We welcome you to the Via Zion Sermon podcast.
We are a church based out of Chennai, India.
We are thrilled that you're tuned in today and hope that you
will be refreshed, revived, and energized by what you hear.
Our desire is that you will live life with a renewed sense of
purpose that stems from a vibrant faith in Jesus.
The year 2025 is 1 where we will be positioned by God to possess
our promise. We are believing that God is
bringing us into our place of promise.
It is now time to take the land and to do so we need to get our
spiritual posture in place and stop looking back so that we can
face forward with courage and faith.
Let's get going and possess our promise.
Hi, church. It's such a joy and a privilege.
We bring God's worth to you today.
And even as we get into the second part of the series, we
are looking at this new series that we started last week called
Taking the Land. It's from the book of Joshua.
I know as we have titled it as Taking the Land.
Even as you've probably watched the sermon bumper.
And for those of you who are watching and listening, if
you've heard the last week's sermon, it might seem daunting.
You might be like, you know what?
Am I ready or am I qualified or am I in a place today to take
the promises God has for me? And even as we meditate from the
book of Joshua, we can either look at it from a point of these
are only meant for leaders. I'm just a follower.
No, but in Christ, when Christ is living within us, all of us
are called to lead ourselves. No longer are we looking at one
person. The very person who walked on
this earth, who led himself as an example, is Jesus.
We follow him. And so today, all of us are
leaders. All of us have influence.
All of us have the capacity to make this decision to go and
take the land today. What does taking the land look
for both you and me? You know, for a lot of us, our
experiences could be 1, which we've probably read in history
books. Or probably for some of us, it
could be, you know, totally muddled up looking at the news
and what countries are doing and waging wars against.
But today, as we look into this, God's asking us, there's
territory and promises that I've called and given to you.
You need to go and take it. You know, the promise is ours,
Yes, in Jesus Christ it's yes and Amen.
But as we do this Christian life, many times the enemy is
occupied these places and he wants us to take these lands so
that we'll be able to fulfill the call of God on our lives.
A lot of us are thinking, you know what, in the midst of all
this, I think I just have to live a life like this where I'm
not able to see the promise. No, you need to rise up.
That's what we saw last week. The ABC's of what Joshua did.
The first thing he did is he was called to arise after Moses time
he was called to arise and today you and me in Christ when we
received a salvation, we are called to arise.
The second thing, what you asked and we saw from Joshua chapter 1
is to be bold and courageous. You and I can't be bold today
because many a times you feel we have been closed in by the
enemy, we've been shamed, we've been plagued by the nature of
the sinful heart that we carry. But God saying I have redeemed
you, I've set you free. Now be bold and walk in the
boldness that we get from Christ's identity and not our
identity. And the beautiful thing about
following Jesus is that we get to walk because he is walking
with us. You and I aren't alone.
We are walking because he's walking alongside with us.
And the third thing we were saw with AB and CC being we chew on
God's word, If we have to last this time of taking the land.
If we have to go and take the land and occupy and be in it and
hold on to it and see God's fulfillment not just for our
generation, but for the generations to come so that God
will be glorified. As we keep chewing on God's
Word, we bring it back into meditation.
We think of it, We will go through trials, we will go
through temptations, we will go through sin knocking at our
door, but we will have the word of God on our lips and on our
hearts, and we'll be able to call onto God because I believe
His Word is alive. His Word is for everyone.
His Word is for every season, His Word is for every place.
And as we live in that understanding, we'll be able to
see the miraculous thing when we speak out His Word, what it will
do, and even as we continue on to the second part, I just
wanted to quickly go through chapters 2-3 and four because I
feel that that's a prelude to what 5 is.
A lot of times we can jump into 5, but I feel 234, the key
themes that happened in chapters 2-3 and four are a passage for
meditation. Today is from chapter 5 and we
see that many a times as we believe in this ABC.
We feel still stuck. We feel still stuck here We are
clearly heading in the direction of the promised land.
But there's something that's still causing me to doubt.
And I believe everyone of us have that doubt in our lives.
We all carry that kind of doubt. We have doubt over our own
selves. Will you be able to take the
step forward? But Jesus, like I want to see
things happen in and through me. God wants to see things happen
through me, through Geshom, who is his follower, through Tina,
who's my wife, his through her, his follower.
He wants to see us all walk in that when we clearly see Jesus
pattern of journey with these 12, you know, he clearly wanted
all the 12 to take God's word across the entire world.
He trusted them, he invested in them.
That's who he spent the most time with.
And one of the things that we see is because we've been under
leaders and under people. And probably some of us, our
parents were, you know, the ones who drew us closer to faith, who
believed and saw miracles, or probably we had spiritual
leaders or we had friends. And many times we think we love
being in the midst of the miracle, But many times God is
like, no, I want to start doing the miracle in front of you,
through you. And that's where we will see God
come through. And I feel that's the strongest
place we are stuck at a lot of times our, our capacity is that
we are comfortable to follow others and back others and do
things around others. But God saying now the season is
coming where you have to possess the land for your sake, for your
generation sake, for your name, for you to hold on to say this
is what the Lord's done for me. And so even as we meditate on
chapters Joshua chapter 5, today in chapter 2 and chapter 3 and
chapter 4, we see first Joshua, being a military man all along,
sends 2 spies into Jericho. He's going sending spies to go
see the land. What is it that they are
against? And as he's sending them, it's
interesting this particular verse that Rahab, who's the
prostitute who's housed on the city walls, who houses them,
says this interesting verse. And I wanted to read that to you
because many a times everything that we are called to do in
taking this land is not about us.
