Joshua 6:1-27, Conquering Strongholds

turn in your Bibles to Joshua chapter six as we continue our study in the book of Joshua as we are going to be looking at one of the most famous stories in all of the Bible the conquest of Jericho some of you learned this story in Sunday school but for whatever reason you never actually read the chapter but hopefully we're gonna see some amazing things in this chapter chapter 6 as we look at verses 1 through 27 I'm gonna begin by looking at verses 1 through 5 and then we're going to continue in the chapter it is the first Wednesday of the month which traditionally we have communion on the first Wednesday and the first Sunday of the month and so we have what's called an open communion that means if you are a Christian if you love Jesus if you love the Lord then you are welcome to partake in communion with us and so let's pray Heavenly Father we are amazed at your love and your grace and your mercy Lord when we consider this world that we live in when we think about how temporary it is and how all things are passing away Lord we're reminded and comforted that one day you will make all things new Lord we know that in the grand scheme of things there are really only two things that exist things that are temporal temporary under judgment and things that are eternal things that will last things that you've marked for salvation and so Heavenly Father again I pray that by your Holy Spirit Lord you yourself will fill this place and you'll fill our hearts Lord I pray that you would again by your Holy Spirit give us wisdom and understanding Lord we pray even as Paul encouraged us to grow and grace and in the knowledge of the truth Lord we pray that that's exactly what would happen that we will grow in grace and in the knowledge of the truth in Jesus name Amen I've entitled this chapter conquering strongholds for good reason the conquest of Jericho is the beginning of the conquest of the land whoever controls Jericho is going to control that particular portion of the promised land beginning in chapter 6 verse 1 it says now Jericho was securely shut up because of the children of Israel none went out none came in and the Lord said to Joshua see I have given Jericho into your hand its king and the mighty men of valor you shall march around the city all human of war you shall go all around the city once this you shall do six days and seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of rams horns before the ark but the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times and the priests shall blow the trumpets it shall come to pass when they make a long blast with the ram's horn and when you hear the sound of the trumpet and all the people shall shout with a great Shou then the wall of the city will fall down flat and the people shall go up every man straight before him again this is one of the most famous chapters in all of the Bible we sing and celebrate the capture of Jericho and the chapter is going to illustrate several powerful and practical spiritual truths and again the theme of the book victorious Christian living the theme of the book is what it means to live an abundant life in Christ a victorious life and we know that every Christian faces darkness and opposition and obstacles we also learn quickly that it is our faith in the Lord Jesus and his promises that help us overcome and defeat strongholds in our lives in 1st John chapter 5 verse 4 we read for whatever is born of God overcomes the world and this is the victory that has overcome the world our faith and so this chapter illustrates what faith can do in overcoming obstacles the writer of Hebrews appeals to this story in Hebrews chapter 11 verses 30 and 31 where it says by faith the walls of Jericho fell down and they were encircled for seven days by faith the harlot Rahab did not perish with those who did not believe when she had received the spies with peace we overcome by faith we experience faith we are instructed by the commander of the lord's army and that's what we're going to see in this passage were called to overcoming faith and we are then equipped and outfitted with spiritual weapons so again in chapter 6 where it says now Jericho was securely shut up because of the children of Israel none went out and none came in you'll remember earlier in chapter 5 Joshua worships the Lord's commander if we just take a sneak peek in the in the last chapter again you'll remember in verse 13 of chapter 5 it says and it came to pass when Joshua was by Jericho he's been praying he lifts up his eyes and he looks and behold a man stood opposite him with a sword drawn in his hand and Joshua went to him and said to him are you for us or for our adversaries so he said no but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come and Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped and said to him what does my Lord say to his servant then the commander of the Lord's army said to Joshua take your sandal off your foot for the place where you stand is holy and Joshua did so Joshua has a run-in with the commander of the Lord's army acknowledging that the war that they're about to fight the battle that they're about to engage in belongs to the Lord God is in control the battle belongs to the Lord the Lord has many many titles in the Bible he's known by Jehovah Rapha the Lord who heals or Jehovah Jireh all of the titles that you hear about in the Bible there's one title that is going to be utilized in chapter 5 in chapter 6 the commander of the Lord's army and the Lord of hosts when he's called the Lord of Hosts it speaks of his supreme