Faith over Fear
Joshua 2025 • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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· 4 viewsAre you walking by faith or relying on calculated risk? In this message, we dive into Joshua 1 to explore the difference between trusting God’s eternal plan and leaning on our human understanding. Discover five powerful proclamations God made to Joshua that remind us His promises are backed by His power, provision, and purpose. When we choose faith over fear, we step into the victory God has already prepared for us. Join us as we learn how to walk boldly in obedience, trust in God’s Word, and experience His blessings in every area of life.
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Faith vs. Calculated Risk
Good morning, church! Today, I want to open with a question that goes right to the heart of how we live out our belief in God: Are we walking by faith, or are we merely calculating our risks?
The Bible tells us, “We walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7). But let’s be honest—how often do we find ourselves doing the opposite? We evaluate our decisions based on probabilities, logic, and outcomes we think we can control. We step forward when the numbers add up, when the path seems clear, or when we feel like the reward outweighs the risk. But is that what faith looks like?
Faith calls us to trust in the Word of God, even when the odds don’t seem to be in our favor. It calls us to believe in His promises, even when our circumstances tell us otherwise. Calculated risk, on the other hand, is rooted in self-reliance. It’s our human way of making decisions based on what we can see, predict, and measure.
But here’s the key difference: Calculated risk keeps you in control. Faith, however, puts God in control. Calculated risk asks, “What can I manage?” while faith asks, “What has God promised?”
As we start our journey to the land that God has given us to possess, I couldn’t think of a better book for this year than the book of Joshua. we’re going to explore a pivotal moment when Joshua had to choose between faith and calculated risk. My prayer is that by the end of this message, we’ll be reminded that trusting in God’s Word is the foundation of a life that not only pleases Him but also unlocks His power and provision.
As we dive into the book of Joshua we start with 5 proclamations that God makes to Joshua that should cause us to walk in faith and not fear.
Exposition
God’s Plan is Eternal, Not Temporal.
God’s Plan is Eternal, Not Temporal.
Key Truth: Faith sees God’s eternal victory before it unfolds in our timeline.
1 After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ assistant, 2 “Moses my servant is dead. Now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land that I am giving to them, to the people of Israel.
God’s plan is bigger than any one man.
God’s plan is bigger than any one man.
The scope of God’s plan will aways outlast the leader.
The scope of God’s plan will aways outlast the leader.
The leader’s job is to understand where he fits in God’s plan.
The leader’s job is to understand where he fits in God’s plan.
Moses was the deliverer, a type of Christ.
Moses was the deliverer, a type of Christ.
Joshua was the leader, a type of Christ.
Joshua was the leader, a type of Christ.
God’s history is our future.
God’s history is our future.
What is going to happen has already happened in the mind of God.
What is going to happen has already happened in the mind of God.
Faith is walking in God’s victory before it happens.
Faith makes decisions based on the Word of God and not our human efforts.
When you are sure of God’s Word you make decisions from a place of assured victory and not uncertain defeat.
The land is prepared for the everlasting kingdom of Christ.
The land is prepared for the everlasting kingdom of Christ.
4 On that day his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives that lies before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two from east to west by a very wide valley, so that one half of the Mount shall move northward, and the other half southward.
9 And the Lord will be king over all the earth. On that day the Lord will be one and his name one. 10 The whole land shall be turned into a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem. But Jerusalem shall remain aloft on its site from the Gate of Benjamin to the place of the former gate, to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the king’s winepresses. 11 And it shall be inhabited, for there shall never again be a decree of utter destruction. Jerusalem shall dwell in security.
16 Then everyone who survives of all the nations that have come against Jerusalem shall go up year after year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Booths. 17 And if any of the families of the earth do not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, there will be no rain on them.
God’s Plan is His Responsibility, Not Ours.
God’s Plan is His Responsibility, Not Ours.
Key Truth: The weight of God’s promises is on His shoulders, not ours.
3 Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given to you, just as I promised to Moses. 4 From the wilderness and this Lebanon as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites to the Great Sea toward the going down of the sun shall be your territory.
We are not obligated to fulfil God’s promises.
We are not obligated to fulfil God’s promises.
Take that pressure off of yourself.
Take that pressure off of yourself.
God never intended for you to carry His burden. God knows you can’t carry his burden.
Joshua was just another faithful servant that God used to bring about his promises.
Joshua was just another faithful servant that God used to bring about his promises.
God chose us to carry out his promises.
God chose us to carry out his promises.
The story didn’t start with you and it won’t end with you. You are to be faithful to your calling and time.
At the end of Paul’s life as he was passing the torch of ministry to Timothy he assured him of these truths.
12 For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day.
Paul wasn’t fighting his own battles.
Paul put his trust in the Lord of the battle.
God’s Plan come with Power.
God’s Plan come with Power.
Key Truth: The presence of God gives us strength and courage.
5 No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you. 6 Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them.
Our strength and courage come from the presence of the Lord.
Our strength and courage come from the presence of the Lord.
