serve the Lord with all of our hearts, as illustrated in Joshua 24 by the covenant renewal at Shechem.

The issues that I would deal with would include discussion on the destruction of the Canaanites to provide a reference for the purpose of God’s justice against (serious) sin and idolatry as noted in the unique historical event from Deuteronomy 9:4-5. Moreover, I would discuss how Israel’s faith led to victory, while fear or disobedience only resulted in setbacks. Finally, I would like to talk about how the land inheritance represents God's rest for His people, which is a precursor to the spiritual rest that we will experience in Christ. This inspires us to have the bravery to do what God commands and to obey Him in the face of difficulty. Like Joshua 24 who urged believers, including those of us in our modern times, to declare their loyalty to God, we too have the chance to reaffirm our commitment to our covenant with him.

The fact that God asked the Israelites to destroy the Canaanites makes me feel that it was justified by God’s sovereignty and role as the righteous judge because the Canaanites’ actions had reached extreme levels of immorality and corruption, according to Genesis 15:16. God utilized Israel as an instrument in His divine judgment against the Canaanites. This allegory points to the absolute seriousness of sin and divine judgment.

For us today, it means less of a focus on physical battles and more of a focus on spiritual battles in regard to sinful behaviors as modern “Canaanites.” The coming of our Lord Jesus Christ changes divine judgment to redemption and grace.

Moreover, the destruction of Canaan was an extraordinary event because it was tied directly to divine judgment. In addition, from a covenantal perspective, the land was promised to Israel because of God’s covenant with Abraham.