Introduction:
1. Our presidents have always fascinated me. When you study their lives you find them to be a widely varied and interesting group. Most of us have been a bit fascinated of late to witness the way President Bush #1 & President Clinton have become friends.
2. But they are certainly anything but the first colorful presidents. I had to laugh when I read a story about Lyndon Johnson a number of years ago. LBJ was hard on his speech writers. Some of them went so far as to say he was down right impossible. In fact, he developed this habit while he was still a senator. One writer took all he could, then found another job & gave his notice. His final speech was put in the senator’s hands plenty early for him to review, but the writer knew from past experience that he probably wouldn’t and he was right. LBJ never looked at it until he got up to deliver his remarks. The speech was prepared just the way Johnson liked it, triple spaced with only a few lines of text per page. The speech read like this: "YOU KNOW AS I DO THAT THIS COUNTRY MUST TAKE CARE OF THE (triple space) NEEDS OF OUR UNDERPRIVILEGED (triple space) (turn page) YOU KNOW AS I DO THAT INCOME TAXES MUST NOT BE RAISED (triple space) BECAUSE NOW MORE THAN EVER WE MUST PROVIDE INCENTIVE (triple space) FOR INVESTMENT AND JOBS FOR OUR PEOPLE (triple space) (turn page) BUT HOW, YOU ASK, ARE WE TO PROVIDE THE FUNDS WE NEED (triple space) MAINTAIN A BALANCED BUDGET AND STILL NOT RAISE TAXES? (triple space) LET ME TELL YOU HOW, RIGHT NOW (triple space) (turn page)
Cell #1—
OKAY SMART GUY YOU’RE ON YOUR OWN!!!
3. Have you ever thought you had things all together, only to discover later that didn’t have them worked out at all? Actually, you don’t have to answer that question, because all of here this morning know the answer.
4. If the men & women who move the nation, like LBJ have moments when they don’t have things all together, then how much regular people like you and me?
5. Even when we want to accomplish great things for God, we often find ourselves falling far short of our own plans. We want to be what we should for God, but somehow, we find ourselves not doing all that we want.
6. Then there are those other times when we don’t even know what God wants. We may know as far as the big picture goes, but we find ourselves struggling with the details of how we’re supposed to go about actually doing what He wants.
7. Let me assure you, you aren’t the first one who has faced that struggle. In our study of Joshua’s life this morning, I want to look at a part of the story that I believe you will find fascinating because here we will discover that while Joshua is focused on finding God’s will for the people, He’s going to find something even more significant. You might be asking about now, what could be more important than finding God’s will. Well, ponder that as we read our text together this morning. Would you follow along with me as I read this lengthy passage.
Cell #2—
Joshua 5:13 - 6:27 (NASB)
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?"
14 He said, "No; rather I indeed come now as captain of the host of the LORD." 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?"
15 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.
1 Now Jericho was tightly shut because of the sons of Israel; no one went out and no one came in.
2 The LORD said to Joshua, "See, I have given Jericho into your hand, with its king and the valiant warriors.
3 "You shall march around the city, all the men of war circling the city once. You shall do so for six days.
4 "Also seven priests shall carry seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark; then on the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets.
5 "It shall be that when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, and when you hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city will fall down flat, and the people will go up every man straight ahead."
6 So Joshua the son of Nun called the priests and said to them, "Take up the ark of the covenant, and let seven priests carry seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the LORD."
7 Then he said to the people, "Go forward, and march around the city, and let the armed men go on before the ark of the LORD."
8 And it was so, that when Joshua had spoken to the people, the seven priests carrying the seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the LORD went forward and blew the trumpets; and the ark of the covenant of the LORD followed them.
9 The armed men went before the priests who blew the trumpets, and the rear guard came after the ark, while they continued to blow the trumpets.
10 But Joshua commanded the people, saying, "You shall not shout nor let your voice be heard nor let a word proceed out of your mouth, until the day I tell you, ’Shout!’ Then you shall shout!"
11 So he had the ark of the LORD taken around the city, circling it once; then they came into the camp and spent the night in the camp.
