Join us at the Synergize 3! Pastors Conference on January 17–19, 2012 in Orlando, Florida, to network with key Christian leaders from every world region. Learn more at www.synergize.tv.
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INTRODUCTION
As a minister waited in an airport to board his flight, he watched a soldier in uniform embrace and say goodbye to his wife, children, and parents. He breathed a prayer that God would somehow allow him to be seated next to the soldier on the flight. In time, they took seats next to each other; and the minister commented about the farewell scene in the terminal. The young man acknowledged he was going away and would likely see warfare. As their conversation continued, the young man admitted he had thought about death and eternity. He told the minister that he, his wife, his children, and his parents had all accepted Christ as Savior and were living as faithful believers. The soldier stated he was a happy man who had learned a very important lesson in life: Life is not lived in length but in depth.
We live in hurried times, and many people seldom take the time to get alone with God and hear from Him. In eternity, we will have forever to think about what we should have done, said, or been for God. If we are to live victoriously, a time and place will come when we will meet the man with the sword in His hand and we will learn to know Him in a personal way.
Many are sidetracked by the abundance of amusements today. The word “amuse” comes from two Greek words: “a” meaning “no,” and “muse” meaning “think”—“no think.” That is the problem with our society—no thinking; no time to get alone with God.
During their time in Gilgal, the Israelites had time to be alone with God. 14“Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and bowed down, and said to him, ‘What has my Lord to say to his servant?’” Joshua 5:10-15 covers a three-day period. The Israelites are camped in Gilgal, about one and a quarter miles from Jericho. Those were days of significance of going with God. Now we see the seriousness of going in God. We can have the person of victory in our lives. Three tremendous truths relate to the person of victory.
PERCEIVE THE REALITY OF GOD’S PURPOSE
1. The Passover was celebrated.
10“While the sons of Israel camped at Gilgal, they observed the Passover on the evening of the fourteenth day of the month on the desert plains of Jericho.”
The Israelites had not celebrated Passover for 38 years. If you have never allowed the blood of the Lord Jesus to cover your sins and you want peace and joy, you must come to a place where you let Christ come into your heart and life.
The Passover was celebrated, but the produce was also consumed.
2. The produce was consumed.
11“And on the day after the Passover, on that very day, they ate some of the produce of the land, unleavened cakes and parched grain.”
They had not only received a new faith, but they also received new food. Manna had been intended to sustain them; but now the corn, wine, grapes, and pomegranates and the milk and honey were intended to strengthen them. Manna is not good enough for Canaan victory, for the victorious life, or to conquer Jericho. We need new food, a new faith, and a new relationship with God Almighty. The Passover was celebrated, the produce was consumed, and the progress was consequential.
3. The progress was consequential.
12“And the manna ceased on the day after they had eaten some of the produce of the land, so that the sons of Israel no longer had manna, but they ate some of the yield of the land of Canaan during that year.”
There was no more griping or complaining that the manna was gone. After tasting the depth, width, and breadth of God, who wants to go back to manna? Who wants to go back to “What is this food?”
Even now many of God’s people are frustrated, aggravated, and defeated. Many come into God’s house on Sunday and sing and shout; however, some of those same people can be seen mourning on Monday, tense on Tuesday, worried on Wednesday, troubled on Thursday, frustrated on Friday, and sad on Saturday; but when Sunday comes, it is Canaan time again. God wants us not only to sing and shout on Sunday but also to be ministering on Monday, trusting on Tuesday, worshipping on Wednesday, thankful on Thursday, fruitful on Friday, and saving the lost on Saturday. Then when we return to the house of God on Sunday, we can honestly report that everything is great, grand, and glorious. Camping in Canaan and living off the land does bring the joy of Jesus into our hearts and lives.
