Foundation Service 2004

This morning we thank God for the founders of Jesmond Parish Church. They saw themselves in the succession of Richard Clayton, in whose memory this church was founded 143 years ago.

Clayton was a remarkable Christian leader in Newcastle in the 19th century who was converted while in the ministry. So Richard Clayton was living proof that you can be church-going, church-committed, and even church-leading and yet know little or nothing of the gospel. But because people were praying for him, God opened his spiritual eyes. He then saw that he was a sinner needing to be saved. But he could be right with God as he trusted Christ for his forgiveness and for his Holy Spirit. And he did just that. Clayton then saw himself in the succession of the great evangelical leaders of the 18th century - of men like Whitefield, Wesley, and Simeon. Those leaders, in turn, saw themselves in the succession of the Anglican Reformers of the 16th and 17th centuries.

All these men were living at times when many professing Christians were drifting from their biblical moorings. So they sought to bring the Church back to the Bible. But to do that means you will face opposition. For some of our forefathers this was a matter, literally, of life or death. Whenever I see the martyrs memorial in Oxford, I thank God for Cranmer, Ridley and Latimer - those great Anglican Reformers. Their concern for the truth meant they died for their faith. There is a plaque in the road to mark the spot where they were burnt at the stake in Broad Street outside Balliol College.

In the West, thankfully, religious conformity is no longer enforced by violent and cruel punishments. You will not burn for being faithful to God's word. But you will still be opposed and that means you still need courage. So this morning I want us to look at Joshua 1 - the passage we had as our first reading. For this chapter deals with the need for courage. God's people always need courage.

Clayton did, and so did his congregation when they decided to found this church. When Clayton died, the church authorities refused to appoint a man in the mould of Richard Clayton. They appointed someone theologically very different. So members of the congregation called a meeting on 20 November 1856 at the Assembly Rooms in Grainger Street and passed this resolution - I quote:

... to erect a church [in memory of Richard Clayton], which ... will form a central point for the maintenance and promulgation of sound scriptural and Evangelical truth in a large and populous town.

Those words are on the top of your service sheets this morning. They wanted to plant a new church to continue Clayton's biblical ministry. After a lot of opposition the church was built, consecrated and eventually began life in earnest on 14 January 1861.

So - Joshua chapter 1. But first some words of introduction to Joshua.

Paul tells us in Romans 15, verse 4 - referring to the Old Testament - that

... everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.

Joshua chapter 1 does not promise you an easy time. As a Christian you will have to endure testing times. But this chapter gives you great encouragement and great hope as you endure. Now, the book of Joshua deals with one important stage in God's plan of providing salvation for the world. The people of Israel had to settle in the Promised Land to prepare for the coming of another "Joshua". Joshua literally means, Yahweh - or Jehovah - saves; and the Greek form of Joshua is "Jesus". But the lessons Joshua had to learn as he led the Jewish people into the Promised Land and across the Jordan, are lessons you and I still need to learn today. I trust you all have a copy of the January Newsletter. In it you will find a little card with the verse for the year. It is Hebrews 13.5-6:

God has said, 'Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.' So we say with confidence, 'The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?

That is a direct reference to Deuteronomy 31.36 which is then quoted here in Joshua 1.5; and, according to the writer to the Hebrews, it is to be applied to Christians. The writer to the Hebrews wants people to see that Jesus Christ fulfils all that Joshua was striving for. But later Christian generations still need to fight. They must fight quite differently, though - at a spiritual and not at a physical level; and they have to help conquer the whole world for Christ. The Great Commission of Jesus in Matthew 28.19 says we are to make disciples of all nations, not just one in the Middle East. And that needs courage.

Well, so much by way of introduction. I want us now to look at this chapter under three headings, first, THE NEW ERA; secondly, THE NEED FOR NEW COURAGE; and thirdly, THE SECRET OF SUCCESS.

