Freedom Through Taking the Promised Land [Part 2]

Pastoral author and Bible teacher Alan Wright promised land might be a battleground. It's the place where you walk by the three Jesus that's Pastor Alan. Welcome to another message of good news that will help you see your life in a whole new life.

I'm being deliberate excited for you to hear the teaching today. In the series called unleashed is presented at renewal the church in North Carolina. If you're not able to stay with us throughout the entire program today to make sure you know how to get our special resource right now. You can find out more about it and receive a copy of your very own for your donation this month to Alan Wright ministry. So as you listen to today's message go deeper as we send you today's special offer@pastorallen.org find out more about it and make your request or call 877-544-4860 that's 877-544-4860 begin our website.

Pastor Alan.org.

More on this later in the program but now let's get started with today's teaching here is Alan Wright he is a man whose life is shaped by Moses. He is he is a man who could always look to Moses for a sense of security and comfort and consolation and well-being is that feeling you got like a strong dad that you could just look to their problems.

You go you have a dad's here it was that feeling and so it's so odd how God comes to Joshua to motivate him at the beginning of this speech that God has to Moses and Joshua chapter 1 because read it again in verse one after the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua the son of non-Moses says and here's the first words of the Lord to Joshua Moses my servant is dead. Thank you very much as if the whole nation of Israel was not already grieving as if Joshua didn't know. I'm sure Joshua had a kind of light off the veil of light. Well, you know where grieving I feel like my life is over everything I've ever counted on is now is now changing and plan in the world is saying because Moses is that is like God encounters that you know Joshua, limited Moses was wonderful. Moses was my man. Moses came to Mount Sinai Moses got the law as it was radio my glory Moses been meeting with me at the tent of meeting Moses had worked miracles in my name. Moses had that staff Moses parted the sea.

Moses was a great judge amongst the people. Moses was a man like no other man Moses are more humble than anybody that ever been.

This is fantastic and Moses is dead and it's like saying Moses is bad Joshua but you aren't he was announcing the transition he was saying now you're the man. Sometimes the greatest grace comes into your life what you've always counted on for your earthly sense of security is gone and now what you got to count on is God freedom often comes when you have a transition time in your life when you have to let go of what you always counted on is the second thing I see from this image of Egypt wilderness promised land.

Help me understand what freedom really is and that is say that freedom is not an escape from the fight. Freedom is the power to fight were speaking spiritually. Soon the people finally cross over the Jordan under Joshua's leadership. They don't arrive in a land that flowing with milk and honey, meaning that they stretch out on their AMEX and sip from coconuts from little straws the rest of their life. Instead what happens is they come in and they play first base Jericho archaeological dig since shown us that size of the stone foundation of the walls around Jericho was an impenetrable city. The first thing they had to do was to trust God for a miracle as they took Jericho they would fight the battle after battle. I give you in Mackinaw, southern Canaan, the battles of northern Canaan Canaanite king after Canaanite king, and even when Joshua was with all the text says he is old and advanced in years.

The Lord said to them, the remains very yet very much land to possess it, were moving on was a process wherein they already had the lamb but they didn't possess all of it and they were fighting battle after battle the words so often is Christian. I think we have this wilderness image, in our mind is the place of struggle, you know, I would like that will how you doing brother was a well you know going through some really difficult things right now and it is.

I feel like I'm in the wilderness now. I'm sure I want to get on this unit.

What this does this imagery, it changes my whole thinking about this because what it means is that your promised land is your battleground and if you're going through something challenging and if you're facing a big spiritual flight, or if you go through something that stretches you you're not in a wilderness you're probably right smack dab in the metal where God wants you because the promised land is not a place of these.

It's a place of of spiritual battle and the people of God once, except this are able to move into it knowing that they're not fighting in order to be free there fighting because they are free, and when you can no longer fight spiritually is evidence you're not free. So when you're in the fight, you're free. Here's the third thing I see freedom according this picture of Egypt wilderness promised land.

Freedom is not something that you mainly just arrived into it is a process that you grow into step-by-step how to take this from this beautiful word of the Lord.

Verse three. Chapter want to Joshua. Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given to you.

Just as I promise to Moses, every place you take your foot. I've already given it to you but you are going to be an active appropriating participant of receiving the gift. Step by step that you can experience new levels of freedom as you risk taking the next step in our wonderful thing to know that your freedom and the Lord is something that grows in its expansiveness. The more you grow in the grace of God. That's Allen will have more teaching moment from today's important series.

This is what the facts I will restore the fortunes of Jacob's times and have compassion on his dwellings.

