The life and leadership of Joshua provide a powerful metaphor for the Christian journey following baptism, a precarious path marked by spiritual warfare, growth, and trust in God. Reflecting on parallels between Israel's conquest of Canaan and the believer's pursuit of sanctification, the speaker explores how Almighty God guides, corrects, and empowers His People. Some key themes of this message, consists of 1) Joshua as a type of Christ- Joshua, by leading God's people into the Promised Land, symbolizes Christ leading believers into spiritual maturity. Joshua's successes and failures highlight the human side of leadership and the need for divine guidance. 2) Leadership Lessons from Joshua 9: Joshua's tragic mistake with the Gibeonites demonstrates how even faithful leaders can be deceived if they fail to seek God's counsel. This sermon draws four enduring lessons about the fallibility of church leadership and the long-term impact of poor decisions. 3) Miracles as metaphors: the crossing of the Jordan, the fall of Jericho, the hailstorm at Gibeon, and the sun standing still each intervention of Almighty God, each demonstrate that A) God confirms and empowers leadership. B) Obedience brings victory. C) God fights for His people. D) God answers prayer in extraordinary ways. 4) Divine Judgment and Mercy: God's destruction of the Amorites was just and long-delayed, rather than arbitrary. 5) Prayer and Provision - Joshua's bold request for extended for extended daylight illustrates God's willingness to respond to faithful prayer- for the light of truth, wisdom , strength , and time. As God fulfilled every promise to Israel ( Joshua 21). He will fulfill His promise to us, the Israel of God.

Martin Collins asserts that miracles and signs from God, while certainly generating awe and fear, seldom lead to righteousness, but more likely to continued rebellion. Jesus points out that only an adulterous generation seeks after miracles and signs. No greater period of miracles took place in history than at the time of the Exodus, including the plagues of Egypt, the parting of the Red Sea, and the giving of the Law at Mount Sinai. Yet, the stiff-necked Israelites rebelled against God on ten separate occasions. The longest period of growth and stability in Israel occurred under David's and Solomon's reigns, a period attended by no miracles. Elijah and Elisha performed godly miracles during a massive apostasy. John the Baptist, proclaimed by Jesus as the greatest of men, performed no miracles whatsoever. The miracles and signs Jesus performed were received with awe, but also with much ridicule and scoffing from the religious leaders. Axiomatically, the spiritually weak need miracles; the more spiritually mature one becomes, the fewer signs and wonders he needs to sustain faith. God blessed the Corinthian congregation with spiritual gifts (of discerning prophecy, speaking in tongues, healing, etc.), but the vanity which these gifts produced led to party-spirit and jealousy. In the future, the False Prophet and Beast will lead many astray by miracles and signs, deceiving most of the world. As God's called-out ones, walking humbly with God should displace any desperate need for signs and wonders.