REMOVING The WALL-IV—Joshua 6:1-16+:20
Removing Barriers
Barriers To Progress
Attention:
Looking Back:
Soon after their last child left home for college, a husband was resting with his wife on the couch with his head in her lap. She carefully removed his glasses.
"You know, honey," she said sweetly, "Without your glasses you look like the same handsome young man I married."
"Honey," he replied with a grin, "Without my glasses, you’re still that same beautiful woman I married too!" And then they hugged & kissed one another.
Their comments were made & received in love.
Any seeming barriers to such talk had been removed even from the couple’s beginnings, thru their loving commitment to one another.
Likewise, your & our love for & trust in the Lord removes any barriers we may have to/in his service.
We do well when our path is unhindered/clear/certain.
God enabled the children of Israel to conquer the walled city of Jericho.
God removes the barriers to ministry/serving Him.
God seeks to ensure the success of ministry.
How can barriers to ministry/serving God be removed?
We have already found that Ministry barriers vanish when...
1. GOD’s POWER DOMINATES(The ENEMY & The FAMILY)(:1-2)
2. GOD ALONE INTIMATES(:3-5)
3. GOD ALONE INTIMIDATES(:6-9)
4. SILENCE REIGNS(:10-15)
5—Ministry barriers vanish when...
FAITHFULNESS REIGNS(:16, 20)
Explanation:(16, 20)
:16—“And the seventh time it happened, when the priests blew the trumpets, that Joshua said to the people: “Shout, for the LORD has given you the city!”
:5—““It shall come to pass, when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, & when you hear the sound of the trumpet, that all the people shall shout with a great shout; then the wall of the city will fall down flat. And the people shall go up every man straight before him.”
:2—“And the LORD said to Joshua: “See! I have given Jericho into your hand, its king, and the mighty men of valor.”
After the seventh time around the city, the priests blew the trumpets(a distinguishing sound—:5—“a long blast”) & Joshua gave command for the people to “shout”(:5).
The 7th day was the day of reckoning with the power of God for both Israel & those in league with Jericho.
Israel was instructed to “shout” because YaHWeH—the LORD—had “given them the city” of Jericho!
God GAVE the city to the Israel...due to their faithfulness!
Jn. 3:16—““For God so loved the world that He GAVE His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
2Pet. 1:2-11—“Grace & peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God & of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life & godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory & virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great & precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, & to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours & abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, & has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins. Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call & election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble; for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ.”
“Time”—Mep pah'-am OR Fem.--hmep pah-am-aw’—Noun Fem.—1) Stroke, beat, foot, step, anvil, occurrence—1a) Foot, hoof-beat, footfall, footstep, 1b) Anvil, 1c) Occurrence, time, stroke, beat—1c1) One time, once, twice, thrice, as time on time, at this repetition, this once, now at length, now...now, at one time...at another. Strong—A stroke, literally or figuratively(in various applications).?From—Mep—a primitive root; To tap, i.e. Beat regularly; hence generally--To impel or agitate.
“Priests”(See :4, 6)—Nhk ko-hen’—Noun Masc.
“Blew”(See :4, 8, 9)—eqt taw-kah’—Qal Perfect—1) To blow, clap, strike, sound, thrust, give a blow, blast—1a) (Qal)--1a1) To thrust, drive(of weapon), 1a2) To give a blast, give a blow, 1a3) To strike or clap hands. Strong—a primitive root; To clatter, i.e. Slap(the hands together), clang(an instrument); by analogy--To drive(a nail or tent-pin, a dart, etc.); by implication--To become bondsman(by handclasping).
“Trumpets”(See :4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 13, 20)—rpwv show-far' OR--rpv sho-far’—Noun Masc.—1) horn, ram's horn. Strong—A cornet(as giving a clear sound) or curved horn.?From—rpv shaw-far'; a primitive root; To glisten, i.e. figuratively--Be(causatively--Make) fair.
“Said”(See :2, 10)—rma aw-mar’—Qal Imperfect—1) To say, speak, utter—1a) (Qal)-To say, to answer, to say in one's heart, to think, to command, to promise, to intend. Strong—a primitive root; To say(used with great latitude).
“Shout”(See :5, 10, 20)—ewr roo-ah’—Hiphil(causative) Imperative—1) To shout, raise a sound, cry out, give a blast; 1a) (Hiphil)--1a1) To shout a war-cry or alarm of battle, 1a2) To sound a signal for war or march, 1a3) To shout in triumph(over enemies), 1a4) To shout in applause, 1a5) To shout(with religious impulse), 1a6) To cry out in distress. Strong—a primitive root; To mar(especially by breaking); figuratively--To split the ears(with sound), i.e. Shout(for alarm or joy).
