Joshua 24:31 And Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that overlived Joshua, and which had known all the works of the Lord, that he had done for Israel.
The people of Israel served the Lord and remained faithful to Him as long as Joshua and the elders lived. But what is implied in that statement is that after Joshua and the elders died they did not serve the Lord faithfully. This response played out in the story of the people during the days of the Judges and the Kings. Their faith and faithfulness waxed or waned depending on whether a faithful leader was in place.
The Lord raised up men like Joshua and like David, who was “a man after my heart, who will do my will.” The Lord Jesus ascended on high and gave gifts to men, like Apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, teachers. The Lord raises up for us strong and faithful leaders whom He uses to keep us serving the Lord. We respond to God’s called faithful servants, people who know the works of the Lord.
We do not have a Joshua, who was there to see, or a Peter, who witnessed the death and resurrection of Jesus, but we have leaders whom God raised up for us by the Spirit and the Word to testify to the Truth and the Life. The Spirit brings the Word, and we believe and serve the Lord. God chose to do just that through plain human beings, like Joshua and the elders.