Joshua 11:25
As the LORD commanded Moses his servant, so did Moses command Joshua, and so did Joshua; he left nothing undone of all that the LORD commanded Moses.
Why was Joshua so successful after taking over the leadership role in Israel? One would think that Joshua would have just maintained, and that would have been considered a success, but Joshua did not maintain but he conquered. Joshua could have easily said that he was not Moses, and he would have been right, but he also understood that the God of Moses did not want them to be a maintaining people but a conquering people.
So, what was the secret to Joshua’s success? The secret was that he left nothing undone of all that the LORD commanded Moses. In other words, Joshua was smart enough not to change what Moses did, but continued what he did. Joshua knew that doing what the previous generation did that made them successful would allow him to be successful. Instead of criticizing Moses for his temper and his weaknesses, Joshua replicated how Moses did things and success found him. In fact, Joshua created a name for himself by copying the great man of God before him. Joshua was not trying to make a name for himself, but he copied what made a name for Moses, and it made Joshua just as much a great leader as Moses.
My friend, success is not rocket science. Anybody can be successful in building their church and serving God if they will copy what the great people of the past did to be successful. We are too busy trying to critique and criticize those of the past when we should be copying what made them successful. This generation has done nothing but empty out their church pews while they seem bent on critiquing and criticizing the past generation. Instead of critiquing and criticizing the past generation, we ought to learn from them and do what they have done to build churches and lives.
When I became Pastor of the Maranatha Baptist Church here in the Oklahoma City area, I determined that I would just do what I learned from the past generation. Instead of trying to recreate a wheel, I have tried to copy what Dr. Jack Hyles and Dr. Lee Roberson did to build their works. It is amazing; it works today just like it worked for them. The “Miracle of Maranatha” is simply not leaving anything undone of what the past generation has taught me to do. I have learned that the old paths that worked in the past still work today.
Success is not a generational thing; any generation can find success if they copy what the past generation did to be successful. The old paths that generations before have trod will still work today if we leave nothing undone that they have done. Soul winning, bus ministry, restoring the fallen, holy living, loving people where they are, and old fashioned preaching all still work today. We don't need to have colored lights, praise and worship teams, and rock concerts to build a church, but we need to build lives through the old paths, and in doing so we will build our churches.
Are you leaving anything undone of what the past generations have taught us? Are you part of the crowd criticizing the past generation? Let me challenge you to copy what they have done and success will find you like it found them. Success is not rocket science; it is found by not leaving anything undone that the previous generation handed us to do.
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