Today's Devotion
Monday March 16, 2026
INTERESTING FACTS : “EACH EPOCH HAS FOUND IN THE GOSPELS WHAT IT SOUGHT TO FIND THERE, AND HAS OVERLOOKED WHAT IT WISHED TO OVERLOOK.” -- LUDWIG VON MISES
DAILY READING : JOSHUA 19 - 21
TEXT : Jos 21:43 And the LORD gave unto Israel all the land which he sware to give unto their fathers; and they possessed it, and dwelt therein. Jos 21:44 And the LORD gave them rest round about, according to all that he sware unto their fathers: and there stood not a man of all their enemies before them; the LORD delivered all their enemies into their hand. Jos 21:45 There failed not ought of any good thing which the LORD had spoken unto the house of Israel; all came to pass.
THEME : FAITH IN GOD
As we read, we see the end of the distribution of land to the tribes of Israel. Thus, we read in Joshua 19:49 – 50: “When they had made an end of dividing the land for inheritance by their coasts, the children of Israel gave an inheritance to Joshua the son of Nun among them: According to the word of the LORD they gave him the city which he asked, even Timnathserah in mount Ephraim: and he built the city, and dwelt therein.
As a true servant of God, Joshua is served last as we would expect from a genuine servant. His waiting is a sign of his humility, unselfish interest in the affairs of Israel, and his dependence on God. His faith in God, of course, was a lifetime trait. Unlike leaders today – both inside and outside the Church, who like the sons of Eli the High Priest who by thefts and fornication take advantage of the people they are called to serve, Joshua was an honest and upright servant. He knew his time to receive was when everyone else was served, though he could have easily put himself first being as great a man as he was.
Yet, herein lies the secret of all truly great men – they have a disinterested attitude to self and a full devotion and patriotism to God and country. Simply said, they put God and [in Israel’s case at least] and their nation first. What happens to them is second to duty. Many Christians need to learn a lesson from Joshua – the Kingdom first, all else second.
Or in the words of the poet, Louisa May Alcott –
“I slept, and dreamed that life was beauty;
I woke, and found that life was duty.
Was thy dream then a shadowy lie?
Toil on, sad heart, courageously,
And thou shall find thy dream to be
A noonday light and truth to thee.”[1]
Leaders today, again, inside and outside the Church who are called to serve must awake from their dreams of gaining all they can for themselves, and think of others. This is particularly true of Christian leaders whose dreams and vision are rarely of duty, but rather of avarice, ambition, and popularity.
Matthew Henry remarks on Joshua 19: 49 –
“Joshua waited till all the tribes were settled, before he asked any provision for himself. He was content to be unfixed, till he saw them all placed, and herein is an example to all in public places, to prefer the common welfare before private advantage. Those who labour most to do good to others, seek an inheritance in the Canaan above: but it will be soon enough to enter thereon, when they have done all the service to their brethren of which they are capable. Nor can anything more effectually assure them of their title to it, than endeavouring to bring others to desire, to seek, and to obtain it. Our Lord Jesus came and dwelt on earth, not in pomp but poverty, providing rest for man, yet himself not having where to lay his head; for Christ pleased not himself. Nor would he enter upon his inheritance, till by his obedience to death he secured the eternal inheritance for all his people; nor will he account his own glory completed, till every ransomed sinner is put in possession of his heavenly rest.”
TRUTH FOR TODAY : WHAT GOD HAS PROMISED HE WILL PERFORM!
The words of Joshua 21:45 are engaging and provocative. “There failed not ought of any good thing which the LORD had spoken unto the house of Israel; all came to pass.” The Scriptures record - not one promise or prophecy of God failed. Everything God said came to pass. This is what we expect if God has truly spoken. For us, this is what we should anticipate if God truly wrote the Bible which, He did. Therefore, every, as well as any prophecy, promise, and principle contained in the Bible will come to pass for all who trust in God as Joshua did. No one word of God will f all to the ground.
“Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.” [Mat 24:35]
We have a similar statement made by King Solomon after he finished building the Temple.
“And it was so, that when Solomon had made an end of praying all this prayer and supplication unto the LORD, he arose from before the altar of the LORD, from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread up to heaven. And he stood, and blessed all the congregation of Israel with a loud voice, saying, Blessed be the LORD, that hath given rest unto his people Israel, according to all that he promised: there hath not failed one word of all his good promise, which he promised by the hand of Moses his servant. [1 Kings 8:45 – 56]
This declaration of Solomon is uttered about 450 years after Joshua’s identical testimony and the death of Moses 7 years earlier. Again, our expectation, if we live in true faith, is to read [or hear] these declarations since God has spoken and written His Words in a Book.
We should note not all the land was possessed due to the people’s laziness or unbelief. Because of this lack of obedience, all the nations Israel allowed to stay in Canaan was a constant source of irritation and trouble for them. Therefore, when Joshua stated nothing had failed of what God foretold, it is evident he speaks of God fulfilling His promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and not the people’s failure to believe or obey. In other words, what was not possessed by Israel was their fault not God’s.
On this point, John Calvin wrote –
“In order to remove every appearance of discrepancy, it is right to distinguish well between the clear, unwavering, and certain fidelity of God in the fulfilment of His promises, and the weakness and indolence of the people, which caused the blessings of God to slip from their hands. Whatever war the people undertook, in whatever direction they carried their standards, there was victory ready to their hand; nor was there anything to retard or prevent the extermination of all their enemies except their own slothfulness. Consequently, although they did not destroy them all, so as to empty the land for their own possession, the truth of God stood out as distinctly as if they had; for there would have been no difficulty in their accomplishment of all that remained to be done, if they had only been disposed to grasp the victories that were ready to their hand.”
Therefore, let us be like Joshua and the great men of faith whose lives we read in the Holy Scriptures such as Abraham. It is said of Abraham that he did not stagger at the promise of God , but believed what God promised He was able to perform.
Rom 4:16 Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all, Rom 4:17 (As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were. Rom 4:18 Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations, according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be. Rom 4:19 And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara's womb: Rom 4:20 He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; Rom 4:21 And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. Rom 4:22 And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness. Rom 4:23 Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him; Rom 4:24 But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; Rom 4:25 Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.
These men and women of the Bible are our examples to follow. Therefore, let us be men and women of faith for what God has said or promised in the Word He WILL perform!
