January 4, 2025 • 26 mins
Important crossings. Joshua had one. We have an important crossing into a New Year. It's time to learn from God's Word as Pastor Mark Jobe helps us with a renewed vision for 2025. Plus we'll start the New Year right with prayer and music from the students of the Moody Bible Institute.
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Episode Transcript
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S1 (00:00):
Today on a special New Year's edition of Moody Presents.
S2 (00:04):
Your job is not to flee from discomfort. Your job
is to embrace the discomfort that God brings to your
life and allow yourself to grow through it. Your greatest
time of growth will not be in times of comfort.
Your greatest time of growth will be the times of
greatest discomfort.
S1 (00:25):
Welcome to Moody Presents and the year 2025. We have
a very special message from doctor Mark Jobe, president of
the Moody Bible Institute and senior pastor of New Life
Community Church in Chicago. But first, let's start with the
students and staff joining together to sing The God of
My salvation.
UU (01:00):
The grace of God has.
S3 (01:02):
Reached for me.
UU (01:07):
And pulled me from the raging.
S3 (01:10):
Sea, and I am safe on the solid ground. The
Lord is my salvation.
UU (01:28):
I will not fear when darkness falls. His strength will
help me scale these walls. I'll see the dawn of
the rising sun. The Lord is my salvation. Who is
(01:57):
like the Lord our God, strong to stay, faithful in love.
My debt is paid and the victory won. The Lord
is my salvation. My hope is hidden in the Lord.
(02:30):
He vows each promise of his word. When reserved, I
know spring will come. The Lord is my salvation. In
(02:51):
times of waiting. Times of need. When I know lost.
When lie and we. I know his grace will renew
these days. The Lord is my salvation. Who is like
(03:21):
the Lord our God? Strong to save. Faithful in love.
My debt is paid and the victory won. The Lord
is my salvation. And when I reach the final day.
(03:52):
He will not leave me in the grave. But I
will rise. He will call me home. The Lord is
my salvation. Who is like the Lord our God? Strong
(04:20):
to save. Faithful in love. My debt is paid and
the victory won. The Lord is my salvation. Glory be
(04:40):
to God the Father. Glory be to God the Son.
Glory be to God the Spirit. The Lord is my salvation.
(05:06):
Glory be to God the Father. Glory be to God
the Son. Glory be to God the Spirit. The Lord
(05:27):
is our salvation. The Lord is our salvation. The Lord
is our salvation.
S3 (05:49):
He is.
S4 (05:51):
Lord.
S3 (05:53):
He is Lord. He is risen.
UU (05:59):
From the dead. And he is Lord. Every knee shall
bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.
(06:23):
He is Lord. He is Lord. He is risen from
the dead, and he is Lord. Every knee shall bow
(06:45):
and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.
S1 (07:00):
We just heard students from Moody leading us in worship.
And now Doctor Jobe offers an opening prayer for the
entire student body at Moody Bible Institute. Let's pray along
with pastor Mark, now, shall we?
S2 (07:12):
Father, I thank you for these men and women. I
thank you for your presence in this place. God. And
we want to be bold enough to ask that you
would do extraordinary, unusual things in this place. God, we
pray that this would be a place where there's spiritual fervor.
(07:33):
We pray that this would be a place of transformation.
We pray that in an unusual, powerful way, your presence
would be in this place. God. We pray, father, that
your favor would rest upon us in the heart of
this city. God, we pray, father, that we would be
amazed at what you do amongst us in and through us.
(07:55):
We pray, Lord Jesus, that we would have the commitment,
the courage To be absolutely 100% committed to the authority
and strength of your word that we would be practitioners
of the word father, that we would not embrace the
culture of this world, but that we would embrace a
higher calling upon our lives. God. We pray that our
(08:18):
hearts would be hearts of surrendered worship. We pray, father,
for an extraordinary commitment to the cause of Christ and
the world. Impact. Father, we pray Jesus that we would
be salt and light. God, we pray for the faculty father,
that you would empower them and encourage them. Father, we
pray for the students that will be coming next year
(08:40):
and the years after that. Yet you would prepare their
hearts even now. Father. We believe, father, that you want
to do extraordinary things. And so we pray for a
double portion and we ask this in Jesus mighty name.
