Get Ready For New Conquest

The King's Church International Audio Podcast

This is a new season as we come into Autumn, but also spiritually where God is at work amongst us in new ways. So we are going to start a two-part preparation based on Joshua chapter 1. This story is very relevant to us. It came at a time when a whole generation who left Egypt with great promise for the promised land - but they never made it.

A whole generation fell by the wayside because of unbelief, because they had a culture of constant criticism against Moses and their leaders, and because of their immoral behaviour. Even Moses himself didn’t make it into the promised land, but Joshua and Caleb did. Joshua became the leader who succeeded Moses, and as he stepped out into this new time, God gave him this word: “you and all these people get ready". The word says ‘get ready’ but first it was ‘get ready Joshua’, then it was ‘get ready people’.

You personally can get ready for a new time for God to work in your life. Joshua himself had to be ready to lead the people and go to a new level. And if you want to go to a new level, if you want to lead others, first it begins with your personal preparation and your heart. Ask yourself, are you prepared for what is coming and for new challenges? Are you prepared to move to a new level of faith? To prepare for a new level of conquest, you have to:

1. Accept the baton of leadership (Joshua 1:2; John 15:16)

2. Visualise what you can conquer (Joshua 1:4; Proverbs 29:18)

3. Be ready to take steps of faith (Joshua 1:3; Judges 6-7gi)

4. Recognise the authority that God has given you (Joshua 1:5; Acts 1:8)

5. Know that your commitment to the word of God is key to your success (Joshua 1:8; 2 Corinthians 9:8; Isaiah 61:1)

Apply

1. Accept the baton of leadership. Moses had led things for a long time, but his time had gone, and the baton now passed to Joshua (Joshua 1:2). Joshua had always looked up to Moses and supported him as his aide, but God had now called him to lead. He had to think of himself differently and personally accept the baton of leadership. There comes a time when those we have previously looked to for direction or seen as leaders may now have gotten older or gone to heaven, and it’s now your time to step up. To move to another level of leadership, whether you’re younger or older, you must prepare yourself (John 15:16). God chose Joshua and used him to transform a generation. And God has chosen us. Young people, God is with you and will help you in this next stage of your life as you go back to school or college or move to university, but you cannot see yourselves like your friends. He has called you and has set you apart so that you can lead them to Him. Today is a new day and we are not part of the Moses generation. We are to see the promises of God in our lives as we vow to go deeper and accept His call. So shake off negativity, shake off the past, get ready for God to do a new thing.

2. Visualise what you can conquer (Joshua 1:4). God gave Joshua a clear vision of where he was going. We must be able to see what we can conquer in order to make it happen. When we visualise what can be conquered, we can see incredible results (Proverbs 29:18). Vision brings direction and faith. Moses’ generation cried out for their basic needs to be met and God provided bread and water, but they didn’t have faith and vision of where God could take them. Focus on where you’re going, where God can take you. Visualise what God wants to do in your life, how you can make a difference in your community. Visualise your family being saved and praying together. Visualise yourself leading people to Jesus in this new season, your towns looking to Jesus for hope as you grasp hold of God’s vision. When we seek God’s vision and follow His direction He will guide us to save many from perishing.

3. Be ready to take steps of faith (Joshua 1:3). The Lord didn’t tell Joshua to sit down and the conquest would come to him; God said He would give him every place that he set his foot. Up to this point, the Israelites had been roaming for decades and had yet to arrive to where they expected. Joshua had been along in this journey, but he took heart not to stagnate or let up. This was a new time to go forth in full confidence. When you take action with direction from the Lord, things that felt impossible before, things that haven’t worked, and strategies that failed can be conquered. Because it is not you that is working, it is God working through you (see Gideon in Judges 6-7). To get ready for new conquest you must have faith, but remember faith without works is dead, so you also need to get moving. Ask God today in prayer for new strategies and declare that every place you go He will equip you, use you and be glorified.

4. Recognise the authority that God has given you (Joshua 1:5). God gives you authority when you walk in His purposes. He told Joshua although there had been battles before and ahead, Joshua had His authority, and nothing would overcome him. God didn’t say there would be no opposition, but He said to be bold and strong to go forward because God would never leave him. You may be facing challenges at this moment, but you can know the Lord’s presence with you. We need to ask for the authority of Holy Spirit, the presence of God upon us as we go out into the culture of the world. It was this authority that brought rapid growth for the disciples and the early church after Pentecost (Acts 1:8). To get ready for new conquest we need more of the Holy Spirit, and to desire the presence of God every day. His Spirit gives us the authority to stand strong and take new ground.

5. Know that your commitment to the word of God is key to your success (Joshua 1:8). Joshua needed to understand that God's words were what would give him the strength to go on and the courage to lead the people. If we want to see this generation saved we must come to a new level in our devotional time. Become resilient in your knowledge of the Bible. It will protect you and bless you. We must be bold to declare the word of God. We must meditate on it, pursue it, and live by it. The Bible teaches that the power of the tongue brings life and death. What you speak out is important. Keep words of faith and life on your lips at all times. Look at situations through the living word of God. When you are declaring the promises of God, you are speaking faith into action (2 Corinthians 9:8; Isaiah 61:1). You can see a great move of God in your life. Maybe you have allowed thoughts to come in and tell you that your dreams will always only be a dream, other people in your family have tried to make things happen but never succeeded. But you are of the Joshua generation. We can see a great move of God in this nation with many people saved and families restored. It is time to throw off negativity and failures of the past. Rise up to the position that God has for you, visualise what you can conquer, take steps of faith and stand upon the word, for as we read in Joshua 1, the Lord is going to help take possession of the land He has for us.