When Faith Is On Shouting Ground!
Joshua 6
(Key verses 5,16,20)
Is your faith on shouting ground? We use the phrase shouting ground to refer to those times when our faith is healthy (as we perceive it). These are the times when everything is going well and we feel as if we are close to God. At times like this we see barriers crumbling before our eyes. These are also the times when we see prayer being answered and fruit being born.
Before getting to the text let me qualify this concept by dispelling two myths.
1. In order for your faith to be healthy it does not have to be filled with emotion. The very title of my message implies a lot of emotion and feeling.
Ill- One of my favorite college basketball coaches is the man known as Coach K (Mike Krzyzewski)at Duke. Coach K does not get real emotional when he coaches. He is usually cool, calm and collected. He is not emotional yet he is a great coach.
2. In order for your faith to be healthy it does not have to be free of trials.
Ill- If you will do a study of the great saints of the faith you will find that most of these individuals were people who faced trials.
For a text we will look at Joshua 6. Let’s get the context. God has brought Israel through forty years of wandering in the dessert. The Israelite people have crossed the Jordan River and entered the promised land. They are facing their first barrier after entering the land. They are standing at the gates of the city of Jericho. God gives them directions as to how they are to overcome Jericho. The climax of His directions involves a shout. God told them to march around the city once a day for six days. On the seventh day they were to march around the city seven times. At the conclusion of the seventh trip on the seventh day they were to shout. That shout was the climax of a faith journey. From this we learn some valuable lessons that will build faith. We see the simple steps that brought them to a place where their faith would be on shouting grounds.
Let’s consider the steps they took to be on shouting ground. You and I must take these same steps in order for our faith to be on shouting ground.
I. Yield your will to God . In Joshua 5 we find Joshua on his face before the commander of the Lord’s army. He has given up all of his inhibitions. Joshua is willing to follow the Lord’s plans. The Lord’s commander instructed Joshua to remove his sandals. That was not a very dignified action for the leader of the Israelite armies. However, chapter 5 closes with the words “Joshua did so.” He yielded his will to God. Many times our personal lives and our church lives are hindered by our desire to be in control. We do not want to yield.
Ill-The word “meekness” underscores this principle. The Greek word for meekness literally means “strength under control.” Meekness describes a wild stallion who was tamed and taught to be ridden. That stallion still has all the strength it had when it was wild but now it is strength under control. (Contributed to Sermon Central by: Randy Aly)
What are some things we give up when we yield control to God?
We must give God control of our will. In Mt. 6:10 Jesus instructed us to pray “your kingdom come, your will be done.” Within every human there is a stubborn will. That will must be yielded to God.
Ill- When I was in my early twenties I tried to teach an uncle to water ski. That was an exercise in futility for me. If you were to define ego you could use my uncles’ name. He, like many men, is driven to be in control. When learning to water ski you must be willing to give up self effort and allow the boat to do the work. My uncle had trouble with this concept. He wanted to pull the rope and take control. In water skiing you must give up control and let the boat pull you.
We must give God control of the outcome. The other night my wife and I were talking to a friend and a vivid illustration came to mind. This friend is moving to Tampa to work for a new company. The company is providing a mover to move them to Tampa. This moving company does all the work. They do all of the packing. They do all of the moving. I told our friend this would drive me crazy. Our human nature wants to control outcomes.
II. Keep God at the center of your life . Observe this principle in Joshua 6. In verses 4-13 the ark of God is mentioned nine times (6:4,6,7,8,9,11,12,13). The ark represented the abiding presence of God. God instructed them to always keep the ark before them in their journeys. Thus, in a symbolic way they kept God at the forefront of their lives. They kept God at the center of their lives. If your faith is to be healthy God must always be at the center of your life.
This principle is observed in another way in this text. The word “seven” is used over and over in this text. There are seven priests; seven trumpets; seven days of marching; seven circles around the city. The number seven is the number for perfection in the Bible. It is the number for God. God created the world in seven days.
What is the point? If you keep God at the center of your life and always seek God’s perfect will you will build a healthy faith. Your faith will be solid. It may not be characterized by a lot of emotion but it will be strong and secure. Your security in life should be built with God as the hub and His perfect will as your guiding light in every thing you do.
Consider this example. I have seen several variations of these facts but it verifies the truth of God’s perfect will. God does things well.
The shortest chapter in the Bible is- Psalms 117!
The longest chapter in the Bible is- Psalms 119!
The central chapter in the Bible is- Psalms 118!
There are 594 chapters before Psalms 118!
There are 594 chapters after Psalms 118!
Add these numbers and you get 1188!
What is the center verse in the Bible- Psalms 118:8...
“It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man.” (NIV)
III.Move forward in Faith . In 6:2 we read “the Lord said to Joshua, ‘See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its fighting men.‘ He speaks of this in terms of completed action. In Hebrews we find God’s description of their faith. “By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they were encircled for seven days.” (Hebrews 11:30 NKJV)
Before examining what it means to walk in faith let’s be sure we understand what faith is not!
1. Faith is not based on logic.
Ill- When the Israelites, under Moses direction, left Egypt they learned an important lesson in faith. God could have led them along a short route through the land of the Philistines but He did not choose that route for their journey. That was the logical choice. He led them the long route in order to teach them a lesson in faith.
2. Faith is not based on appearances.
Ill- The story of David & Goliath illustrates this truth. All of the Israelite soldiers were swayed by fear because Goliath appeared to be indestructible. The difference between what they saw and what their faith told them was insurmountable. Appearances defeated them! David was not defeated by appearances.
3. Faith is not a feeling.
You do not feel air but you still benefit from it. You do not understand the inner workings of a computer but you still benefit from it.
This is what faith is not. It is not logic, appearance or a feeling. So what is faith?
A. Faith is accepting what God tells us. God told the Israelites to walk around the city one time a day for six days and on the seventh day they were to walk around the city seven times. After the seventh trip they were to shout and the walls would come tumbling down. The writer of Hebrews defines faith. “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1 NKJV) You can be saved today by accepting God’s free gift of His son.
B. Faith is accepting what God tells us but it is also acting on what God tells us. The Bible says “faith without works is dead” (James 2:20 NKJV) If you say you believe but do not act then you do not believe. If you say all people need to know Jesus in order to be saved but you do not tell anyone then you do not believe. If you say you believe in prayer but do not pray then you do not believe. Faith accepts God’s instructions and then acts on them.
Conclusion
Is your faith on shouting ground? God wants you to live in victory! God wants you to tear down those walls of doubt and unbelief! God wants you to be a fruitful Christian. Have you given God control of your situation? Have you invited God to be at the center of your life? Are you walking in faith?