12 Now Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests took up the ark of the LORD.
13 The seven priests carrying the seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the LORD went on continually, and blew the trumpets; and the armed men went before them and the rear guard came after the ark of the LORD, while they continued to blow the trumpets.
14 Thus the second day they marched around the city once and returned to the camp; they did so for six days.
15 Then on the seventh day they rose early at the dawning of the day and marched around the city in the same manner seven times; only on that day they marched around the city seven times.
16 At the seventh time, when the priests blew the trumpets, Joshua said to the people, "Shout! For the LORD has given you the city.
17 "The city shall be under the ban, it and all that is in it belongs to the LORD; only Rahab the harlot and all who are with her in the house shall live, because she hid the messengers whom we sent.
18 "But as for you, only keep yourselves from the things under the ban, so that you do not covet them and take some of the things under the ban, and make the camp of Israel accursed and bring trouble on it.
19 "But all the silver and gold and articles of bronze and iron are holy to the LORD; they shall go into the treasury of the LORD."
20 So the people shouted, and priests blew the trumpets; and when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, the people shouted with a great shout and the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight ahead, and they took the city.
21 They utterly destroyed everything in the city, both man and woman, young and old, and ox and sheep and donkey, with the edge of the sword.
22 Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the land, "Go into the harlot’s house and bring the woman and all she has out of there, as you have sworn to her."
23 So the young men who were spies went in and brought out Rahab and her father and her mother and her brothers and all she had; they also brought out all her relatives and placed them outside the camp of Israel.
24 They burned the city with fire, and all that was in it. Only the silver and gold, and articles of bronze and iron, they put into the treasury of the house of the LORD.
25 However, Rahab the harlot and her father’s household and all she had, Joshua spared; and she has lived in the midst of Israel to this day, for she hid the messengers whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.
26 Then Joshua made them take an oath at that time, saying, "Cursed before the LORD is the man who rises up and builds this city Jericho; with the loss of his firstborn he shall lay its foundation, and with the loss of his youngest son he shall set up its gates."
27 So the LORD was with Joshua, and his fame was in all the land.
TS— This morning I want us to look at something very significant when it comes to serving the Lord . . .
Cell #3—
Three Steps to Doing Great Things for God
Prayer—
Cell #4—
Step 1. Discover God’s Plan 5:13-6:5
1. I must tell you that when it comes to the walls of Jericho falling down, I think some of the most significant lessons are going to take place in a part of the story that most people have never even heard about.
2. Allow me to take you into the story for a few moments & I think you will see what I mean. As the story begins at the end of chapter 5 we find Joshua out by himself. We’re not told specifically what he’s doing, but it probably isn’t difficult to guess. What are good commanders always doing before major battles? That’s right, he’s almost certainly thinking about how he’s going to lead his army to victory at Jericho. When you look closely you can tell how very into his thinking he is because of the way the text reads. In the NASB that I read from this morning I want you to circle this phrase in verse 13, "a man was standing opposite him with his sword drawn in his hand." The NCV says it more clearly, "Joshua. . . saw a man standing in front of him with his sword drawn."
3. Let me tell you why that’s so significant. Joshua is in enemy territory & he walks right upon this guy with a sword that he doesn’t recognize. Had he not been doing some heavy duty thinking, he wouldn’t have got even close to the man before he would have been thinking about how he was going to handle him if he turned out to be hostile.
4. As soon as Joshua sees that he’s already close to the man & that he may have to do battle with him, he asks a very logical question. I want you to circle this in your notes at the end of verse 15, "Are you for us or for our adversaries?" Again I like the NCV, "Are you a friend or an enemy?"
5. The response of the man standing there with the sword is totally unexpected. In fact, although the man is going to explain himself, his answer is basically one word. He says, "NO!" On first glance, it doesn’t appear that the man answered the question, but that’s only on first glance.
6. Notice Joshua’s response to what the man says about being the "Captain of the host of the Lord." He falls down and worships. It appears that Joshua was asking the wrong question because this isn’t just a man he’s talking to, this is God. In fact, it’s a prebirth appearance of Jesus. Here is the lesson.
