Sunday, July 29, 2018, am
Joshua 6:2
Today I want to talk about the Gift of Jericho.
It is based upon Joshua 6:2 where the LORD says to Joshua: “See!
I have given Jericho into your hand, its king, and the mighty men of
valor.” What is interesting
is that this “gift” is followed by instructions as to what God wanted
the armies of Israel to do.
The army of Israel is instructed to walk around the city of Jericho once
a day for 6 days. They were
preceded by the Ark of the Covenant and the priests and did as told not
speaking. Then on the 7th
day, they arose early and marched around the city 7 times as instructed.
At the conclusion of that march, Joshua commanded, “Shout, for
the LORD has given you the city!” (Joshua 6:16)
They shouted loudly and the walls fell down and the city was
conquered.
There are many lessons to glean from this account.
Here we are reminded of a few of these lessons, as we address
this GIFT that the LORD gave to Israel as they began their conquest of
the land.
a.
The fact that we are
told twice that it was GIVEN to Israel by the Lord emphasizes this.
(Joshua 6:2, 16)
While there were instructions Israel was called upon to follow (we will
address this next), in the end when you look at what happened, it is
clear that God gave them this city (and the land for that matter).
b.
Similarly, our salvation
is a gift of God – Ephesians 2:4-9 makes this clear. It is by His grace
we are saved. Paul
emphasizes God’s grace and that it is not of our own works (earned).
John 3:16 – God “gave His only begotten Son…”
Romans 6:23 again notes this.
The gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus… (NOTE: Different
Greek word than Ephesians 2:8)
c.
There are also other
passages gifts from God, some dealing with salvation and others not – 2
Timothy 1:6 – Timothy was to stir up the gift of God within him,
Ephesians 3:7 – Paul received “the gift of the grace of God” – his being
sent to the Gentiles; Romans 11:29 – the gifts and the calling of God
are irrevocable (God accomplished His purpose through Israel), 2
Corinthians 9:15 – thanks be to God for His indescribable gift – gift
not specified – but probably includes our salvation by His grace.
d.
The gift of God is
simply something He gives us that we don’t deserve and we didn’t earn!
a.
That is clearly borne
out in our example. AFTER
the Lord speaks to Joshua, He gives specific instructions.
The fact that instructions were given implies they needed to be
followed. They were not mere
suggestions.
They were to march around the city, once a day for 6 days (6:3).
On the 7th day, they were instructed to march around 7
times (6:7) and then all were to shout and the priests were to blow
their trumpets. They were
also given instructions when they entered the city (6:16-19) as to what
they were not to do. ALL of
this in spite of the fact that the LORD had GIVEN them the city of
Jericho.
b.
The point is, even in
offering a gift, God can place conditions upon them and that does NOT
invalidate that it is a gift.
c.
What about our
salvation? Yes it is a gift of God – in many ways as seen above.
1) God so loved the world He provided the sacrifice – Jesus – that which
we could not provide for ourselves.
See also Romans 5:6-10.
2) Through His grace – we are saved.
d.
BUT, this gift is
conditional. Consider the
following:
i.
Ephesians 2:8-9 – by
graces THROUGH faith – indicating our part.
We have to do something.
ii.
John 3:16 – that whoever
believes in Him. John
emphasizes that belief and obedience are associated with each other –
John 3:36
iii.
John 1:11-12 – as many
as
received Him, to them He
GAVE the right to become children of God, to those who
believe in His name…
e.
There is also much
debate upon what those conditions involve.
Let it be clear – that when we obey God we are still NOT, nor
will we EVER earn our salvation.
But He can set the terms for accepting a gift.
There are many illustrations of this in life.
- One who is drowning and
someone throws out a lifesaver – they have given them something to save
their life, but do they need to grab the lifesaver?
- You win $1000 in a contest
– but to receive it, you have to go pick it up and fill out forms.
Does that nullify that it is a gift.
- You get in trouble
financially, and someone offers to pay your debts, BUT they require that
you take steps to prevent it from happening again – does that nullify
that it is a gift? (NOTE: If
one has been irresponsible, to NOT put conditions upon it is not wise).
f.
Be honest – is receiving
a generous gift nullified if there are conditions attached to it?
NO! We learn that
with Jericho
a.
Hebrews 11:30, “By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they were encircled for
seven days.”
b.
We are reminded of what
faith is – completely trusting God.
That means we do what He tells us to do, even if we don’t fully
understand it, and we put our confidence in Him.
Hebrews 11:1 describes this faith – the substance (assurance – NASB) of
things hoped for, the evidence (conviction - NASB) of things not seen.
Just because we can’t see something (with our physical senses)
doesn’t mean it is not there or worthy of belief in it.
c.
Consider Israel and
their instructions with Jericho.
Strategically it made no sense, yet it was what God said to do.
