Arise & Go Pt.1 Pastor Jono Zantingh

Sep 27, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: Leaves Sticking to Wet Shoulders in the Jordan’s Current

The changing season brings both clinging remnants of the past and the current of new beginnings. Just as autumn leaves stuck to wet skin while Joshua stood at the river’s edge, we face moments where what’s familiar clings stubbornly to us. God’s command to “arise and go” requires releasing yesterday’s comforts to step into today’s uncharted waters. Courage isn’t the absence of fear but the choice to move while still carrying fragments of what was. The Jordan’s flow reminds us that stagnation isn’t an option when God says “now.” [42:39]

“After the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, the LORD said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ assistant: ‘Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them—to the Israelites.’”
(Joshua 1:1-2, NLT)

Reflection: What “leaves” from past seasons still cling to you, and how might releasing them create space for God’s new current? Where do you sense the Spirit nudging you to step into the river’s flow today?

Day 2: Burying Single Grains to Harvest Fields

A solitary grain of wheat fears burial, unaware that death precedes multiplication. God’s promise often requires surrendering what we grip tightly—security, routines, or control—to receive greater fruitfulness. Like the Israelites hesitating before occupied land, we’re tempted to protect our “one grain” rather than trust the harvest ahead. True faith digs furrows in uncertainty, planting today’s small obediences for tomorrow’s abundance. [46:56]

“I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it remains alone. But its death will produce many new kernels—a plentiful harvest of new lives.”
(John 12:24, NLT)

Reflection: What “single grain” are you resisting surrendering to God’s soil? How might burying it in trust lead to harvests you can’t yet imagine?

Day 3: Prods, Not Pillows: God’s Promises Demand Posture

Divine assurances aren’t cushions for complacency but spurs to action. Joshua’s “be strong and courageous” repeats like a heartbeat, thrumming urgency into passive hearts. God’s faithfulness isn’t a reason to recline but to rise—preparing provisions, mapping steps, and gripping courage like a staff. Every “I will be with you” in Scripture comes with an unspoken “so move.” [59:41]

“See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.”
(Isaiah 43:19, NLT)

Reflection: Where have you treated God’s promises like a pillow rather than a prod? What one practical step can you take this week to align your posture with His “go”?

Day 4: Budgets as Altars: Stewarding Today’s Manna

Financial obedience is the gymnasium where faith muscles grow. Just as Israel gathered daily manna without hoarding, we’re called to hold resources with open palms. Preparing provisions for God’s promises means auditing our allegiances—does our spending reflect fear or faith? Every dollar becomes a declaration: “Your kingdom, not mine.” [58:09]

“Remember this—a farmer who plants only a few seeds will get a small crop. But the one who plants generously will get a generous crop. You must each decide in your heart how much to give.”
(2 Corinthians 9:6-7, NLT)

Reflection: If Jesus audited your last month’s budget, what line item would He highlight as faith? What adjustment today would declare “I trust Your provision more than my planning”?

Day 5: Spiritual Physio: Daily Reps for Eternal Strength

Obedience isn’t a weekly group session but daily reps with the Word. Like post-surgery exercises that rebuild atrophied muscles, consistent engagement with Scripture restores spiritual mobility. Joshua’s call to meditate “day and night” rejects quick fixes for the slow, steady work of bending our will to God’s. Strength comes not from inspiration but repetition. [01:08:00]

“Blessed is the one… whose delight is in the law of the LORD, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season.”
(Psalm 1:1-3, NLT)

Reflection: What “spiritual exercise” have you neglected that’s causing faith to limp? How will you schedule daily reps with God’s Word this week to rebuild strength?

Sermon Summary

Joshua 1 opens with a blunt word from God: “Moses, my servant, is dead. Now therefore, arise.” God does not let Joshua or Israel camp forever in the safety of yesterday, even when yesterday held Red Seas, manna, water from rocks, and the visible power of God. This is today, not yesterday. Faith means releasing what has been good and familiar when God is calling his people into what is next.

The grain of wheat makes the tension plain. What refuses to die remains alone, but what falls into the ground and dies bears much fruit. Fear works like anti-faith, projecting all the terrible what-ifs that have not happened and causing hearts to shrink back. Faith sees what God has already promised and moves forward, even before every answer is available. Courage is not something handed over by somebody else. Courage must be taken hold of.

God repeats the same word to Joshua four times: be strong and courageous. God grounds that command in his own unchanging character: “Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you.” Israel must cross into occupied land as though it already belongs to them because God has already given it. God’s people live on promises, not explanations. Despair, uncertainty, lack, and fear do not get the final word because the Lord is present wherever his people go.