Hillsong United wrote a song entitled, “Another in the Fire.”
There is another in the fire
Standing next to me
There is another in the waters
Holding back the seas
And should I ever need reminding
What power set me free
There is a grave that holds no body
And now that power lives in me
A promise is useless if there is no power to back it up.
A promise is useless if there is no power to back it up.
7 for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.
God’s Plan comes with Provision.
God’s Plan comes with Provision.
Key Truth: Obedience to God’s Word unlocks His provision and prosperity.
Joshua 1:7–8 (ESV)
7 Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go. 8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.
1 Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; 2 but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. 3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.
To live in God’s provision you got to stick to the plan.
To live in God’s provision you got to stick to the plan.
Living in God’s Word is a requirement for victory and success.
Living in God’s Word is a requirement for victory and success.
Stick to the path if you want God’s prosperity.
Stick to the path if you want God’s prosperity.
This is the only condition and responsibility put on Joshua.
This is the only condition and responsibility put on Joshua.
God is not obligated if you are not willing to follow his lead.
God is not obligated if you are not willing to follow his lead.
God is not obligated to bless your path. God obligates himself to bless his plan.
God is not obligated to bless your path. God obligates himself to bless his plan.
All things don’t work out for good.
All things don’t work out for good.
28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.
When you walk according to his purpose you get all his power and provision.
When you walk according to his purpose you get all his power and provision.
God’s plan comes with command.
God’s plan comes with command.
Key Truth: Faith honors God’s commands, even when they defy human logic.
9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
Be strong and courageous in the command of the Lord.
Be strong and courageous in the command of the Lord.
There is no calculated risk with the command of the Lord.
There is no calculated risk with the command of the Lord.
We walk by faith in the command of the Lord.
We walk by faith in the command of the Lord.
Honor God’s chain of command.
Honor God’s chain of command.
Here is where is gets a little tricky. You might not receive the command if your not the Shepherd that God has chosen. God has always worked through a chain of command.
In the home: Christ, Husband, Wife, Kids
In the Church: Christ, Elder, Shepherds, Flock
1. God commands his chosen leader.
1. God commands his chosen leader.
The Leader get in trouble when they start listening to the sheep instead of the Shepherd.
The Leader get in trouble when they start listening to the sheep instead of the Shepherd.
Sheep are all over the place. “Well I think we should do this!” (Baaa Baaa)
Sheep are all over the place. “Well I think we should do this!” (Baaa Baaa)
2. God’s leader speaks to the officers of the people.
2. God’s leader speaks to the officers of the people.
10 And Joshua commanded the officers of the people, 11 “Pass through the midst of the camp and command the people, ‘Prepare your provisions, for within three days you are to pass over this Jordan to go in to take possession of the land that the Lord your God is giving you to possess.’ ”
The Leader must be careful when articulating God’s command. (ie. The Lord told me)
The Leader must be careful when articulating God’s command. (ie. The Lord told me)
The Lord gives liberty in some areas of life.
The Lord gives liberty in some areas of life.
3. God’s people have faith that they have recieved the word of the Lord (The Spirit bears witness of his truth.)
3. God’s people have faith that they have recieved the word of the Lord (The Spirit bears witness of his truth.)
16 And they answered Joshua, “All that you have commanded us we will do, and wherever you send us we will go. 17 Just as we obeyed Moses in all things, so we will obey you. Only may the Lord your God be with you, as he was with Moses!
4. God’s people walk in faith of the word they have recieved.
4. God’s people walk in faith of the word they have recieved.
Not everyone receives the command of the Lord but everyone is to obey his command.
The people trust that the leaders command is God’s command.
The people trust that the leaders command is God’s command.
The people add strength and courage to the leader when the carry out God’s command.
The people add strength and courage to the leader when the carry out God’s command.
Closing Statement
Faith isn’t about playing it safe or relying on our calculations—it’s about trusting in God’s eternal plans, resting in His promises, and walking boldly in His power. Joshua’s story reminds us that when we step forward in obedience, God meets us with provision and victory. Let’s commit to being people who choose faith over fear, trusting God’s Word above all else.
Next Steps
Strive for clarity of God’s word and command. Give the Man of God time to Study, Pray, and Seek the face of God.
Strive for unity in the Spirit. There is no greater power on Earth than God’s people unified in his command.
Obey the command of the Lord. Do all that God has revealed to you personally and corporately.
RGroup Questions
Opening Reflection: Share a time when you faced a decision and had to choose between trusting God and relying on your own calculations. What did you learn?
Scripture Insight: Read Joshua 1:1-9. What stands out to you about God’s promises to Joshua? How do these promises apply to us today?
1. Faith in Action:
• What does it mean to trust in God’s plan over your own calculations?
• How can you encourage someone struggling to walk by faith?
2. Personal Application:
• Where in your life do you need to step out in faith?
• What can you do this week to align more closely with God’s plan and commands?
Prayer Time: Pray for one another to have the courage to trust God’s Word and follow His commands, even in uncertain times.