Amen and amen.
S1 (09:00):
It's a special edition of Moody Presents today as we
start a brand new year. And who could believe that
2025 is here? Well, because it's a brand new year.
Pastor Mark had the perfect message lined up for us.
Originally shared with the students and staff of the Moody
Bible Institute. We were pretty sure you would benefit as well.
And as we cross into this new year, Doctor Jobe
(09:21):
shares important steps on following God instead of getting ahead
of him. Let's get to our message now from Joshua
chapter three. And here's pastor Mark Jobe on Moody Presents.
S2 (09:32):
My mind went straight to a passage of Scripture that
God has used many times in my life when I'm
about to step into a new season. And so I
want to talk to you about The Crossing. It's an
imaginary line. It's a calendar line. And I've been thinking
(09:57):
about if I were to look back and say, yeah,
I'm glad God you've been faithful. I'm glad that I
did these things. God is sovereign and there are curveballs
that can be thrown at us anytime. And but I
was trying to picture and in my mind I was thinking, yeah,
(10:18):
I know I'll be happily married, continue to be happily married,
excited about being married as I am now. And by
the way, let me just point out my wife right
there in the front row there, Deanna Jobe. Yeah, she's
right there with me. It's hard to picture exactly what's
(10:43):
going to happen, because we don't know. But I believe
that we can begin to prepare and plan for the
future and say, God, what if you were to really
work and move? I had some nephews over to my
house just yesterday, and they're, uh, five and Three. And
they saw my son Josiah, who's 26, has a beard.
(11:05):
And they asked my other son, well, where's his wife
and his kids? And my son said, well, he's not
married yet, doesn't have kids. They said, but he has
a beard. So? So their understanding is if you can
grow a beard, you should be married and with kids.
(11:27):
Some of you are that that makes sense. Joshua chapter three.
Now don't go home and say that. I said that
if you could grow a beard, you should be married
and have kids now. Joshua chapter three, verses one through six,
(11:49):
really in my mind gives us there's some lessons that
we learned from this crossing. And I want to just
talk to you briefly about this and at the end,
just consecrate ourselves to this new year. You know the
story a little bit. The people of Israel had been
promised that they were going into a future that God
(12:12):
had prepared for them, but they had taken a detour.
Those that had started were no longer with them, but
they they lived with this mindset. God has a purpose
and a plan. We know he does, and it's a
good plan for us. And we're moving into that future.
(12:32):
But now they're sitting on this side of the Jordan
because on the other side of the Jordan, what was
is what was called the Promised land. And so they
they looked with excitement to the other side. And yet
at the same time, there was fear in them about
the future, because although there was a promise of God,
(12:54):
there was also battles ahead, challenges ahead. And how many
of you understand this? Just because God has a purpose
and a plan for your life, it doesn't mean it's
battle less. It doesn't mean that it's easy. It doesn't
mean that there's no challenges. It doesn't mean that your
heart isn't going to be gripped by fear or anxiety
(13:14):
as God leads you to his calling, or to marriage,
or to that ministry, that career, that place that God
is calling you to. It doesn't mean that you look
at it, and that faith means that you never fear
or you never have worries, because there's challenges as we
move forward and the people of Israel are. They have
(13:37):
a mixture of faith and fear. They want to move forward.
And by the way, I were welcoming about 80 new
incoming students. Yeah, let's give it up for those incoming students.
Wave at me if you're one of those incoming students.
All right, there we go. Yeah. Can we let them
(14:01):
know they're welcome in this place? And here's what I know.
