Be very careful to keep the commandment and the law that Moses the servant of the Lord gave you: to love the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, to keep his commands, to hold fast to him and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul. (Joshua 22:5)
If you are a fan of the iconic science fiction franchise Star Trek, which spanned 35 seasons of television totaling 774 episodes, going boldly where no man had gone before, you are familiar with the “Klingons.” They were initially antagonists to the crew of the USS Enterprise, but eventually became a close ally of the crew and of all humanity. Well, as you may have guessed, I am going to engage in some wordplay that I believe will provide a word of great encouragement for you as we walk through this pandemic.
The Lord called Moses to lead His people out of bondage in Egypt. Over the years, Moses demonstrated a walk with God that was second to none. In fact, he is the only person ever called “man of God” in the Torah—the first five books of the Old Testament. One of the men who benefited greatly from watching how Moses walked with the Lord was Joshua, who would eventually succeed Moses in leading Israel to the Promised Land.
In today’s passage, Joshua, the battle-hardened hero and sold-out leader of God’s people, had come to the point in his life where it was now his turn to turn over the reins of leadership, just as Moses had done with him years before. And so our Scripture for today provides inspired insight for walking faithfully with God, no matter what obstacles we may face: We are to hold fast—we are to “cling-on”—to God.
The unbelieving world would have us cling on to countless counterfeit gods, such as our appearance, our intellect, our status, our family name, and even our personal power and determination in order to win the day. But Joshua knew better than this. He knew what had equipped Moses to rise above the waves of challenge he faced, and he also knew what compelled him to do the same: clinging onto God with all his might and serving Him with all his heart and soul. It is only when we deliberately cling-on to God that we can overcome the obstacles we face in this life, such as distraction, disconnection, disillusionment, and discouragement.
The best way to walk through this COVID pandemic is to follow the advice of Joshua: We are to become real-life Cling-ons! We are to walk in obedience to God and cling on to Him every step of the way.
Oh, and by the way: When you feel like you might be losing your grip, fear not! He is holding you securely in His hand, and He has promised never to let you go.
You are in my prayers and in my heart.
Purpose and Passion,
Pastor Tommy
Grace for the Race 