God is Faithfull

 When John F. Kennedy addressed the United States at his inau-

guration, on January 20, 1961, his speech was only 1,366

words, but it left an indelible mark on the American mind. As

he encouraged his country to focus on their responsibilities instead of

their privileges, he said: “With a good conscience our only sure reward,

with history the final judge of our deeds, let us go forth to lead the land

we love, asking His blessing and His help, but knowing that here on

earth God’s work must truly be our own.”

As Joshua, the aging leader of the Israelites, sensed that he was near-

ing the end of his life, he decided to address the leaders of the nation

and the Israelites (Joshua 23 and 24). Joshua 23 is focused more on

the future and on how to worship God—exclusively. Joshua 24 reviews

God’s faithful acts in the past, with the purpose to prompt a decision

concerning who alone deserves to be worshiped: Yahweh.

This week, we will study together the first speech of Joshua, in which

he glances back at the victories of Israel but at the same time traces the

path of future success for Israel.

“Satan deceives many with the plausible theory that God's love for

His people is so great that He will excuse sin in them; he represents that

while the threatenings of God’s word are to serve a certain purpose in

His moral government, they are never to be literally fulfilled. But in all

His dealings with His creatures God has maintained the principles of

righteousness by revealing sin in its true character—by demonstrating

that its sure result is misery and death. The unconditional pardon of sin

never has been, and never will be. Such pardon would show the aban-

donment of the principles of righteousness, which are the very founda-

tion of the government of God. It would fill the unfallen universe with

consternation. God has faithfully pointed out the results of sin, and if

these warnings were not true, how could we be sure that His promises

would be fulfilled? That so-called benevolence which would set aside

justice is not benevolence but weakness.

“God is the life-giver. From the beginning all His laws were ordained

to life. But sin broke in upon the order that God had established, and

discord followed. So long as sin exists, suffering and death are inevi-

table. It is only because the Redeemer has borne the curse of sin in

our behalf that man can hope to escape, in his own person, its dire

results.”—Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 522