That you've come here probably with the mixture of faith
and fear as well. Excitement about this new chapter, but
a little bit of anxiety about am I going to
fit in? How's the workload? What's this going to look
(14:23):
like for me? The people of Israel are on this
side of the Jordan. By the way. The Jordan happened
to be at its height, and it was during the
harvest season with the Jordan River swells up well beyond
its normal capacity. So it's about it varies between at
that season. It would vary between 600ft, 200 yards wide
(14:47):
to nearly a mile wide during the rainy season. So
they're not just crossing this little, little stream that they're
jumping over. It's a major mark. And as they as
they look to the future, God does something unusual. And
I want just to pick up on some of the
(15:08):
lessons of the people of Israel right before they cross
into this new season. And I want to give you
four insights rapidly. Number one, you need to be willing
to move out of your comfort zone to follow God.
S1 (15:30):
Isn't it amazing the way the Old Testament speaks to
us today? More to come in Mark job's message after
I mention a wonderful resource that we would love to
put into your hands, it's Winfred Neely's very practical book,
How to Overcome Worry. You know, there's a big difference
between having concerns and being worried. One is a healthy
response to tough circumstances, but the other, well, that crosses
(15:54):
over into sin. And if you long to start making
changes to the way you respond to life's troubles, Be
sure to request Doctor Winfred Nealy's book How to Overcome Worry.
It's yours for a gift of any amount online at
Moody presents.org that's moody presents.org. Doctor Neeley writes we overcome
worry by ceasing to give in to worry. We conquer
(16:16):
anxiety by turning off the water faucet of anxiety in
our souls. Many of us have already tried to turn
off that water faucet of anxiety, but have not been
able to do so. And that's because the ability to
do this is grace enabled, faith based and spirit empowered.
And he goes on to explain how we can move
in that direction. Again, it's yours for a gift of
(16:37):
any amount. How to overcome worry when you give a
gift online now at Moody presents.org. All right. Back to
our teaching segment. Here's pastor Mark Jobe.
S2 (16:50):
Notice it says that they were camped on this side.
And after three days the officers went throughout the camp
giving orders to the people. When you see the ark
of the covenant of the Lord your God and the
priest who are Levites carrying it. You are to move
out from your positions and follow it. I want you
(17:11):
to notice that they were comfortable where they were at.
It wasn't the promised land, but they were comfortable. They
could have stayed there. I'm sure some of them said,
why are we going? Why are we taking the risk?
But God had spoken to them clearly. And I want
you to notice this. He says, when you see the
(17:35):
ark move, then get up and follow it. What what
he was saying is that when you see the presence
of God, move. Let God be the one who guides you.
When God is leading you, don't be afraid to follow.
Be willing to move out of your comfort zone as
(17:57):
God pushes you out of your comfort zone. You know
this very well, but the Ark was symbolic of the
presence of God. It's mentioned 14 times in this chapter.
It was the it was just a little box, but
it was symbolic of the presence of God. You are
not allowed to touch it. You are not allowed to
look into it. You are to carry it a certain way.
(18:17):
It symbolized God's presence here on earth. It was placed
in the Holy of Holies, and people that did touch
it or look into it suffered consequences. But as the
people of Israel God is saying to them, comfort is
not your destiny. And can I just say that to you?
(18:38):
That comfort is the easy thing to stay in, but
it's not your destiny. God may give you a new
roommate that pushes you out of your comfort zone. God
may put you in a PCM that pushes you out
of your comfort zone. So your job is not to
flee from discomfort. Your job is to embrace the discomfort
(18:59):
that God brings to your life and allow yourself to grow.
Grow through it. Your greatest time of growth will not
be in times of comfort. Your greatest time of growth
will be the times of greatest discomfort. When you're challenged.
When you're pushed beyond your ability. When you're driven to
(19:23):
your knees. When you feel like I can't handle it
or manage it. When you're feeling the emotional distress. When
you feel like I have to run to God. So
all I'm simply saying to you is that often times
we have this idea that God's perfect place is the
place of less distress or greatest comfort. And I want
(19:47):
to say no. Sometimes God leads us right into the
middle of the storm, crossing the Jordan right up to
the battles, right to our greatest challenges, the challenges within
and the challenges without. So if this if this semester
is a semester of great discomfort, it doesn't mean that
you need to run or that you're out of the
(20:08):
will of God. It could be that you are right
in the center of God's will and he's causing you
to grow. The second thing I want you to see
about this passage is at the crossing is be ready
to trust God's leading and not your own experience. Verse
(20:31):
four says, and when you see the ark moving. Get up.
