Word: Joshua 23 (abridged) (NLT)
23 The years passed, and the Lord had given the people of Israel rest from all their enemies. Joshua, who was now very old, 2 called together all the elders, leaders, judges, and officers of Israel. He said to them, “I am now a very old man. 3 You have seen everything the Lord your God has done for you during my lifetime. The Lord your God has fought for you against your enemies. . . .
6 “So be very careful to follow everything Moses wrote in the Book of Instruction. Do not deviate from it, turning either to the right or to the left. 7 Make sure you do not associate with the other people still remaining in the land. Do not even mention the names of their gods, much less swear by them or serve them or worship them. 8 Rather, cling tightly to the Lord your God as you have done until now.
9 “For the Lord has driven out great and powerful nations for you, and no one has yet been able to defeat you. 10 Each one of you will put to flight a thousand of the enemy, for the Lord your God fights for you, just as he has promised. 11 So be very careful to love the Lord your God.
12 “But if you turn away from him and cling to the customs of the survivors of these nations remaining among you, and if you intermarry with them, 13 then know for certain that the Lord your God will no longer drive them out of your land. Instead, they will be a snare and a trap to you, a whip for your backs and thorny brambles in your eyes, and you will vanish from this good land the Lord your God has given you.
14 “Soon I will die, going the way of everything on earth. Deep in your hearts you know that every promise of the Lord your God has come true. Not a single one has failed! 15 But as surely as the Lord your God has given you the good things he promised, he will also bring disaster on you if you disobey him. He will completely destroy you from this good land he has given you. 16 If you break the covenant of the Lord your God by worshiping and serving other gods, his anger will burn against you, and you will quickly vanish from the good land he has given you.”
Joshua began his life as a slave. When Moses first brought God’s message of freedom to his people, Joshua, even though a very young man, was such a believer that he became Moses’ assistant (Numbers 11:28). He observed Moses lead the nation for forty years, watching the people being disloyal, disrespectful, even rebellious toward not only Moses, but Yahweh, the Power and Authority from whom Moses drew his power and authority.
God, not Moses, chose Joshua to become the second leader of the nation (Numbers 27, Deuteronomy 3). Moses had been chosen to mold the liberated slaves into a nation, so his main tasks were to give them their defining law and teach them about Yahweh. The next leader Joshua would need to be the nation’s Commander-in-Chief, leading them into battle—a very different role from Moses. Moses’ parting instructions to Joshua were to obey the Book of Instructions and to be strong and courageous—not afraid! If Joshua would do this, then he would succeed.
Now decades later, as an old man seeing the end of his term, Joshua directs the nation into their future without him with the exact same words: “So be very careful to follow everything Moses wrote in the Book of Instruction.” What Joshua contributes to the national message, however, is extremely important. He reminds them of their history, their recent experiences with Yahweh as their God: “You have seen everything the Lord your God has done for you during my lifetime. . . . Deep in your hearts you know that every promise of the Lord your God has come true.”
As Moses and Joshua both displayed, great leaders are not only strong, courageous, and unafraid, but they also know the value of history and the national experience. Moses and Joshua passed down a respect for the law and a warning for those who would abandon both the law and/or the God whose Power and Authority are the source of all power and authority.
And they told the nation the truth! If the nation chose to abandon the Power and Authority that had brought them blessing, they would suffer the natural consequences—disastrous consequences.
Real leaders speak the truth.
Prayer: We pray, Father, for national leaders like Moses and Joshua, who are strong, courageous, and unafraid, but who follow your instruction, who see your hand in history, and who will speak the truth to the nation, whether it is a reminder of national greatness or a warning of national disaster. We long for leaders who acknowledge your Power and Authority and lead according to your will. Amen.
Mark's Blog 
Awesome word!