Joshua’s command to prepare provisions reveals that promise does not cancel responsibility. Preparing provisions equals possessing promise. God’s promises are not pillows for indolence but prods toward surrender, wise stewardship, and active obedience. Money particularly exposes the question of lordship: if everything belongs to God, what would God give back to first? Christ’s kingdom, the gospel proclaimed, and people far from God matter more than building a private kingdom of comfort and control.

Joshua 1 also ties courage to Scripture. The Book of the Law must not depart from Israel’s mouth; it must be meditated on day and night so that God’s people carefully do what is written. The image of rehabilitation exercises presses the point: spiritual strength does not grow through one weekly pit stop. Obedience to God’s Word builds the muscles needed for a flourishing life of faith.

Jesus brings this call into full clarity. His death pays sin’s penalty, his resurrection breaks sin’s power, and his presence makes surrendered obedience possible. God is faithful, and the required response is faithful surrender today: arise, go, take courage, prepare, and obey.

Key Takeaways

1. Today is not yesterday God’s command begins by naming what has ended. Yesterday’s victories can become a hiding place when hearts prefer familiar memories to present obedience. Faith honors what God has done without making the past an idol. God gives grace for the step in front of his people today. [45:01]
2. Take courage without full explanations God does not promise Joshua a detailed map before the river crossing. God promises his presence, his character, and his faithfulness. Courage grows when hearts trust who God is even while the road ahead remains unclear. [53:49]
3. Promises require prepared obedience God’s gift of the land does not remove Israel’s responsibility to prepare, cross, and take possession. Stewardship of money, time, and resources reveals whether Christ is truly Lord over the whole life. God’s promises call for costly, practical, active faith. [56:13]
4. God’s Word builds spiritual strength Joshua is commanded to meditate on God’s Word day and night and to carefully do it. A life of faith cannot be sustained by occasional exposure to Scripture any more than a recovering body is strengthened by skipping its exercises. Obedience forms strength, stability, and fruitfulness over time. [67:14]
5. Surrender answers God’s faithfulness Jesus has already made full provision for forgiveness, restored relationship with the Father, and new life by the Spirit. God’s faithfulness does not produce passivity but a willing yes to Christ’s authority. A surrendered life stops pretending to be its own boss.

## [74:46]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[40:40] - Arise and Go: A New Season
[43:07] - Joshua at the Jordan River
[44:35] - Moses Is Dead, Arise and Go
[46:27] - This Is Today, Not Yesterday
[48:46] - God Is Faithful, Take Courage
[51:44] - Keep Moving Through the Valley
[54:33] - Promises, Not Explanations
[55:38] - Faith for People Far From God
[56:13] - Preparing Provisions for Promise
[59:06] - God’s Promises Are Prods
[61:34] - Meditate and Obey God’s Word
[64:29] - Obedience Builds Spiritual Strength
[69:08] - Prayer to Arise and Go
[74:31] - Surrender to King Jesus

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading

Joshua 1:1-9
“After the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, the LORD said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ assistant: “Moses my servant is dead. Therefore, the time has come for you to lead these people, the Israelites, across the Jordan River into the land I am giving them. I promise you what I promised Moses: ‘Wherever you set foot, you will be on land I have given you— from the Negev wilderness in the south to the Lebanon mountains in the north, from the Euphrates River in the east to the Mediterranean Sea in the west, including all the land of the Hittites.’ No one will be able to stand against you as long as you live. For I will be with you as I was with Moses. I will not fail you or abandon you. Be strong and courageous, for you are the one who will lead these people to possess all the land I swore to their ancestors I would give them. Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave you. Do not deviate from them, turning either to the right or to the left. Then you will be successful in everything you do. Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do. This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” [44:33]

John 12:24
“I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it remains alone. But its death will produce many new kernels—a plentiful harvest of new lives.” [46:51]

Hebrews 13:5-6
“Don’t love money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said, “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.” So we can say with confidence, “The LORD is my helper, so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me?” [52:46]

Observation questions

What changes in Joshua’s situation are named at the beginning of Joshua 1, and what does God command Joshua to do next? [44:33]
How often is Joshua told to be strong and courageous in this chapter, and what reason does God give for that command? [49:04]
What actions are the people told to take before crossing the Jordan, even though God has already promised them the land? [56:10]
What does Joshua 1 connect with meditating on God’s Word day and night, and what response is expected from God’s people? [01:01:44]

Interpretation questions

Why would God begin Joshua’s new assignment by plainly naming Moses’ death? What does this reveal about the difference between honoring God’s past faithfulness and becoming stuck in the past? [45:01]
Jesus uses the picture of a seed falling into the ground and dying in John 12:24. How does that image help explain why familiar comforts, control, or old patterns may need to be surrendered for new fruit to grow? [46:46]
God promised Israel the land, but still told them to prepare, cross over, and take possession. What does this teach about the relationship between trusting God’s promises and taking responsible action? [59:04]
Hebrews 13 connects freedom from the love of money with God’s promise never to leave his people. Why might fear about money, lack, or the future make it difficult for a believer to live courageously? [52:42]

