The Strand Study Bible

DEUTERONOMY DEUTERONOMY FATHER references Himself as a “father figure” ( as a man doth bear his son ) in order to describe His Person ( Deut 8:5 & 32:6 , Psa 68:5 & 103:13, Isa 9:6 & 63:16 & 64:8, Jere 31:9 and Mal 1:6 & 2:10). Although the Jews would certainly have understood the triune nature of God ( Gen 1:1c ), what they did not fully understand up to this point was the individual roles each Person within the Triune Godhead would take on. The role of the SECOND PERSON of the Triune Godhead would not be understood for another 400 years ( Psa 2:7,12 ). NOTE – The individual roles that each Person within the Triune Godhead would assume were not necessary to understand in order to be saved ( I Cor 15:1 ) . 1:38 Without a doubt, the greatest principle of leadership is learning to be “positive” ( encouraging - Exo 17:9 ). People who learn to take the negative in life and make it positive (because God is for us - Rom 8:31-39) are always in a position to do six things: 1. Lead others, instead of always being led (Deut 1:38) Because Joshua stayed positive and encouraging, even during difficult times (Num 14:1-9), he ended up leading ( he shall go in thither ), instead of being led. Learn to stay positive and God will teach you to lead even when you’re not the leader. Moses acknowledged God’s desire for everyone to learn to lead, instead of always being led, when he said to Joshua in Numbers 11:29, “ Enviest thou for my sake? Would God that all the LORD’s people were prophets (i.e., leaders) , and that the LORD would put his SPIRIT upon them! ” God’s great desire is for His people to learn to lead, instead of always being led. That way they are always guaranteed to be going in the right direction. Those in a position to lead are always out front, and thus able to see where they are headed. According to Matthew 4:19, God expects His people to know the direction in which they are headed. He wants people to work with Him, not for Him (Eph 2:10). Those who learn to take the negative in life and make it positive are always in a position to know where they are headed. They are never blindly led. You don’t have to be the leader to lead others, however, in order to lead others you have to first learn to be encouraging. 2. Help others live for God, instead of always having to be helped (Deut 3:28) Sooner or later everybody gets tired of babysitting; including God (Num 14:20-23 and I Cor 9:27). Because Joshua stayed positive and encouraging, he ended up helping others live for God ( and he shall cause them to inherit the land ), instead of others always having to help him. God’s great desire is for His people to learn to grow up and live for others, not remain immature and live for themselves. According to Acts 20:35, God expects His people to learn to give instead of always receiving. 3. Provide others with the right kind of example to follow (Deut 31:7) Unfortunately, people are always going to follow someone or something –be it good (I Cor 11:1) or be it bad (Exo 23:2). Real leadership offers people something “good and positive” to follow (II Thess 3:7-9). Real leadership is not an office or a position. It has nothing to do with controlling others and everything to do with controlling self. Because Joshua stayed positive and encouraging, he offered the people ( in the sight of all Israel ) something “good and right” to follow. Show people that you love God and that you trust Him in everything (Rom 8:28) and you will always provide them with the right kind of example to follow. Those who learn to take the negative in life and make it positive are always in a position to be the right kind of example to follow. 4. Draw closer to God (Deut 31:23) According to James 2:1, God is not a respector of persons. He has no favorites. And although He may choose a certain individual to serve His sovereign purpose –be he saved (Gen 25:19-23) or unsaved (Isa 44:28-45:1-4), anyone can be as close to God as anyone else. James 4:8 says, “ Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you .” Because Joshua stayed positive and encouraging, he was promised “closeness” with God ( and I will be with thee ). God’s great desire has always been for His people to draw closer to Him on an individual and personal level (Exo 19:9). Those who learn to take the negative in life and make it positive are always in a position to know God better. 5. Gain strength spiritually (Josh 1:6-7) Christians cannot fight spiritual wickedness without spiritual strength. According to Ephesians 6:10-18, our strength (to stand for God) comes not from the truth that we possess, but from the truth that possesses us ( Eph 6:14 ). Truth possessed is truth obeyed (Josh 1:8 and Psa 1:1-3). All six parts of the armor of God (i.e., loins, breastplate, feet, shield, helmet and sword) deal with our reaction to the Word of God. Because Joshua stayed positive and encouraging (i.e., because Joshua trusted God enough to obey Him), he was given the spiritual strength needed to serve God all his life ( that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law ). God’s great desire for His people is not to carry the truth, but to let the truth carry them. Those who learn to take the negative in life and make it positive (trust God enough to obey Him) are always in a position to finish what they started for God (Josh 24:14-15). 6. Become spiritually prosperous (Josh 1:7-8) The prosperity of God is richer than that of becoming rich financially (Psa 49:16-20) or rich physically ( III Jn 1: 1- 2a,b ). The health of the soul is exceedingly more important than the health of the body and/or the wealth of the man (Prov 15:17 & 17:1 and Eccl 4:13). According to God, you can succeed at personal success and yet still not succeed. The prosperity of God is when “others” succeed spiritually, not when you succeed personally ( Josh 1:8b ). Because Joshua stayed positive and encouraging, he ended up becoming prosperous for God (Josh 24:31). Those who learn to take the negative in life and make it positive so others can succeed spiritually are always in a position to become spiritually prosperous. NOTE – God has given us five ways to stay “encouraged” biblically: (1) Remember God’s promises to us (I Sam 30:1-6 & 16:1-13 and Lk 24:13-32); (2) Remember our salvation (Jere 2:1-6); (3) Remember to invest in God’s work (II Chro 31:1-4 and Mt 6:19-21); (4) Remember to listen to Godly music (I Sam 16:14-23); and (5) Remember to live by faith (Neh 8:1,10,14-17) 351