A Journey Through The Old Testament - Elmer Towns

Still, it would be the work of Joshua to complete the task of leading Israel into the land of
promise to possess their possessions.
LEARNING TO LEAD
First there would be a time of training. For Joshua, the forty years in the wilderness was a
course of study by which God prepared him for his greater work of conquest and settling the land
of Canaan. It was a time of learning even when he did not want to learn. But the task was too
great to leave to the ignorant and unprepared, so Joshua, the servant of Moses, who would
become Joshua, the successor to Moses, was in the wilderness Joshua, the student of Moses. But
if Moses was the teacher, it was the Lord Himself who prepared the curriculum.
Learning about spiritual conflict
Joshua’s leadership training course began in the battle at Rephidim (Ex. 17:8-16; Deut.
3:21). It was there he first led the army of Israel against another nation. And it was there he
learned that the victory on the battlefield was that which the Lord gave. While Joshua’s
knowledge and skill in planning and executing strategic battle plans was important, it was the uplifted
arms of Moses in prayer that determined the success of the battle against the Amalekites.
There Joshua learned two important lessons. First, he discovered prayer was mightier than the
sword. Second, he was reminded that God was committed to the defense of His people.
Learning about solitary convictions
The second mention of Joshua in the Pentateuch is made when he accompanied Moses at
least partway up the mountain of God (Ex. 24:12-13; 32:15-18). During much of that forty-day
period, Moses was alone with God receiving the Law and pattern for the tabernacle. Joshua was
simply alone. The significance of this forty-day period which may have included a time of
fasting is that it was a time when Joshua could engage in some self-evaluation and determine
what was really important in his life. In the Scriptures, the number forty is often associated with
judgment, trials, and proving.
Learning about a separated communion
The third lesson of leadership is the importance of having communion with God Himself
(Ex. 33:11; Ps. 91:1). When Moses left the meeting with God in the tabernacle, Joshua remained
alone with God. There is a Jewish tradition that Moses wrote not only Psalm 90, but the nine
psalms which follow it. While that claim might be debated concerning some of the psalms in
question, there are good reasons to believe Psalm 91 was written by Moses concerning his
servant Joshua.
Learning about sectarian concerns
If Joshua was going to be a truly great leader, he was going to have to overcome what
might be called “sectarian concerns.” Often we limit our ability to serve God by attempting to
limit God to our preconceived ideas. In his zeal for God and the leader God had called to lead
Israel, Joshua on at least one occasion came close to hindering the work of God because two men
prophesied within the camp rather than outside the camp (Num. 11:28). On that occasion, Joshua
learned that the moving of the Spirit of God is too important to oppose simply because of minor
differences in its expression.