Application questions

Is there a past season, success, disappointment, or familiar routine that has become a place of safety for you? What might it look like to thank God for the past without allowing yesterday to keep you from obeying him today? [46:09]
What “what if” fear most often causes you to shrink back—fear of failure, lack, other people’s opinions, uncertainty, or something else? What promise of God’s presence can you choose to hold onto this week? [47:31]
Where do you sense God inviting you to take the next right step without first receiving every explanation or answer? What would taking courage look like in one practical action? [53:46]
If your spending, saving, giving, calendar, and use of energy showed what has first place in your life, what would they reveal? Is there one area where you want to practice more surrendered stewardship? [57:52]
Who in your life is far from God and needs the hope of Jesus? What is one simple, intentional step you could take this week to pray for them, care for them, or open a spiritual conversation? [55:02]
What is your present pattern of reading, meditating on, and obeying Scripture beyond a weekly gathering? What small and realistic daily practice could help build spiritual strength over the next week? [01:07:20]

Sermon Clips

46s

#SurrenderToJesus

“And maybe you're here watching from home and you've never prayed this prayer. You've never made this decision before. But you walked in here today believing the lie that you have to prove something to the world and you have to do it on your own. And the spirit of the living God is here to compel your heart towards the truth that your life is not your own. You've been bought with a price. Jesus willingly went to the cross to take the full penalty of our sin and our shame upon his shoulders. He was raised to life to set us free from the power of sin and darkness, the lies of the enemy, and all that's required is your willing yes, and your life surrendered.”

51s

#GodIsFaithful

“The God of the universe is with you and he is for you. He will never leave you. He will never forsake you. And that through his son, Jesus Christ, our mediator, we have full access to an active and alive relationship with the father. That we don't have to do this on our own. God is faithful. All that's required is our faithful response. God has given us his spirit and his word. All that's required is our obedient response. God has entrusted us with all that we hold. All that's required is our surrender. And God has entrusted us with today. And so all that's required is how we live today as a credit to the message of Christ Jesus.”

42s

#LifeOfSurrender

“One of the tensions that we face in this world, a cultural pressure that's really real is, you've gotta be the boss. You're the boss of your own life. You're in control. You get to write your own story. You get to speak your own truth. Actually, none of that's true. I live in surrender. My life is not my own. I've been bought with a price. I live in deep yielded surrender to the power and the authority and the lordship of Christ Jesus. Where he leads me, I will follow. As he asks, I will respond. He is faithful, are we?”

28s

#FaithOverFear

“And the fear of the what ifs begin to attach themselves to our heart, and fear is the anti faith. It works the same way. It projects images and thoughts and ideas that haven't happened yet and cause us to shrink back. Faith projects images and imagination and thoughts and ideas of what God has already given to us and moves us forward in faith.”

35s

#GreatCommission

“Believing God for someone else to know Jesus takes this kind of radical faith to think outside of ourselves, to reject the lie that Christianity is a consumerism buffet that I get to eat at once a week, and move into the faith that there is a purpose and a mission on our lives, each one of us, to be active participants in the great commission. The Lord is our helper. Take the step of faith that God has promised. Arise and go.”

42s

#NewSeasonOfFaith

“Listen, this is today, church. This is not yesterday. This is not how we saw God do spectacular things a year ago or four years ago or eight years ago. We all feel a sense of ease and safety in how things were, in how things used to be. Why? Because it's sure. We're like, I I could touch that. I could smell that. I could taste that. I could see that. I remember that. But when I look ahead, I don't have that same surety. But that's the point. Ours is a life of faith. We're called to this journey of faith, which means that old things have to die.”

61s

#CostlyObedience

“To that, I wanna say, let's be careful to obey, to do what he has commanded us to do. I wanna be clear. In this image of the Israelites and Joshua, in no way do I presume to be Joshua. Can I be clear on that? This is about us obeying God, not you obeying me. K? Is that is that clear? This is about us together as a people, as a family on mission, obeying the father. All that's required is our faithful obedience in answering the call to arise and go. And and that's quite a lot. It's gonna cost us something. Our obedience is meant to be costly. It's meant to prioritize Jesus and his kingdom over me and my own kingdom.”

59s

#KingdomStewardship

“And the taking of that courage is deeply impacted by the truth that you are always with us. To take courage because this is today, it's not yesterday. It's a new day. And all we have is today. To take courage, father, because you are faithful and we, your sons and daughters, commit to being faithful to you. To take courage to prepare our provisions for the promise that's ahead. God, to be wise stewards of what's in our hand. To recognize that the greatest investment we can make with our lives, with our time, with our talent, with our resources, with our finances. The greatest investment we can make is your kingdom come and your will be done here in Edmonton as it is in heaven.”

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