Skip to content Understanding God's Boundaries | Joshua 15 | Pastor Joel Holm Aug 17 · 41 min ...more
Understanding God's Boundaries | Joshua 15 | Pastor Joel Holm
August 17, 2025 · 41 min
Series Patria Sermons August 17, 2025 · 41 min · Patria Sermons
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Adam Mesa is Lead Pastor of Patria Church and speaks to a congregation of 12,000 about how the gospel of Jesus Christ brings purpose to every life. Patria
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0:00 Amen. Hey, would you stand to your feet with me please? If we haven't met, my name is Joel and I'm 1 of the teaching pastors here on Wednesday night. And if you haven't been around, we're in the study of Joshua. And0:12 there are some incredibly powerful passages of Joshua that kinda stand on their own. And then there are these powerful passages in the New Testament that actually don't need a lot of explaining. They just are0:23 so amazing on their own. And then you run into the chapter we're gonna look at tonight. And the chapter we're gonna look at tonight on the surface you go, that just doesn't seem very relevant.0:36 You know we're talking about thousands of years ago and a nation settling in this land. And the chapter basically just describes where the tribe started to settle. And there are0:48 these kinds of passages in scripture and if we're not careful, we'll skip over them because they don't seem that relevant. But Paul wrote to Timothy and he said, all of0:59 scripture is useful. Even the ones that don't seem highly relevant that may take a little bit more work, all of scripture1:12 is useful. So tonight I believe the Lord wants to teach us 2 things. 1 he wants to teach us from this passage but he also wants to show us. The bible's like a1:23 treasure map. There's gold in there. And sometimes it just jumps out at you. Sometimes you gotta hunt for it a little bit. Tonight we're gonna hunt for it a little bit and we're gonna discover there is actually1:35 gold in some of the places that seem really irrelevant. They are rich with gold if we will give the Holy Spirit time and not kinda skip over them. So stay standing with me and we're gonna read from1:47 Joshua chapter 15. I'm gonna read verses 1 through 3. If you have your Bibles, by all means follow along. The allotment for the tribe of Judah according to its clans, extended1:59 down to the territory of Edom to the desert of Zin in the extreme south. Their southern boundary started from the Bay of the southern end of the Dead Sea, crossed south of the scorpion past, continued on to Zin and went2:11 over to the south of Kadesh Barnea. Then it rasped past, ran past Hezron up to Adar and curved around to Karka. Let me pray. Lord, we take you at your word2:24 that all scripture is useful. Even when we read these verses and they just seem a little irrelevant to how we're living life right now. But God you have given2:36 us the spirit of God to bring truth and light and insight and understanding. So as we study your scripture tonight, would you speak to each person here, those watching2:47 online? Would you talk to us uniquely and distinctly with this truth that literally will change how we live out our lives with you and walk in your blessing?2:59 I thank you for every person who's here. I thank you for their life and how you're gonna teach them. We pray this in Christ's name. Amen. Amen. You may be seated.3:13 So when you read the passage like this and it seems a little opaque, what you gotta do is kinda step back and say, what's the bigger picture that God is teaching through something like Joshua3:25 15? And if there's a bigger picture that God is teaching, he's teaching about boundaries. The entire chapter lays out the fact that God is establishing boundaries3:36 for his nation. And in these boundaries, there's an amazing amount of blessing that comes to them through the establishment of the boundaries. If there was a theme for Joshua 15, it would be3:48 blessing comes through boundaries. But we have to understand boundaries as a biblical truth, not a societal truth. Because when you talk about boundaries in society and maybe for some of you, the first4:00 thing you think is limitation. We're taught there are no boundaries. There's no boundaries to how you can dream. There's no boundaries to your freedom. There's no boundaries to how you can live. Don't ever have4:11 boundaries. There's no ceiling to you. And God says no boundaries are actually a really good thing. And he inserts this chapter giving us an illustration4:23 and insight into how his boundaries work for us and how through his boundaries, you will discover an enormous greater amount of blessing that comes into your life. Here's how4:35 the Bible defines boundaries. Boundaries, they provide a focus for you. If you don't have a boundary, you don't have a focus. If you have a backyard and you gotta mow your backyard, the fence4:47 you have is really good because it's a boundary that says I only have to mow this lawn. I do not need to mow my neighbor's lawn. I have a focus. That boundary actually helps you focus on your4:58 responsibility. Boundaries define authority. 