THE PRIORITY OF PRAYER
Text: Joshua 9:1-27
Introduction
1. Illustration: The roof of the church hall of a little Swiss church, at the turn of the 20th century, was falling down. So the members of the church held regular prayer meetings in the hall after the service to pray for funds to repair the roof .
There was an old man, known to be very tight with his money, who used to attend and sit near the back of the hall. He could sneak out just before the collection plate came round at the end of the prayer meeting.
One Sunday, he was held up on his way to the prayer meeting in the Hall by the vicar and could only find a seat at the front of the church.
During the prayer meeting, a piece of the roof fell and hit him on the head. Feeling spoke to by the Lord, he stood up and said "Lord, I’ll give £1000"
A voice at the back of the church was heard to say " Hit him again, Lord"!
2. Prayer is the first thing, the second thing, the third thing necessary to a minister. Pray, then, my dear brother; pray, pray, pray. (Edward Payson, Preacher and Prayer, E.M. Bounds, 1907, p. 32.)
3. Prayer is to be the highest priority of all Christians.
a. Higher than fellowship
b. Higher than worship
c. Higher than even Scripture
4. Prayer should be the highest priority because of:
a. Perpetual pests
b. Pessimistic Perceptions
c. Passive Problems
5. Read Joshua 9:1-27
Proposition: Life would be so much easier if we would only pray.
Transition: Prayer should be the highest priority because of...
I. Perpetual Pests (1-2)
A. Combined Their Armies
1. Word was spreading quickly about what the Lord was doing in the region through Joshua and the Israelites, and some of the nations decided they would not go down without a fight.
2. In verse one we discover that "all the kings west of the Jordan River heard about what had happened."
a. The region referred to here is, literally, “beyond the Jordan”, referring to regions west of the Jordan.
b. This phrase is found thirteen times in Joshua, referring both to the region east of the Jordan (what is often called “Transjordan," and the region west of the Jordan, what is sometimes called “Cisjordan” (—New American Commentary)
3. These kings, who encompassed the entire region of Canaan from the sea to the mountains, decided that it was in their best interest to ban together.
4. In verse 2, which says, "These kings combined their armies to fight as one against Joshua and the Israelites," we find some very interesting things.
a. They knew that separately they would meet the same fate as Jericho and Ai, but they thought fighting "as one," they could defeat Joshua and his army.
b. However, their thinking is foolish, because in reality, when they joined forces against the Israelites, they were really fighting against God. This was a fight they could not win.
c. Ps. 2:1-2 Why are the nations so angry? Why do they waste their time with futile plans? The kings of the earth prepare for battle; the rulers plot together against the LORD and against his anointed one.
5. Fighting against God is like:
a. Spitting into the wind
b. Running into a brick wall
c. Even Gamaliel understood this in Acts 5:39, when he said "But if it is from God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You may even find yourselves fighting against God!”
d. Anyone who fight against the Lord fights in vain.
B. Spiritual Warfare
1. Illustration: True story. A Christian leader -- we’ll call him Steve --as traveling recently by plane. He noticed that the man sitting two seats over was thumbing through some little cards and moving his lips. The man looked professorial with his goatee and graying brown hair, and Steve placed him at fifty-something. Guessing the man was a fellow-believer, Steve leaned over to engage him in conversation. "Looks to me like you’re memorizing something," he said. "No, actually I was praying," the man said. Steve introduced himself. "I believe in prayer too," he said. "Well, I have a specific assignment," said the man with the goatee. "What’s that?" Steve asked. "I’m praying for the downfall of Christian pastors."
2. Prayer needs to be a priority in our lives because we are in a battle, a spiritual battle, and the stakes are very high.
3. If we are not careful, or in better words, if we are not prayerful, we can find ourselves on the wrong side of that battle.
4. What do you mean by that Pastor? If we are not prayerful about some of our activities we can actually be fighting against God.