It's all about God. So let's read from Joshua
chapter 2, verses 8 to 13. It says before the spies laid
down for the night, she went up on the roof and said to them, I
know that the Lord has given you this land and that a great fear
of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are
melting in fear because of you. We have heard how the Lord dried
up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt
and what you did to see on and all the 2 kings of the Amorites
east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed.
When we heard of it, our hearts melted in fear and everyone's
courage failed because of you. For the Lord your God is God in
heaven above and on the earth below.
Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that you will show
kindness to my family, because I have kindness to you.
Give me a sure sign that you will spare the lives of my
father and mother, my brothers and sisters and all who belong
to them, and that you will save us from death.
The preload of this is as the spies have gone in, word goes
around that spies have entered the land.
They take refuge in Rehab's house.
And as Rehab is, as they're lying down that night so that
they can leave the next day, so that they're not spotted, Rehab
tells them this. And I've underlined the key
words. It doesn't talk about Moses.
It doesn't talk about Joshua. If there's anything that people
will testify as there's someone who's greater, there's a God
above who's greater above you, who's enabling you to do this.
And that is the testimony about following Jesus.
It's never about ourselves. It's never about ourselves.
You know, John the Baptist says may he increase and I decrease.
You know, at the end of the day, when Paul says it at the end, if
Jesus is priest is more than enough, who am I Paul Apollos.
We are all these people who are doing part of the work God's
called us to do. And so today as we read all of
this, we are remind that only God gets the glory.
Joshua too is a reminder that God will be heard and seen and
will cause hearts to melt even before they encounter the
people. Just imagine this.
They have heard what happened in the Red Sea that was 40 years
back. They have heard what's happened
to these two kings that was probably around 1520 years back.
It's the God who is spoken of his name will last.
The works that he has done only he can do it will last.
And I love how she concludes that statement by saying
everyone's courage failed because of you.
For the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on earth below.
And so today I'm even as we are called to take this land, even
before we go into Joshua 5. This is not about us, it's all
about God. The miracle that God wants to
give you in the promised land is not about you, it's about God.
So when we get into the promised Land, we have nothing but to
lift our hands and say and surrender.
Lord, it's all about you. It is all about you.
I'm sorry for the things that I made it, but it's all about you
today. What is it that is holding you
back? So I believe the first thing
that we have to keep in mind in taking the land is all about
obedience of the Israelites at that point was to bring glory to
God. And that was what was spoken of.
You know an interesting thing about when we, when it's all
about God's glory, no one can stand and take credit for God's
glory. No one can stand and take credit
for God's glory. And I pray and ask that if any
of us are actually standing after receiving a medical
miracle from God and saying God, this glory belongs to me, I pray
we would repent. I pray we would repent because
the glory belongs to God. In Isaiah chapter 42, verse 8,
I'm reading it from the passion. It says I am Yavi.
That is my name. I will not give my glory to
another God, nor my renown to idols.
I am Yahweh, that is my name. I will not give my glory to
another God, nor my renown to idols.
Why is this important? Because anything we give glory.
So at the end of the day, if I have to say Geshom, I've been
able to do this. All this.
No, this is all because of God's glory.
The position that I have, the wealth that I have, it's all
because of God's glory. There's nothing I can add to my
name. Even for those of us who are
older, in their 50s and 60s and 70s, who are thinking of leaving
legacy, it's all about God's glory.
Let us not take our eyes of God and set it on something that
we've made. That's what it talks about.
I will not give my glory to another God nor my renowned to
idols. Anything that's man made won't
get, can't come against God's glory in chapter 3.
In Joshua chapter 3, we see the entire nation is heading towards
Jordan River and we see God makes a statement there.
I love when God decides to exalt you and me.
We don't have to strive. You know how liberating it is.
You know, in, in for those of us who worked in the corporate
world, for those of us who've worked in places amongst other
people, whatever setting it is, be it in a Christian setting, be
it in a Christian organization, be it in a, in a parachurch
organization, be it in a corporate world, be it anywhere
in the world, you by human nature will always want to exalt
ourselves. You want to say this is what I'm
can do. This is what I have.
This is what my capacity is. This is what my skill set is.
But the beautiful thing is when we are about taking the land
God's promised us, you and I, we can be confident that God will
exalt us at the right time. Joshua 3 verse 7 says, and the
Lord said to Joshua, today I will begin to exalt you in the
eyes of all Israel so that they may know that I am with you as I
was with Moses. Joshua definitely had the doubt
of, you know, I'm filling too big issues.
Moses was called the most humblest man.
Moses was loved by his people. Moses was loved by God.
Moses carried God's glory. God, who am I?
But God saying no, I will lift you up, I will lift you up.
And I pray and ask that a lot of us are looking for validation
from people to be lifted up. Let God lift you up at the right
time. Let God lift you up.
May be the season we are all walking through as God is
testing us. Will he sustain it?
Will he be able to sustain? Will he be able to last?
Will he be able to stand if I lift him up?
Because if God lifts us up, it'll come from a place where we
rely entirely on God, rely entirely on God.
