INTRO
„o I've watched death scenes on TV
„o I've listened to dying words
„o I have to admit I've wondered what my final words would be
„X "Oops"
„X "Does this go any faster"
„o I am sure final words have include such phrases as:
„X Are you sure the power's off
„X I can make this light before it changes
„X I wonder where the mother bear is
„X Are these the good kind of mushrooms
„X I built it myself
„o Last words tell as a lot about a person
* Sir Winston Churchill
o Famous for never, never, never giving up
o Died January 24, 1965 with the last words
o "I am bored with it all"
* George Washington
o "Tis Well"
* General Douglas MacArthur
o "Old soldiers never die, they just fade away"
* Jesus
o "It is finished"
„o If today were my last days with you I would say:
* Best days are yet ahead
* You're the head / not the tail
„o I can't imagine what I would say
„o But I know what Moses said to his church
„o 40 years of leadership
* They are ready for their Canaan
EXPLAIN: the journey
„o The Jericho will be a detour
Joshua 6:1 (read)
„o In Moses' final words
* He will prepare them for their NOW moment
„o Deuteronomy 29:1
Moses = THEN
Joshua = NOW
1. Moses Reminds Them to Remember God's Power
Deuteronomy 29:2-4
* Moses knows there are some
„X Detours
„X Strongholds
„X THEN moments
* He knows his people very well
* How they can forget from one Sunday to the next how good God is
*
* He reminds them
o That with their eyes they saw great wonders
o Plagues
„X Blood
„X Frogs
„X Gnats
„X Flies
„X Hail
„X Boils
„X Locust
„X Darkness
„X Death
* They saw the power of God demonstrated...
o When mighty Egypt was brought to her knees
* They watched the power of God
o Open the Red Sea
o Swallow Pharaoh
* Moses is a seasoned veteran
o And knows that there will always be:
„X Battles
„X Detours
„X THENS
* He knows there is always a devil
* Standing in the way of your next level
* He knows there will always be:
„X A Jordon
„X A Jericho
„X A Giant
* And if they don't remember God's power they will give up
* They were on the brink
* Don't stop now
* Jericho represents a stronghold
* A stronghold is a wrong mindset fueled by hopelessness that causes us to accept things as unchangeable.
* That is keeping them from their destiny
* Many here today...
...have one stronghold that keeps you out of your blessing
* The enemy now has an upper hand because this one stronghold
„X Mouth
„X Anger
„X Victim mindset
„X Need for people to approve you
„X Bitter
„X Don't trust leadership
* You're THEN is creating a stronghold against your NOW
EXAMPLE: Have a volunteer
Grab them and don't let them advance
* One stronghold limits your advancement
* You can't get loose without God's power
2. Moses Reminds Them to Remember God's Provision
Deuteronomy 29:5-8
o 40 years God took care of them
o Your clothes didn't wear out
o Your sandals didn't wear out
* I turned bitter waters sweet
* I rained manna from heaven
* Ruth -- handful on purpose
* Boy -- bag lunch
* Water -- from a rock
* A drink for Samson
* They weren't sustained by planted crops
* Not their own doing
* But by the hand of God
* It's a land of plenty
* Land that flows
Egypt = limited
Canaan = flowing
* There is a flow of blessing waiting...
...for those who will break through the stronghold
* Usually the stronghold that keeps us from abundant provision is:
„X Lack of giving
„X Stingy
„X Selfish
„X Greed
„X Fear
* Note the provision in-between the lines
Joshua 1:2
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.
Moses = the Law
Joshua = a type of Christ
* The law could never provide or get you into the land of abundance
* The law can never inherit the promises of God
* But God so loved the world that he gave (provided) his only begotten son
* Now I can have the promises of life
„X And life more abundant
„X Canaan
„o Always a 'pro' for the vision
„o There is a ram in your thicket -- Abraham
„o There is rain for your drought -- Elijah
„o There is an earthquake for your prison -- Paul
„o There is a whale when you're thrown overboard -- Jonah
„o There is new wine for old water
„o There is a raven to bring your lunch
„o There is a stream to bring you water
„o There is a boy with a bag lunch
„o There is a manger for your baby
„o There is a rope for you to get out of Jericho
„o There is a rock for your Giant
„o There is a praise for your pain -- Jehoshaphat
„o There is a ministry for your misery
„o There is a savior for your sin
„o There is a hope for your hurt
„o There is a cure for your disease
„o There is a Holy Spirit for your comfort
„o There is grace for your mistake
„o There is mercy for your rebellion
„o There is a dime for your dysfunction
3. Moses Reminds Them of Gods' Promises
Deuteronomy 29:9
* When you keep Gods commands he promises prosperity.
Joshua 1:8
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.
John 14:21
Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him.
1 John 2:5
But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him.
* Moses says that God promised this land THEN (Genesis 17:8)
* And NOW is the time for the fulfillment of that promise.
* Chapter 34 - Moses was going to die THEN
* But God assured him of the promise.
Here's an interesting story for you:
A man named Russell Edward Herman left trillions of dollars to thousands of people he never met.
1. What was the catch? Russell Edward Herman didn't have trillions of dollars. He was just a simple poor carpenter.
2. While the wild will of the late Russell Herman never paid for his beneficiaries it certainly is an exciting conversation. Herman bequeathed $2.41 billion to the people of Cave-In-Rock, Ohio.
3. Cave-in-Rock's mayor, Albert Kaegi had this to say, "It's an odd thing to happen, isn't it?"
4. While the will would never pay off, the mayor had no trouble imagining uses for the willed imaginary monies.
5. Russell Edward Herman had great intentions, but he lacked the resources needed to make them a reality.
6. The greatness of God, however, stands in sharp contrast.
7. God not only has made great and precious promises, He has the ability to follow through on every single one of them.
4. Moses Reminds them of the Pain of Turning Back
Deuteronomy 29:16-20
Detestable Images = Imaginations
* The people have always had a tendency to go back to Egypt
o The images in their minds
o The imaginations of our mind want to pull us back
* Remember, the devil wants you to go back, never forward
* Reminds you how good your
o THEN was
„X To forget about your NOW
* THEN you were a slave
o NOW you are free
THEN Egypt = Narrow -- limited
NOW Canaan = Promise, Possession, Flow