You're comfortable now. You're going into enemy territory. When you
see the ark moving. Follow the ark. But secondly, he says,
then you will know which way to go, since you
have never been this way before. I love it. He's
(20:56):
telling the people of Israel, they say, God, which way
shall I go? He says, follow the arc. You've never
been this way before. None of us have been into
the future. Which way do we go? Follow the arc.
The presence of God. The leading the direction of God.
And the only way you can do that is if
(21:17):
you keep in close step with the Spirit of God.
That's what Galatians tells us. Keep in step with the spirit.
The spirit is the one that leads you, nudges you.
Proverbs tell us, tells us very clearly, trust in the
Lord with all thy heart. Lean not unto your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make
your paths straight. In other words, he will direct your path.
(21:38):
So there is a need to have a sensitivity to
the leading and guiding of God. When your ears are
open and your heart is tender, then God is able
to guide you. And what he's saying in this place,
he's saying, hey, follow the arc because then you will
know which way to go, even in your confusion. Follow
the arc because God knows where he's leading you. he says.
(22:01):
You've never been this way before. In other words, it's
not your experience that's going to guide you. It's the
presence and the leading of God that's going to guide you.
The third observation that I make is we're approaching a
crossing is he says, be cautious not to get ahead
of God or touch what is holy. Notice what he says,
(22:25):
but keep a distance of about a thousand yards. That's 3000ft.
That's pretty far between you and the Ark. Don't go
near it. Now, the priests were the ones that were
carrying the ark. But he told the people to maintain
a distance from the ark. I believe that he's asked
(22:48):
him to maintain a distance because there's two reasons. One,
I think that sometimes if we're not careful, we can
get ahead of God. I know I can. God has
had to convict me and break me oftentimes. And I
follow that deep conviction that if I go too far ahead,
(23:09):
I'm full of pride and presumption, and I admit and
acknowledge that I have gone before God at times, I
have gone ahead of God, and I have said, God
bless me. I think I know what I'm doing or
where I'm going. And let me tell you, God never
likes to take the place of a follower. He is
the leader. And so there's a safe distance that we maintain,
(23:36):
acknowledging the sovereignty of God and saying, God, I'm not
going to get too close because I don't want to
step in front of you. I think if you go
too far ahead of God, you're full of pride and presumption.
If you lag too far behind, you're full of fear
and doubt. So stay close to the presence of God.
The other thing that I think that God is saying
is not get ahead of God is don't get too
(23:58):
close to his glory. Don't touch what belongs to God.
I know he's our father. I know this. There's a
friendship and a kinship there. But he's still a holy God.
Don't touch what belongs to God. Don't get too used to.
(24:23):
Don't get too comfortable with the holiness of God. Because
he's still holy. He's a ferocious guarder of his glory.
Don't touch what belongs to God. Don't assume what belongs
to God. Walk in the fear of the Lord. He
is a holy, consuming fire. Walk in that powerful reverence
(24:47):
of God. Don't ever take on that which only he
deserves to be acknowledged for.
S1 (24:56):
A look at Joshua chapter three today on Moody Presents
and you can hear the message again at Moody presents.org
while there. If you'd like, consider supporting this ministry financially.
Now's a good time because for a gift of any size,
we'll send you a copy of How to Overcome Worry.
Are you ready to break free from the cycle of anxiety? Well,
Doctor Winfred Nealy's book How to Overcome Worry provides a
(25:19):
practical roadmap to manage and reduce worry in your life.
The subtitle I love it is experiencing the peace of
God in every situation. We'll get your copy of this
book for a gift of any amount at Moody presents.org.