And this beautiful aspect that we can see here is we can either
be all in or we cannot be all in.
There's only all in with regard to obedience.
There's no partial obedience in Joshua chapter 3 verse 17.
When we read that, we'll see when God calls us, when we are
obedient, He lifts us up. Joshua 317 is when God gives the
strategy to Joshua to say take the ark, let it go across the
camp as they go to the Jordan River, let the river, let the
priest step right into the middle of the river.
And it's interesting, as they stepped on the waters, the water
started parting ways. Can you imagine?
When God comes, everything has to move.
When God comes, he clears the way.
When God comes, He is right at the centre.
And this passage is very pivotal for me specifically when we read
from Joshua 3, verse 17, the priest who carried the ark of
the covenant of the Lord stopped in the middle of the Jordan and
stood on dry ground while all Israel passed by until the whole
nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.
Eight years back when we were really in this place of God.
You're calling us to plant the church.
How do we go about it? And I and, and, and, and This is
why I say, you know, it's always better to have two people in
this journey than this one. And so me and my wife are on
this journey. And my wife also sensed in her
spirit, this is a timing that God's called us.
I sensed it, but I was having withdrawal symptoms.
Do we really? Can we try something else?
And this is the scripture that she spoke over me.
Marry a wife who'll speak scripture over you.
Marry someone who'll speak scripture over you.
Marry someone who'll speak God's life giving word over you.
Don't marry someone who'll pave the worldly way for you because
it won't last. Marry someone who'll speak.
And I remember in our bedroom we were having this full blown
conversation. In worldly terms, it's a fight,
but I was like struggling. It's a spiritual struggle
because I know this is the time, but my flesh is unwilling to
yield to it. My spirit is willing, but my
flesh is unwilling. She on the other hand, both the
spirit and physical body is ready to step into it.
And I remember she said, Geshom, you can't keep one leg on the
water, one leg on land. You're either all on land or
you're all on water. I honestly, I didn't need time
to pray, but I just said give me a day or two to pray because I
knew that wrestle was just on the physical level.
I said God, I need strength from above to make this decision.
God gave me the strength and together we started church 2018
in August and I believe some of us are in that same space where
we are like God. Why would I go to the centre of
the water? The centre of the water is where
you'll see God closest the most. The centre of the water is where
you'll see His miraculous provision.
The centre of the water is where you'll hear God closest.
The centre of the water is where you'll be in awe and in wonder
of what God's doing, of what God's doing.
In chapter 4 we see even after they've crossed the Jordan,
something interesting. Joshua asks each of the 12
leaders to take these stones, and this is what it says in
Joshua 4 verses 4 to 7. So Joshua called together the 12
men who had appointed from the Israelites, one from each tribe,
and sent to them. Go over before the ark of the
Lord your God into the middle of the Jordan.
Each of you is to take a stone on this shoulder according to
the number of the tribes of the Israelites, to serve as a sign
among you in the future. When your children ask you what
do, what do these stones mean? Tell them that the flow of the
Jordan was cut off before the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord.
When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut
off. These stones are to be a
memorial to the people of Israel forever.
What is Joshua asking his people?
As you cross the Jordan, you're taking the stones which are
right in the centre, which no one can actually see would no
one would actually know and take it and go.
Let's build a a place which will be known that God parted the
waters. Mind you, the time and they're
going to cross is when the current is the fiercest, the
most. So God is actually working right
when it is at its peak, the flows at its peak.
And as they take it that I believe God will use instances
in our lives where the miraculous has been seen to keep
it so that we'll be able to test for our future generations, test
for our future to to tell our testimony for our future
generations. This is what God did.
This is how God came through. And if he can come through then
he will come through now. If He did it then, he will do it
now. Can we lead our lives that are a
testimony to us today that the future generations have
something to fall back on? Many a times you are trying to
live my life, you're living my version of my life.
But can we, can I plead with you and ask you, can we live the
version God wants us to live so that we are a fall back for the
future generations to say if God did it for their generation, He
will do it today. Which means today we need to
make those decisions. Let's not build collapsible
kingdoms. Let's not build collapsible
structures which will just implode within us after a time.
Let's build pathways. Let's build highways where many
the future generations will use it for going forward and
propelling and taking the Kingdom.
God is destined for each and everyone.
Joshua 4 was 14 says that day the Lord exalted Joshua in the
sight of all Israel and they stood in awe of him for all the
days of his life, just as they had stood in awe of Moses.
It's interesting that when we look from the life of Joshua, he
didn't do anything to win over people.
And I want to come to that. I am.
I'm so confident of being in that place because I have come
to the placing. God, if you've called you at the
right time, lift our heads up. I'm not doing this for people.
Let not people be the one who lift you up because people who
lift you up will pull you down. Let it be God who lifts you up.
And I pray because when God lifts us up, he takes us to a
place to know that it's only the Lord's doing.
He's given it. So at the end of the day, when I
am standing in that place, I can only show both my hands to lift
other people up to say, come on up.
This is what happens when God lifts us up.
We start seeing things bigger. Even as I said, God is the one
who exalts us. I believe God is the one who
will also enable us to see what the need is and make room so
that others also can be exalted at the right time.
One of the things we see from Joshua's life is he set a clear
example of how to handle the miraculous and how to walk in
obedience. How to walk in obedience.
You know, he could have come from a place of witnessing.
