This is week #3 in a 4-week series on the Old Testament character, Joshua, called “Josh Journey”.
• He was one of the 12 spies that checked out Canaan.
• He was the one that led the Israelites into the Promised Land.
• The Jordan River parted for him
• He led the Israelites into victory over Jericho
• They lost to a much inferior city, Ai, then rebounded to beat them
• The sun stood still during one of their battles
Josh had quite the journey! Two weeks ago we talked about how all 12 spies were in the same place, saw the same people, experienced the same sights, sounds and smells but 10 of them had a much different report from Caleb and Joshua. We learned that:
WHEN YOU SEE WHAT GOD WANTS YOU TO SEE, YOU CAN DO WHAT GOD WANTS YOU TO DO
Last week we looked at the first chapter of Joshua, when they were on the verge of crossing the Jordan. When God spoke to Joshua. It was critical that Joshua not only HEAR what God said, but BELIEVE. And for us to:
BELIEVING WHAT GOD SPEAKS, GIVES STRENGTH AND
COURAGE TO THE WEAK!
It’s NOT ENOUGH to HEAR what God speaks. We must BELIEVE! We looked at many of the different things that God has said about US as followers of Christ and I challenged us to BELIEVE what God has said, instead of what others or ourselves have said.
Today, we are looking at the most famous snapshot of Joshua’s life. JERICHO!
Before I read our passage, have you ever been having a conversation in a loud environment, when the noise suddenly stops? Or heard someone talking excessively loud in a restaurant or in church? Or maybe hearing someone answer their phone IN church and talk to the person as they are walking out or worse yet, talk to them WHILE they stay in church? No matter what your culture, it is important that you understand that there is a time to be silent and there is a time to speak. There is a time for reverence and there is a time to shout. That truth is played out in our text today.
Joshua 6:1-16
What I want you to notice in this story is that there was a time to be silent and there was a time to SHOUT. BUT the key to their victory wasn’t in the silence or the shout! Why all the drama in the story? Why all the instructions? They could have just showed up, rang the door bell and God bring the walls down right then and there. But instead, there were clear instructions:
• The army was to march around the city once a day for 6 days in absolute SILENCE
• Seven priests were to walk ahead of the ARK blowing Ram’s horns.
• On the seventh day, 7 laps with the priests blowing the ram’s horns.
• On the signal, everybody shout with a GREAT SHOUT!
Why not just do it the easy way? BOOM! DONE! NEXT!
Do you remember the old cereal commercial?
KIX – Kid Tested Mother Approved
In this case, I think it’s
OBEY – TRUST TESTED FATHER APPROVED.
God was testing their obedience. WOULD they follow Him? Why? The Omniscient One didn’t know? NO, because THEY needed to know IF they would be faithful!
OBEDIENCE IS TRUST TESTED
Can you imagine what the people thought when Joshua, who had led the Israelites in several battles under Moses, told them the battle plan? “Hey guys, for 6 days we are going to do a lap a day around the city of Jericho with no noise except for ram’s horns. On the seventh day, we are going to do 7 laps, so we need to get an early start. And as we finish the 7th lap, we will SHOUT and we will win!”
“We’re going to do WHAT?” What Joshua knew and trusted is found in vs. 2 – “But the LORD said to Joshua, “I HAVE GIVEN YOU Jericho, its king, and all its strong warriors.” Joshua BELIEVED God, TRUSTED God and OBEYED God!
Now, some people have a difficult time believing God had a role in the fall of Jericho, except as an adviser so they try to explain how this could happen scientifically.
“Thousands of men marching lockstep six times, over a space of six days, around a city wall constructed of baked mud: mechanical resonance.
Thousands of men marching lockstep around the same walls seven times in a single day: mechanical resonance.
A unified blast from the ram's horns as thousands of men raise their voices and yell in unison: a shattering blast of acoustic resonance to walls weakened over a week's worth of mechanical resonance.
Notice too that every man charged straight in – which means that they didn’t batter down a section of the wall, but all the walls shattered at once – like a glass shattering under acoustic resonance, so that everyone in the long line had access to the city immediately.”