1 of the first boundaries was in the book of Genesis where God put like a no trespassing sign up in front5:10 of a tree. Says, no no. You have all of this but there's a boundary here. That was actually the greatest gift he could give Adam and Eve. Society would5:22 say, no, get rid of the sign. You should have everything. And God's saying, no, it will mess you up. But if you understand your authority and what it is and what it's not,5:34 then you will be able to flow with God so much better. And the enemy actually uses their lack of understanding of boundaries to tempt them going, that's not a boundary for you. You can be5:46 like God. But when we understand boundaries in the positive way, they actually kind of define our authority. Boundaries provide safety. 1 time I was on the border of South5:58 Korea and North Korea. Right there on the line they have this like big piece of tape and I wasn't paying attention and I stepped over into North Korea and all of a sudden this big GI sand grabbed me and pulled me back6:08 over. As long as you're on the right side of the line, you're safe. You get to the wrong side of the line, you are no longer safe. And boundaries create for us this6:19 really safety zone that's important. Boundaries enable stewardship. I am really grateful that I am responsible for my finances. You saw the great video on6:30 generosity. But I'm actually very grateful that I'm not responsible for your finances. So I'm accountable to God for my finances. Thankfully, I'm not accountable to God for your finances. And it provides kind6:42 of this responsibility I have, the stewardship I have. Boundaries set priorities. They don't actually limit you. I'll give you an example. If you put boundaries on how much you scroll6:54 on social media you will open up a great avenue of time to pray and study your bible. The boundaries on social media or television create this openness7:06 for so much more. That's not a bad boundary. That's actually a really good boundary because of all the other things it opens up for. So boundaries biblically are really healthy, really powerful. And Joshua7:18 15, although it seems like here's a chapter just about they're settling the land, the theme is no, let's learn about what boundaries are and how God uses them because what we're gonna discover7:30 in this passage, his blessings are directly connected to how you live out the truth of boundaries. So you have this whole chapter and it seems like it's just settling7:42 which tribes, what lands and you'll skip over it and if you skip over it you'll miss the fact that God throws a story in the middle of this chapter. Look at verse 13. In verse 13, he throws this story and here's how7:53 it reads. In accordance with the Lord's command to him, Joshua gave Caleb son of Japuna a portion of Judah. Kiriath Arba, that is Hamron. Arba was the forefather of Anak. From here Hebron, Caleb drove8:05 out 3 Anakites, Sheshai, Ahima, and Talmai, the sons of Anak. From there he marched again the people living in Debra formerly known as Curath Sepher. And Caleb said, I will give my daughter Aksa in marriage8:17 to the man who attacks and captures Kiriath Sepher. Othniel son of Kenaz I'm doing pretty good with these translations, aren't I? Caleb's brother took it. So Caleb gave his daughter Aksa to8:29 him in marriage. Verse 18. 1 day she came to Othniel. She urged him to ask her father for a field. When she got off her donkey, Caleb asked her, what can I do for you? And she replied, do me a special favor. Since you8:41 have given me the land in the Negev, give me also the springs of water. So Caleb gave her the upper and lower springs. Now let me give you a little bit of background storytelling that shows you how these boundaries8:53 are illustrated. You gotta work a little bit harder when it comes to a chapter like this. Here's the background. Judah is basically the fourth born son of Jacob and the tribe of Judah was the first to9:04 receive an inheritance in the land of Canaan. In the first 12 verses of this chapter, they define the boundaries of Judah's inheritance and they're described in reference to geographic location. 1 of the9:16 lessons that comes out of here is the idea of seasonal boundaries. They have been in the wilderness. They have been in captivity. Before that they lived as a family. Now9:28 they are coming into a season where God says you're gonna move into a promised land and I'm gonna divide up the land. If you don't understand seasonal boundaries, you will try to jump9:40 ahead of God. And it'll mess your life up. But if you understand there are seasonal boundaries and everything in God's timing is perfect and waiting for his blessing is the best9:52 thing you can do, so there's seasonal boundaries. All right, then we go on. This entire chapter and even the chapters around it they describe that Caleb and Judah are not receiving God's blessing in a10:03 vacuum. It's not just them. Many other people, all the other tribes, all the other Jewish people they're receiving God's fulfilled promise directly attached to Caleb. There is10:15 a people