“LORD”(See :2, 7, 17)—hwhy Yeh-ho-vaw’—Noun Proper Deity—Jehovah = “the existing One”—1) The proper name of the one true God—1a) unpronounced except with the vowel pointings of ynda Ad-o-noy’. Strong—from hyh[To exist, be, become, come to pass]; (the) Self-existent or Eternal; Jehovah, Jewish national name of God.
“Given”(See :2)—Ntn naw-than’—Qal Perfect—1) To give, put, set—1a) (Qal)—1a1) To give, bestow, grant, permit, ascribe, employ, devote, consecrate, dedicate, pay wages, sell, exchange, lend, commit, entrust, give over, deliver up, yield produce, occasion, produce, requite to, report, mention, utter, stretch out, extend, 1a2) To put, set, put on, put upon, set, appoint, assign, designate, 1a3) To make, constitute. Strong—a primitive root; To give, used with greatest latitude of application(put, make, etc.).
“City”(See :3, 4, 5, 7, 14)—rye `eeyr, OR(in the plural)--re `awr, OR--rye aw-yar'(Jud 10:4)—Noun Masc.—1)Excitement, anguish—a)Of terror; 2)City, town(a place of waking, guarded)—a)City, town. Strong—A city(a place guarded by waking or a watch) in the widest sense(even of a mere encampment or post).?From—rwe ‘oowr—a primitive root; To wake(literally or figuratively).
:20—“So the people shouted when the priests blew the trumpets. And it happened when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, & the people shouted with a great shout, that the wall fell down flat. Then the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, & they took the city.”
So the people faithfully attended to the desire of the Lord & shouted.
Upon Joshua’s & the priest’s signal, the wall fell down flat
Is this one wall? Perhaps the main gate wall? Or is this the collective wall of the entire city...
Rahab lived on the wall so it is doubtful that the collective wall is meant. If one of the walls fell it would serve to trap the inhabitants of Jericho inside while the Israelites entered from the open/unprotected side. Or was the wall of some particular design that Rahab could be considered to live on it & it still fall flat?
She was to hang a scarlet thread from the window so it could be seen to mark the location of her dwelling by the Israelites(2:15; cf.-:22-23, 25)
Josh. 2:15—“Then she let them[the 2 Israelite spies] down by a rope through the window, for her house was on the city wall; she dwelt on the wall.”
Josh. 6:22-23, 25—“But Joshua had said to the two men who had spied out the country, “Go into the harlot’s house, & from there bring out the woman & all that she has, as you swore to her.” And the young men who had been spies went in & brought out Rahab, her father, her mother, her brothers, & all that she had. So they brought out all her relatives & left them outside the camp of Israel.”.....“And Joshua spared Rahab the harlot, her father’s household, & all that she had. So she dwells in Israel to this day, because she hid the messengers whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.”
The Israelites took, subsumed into/under their power, the city of Jericho.
Obedience begins when our tongue ends & our ears are open to God’s voice.
“Great”—lwdg gaw-dole' or (shortened)-ldg gaw-dole'—Adj.—1) Great—1a) Large(in magnitude & extent), 1b) In number, 1c) In intensity, 1d) Loud(in sound), 1e) Older(in age), 1f) In importance—1f1) Important things, 1f2) Great, distinguished(of men), 1f3) God Himself(of God). Substantive—1g) Great things, 1h) Haughty things, 1i) Greatness. Noun Proper Nominative—1j) (CLBL)--Haggedolim, the great man?, father of Zabdiel. Strong—Great(in any sense); hence--Older; also--Insolent.
“Wall”(See :5)—hmwx kho-maw’—Noun Fem.—1)Wall. Strong—feminine active participle of an unused root apparently meaning to join; A wall of protection.
“Fell”(See :5)—lpn naw-fal’—Qal Imperfect—1) To fall, lie, be cast down, fail—1a) (Qal)--1a1) To fall, 1a2) To fall (of violent death), 1a3) To fall prostrate, prostrate oneself before, 1a4) To fall upon, attack, desert, fall away to , go away to, fall into the hand of, 1a5) To fall short, fail, fall out, turn out, result, 1a6) To settle, waste away, be offered, be inferior to, 1a7) To lie, lie prostrate. Strong—a primitive root; To fall, in a great variety of applications(intransitive or causative, literal or figurative).
