Commemoration of Joshua
Today we remember and thank God for His faithful servant, Joshua. Joshua, the son of Nun, of the tribe of Ephraim, is first mentioned in Exodus 17 when he was chosen by Moses to fight the Amalakites, whom he defeated in a brilliant military victory. He was placed in charge of the Tent of Meeting (Ex. 33:11) and was a member of the tribal representatives sent to survey the land of Canaan (Num 13:8). Later, he was appointed by God to succeed Moses as Israel’s commander-in-chief. He eventually led the Israelites across the Jordan River into the Promised Land and directed the Israelites’ capture of Jericho. He is remembered especially for his final address to the Israelites, in which he challenged them to serve God faithfully (Josh 24:1–27), concluding with the memorable words, “As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord”(24:15). Source
The Lutheran theologian, David Chytraeus has this to say about Joshua: “Joshua had the same name as our Savior, Jesus Christ [since in Hebrew "Joshua" and "Jesus" are the same name] [both meaning Yahweh saves]. He was a type of Christ, who led the children of the promise of Abraham through the Jordan of this life’s troubles and of death into the restfulness of eternal life. Source: Writing for the day in Treasury of Daily Prayer.
And so, in the Treasury today, we pray that our Lord Jesus Christ would “as our Joshua, lead us…through the waters of our Baptism into the promised land of our eternal home.”
Many “evangelical” Christians miss-apply Joshua as a proof-text that we can make a decision for Christ. They will read Joshua 24:14-15 as example of how Joshua made a decision to follow God. What they are not understanding is that Joshua is already saved and he can make this declaration as a saint. The unsaved person cannot make this same decision since they are dead in their sin.
Thank you for mentioning prominently he was a type of Christ. I vividly remember attending an Army chapel service where the chaplain (a Baptist) preached “principles we can learn from Joshua” without ever once mentioning the real Yahweh who saved us through His doing and dying. I felt like throwing a hymnal at him.
It is interesting that in Joshua 24 the “choose this day whom you will serve” is only a choice among false gods. They are called to serve Yahweh, the God who has saved them, and if they do not want to do that they can make their choice from among the smorgasbord of false gods.