boundary. God never blesses you in a vacuum. There are always people related to the blessing of God in your life. And if you don't understand the people boundary,10:27 you'll just go, it's me and God and what can I get that I need that will be the blessing of God? And you will miss out because you won't factor the people that God includes in that boundary. Caleb was once a10:39 partner spy to Joshua. Remember 40 years ago? 12 tribes went into the land. 2 of them, Joshua and Caleb says, we can do this. 10 said we can't do it. And the Israelites decided, no. We can't do it. They end up wandering10:50 through the wilderness. Caleb was not 1 of those bad spies. He was a descendant of Judah. He would he began the process of driving the children of Anarch from his inheritance. So he's already doing this11:02 conquering. And he's promised these things because of his faithfulness to God. He makes all of these successful campaigns. Then he's issues a challenge. Anyone who can conquer this11:13 town was to be given the hand of his daughter, Aksa, in marriage. And Othniel, who is this very brave capable warrior, also Caleb's nephew, He steps forward. He11:25 accepts the challenge. He reveals his military skills. Later after Joshua's death in what they call the time of the judges, the very first judge, the very first spiritual leader over Israel11:37 in this season, it's Othniel. And you have 2 characters in Joshua 15 who stand out as being fully devoted11:49 to God. Caleb and Othniel, these are people of great holy character. And it's an illustration of what I call an identity12:01 boundary. There's a boundary around who you are supposed to be. And when you understand the boundary of who I am, not who I am not. How I12:12 live, not how I live not. If I understand the boundary, I will walk in the blessings of God as illustrated by Caleb and Othniel. Caleb's legacy is passed down. He12:24 was always confident in proclaiming God's promises. You got to have this identity boundary. Do not think you can live however you want12:36 and walk in the blessings of God. And there's a reason why. We'll explain it in a minute. Then Joshua 15 shows us God's faithfulness in bestowing his promised blessings. But it also shows12:48 that we have to take an active part in these blessings. He's given them the land. But they've gotta do some of the battling God has promised of Caleb and his sentence an inheritance in this. And now the13:00 promise is being fulfilled, but they're able and willing to step out in faith because of what God has promised them. And you have the story of the daughter13:12 who's really I have such a a a a interest and admiration for this girl. Because she says, listen, I know you've given me this but dad,13:24 could I have the very best? And she's commended for going to the father with an expectation that the father wants to give her13:36 the very best. And there's a faith boundary where you put a fence around your circumstances and say faith is going to define13:48 these circumstances. And she walks into these springs of water and gets the very best because she's willing to ask for something in a great way. Then you've got this period of13:59 Joshua where they're settling it and you realize this is just part of a story. It's out of settling it that they would become a nation and kings would come like David as we learned about earlier in the service through14:11 which the Messiah would come. And there is this thing called the kingdom boundary that even Joshua 15 is part of a bigger story. Whatever blessing God has for you, there14:23 is a bigger story to it. There's a bigger purpose to it. He is a loving father who wants to meet your need but he never stops just meeting your need. He takes14:34 advantage of blessing you in a way that will really advance his kingdom. And if you don't understand the kingdom boundary, you will miss out on some of the blessings because you're only focused kind of on yourself.14:46 So here we have this illustration of these boundaries. And I'm gonna take a few minutes and unpack them because they're illustrated. And here's what I'm really gonna believe the Holy Spirit's gonna do. As I teach to you14:58 these boundaries, the spirit of God is gonna kinda bring to life just 1 or 2 of them. Listen to him. And God's gonna nudge15:10 you in saying, you know what? You can kinda improve in this area of this boundary because there's a blessing waiting for you. Your promised15:21 land, your blessing from God. And they'll jump out at you. Alright. So here's the first 1. The identity boundary. Caleb and Othniel and who they were. God's blessing comes when15:33 God receives the glory. And the reason why Caleb and Othniel are illustrated in the story is because they are people through their story, through what they did, through how they believed, through how they acted, God15:44 could trust them. Boundaries set focus. And when you have an identity boundary it looks like this. How will I be known?15:57 What kind of integrity will I have? Will my word matter? What is my gifting and my offerings to God in service? And I'm am I growing? These16:08 are all traits that