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JOSHUA: GOD IS SALVATION (PART FIVE)

CIRCUMCISION OF THE HEART "At that time the LORD said unto Joshua, Make thee sharp knives, and circumcise again the children of Israel the second time.   And Joshua made him sharp knives, and circumcised the children of Israel.”   (Joshua 5:2, 3).   Male circumcision may seem like a primitive - even barbarous - act.   To cut away the flesh of a child and discard it when he is eight days old is a violent exercise that results in pain and shedding of blood.   When Moses' wife Zipporah witnessed it, she said to her husband, "A bloody husband thou art, because of the circumcision." (Exodus 4:26).   Despite this, God chose circumcision as a sign of the covenant that God made with Abraham, and later, with the children of Israel.   " This is My covenant, which ye shall keep, between Me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child among you shall be circumcised.   And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of t...
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JOSHUA: GOD IS SALVATION (PART FOUR)

There is a wonderful story of faith and redemption contained in the second chapter of Joshua.   It is not only a story of God's faithfulness to His people, the Jews, but it also reveals His ultimate plan to bring the Gentiles into His fold through faith.   Joshua chose two men to go to the city of Jericho as spies and discover what they could about the city's strengths and weaknesses.  They were also to gauge what the attitude of the people of Jericho was toward the advancing Israelite army.    When the two spies reached Jericho they were invited into the house of a prostitute by the name of Rahab.  The name " Rahab" is an indirect Quranic name for boys and girls that means “vast”, “spacious”, “open-minded”, or “generous”.  Rahab was all of that and more, to be sure.  Despite her profession, she feared the LORD Who had delivered these Jews from Egypt and across the Red Sea and was willing to shelter them despite the fact that they were “e...
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JOSHUA: GOD IS SALVATION (PART THREE)

PRECIOUS PROMISES “Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature , having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.” (2 Peter 1:4).   God was faithful to encourage Joshua with some very specific promises before he ever entered Canaan.  These promises were more important than all of the armaments that he carried with him to fight the enemies that he would face in Canaan.  They were part of the spiritual armor that would protect Joshua when fear or indecision would plague him along the way.    God has also given us great and precious promises so that we, too, can fight the good fight of faith.  God is not vague about what He promises us, but He speaks very specifically to our individual needs and our personal battles.  As we seek to know and to do His will, the Lord will speak intimately to us through His Word, the Bread from heaven.  It will chal...
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