5. Are some things that people see as harmless fun really all that harmless? What about:
a. Horoscopes
b. Juigi boards
c. Halloween
6. Eph. 5:11 Take no part in the worthless deeds of evil and darkness; instead, expose them.
Transition: Have you prayed about it?
II. Pesimistic Perceptions (3-17)
A. They Resorted to Deception
1. The rest of this chapter focuses on the people of Gibeon.
a. Gibeon was a city not far from Ai, about five miles northwest of Jerusalem.
b. It is first mentioned here in the Bible.
c. Gibeon would be part of Benjamin’s tribal inheritance (Josh 18:25) and also would be apportioned as a Levitical city (21:17).
d. In the Bible, it is known primarily from the story here and the battle that followed —(New American Commentary).
2. The people of Gibeon decided to take a different approach from the kings mentioned in verses 1-2. In verse 4 it says "they resorted to deception to save themselves."
a. They knew that they could not fight against Israel and the Lord.
b. Therefore, they decided to try and trick the Israelites into believing that they were from a far off country.
c. The KJV uses the word "wilily," to describe this term.
d. Illustration: Think if you will about the cartoon character Wile E. Cyote from the Roadrunner who was always scheming against the roadrunner because he knew he wasn’t fast enough to catch him.
e. They knew they could not defeat Israel, so they decided to trick them into making a peace treaty with them.
3. You have to hand it to them, they really went all out in trying to trick Joshua. "They sent ambassadors to Joshua, loading their donkeys with weathered saddlebags and old, patched wineskins.They put on worn-out, patched sandals and ragged clothes. And the bread they took with them was dry and moldy.When they arrived at the camp of Israel at Gilgal, they told Joshua and the men of Israel, “We have come from a distant land to ask you to make a peace treaty with us.”
a. Israel was allowed to spare and make treaties with cities that were far from them, but they were explicitly directed not to make peace with the cities of the peoples whom the Israelites were dispossessing—(New American Commentary)
b. Deut. 20:15-17 “But these instructions apply only to distant towns, not to the towns of the nations in the land you will enter.In those towns that the LORD your God is giving you as a special possession, destroy every living thing.You must completely destroy the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, just as the LORD your God has commanded you."
4. Not only do they try and trick Joshua, but they also try and sweet talk him. When they are asked if they are from nearby, they simply say “We are your servants.”
a. Isn’t that just how the Devil works?
b. He makes things appear better than they are.
c. He comes as an angel of light, but all the time he is covered in darkness.
5. Then Joshua and the Israelites make a fatal error, because they "examined their food, but they did not consult the LORD."
a. This verse condemns Israel for not praying and seeking the will of God before entering into a peace treaty (Butler, WBC: Joshua,103).
b. They step out totally on their own, totally in the flesh, and make an ill-advised peace treaty with the Gibeonites.
c. The result of their mistake would haunt them for generations to come.
B. Prayerful Planning
1. Illustration: A young man had been promoted to an important position in his company. He’d never dreamed he’d be in such a position, much less at such a young age. So he went to see the venerable old timer in the company, and said, "Sir, I was wondering if you could give me some ADVICE." The old timer came back with just two words: "Right decisions!" The young man had hoped for a bit more than this, so he said, "Thank you, that’s really helpful, and I appreciate it, but could you be a little more SPECIFIC? HOW do I make right decisions?"
The old man responded: "Experience." The young man said, "Well, that’s just the point of my being here. I don’t have the kind of experience I need. How do I GET it?" The old man replied: "WRONG decisions!"
2. When we get to the point when we think we know so much that we don’t need God’s leading, it’s time to get back on our knees.
a. Isaiah 55:8-9 “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the LORD. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts."
b. If we think we know more than God and no longer need his counsel, we are in big trouble.
3. We need to seek God’s will in prayer because:
a. We don’t know which way to turn
b. We don’t know what is ahead of us
c. We are not in control - He is!!