you begin to develop. You become a better Christ follower. You become more faithful to him. Not as a means of earning anything. Not as a means of gaining salvation. But you know16:20 I want my identity to define who I am. My identity in Christ and obedience really matters. Why? Because when I obey God, God goes oh, I can trust Joel.16:33 I can dump financial blessings into Joel. Why? Because he has an identity boundary of generosity. So I will dump blessing into him because I can trust him. There are some of you, God is16:45 just waiting to pour financial blessing into you But he loves you too much he won't do it. Because he knows it'll mess you up. But if you go, no. I want this identity16:56 boundary. I want to be defined as a Christ follower. I want to grow. I want to learn. I wanna have this integrity so that God can trust me with the17:08 responsibility that comes with a blessing. Because every blessing comes with responsibility. A story of God's miracle in your life17:19 is a responsibility to share that. His blessing financially is a responsibility to steward that. Relationships are a responsibility to help build the body of17:31 Christ. So every blessing of God has to be seen not just as something that helps me, but it's a responsibility. So my identity boundary, I gotta be like Caleb and Othniel. And wherever17:43 I'm at now, just as Nathan said it in the video, I just need to grow a little bit. I want my identity to be clearly defined. I want it to set the17:55 focus so I know, my family knows. I'm a follower of Jesus Christ. This is who I am. And God goes, oh, Joel,18:07 I can trust you. Here's a whole bunch of blessing in your life because now I can trust you. The Israelites wandered for 40 years because he couldn't trust them yet. But with Caleb and Othniel, he could trust them. Then18:18 you get into the faith boundary. This is where you have this sense of I want a boundary that sets my priorities. And this18:30 daughter, she expects the best from her dad. And that's commended for her. The bible teaches us over and over again that we should have a18:42 confidence in coming before our father. We should be like children who cry out Abba Father because God's blessing is always greater than your need. We will have18:54 a need. We will bring the need to our father. We have defined what we want God to do by our need. And God knows our need. But I've seen it happen over and over again.19:06 He doesn't just heal your body. He heals your soul. He heals your mind. You get this full healing. His answer and blessing is always greater than your need. And what faith does19:17 is it moves you from simply defining your relationship to God by need to now having an expectation of how much greater this father is who will give me more than I could ever19:29 imagine beyond my wildest imaginations. But you have to have this kind of faith boundary where you have a confidence in your dad.19:42 And that boundary sets the priority of if I'm gonna have this boundary when it comes to the circumstances of my life, my boundary of the circumstances of my life will not be my ability19:54 to solve those circumstances. I had the weirdest thing happen. I didn't even know this existed. Last week I discovered that my car just stopped working. All the dash lights went crazy. And I took it in and I found out20:05 that I had a rodent chew through all my electrical. I didn't even know that was a thing. It's really creepy. I got rats in my car. And my first response was to go through all of the things I20:17 could do to take care of this. I gotta take it to the dealer. I gotta talk to my insurance. And I'm getting frustrated and all a sudden I thought, I am preparing a teaching on having a faith boundary. That you20:29 trust God with everything. But in real life I'm just stressing and trying to micromanage and control the whole situation. And have you ever been slapped by the Holy Spirit? The Holy Spirit just slaps me. This20:43 daughter, she knew her dad wanted to give her the very best. Please understand my heart. Sometimes our20:55 prayers don't speak very highly of our father's identity and our father's nature. And you have this boundary around your circumstances that21:07 says, I'm not gonna define them by my control over them. I'm gonna define them by a faith that is there. Because faith expects the very best from dad in21:18 heaven. Then you have this seasonal boundary. So a seasonal boundary is the timing of God that is illustrated through this. There is a season that comes and21:30 the promise of God is fulfilled by them taking the land. Now that promise has been around for hundreds of years. But it's now in this moment that21:42 it's coming to pass. And there is this boundary in our life that we have to understand around seasons that exist. God's timing for the blessing. Because God's21:54 blessing at the right moment is worth the wait. And God's blessing that you wanna get at the wrong moment will never really be God's blessing. We22:06 talked about boundaries being there for safety. They protect us. The boundary from the tree, it'll protect you. Don't go to the tree. We have