authority it speaks of God leadership in heaven and on the earth so Jesus has come to instruct and direct the battle and you'll note Joshua is quick to concede authority and leadership to him but there's a clue even in that when we're talking about overcoming strongholds and conquering strongholds and and and walking in victory the first one of the very first things that we learn is that fit victory begins when we realize that Jesus is number one he's the commander he's in charge he's in control so where does victory begin it's when we concede authority and leadership to Jesus and we go you know what Jesus I'm gonna you're gonna get to be in charge of my life you're gonna get to be in control Warren we're as we rightly says quote confess you are second-in-command there can be no victory for the Lord in public unless we experience worship of the Lord in private that little insight is a jewel and a treasure Joshua is worshiping the Lord in private when the Lord comes to him when he's worshiping and praying in private God is going to entrust to him a very public victory Joshua falls on his face where's we rights in worship he took off his shoes in humility he turns all his plans over to the commander when he said what does my Lord say to his servant were soldiers and so we submit to Christ we listen to his orders in the word Christ gives Joshua the exact orders that are going to be necessary to overcome the city in verses 2 through 5 and all we have to do is obey by faith so again it provides an amazing clue for us in overcoming strongholds we concede that Jesus is the leader Jesus is our commander Jesus is in control and then we have to ask another important question and that is has the Lord given us instructions on how to live and of course the answer is yes we find that throughout the New Testament and so it says in verse 1 that Jericho was securely shut up because of the children of Israel none went out none went in now remember what Jericho is it's a fortified city her gates and walls served not simply as protection from the outside forces the walls serve to keep her citizens inside as well but I'm gonna suggest to you again that Jericho becomes a type and a picture of a world that's ripe for judgment the walls would not keep Israel out fear of the Jews kept the city locked up and barricaded and we know that there was a double-ring of walls I had been give us an illustration this is actually an illustration of what we think that Josh what Jericho might have looked like they've got to understand something Jericho is one of the oldest inhabited cities on the earth scholars estimate that it's been continuously occupied for literally thousands and thousands of years the name Jericho itself is lost in antiquity there's two ancient Hebrew words that resemble this word Jericho one of the words is the Hebrew word for moon the other word with just a change of the consonant is that he word for fragrant or fragrance this was on the plains and it was a well-watered plain and there were two walls there was a double ring of walls one was six foot thick and the inner wall was twelve feet thick so there was an outer wall and there was an inner wall and the city was built on a hill and it was a fortified city and so the only way that you could actually capture this city is by going up a steep incline the city was 800 feet below sea sea level in other words as you're leaving Jerusalem and you're going down towards the Dead Sea depending on the area it's between 800 and a thousand feet below sea level now what's interesting is it wasn't just below sea level in its elevation and its geography it was a low City in its moral outlook and again Jericho is a doomed City and you're gonna see this repeated throughout the text and I couldn't help but thinking again there are two kinds of things in the world there are things that are destined for judgment and there are things that are destined for salvation in the New Testament the Bible talks about that this world is under judgment that one day the whole world is going to be consumed by fire and so as you look around the planet Earth and you look around at the cities and you look at the monuments that people build in the cities that people build there's this constant reminder inside of us by the Holy Spirit that the world is going to experience judgment and again we've already talked about this in the New Testament where said that he came into the world not to condemn the world but that the world through him might be saved is the world under judgment well the answer is yes Jericho is doomed why Jericho is doomed because of its location Jericho occupies a place that was set aside by the Lord for the Lord and his people and this is going to be one of the hardest things to understand for the unbeliever it's almost impossible to understand for the believer it's difficult to understand and that is again why would God destroy the city and the reason is because God is going to allow the rightful occupants to inherit the land which has always belong to them what does that mean for you and for me it means again that you're living in a world that was made originally by God for Adam and Eve and they were placed in a garden you all know the story how Adam and Eve sinned how they were driven out of the garden how things went very bad very quickly William McDonald writes quote many things in our lives loom out as Jericho's impeding our progress in possessing our possessions perhaps we've been discouraged with the sheer immensity of our trials if we will only claim the victory the Lord gives and move ahead and