First, THE NEW ERA

Here was Joshua facing a daunting task. The Israelites were in the wilderness for 40 years under Moses. They were "food gatherers". God had provided them miraculously and directly with "manna" which they had to collect. Now they were to cross over into a very sophisticated - for them - environment. Deuteronomy 8 15 describes their wilderness experience as being

led through the vast and dreadful desert, that thirsty and waterless land, with its venomous snakes and scorpions.

But the other side of Jordan was going to require agriculture and industry. This territory is described in Deuteronomy 8.8-9 as ...

... a good land - a land with streams and pools of water .... a land of wheat and barley, vines and fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey; a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing; a land where the rocks are iron and you can dig copper out of the hills.

So here were these primitive desert people challenged to take over one of the most developed regions of the Ancient Near East. It was a bit like Crocodile Dundee and a bunch of his Australian friends having to take over New York. It was a daunting task. But that was what it was like for the Reformers seeking to transform a corrupt church in the 16th century and for their followers seeking to re-evangelize in the 17th century.

At the time of Wesley and Whitefield in the reign of George III in the 18th century, one famous lawyer, Blackstone, did a trawl of churches in London. He said it was impossible to discover whether the preachers were followers, I quote, "of Confucius, Mohammed or Christ". So the task for Wesley and Whitefield was daunting. No doubt the founders of JPC were daunted by having to raise money, from scratch, to build this church and face the inevitable opposition. And today in Western Europe the task of re-evangelising nations and reforming decadent churches is equally, if not more, daunting. And some of you here this morning are facing challenges in your individual lives that are daunting. Well, learn from Joshua chapter 1. Note three things.

First, Joshua needed to trust in God and have faith in him. Look at verse 2, where the Lord speaks to Joshua:

Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them - to the Israelites.

But at this stage Joshua had no boats to form a bridge or other materials to build one. Furthermore, at this time of the year, we are told in Joshua 3.15 that the river was "in flood". Yet here was God telling him to get ready to cross a river that was over-flowing its banks with all the women, children, cattle and the equivalent of the kitchen sink. And Joshua knew that on the other side were warriors with, for those days, the latest weapons of mass destruction - horse drawn chariots - the early version of the tank. That is often the way of God. He will ask you to do something that seems impossible.

That is why, secondly, Joshua needed not only faith, but obedience. Look at verse 2 again - he has "to get ready". That, too, is often the way. The objective God sets before you seems impossible. But what he asks from you is really quite possible. He just asks for the next step. It was quite possible for Joshua to pack the stuff up and get ready as though it was easy to cross over.

I believe that is a lesson we need to re-learn at this church. I have written about future plans in the Coloured Supplement. We have to get ready for our new future. The obedience God calls for is always possible with his strength. First it seems impossible, then it's difficult and then it's done!

And, thirdly, note that God encourages his people with great promises. Joshua had promises of victory. Supremely he had that promise every Christian can have when they are being obedient to God - the promise in the JPC verse for the year and that you have here in verse 5. Look at verse 5:

No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you.

Do you believe that - that God, by his Holy Spirit, is with you always? That was the promise of Jesus in Matthew 28.20 after his Great Commission:

[go and make disciples of all nations] ... And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.

So along with Joshua, you and I as we face this year and the future, need faith, obedience and to rely on God's promise of his presence - "I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you." But, then, ...

Secondly, there was THE NEED FOR NEW COURAGE

Joshua, when he was younger, had shown great courage. He was one of the 12 spies sent into Canaan to report back on the condition of the country. You read about that in Numbers 13 and 14. Ten of the spies said, "Yes, it was a wonderful country; but, No, we cannot take possession of the land because (Numbers 13.28) ...

... the people who live there are powerful, and the cities are fortified and very large.

But two of the spies - Caleb and Joshua - were positive thinkers. They gave a minority report. Caleb said, "we can certainly do it." And Joshua said, Numbers 14.9:

... do not rebel against the LORD. And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will swallow them up. Their protection is gone, but the LORD is with us. Do not be afraid of them.

So at that time Joshua had told the people under him to be courageous. He had also reminded them of the great promise of the presence of God, as the grounds for courage, - "the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid." But now God himself has to tell Joshua the very same thing - and he tells him three times in verses 6,7 and 9 to make the point. Look at verse 9:

Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.