Cell #5—
God doesn’t come to Take Sides, He comes to Take Over.
7. Why does God show up? Couldn’t He have just given Joshua the answers for how the battle was to take place? The obvious answer to that question is, "Yes." So, why? That brings us to another very important lesson . . .
Cell #6—
God wants us to do more than just ask Him for answers, He wants us to seek to Know Him. .
8. God could have sent the battle plan, but He came Himself because He wanted Joshua to know that He wasn’t facing this attack alone. They went into battle with God in the lead.
I want to summarize a statement that an Episcopalian minister by the name of Robert Capon made about the greatest threat to Christianity today. I don’t think I could agree with him more. Listen to what he said, "The most critical issue facing Christians is not abortion, pornography, the disintegration of the family, moral absolutes, MTV, drugs, racism, sexuality, or school prayer. The critical issue today is dullness. . . The good news is no longer good news, it is okay news. Christianity is no longer life changing, it’s life enhancing. . ." 4
TS— This leads to the second major point of this morning’s message. . .
Cell #7—
Step 2. Depend on God’s Power 6:6-14
1. Joshua wasn’t going to take the city of Jericho under His own power and using His own plans, he would succeed in Jericho as he relied upon a power far greater than his own.
2. In the Christian faith what do we call relying on God’s power? We have a word for that & it’s at the very heart of what it means to be a believer. In fact, the word "Believer" is a hint. The word I’m looking for is the word "faith." The reason God showed up was that. . .
Cell #8—
Faith is doing more than following a Plan, faith is following God.
3. We must do more than believe God’s way is the best way, we must be willing to believe in God Himself. In verse 11 in your notes, I want you to circle the phrase, "the ark of the Lord," then in verse 12, in again in verse 13. The ark of the covenant, which represents God’s presence & power, will lead them as they follow Him into battle.
4. May I be very blunt for a moment. Looking at things from a purely human perspective, this plan doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. The battle plan for attacking the city requires the army to walk around the city of Jericho once a day for six days. It didn’t really add up, unless that is you are trusting in God’s ability rather than your own. What good is walking around a city once a day going to do? As far as we know, walls had never fallen because people walked around them. As far as we know walls would never fall again because people walked around them, but that was God’s plan and they were trusting in God’s power, but on the surface it still didn’t make much sense. There is an incredible spiritual lesson here that I don’t want you to miss.
Cell #9—
Doing things God’s way will always require Faith.
5. Why did they march around Jericho for six days? Very simply, because they were trusting God to do something they couldn’t do on their own. They only had one plan and that was God’s, but that was enough and here’s the reason why. . .
Cell #10—
Doing things God’s way will always bring True Success.
6. We can do things under our own power, but that’s not going to bring true success. God’s work must be done God’s way to truly count. Sometimes we see the sparkle and glamour of things that come off great without being aware that God is involved. I want to illustrate what I’m talking about by sharing an incredible true story that took place in the mid ’90’s.
Those of us who had anything to do with the Billy Graham Crusade here in St. Louis a few years ago know how well organized everything was. In fact, if you involved in any way shape or form, you know that practically ever detail is planned. You might even be tempted to think that the well organized effort is what brings people to Christ, while it’s necessary, it is not the secret of Billy Graham’s incredible success. This story took place during the last Billy Graham crusade in Sacramento, California. The night before the crusade was to begin the crusade choir rehearsal went late. One of the musicians in the choir was a pastor by the name of Ray Johnston. He was driving through downtown when he noticed a homeless man slumped over on the steps of the state capital building. It was cold outside, almost midnight and at that time of night, definitely not the safest place to be. He decided he couldn’t ignore the plight of this poor homeless man. He was nervous as he approached him, not really sure what he was going to do. The homeless man was crouching almost cocoon like on the steps and the choir member reached out & gently touched his shoulder and asked, "Sir, can I help you, are you okay?" The man looked up and in that instant he recognized the man, it was Billy Graham himself praying for the city of Sacramento. It’s not just the incredible preparation and work that brings thousands of people to Christ each time he holds a crusade, it’s the fact that Billy Graham depends upon the Lord’s power. 5
Cell #11—
Step 3. Determined Reliance on God 6:15-27
1. Would you circle the words that begin verse 15, "on the seventh day." Then go to the end of the verse and circle the words, "on that day they marched around the city seven times." They have already marched around the city once each day for 6 days. On the 7th day they have just finished marching around the city 7 times. When you do the math you discover that they marched around the city 13 times before anything happened. When you commit yourself to following God you are going to discover that . . .