faith with eyes fixed upon God for success we too will see miracles in order to occupy the land that God has promised them it's going to mean the destruction of the people who already occupy the land but remember they're under judgment because of their wickedness it says in verse 2 and the Lord said to Joshua see I have given Jericho into your hand it's King and the mighty men of valor you shall march around the city all you men of war you shall go all around the city once this you shall do six days and seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of rams horns before the ark but the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times the priests shall blow the trumpets and it shall come to pass when they make a long blast with the ram's horn when you hear the sound of the trumpet that all the people shall shout with a great shout then the wall of the city will fall down flat and the people will go up every man straight before him the obstacle that is allegedly keeping the Jewish people out and the people of Jericho in is going to be destroyed let me put it a different way the Lord promises a miracle just like there was a miracle when the red sea opened and the children of Israel were allowed to leave Egypt just like there was a miracle when the waters parted in the Jordan and they were able to occupy the land the Lord is going to promise another miracle it becomes a type and a picture of obstacles and difficulties and disappointments in our own life things that keep us from experience abundant life and victorious life those pernicious things that seem to hold on to you two key that keeps you and so in verses six through twenty five it's going to outline the capture and the defeat of the city look what it says in verse six then Joshua the son of nun called the priest and said to them take up the Ark of the Covenant and let seven priests bear seven trump of ram's horns before the Ark of the Lord and he said to the people proceed and march around the city and let him who is armed advance before the Ark of the Lord so it was when Joshua had spoken to the people that the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams horns before the Lord advanced and blew the trumpets and the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord followed them the armed men went before the priests and blew the trumpets and the rearguard came after the Ark while the priest continued blowing the trumpets now Joshua had commanded the people saying you shall not shout or make any noise with your voice nor shall a word proceed out of your mouth until the day I say to you shout then you shall shout so he had the Ark of the Lord circled the city going around at once then they came into the camp and lodged in the can and Joshua rose up early in the morning and the priest took up the Ark of the Lord then seven priests bearing seven trumpets of Rann ram's horns before the Ark of the Lord went on continually and blue with the trumpets and the armed men went before them but the rearguard came after the Ark of the Lord while the priest continued blowing the trumpets and the second day they marched around the city once and returned to the camp so they did six days but it came to pass on the seventh day that they rose early about the dawning of the day and marched around the city seven times in the same manner on that day only they marched around the city seven times and the seventh time had happened when the priests blew the trumpets that Joshua said to the people shout for the Lord's giving you the city now the city shall be doomed by the Lord to destruction it and all who are in it only Rahab the harlot shall live and she and all who are with her in the house because she hid the messengers that we sent and you by all means abstain from the accursed things lest you become a curse --it when you take of the accursed things and make the camp of Israel a curse in troubling but all of the silver and the gold and the vessels of bronze and iron are consecrated to the Lord they shall come into the Treasury of the Lord so the people shouted when the priests blew the trumpets and it happened when the people heard the sound of the trumpet and the people shouted with a great shout that the wall fell down flat then the people went up into the city every man straight before him and they took the city and they utterly destroyed all that was in the city both man and woman young and old ox and sheep and donkey with the edge of the sword but Joshua had said to the two men who had spied out the country going to the harlots house and from there bring out the woman and all that she has as you swore to her and the young men who had been spies went in and brought out Rahab her father her mother her brothers and all that she had so they brought out all her relatives and left them outside the camp of Israel but they burned the city and all that was in it with fire only the silver and the gold and the vessels of bronze and iron they put into the treasury of the house of the Lord and Joshua spared Rahab the harlot her father's household and all that she had so she dwells in Israel to this day because she hid the messengers whom Joshua's sent to spy out the land in these verses in verses 6 through 25 there's going to be a little bit of an outline concerning the plan and the strategy to exercise victory and so what are some of the things that we glean from this passage of Scripture that we can look at and say okay I think I understand this there there are several things that I want to talk about number one the people listened to the word of the Lord they listened