“Flat”—txt takh’-ath—Noun Masc.—1) The under part, beneath, instead of, as, for, for the sake of, flat, unto, where, whereas Noun Masc.—1a) The under part. Adverb Accusative—1b) Beneath prep, 1c) Under, beneath—1c1) At the foot of(idiom), 1c2) Sweetness, subjection, woman, being burdened or oppressed(fig), 1c3) Of subjection or conquest, 1d) What is under one, the place in which one stands—1d1) in one's place--The place in which one stands(idiom with reflexive pronoun), 1d2) in place of--Instead of(in transferred sense), 1d3) in place of--In exchange or return for(of things mutually interchanged). Conjunction—1e) Instead of, instead of that, 1f) In return for that, because that in compounds, 1g) In, under, into the place of(after verbs of motion), 1h) From under, from beneath, from under the hand of, from his place, under, beneath. Strong—The bottom(as depressed); only adverbially--Below(often with prepositional prefix underneath), in lieu of, etc..
“Went up”(See :5, 20; :15—“dawning”)—hle aw-law’—Qal Imperfect—1) To go up, ascend, climb—1a) (Qal)--1a1) To go up, ascend, 1a2) To meet, visit, follow, depart, withdraw, retreat, 1a3) To go up, come up(of animals), 1a4) To spring up, grow, shoot forth (of vegetation), 1a5) To go up, go up over, rise(of natural phenomenon), 1a6) To come up(before God), 1a7) To go up, go up over, extend(of boundary), 1a8) To excel, be superior to. Strong—a primitive root; To ascend, intransitively--Be high or actively--Mount; used in a great variety of senses, primary & secondary, literal & figurative.
“Every Man”(See :5)—vya ‘eeysh—Noun Masc.—1) Man—1a) Man, male(in contrast to woman, female), 1b) Husband, 1c) Human being, person(in contrast to God), 1d) Servant, 1e) Mankind, 1f) Champion, 1g) Great man; 2) Whosoever; 3) Each(adjective). Strong—A man as an individual or a male person; often used as an adjunct to a more definite term(& in such cases frequently not expressed in translation).
“Straight before”—dgn neh’-ghed—Substantive—1) What is conspicuous, what is in front of. ?Adverb—2) In front of, straight forward, before, in sight of; 3) In front of oneself, straightforward; 4) Before your face, in your view or purpose. ?with preposition—5) What is in front of, corresponding to; 6) In front of, before; 7) In the sight or presence of; 8) Parallel to; 9) Over, for; 10) In front, opposite; 11) At a distance.?Preposition—12) From the front of, away from; 13) From before the eyes of, opposite to, at a distance from; 14) From before, in front of; 15) As far as the front of.?Strong—A front, i.e. Part opposite; specifically a counterpart, or mate; usually(adverbial, especially with preposition)--Over against or before. Used 23X.
Argumentation:
1Cor. 4:1-5—“Let a man so consider us, as servants of Christ & stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover it is required in stewards that one be found faithful. But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by a human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself. For I know nothing against myself, yet I am not justified by this; but He who judges me is the Lord. Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness & reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one’s praise will come from God.”
Don’t leave this with the apostle Paul...We are all faithful stewards of the Christ-honoring treasure entrusted to us.
1Cor. 10:1-14—“Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that all our fathers were under the cloud, all passed through the sea, all were baptized into Moses in the cloud & in the sea, all ate the same spiritual food, & all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, & that Rock was Christ. But with most of them God was not well pleased, for their bodies were scattered in the wilderness. Now these things became our examples, to the intent that we should not lust after evil things as they also lusted. And do not become idolaters as were some of them. As it is written, “The people sat down to eat & drink, & rose up to play.” Nor let us commit sexual immorality, as some of them did, & in one day twenty-three thousand fell; nor let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, & were destroyed by serpents[spoke against God, Moses & manna(Num. 21:4-6)]; nor complain, as some of them also complained, & were destroyed by the destroyer. Now all these things happened to them as examples, & they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come. Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall. No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it. Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry.”
In a word...Be Faithful!
Gal. 5:22, 23—“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.”
Eph. 1:1-2—“Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, To the saints who are in Ephesus, & faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace to you & peace from God our Father & the Lord Jesus Christ.”
Php. 2:17—“Yes, & if I[Paul] am being poured out as a drink offering on the sacrifice & service of your faith, I am glad & rejoice with you all.”
Col. 1:2—“To the saints & faithful brethren in Christ who are in Colosse: Grace to you & peace from God our Father & the Lord Jesus Christ.”
2Thess. 3:1-3—“Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may run swiftly & be glorified, just as it is with you, & that we may be delivered from unreasonable & wicked men; for not all have faith. But the Lord is faithful, who will establish you & guard you from the evil one.”
2Tim. 2:1-3—“You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.”
2Tim. 4:6-7—“For I[Paul] am already being poured out as a drink offering, & the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”
Heb. 3:5-6—“And Moses indeed was faithful in all His house as a servant, for a testimony of those things which would be spoken afterward, but Christ as a Son over His own house, whose house we are if we hold fast the confidence & the rejoicing of the hope firm to the end.”