God had PROVEN Himself to them by sustaining them and crossing
the Jordan, so they trusted what He told them to do and the promises He
made when they complied.
d.
Will we trust God, even
and especially when we don’t fully understand.
Hebrews 11:6 tells us that without faith it is impossible to
please Him.
e.
Our part in our
salvation is often associated with the word faith (and believe).
That is because without believing Him, nothing we do, even if it
is exactly what He tells us to do, is meaningless.
f.
We are told that we need
to hear (Romans 10:17), Believe (Mark 16:16, John 8:24, Romans 10:9-10),
Repent (Acts 2:38), Confess Him as Lord and Son of God (Romans 10:9-10,
Acts 8:37) and be immersed (Acts 2:38, Mark 16:16, Galatians 3:27, Acts
22:16, etc.).
ALL of these steps require that we believe and trust God – we believe
Him enough that we will do what He tells us to do – 1 Peter 3:21.
a.
Again as you read
through Joshua 6 you find instructions.
And they pretty detailed.
Not only were there instructions concerning walking around the city,
Joshua 6:16-19 gives specific instructions when they enter the
city. All was accursed and
not to be taken. The
consecrated things belonged to the LORD and were to come into His
treasury.
In chapter 7, we read about Achan who coveted and took some of the
consecrated items. It
resulted in God rejecting Israel until he was dealt with (Joshua 7:5 –
36 men were killed), Achan’s sin – he coveted and took a few items
(7:20-23). Achan and his
family were stoned to death (7:25).
b.
God has always expected
that we obey Him explicitly and follow His instructions.
- Why was Cain’s sacrifice rejected and Abel’s accepted? (Genesis 4:3-5)
Clearly, in some way Abel followed God’s instructions and Cain
did not.
- In building the ark
(Genesis 6:13-22), Noah is given very specific instructions to follow.
I wonder what would have happened had Noah decided to change the
plan. But of course that did
NOT happen, because: 1) Noah walked with God – (Genesis 6:9), 2) Noah
obeyed God’s instructions EXACTLY! (Genesis 6:22) – the LORD knew he
would, which is WHY He chose him.
Hebrews 11:7 describes his faith.
3) He moved with godly fear as he prepared the ark.
- Why did God kill Nadab and Abihu (Leviticus 10:1-3) for offering
strange (profane) fire? He
had given exact instructions.
- There are multitudes of examples of this.
Often God has something in mind.
c.
Today is no different,
when God specifies what to do and HOW to do it, we must follow His
instructions. (We have
studied in detail how we establish authority for what we do).
God tells us what to do to be saved – it involves all that He tells us.
There is no one verse that outlines every step we are called to
take. But if we study God’s
word, we can find His way.
d.
Sadly, today, God’s word
is continually dismissed both by those who outright reject God and more
often, professed followers of His word who want to change what the
scriptures teach. They twist
the scriptures to their own destruction – 2 Peter 3:16.
They turn the grace of God into licentiousness – Jude 4
e.
In Jericho we find how
God is an exact God. He says
what He means and means what He says.
a.
From a military
standpoint, the instructions God gave were illogical.
They served no real successful
military strategy. How does
walking around a city 13 times lead to its total destruction?
It’s because it was what God said to do!
b.
There are many things in
scripture that we do not fully understand WHY we are told to do them.
Isaiah 55:8, “For My thoughts are
not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord.
Romans 11:33,
Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How
unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!
c.
How many reject God’s
teachings because they “don’t make sense” to them?
Of course, they are approaching it from their own interpretation
and modern day concepts. OR
they are approaching them from the path of the majority.
d.
We must learn we cannot
question God. He knows what
He is doing!
Yet the house of Israel says, ‘The
way of the Lord is not fair.’ O house of Israel, is it not My ways which
are fair, and your ways which are not fair?
Ezekiel 18:29
Romans 9:20, But indeed, O man,
who are you to reply against God?
Will the thing formed say to him who formed it, ‘Why have you
made me like this?’
Read the last few chapters of Job as the LORD questions him..
e.
We may not understand
why or how God tells us to do something.
We may not like it, but that doesn’t change that He said it and
as such we must accept it.
a.
Because this was such an
unusual command, we learn that God can accomplish whatever He desires.
They obeyed and God was able to do what man could not do.
b.
He is omnipotent and
omniscient. He is Sovereign,
and He is God!
c.
Jeremiah 32:27 - “Behold, I am the
Lord, the God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for Me?
Romans 8:31 – IF God is
for us, who can be against us?
2 Peter 2:9 – He knows how to deliver the godly out of temptation.
d.
In accounts like
Jericho, we see the awesome power of God.
May we learn in this to always put our trust in Him.
These are a few lessons we can learn from the fall of Jericho.
It was a gift of God.
But the greatest gift has been made available directly to us.
Will we receive it?