Our past. As we each live a new day, we leave a day behind. We can get caught up in what was or what might have been “if only things were different,” but this focus means we forget. When we hold onto our past, we neglect to cling to God’s promises.
In his new study No More Excuses (following the Kingdom Men Rising movie), Tony Evans helps believers focus on God’s promises. Learn personally and use your learning to help your group members through the wisdom from the No More Excuses study excerpt below:
(And, if you love the study, you’ll love studying it alongside others! Sign up for the No More Excuses online Bible study for a week to week experience alongside other believers).
Go Get It!
God has given us more than five thousand promises in Scripture, but He’s not going to force anyone to live in the victory of His fulfilled promises. You have to go get them. When the people of Israel entered the promised land, God promised their leader, Joshua, that He would be given any piece of land where his foot walked (see Josh. 1:3), but he had to go get it. He couldn’t stand where he was and simply claim victory over all of his enemies.
Here are four key principles for claiming the promises God has made.
1. Leave the Past Behind
Learn from yesterday; don’t live in it. As Joshua set out to take the Israelites on a military conquest across enormous geographical areas, he had to let go of Moses as the leader and commander. As we see in Joshua 1:1-2, Moses had died. The miracles Moses had performed for the Israelite people were in the past. God would use a new man and a new plan to secure the nation’s victories moving forward. Embracing that truth was critical for their progress.
2. Seize Your Spiritual Inheritance
Joshua had to take steps of faith to secure the promises God had made. God placed a condition on receiving His victories. Joshua had to place the sole of his foot where he might normally have been afraid to do so. Doing so required faith. Passively waiting for God to dump your spiritual promises onto you isn’t the way God operates. You have to go after them.
3. Focus on God, Not People
God promised Joshua:
No man will be able to stand before you all the days
of your life. Just as I have been with Moses, I will
be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you.
Joshua 1:5
No doubt Joshua faced oversized, overpowering enemies as he sought to gain military victories and conquer the promised land. But God assured him of victory. If Joshua had focused on the people in his way, he might have cowered in fear. Likewise, when you direct your focus on God and His assuring Word, you can reduce fear and doubt in your life. Keep your eyes on your Source and only on your Source.
4. Stay Tethered to God’s Word
A critical element in Joshua’s conquests was his consistency in staying tied to God’s Word. God instructed him:
Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to
do according to all the law which Moses My servant
commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to
the left, so that you may have success wherever you go.
Joshua 1:7
God’s Word gives wisdom on what to do, when to do it, and how to gain spiritual victories in the midst of physical limitations or obstacles. Men, as you move forward in life, meditate on and apply the truths of Scripture, and you’ll gain insight for accomplishing all God has in store for you.
This content has been excerpted from Tony Evans’ No More Excuses Bible Study, available now.
Deborah Spooner is a Minnesota-born analytical creative serving as a Marketing Strategist for Lifeway’s Groups Ministry. As a pastor’s daughter with a background in Digital Communications and Media and Biblical & Theological Studies, you can find her at her local church, in deep conversation, or with a book or pen in hand as she seeks to know Christ more and make Him known.
Deborah Spooner
Deborah Spooner is a Minnesota-born analytical creative serving as a Marketing Strategist for LifeWay’s Groups Ministry. As a pastor’s daughter with a background in Digital Communications and Media and Biblical & Theological Studies, you can find her at her local church, in deep conversation, or with a book or pen in hand as she seeks to know Christ more and make Him known.
