ATTENTION: Please note that this is The Adult Sunday School Lesson, God’s Promises Fulfilled aka God Keeps His Promises, on Joshua 1:1-6; 11:16-23 for the 6-05-11 International Sunday School Lesson. You will find the 5-29-11 lesson, Tree of Life aka Water of Life, directly beneath this message and on the right side.
Jed
God’s Promises Fulfilled
or
God Keeps His Promises
Joshua 1:1-6; 11:16-23
International Sunday School Lesson
June 5, 2011
Commentary
By
Jed Greenough
God had a plan whose promises we can begin reading about in Genesis 12:1 when He gave direction to Abraham (then Abram). Here God instructed Abram, who at the time was already 75, to leave his home and the people he had known all of his life and go to the land of Canaan. In verse 7 of this chapter we see the promise made, “To your offspring I will give this land.” And today in our lesson we see the promise fulfilled.
Abraham was forewarned of the enslavement of his descendants but God reminded Him the promise was still in effect that He had made (Genesis 15). Similarly, we can read how God reminded Abraham’s son Jacob of the promise (Genesis 28) and how Jacob’s son Joseph reminded his brothers what their people had to look forward towards (Genesis 50).
After the period of slavery had passed, just as foretold to Abraham, his descendants, now a nation of people, were ready to be released from bondage as God recalled His promise to Abraham (Exodus 2).
Probably most of us have criticized Israel and how they had so many promises given to them and fulfilled and yet they rebelled and complained. They were told years in advance of their slavery that it would happen but they were also told how long until their time of bondage would be completed.
The evidence of God’s promise being fulfilled happened before the very eyes of an ungrateful people. Yes, I am sure most of us have shaken our head and made comments voicing our wonder concerning how they could have behaved in this way.
But, is our behavior any better? Granted their misbehavior occurred as events were happening live and yet they reacted in this way, but why do we who have all the scriptures as an example seemingly react so stiff-necked ourselves despite all the promises made to us?
Instead of letting their examples of obedience and disobedience guide our choices we seem to be none the better as we anticipate the promises He made that are yet to be fulfilled.
Through our Bibles we get to see that God made a series of promises to Abraham that have all been fulfilled, promises that include our active participation in the grafting in of all of us who are not Jewish. We get to see the scriptures fulfilled that promised of a messiah and a suffering servant who were one in the same.
To our credit we come to faith not through what we see as they may have but rather what we are told. But if we have a faith like that why do we not place more importance on the scriptures that concern the rest of the promises, those yet to be fulfilled?
What we have to hold onto is no less more certain to be fulfilled than what the people of Israel would have had to hold onto through 400 years of slavery. So why don’t more of us live like we do?
The people of Israel were told that they would be enslaved but then released to enter the land that they had been promised. Despite seeing all that they had seen when they were at the gateway to this Promised Land they rebelled at Kadesh. No one that rebelled entered that land but were instead punished and died in the desert.
We ourselves have a “promised land” to look forward to. How close might we be to that gate? The same scriptures we study in today’s lesson that show us the promises and forewarnings made to Israel also serve as examples that can prepare us.
As we have mentioned in other lessons we are told by Christ in Matthew 24 that one of the signs of the end of the age is that “many will turn away from the faith.” How similar is that to what the Israelites did in rebellion at Kadesh?
This time the punishment won’t be 40 years spent wandering before death in the desert. Instead, God forewarns that those who do fall away will receive a powerful delusion and will be condemned.
Everything God says is a promise, everything God promises is fulfilled.
For Discussion:
1. Discuss why some have chosen to not include verse 20 from chapter 11 in their reading today.
2. Exodus 23:32 tells us why the people who were in place could not be allowed to live with the people of Israel.
3. God had long planned the eventual judgment of these peoples (Genesis 15:16).
4. Numbers 23:19
5. It is a quick read so go ahead and read chapters 1-11so as to better understand this week and the lesson that follow from Joshua.
6. Discuss why Gibeon was spared.
7. Discuss how faith goes hand in hand with God’s promises.
6-12-11: God Has Expectations (God Expects Obedience) Joshua 1:7-16 or Joshua 1:7-18
6-19-11: God Protects (God Protects His People) Joshua 2:2-9, 15-16, 22-24
6-26-11: God is Victorious (God Gives Victory) Joshua 6:2-3, 4b, 12-20 or Joshua 6:2-4, 12-20
7-03-11: God Responds to Disobedience (God Reacts to Disobedience) Joshua 7:1, 10-12, 22- 26
Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 Biblica. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved
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