So that because many a times we, I don't know about you guys, but
many a times I know pride creeps in for me because I've seen
certain things, because I've seen how things work.
I've seen how things are done. I kind of get this inward pride
where I think, you know, I can manage this on my own.
I won't need God. But looking at Joshua's life,
it's a good place to doubt what you are and whether you can
handle it because you're entirely relying on God.
Because you're entirely relying on God, you are able to obey and
ask God, God for what has to be done.
And so it's interesting that even as he's coming here, he
wants the future generations to know, yes, this happened in the
Red Sea. This happened again in Jordan.
But this is also a reminder that whoever fears God and does what
he says, he will do the miraculous.
He will do the miraculous and so even as we go to the second
part, the reason why I want to give you these the highlights
from the 2nd chapter 2, chapter 3 and chapter 4 is because many
a times we think because we've gone to chapter 2, chapter 3,
chapter 4, we've seen oh, you know what our name is heard even
40 years into it. People know who we as Israelites
are in chapter 3, even even though I don't feel adequate, I
know God's going to exalt me, but then God's asking me to go
into the Jordan and do this thing in that self doubt.
We see the miraculous. We in all of these things, God
has worked in US. We've seen God come through.
And so we have probably this lethargic thing of you know
what, it's OK. I think God can just do his
thing and I'll just be God saying no.
Today when you read from Joshua chapter 5, you're going to see
God prepares us internally so that we can take the external
promises and hold on to what God's called us to do.
So I've titled it as unlearning to move forward.
Many times the world talks to us about learning to move forward.
You learn this particular thing to move forward.
But when when we have God over us, we need to unlearn to move
forward because we unlearn the, the, the pride, the the, the
arrogance, the, the, the know it house the oh, he did it like
this. So he'll do ABCD like this.
No, we, we, the, the thought patterns, we unlearn so we can
move forward. God brings Joshua to a place
where he wants him to set the things right before moving
forward. God will want the same of us
today. God will also want us to
remember that everything that's happened till now is because of
God. And anything that's going to
happen again today, tomorrow, and the day after will be
because of God. So you and I can't take credit
you and I can only say this is the Lord's doing.
Unlearning has been a strong pillar in our journey.
I would say even in planting the church unlearning because many a
times we, we, we meet in different cohorts.
We meet people from across the cities and across the country.
As we learn, we come up thinking, you know, these things
might work, but God's like the if your confidence is on that,
it won't work. And God, we have go back and
say, God, we're sorry, how do we do this?
And the the more we've been learning this unlearning aspect,
we've realized when we unlearn, he strengthens us.
When we unlearned, he journeys with us.
You know, even before we planted the church in 2018, 2 1/2 years
before that, we were going for all these once in three months
intensives and all that. I remember every time me and
Tina were driving on this highway from Chennai to
Bangalore to go and spend the three, three days there for that
training. We will go with so much of
questions. How will we do this?
How is this God? What is God asking us?
Is this the right direction? And there was this thing of
going. And in those three days, a lot
of unlearning will happen. We'll come back with
gratefulness because we knew God answered that, which means we
had to come to a place to take God and ready to unlearn.
And so today, if you and I are wanting to take steps forward,
we will have to let go of the past.
You might be like, you know what?
The past defined me. The past gave me a stage.
The past gave me a platform. The past gave me an identity.
But God saying, no, the past did not give you that.
I gave you that. Look to me today because I can
still work with you. I can still work through you.
You know, one of the things of unlearning is it's cognitively
very hard. You know, as a musician, when we
are learning certain songs, when I'm not listened to the original
right, I've unlearned, I've learned it wrong.
It takes extra effort. It takes extra, you know, time,
it consumes extra time for me to unlearn that.
You know, the problem happens is when I'm playing by myself, I
think I'm playing it right. But then when I start playing
with a band, I realize I'm not playing it right.
And so I listen to the song and I have to unlearn and I have to
consciously be aware that I shouldn't make that mistake.
And there's this, there's this lot of these unlearning process.
And so today what we are learning from our Mondays to
Saturdays will dictate how we you got on our Sundays.
A lot of us are not even and reading.
The gods are reading God's word from a Monday to a Saturday and
we're trying to understand God on a Sunday.
You won't be able to do that. A lot of us have not held on to
the promises from a Monday to a Saturday and are trying to hold
on to a God's promise on a Sunday.
It will fail and I pray and ask this unlearning happens within.
A lot of us have to unlearn some of the patterns our parents have
taught about Christ and His Word.
A lot of us have to remove the scales and the glasses of what
the future people are predicting of what it's going to happen.
God's like, trust in me. A lot of us have been waiting in
September for God, Jesus to return only to find out that
Jesus didn't come. Jesus has said that He will
come. We won't even know He will come
like a thief in the night. Today, you and I, I'll be
prepared. I'll be preparing every day.
Oh, I'll be just preparing that one day.
I have to constantly listen to the right song, to the right way
of how I can do it. I have to practice it slowly and
correctly so that it commits to memory, so that whatever I've
learned wrong doesn't go into my muscle memory, so that I'm not
making that same mistake. I'm keep doing it till I learn
the new one of the things even as I was just for the fun of it.
I just typed into the ChatGPT and I was asking why is it hard
to unlearn? And these are two things it gave
it gave. There's brain resistance
neurosciences where brain depotentates old neural patterns
and prioritizes new ones instead of erasing old connection.