Cell #12—
Following God requires Persistence.
2. Had they had stopped marching around the city after the 11th time around the city the walls would have remained standing. It wasn’t enough to have faith, their faith had to be of the sort that demonstrated persistence as well.
3. I want you to notice something else. Everything in the city was placed under a ban. Because they were relying upon God everything in the city was to be considered a sacrifice for Him. No one was to take anything. They were going to see a lot of really nice things in the city, but they weren’t to take any of them. They were going to touch great riches, but they weren’t going to get any of it. The truth is . . .
Cell #13—
A deep commitment to God will require us to make some Sacrifices.
4. They had to obey God. The battle was going to require them to be obedient. The fact that they took nothing helped them realize that their victory was from God, not from them.
5. Their faith & obedience combined and the result was a great victory. The two or both required. You cannot please God without faith and you cannot please God without obedience. I want to show you something that it would be easy to miss. Notice, after they finished marching around the walls they were to shout. Please circle the last phrase in verse 16, "Shout! For the Lord has given you the city." I want you to notice that the walls of the city hadn’t fallen yet when they gave that victory shout. They were to shout as if they had won & at that point the walls would come tumbling down. The details of what was going to take place were spelled out in verse 20. After they demonstrated their faith the walls came down, not before. If you miss everything else in this sermon, please don’t miss this very valuable lesson.
Cell #14—
Ultimate success comes from following a Great God not from following a Great Plan.
Conclusion:
1. To tell the truth, we are not the secret of God’s great work, He is. He often does His greatest work through cracked pots. If the secret of God’s work getting done rests upon us, let’s be honest, we are in deep trouble. However, if the secret of God’s work getting done rests upon God, we’re in great shape.
2. I’m going to ask you to use your imagination with me for a moment. I want you to imagine that God called me to pastor another church. A pastor search committee is formed and you are on that committee. At your next meeting you receive the following request to consider. It reads, "Dear Committee, I understand your pulpit is vacant, I would like to apply for the position. I have many qualifications: I’ve been a preacher with much success and also had much success as a writer. Some say I’m a good organizer. I’ve been a leader most places I’ve been. I’m over 50 years of age. I will admit that I’ve never preached in one place for more than 3 years. In some places I had to leave town after my preaching caused riots and disturbances. I must admit I have been in jail 3 or 4 times, but not because of any real wrongdoing. My health is not good, though I still get a great deal done. The churches I have preached in have been small, though located in several large cities. I’ve not got along well with religious leaders in towns where I have preached. In fact, some have threatened me and even attacked me physically. I am not too good at keeping records. I have been known to forget whom I have baptized. However, if you can use me, I shall do my best for you. Would you be interested in that candidate? Most of us would not, but do you know who he was? Why he was the Apostle Paul. 6
3. God’s work is not about us being so successful, it’s about following the One who can make something out of any of us.
1) Warren Wiersbe, Be Strong: Joshua, (Findex.com) 2004.
2) Tim George, Winning the War Before the Battle Begins, (Sermoncentral.com) October, 2001
3) Adolph Harstad, People’s Bible Commentary: Joshua, (St. Louis, MO: Concordia Press) 1994.
4) Michael Yaconelli, Dangerous Wonder: The Adventure of Childlike Faith, (Colorado Springs, CO: Navpress) 1998.
5) Ibid, Told to Yaconelli by Pastor Ray Johnston.
6) Charles Swindol, The Tale of the Tardy Oxcart,