The city will be rebuilt on her remains powerless. In its proper place as timeless words from Jeremiah 30, but the heart of God loves to restore way time cities would often be read out on top of the ruins of the former city, and he said he would stand higher with social walls and a greater perspective pastor. Our night succeeding out of the rulings help document build your life gloriously out of yesterday's disappointments to get to Alan Wright ministry said I will send you Pastor Alan's messages and attractive CD album through digital download as our way of saying thanks for your partnership, six 877-544-4860 877-544-4861 come to our website pastor and dialect. Today's teaching now continues here once again is the whole land that was given to them by the grace of God, not by their own merit and not by their own power and what God was saying it is to be battle after battle and you can take step after step and you're going to find out just when you think you've arrived at.

There's even further to go is to make your life an adventure because what you go to see is the freedom that you taste is going to lead you to another step so that you are going to be more than conquerors and this is a picture of the spiritual life freedom for us in Christ is not simply the lifting of yesterday's pain, though, that it is not simply getting out of the bondage in Egypt, though, that it is, but real frayed man.

Christ is the courage to face a future that is full of challenges and uncertainties. Yet laden with promise. It is a life that is lived by all the promises of God that find their yes and amen in Jesus Christ.

It means that freedom is something that is expressed in you and through you step-by-step. Here's 1/4 thing. When I see the picture of the people of God who move out of Egypt into the wilderness, and are called into promised land.

In this picture of the promised land where there is much to do as it freedom is not the absence of responsibility, but it is the embrace of responsibility toward responsibilities. A great word.

It means the ability to respond if you if you have an ability to respond your free I can responded yes. So the slaves couldn't do that. Couldn't respond to their situation. We have an ability to respond because were free as in responsibility is is is not accursed is a gift from the Lord.

When you when you have not had a responsibility that you would like to have you and you know what this would feel like I so thankful that our economy now that we have so many more people that have worked, but there've been times where I've seen people dear dear ones. In this short some of the smartest, brightest, most effective people of variety of locations that were downsized and didn't have work people a year year and 1/2 two years no work, and unless you've gone through some period of time like that. You can't really know what a privilege it is to have to get up and go to work to Louisville. I sometimes we just want to break right they'll get all these kids running around and I wish Laura good to have a little break right in and embrace good but better, but all the little kids running around and awareness out know that those responsibilities are your privileges on that job that they can can can take its toll on you and you can be.

The only sure privilege.

I me that the times that that that we all go through much as a part of it is just what I wish I didn't have all this response will be in that stoppage from number that the promised land is a place of responsibility where stewards of precious responsibilities and other words I'm saying is that responsibilities are curses their blessings and God-given responsibilities are your privileges what you see in the in the promised land is the people do what their predecessors didn't do. They take ownership of what God had given to them. That's, you know, we say take ownership for what we mean by that is mean that that that you have a sense that is yours and therefore that shapes how you interact. It shapes what you do with your life when you take ownership right cuts given your precious things.

11 is given in the first place is giving you your life did you make yourself did you form yourself and your mother's will that you envision your own life and design. It put the DNA into of course not. Your life is a gift to you and when you see it as a gift and you live by promise you take ownership God's given many precious things in your future to you. You take ownership as a promised land living is this is our territory. According to the word of God and I will take ownership. I member years ago, my former beloved associate, Jim Glasco and I were at an out of town attending to minister to one of our own bereaved, and after the service at this rural small church. I can't remember what town we are in we got back in the car to leave. And I heard Jim chuckle. I said what he said you see that old man over there said yeah and I look this man though dressed up in his Pseudomonas 90° summer day and you look like he was 95 for baby is amazing old say go I said, yeah, what about is that that old guy were there just bent down and slowly bent down and picked up a small piece of trash that was next to a bush near the front door.

The church they said that Must be the patriarch of this church letter saying what I never got is a saying this man's light is my church.

I think I've taken ownership like I might not pick up a piece of trash in your yard about pickup and want Monica to own it. What happens in your life when you have a sense of ownership of your and air is you have to start thinking about all is the duty of wanting to do this is just going on air and I just take some ownership mate. What happened in more that you grow spiritually.

The more the expansive that you see the grace of God, you start taking a larger larger sense of ownership, so at some point you come to this place and you say church people of God's given us ownership in the world and so we have to tell the whole world of the gospel and take dominion for Christ and his precious night. Other words the picture of freedom in the Bible is not a movement from slavery to not slavery. That's not the picture.

