Defeat.
Middle English deffeten, from
Anglo-French defait, past participle of defaire,
desfaire to destroy, from
Medieval Latin disfacere, from Latin dis- + facere to do
The word itself means destroy.
And that’s just what it does.
It destroys us from the inside out, and it doesn’t just make
us discouraged. It destroys joy, destroys love, destroys hope, destroys faith.
It destroys rest and peace.
It destroys grace.
We were called to victory.
Anything less is not what God wants for us.
Please read Joshua 1:5-9.
We are going to cover several passages today, so have your
Bible-fingers ready.
In our text, God is talking to Joshua, who just had a huge
responsibility passed off to him. A frightening, tiring, and mentally and
emotionally taxing responsibility.
Does that resound with you at all?
It does with me, time and time again.
Not only do we have to do this thing called life, but we’ve
got the whole spiritual warfare thing to fight now too? Time for a coffee
break, right?
Q: What is an
area (or areas, plural) in your life
that has got you overwhelmed?
It is overwhelming. And God does ask a lot of us sometimes.
But please take heart. He’s here alongside you.
Joshua 1:5 “No one will be able to stand against you as long
as you live. For I will be with you as
I was with Moses. I will not fail you or
abandon you.” NLT emphasis mine
And, Sister, He doesn’t want you to live defeated. He wants
you to live in victory. That’s the whole reason He came. That’s the reason He
left His Spirit to live inside of us.
Satan would love nothing more than for us to feel like we’ve
lost the battle. Become battle-weary and allow our emotions and fatigue to take
over our reasoning; our focus.
He wants us weary. He wants us dragging. And the longer he
can get us to drag in the dirt, the more that’s all we’ll see, that’s what
we’ll believe, and it will have us so covered in dirt that our light won’t
shine.
He wants to steal our light. Steal our joy. Steal our faith.
John 10:10 “The thief does not come except to steal, and to
kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may
have it more abundantly.” NKJV
Did you see it? Destroy. Defeat.
Satan’s goal.
But do you also see the solution?
Jesus.
Just like we read in Joshua 1:5. We have already won because
of Him.
2 Corinthians 4:8-9 “We are hard-pressed on every side, yet
not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not
forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed.” NKJV
(despair: to be utterly at loss, be utterly destitute of
measures or resources, to renounce all hope; source)
God is there.
Romans 8:31b “…What then shall we say to these things? If
God is for us, who can be against us?” NKJV
Our cause is His cause.
The heart of God in Joshua and countless other places
through His Word shows that His desire for you is victory through Him.
Isaiah 54:17 “But in that coming day no weapon turned
against you will succeed.You will silence every voice raised up to
accuse you.These benefits are enjoyed by the servants of the Lord; their vindication
will come from me. I, the Lord, have
spoken!”
Do you see a resounding theme?
Q: In Isaiah
54:17 this victory is the heritage of whom?
Q: In Ephesians
6:10 we are told to be strong how?
Q: In Philippians
4:13 we are told that we can do all things, but how?
Look at 1 Corinthians 15:57 “But thanks be to God, who gives
us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” NKJV
So it is already ours. If we are living with a defeated
heart, where is our focus?
Not where it should be. Not on Christ.
DO: Pray for God
to reveal the areas you’ve been feeling defeated. In your journal, please describe
them, and your thoughts as you encounter these situations from day to day. Pinpoint
the time when your gaze shifts from God to self-sufficiency – I’ll bet that’s when
you start battling feelings of defeat. Pray – visit with God about these issues
and ask for His help keeping your focus on Him.
Grip His hand. Don’t let go.
Please read the last verses of our base text again; Joshua 1:7-9.
Q: What tool did
God give Joshua for success that he was to use day and night?
See also Hebrews 4:12 and Ephesians 6:11.
Though the command in Joshua 1:8 was spoken to Joshua, we
would do well to obey it also. The war is the same one we’re fighting; the
tools, reconnaissance and strategy are still the same.
God’s Words are the tools we need with us. And because we
need it handy always, we NEED to memorize. This is not optional. We need to
memorize to become a strong warrior. And so much of the battle is in our head,
so wouldn’t it be prudent to put the weapons there too?
It may be a little daunting to realize that we are actually commanded not to feel dismay, however,
when you look at the nuts and bolts of it, it looks like this:
Eyes off Christ = dismay.
Eyes on Christ = no dismay.
Not so daunting now, is it?
Take heart.
Take peace.
Don’t be defeated – because we are not defeated. Christ has
the victory in hand already. Take His hand and accept victory. And keep looking
to Him.
John 16:33 “I have told you all this so that you may have
peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take
heart, because I have overcome the world.” NLT
We see the importance of memorizing God's Word. Start today! Get free printable index card of our memory passage here
