Prepare Joshua

I pray, let me cross over and see the good land beyond the Jordan, those pleasant mountains, and Lebanon.' "But the LORD was angry with me on your account, and would not listen to me. So the LORD said to me: 'Enough of that! Speak no more to Me of this matter. Go up to the top of Pisgah, and lift your eyes toward the west, the north, the south, and the east; behold it with your eyes, for you shall not cross over this Jordan. But command Joshua, and encourage him and strengthen him; for he shall go over before this people, and he shall cause them to inherit the land which you will see.' – Deuteronomy 3v25-28

Despite Moses’ pleadings he was not going to be permitted to go into the land. ‘Please let me go and have a look Lord.’ I can certainly understand that feeling. He was getting old, they were right there. He had been leading the people here for forty years and now it was in sight. But God said, and my parrowphrase is not too far off here, ‘That’s enough Moses. Shut up about that…’

But God was gracious even in this. ‘Go up to the mountain Moses and look at the land with your eyes, but you are not going to go in to the land.’

He did not stop there. His next words excite me as a teacher. ‘Teach Joshua. Encourage him. Strengthen him. He is the one going in to the land.’

Moses could not go in, but he was able to do the next best thing. He was told to train the guy who would go in. He could not go in personally, but his impact would continue on. Teaching and training are practices that never die.

I am reading a fascinating book titled ‘The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks.’ It is about a woman who died of cancer in the early 50s. Unknown to her and her family the doctors removed some of the cancer cells and used them in research. These HeLa cells are amazing in their ability to reproduce. For almost 50 years now these cells have been reproducing and are still being used in all sorts of medical research. Her cells have been labelled ‘immortal’ because they just keep growing and dividing.

This woman was well loved by her family and friends, but in reality her mark on the world in her lifetime was minimal. Her contribution to the world happened after her death. She never stepped out of the dirt and poverty of her life, but she lives on in research and in cure after cure.

The HeLa cells are a good picture of the impact of a teacher. Moses’ impact would not end with his death. Through Joshua his impact would go on and on and on. The same is true with any teacher. We never know the impact our lives and teaching may have.

Moses did not make it to the Promised Land. He was a failure, right? Hardly.