this God protects us with22:17 seasonal boundaries. When God says, not yet Joel. It's not your time yet Joel. That's a seasonal boundary. And I have to understand that seasonal boundary.22:29 Couple examples of this. If you're younger and you're single and you want to get married, if you don't understand seasonal boundaries you may rush into a decision that will not22:41 sustain itself. Because you're so eager for something and God has even promised you that. But is it the timing of it? Is it the season of it that causes that to happen? Some of you have this22:53 calling and desire for ministry which is amazing. And God's even put a promise in your heart about ministry which is amazing. Is it the season of that? And seasonal boundaries cause23:04 us to step back and say, God you are orchestrating my life and the timing of my life. And I'm going to trust the boundaries that are there. This is the season I'm in now. There will be another season I'm in and23:16 those boundaries will shift then. So you have to understand what are the boundaries that exist right now in this season? If you're a married couple and you've got 5 little kids you got some boundaries.23:28 Do not let the enemy make you feel guilty about stuff because you're raising 5 little children and you can't be volunteering 20 hours a week. That's okay. It's a season and there are seasonal boundaries that23:40 God defines. But when you don't understand seasonal boundaries you just say, God, I want this now. I want it right now. You go, no. I trust you23:52 God. In your season, in your timing, lead me and give me a discernment of that. What happens24:03 oftentimes if we don't understand this idea of seasonal boundary, then we try to force it. And then discouragement comes in because it doesn't happen.24:15 This story illustrates for us that there was a specific season that God planned for them to walk in to their blessing in the promised land. And there is a season that God has for you. Some of you are holding on to a24:27 promise. Do not let go of that promise. You hang on to that promise but understand that there are seasons in the Lord and understand those boundaries that are there and you trust him with him. Then there's the people24:38 boundary. That this story is not just about a couple of individuals. It's about a nation. That God's blessing is found in people and these other tribes receive24:50 this land. God's blessing is always connected to others. And here's why this boundary is so important for us. Cause boundaries I told you biblically are about stewardship. You know what you25:02 are responsible for. Let me give you a good example of this. 1 of the boundaries of people that society will impress upon you was build a fence around your life.25:14 And when it comes to difficult people, marginalized people, people who will take from you, do not let them in that fence. And society will say boundaries are25:26 really good around people. But then they will define the people boundary around the people who will help you, who will promote you, who will advance you. And the ones that won't, keep25:38 them on the other side of the fence. And if we buy into society's thinking about people boundary, we will do exactly the opposite. We will do what society says and we will25:50 never walk into God's blessings because God's blessings comes oftentimes through the people that are part of the boundaries of our life. There's this passage that Paul was teaching the26:02 church about in Romans 12 when he said this, don't be proud but willy but be willing to associate with people of lower position. Don't be proud. But the marginalized people, the26:14 people who are lower, you put them inside the fence. The janitor who works at your office place that everybody walks past that nobody cares about because he's just the janitor26:26 who works the graveyard shift, you put them inside. He's a people. You put them in that. That relative who is just driving you nuts, put them26:38 inside. Don't be proud. Be willing to associate with people of lower status. Why? Because society has a way of saying you're important, you're not important. You're26:49 important, you're not important. And they use categories such as wealth or sometimes race or identity to say you're important, you're not important. And Jesus says this, no. What we're gonna do is we're gonna go to the27:00 people who society has says are not important and we're gonna welcome them and we're gonna counteract the lie. We're gonna show them how valuable they are. We're gonna counteract the lie of society that says they're not27:11 important. I'm gonna go to that homeless person and I'm gonna show them dignity and love and respect And I'm gonna counteract the lie that society says, you're not important. And when I do that, when I27:23 understand people boundaries biblically, there is a huge blessing that I receive. But if I buy into society's definition of people27:34 boundaries and I'm only gonna let people in who help me, who make my life easier, I will miss out on so many blessings of God. And right now there are some of you, and maybe27:46 this is the 1 that the