So what happens is your brain just causes it to sit on top of
it, but the old one is still there.
And that's why in this faith journey, we constantly have to
be unlearning. A lot of us are trying to
resolve the anxieties of our heart by just placing a post of
it or by placing someone else's version of overcoming anxiety.
God's like, I want to deal with it, take my word and leave on
it. Unlearn the patterns, unlearn
the patterns. Ask God, what is it that I need
to do to be an overcomer? It involves letting go.
And so even as I was going through this, I realized Joshua
was in this pivotal place where God was so kind to him to say,
I'm going to work with you, unlearn certain things so that
from here you are a changed person.
You know, in our Wednesday Bible study last week, as you were
studying, the speaker was talking about this.
He says man's natural gravitational pull.
What is our natural gravitational pull?
When I throw something up because of gravity, it will come
down. Man's natural gravitational pull
is more towards preservation, selfishness and passivity.
And so today our natural order is 1 like that because of sin in
this world, because of incompleteness in this world.
And so God's like I am wanting to change the spiritual order
within. So which means I need to
unlearn. I need to unlearn today.
I can tell it to you that a lot of us are thinking Jesus and the
church is out of convenience. No, it is out of necessity.
Every Friday we record these sermons on a Friday for you to
listen and to hear and to watch. And every Friday we meet here as
a church to pray. It is out of a necessity we are
meeting here. Necessity, Why?
For God to do something. Necessity.
Why? Because for we want God to move.
Necessity. Why?
Because you want revival to keep burning a flame.
Necessity. Why we want generations change.
Necessity. Why?
Because we want the strongholds to be pulled down and I pray and
ask that we will not give in to the natural gravitational pull,
but rather we would give in to the natural spiritual pull that
happens in our lives. I believe God is wanting to
unearth so many things in our life.
We can have coping mechanisms, but do we have God mechanisms on
our lives to get things right? Do we have God mechanisms in our
right? Today you have a coping
mechanism to handle the minute the slightest irritation of your
throat happens. But today, are you able to
handle the slightest demarcation of sin that comes across in your
body where you're able to see God?
This is God. This area in my life needs you
overhauling for far too long. I just plastered it.
Would you come dig it deep? Show me what has to be done?
What is this pattern that I can break?
Should I bring an accountability partner in?
Should I be more accountable to my spouse about this particular
sin pattern that I want to indulge in?
Bring it to God and He'll help you.
There are two things which I wanted to quickly address from
Joshua chapter 5. The first thing that we see,
what God asks Joshua to do, and I believe in this day and age is
our circumcision of our hearts for God.
He wanted to reestablish the people who are going to occupy
the land because there was a covenant that was spoken early
on to Abraham and God wanted to establish that.
Again, saying that what I promised Abraham, we'll stick to
it. And by then if you notice the
culture of the land was every male was being circumcised into
adulthood, be it a cross, you know, with Ishmael coming in,
that became like the following of that particular land and
every culture in so context when you look being circumcised was
for male to enter into adulthood.
But the very thing that God asked Abraham to do was to make
sure that the covenant in law is the fact that he is God and we
are his people, that He is the one who is to be followed,
obeyed and trusted. And so when you read in Joshua
chapter 5 verses 2-3, this is what it says.
At that time the Lord said to Joshua make Flint names and
circumcise the Israelites again. So Joshua made Flint knives and
circumcised the Israelites at Gibeah Harlot.
As we continue on verses 4, it goes on to say now This is why
he did so. All those who came out of Egypt,
all the men of military age, died in the wilderness on the
way after leaving Egypt. All the people that came out had
been circumcised, but all the people born in the wilderness
during the journey from Egypt had not.
The Israelites had moved about in the wilderness 40 years until
all the men who are of military age, when they left Egypt, had
died, since they had not obeyed the law.
For the Lord had sworn to them that they would not see the
land. He had solemnly promised their
ancestors to give us a land flowing with milk and honey.
So he raised up his sons in their place, and these were the
ones Joshua circumcised. They were still uncircumcised
because they had not been circumcised on the way.
And after the whole nation had been circumcised, they remained
where they were in the camp until they were healed.
You know, as I was meditating on this, God was telling me, I'm
going to circumcise the hearts of our men, of our women, of the
church today so that they will be mine.
It's interesting when Joshua was talking about this, the men were
their fathers, were all men who were circumcised.
They knew what the covenant law was.
They knew what the promise of God was over their life, that
they will go into their promised land which will be flowing with
milk and honey. But it's interesting because of
their disobedience, because of their grumbling, because of them
bowing before idols, because of them probably knowing that their
generation won't see the promise they had given up on bringing
their children up. And today, this is a word I want
to speak to many who are listening, who are waiting to
just give up on faith because it didn't work for them.
Parents, faith will only work when you allow God to work his
way through you. A lot of us are wanting it to
happen on our terms. And faith doesn't happen.
Even as we started the series, many came and said, you know
what? I think we are in a time of
possessing. But the truth is, the possessing
will look like the mundane. The possessing will look just
like any other day. The possessing will look like
another day where the sun rises and you will feel the same.
It's what's happening internally that causes you to change.
The mental and the spiritual script changes internally
because you no longer are circumcised.
You no longer are having your heart aligned to yourself.