The picture is a move from slavery to being a Harris you Paul said did not receive a spirit of fear to lead you back into slavery, but a spirit of son ship by which you cry, I tell you something that I just love about the whole narrative of Joshua and watching Joshua general Joshua take them into the promised land is the whole time I read it.

I know this that name Joshua is probably the most beautiful name in the world because you know that the name of Jesus. Jesus translator Jesus is the Greek version that's not his actual name. It was a Jewish boy born to peasants in Nazareth and he was told by the angel, you shall give him the name Yeshua's name, savior of the world's name is Joshua he is Joshua, she is Joshua, the Messiah, that's who Jesus is, you can't miss this one I made you sometimes wonder how I find Jesus in this story will do this when you came in general.

Joshua is taking the people in the promised land.

And this is what it means to be a Christ is reason general Joshua takes you in the promised land. In scene one is the Passover lamb. But now we are in seem to wear, and wherein the next moment, this is Joshua taken as an Jesus is the conqueror and what he is as he is the one who spied out the land and he saw the sweet fruits and he is the one who, like no one else believed all the promises of God and trusted God perfectly. He is the one through whom the word has been expressed perfectly. PPE use the word of God. And when you accept Christ. What happens is a mystical powerful miracle where and you are engrafted into Christ. Your life is now found in Christ. Your life is not measured anymore by your own merits by the merits of Christ.

Your life is no longer hinging upon whether you can do it it's hinging upon whether Christ can do it. Your future is no longer dependent upon your capacity to be able to make the way but instead it is hinging upon fact that Christ is already made the impossible way away that's open do you. This is the picture of of life in Jesus. Abundant life and of freedom, and this goes far to explain why Jesus said those whom the son sets free will be free indeed. It is what I'm saying. A move not just from slavery's bonds to a wilderness where you wander around. It's a move from the rules of Egypt for which you are punished if you fail to a relationship with Joshua, the Messiah freedom.

This in relationship with Jesus. I read in this morning's paper. Cute story an article about Will Franklin Graham will Graham is doing some preaching himself the grandson of Billy Graham and the articles there because he has a part in a movie that's coming out in these that I'm a stick to preaching, not acting, but I cute story said he remembered when he was I think nine or 10 and they had traveled the guy think he went to California and Billy Graham had a big meeting going on and there was a time where Billy Graham was in was a massive long line to speak to him and grandson will went up to goats hug his granddaddy and a police officer stopped him and said son to go to the back of the line was about a two hour wait and so as will was being halted by the police officer.

He just looked around Billy Graham's grandfather.

Suddenly Billy Graham. He said drop down his granddaddy drop down one knee and just said will it also the pleas of his backed out a way and will goes running into his grandfathers are.

That's what you do when you're a son or a daughter that's what you do when you're an air that's what you do when you're free in Christ promised land might be a battleground but beloved. It's the place where you walk day by day and victory with Jesus and asked the gospel: right things to freedom through taking the promised land. It's in our series unleashed and Alan is back with us in the studio sharing a parting good news thought for the day in just a moment. This is what the facts I will restore the fortunes of Jacob's times and have compassion on his dwellings. The city will be rebuilt on her lens. Harris will stand in its proper place as timeless where it's been general authority for the heart of God loves to us the way to time cities would often be read out on top of the ruins of the former city city withstand higher with social walls and a greater perspective pastor.

Our night in Seattle and out of the rulings help document build your life gloriously out of yesterday's disappointments to get to Alan Wright ministry said I will send you Pastor Alan's messages, and attractive. See through digital download as our way of saying thanks for your partnership. Call us at 877-544-4860 877-544-4861 come to our website pastor out.work blessing your life God's grace filled vision for your rights, free grace and encouragement. Alan writes a daily blessing.

It's free. Just a click away. Pastor I got away vacuum is real. We are reporting good news thought for the days of freedom for taking the promised land that they may be getting the straight right to be real about it, freedom. But there will still be battles over putting this together in this concluding this message.

Your snowsuit to takeaways I want to make sure relist you here this, that one just because your faith in a battle doesn't mean you're not in your promised land doesn't injured on the will of God. You might be square in the will of God and facing some very difficult things right. And secondly, to really know this, that, because life in the kingdom is like the promised land. There is always a moving for, and you have a promised land in front of you, don't let any voice of the enemy discourage you to otherwise just because you're facing difficulties, doesn't mean that God is not provided a way for you to advance. Take the next step and count on were God calls you. He provides not only the energy grace to take that step in place you step your foot is given to you as gospel. Today's good news message supported production Alan White ministries