Holy Spirit kinda brings to your mind, and you've got some people in your life and they kinda fit that lower marginalized people. And sometimes it's difficult and you wanna put them on the outside27:57 of the fence. And God's saying, you are missing out on a blessing in your own life. Because Jesus says, when you do this to the least of these, you've done it to me. You will discover a whole another side of28:09 Jesus. In doing that. We counteract that lie. Then there's this kingdom boundary where God's blessing is more than just28:21 your blessing. Because we talked about boundary defines authority. So I am a dad. I have 3 kids. That's my boundary as a dad. I am28:32 not your kid's dad. I have no authority over your kids. I have authority over my kids. That's how boundaries work in a sense. And that gives me my authority. Now you apply that principle into God's28:44 kingdom. You are in the kingdom of God. You have authority in the kingdom of God. Israel is setting up the histories that Christ will come. And God's blessings in your28:56 life that you are eager for, that you are praying for come when you get a sense and an understanding of there is a kingdom authority here. It's not just about29:08 me. But it's about how this blessing in my life won't just be in me, it will be through me. And you have this kingdom boundary that29:20 defines the authority that you walk into. And you say, oh, I get this now. So years ago, my daughter needed to buy a car. She was at college here in SoCal.29:32 And so I went on Craigslist and how much money she had and what kind of car she needed to do when we kinda type everything in. And 1 car popped up, just 1 car. And it had been on Craigslist for literally29:44 like 4 hours. And it seemed perfectly right. So you know but it's Craigslist so you don't know. Is it like a serial killer on the other end of this car? I have no idea. Know? So so there's a phone number. So I call the29:54 guy right? And so he answers and he answers with his name. Hi this is you know Chris Jones or whatever you know. I got the car for sale. So I thought well if he gave me his name I could give him my name. So I said oh hi,30:05 this is Joel Holm. I'm calling on behalf of my daughter. She's interested in your car. And there's dead silence. I thought that's kind of weird. He goes, did you say Joel Home? I said, yeah.30:18 He said, are you the Joel Home who wrote the book, See Life Different? Now this is Craigslist. 40000000 users, 1 car. I wrote a book called See Life30:30 Different. I think 12 people bought the book. And he has the book. And he goes, are you the guy who and okay. This is how carnal I am. My first thought was, he knows I'm a minister. He's30:42 gonna give me a really good deal on this car. And then God kinda slapped me again. Kingdom boundary, Joel. Kingdom boundary. I said,30:53 am. I said, can we see the car? And I went to this appointment with my daughter to buy a car but with kingdom boundary. Something more is going on here. Yeah.31:05 We began to talk the first time we saw the car and she ended up buying in. It was a good car and all that worked out. But we talked and I could tell something was wrong. And I asked him, I said, you know, what's going31:14 on? And he told me about his daughter who had made some really bad decisions and now was in a life of drugs and had fallen away from the Lord. We talked and we prayed.31:26 The next week I called him up, we prayed some more. Month later, I called him up, we prayed some more. Month later, he called me up and said, she's back. She came back to church. She gave her life to Christ. Now, if31:42 you think the car defines God's blessings, not just for me. My daughter's just watching this going, wow, dad.31:55 There's such blessing for you and through you. But they come in boundaries. There's an identity32:06 boundary. Be holy. Be like Christ. Become trustworthy so God can pour his blessing into you because there's so much more he wants to do.32:18 And he does it through blessing. But he's got to be able to trust you. There is a people boundary where the people that we allow within that fence are the means by which blessing32:30 comes to us. There is a seasonal boundary where you go, in this season, there will be some blessings from God. In the next season, there will be different blessings from God. And I can't push32:42 it. And I can't wreck God's timing because his perfect blessings are so worth the wait. There is a faith boundary where32:54 whatever circumstance you're facing, you're gonna be defined. The fence around it is gonna be faith with an expectation that this heavenly Father is gonna answer greater. And I'm going33:06 to start to pray bold prayers because of the boundary of faith and there is this kingdom boundary. I don't think we have a33:18 clue how much God wants to bless us. I don't think we have a clue. When Ephesians says beyond all we can ask or imagine, I think he's actually telling the truth.33:30 We can't even ask. We can't even imagine. But if we will understand this principle from Joshua 15, the gold in this chapter that on surface looks pretty insignificant.33:43 