Trust and Obey
“Neither one,” he replied. “I am the commander of the Lord’s army.” At this, Joshua fell with his face to the ground in reverence. “I am at your command,” Joshua said. “What do you want your servant to do?” (Joshua 5:14 NLT)
As Joshua faced the man in this story, most commentators believe none other than the Son of God–Joshua showed he had learned to trust and obey.
Joshua had spent many years serving Moses, who was gone now. Many a Christian leader has chafed at being second in command. They are annoyed or impatient because of being restricted or inconvenienced. When the commander of the Lord’s army told Joshua to take off his shoes (v.15), he obeyed. Where did Joshua learn this radical obedience? He acquired this during the many years when he felt restricted or inconvenienced by Moses’ orders. Joshua had discovered the secret of Moses’ leadership—trust and demonstrated obedience to God’s commands.
The commentator Matthew Henry once wrote, “for it is those know how to obey who best know how to command.” There are many natural-born leaders, but there are never inherited leadership traits; the foremost of these are trust and obedience. You may be in a position where you are chafing at the bit. It appears you are spinning your wheels. God never misses an opportunity to teach you no matter what your situation. If you are where God has placed you, he is always at work.
All Christians, whether leaders or not, must take to heart the words of the old song. “Trust and obey, for there is no other way, to be happy in Jesus but to trust and obey.” Obedience is always the proof of our trust in Christ.
Ken Barnes worked with Youth With A Mission for seventeen years, primarily involved in discipleship training and evangelism. He is the author of The Chicken Farm and Other Sacred Places, published in 2011 by YWAM Publishing, and Broken Vessels in 2021 through Kindle Direct Publishing. He holds a Master of Science degree from Virginia Commonwealth University in Curriculum and Instruction. He currently is a freelance writer.
Ken’s Website— https://kenbarnes.us/
Ken blogs at https://kenbarnes.us/blog/
Obedience is faith.