Many years ago, a seventeen-year-old boy attended a Christian school. One subject he addressed dealt with “The Union of Believers With Christ.” He wrote:
“When we consider also the history of individuals, when we consider the nature of man, it is true that we always see a spark of divinity in his breast, a passion for what is good, a striving for knowledge, a yearning for truth. But the sparks of the eternal are extinguished by the flames of desire; enthusiasm for virtue is drowned by the tempting voice of sin, it is scorned as soon as life has made us feel its full power; the striving for knowledge is supplanted by a base striving for worldly goods, the longing for truth is extinguished by the sweetly flattering power of lies; and so there stands man, the only being in nature which does not fulfill its purpose, the only member of the totality of creation which is not worthy of the God who created it. But that benign Creator could not hate His work; He wanted to raise it up to Him and He sent His Son, through whom He proclaimed to us: “Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you” (John 15:3). “Abide in me, and I in you” (John 15:4).
That young man’s name was Karl Marx, the father of modern-day communism. He later went to London and recruited Lenin and Stalin and eventually wrote the Communist Manifesto. He gave birth to communism as we know it today. Marx had head knowledge of Christ but never heart knowledge. He had the right theology but did not have Jesus Christ in his heart and life.
We must first perceive the reality of God’s purpose.
PRACTICE THE REVELATION OF GOD’S PERSON
1. The problem is calculated.
2.
13“Now it came about when Joshua was by Jericho…”
All along Joshua looked at Jericho. Human wisdom would suggest he should use slings and catapults and dig trenches or maybe starve the people into subjection. This same wisdom would come up with all kinds of schemes and ways to conquer Jericho. Joshua studied the massive city of Jericho. The walls were 20 feet thick and 30 feet high, wide enough for two chariots to travel side by side around the city. He was a military man, an ingenious man, trying to figure some way to conquer Jericho. Likewise, we often carry our own burdens and figure things out instead of giving our problems to God and letting Him do something mighty in our lives. The problem is calculated, but the person is also considered.
3. The person is considered.
4.
13“Now it came about when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, a man was standing opposite him with his sword drawn in his hand, and Joshua went to him and said to him, ‘Are you for us or for our adversaries?’ 14And he said, ‘No, rather I indeed come now as captain of the host of the Lord.’”
Can you comprehend what was happening? This man is a pre-incarnate appearance of Jesus Christ. He was the captain of the Lord’s people in charge of all the unseen angelic forces of heaven. Now He appeared to a soldier—this man, this officer, this captain—whose name is Joshua who asked if He was on his side or the enemy’s. He said, “No,” but that did not answer Joshua’s question. He was saying, “No, rather I indeed come now as captain of the host of the Lord.” Jesus Christ does not take sides. Our responsibility is not to get God on our side but to get on His side. When He comes, He comes to take over and give victory in every area of our lives.
In essence, the Lord said, “I have not come to take sides; I have come to take over.” If we will just get on His side, we will be victorious over Jericho and live in Canaan and know the blessings of God in our lives. What is important is that our church and our family are on the Lord’s side.
This man who has the sword in His hand is the advisor to administrators, the captain of conquerors, the deliverer of His disciples, the guide of all governors, the head of all heroes, the leader of all legislators, and the master of the mighty. This Jesus is the overseer of overcomers, the Savior of all sinners, the teacher of all truth, and the witness of the Word of God.
This same Jesus is the captain of God’s children. He brings triumph in tragedy, stillness to our storms, help to the hopeless, and blessings to the broken. He brings nourishment to the needy, Spirit to the seeker, love to the lonely, instruction to the ignorant, and success to God’s people. The man with the sword in His hand comes to minister to the committed who have sold out to the Lord Jesus Christ.
Those who are committed to Him have life that can never die, love that can never be reduced, righteousness that can never be disgraced, peace that can never be discovered, rest that can never be disturbed, joy that can never be diminished, hope that can never be disappointed, glory that can never be dimmed, light that can never be darkened, happiness that can never be depressed, strength that can never be disabled, purity that can never be defiled, beauty that can never be damaged, wisdom that can never be erased, and resources that can never be depleted. Serving the man with the sword in His hand is marching into victory.
In Genesis, He is the promised seed.
In Exodus, He is the Passover lamb.
In Leviticus, He is the scapegoat.
In Numbers, He is the brazen serpent lifted up on a pole.
In Deuteronomy, He is the lawgiver.
In Joshua, He is prophet, priest, and king.
In Judges, He is the righteous judge.
In Ruth, He is the kinsman redeemer.
In Samuel, He is the anointer.