Rather it's being shaped and cut to be aligned to God.
It's no longer being going to receive direction from your own
inner man which is full of sin, which is which is has got its
own gravitational pull towards preservation and thinking
selfishly about themselves, but it's going to be looking towards
God. God, what is it that you're
calling me to step into? What is it you're calling me to
do today? What is it you want me to rise
about today? This apathy that the generation
showed in the wilderness was because you can see selfishness
reeking all over. And I pray that we won't do
that. You know how many?
When I remember having this conversation with the pastor
leader who was at that time mentoring me, saying, guess what
do you want to do 10 years from now?
And I said I want to journey with friends of mine who are
giving up on faith, who are giving up on faith because they
have a family, who are giving up on faith because they feel like
things aren't working their way. They're giving up on faith
because they feel like they're on a shelf.
They're not useful anymore for the Kingdom.
They forgot that man doesn't dictate how God has to use them.
God sets them up to use how they have to be used in this Kingdom.
God is the one who sets them up. It's on man.
And so today, you and I, when we call to God and me, I love him
and we say, Lord, I'm ready to unlearn.
He will circumcise our hearts. He will circumcise our hearts.
He'll use Flint lives to shape it, to take out those posters
that are heavily ingrained and made it all about myself to say
God, I'm ready, I'm ready. What happens when we allow God
to circumcise our hearts, our heart idols, Whatever thing will
shape me, whatever will make me comfortable, whatever will cause
me to do things my way, whatever will enable me, that is where we
see it. A lot of us today are wanting to
see things and that is where the circumcision will happen within
our hearts. The second thing, the affections
of our hearts. Many a times the affections of
our hearts are more towards what will enable me to be me and
build me. But that is a lack of love and
God will change that in our lives.
God will change that inside out. The third thing we see is
unwholesome words will stop coming.
We'll stop speaking death into things.
We'll stop start speaking life. These things which are happening
inside will start changing suddenly.
We will learn to be quiet among people because you, like the
Lord, is not allowing me to speak.
The Lord wants me to observe. The Lord wants me to see.
It's not about being safe. But you start valuing your
words. You know, when God's cleansed
you inside, you don't want any unwholesome talk to start coming
out. So I pray and ask that we will
listen to what God's asking us to do.
We will step into those spaces. Philippians chapter 3, verse 3.
And the Passion says, for we have already experienced heart
circumcision and we worship God in the power and freedom of the
Holy Spirit, not in laws and religious duties.
We are those who boast in what Jesus Christ has done and not in
what we can accomplish in our own strength.
The circumcision of our hearts is 1.
Where we say, Lord, I'm aligned to what you are saying because
without this, the bed of what is built on if even if we take
land, it will all be about ourselves.
God wants to say no. God, what is it that you're
wanting me to do? You know some of the things
that's happened in the last couple of years.
I would say ever since we moved into this place is I've been
starting to ask God, what is it you want me to do for next year?
What is it you want me to do? What is it you're calling me to
do? Because at the end of the day,
we can put a lid and say enough, but till God says it's enough,
it's not enough. And so I'm asking God, God, what
is it you want us to do? What area you want to step us to
step into? God will give us the right
direction. God will give us the right
place. God will give us the right word.
You and I have to rise above you and I have to rise to a place of
seeing things happen. So I pray that as Joshua went
into that place, you might be like, but we witnessed the
miracles, we've seen everything. We know how this works.
We know how this you know, we know the we know the structural
way of how God will do. Don't be fooled.
Our ways are not similar or even close to what God's ways are.
God's ways are higher. Our ways are way different.
God has distinct ways of doing things in our life.
Maybe yield to him. The second thing we see is a
shame is rolled over. One of the things when we do in
this place is with with guilt and shame being something that
we carry, God is trying to say from no longer you're going to
carry the guilt of previous generations.
No longer you're going to carry the guilt of something, your
shame is rolled over. In fact, as we are talking, it's
in this place called Gilgal that God changes things.
Joshua chapter 5 verses 9 to 12 says, then the Lord said to
Joshua, today I've rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you.
So the place has been called Gilgal to this day.
On the evening of the 14th day of the month, while camped at
Gilgal, the plains of Jericho, the Israelites celebrated the
Passover. The day after the Passover, that
very day, they ate some of the produce of the land, unleavened
bread and roasted green. God wants to remove the reproach
of our past. I don't know what your Egypt
looks like. Your Egypt is one of the views.
Your Egypt is 1 of staleness where you've not seen growth.
Your Egypt can be one of death. Your Egypt can be one of you've
been a cheater. The Egypt can be one of where
you've been a liar. Egypt can be 1 where you've been
untrustworthy. God's saying once you've allowed
me to circumcise your hearts, once you've made me yours, once
I have access to it, I can turn your identity around no longer.
So Gilgal is where things are rolled over, shame is rolled
over. Shame of what?
They were all known as slaves of Egypt, but now they're known as
a nation of God's people. Just imagine for 40 years they
really were identifying by their past.
We had better things in Egypt. We were, we had greater things
going there. Why did you bring us to here?
We had a roof over our head. We didn't have to move around.
Their comparison was always Egypt.
But today, as they're standing in the borders of their promised
land, God is saying, I am turning the shame around.