Heb. 3:12-15—“Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; but exhort one another daily, while it is called “Today,” lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end, while it is said: “Today, if you will hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”
3John 1:2-4—“Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things & be in health, just as your soul prospers. For I rejoiced greatly when brethren came & testified of the truth that is in you, just as you walk in the truth. I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.”
Rev. 2:10—“Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, & you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, & I will give you the crown of life.”
Rev. 14:8-12—“And another angel followed, saying, “Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she has made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.” Then a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast & his image, & receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of His indignation. He shall be tormented with fire & brimstone in the presence of the holy angels & in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment ascends forever & ever; & they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast & his image, & whoever receives the mark of his name.” Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God & the faith of Jesus.”
Rev. 17:9-14—“Here is the mind which has wisdom: The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits. There are also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, & the other has not yet come. And when he comes, he must continue a short time. And the beast that was, & is not, is himself also the eighth, & is of the seven, & is going to perdition. The ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have received no kingdom as yet, but they receive authority for one hour as kings with the beast. These are of one mind, & they will give their power & authority to the beast. These will make war with the Lamb, & the Lamb will overcome them, for He is Lord of lords & King of kings; & those who are with Him are called, chosen, & faithful.””
Ex. 14:13-14, 26-31—“And Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand still, & see the salvation of the LORD, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever. “The LORD will fight for you, & you shall hold your peace.”.....“Then the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea, that the waters may come back upon the Egyptians, on their chariots, & on their horsemen.” And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; & when the morning appeared, the sea returned to its full depth, while the Egyptians were fleeing into it. So the LORD overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea. Then the waters returned & covered the chariots, the horsemen, & all the army of Pharaoh that came into the sea after them. Not so much as one of them remained. But the children of Israel had walked on dry land in the midst of the sea, & the waters were a wall to them on their right hand & on their left. So the LORD saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians, & Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. Thus Israel saw the great work which the LORD had done in Egypt; so the people feared the LORD, & believed the LORD & His servant Moses.
Heb. 4:1-3—“Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it. For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it. For we who have believed do enter that rest, as He has said: “So I swore in My wrath, ‘They shall not enter My rest,’” although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.”
Rom. 1:16-17—“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.””(Hab. 2:4)
Illustration:
SONG—‘Shout To The Lord’
by Darlene Zschech—Hillsong Worship
My Jesus, my Saviour
Lord there is none like You
All of my days I want to praise
The wonders of Your mighty love
My comfort, my shelter
Tower of refuge & strength
Let every breath, all that I am
Never cease to worship You
Shout to the Lord all the Earth, let us sing
Power & majesty, praise to the King
Mountains bow down & the seas will roar
At the sound of Your name
I sing for joy at the work of Your hand
Forever I'll love You, forever I'll stand
Nothing compares to the promise I have
In You
My Jesus, my Saviour
Lord there is none like You
All of my days I want to praise
The wonders of Your mighty love
You're my comfort
(My comfort)
And my shelter
(My shelter)
You're my tower of refuge & strength
Let every breath, all that I am
Never cease to worship You
Shout to the Lord all the Earth, let us sing
Power & majesty, praise to the King
Mountains bow down & the seas will roar
At the sound of Your name
I sing for joy at the work of Your hand
Forever I'll love You, forever I'll stand
Nothing compares to the promise I have
In You
Oh shout to the Lord all the Earth, let us sing
Power & majesty, praise to the King
Mountains bow down & the seas will roar
At the sound of Your name
I sing for joy at the work of Your hand
Forever I'll love You, forever I'll stand
Nothing compares to the promise I have In You.
Are you willingly & fearlessly able to Shout to the Lord!...To joyfully, confidently, & certainly ascribe your very life & direction to Him?...Are you willingly & fearlessly baptized thru His attributes to the chagrin of the world?
Is He your God, the One to whom you are faithful?
Application:
?Does your FAITHFULNESS in Christ Remove barriers to your serving God?
?Are you seeing Ministry Barriers removed?
CONCLUSION:
Visualization:
"Without your glasses you look like the same handsome young man I married."
“Honey, without my glasses, you’re still that same beautiful woman I married too!"
*And then they hugged & kissed one another.
Action:
Ministry barriers vanish when...
5. FAITHFULNESS REIGNS(:16, 20)
1. GOD’s POWER DOMINATES(The ENEMY & The FAMILY)(:1-2)
2. GOD ALONE INTIMATES(:3-5)
3. GOD ALONE INTIMIDATES(:6-9)
4. SILENCE REIGNS(:10-15)
Pt# 5-only! Presented 09/09/2018am to:
FBC Cbelle
206 Storrs Ave. SW(SE Ave. A)
Carrabelle, FL 32322
Pts# 1-3 Presented 03/26/00pm to:
Providence Baptist Church
975 Providence Rd.
Whigham, GA 31797
