So the Lord said to Moses, “Take Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the Spirit, and lay your hand on him.”
– Numbers 27:18
Oh, what a good verse. This is the transition, the succession process that’s beginning between Moses and Joshua.
Numbers 27:18 shows that God’s Spirit qualifies us, not our abilities.
And what I love about Numbers 27:18 is what qualifies Joshua for leadership. “Take Joshua, the son of man,” God says, “a man in whom is the Spirit,” capital S, Spirit, “and lay your hand on him.” What qualifies Joshua for leadership among God’s people is the fact that the Spirit of God is in him, on him. It’s not because Joshua is the most innovative, the most creative, the most skilled, the most knowledgeable, the most educated, the most… So many things that we think of when it comes to leadership.
And I don’t want to presume Joshua didn’t have some of those things. Because well, as we’ve prayed about in light of Scripture and Exodus, that talks about the Spirit of God giving intelligence and gifts and skills for what God calls people to do. But that’s the point. It all comes from the Spirit of God. The Holy Spirit in Joshua is who qualifies Joshua for leadership. It’s not about what he has, it’s about who he has in him.
And I just want to encourage you today with this reality because as we’ve prayed multiple times, this is one of the glorious differences between the New Testament and the Old Testament, that we all have the Holy Spirit in us. And I just want you to think about any leadership you have in others’ lives. Any influence you have in others’ lives. It could be a position of leadership that you’re in. Or it could just be in relationships you’re in, where you have opportunities to influence others.
Numbers 27:18 explains why we cannot lead well without God’s Spirit.
Just think about what relationships, and friendships you have. Just think of all the opportunities you have to influence others… And what is your greatest need in those relationships, in those friendships, or in that position that you’re in. Your greatest need is to be in tune with the Holy Spirit of God. To be directed, led, guided, continually being transformed and filled by the Holy Spirit of God. You need him.
I just think about my life as a man. As a husband, and as a dad, just stopping there. I cannot lead my family. I can’t love my family, or serve my family as God calls me to without the help of his Spirit. Then I think, okay, as a pastor, I cannot shepherd the church alongside other pastors without the help of the Spirit. And then I just think about friendships, people I’ll interact with today. I need the Spirit of God to lead me, guide me, direct me, and all that.
And so do you, so do all of us. And so we pray, Oh God, help us to influence, and lead other people today by the power of your Spirit in us. Lord, with all the responsibilities you’ve given to us today, the positions we’re in. Even when I think about students and teachers, can I pray for teachers to be filled with your Holy Spirit to teach in tune with your Spirit?
This verse challenges us to live and lead in step with the Spirit.
And then I think about students. God help them to listen in tune with your Spirit and to interact with other students by the leadership of your Spirit. God, we need your Spirit for everything we do. Your help, your strength, your comfort, your peace, your wisdom that flows from your Spirit, not from this world. God, please help us to live and lead in the power of your Spirit in us, and we praise you for the reality that your Spirit is in us.
Help us to live in this to the full and to live with, Colossians 1, the strength that you provide for us by the power of Christ in us, all of his energy working powerfully in us, through us by his Spirit. God, help us to live in this reality today with supernatural power from your Holy Spirit. And God, we pray this specifically in light of Acts 1:8 that by the power of your Spirit in us, you’d help us to be witnesses to you today and witnesses to the ends of the earth.
Prayer for the Rajput Chauhan People
We pray specifically today for the Rajput Chauhan people of India and Pakistan, almost 2 million Muslim men, women, and children who have little to no knowledge of Jesus. God, please send Spirit-filled brothers and sisters with your strength, with your wisdom, with your help, with your power in them, to make the gospel known among the Rajput Chauhan people of India and Pakistan. That they might be reached, that they might be forgiven of their sin and filled with your Spirit through faith in Jesus. Oh, Jesus, we praise you for making all of this possible for the reality that your Spirit is in us today to help us do all you’re calling us to do. Help us to live in the fullness of your Spirit. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
David Platt serves as a Lead Pastor for McLean Bible Church. He is also the Founder of Radical, an organization that makes Jesus known among the nations.
David received his B.A. from the University of Georgia and M.Div., Th.M., and Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Some of his published works include Radical, Radical Together, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Don’t Hold Back, and How to Read the Bible.
He lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area with his wife and children.
