In the last couple months, I have been preaching from the Book of Joshua. Joshua is a book full of epic battles and miraculous events. Ultimately, it’s a book about the character and nature of God. It’s named after Israel’s military leader, Captain Joshua, but Yahweh is the true Hero who drives the story forward. And His majesty and power is what should captivate us.

In Joshua, we learn that Yahweh is a God who does not tolerate injustice and is unshakably committed to His word. His promises are rock solid and worthy of building your life upon. He is a God who demands our total allegiance, but He also is a God that is full of grace toward those who have failed Him countless times. He can destroy an entire army with a single blow, but He is also a God who notices and takes thought of individuals who are fearful, lost, and hurting. Yahweh, the God of Joshua, invites us to share in His victory over evil.

“Have I not commanded you?” God says to Joshua. “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9, NIV).

One takeaway from studying Joshua is that you need to have a big view of God. A small god lacks the power to rescue you from your biggest fears. A small god has no ability to give you hope and meaning in life. But a big God–the God of Joshua–can save. He has the power to help you overcome all your fears, insecurities, and doubts. He is the God who walks with you in your pain. A small and shallow god abandons you when things get rough. But the awesome God of the Bible has a love for you that is deeper than the ocean, and He will not abandon you.

As you walk through Joshua, you get the most vivid and soul-stirring picture of God fighting for His people and granting them an inheritance in the Bible until we come to Jesus. Before the cross and resurrection, the walls of Jericho came down. Before Jesus promised us a kingdom, God promised Joshua the land of Canaan.

Can Modern People Believe in the Miraculous?

Critical scholars stumble in many places in the Book of Joshua. They say that it’s a myth, that it’s unhistorical, that the incredible events recorded could not happen. Why? Because there are some pretty astounding miracles in Joshua. When was the last time you saw the sun stand still in the sky all day? And if you know anything about our culture, you know there is an antisupernatural bias–especially in academia. 

While a student in college, I had a conversation with a girl who had adopted this skeptical worldview. When I asked her why she didn’t accept that the miracles in the Bible were possible, she told me, “People in ancient times used to dream up these amazing stories of gods and miracles because they lacked any real understanding of the world. They attributed things like hurricanes and lightning to the gods, simply because they didn’t know anything of science.” That narrative is pretty firmly ingrained at a secular university.

I responded that the God of the Bible is not just one god among many. He’s not just responsible for the rain or the wind. He is the God over all of nature. He authored all of it. The whole universe lies in the palm of His hand. The mythical gods were all so humanlike. They warred against each other, lusted after women, and behaved like bigger, grumpier versions of us. But Yahweh–the God of the Bible–is in a category of His own. Perhaps her real issue wasn’t that she didn’t believe in miracles. Maybe she just had too small a god in mind.

What many often forget is how much evidence there is for one great and infinite Creator God. For example, we all enter this world preprogrammed to believe that there is an objective standard of justice to which we are all beholden. Even at the age of three, my boys were saying things like, “That’s not fair!” Why, if we’re just animals with instincts, do we all seem compelled to follow this higher moral order? It only makes sense if there is a moral Lawgiver to whom we’re all accountable. It’s easy to explain away the mythical pantheon of gods from ancient cultures, but what you can’t so easily explain away is the one eternal Creator God of the Bible–the reason nature exists in the first place.

If you struggle to believe in miracles, ask yourself, Is it possible that there is a God who created everything? Does the world look more like the product of design or unguided chaos? Does it seem like we are here without rhyme or reason, or does it seem like we were made for more than a mere 80 to 90 years, then nothing? If God is the reason for our existence, what would prevent Him from performing miracles in the world He created, especially if He had a special, redemptive purpose to overcome human evil?

How Big Is Your View of God?

If you are willing to accept the first statement of the Bible: “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth,” there’s no reason not to accept that miracles are possible. And suddenly the book of Joshua doesn’t seem so far-fetched. There are about 120 miracles recorded in the Bible, and I believe they really happened. But here’s what you need to know: the miracles of the Bible are always recorded in a sober, restrained way. They are given in the context of actual historical and factual accounts. They aren’t like Aesop’s Fables or Homer’s Odyssey. The Bible was written as history. And if you have a big view of God, you can accept the reality of miracles.

Furthermore, the best part is that you can actually know this God through committing your life to His uniquely divine Son, Jesus Christ. Despite what you may believe, God is not only real, He loves you and has made Himself available to you. But are you willing to open your heart and life to Him? When your life has been transformed by the God of the Bible, miracles aren’t so hard to believe. 

After one alcoholic became a follower of Jesus, a skeptical friend asked him how he could possibly believe all the nonsense in the Bible about miracles. “You don’t believe that Jesus changed the water into wine do you?” The former alcoholic replied, “I sure do, because in our house Jesus changed the whiskey into furniture.” 

The question is: Just how big is your view of God? You know you have a big view of God when reading sober and historical accounts of miracles doesn’t bother you. It encourages you!

If you have thoughts on this post, I would love to hear from you.