If you are looking for a verse in the bible about courage and strength, Joshua 1:1-9 is one of the most powerful passages you can read. Three times in this passage, God tells Joshua to be “strong and courageous.”

Strength and courage were the specific qualities Joshua was going to need to lead the Israelites into the land of Canaan. More than that, strength and courage are the qualities every believer needs to lead a life of victory and fruitfulness in the Lord. It is no wonder so many of us constantly search for bible verses for strength and courage to anchor our faith.

What I want to explore with you this morning are the details of what God communicated to Joshua that would build and maintain that strength and courage. The things that went into making Joshua strong and courageous are the same things that will make you and me strong and courageous today.

1. Realize that you are responsible

Verses 1 and 2 outline the situation and define the responsibility. I’m going to paraphrase this a little. Here is essentially what God said to Joshua: Moses is no longer here to take the responsibility. Therefore, the time has come for you to lead these people… into the land that I am giving them.

Please note: They weren’t going to go anywhere they arbitrarily chose to go; they were going into the land that God had promised to give them. It is important to realize that there are established parameters for Christian living. We are not entering into something that is undefined or uncharted.

God’s goal for us is not just that we get to heaven—that is certainly a significant part of it—but God has a goal for us down here, and that is that we should be conformed to the image of his Son (Romans 8:29,NIV: “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters”.). My point here is that I am responsible for me, and you are responsible for you. The time has come for each of us to take our personal responsibility.

2. Obedience to God’s Word is vital to spiritual strength

Verse 7 is an incredible verse in the bible about courage and strength: “Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave you…”

When people look for bible verses for strength and courage, they often overlook the deep connection between strength and obedience. Hearing God’s Word does not accomplish God’s will. Only when we obey it do we see the will of God accomplished. There are a few interesting inputs to this that are well worth our while to linger over:

• • Do not deviate from God’s instructions, neither to the right nor to the left. We would say, as indeed God does say, don’t add anything to His Word; don’t take anything away from it.
  • Study God’s Word continually. The study of Scripture is an endangered species. Speculation is popular; opinion is popular; study—not so much!
  • Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. We are taught by eastern culture that meditation involves emptying one’s mind. That is exactly the opposite of what Biblical meditation is. To meditate on God’s Word is to focus our thoughts upon it, to ponder its meaning and application, and to plan or project in our minds in accordance with it.

God said to Joshua: do that, and then you will prosper and be successful in all you do. My friend, this is about being full-time Christians, isn’t it? It’s amazing what God does when we take our responsibility seriously.

3. Have the attitude of faith

God said three more things to Joshua that day that are important for us in this day:

“Do not be afraid.” Fear is the paralyzing agent of the enemy. It is so important that we aren’t afraid that this exhortation (for example, “Fear not”) is the most repeated command in all of Scripture. I am told that there are 365 “Don’t be afraid” encouragements in the Bible—that’s one for every day of the year, and in a leap year, just read one twice!

• • The Psalmist said, “What time I am afraid, then I will trust” (Psalm 56:3).
  • The prophet Isaiah said, “I will trust and not be afraid.” (Isaiah 12:2).

Here’s what I believe: The more we fill our hearts and minds with God’s Word—studying it, meditating on it, obeying it—the easier it will be to trust God and the less likely it is that we will be afraid. I do not say that fear will never enter our experience, but if it does, we will know how to respond to it.

Keep this in mind: “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7, NIV).

“Do not be discouraged.” Remember the two things we need? Strength and courage. When you face difficult seasons, turning to a verse in the bible about courage and strength reminds us of this truth. If we become discouraged, it neutralizes us, does it not? We may sometimes need, as David did, to encourage ourselves in the Lord.

This is also when lifting up a prayer for strength and courage can profoundly shift our perspective. There are other times, such as we read about Paul on his way to Rome, when the presence of other brothers and sisters provides encouragement to us.

1 Thessalonians 5:11 is a good word to us: “Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.”

4. Depend on the presence of the Lord

In a sense, this is part of having the attitude of faith, but it’s so important that I thought it warranted its own heading. God said to Joshua, “For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9). This is arguably one of the most comforting bible verses for strength and courage in all of Scripture.

The presence of the Lord was something that Joshua greatly valued and had cultivated in his experience. Before there was a tabernacle, Moses used to pitch a tent outside the camp, and there he would meet with the Lord. Exodus 33:11 tells us that God would speak to Moses there, and after he would leave and return to the camp, Joshua would stay behind in the tent. He was soaking up the presence of the Lord.

Our Jesus said to us, “And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). The Great Commission reaches to the ends of the earth. Jesus’ promise of His presence extends to the end of the age. We can depend on the presence of the Lord. About gathering together, He said, “Where two or three come together in my name there I am with them” (Matthew 18:20). And if we have to meet on Zoom, He is there too!