That's Moody presents.org new year, new mission. On the next
moody presents I'm John Gager thanking you for listening to
(25:40):
Moody Presents, a production of Moody Radio, a ministry of
Moody Bible Institute.
Today on a special New Year's edition of Moody Presents.
S2 (00:04):
Your job is not to flee from discomfort. Your job
is to embrace the discomfort that God brings to your
life and allow yourself to grow through it. Your greatest
time of growth will not be in times of comfort.
Your greatest time of growth will be the times of
greatest discomfort.
S1 (00:25):
Welcome to Moody Presents and the year 2025. We have
a very special message from doctor Mark Jobe, president of
the Moody Bible Institute and senior pastor of New Life
Community Church in Chicago. But first, let's start with the
students and staff joining together to sing The God of
My salvation.
UU (01:00):
The grace of God has.
S3 (01:02):
Reached for me.
UU (01:07):
And pulled me from the raging.
S3 (01:10):
Sea, and I am safe on the solid ground. The
Lord is my salvation.
UU (01:28):
I will not fear when darkness falls. His strength will
help me scale these walls. I'll see the dawn of
the rising sun. The Lord is my salvation. Who is
(01:57):
like the Lord our God, strong to stay, faithful in love.
My debt is paid and the victory won. The Lord
is my salvation. My hope is hidden in the Lord.
(02:30):
He vows each promise of his word. When reserved, I
know spring will come. The Lord is my salvation. In
(02:51):
times of waiting. Times of need. When I know lost.
When lie and we. I know his grace will renew
these days. The Lord is my salvation. Who is like
(03:21):
the Lord our God? Strong to save. Faithful in love.
My debt is paid and the victory won. The Lord
is my salvation. And when I reach the final day.
(03:52):
He will not leave me in the grave. But I
will rise. He will call me home. The Lord is
my salvation. Who is like the Lord our God? Strong
(04:20):
to save. Faithful in love. My debt is paid and
the victory won. The Lord is my salvation. Glory be
(04:40):
to God the Father. Glory be to God the Son.
Glory be to God the Spirit. The Lord is my salvation.
(05:06):
Glory be to God the Father. Glory be to God
the Son. Glory be to God the Spirit. The Lord
(05:27):
is our salvation. The Lord is our salvation. The Lord
is our salvation.
S3 (05:49):
He is.
S4 (05:51):
Lord.
S3 (05:53):
He is Lord. He is risen.
UU (05:59):
From the dead. And he is Lord. Every knee shall
bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.
(06:23):
He is Lord. He is Lord. He is risen from
the dead, and he is Lord. Every knee shall bow
(06:45):
and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.
S1 (07:00):
We just heard students from Moody leading us in worship.
And now Doctor Jobe offers an opening prayer for the
entire student body at Moody Bible Institute. Let's pray along
with pastor Mark, now, shall we?
S2 (07:12):
Father, I thank you for these men and women. I
thank you for your presence in this place. God. And
we want to be bold enough to ask that you
would do extraordinary, unusual things in this place. God, we
pray that this would be a place where there's spiritual fervor.
(07:33):
We pray that this would be a place of transformation.
We pray that in an unusual, powerful way, your presence
would be in this place. God. We pray, father, that
your favor would rest upon us in the heart of
this city. God, we pray, father, that we would be
amazed at what you do amongst us in and through us.
(07:55):
We pray, Lord Jesus, that we would have the commitment,
the courage To be absolutely 100% committed to the authority
and strength of your word that we would be practitioners
of the word father, that we would not embrace the
culture of this world, but that we would embrace a
higher calling upon our lives. God. We pray that our
(08:18):
hearts would be hearts of surrendered worship. We pray, father,
for an extraordinary commitment to the cause of Christ and
the world. Impact. Father, we pray Jesus that we would
be salt and light. God, we pray for the faculty father,
that you would empower them and encourage them. Father, we
pray for the students that will be coming next year
(08:40):
and the years after that. Yet you would prepare their
hearts even now. Father. We believe, father, that you want
to do extraordinary things. And so we pray for a
double portion and we ask this in Jesus mighty name.