But when you realize, oh Joshua is illustrating boundaries taught all throughout the New Testament. And through this story in the middle of it, he's illustrating something. Okay Holy Spirit, which 1 is it for me?33:55 So we're gonna take a moment as I think we should always do with the word of God and pause. Jesus said, I'm gonna send you the spirit and he'll reveal to you. He'll remind you. So I'm gonna ask you34:07 to close your eyes and bow your heads. And I'm speaking to those of you who are Christ followers and you're Christians. There is a father in heaven who wants to bless you.34:20 And as I read out these boundaries 1 last time, trust that the Holy Spirit is gonna nudge you with 1, maybe 2 of them. And then you take that nudge.34:31 And this week, you pray it through. You study it through. You begin to practice it through. You position yourself for blessing you couldn't even begin to imagine.34:43 There's an identity boundary. Follow Jesus well and be trust worthy so he can pour blessing into you. There's a faith34:55 boundary. Get to know your dad. Expect the very best from your dad. Ask for the very best35:07 from your dad. There's a seasonal boundary. Know the timing of God. Be patient. Wait with expectation and with hope.35:19 Embrace this season and all the blessing in it. But be patient for the next season. There is a people boundary. Know that God35:31 brings people into your life to bring blessing into your life. Not always easy, but his blessing will be there. And there is a kingdom boundary.35:44 That through you there is a greater story going on. But you have to have that boundary of kingdom. That's got to define you. Boundaries are there to focus us.35:56 They are there to define our authority. They provide safety. They enable stewardship. They set our priorities. Jesus, I thank you for each person36:09 in this auditorium and those who are watching online. Spirit of God, as only you can, would you nudge each of us to understand how we apply Joshua 1536:22 in our walk with you. We are so grateful that you are this amazing father who blesses abundantly. We thank you for this word from36:33 Joshua 15 that teaches that your blessing is connected to these boundaries. So lead us, teach us this week as we pray, as we study your word, as36:45 we live it out, give us continued revelation, Lord, that like Caleb, like Othniel, like Aksa the daughter, we would walk in all of your blessings36:57 because we understand and practice your boundaries. With every head bowed, if you're here tonight, there's 1 exception to this. And that is if you don't know Christ,37:09 then this can't just be applied as a natural principle. And you may be here and you're not sure where you stand with Jesus. The Bible actually says that 1 of the greatest temptations of the enemy is to37:21 try to persuade us that we're Okay when we're not Okay. And I would consider it a privilege if you would let me pray for you. You would say, Joel, I don't know where I stand with Jesus. If I was to die tonight, I'm not37:32 sure where I would spend eternity. The Bible is really clear. If you believe in your heart and confess with your mouth, you will be saved. You don't have to have any doubt about it. Not because of your great work, not37:44 because of your spirituality, because of His work on the cross. His death and His resurrection forgives you and frees you forever. But you receive that. And something very37:55 real and very supernatural takes place in you. With every head bowed, with every eye closed, I'm just going to ask you to do 1 thing. Just so I can make contact, then I'm going to pray for you. And this is a prayer38:07 you have to wrap your heart around my words and offer to the Lord. But you say, Joel, would you pray for me? I want to know without a doubt that my life belongs to God and that I am His and my eternity is38:19 sealed. I want to walk into His blessing through these boundaries. But it begins by giving your life to Christ and receiving His life. With every head bowed and eyes closed, at the count of 3, would you just lift your38:30 hand so I can see where it is? And then I'm just going to pray for you. 1, 2, 3. Hold your hand up wherever you're at just so I can see. Thank you. You. Thank you. Thank you. Every section, Thank you. You are not lifting38:41 your hand to me. You are lifting it to the Lord. It's like a prayer you're giving him as you raise your hand to him. You're saying, Jesus, I'm here. Take my life. I receive your life. Lord, you see each of these hands38:51 that are lifted up. I thank you for their life. I thank you that tonight there need be no doubt, no fear. We come to you and we acknowledge that we are sinners39:03 and we have gone our own way. And we thank you that you took it on yourself to come to us to die, resurrect, that we could have eternal life. And tonight we receive that eternal life. We39:15 do the great exchange. We give you our life and we receive your life for today and for eternity. I pray each person who has raised their hand would have that assurance by the spirit of GodShow more
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