THE WALL
After 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, and after Moses’ death, God chose Joshua to bring the Israelites into the Land that He had promised them. The first great obstacle that the Hebrews encountered after their miraculous crossing of the Jordan River was the city of Jericho.
Jericho
was a formidable city with a stone wall that presented a difficult challenge to
Joshua and his army. The city was crucial
to the conquest of Canaan in that it defended the central hill country and the
other cities of the region. Joshua had
sent spies into the city to survey its defenses and had learned among other
things that the people were terrified of the Israelites and their God because
of all they had heard that the Lord had done for them.
God
spoke to Joshua and told him, "See,
I have given into thine hand Jericho, and the king thereof, and the mighty men of valour." (Joshua
6:2). Moreover, the Lord appeared to
Joshua in the plain of Jericho and revealed Himself with sword in hand as the Captain
of the host of the LORD. It was there
that the Lord spoke the same words to Joshua that He had spoken to Moses many
years before: "Loose thy shoe from
off thy foot; for the place whereon
thou standest is holy."
(Joshua 5:15).
"Now all these things happened
unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the
ends of the world are come."
(1 Corinthians 10:11). From every Bible
story we can glean spiritual insights that will directly apply to our own
situations and struggles as Christians in a modern world. In this case, God is reminding us that there
are barriers and obstacles in the way of our possessing the "Promised Land"
of victory and joy that is ours in Christ.
Like Jericho, these obstacles are like a strong city with an
impenetrable wall that we cannot breach with our natural strength or wisdom. God, however, has said that our enemies will fall. The enemy of our soul stands in the way of
our making any progress toward possessing the land, and he knows how to use our
weaknesses and fears against us. One of
the most effective weapons that he uses against us is the ability to convince
us that we cannot overcome. He causes us
to quail in fear and retreat back into our old life, or just paralyzes us with inaction. He is a defeated foe, however; and he is
terrified at the thought of all that we can accomplish in Christ if we believe
and claim the Lord's promises to us. The
enemy is afraid that we will realize that "…the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but MIGHTY through
God to the pulling down of strong holds." (2 Corinthians 10:4). When Jesus uttered the words "it is finished" on the cross,
it included the redemption of mankind and the defeat of God's arch-enemy. Concerning this, Isaiah proclaimed, "Comfort ye, comfort ye my people,
saith your God. Speak ye comfortably to
Jerusalem [the Church of Jesus Christ],
and cry unto her, that her warfare is
accomplished [finished], that her iniquity is pardoned."
(Isaiah 40:1, 2).
Just
as the angel of the Lord appeared to Joshua in the plain, we also can trust and
believe that He is with us in every battle that we face in life. "The angel of the LORD encampeth round
about them that fear him, and delivereth them. O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him." (Psalm 34:7, 8). Our daily struggles are just as important to
God as any of the battles that the heroes of the Bible faced. We must believe that as we encounter these walls
and fortresses in our lives, we, too, stand on holy ground with God. He considers the site of our battles to be
consecrated, and we can be assured that His presence will abide with us as we
press forward. It is there that the Lord
seals our marching orders.
God
commanded Joshua to have the priests bear the ark of the covenant of God around
the city walls once each day for six days.
The army was to march around behind the ark, and the priests were to
blow on trumpets of ram's horns. This
they did. Every morning they would arise
and compass the city as they were instructed by God to do, and every morning
they renewed their conviction that God would give them the victory. The ark, representing the testimony of God's
dealing in their lives, and His constant presence, went with them each day; and
the trumpets proclaimed their ultimate victory.
This is how we must approach our own battles: with the testimony of God
evident in our lives, and a conviction of ultimate victory on our lips and in
our hearts. "For whatsoever is born
of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world,
EVEN OUR FAITH. Who is he that overcometh the world, but he
that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?" (1 John 5:4, 5).
On
the seventh day, the Israelites were told to march around the city seven times;
and on the seventh trip they were to blow the trumpets and shout with their
voices. When they did this, the Lord
fulfilled His promise to His people. "So the people shouted when the priests blew with the trumpets:
and it came to pass, when the people
heard the sound of the trumpet, and the people shouted with a great shout, THAT
THE WALL FELL DOWN FLAT, so that the people went up into the city,
every man straight before him, and
they took the city." (Joshua 6:20).
Be
assured that when the Lord promises the victory - and the Lord has
promised the victory - He will cause the wall that stands in our way to fall down flat! As God does this for us, we will find that it
is no less a miracle than any that we have read or heard about in the Bible.
When
I was a new Christian, there was a habit that I had had for some time and was
trying to quit. I felt all the
conviction in the world that I wanted
to stop, but felt that it was entirely up to me to overcome it. I would succeed for a day or two, but then
fall back into it. I became discouraged
after a while and gave up trying, wondering why I was so weak. Then, one night, at a Christian gathering,
the Lord let me know that I could not save myself. No matter how large or how small my problems
were, it was He Who would deliver me
and not my own strength or will. Just as
I was unable to redeem my own soul from past sins, I was also unable to save myself
in the future from things that would afflict me. He let me know in that hour that He was
prepared to save me to the uttermost if I would just trust in Him. I was humbled by the thought of it, and I
prayed right then and there for the Lord to forgive me for my presumption and
to rid me of this habit. Miraculously,
in that hour I was delivered from an addiction that I had had since I was 17
years old! I was amazed that I was not
even tempted by that thing again, and haven't been for 58 years since! This experience laid a groundwork of faith for
me, and a frame of reference to remind me of the Lord's faithfulness when I
face new obstacles.
Sometimes,
our victory comes immediately; and other times, we may have to compass the city
many times. We may be tempted to think
that we are just going around in circles, but be confident of this: God has
promised us the land! These walls that we
face will fall down flat! He told Joshua
that wherever the sole of his foot stepped in the Promised Land would be his
and Israel’s. We, too, will gain no new
territory in our life if we are frightened to press forward and walk into
it. Though God has promised the victory,
we must still have the courage to face the battle, un-sheath our swords, and
walk into it!
Got
walls in your life? God has promised you
that that land belongs to you. Walk in
and secure it!
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