to what the commander had to say they listened to the Word of God and then they obeyed it in verses six through nine number two the people exercised patience and faith in verses 10 through 14 in other words you're gonna already see well why do they have to march around seven times I mean couldn't the Lord have delivered the city into their hand the first time and we know that the answer is yes so God is going to outline something that's going to cause them to have to exercise patience and faith and then number three the people trusted the Lord to do the impossible the only way that they're gonna capture this city is if the city gets captured the way God says it that's in verses 15 through 16 and number four the people obey the Lord down to the details in other words they don't overlook anything they don't pretend like nothing is important all of those things become hints for us as we ask and answer the question how can I have victory in my life how can I overcome the obstacles how can I allow Jesus to occupy those places in my life that he wants to occupy in verse six when it says then Joshua the son of nun called the priests and said to them take up the Ark of the Covenant and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of RAM swarms before the Ark of the Lord you're going to discover something between verses 6 through 12 the Ark of the Covenant is mentioned 7 times why is that important remember we've already learned that the Ark of the Covenant represents the very presence of the Lord let's put up our slide of the Ark of the Covenant many of you are familiar with the Ark of the Covenant it was a box that was made out of acacia wood but then it was covered in gold there were two cherubs that were stood on the lid of this Ark of the Covenant these represented remember the mercy seat inside of that box remember where the law an aaron's budding rod and manna that fell from the wilderness and so again when we see the mention of the ark it becomes a type and a picture for the Jewish people of the very presence of the Lord but we also know that the Ark of the Covenant is a type and a picture of Jesus how do we know that because just like the ark has two nature's made of wood and made of gold Jesus has two natures he's a complete human being but he's also God in the flesh and so again this miracle is done under the auspices in the power and the presence of God and verse 7 it says and he says to the people proceed and march around the city and let him who is armed advanced before the Ark of the Lord and so picture if you will the army marching before the Ark of the Lord in verse 8 it says so it was when Joshua had spoken to the people that the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams horns before the Lord advanced and blew the trumpets and the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord followed them now note remember remember remember Joshua said you need to be quiet you don't say anything we're gonna let the trumpets speak this by the way just from a historical standpoint this is the first mention that we think of of psychological warfare you can imagine that the people in Jericho are watching this and even the children of Israel are watching this and you can imagine what's going on in both of their minds the children of Israel have to wonder how is marching around a city and how is blowing a trumpet going to secure the city and the people in Jericho must have been wondering what is going on out there who are these people and what are they doing in verse 9 it says the armed men went before the priests and blew the trumpets and the rear guard came up after the ark while the priest continued blowing the trumpets now Joshua had commanded the people saying you shall not shout or make any noise with your voice nor shall a word proceed out of your mouth until the day I say to you shout then you shall shout so he had the Ark of the Lord circled the city going around at once then they came from the camp and lodged in the camp so here's the picture on the first day they circle the city once they go back to the camp on the second day they circle the city they go back to the camp it goes through that process until you get to the seventh day where they go around seven times and then they're going to all unite together and shout together now again in verses 12 it says and joshua rose early in the morning and the priests took up the ark of the lord then seven priests bearing seven trumpets of rams horns before the Ark of the Lord went on continually and blue with the trumpets and the our men went before them but the rearguard came after the Ark of the Lord while the priests continuing continued blowing the trumpets I see in this kind of a picture remember what I've already said to you what is the fate of Jericho it's doomed it's going to be destroyed who are the people outside of the city God's people what are they doing they're blowing a trumpet what is a trumpet in the ancient world a trumpet was a device that was used to tell people to either go forward or to retreat or to warn I'm gonna suggest to you that the blowing of the trumpet in a very real sense also becomes a type and a picture of warning every service that you conduct every Bible study that you teach every conversation that you have with your mother your brother your your father your your sisters your neighbors and you you you you remind them and you go you know what this world is gonna perish the only thing that lasts is what God is doing in Christ and they'll laugh at you or they'll challenge you or they'll suggest that that's all nonsense