Magnified By The Almighty
Sermon
When God Says, 'Let Me Alone'
First Lesson Sermons For Sundays After Pentecost (Last Third)
Moses is asleep in death. All of Moses that was mortal now rests in an unmarked grave, in the valley out in the plains of Moab.
Joshua, always full of faith and courage, is now in command. The task before him is formidable, to say the least. He must give leadership to a great host. He must lead them across the Jordan. He must effect the conquest of Canaan. And through it all he must continue that which Moses began, the building of a people.
He has completed the reconnaissance of Jericho, the initial stronghold in the land of promise, and now the leader and his people stand at the edge of the Jordan River. Knowing full well whom he represents, he posits the reality without hesitation and without reservation. "This is the Lord's work. He delivered us from Egyptian bondage. He has led us through the wilderness experience. In the distance is the Land of Promise. Therefore, Israel, sanctify yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you." Then, turning to the priests, he gives this command: "Take up the ark of the covenant (the symbolic and actual presence of the eternal among us), and pass over before the people." The priests did exactly as commanded. Heaven had been honored; ultimate authority had been given respect. Heaven now speaks directly and clearly to Joshua.
Says God, "This day will I begin to magnify thee in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so will I be with thee." Elevation is essential, but magnification is mandatory. God has lifted Joshua from the ranks. He is now sole occupant of the lofty place, the place of leadership and responsibility. But that alone is not enough. In order to strengthen the appointment, there must be something tantamount to an anointing.
"This day will I begin to magnify thee. By degrees day by day it will happen. Your image will increase; your stature will grow. I will magnify thee." What a word is this word "magnify." To magnify is to make larger than life. It is to enhance the state of being. Let us call it sanctified elevation. It is growth and height effected by the Creator for special purposes. You can't apply for it; it can't be bought; there are no magnification clubs to join, nothing after the order of a health and fitness club. This is God-stuff. This is a divine exclusive.
He appoints and anoints. David understood this quite well. He heard God say one day, "Touch not my anointed, and do my prophets no harm." This day will I begin to magnify thee in the sight of all Israel. The magnification will be visible; they will see it. It will be in evidence in your walk and in your talk, Joshua. Your very persona will declare,'Magnified by the Lord God Almighty.'Ê"
Now this is the unique characteristic of God's man. Uniqueness has to do with more than a certain air, or a particular way of dressing, or one's educational pedigree. These do not make for the uniqueness. It is this special act on the part of God, the magnification, and God effects it in a way that all are impelled to see it. "This day will I begin to magnify thee," and he did. From this day forward, and at the bank of River Jordan, God began to magnify Joshua.
The magnification is seen in at least three marvelous ways. It is first seen in the perpetuity of the promise. And that promise centers on a certain presence. It is the promise of a presence. It is not the promise of health or wealth; it is not the promise of fame and acclaim; it is not the promise of a trouble-free journey. Plainly, purely, and simply, it is the promise of a presence.
"As I was with Moses, so will I be with thee." Whenever the Lord's servant begins to embrace anything other than the promise, pain is bound to ensue. For you see, God doesn't appreciate alienation of affection. He dishonors dysfunctional relationships between Him and His servants. And this is why every preacher ought to pray daily, "Nothing between my soul and the Savior, so that his blessed face may be seen. Nothing preventing the least of his favor, keep the way clear, let nothing between." His presence is promised, and the promise is in perpetuity. As I was with Moses, so will I be with thee. That, my friends, is magnification.
Magnification is also seen in God's protection of His people. Joshua declared to the multitude, "Come hither and hear the words of the Lord your God. Hereby you shall know that the living God is among you, that He, without fail, will drive out from before you the Canaanites and Hittites and Hivites and Perizzites and Gergasites and the Amorities and the Jebusites." That is a lot of driving out.
"Nothing will prevent your progress in your movement to the land of promise. I brought you out of bondage, and I will carry you to Canaan. And I will do it under the direction of my servant Joshua. The Lord's protective power will be present." Now this protection element is vitally essential. Evil is so pervasive. Evil is everywhere. The demonic is so real and so active. Peace and tranquility are forever under assault. To simply declare, "We come in the name of the Lord," is not enough. For the vast majority of people have no real God consciousness. Satan, acting through such souls, is always trying to ditch God's train. He does it without the camp; he does it within the camp. Everybody who cries, "Lord, Lord," is not connected with the Kingdom. Many are in but not of the church. So you have to try the spirits even in the church. For the church is the bailiwick of backbiters, a haven for hypocrites, and a pavilion for pretenders. There is some of everything in the church.