In Kings, He is the King of kings and the Lord of lords.
In Chronicles, He is our history.
In Ezra, He is the rebuilder of the temple.
In Nehemiah, He is the rebuilder of the walls.
In Esther, He is the Savior of the Jews.
In Job, He is the friend that sticks closer than a brother.
In Psalms, He is the song of the ages.
In Proverbs, He is the wisdom of God.
In Ecclesiastes, He is the great preacher.
In the Song of Solomon, He is the wonderful lover.
In Isaiah, He is wonderful, counselor, the Prince of Peace, the mighty God, the everlasting Father.
In Lamentations, He is the great preacher.
In Jeremiah, He is the weeping prophet.
In Ezekiel, He is the restorer of the people of God.
In Daniel, He is the stone cut out with hands and the fourth man in the fiery furnace.
In Hosea, He is spurned, but He is the forgiving husband.
In the Minor Prophets, He is the star that rises in Bethlehem’s sky.
In Matthew, He is the King of kings.
In Mark, He is the suffering servant.
In Luke, He is the Son of man.
In John, He is the Son of God.
In Acts, He is the mighty power of the Church.
In Romans, He is the dynamite of the gospel.
In Corinthians, He is the transformer of the carnal nature.
In Galatians, He is the torn veil.
In Ephesians, He is the heavenly one.
In Philippians, He is the all-sufficient one.
In Colossians, He is the preeminent one.
In Thessalonians, He is the coming one.
In Timothy, He is the great appearing God.
In Titus, He is our Blessed Hope.
In Philemon, He is the emancipator of all slaves.
In Hebrews, He is best of all.
In James, He is the true religion.
In Peter’s epistles, He is the rock of our salvation.
In John’s epistles, He is our assurance.
In Jude, He is the one who is able to keep us from falling.
In Revelation, He is the King of kings who is coming on the white horse.
We need a fresh revelation of the person of the Lord Jesus Christ for He is the man with the sword in His hand. He did not come to take sides; He came to take over and to give victory!
See His purpose. See His person.
PREVIEW THE RECOGNITION OF GOD’S POWER
14“And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and bowed down, and said to him, ‘What has my lord to say to his servant?’ 15And the captain of the Lord’s host said to Joshua, ‘Remove your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy.’ And Joshua did so.”
We will never see our Jericho conquered until we lay our sword at the Lord’s feet and prostrate ourselves before Him in worship. Until we lay what is in our hands before Him, our Jerichos will continue to stand. We must understand that conquering Jericho is not physical but spiritual. We are not going to experience victory through our might but by His Spirit.
If we want victory over our Jerichos, we must learn to only glance at Jericho but to gaze at Jesus. We must keep our eyes off the problems and place them on the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is interesting that this man Joshua who was the captain became the servant. If we are to be victorious, we must have the attitude of servitude. That day, Joshua lay down, prostrated himself, and worshipped God. Joshua gave everything he had to Jesus.
CONCLUSION
Some years ago, a Nazarene missionary in West Africa led a group of men through the jungle to another village where they were to tell a different tribe about Jesus. One of the men was following some distance behind when the missionary neared a log laying across the path. As he approached the log, a deadly green mamba snake suddenly rose on its tail to a height of some six feet. The poison of this snake is strong enough to kill 30 men.
The missionary immediately stopped and stared into the face of the snake. He watched its tongue dart in and out and wondered if he should try to grab the snake, but he decided to be still and continued to stare. He feared some men might come up from behind and frighten the snake into striking. Suddenly a verse the Apostle Paul wrote to the church at Ephesus came to mind: “and having done everything, to stand firm” (Ephesians 6:13). He claimed that verse and just stood still, praying for safety and that God would deliver him to strengthen his testimony to the people. Before long, the snake backed down and slithered away through the bushes.
When we serve Christ, the enemy will sometimes raise his ugly head and make us look at him face-to-face. Victory over our adversary will come as we claim the Word of God and keep our eyes on the one who is able to deliver. God’s Word promises that the enemy of our souls is under our feet and we can have victory in every area of our lives. We need to faithfully commit to Him, worship Him, and give Him the glory. We can then expect the Canaan life every day in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