look what it says in verse 14 in the second day they marched around the city once and returned to the camp so they did the six days but it came to pass on the seventh day that they rose early after the dawning of the day they marched around the city seven times on the day on that day only they marched around the city seven times and the seventh time it happened when the priests blew the trumpets that Joshua said to the people okay everyone shout for the Lord has given you the city what happened all the people after they've been quiet for seven days in a row in unison they shout to rather the shout reveals that the people again not only do they listen to Joshua and obey his word they really believe that God is going to keep his promise you would be mistaken if you just think this is just sort of a shout that goes up like after your team wins a major playoff or whatever it says in verse 17 listen carefully now the city shall be doomed by the Lord to destruction it and all who are in it only Rahab the harlot shall live she and all who are with her in the house because she hid the messengers that were sent those of you who have been following along in the book of Joshua already know the story about how the spies went out how she hid them in the beginning how she made a covenant with them and how they said if you will help us then we're going to help you but when you see in verse 17 it says now the city shall be doomed by the Lord to destruction it's a very interesting expression in the Hebrew language it means that the city was under a curse doomed no one is going to be saved except for Rahab and those who are carted in her house the Hebrew expression says doomed by the Lord to destruction it's a powerful and meaningful term it means something that has been set aside as spoil for deity in this sense it means that it belongs to him that it belongs to the Lord God of heaven that it belongs to the Lord God of and God has set it aside for destruction this is a this is a powerful powerful concept one that's very very difficult for us to understand why would God allow something to exist that was only going to be destroyed and this is the question that gets asked all the time to me or at least it used to be asked a lot and that is why would God create people if he knew that they were gonna go to hell why would God allow people to be born and why would he allow them to live and why would he allow them to die clearly God knows who's going to know him and love him and serve Him who's going to believe him and who's not going to believe him those who are going to accept Christ and those who who are going to reject Christ how is it possible that God would create this planet then he would create everyone in it and he would create the continents and the birds and the bees and the flowers and the trees and everything that's inside of it knowing that everything everything everything in this world will one day come to fruition and then suddenly completely eternally disappear and the answer of course is because again something has gone terribly wrong in this world sin has come into this world rebellion and disobedience has come into this world God didn't create the world in order to have rebellion and disobedience but to know him and to love him and to honor him and so in verse 18 when he says in you by all means abstain from the accursed things lest you become a curse when you take of the accursed things and make the camp of Israel a curse in trouble if this is Joshua's way of saying everything in this city has been set aside by God for destruction there's nothing in here that you want or that belongs to you we sing a song this world has nothing for me in the New Testament the Bible says those who are friends with the world are enemies of God and those who are friends of God are enemies of the world and in moments of clarity in crystal clarity we look around and something inside of us knows that the world that we're living in is temporary but something is said here in verse 19 but all the silver and gold and vessels of bronze and iron are consecrated to the Lord they shall come into the Treasury of the Lord there's things in this city that are going to be utterly and completely destroyed now Joshua says there are things in the city that are going to be set aside by God for the purposes of God and of course gold and silver and bronze and iron become types and teachers of things that last or that are useful or that are valuable in the New Testament Paul talks about our works being like wood hay or stubble or like gold and silver and precious stones that will survive the fire and so in verse 20 it says so the people shouted when the priests blew the trumpets and it happened when the people heard the sound of the trumpet and the people shouted with a great shout that the wall fell down flat then the people went up into the city every man straight before him and they took the city dr. John Davis writes quote a single march around the nine acre mound probably would have taken 25 to 35 minutes in other words if you look at the original archaeological site of the ancient Jericho it is again relatively small to again get an idea of nine acres this building is an acre under roof imagine this building and there are eight more and we put them in a square if we if you will and then we marched around it it would take again 25 to 35 minutes he writes it should not be concluded that every Israelite took place apart in the March such a feat would not only be impractical it would have been impossible against scholars estimate between one and a half to two million