The people's protection was ensured by Joshua's magnification. Whenever the people looked on the man, they knew that God was in him, and on him, and with him, and therefore in the midst. When they heard his name they knew that he was under a special anointing. You see, the name Joshua in Hebrew means "Jehovah is Salvation." And the Greek translation or rather transliteration of Joshua is "Jesus." Jesus is the believer's Joshua. Joshua was magnified by the Almighty. And it was clearly seen in God's protection of the people. There was a third manifestation of magnification. And it was seen in the performance of the impossible. Jordan's waters backed up as the people passed over on dry land, with the priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant before them. The record says, "All the people were passed clear over Jordan." It was harvesttime, that season when Jordan overflowed its banks. But in miraculous manner the waters which came down from above stood and rose up upon a heap very far from the city of Adam that is beside Zaretan ... And the people passed over right against Jericho.
"I will magnify thee." They crossed Jordan and stood before Jericho, their first military objective in the Promised Land. They asked Joshua, "What do we do now? Jericho is walled in and shut up." Joshua, you remember, was being magnified from day to day and from experience to experience. And the Lord speaks to those whom He magnifies.
"Joshua," says God, "I have given to your hand Jericho and the king therein and all the mighty men of valor. You shall surround the city and go round about it once a day for six days in succession. On the seventh day I want you to have seven priests bear before the Ark seven trumpets of rams' horns. And on the seventh day go around the city seven times and have the priests blow the trumpets. When you hear a long blast of the sound of the trumpet, have all the people shout and the wall of the city shall fall down." And that is what happened. Jericho's wall came tumbling down. It came down because in reality it was the Lord's battle. And he magnified Joshua in the performance of the impossible.
We have to thank God for his magnification process. Remember, it is seen in the perpetuity of the promise, in His protection of the people, and in His performance of the impossible. I have but one closing word concerning this matter of magnification. It is a plain word, a simple word, and it is this. Whom the Lord lifts, no mere mortal can lower. If God raises you up, no man can bring you down. All the way from the Jordan River to Shechem, the Lord magnified the man. As he had been with Moses, so was he with Joshua.
So significant was the experience that when Joshua died at the age of 110, in the border of his inheritance in Timmath-serah, which is in Mount Ephraim, on the north side of the hill of Gaash, the writer had to insert this shining tribute, "Israel served the Lord, all the days of Joshua." My, what a splendid testimony to that which happens whenever the Lord magnifies! He magnifies; He lifts up; He exalts; He anoints; He blesses! But you have to do what the slaves suggested. You have to live humble, for "whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased, but whosoever humbleth himself shall be exalted." Live humble; stay in your place. Move along at pavement level. Don't get carried away with your success. Give God the glory. Don't let pride put you on some Pike's Peak. If you live at pavement level and happen to stumble and fall, you can just get up and shake yourself, and start moving again.
But if you fall from Pike's Peak, death is almost certain. So let the Lord lift, let the Lord exalt, let God Almighty magnify.
Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
Joshua, always full of faith and courage, is now in command. The task before him is formidable, to say the least. He must give leadership to a great host. He must lead them across the Jordan. He must effect the conquest of Canaan. And through it all he must continue that which Moses began, the building of a people.
He has completed the reconnaissance of Jericho, the initial stronghold in the land of promise, and now the leader and his people stand at the edge of the Jordan River. Knowing full well whom he represents, he posits the reality without hesitation and without reservation. "This is the Lord's work. He delivered us from Egyptian bondage. He has led us through the wilderness experience. In the distance is the Land of Promise. Therefore, Israel, sanctify yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you." Then, turning to the priests, he gives this command: "Take up the ark of the covenant (the symbolic and actual presence of the eternal among us), and pass over before the people." The priests did exactly as commanded. Heaven had been honored; ultimate authority had been given respect. Heaven now speaks directly and clearly to Joshua.
Says God, "This day will I begin to magnify thee in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so will I be with thee." Elevation is essential, but magnification is mandatory. God has lifted Joshua from the ranks. He is now sole occupant of the lofty place, the place of leadership and responsibility. But that alone is not enough. In order to strengthen the appointment, there must be something tantamount to an anointing.
"This day will I begin to magnify thee. By degrees day by day it will happen. Your image will increase; your stature will grow. I will magnify thee." What a word is this word "magnify." To magnify is to make larger than life. It is to enhance the state of being. Let us call it sanctified elevation. It is growth and height effected by the Creator for special purposes. You can't apply for it; it can't be bought; there are no magnification clubs to join, nothing after the order of a health and fitness club. This is God-stuff. This is a divine exclusive.
He appoints and anoints. David understood this quite well. He heard God say one day, "Touch not my anointed, and do my prophets no harm." This day will I begin to magnify thee in the sight of all Israel. The magnification will be visible; they will see it. It will be in evidence in your walk and in your talk, Joshua. Your very persona will declare,'Magnified by the Lord God Almighty.'Ê"
Now this is the unique characteristic of God's man. Uniqueness has to do with more than a certain air, or a particular way of dressing, or one's educational pedigree. These do not make for the uniqueness. It is this special act on the part of God, the magnification, and God effects it in a way that all are impelled to see it. "This day will I begin to magnify thee," and he did. From this day forward, and at the bank of River Jordan, God began to magnify Joshua.