Amen and amen.
S1 (09:00):
It's a special edition of Moody Presents today as we
start a brand new year. And who could believe that
2025 is here? Well, because it's a brand new year.
Pastor Mark had the perfect message lined up for us.
Originally shared with the students and staff of the Moody
Bible Institute. We were pretty sure you would benefit as well.
And as we cross into this new year, Doctor Jobe
(09:21):
shares important steps on following God instead of getting ahead
of him. Let's get to our message now from Joshua
chapter three. And here's pastor Mark Jobe on Moody Presents.
S2 (09:32):
My mind went straight to a passage of Scripture that
God has used many times in my life when I'm
about to step into a new season. And so I
want to talk to you about The Crossing. It's an
imaginary line. It's a calendar line. And I've been thinking
(09:57):
about if I were to look back and say, yeah,
I'm glad God you've been faithful. I'm glad that I
did these things. God is sovereign and there are curveballs
that can be thrown at us anytime. And but I
was trying to picture and in my mind I was thinking, yeah,
(10:18):
I know I'll be happily married, continue to be happily married,
excited about being married as I am now. And by
the way, let me just point out my wife right
there in the front row there, Deanna Jobe. Yeah, she's
right there with me. It's hard to picture exactly what's
(10:43):
going to happen, because we don't know. But I believe
that we can begin to prepare and plan for the
future and say, God, what if you were to really
work and move? I had some nephews over to my
house just yesterday, and they're, uh, five and Three. And
they saw my son Josiah, who's 26, has a beard.
(11:05):
And they asked my other son, well, where's his wife
and his kids? And my son said, well, he's not
married yet, doesn't have kids. They said, but he has
a beard. So? So their understanding is if you can
grow a beard, you should be married and with kids.
(11:27):
Some of you are that that makes sense. Joshua chapter three.
Now don't go home and say that. I said that
if you could grow a beard, you should be married
and have kids now. Joshua chapter three, verses one through six,
(11:49):
really in my mind gives us there's some lessons that
we learned from this crossing. And I want to just
talk to you briefly about this and at the end,
just consecrate ourselves to this new year. You know the
story a little bit. The people of Israel had been
promised that they were going into a future that God
(12:12):
had prepared for them, but they had taken a detour.
Those that had started were no longer with them, but
they they lived with this mindset. God has a purpose
and a plan. We know he does, and it's a
good plan for us. And we're moving into that future.
(12:32):
But now they're sitting on this side of the Jordan
because on the other side of the Jordan, what was
is what was called the Promised land. And so they
they looked with excitement to the other side. And yet
at the same time, there was fear in them about
the future, because although there was a promise of God,
(12:54):
there was also battles ahead, challenges ahead. And how many
of you understand this? Just because God has a purpose
and a plan for your life, it doesn't mean it's
battle less. It doesn't mean that it's easy. It doesn't
mean that there's no challenges. It doesn't mean that your
heart isn't going to be gripped by fear or anxiety
(13:14):
as God leads you to his calling, or to marriage,
or to that ministry, that career, that place that God
is calling you to. It doesn't mean that you look
at it, and that faith means that you never fear
or you never have worries, because there's challenges as we
move forward and the people of Israel are. They have
(13:37):
a mixture of faith and fear. They want to move forward.
And by the way, I were welcoming about 80 new
incoming students. Yeah, let's give it up for those incoming students.
Wave at me if you're one of those incoming students.
All right, there we go. Yeah. Can we let them
(14:01):
know they're welcome in this place? And here's what I know.