That’s easier to believe than God went BOOM!
The principle to learn through this story isn’t to adopt this as some military strategy. I do not think that General Martin Dempsey, the
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff needs to use this strategy against our enemies when we go to battle. Think about it this way,
what part of their strategy led to their victory?
• It wasn’t the marching
• It wasn’t the trumpets
• It wasn’t the silence of the soldiers
• It wasn’t the mechanical or acoustical resonance
• It wasn’t even the SHOUT
So what led to their victory?
OBEDIENCE IS TRUST TESTED
Isn’t that an overriding principle in the OT battles? That God gave some unusual instructions, so that HE would get the GLORY! What are some of the different ways battles were won? What were some of the unique weapons?
• Samson used a jawbone to defeat thousands of Philistines. Does that mean the U.S. Marines should issue jawbones to our soldiers?
• David defeated the giant, Goliath with a sling and a rock!
• Do you remember this one in 2 Sam. 5:22-24 – “But after a while the Philistines returned and again spread out across the valley... David asked the LORD what to do. “Do not attack them straight on,” the LORD replied. “Instead, circle around behind and attack them near the poplar trees. 24 When you hear a sound like marching feet in the tops of the poplar trees, be on the alert! That will be the signal that the LORD is moving ahead of you to strike down the Philistine army.”
• Do you remember when the Israelites were fighting the Amalekites in Exodus 17? As long as Moses had his hands raised with the staff they would be winning but as soon as his hands came down they would start to lose. So Aaron and Hur held up his hands and they won the battle.
• 2 Chron. 20:15, 17, 20-24 – “He said, “Listen, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Listen, King Jehoshaphat! This is what the LORD says: Do not be afraid! Don’t be discouraged by this mighty army, for the battle is not yours, but God’s. 17 But you will not even need to fight. Take your positions; then stand still and watch the LORD’s victory. He is with you, O people of Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid or discouraged. Go out against them tomorrow, for the LORD is with you!”
Early the next morning the army of Judah went out into the wilderness of Tekoa. On the way Jehoshaphat stopped and said, “Listen to me, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Believe in the LORD your God, and you will be able to stand firm. Believe in His prophets, and you will succeed.”
21 After consulting the people, the king appointed singers to walk ahead of the army, singing to the LORD and praising Him for His holy splendor. This is what they sang:
“Give thanks to the LORD;
His faithful love endures forever!”
22 At the very moment they began to sing and give praise, the LORD caused the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir to start fighting among themselves. 23 The armies of Moab and Ammon turned against their allies from Mount Seir and killed every one of them. After they had destroyed the army of Seir, they began attacking each other. 24 So when the army of Judah arrived at the lookout point in the wilderness, all they saw were dead bodies lying on the ground as far as they could see. Not a single one of the enemy had escaped.”
• What about Gideon’s tactics? He started with 32,000 soldiers. God trimmed it down to 300. What were the weapons that God sent them into battle with? Clay jars, torches and a ram’s horn each. When the signal was given, they broke the jars, which made the torches shine and blew the ram’s horns. The Midianites fought each other and those that weren’t killed fled. And Israel was victorious.
The point was to TRUST and OBEY.
OBEDIENCE IS TRUST TESTED
What battles are you facing? What things are coming against you? Are you trying to hear what God is speaking to you? Are you looking to His Word for principles that apply to your situation? We must say what God has said and speak to that wall or mountain in our lives and watch it crumble. SPEAKING and SHOUTING are the actions we need to do. It is our response to what we believe in our hearts to be true. It is the key to seeing the walls fall.
Joshua's wall was a literal, physical wall, but it can be any wall. Our walls can be the need for a healing, a financial breakthrough, relationships restored, etc. We must exercise our faith by seeing beyond the walls, by trusting what God says. The Wall that looks so incredibly difficult will come down with the SHOUT (action on our part) of trust. We can know that our victory IS on the other side.
OBEDIENCE IS TRUST TESTED