The magnification is seen in at least three marvelous ways. It is first seen in the perpetuity of the promise. And that promise centers on a certain presence. It is the promise of a presence. It is not the promise of health or wealth; it is not the promise of fame and acclaim; it is not the promise of a trouble-free journey. Plainly, purely, and simply, it is the promise of a presence.
"As I was with Moses, so will I be with thee." Whenever the Lord's servant begins to embrace anything other than the promise, pain is bound to ensue. For you see, God doesn't appreciate alienation of affection. He dishonors dysfunctional relationships between Him and His servants. And this is why every preacher ought to pray daily, "Nothing between my soul and the Savior, so that his blessed face may be seen. Nothing preventing the least of his favor, keep the way clear, let nothing between." His presence is promised, and the promise is in perpetuity. As I was with Moses, so will I be with thee. That, my friends, is magnification.
Magnification is also seen in God's protection of His people. Joshua declared to the multitude, "Come hither and hear the words of the Lord your God. Hereby you shall know that the living God is among you, that He, without fail, will drive out from before you the Canaanites and Hittites and Hivites and Perizzites and Gergasites and the Amorities and the Jebusites." That is a lot of driving out.
"Nothing will prevent your progress in your movement to the land of promise. I brought you out of bondage, and I will carry you to Canaan. And I will do it under the direction of my servant Joshua. The Lord's protective power will be present." Now this protection element is vitally essential. Evil is so pervasive. Evil is everywhere. The demonic is so real and so active. Peace and tranquility are forever under assault. To simply declare, "We come in the name of the Lord," is not enough. For the vast majority of people have no real God consciousness. Satan, acting through such souls, is always trying to ditch God's train. He does it without the camp; he does it within the camp. Everybody who cries, "Lord, Lord," is not connected with the Kingdom. Many are in but not of the church. So you have to try the spirits even in the church. For the church is the bailiwick of backbiters, a haven for hypocrites, and a pavilion for pretenders. There is some of everything in the church.
The people's protection was ensured by Joshua's magnification. Whenever the people looked on the man, they knew that God was in him, and on him, and with him, and therefore in the midst. When they heard his name they knew that he was under a special anointing. You see, the name Joshua in Hebrew means "Jehovah is Salvation." And the Greek translation or rather transliteration of Joshua is "Jesus." Jesus is the believer's Joshua. Joshua was magnified by the Almighty. And it was clearly seen in God's protection of the people. There was a third manifestation of magnification. And it was seen in the performance of the impossible. Jordan's waters backed up as the people passed over on dry land, with the priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant before them. The record says, "All the people were passed clear over Jordan." It was harvesttime, that season when Jordan overflowed its banks. But in miraculous manner the waters which came down from above stood and rose up upon a heap very far from the city of Adam that is beside Zaretan ... And the people passed over right against Jericho.
"I will magnify thee." They crossed Jordan and stood before Jericho, their first military objective in the Promised Land. They asked Joshua, "What do we do now? Jericho is walled in and shut up." Joshua, you remember, was being magnified from day to day and from experience to experience. And the Lord speaks to those whom He magnifies.
"Joshua," says God, "I have given to your hand Jericho and the king therein and all the mighty men of valor. You shall surround the city and go round about it once a day for six days in succession. On the seventh day I want you to have seven priests bear before the Ark seven trumpets of rams' horns. And on the seventh day go around the city seven times and have the priests blow the trumpets. When you hear a long blast of the sound of the trumpet, have all the people shout and the wall of the city shall fall down." And that is what happened. Jericho's wall came tumbling down. It came down because in reality it was the Lord's battle. And he magnified Joshua in the performance of the impossible.
We have to thank God for his magnification process. Remember, it is seen in the perpetuity of the promise, in His protection of the people, and in His performance of the impossible. I have but one closing word concerning this matter of magnification. It is a plain word, a simple word, and it is this. Whom the Lord lifts, no mere mortal can lower. If God raises you up, no man can bring you down. All the way from the Jordan River to Shechem, the Lord magnified the man. As he had been with Moses, so was he with Joshua.
So significant was the experience that when Joshua died at the age of 110, in the border of his inheritance in Timmath-serah, which is in Mount Ephraim, on the north side of the hill of Gaash, the writer had to insert this shining tribute, "Israel served the Lord, all the days of Joshua." My, what a splendid testimony to that which happens whenever the Lord magnifies! He magnifies; He lifts up; He exalts; He anoints; He blesses! But you have to do what the slaves suggested. You have to live humble, for "whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased, but whosoever humbleth himself shall be exalted." Live humble; stay in your place. Move along at pavement level. Don't get carried away with your success. Give God the glory. Don't let pride put you on some Pike's Peak. If you live at pavement level and happen to stumble and fall, you can just get up and shake yourself, and start moving again.
But if you fall from Pike's Peak, death is almost certain. So let the Lord lift, let the Lord exalt, let God Almighty magnify.
Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