That you've come here probably with the mixture of faith
and fear as well. Excitement about this new chapter, but
a little bit of anxiety about am I going to
fit in? How's the workload? What's this going to look
(14:23):
like for me? The people of Israel are on this
side of the Jordan. By the way. The Jordan happened
to be at its height, and it was during the
harvest season with the Jordan River swells up well beyond
its normal capacity. So it's about it varies between at
that season. It would vary between 600ft, 200 yards wide
(14:47):
to nearly a mile wide during the rainy season. So
they're not just crossing this little, little stream that they're
jumping over. It's a major mark. And as they as
they look to the future, God does something unusual. And
I want just to pick up on some of the
(15:08):
lessons of the people of Israel right before they cross
into this new season. And I want to give you
four insights rapidly. Number one, you need to be willing
to move out of your comfort zone to follow God.
S1 (15:30):
Isn't it amazing the way the Old Testament speaks to
us today? More to come in Mark job's message after
I mention a wonderful resource that we would love to
put into your hands, it's Winfred Neely's very practical book,
How to Overcome Worry. You know, there's a big difference
between having concerns and being worried. One is a healthy
response to tough circumstances, but the other, well, that crosses
(15:54):
over into sin. And if you long to start making
changes to the way you respond to life's troubles, Be
sure to request Doctor Winfred Nealy's book How to Overcome Worry.
It's yours for a gift of any amount online at
Moody presents.org that's moody presents.org. Doctor Neeley writes we overcome
worry by ceasing to give in to worry. We conquer
(16:16):
anxiety by turning off the water faucet of anxiety in
our souls. Many of us have already tried to turn
off that water faucet of anxiety, but have not been
able to do so. And that's because the ability to
do this is grace enabled, faith based and spirit empowered.
And he goes on to explain how we can move
in that direction. Again, it's yours for a gift of
(16:37):
any amount. How to overcome worry when you give a
gift online now at Moody presents.org. All right. Back to
our teaching segment. Here's pastor Mark Jobe.
S2 (16:50):
Notice it says that they were camped on this side.
And after three days the officers went throughout the camp
giving orders to the people. When you see the ark
of the covenant of the Lord your God and the
priest who are Levites carrying it. You are to move
out from your positions and follow it. I want you
(17:11):
to notice that they were comfortable where they were at.
It wasn't the promised land, but they were comfortable. They
could have stayed there. I'm sure some of them said,
why are we going? Why are we taking the risk?
But God had spoken to them clearly. And I want
you to notice this. He says, when you see the
(17:35):
ark move, then get up and follow it. What what
he was saying is that when you see the presence
of God, move. Let God be the one who guides you.
When God is leading you, don't be afraid to follow.
Be willing to move out of your comfort zone as
(17:57):
God pushes you out of your comfort zone. You know
this very well, but the Ark was symbolic of the
presence of God. It's mentioned 14 times in this chapter.
It was the it was just a little box, but
it was symbolic of the presence of God. You are
not allowed to touch it. You are not allowed to
look into it. You are to carry it a certain way.
(18:17):
It symbolized God's presence here on earth. It was placed
in the Holy of Holies, and people that did touch
it or look into it suffered consequences. But as the
people of Israel God is saying to them, comfort is
not your destiny. And can I just say that to you?
(18:38):
That comfort is the easy thing to stay in, but
it's not your destiny. God may give you a new
roommate that pushes you out of your comfort zone. God
may put you in a PCM that pushes you out
of your comfort zone. So your job is not to
flee from discomfort. Your job is to embrace the discomfort
(18:59):
that God brings to your life and allow yourself to grow.
Grow through it. Your greatest time of growth will not
be in times of comfort. Your greatest time of growth
will be the times of greatest discomfort. When you're challenged.
When you're pushed beyond your ability. When you're driven to
(19:23):
your knees. When you feel like I can't handle it
or manage it. When you're feeling the emotional distress. When
you feel like I have to run to God. So
all I'm simply saying to you is that often times
we have this idea that God's perfect place is the
place of less distress or greatest comfort. And I want
(19:47):
to say no. Sometimes God leads us right into the
middle of the storm, crossing the Jordan right up to
the battles, right to our greatest challenges, the challenges within
and the challenges without. So if this if this semester
is a semester of great discomfort, it doesn't mean that
you need to run or that you're out of the
(20:08):
will of God. It could be that you are right
in the center of God's will and he's causing you
to grow. The second thing I want you to see
about this passage is at the crossing is be ready
to trust God's leading and not your own experience. Verse
(20:31):
four says, and when you see the ark moving. Get up.
