Joshua Generation: Hope & Warning from History

December 5th, 2008 by yohan abeynaike

On 3rd April 1968 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr delivered a sermon at the Mason Temple in Memphis, Tennessee. He ended his sermon by saying

“Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place.
But I’m not concerned about that now. I just want to do God’s will.
And He’s allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I’ve looked over.
And I’ve seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you.
But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people will get to the Promised Land.”

A few hours later, he was assassinated by a gunman while he stood on the balcony of his motel room.

King’s words echo the thoughts of Moses as he looked from the top of Mount Pisgah into the land that God had promised to the Israelites. Moses himself was not allowed to go in but he knew that God was faithful to take His people into the land ‘flowing with milk and honey’. It was Joshua who would take up the mantle to lead the people into the Promised Land.

The ‘Promised Land’ that Martin Luther King Jr. foresaw was a nation of equality. A place where ‘whites’, ‘blacks’ and ‘coloureds’ could work together to build a nation and not be judged by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character. He dreamt of a time when the sons of former slaves and former slave owners could sit together as brothers. A place where there was freedom for all and racial injustice was a thing of the past.

The election of Barack Obama to the highest position in the USA is seen by many as the result of the long hard journey begun years earlier by the American Civil Rights Movement. His message of change has resonated with all the peoples that make up the USA today as well as those around the world. Many, including CNN Senior Political Analyst David Gergen, see this generation as the ‘Joshua Generation,’ i.e. the generation that would lead the American nation to the fulfillment of King’s dream. They see in Obama the hope and opportunity to take the USA to a place of respected leadership in the world. A symbol of how life should be for millions around the world suffering from discrimination, violence, injustice, poverty, disease and hopelessness. If you believe the voices of the majority around the world you would see that this is a time for optimism that change is around the corner. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. however, saw that symbolism alone was not enough. He said

It’s alright to talk about ‘long white robes over yonder,’ in all of its symbolism.
But ultimately people want some suits and dresses and shoes to wear down here.
It’s alright to talk about “streets flowing with milk and honey,”
but God has commanded us to be concerned about the slums down here,
and his children who can’t eat three square meals a day.
It’s alright to talk about the New Jerusalem,
but one day, God’s preacher must talk about the New York,
the new Atlanta, the new Philadelphia,
the new Los Angeles, the new Memphis, Tennessee.
This is what we have to do.”

The ‘Obama mania’ that has swept through the world will be fleeting if not backed with serious work on the ground. We are in a time of great economic turmoil where insecurity and injustice abound. As Obama takes office our prayer is that he will ‘walk the talk’ and convert the symbolic hope of his nation to one of reality to the whole world.

However, there is another lesson that we need to learn from the original Joshua generation. The Lord led Joshua and the Israelites as they took control and settled in the land. Joshua divided the land among the tribes of Israel as God had instructed him to. The people followed God’s covenant faithfully until the death of Joshua and his fellow leaders. However this hope was short lived. The next book in the Bible, the book of Judges, shows how quickly the Israelites descended into a period of religious and socio-political decline as they rejected God’s covenant. The changes that were put in place were not deep-seated. It lasted only for one generation.

As Obama takes office on January 20th 2009 his challenge will be two-fold. Not only has he to live up to the hype that he and the media has created, he has to ensure that the change that he brings in is permanent and entrenched. To do this he cannot ignore the effects of his policies on the rest of the world. America cannot go it alone in this world. He needs to earn the respect and the trust of all nations by honest diplomacy and courageous decision making. Bribing and threatening the world by economic or military might, will only bring about negative reactions. The hope for change is one that is shared by all nations. It is only when we band together that true change will come to all peoples of the earth. It would be good if Obama heads the words of his hero, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr on that famous night in Tennessee

“We’ve got to give ourselves to this struggle until the end.
Nothing would be more tragic than to stop at this point, in Memphis.
We’ve got to see it through.
And when we have our march, you need to be there.
Be concerned about your brother.
You may not be on strike. But either we go up together, or we go down together.”

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