Your identity is no longer that, but your identity is going to
God of Israel, God, God who's created the heavens and earth
for us today. The identity is God of Israel,
who is Jesus Christ. We have a name who's walked
before us and today are you willing for him to roll over
that stone in our life that identity we've we've blasted
over ourselves God saying I want to turn it around to say 1 of
redeemed restored my child, my son, you are mine beloved.
And so today you can love God to do that.
You know one of the things when God allows shame to roll is that
he gives us honor. He gives us honor.
You suddenly are going to take a land.
He gives you possession of it. You suddenly are owning it.
This what does that look like? You are owners of certain
things. You are overcomers.
He places honor over us, identities that were known for
generation changes, territory to be given over to us, happens
only when we allow God to change our identity even before he
gives it to us. He changes our identity and says
that is yours, that is yours. And so today when we trade our
shame to Jesus, he turns it around.
What happened, Gilgal was two things.
He established the covenant again between man and God.
He established and he said you no longer are anyone else
separate. You are mine.
You are my children. You have for far too long looked
to Egypt and to things of what man can create.
No, but you are mine. And we also see it's the same
place where they have the Passover.
And today you and I get to have the Passover because Jesus died
on the cross once and for all. We don't have to sacrifice a
lamb again because the perfect lamb was sacrificed on the cross
for you and me. So today with all this, you and
I can participate in the same thing.
He's like, I can turn it over. So when we look at that Gilgal
moment, it's the cross for us where he's turning it, where
he's turning it for both you and me.
One Corinthians chapter 5 verses 6 to 8 goes on to say boasting
over your tolerance of sin is inappropriate.
Don't you understand that even a small compromise with sin
permeates the entire fellowship, just as a little leaven
permeates a batch of dough? So remove every trace of your
leaven of compromise with sin so that you might become new and
pure again. For indeed you are clean,
because Christ, our Passover lamp, has been sacrificed for
us. So now we can celebrate our
continual feast, not with the old leaven, the east of
wickedness or bitterness, but we will feast on the freshly baked
bread of innocence and holiness. Innocence and holiness.
Today, if you're wanting the Holy Spirit to work in and
through us, we need to be innocent of evil and we need to
be willing to abide and stay in holiness.
A lot of us today are struggling with being innocent in with God.
We want to be innocent among people who have influence so
that we favor and carry their influence.
But God saying, be innocent with me.
I will work things out and we see holiness.
God saying, would you make this a place where you'll decide
because I can have constant communion with you.
So today, what is our Gilgal experience when we encounter
Jesus? When we encounter Jesus, it is
one of innocence. It's one of holiness.
No longer are we aware of patterns of sin.
We late and say, Lord, you've washed it away once and for all.
Now I want to be with you. Teach me what to do.
Help me overcome our worldly wisdom and our street smartness
won't go, but God saying if you have the innocence of Christ, we
leave more room for God to work because this is a sign of our
hearts being circumcised. The holiness that God's asking
with innocence and holiness is where we ask God to dwell.
May our hands be right and our hearts be pure, Pure for God's
glory to dwell. God won't share His glory, but
He will dwell in us, which requires us to have our hands
ready to be right, do what God wants and our hearts to be pure.
Can it be that God wants to work on these two areas before we
start conquering, even before we start seeing the different
chapters of Joshua, God will want to set right this area for
us because all glory goes to God.
We are taking every step out of obedience to Him.
It's interesting as they were ending that part with the
Passover. There's a couple of things which
I wanted to read from that. There was a miraculous thing
that happened, and I believe a lot of us today are struggling
in this area where we want the miraculous, but God's like the
miraculous is going to happen because your hands are blessed.
If we allow these first two things to happen, we'll be able
to experience the shift that happens.
Joshua 5 versus 11 to 12 the day after the Passover.
That very day they ate some of the produce of the land,
unleavened bread and roasted grain.
The mana stopped the day after they ate this food from the
land. There was no longer any mana for
the Israelites, but that year they ate the produce of Canaan.
When God changes the identity, he also changes the very way he
gives his children. No longer is God feeding.
He's saying eat of the land. He's telling them as owners, you
can eat of this kind. This land is yours.
Make taking territory is hard work.
When God gives mana, you know it's easy.
You know it's easy for us to pray the prayer of manna.
But I believe God with Jesus coming in, he's saying I'm
reciting in you. Jesus is in us.
He's given us the Holy Spirit this day and age, which means he
will enable us to do things when we have to take territory.
We will have to give off time. We'll have to carve off time.
We'll have to carve off intentionality to be there to
press on to see it happen. To enjoy the produce of the land
requires the work of our hands. If you want to see barren wombs
turned, you will have to go back and ask God.
God, give me this miracle. I need it.
Generations are to be born. If God wants you to rise about
debt, you need to ask the Holy Spirit.
God give me a deep heart of contentment so I know how to
handle money so I won't be in debt anymore.
No point asking for mana to come so that your debt will be
cleared because if that comes, you still will be swimming in
your own evil desires. God is saying many of you have
to change this perspective of living in this tension of the
mana and doing the work that's called God will provide.
The beautiful lesson that Joshua learnt is God will provide, but
when God gives a land to provide, God's not going to be
giving him manna. He wants me to do the toil that
God is asked. A lot of us are struggling to
walk in this journey of doing what God's called us to ask.
That's why I said this. Taking the land will look like
your everyday. It looked like your everyday.
It looked like being right to your boss everyday.