4. We need to seek God’s will in:
a. Our ministries
b. Our relationships
c. Our finances
5. Doing your own thing will lead you into trouble, but doing God’s thing will lead you into glory.
Transition: Whatever it is, have you prayed about it?
III. Passive Problems (18-27)
A. The Israelite Leaders Made a Vow
1. Even though the Gibeonites deceived them, "the Israelites did not attack the towns, for the Israelite leaders had made a vow to them in the name of the LORD, the God of Israel."
a. In OT life, swearing had nothing to do with foul language and everything to do with the assurance that one would faithfully keep his or her word.
b. OT oaths consist of a promise that is strengthened by the addition of a curse, with an appeal to a deity (or even a human king) who could stand as the power behind the curse (New International Dict of OT Theology & Exegesis. Pradis CD-ROM).
c. In other words, to go against your word could bring a curse from the Lord, especially if you took an oath in His name.
d. So there hands were tied. They couldn’t kill the Gibeonites even though they had deceived them.
2. So they decided to "let them live, for divine anger would come upon us if we broke our oath."
a. The leaders acknowledged that they needed to spare the Gibeonites, if only so that they themselves would not suffer wrath because of breaking the oath.
b. Many years later, when Saul killed the Gibeonites in violation of this oath, the Lord brought a famine upon the land (2 Sam 21:1), and this would have been the type of wrath the leaders feared.—(New American Commentary)
3. As a result, "they made them woodcutters and water carriers for the entire community, as the Israelite leaders directed."
a. They couldn’t kill them, so they forced them to be their slaves.
b. They would cut and carry wood for all of Israel, and when the house of God was established they were to carry wood and water to the Temple.
4. Well what’s so awful about that? Free labor - right?
a. There was a reason that the Lord wanted them to destroy all the inhabitants of the land.
b. Deut. 20:18 This will prevent the people of the land from teaching you to imitate their detestable customs in the worship of their gods, which would cause you to sin deeply against the LORD your God.
c. This would be a decision that would affect them for the rest of their history, and it would ultimately lead to their downfall.
d. All because they DID NOT PRAY!!
B. Living With Bad Decisions
1. Illustration: In A Slow and Certain Light, Elizabeth Elliot tells of two adventurers who stopped by to see her, all loaded with equipment for the rain forest east of the Andes. They sought no advice, just a few phrases to converse with the Indians. She writes, "Sometimes we come to God as the two adventurers came to me – confident and, we think, well-informed and well-equipped. But has it occurred to us that with all our accumulation of stuff, something is missing?"
She suggests that we often ask God for too little. "We know what we need – a yes or no answer, please, to a simple question. Or perhaps a road sign. Something quick and easy to point the way."
"What we really ought to have is the Guide himself. Maps, road signs, a few useful phrases are good things, but infinitely better is someone who has been there before and knows the way."
2. We frequently get in a hurry and put the cart in front of the horse.
a. We are in such a hurry to do something, even something for the Lord, but we fail to seek His will.
b. In essence we do our will in God’s name.
c. It always leads to disaster.
3. We think we have it all under control.
a. We’ve got all the answers and we don’t need anyone’s advice, not even God’s.
b. We think we Frank Sinatra "and we did it our way!"
c. However, we find out that it is God’s way or the highway.
4. It easier to seek God first and be blessed than to ignore His counsel and be cursed.
a. We can do God’s will because we want to, or we can do God’s will because we have to.
b. It is a whole lot easier to do His will because we want to.
Transition: The next time you’re ready to make a decision ask yourself this question: "Have I prayed about it?"
Conclusion
1. We need to make prayer a priority because:
a. We have perpetual pests
b. We have pessimistic perceptions
c. We have passive problems
2. Prov. 3:5-7 Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. Don’t be impressed with your own wisdom. Instead, fear the LORD and turn away from evil.
3. If Solomon, perhaps the wisest man that has ever lived, would not depend on his own understanding, why should we?
4. Seek His will in all you do.