You see, promises by themselves are not enough. You need definite challenges to action and to trust the promises. For example, God is calling you to take a stand for him at work or to witness publicly to Christ somewhere else - and it is not easy. Yes, you believe that you have the Holy Spirit. You are "born again". You have the presence of God. You know he promises victory. But you still need encouragement and you need people to tell you that you need to stand up to be counted and fight for the truth. You need to be challenged to be firm. It will be difficult. The devil will try to stop you taking any action. But that is always the way. So you regularly need to be challenged to have new courage and to rely afresh on the presence and power of God.

Years ago I was working in the Sudan for the CMS. It was when the troubles were beginning. Muslims were pressuring and persecuting Christians as, sadly, they have been doing for forty years. It was a time when Christian hospitals and schools had been shut and missionaries expelled from the Christian South. That year I was at the Confirmation service in Khartoum Cathedral. Bishop Oliver Alison was preaching. He was a remarkable missionary bishop. And his text was - yes - Hebrews 13.5-6:

God has said, 'Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.' So we say with confidence, 'The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?

That was so powerful and so relevant for those Sudanese Christians. And it challenged them. Yes, you need to be reminded of God's presence, for that is the only ground of confidence. But then, like Joshua and those Sudanese people, you need to be "challenged" - to be courageous and act accordingly.

Finally, THE SECRET OF SUCCESS

Joshua was facing a new era. You may be facing a new era or new stage in your own personal life. The era or the challenge may be new, but the secret of success is old and will always be the same. You have it in the second part of verse 7 and in verse 8:

Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.

First, you need to obey all God's law, not some of it. You can't say, "I like some of God's commandments but not others." You can't say, "I want to uphold sexual morality" but go soft on "greed". Alternatively one church leader is now saying: "International debt has to be attacked as often immoral, but sex outside marriage can be acceptable". James' made things clear in his letter - chapter 2 verse 11:

If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a law-breaker.

So you need to obey in Godly Living, Church Growth and Changing Britain - or changing whatever your own country is. You need to obey both the Great Commandment and the great Commission. You need to keep all of God's law, not some of it.

Secondly, you need to keep God's balance. With the full revelation of God now available to us in the Bible, that means you are to be a BBC Christian - a biblically balanced Christian. Verse 7 of Joshua chapter 1 says:

do not turn from it to the right or to the left [that you may be successful].

But some people do just that. You get some people who stress the sovereign and predestining purposes of God but ignore the reality of human responsibility and human freedom. The Bible teaches both - so do not turn "to the right or to the left". Some people only stress present social responsibility and forget the future realities of heaven and hell. Others only stress heaven and hell and ignore Christian social responsibility. Some become legalistic and only stress God's law but neglect God's grace and the Cross of Christ; and they neglect the truth that "love covers over a multitude of sins" (1 Peter 4.8) - that is to say, issues of secondary importance. Others become antinomian - that means they seem to forget God's law altogether. And so you can go on. There are many areas in the Christian life where there is a right hand and a left hand. And if you go to one hand or the other you will be going out of God's way. As Jesus said, "narrow is the road that leads to life" (Matthew 7.14).

Thirdly, you need to read and meditate on God's word all the time. Verse 8 says:

meditate on it day and night.

And this was said to Joshua. Surely he had much too much to do to have time for meditating on God's word? God didn't think so. "Whatever affairs of this world we have to mind," said old Matthew Henry, "we must not neglect the one thing needful."

I must conclude. I do so with the following observation and the following question.

The observation is that we all fail. We don't obey all God's law as we should; we all have some imbalances; and we don't study God's word as we should. But the good news is that there is forgiveness through the Cross, if we confess and repent - that means change our minds.

And the question is this. Do you know the presence of God in your life? Have you trusted Christ as your Saviour and Lord? If not, by faith and by prayer you can do so this morning - and make this church's birthday your own spiritual birthday. If you have, you can and will experience the power of the Holy Spirit making Christ present to you wherever you go or whatever you do. And that is a wonderful fact and the source of real courage.