It looked like showing up to office every time correctly on
time. It looked to being sending your
deliverables as freelancers sending your deliverables on
time. It looked like doing the things
mundane everyday. But in that is where we will
start enjoying the promised land.
Milk and honey is not for us to sit on a beach at and enjoy the
waves. Milk and honey is where we are
relying on God. We are communing with Him.
Even as Pastor Vasu talked to us.
We are enjoying the delight that God has over us and who He has
created us to be. The beauty of God's Spirit is at
work that as Joshua was taking these steps, you and I can take
this and experience God. So I pray today that as we take
this land, it will require us to be people of hard work.
For those of you who prayed for a job, for those of you who are
seeking that spouse, you might think, oh, the spouse will just
drop in from heaven. No, it'll require you to also
constantly. That's why for those of you who
are wanting to get married, I pray you'll circumcise your
hearts with what God's asking you because a lot of it has your
own desires. God saying no when I want to
bring a godly spouse to you, let me carve out things so that you
know what a godly spouse is. Be willing to allow God to work
in and through. A lot of us have to allow God to
change our identities before we get into it because we think our
spouse is our savior. No, your spouse is not your
savior. Jesus is your savior.
A lot of you have given so much importance to all the emotional
feelings that you felt. Only Jesus cares for that.
Jesus can only handle all of that.
Take it to Jesus so that he'll make sure you'll be in the
identity he is created to be. He's not called you to be in an
emotional balloon. He's called you to be in the
identity God's called you to be. Feel the things, but feel it
with Jesus so that you'll be able to walk as people who are
here on earth who are ready to take the land.
You're ready to take the land. You're not walking discouraged.
You're not walking disabled. You're not walking confused.
You're not walking like you're betrayed.
You're not walking like someone has let go of you.
You're walking in confidence. You're walking in strength.
You're walking in a surety. You're walking knowing that God
is walking with you. Mana is God's provision.
Taking the land is where we see faith within being exhibited,
where God is calling us to take that step.
And I pray As for some of us, it could be hard, but this is where
God's asking us, will you be able to trust God with this?
This taking the land is a season shift, is a provision shift.
A lot of us suddenly will see things work differently now,
wanting to work that way in and through us.
So I pray even your financial systems will change, your
emotional support systems will change, things around will start
changing, but keep and be alert to what God is doing.
I pray you'll be so close to him.
As I said, innocence and holiness will be the key pillars
for you to experience the power so that you'll be able to take
the land that God's called you to take today.
So even as we pray and close, I just want to ask you, as we
unlearn to move forward, will you allow God to walk in and
through you that the circumcision of our hearts will
happen so that God will be front and centre of everything.
Shame is rolled over and God wants you to walk in honour
knowing that he is with you. Can we pray and ask God?
Lord, I just thank you Lord for this time.
Thank you for all those who joined online, who are watching
and who are listening to it. And I just pray even right now,
Lord, as they listen to the ABC's last week, I prayed this
week, Lord, we would unlearn, Lord Jesus, to move forward,
unlearn things that we've built as our support systems, that you
will be our everything. Lord, as we sing that song, you
are my everything, You are my all, You are our everything.
And I pray that will be the focus through which we will see
things happen, the focus through which we'll see you come
through. Lord, would you be glorified?
Would you be honoured? Lord Jesus?
I pray even right now, Lord, people will start walking in the
into the promised landlord, not half equipped, but fully
equipped. I pray their hearts will be
circumcised to see you more than we see ourselves.
To see you more. I pray innocence and holiness
will be etched a lot. I pray even right now, Lord, for
those who for long have been dwelling, Lord Jesus, in these
situational things, circumstantial issues, that
Lord, you will roll that they'll have their Gilgal moment right
now, Lord, they will have the cross before them to say you've
traded it once for all. The Passover lamb has been
crucified and today you've traded it to give us freedom
that we will live in the freedom that you've called us to live.
Experience you so that when we possess our lands, Lord, our
generations will know. The God who did it will also do
it again. For that, Lord, go before us,
strengthen us, take charge. I pray especially, Lord, in the
season that you will be glorified, you will be honoured.
But I pray that, Lord, we will not give in to the lies of the
enemy. I pray we'll take encouragement
from the people who have been surrounded in US, Lord, in your
community, that we'll be able to lean into prayer, lean into
praise, lean into worship, lean into Thanksgiving moments.
Lord Jesus, we will, Lord, abide in your word and find
nourishment and rest. Our hearts will find rest in
you. Lord Jesus, be glorified.
I pray you will give us journey mercies.
Bless the work of our hands. Strengthen us Lord, your most
holy name we pray. Amen.
Thank you for joining us online
and I pray that even as you step into this week that you will
unlearn to move forward. I believe God has honour for you
and as you take these lands, he wants to set you up so that you
will be a lighthouse for him in this world, so that many others
who are following generations are coming behind.
You will know that our God is alive.
Our God is in the is in the business of overcoming and
giving things to us because we trust him wholeheartedly.
I pray even as you step into this week, you will step in with
boldness knowing that God is with you.
God is there to walk with you as he did with Joshua.
Every step of the way, in close communion, you'll be able to
find him, hear from him, and do what he's asking you to do.
And remember this, that whoever finds Jesus finds life.
God bless you all. Thanks for listening to this
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Remember, whoever finds Jesus finds life.