BARACK OBAMA AND THE JOSHUA IMPERATIVE
November 9, 2008
It was a long journey and at least you would have thought that he would
have had the opportunity to set foot in the land of his dreams. Moses had
risked life and limb in facing down the Pharaoh and demanding the release
of the Israelites from slavery. He had wrestled with the elements, struggled
to feed thousands, navigated their exodus through uncharted lands, and
served as a listening ear to those who had lost hope, become disillusioned,
and no longer believed that God was leading them to the Promised Land. It
only seemed fair that Moses would be the first to cross the finish line, to be
the one who would welcome all the rest to their final destination. But God
had other plans.
Moses died before he was able to step foot in the Promised Land. He had
come so far but was not be able to complete his journey. Toward the end of
a long and arduous trek, he went to the top of Mount Pisgah, overlooking the
land that was their longed-for destination, and with tired yet hopeful eyes, he
gazed upon the hills and valleys that were promised to Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob. But it would be another, one by the name of Joshua, who would
complete the journey. Joshua would assume leadership upon the death of
Moses and lead the Israelites to the fulfillment of their dreams.
When Martin Luther King, Jr., came to the Mason Temple in Memphis, TN,
on the evening of April 13, 1968, he, too, was weary and sick, and there
were those of his close associates who advised him to stay in the hotel and
sleep. But he had come so far and felt a deep kinship with the Memphis
sanitation workers and wanted to support those who had come to receive
words of encouragement in order to find their way to land of the promised
dream, a land where all of God’s children are created equal, where white and
black workers are paid the same, and working conditions are not changed
according to the color of one’s skin.
While it was Ralph Abernathy who was scheduled to speak that night, the
3,000 people in attendance wanted to hear from Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr.
Abernathy called the Lorraine hotel and asked Dr. King if he would come
and address the crowd. And the rest is history. You know the words of his
“Mountaintop” speech, echoing the words of Moses standing at Mt. Pisgah:
2
Well, I don't know what will happen now. We've got some difficult days
ahead.
But it doesn't matter with me now. Because I've been to the mountaintop.
And I don't mind. Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity
has its place.
But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will.
And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I've looked over.
And I've seen the promised land. I may not get there with you.
But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people will get to the promised
land.
This past Tuesday night in Chicago, Illinois, Barack Obama addressed an
excited crowd in Grant Park and those watching on television around the
world. He accepted his election as the forty-fourth President of the United
States of America. At one point, he, too, echoed the words of Moses and the
speech by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. when he said that “The road ahead
will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or
even one term, but…we will get there. I promise you -- we as a people will
get there.”
Regardless of who you voted for last Tuesday, Barack Obama is now our
President-elect, and we will pray for his leadership, his safety, and his
success. We recognize that as a country, we are entangled in a financial
crisis, over $10.5 trillion dollars in national debt ($46,500 for each person),
major differences in domestic policies, intensifying international conflict,
proliferation of nuclear arms and two wars. Blessed as we are in this
country with freedom and the liberties that we enjoy, we are a long ways
from the Promised Land.
We still have children who wake up and go to school hungry, who make
their way through a gauntlet of gangs and drugs in an attempt to earn an
education. According to News and World Report, 37 million Americans live
in poverty. That’s 12.7 per cent of the population - the highest percentage in
the developed world. They are found in the hills of Kentucky, in the streets
of Detroit, from the Deep South of Louisiana, to the heartland of Oklahoma.
It’s also true that our world lives under the constant threat of nuclear war,
with rogue nations attempting to acquire these weapons of mass destruction
and to aim them at our cities and allies. We look out from the slopes of Mt.
Pisgah only to see that we have a long ways yet to go. We have a steep
3
climb ahead of us to deal with important issues of social concern, the rising
costs of health care, the increasing disparity of wealth between rich and
poor, the instability of the family, and escalating numbers of child abuse
cases. We can see the Promised Land from here but cannot as yet say we are
there. But the good news is that we can get there from here – but only if we
heed the words of Joshua’s final tribute.
The name “Joshua” means “the Lord saves.” This is the same name as
“Jesus” in the New Testament. Joshua was a worthy successor to Moses
because he listened to God and because he led the people in much the same
way. His was a difficult task because the land of Canaan could not be
conquered by military might alone. It could only be captured through a
venture of faith.
As the Israelites stood on the border of Canaan and yearned for the home
promised to their fathers, there were others on the other side who were not
about to give up their land without an argument. The Canaanite tribes and
the Israelites engaged in war at its cruelest and most savage. In the eyes of
Joshua, it wasn’t just any old war – it was a holy war, and as you know,
those are always the worst kind. Joshua began his campaign in the south of
Canaan by laying siege to Jericho and then destroyed all the major cities in
the southern part of Canaan. From there, he moved north defeating 31 kings
and their cities. Before long, the land of Canaan belonged to the Israelites
and Joshua was their hero.
As he came to the end of his life, it was clear that there was still much left to
do. There were large stretches of land yet to be conquered. But it wouldn’t
be for another 200 years until the reign of King David that the last
stronghold, Jerusalem, would be captured.
In his farewell speech at the end of the book, Joshua gives a final tribute, not
unlike Moses and Martin Luther King, Jr. He says that the secret of success
is to love God totally. And such love is shown in obedience to God’s law,
which governs our thoughts, our speech, and our behavior – in other words,
our entire lives. Israel learns that disobedience to God results in failure
when Israel’s troops are defeated at Ai. One of the Israelites had disobeyed
God and deceived his fellow Israelites by keeping and hiding some of the
plunder from the capture of Jericho. The result is an alarming defeat for
Israel’s army.
4
In his final comments before death, Joshua has taken inventory of his life
and decides what is most important to say. He calls on the people of Israel
to make a clear choice for God. Some of them are still harboring the old
household gods from Mesopotamia and Egypt. Many are tempted and want
to hold to the old ways. In a moment of personal reflection and commitment
Joshua says, “But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord”
(24:25).
You never know when those opportunities will present themselves. Like the
bridegroom who comes in the middle of the night, who surprises us when we
least expect it, we must be prepared and ready to receive him whenever he
comes. We are most able to do this as we live our lives constantly in the
awareness of God’s presence among us.
I believe that we as a church and as a nation are at an important crossroads
today. We need to decide what it means that “we will serve the Lord.” If
we are to be successful, to thrive and become a force in our world, we
cannot do it on our own merit. Ours must truly be a venture of faith.
If we want to dwell in the Promised Land, we need to serve the Lord. And
that means serving one another. If that just sounds like words to you, then
consider this: serving God means that we
- seek to love one another
- to live righteously
- to ask for and offer forgiveness
- to work towards reconciliation
- and to fight for justice
I have long given up my need for a messianic president in this country. I no
longer expect someone to walk into that position and change the world. I
think that things are way too complicated now. But what I do expect is
something significant from myself and from our church – that we will serve
the Lord faithfully and at the end of our days know that all of life is
grounded in God, that our days are numbered and we ought to spend them in
loving ways to leave this world a better place than when we found it – for
our sake and others. May God bless us all and may God bless our new
president.
Joshua 24: 14-15
Matthew 25: 1-13