You're comfortable now. You're going into enemy territory. When you
see the ark moving. Follow the ark. But secondly, he says,
then you will know which way to go, since you
have never been this way before. I love it. He's
(20:56):
telling the people of Israel, they say, God, which way
shall I go? He says, follow the arc. You've never
been this way before. None of us have been into
the future. Which way do we go? Follow the arc.
The presence of God. The leading the direction of God.
And the only way you can do that is if
(21:17):
you keep in close step with the Spirit of God.
That's what Galatians tells us. Keep in step with the spirit.
The spirit is the one that leads you, nudges you.
Proverbs tell us, tells us very clearly, trust in the
Lord with all thy heart. Lean not unto your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make
your paths straight. In other words, he will direct your path.
(21:38):
So there is a need to have a sensitivity to
the leading and guiding of God. When your ears are
open and your heart is tender, then God is able
to guide you. And what he's saying in this place,
he's saying, hey, follow the arc because then you will
know which way to go, even in your confusion. Follow
the arc because God knows where he's leading you. he says.
(22:01):
You've never been this way before. In other words, it's
not your experience that's going to guide you. It's the
presence and the leading of God that's going to guide you.
The third observation that I make is we're approaching a
crossing is he says, be cautious not to get ahead
of God or touch what is holy. Notice what he says,
(22:25):
but keep a distance of about a thousand yards. That's 3000ft.
That's pretty far between you and the Ark. Don't go
near it. Now, the priests were the ones that were
carrying the ark. But he told the people to maintain
a distance from the ark. I believe that he's asked
(22:48):
him to maintain a distance because there's two reasons. One,
I think that sometimes if we're not careful, we can
get ahead of God. I know I can. God has
had to convict me and break me oftentimes. And I
follow that deep conviction that if I go too far ahead,
(23:09):
I'm full of pride and presumption, and I admit and
acknowledge that I have gone before God at times, I
have gone ahead of God, and I have said, God
bless me. I think I know what I'm doing or
where I'm going. And let me tell you, God never
likes to take the place of a follower. He is
the leader. And so there's a safe distance that we maintain,
(23:36):
acknowledging the sovereignty of God and saying, God, I'm not
going to get too close because I don't want to
step in front of you. I think if you go
too far ahead of God, you're full of pride and presumption.
If you lag too far behind, you're full of fear
and doubt. So stay close to the presence of God.
The other thing that I think that God is saying
is not get ahead of God is don't get too
(23:58):
close to his glory. Don't touch what belongs to God.
I know he's our father. I know this. There's a
friendship and a kinship there. But he's still a holy God.
Don't touch what belongs to God. Don't get too used to.
(24:23):
Don't get too comfortable with the holiness of God. Because
he's still holy. He's a ferocious guarder of his glory.
Don't touch what belongs to God. Don't assume what belongs
to God. Walk in the fear of the Lord. He
is a holy, consuming fire. Walk in that powerful reverence
(24:47):
of God. Don't ever take on that which only he
deserves to be acknowledged for.
S1 (24:56):
A look at Joshua chapter three today on Moody Presents
and you can hear the message again at Moody presents.org
while there. If you'd like, consider supporting this ministry financially.
Now's a good time because for a gift of any size,
we'll send you a copy of How to Overcome Worry.
Are you ready to break free from the cycle of anxiety? Well,
Doctor Winfred Nealy's book How to Overcome Worry provides a
(25:19):
practical roadmap to manage and reduce worry in your life.
The subtitle I love it is experiencing the peace of
God in every situation. We'll get your copy of this
book for a gift of any amount at Moody presents.org.
That's Moody presents.org new year, new mission. On the next
moody presents I'm John Gager thanking you for listening to
(25:40):
Moody Presents, a production of Moody Radio, a ministry of
Moody Bible Institute.
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