The Journey | Joshua 23 | Full Service | River Fellowship

Communion opens with a reading from Colossians 2:13–15, calling the assembly to remember spiritual realities: life in Christ, forgiveness, canceled debt, and victory over enemy powers through the cross. The Journey series frames Joshua 23 as a roadmap for thriving after transition. Joshua, near death, gathers Israel and issues four practical commands that shape faithful life in the promised land: remember, remove, remain, and realize. Remember demands active recollection of God’s victories, fulfilled promises, and the unearned inheritance that sustains grateful dependence rather than entitlement. Those memories anchor joy and motivate faithful obedience.

Remove confronts the habits and alliances that erode spiritual health. The text separates three categories of danger—delighting in ungodliness, depending on false supports, and devoting oneself to rival loyalties—and traces how small compromises become snares, thorns, and eventual loss of blessing. The warning targets present experience, not eternal standing: embracing the world forfeits present joy, victory, and influence. Practical removal means confessing, repenting, and cutting associations that normalize sinful delight.

Remain focuses on holding fast to God through two means: obedience to Scripture and a heart of love for the Lord. Obedience functions like gutter bumpers on a bowling lane—boundaries that keep the journey aimed at joy and impact. Loving God turns duty into delight; the combination of Scripture and affection produces increasing dependence, not independence, as spiritual maturity. Dependence on God grows with maturity: the mature Christian learns to need God more, not less.

Realize names the outcome. When memory informs life, when sin is removed, and when steadfast devotion anchors daily choices, the result becomes a sustained, joyous, victorious, and impactful journey. This realized blessing appears as everyday fruit—consistent obedience, freedom from recurring snares, and visible influence in the surrounding culture. The assembled are urged to delight in God alone, depend on him alone, and devote their lives to him so that the inheritance already given will flourish in daily living.

Key Takeaways

• 1. Remember God's past faithfulness Recollection becomes a spiritual discipline that sustains present courage. Remembering specific victories, promises, and unearned inheritance rewires expectations away from self-reliance and toward gratitude. Memory supplies the evidence needed to trust God in future struggles and diminishes the lure of immediate gratification. [37:56]
• 2. Remove sinful delights and dependencies Sin begins as curiosity and grows into devotion when given room; removal interrupts that progression. Separating delight, dependence, and devotion from ungodliness prevents snares that lead to loss of joy and ministry impact. Confession, repentance, and practical boundaries restore spiritual health and preserve inheritance. [42:03]
• 3. Hold fast to the Lord Clinging to God looks like obedience to Scripture coupled with wholehearted love. Scripture provides corrective bumpers; love supplies motive and intimacy, so obedience becomes relationship rather than legalism. Spiritual maturity moves toward deeper dependence, not independence. [52:11]
• 4. Realize joyous victory and impact The three practices—remembering, removing, remaining—produce a tangible outcome: sustained joy, spiritual wins, and kingdom influence. This is present blessing, not the guarantee of future salvation status; it describes how God’s people live as witnesses in the land. Living these patterns protects the inheritance from decay and enlarges practical fruitfulness. [62:20]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [22:04] - Communion and Colossians Reading
• [36:08] - The Journey Series Overview
• [36:49] - Joshua Nearing the End
• [37:56] - Remember: Recall God’s Work
• [42:03] - Remove: Cut Sin and Idols
• [52:11] - Remain: Hold Fast to God
• [62:20] - Realize: Joyous, Victorious Outcome
• [63:46] - Closing Prayer and Invitations

1. According to Joshua 23:3-5, what three specific things does Joshua command the people to remember about what God has done for them?
2. In Joshua 23:7, what three specific actions are the Israelites commanded to avoid regarding the surrounding nations and their gods?
3. What are the four consequences listed in Joshua 23:13 for turning back and allying with the pagan nations? [49:55]
4. What two things, found in verses 6, 8, and 11, are the positive commands given as the alternative to the prohibitions? [53:27]

1. The progression from "snares and traps" to "whips on your back" to "thorns in your eyes" [49:55] paints a vivid picture. What does this progression reveal about the nature of unchecked sin and compromise in a believer's life?
2. The command to "hold fast" or "cling" to the Lord is defined by both obedience to Scripture and a heart of love for God. [53:27] How do these two things—obedience and love—work together to create a healthy, lasting relationship with God rather than a legalistic religion?
3. The warning is that embracing the world leads to a loss of joy, victory, and impact, but not a loss of salvation. [50:59] How does understanding this distinction change the way we view God's commands and the consequences of our choices?
4. The concept of spiritual maturity is described as moving toward greater dependence on God, not independence from Him. [01:00:40] How does this biblical view of maturity contrast with the world's definition of maturity and success?

1. The discipline of remembering God's past victories is meant to rewire our expectations away from self-reliance. [37:56] What is one specific victory or promise God has fulfilled in your life that you can actively recall this week when you are tempted to worry or rely on yourself?
2. Sin often begins as a simple curiosity before it grows into a devotion. [42:03] Is there a habit, entertainment choice, or relationship in your life that started as harmless but is now becoming a "delight" that competes with your delight in God? What is one practical step you can take to "remove" its influence?
3. God's Word acts like gutter bumpers, keeping our journey aimed at joy. [55:58] Are there any areas of your life—your finances, thought life, or schedule—where you are currently ignoring these "bumpers"? What would it look like this week to realign your choices with the truth of Scripture in that area?
4. Who or what are you most tempted to depend on to "come through for you at crunch time" instead of God alone? [47:18] Is it your own wisdom, a financial safety net, or a particular person? How can you actively transfer that dependence to God through prayer and action?
5. The outcome of remembering, removing, and remaining is a tangible, joyous, and impactful daily life. [01:02:20] When you look at your current spiritual journey, which of these three areas feels the strongest? Which one feels the weakest? What is one thing you can do to strengthen the weakest area?