Introduction: Have you ever started a new project and were
uncertain how it would turn out? The new law students at
Regent University School of Law, where I teach, are like
that. No doubt this is true for all new law students. Will
they succeed in becoming lawyers? What kind of law will they
practice? Will they be successful? This week our study is
one of the final speeches of Joshua. He is now old. Like
the first-year law students, he once had a new project of
conquering the land promised to them by God. It was a
success and now Joshua has important advice about what he
has learned so the Hebrews can continue to have successful
lives. Let’s listen in and learn about how to be successful!
I. Advice from the Aged
A. Read Joshua 23:1. What informs us that Joshua is a
successful man? (Israel has “rest” from all their
surrounding enemies. This was Joshua’s mission as
a young man.)
1. What tells us that Joshua has the right
attitude about his success? (Success is
attributed to the Lord.)
2. We are told that Joshua was “old” and “well
advanced in years.” How old do you think he
was? (Read Joshua 24:29. He was 110 when he
died. We do not know his precise age when he
gave the advice contained in Joshua 23, but
Joshua 24:29 says “after these things,” which
implies the advice was at the end of his
life.)
B. Read Joshua 23:2-3. Aside from being old, what
gives Joshua a legitimate claim to give advice?
(He had a partnership with God that brought
success to Israel.)
1. Should you listen to the advice of everyone
who is old? (No. Just because people are old
does not mean they have valuable advice. An
unsuccessful person might be able to tell you
what not to do, but the best advice comes from
a successful person who tells you what you
should do.)
C. Read Joshua 23:4-5. An important question when you
seek advice from the aged is, “What constitutes
success?” What do you think constitutes success? A
great career? Wealth? A long and enjoyable
marriage? The ability to get along with others?
Being happy? Being content?
1. How does Joshua 23:4-5 answer the question of
what is success? (God’s promises to them have
been fulfilled. The partnership with God
worked.)
2. Let’s have a reality check here. The Hebrews
have not conquered all the land. How can you
call this success when the work is unfinished?
(Success not only depends on a partnership
with God, it relies on His timing. Verse 4
tells us the future has been mapped out (the
inheritance “allotted”) and God will make sure
the work is completed.)
a. Is this true for your life? If your work
has not been completed, can we call you a
success? (Yes, if the resolution is in
God’s hands.)
D. Read Exodus 23:28-30. What is the reason for
success not coming in one year? (It would be less
of a blessing to move into land that was desolate
and contained many wild beasts.)
1. What lesson do we learn if we think that our
success in life is not coming as fast as we
think God should bring it? (Trust God with the
task and the timing.)
II. Guardrails
A. Read Joshua 23:6. What is essential to success?
(Obedience to God.)
1. What do you think is meant by not turning to
the “right hand nor to the left?” (The obvious
parallel is going down a road. Take the
correct road and do not deviate.)
a. I think too many Christians miss the
practical application. Many believe that
strict obedience to God is the key to
salvation. They will not admit that their
works save them, but that is the logical
conclusion to their point of view. Many
(likely more) Christians think that their
actions do not matter because they are
saved by grace. We are saved by grace,
but what we have been studying in Joshua
shows the extreme importance of obedience
for a successful life on earth.
B. Read Joshua 23:7-8. What do you think it means to
“mix” with the nations? Turning off the road means
that you mix, so what does that mean as a
practical matter? (When I was growing up, I
understood this to mean that we would look like
the pagans in “adornments” and the clothes we
wore. In my old age that is no longer my opinion.
The real turning to other gods is giving up what
the Bible says because of what the world says. An
extreme example of this is same-sex marriage. The
Bible is explicit that this is sin. Any Christian
who promotes same-sex marriage has decided to
follow the world and not the Bible.)
1. When verse 7 tells us not to “bow down” to the
false gods, what does that mean with regard to
pagan concepts invading the church? (We cannot
acknowledge that pagan concepts are right. You
expect pagans to act like pagans. We simply
cannot bow to their views.)
III. Moving in Power
A. Read Joshua 23:9-10. How powerful are you in the
fight for God’s Kingdom? (One Christian can defeat
1,000 pagans because “the Lord your God fights for
you.” Remember this when you think you are about
to be defeated.)
B. Read Joshua 23:11. We are told that we must “love”
God. Is it possible to make a decision and find
that we suddenly love Him? (I don’t think so.
Instead, what happens is that we make a decision
to follow God. That decision results in us knowing
Him better and experiencing His love for us. That
creates love for God.)
C. Read Joshua 23:12-13. In addition to God no longer
helping you if you turn away from Him, what else
will happen to you? (Life becomes painful. You
feel like you were whipped on your sides and have
thorns in your eyes.)
1. What do you think it means to have “thorns in
your eyes?” (Having any foreign object in your
eye is uncomfortable and distracting. I think
this means that the problems in life distract
you from enjoying life.)
IV. Conclusion
A. Read Joshua 23:14. As Joshua tells the people that
he is about to die, he asks them to confirm in
their deepest understanding that God has been
faithful. Can we have confidence in what Joshua
writes? (Yes. Think about this. He asks the people
who have lived with him to confirm the truth of
his statement. He would not write that if the
people were grumbling about the truth of one of
his last statements.)
B. Read Joshua 23:15-16. You repeat something if you
think it is important. This is a repetition of
what Joshua has said earlier. If you were part of
Joshua’s audience, what conclusion would you
reach? (We have a choice. Just as God is steadfast
to bless us when we serve Him, so we can be
certain that if we “serve other gods,” bad things
will follow.)
C. Friend, the advice of the aged Joshua is
priceless. His life, and the book of Joshua, show
that his final advice is solid. If we obey God we
prosper. If we disobey God we suffer. Will you,
right now, make the choice to follow God? If you
do, blessings will follow.
V. Next week: Choose This Day!
Copr. 2025, Bruce N. Cameron, J.D. Scripture quotations are
from the ESV Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard
Version ), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing
ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All
rights reserved. Suggested answers are found within
parentheses. If you normally receive this lesson by e-mail,
but it is lost one week, you can find it by clicking on this
link: http://www.GoBible.org. Pray for the guidance of the
Holy Spirit as you study.