people are entering into the land he writes it's far more likely to assume that the march was carried out by tribal representation I suspect that that might be true that different people in the tribes of Israel were a part and a parcel of the armed entourage that are going to march around the city and verse 21 it says and they utterly destroyed all that was in the city both man and woman and young and old ox and sheep and donkey with the edge of the sword the command to utterly destroy like I said has caused no end of discussion and debate this is the thing that's going to stimulate the conversation that you have with your family and your friends when they say again how in the world could a loving God how could a God of love and grace and mercy do such a thing how is this even possible I don't understand what kind of a God what must this God be thinking and whatever you get that question I wish I could say to you that the answer is easy it's not an easy answer you have to approach the question and give it the do that it deserves and in order to do that sometimes you have to have a very long conversation which includes things like remember you mentioned that God is a God of love and grace and and mercy and and all of that's true but God is also a god of Wrath and judgment in what sense he's a holy God in what sense he's a holy God who loves what is good and right and decent and hates what is evil and what is wicked and so the people who argue how could a good and a loving God do such a thing are very very reluctant to talk about a God who is holy and just in all of his ways and so that's the rub human beings accuse or criticize God for administering disease served judgment on the wicked and the thing that causes the most concern among most people is when they discover that they're the wicked that they're the ones who've been living their lives in rebellion and disobedience that they came into this world that God is their Creator that God loves them and cares for them that God created them not to live a life of rebellion and disobedience and sin but to live a life where they would know him and love him and serve him and walk with him and it's interesting to me that as they read this particular passage they're willing to accuse God or criticize God but they're not even for a moment willing to concede and admit that one of the most amazing parts of the story is yet to be told when we come to the section that God is going to spare Rahab and God is going to spare Rahab's family and God's going to going to spare them because of a promise that was made and a covenant that was made God is going to exercise grace and mercy on Rahab and her family in order to preserve her from judgment but again it becomes a type and a picture of the world in which we live we know that when a culture a nation a person reaches a point of absolute perversion that God reserves the right to judge swiftly and catastrophic ly even in our own culture and society we tend to put people into different categories most self-described good and decent people are going to go you think it's a good idea to let murderers and serial killers and child molesters free should should people just be able to kill without consequence should people be able to steal without consequence should people be able to hurt other people without consequence and most people would say of course not that's ridiculous until it's them and then they want grace and mercy and so you have to have the conversation with them that God is holy and that God is just and most scholars attest to the depth of wickedness and perversion that the people of Canaan exercise and embrace according to first Kings chapter 14 verse 24 the entire land was populated imagine an entire city filled with perverts and serial killers it says in first Kings chapter 14 verse 24 and there were also perverted persons in the land they did according to all of the abominations of the nations which the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel we know that the perverted people that's being spoken of in first Kings chapter 14 verse 24 were male prostitutes who were hired to attend the temples of the idols where people would act out every kind of perversion imaginable in first Kings chapter 14 verse 22 in its context is the Lord is getting ready to judge the people of Judah because they had reverberate adalah sinful and wicked practices that the people would would practice and embrace it says in first Kings chapter 14 verse 22 and it provoked him to jealousy with their sins which they commit more than all of their fathers had done for they also built for themselves high places sacred pillars wooden images in every high hill under every Green Tree in verse 24 so the image and the picture is a group of people who have abandoned any kind of decency or self-restraint every kind of weird and wicked thing that you could act out they would act out and you might be wondering why was this so important to the Lord and it might come as a shock and a surprise to you that the Lord wanted to keep the people of Judah as pure as possible for as long as possible and we might think of this as a joke but it's no joke Jesus is going to be born of a virgin how is it possible to be born of a virgin when you live in a society where virginity isn't valued and sexual expression runs rampant so what happens when a society no longer values chastity purity remember God had set the people of Israel apart for a specific purpose that he's going to bring forth the Messiah and now we've come full-circle we've come full-circle because now we go back to the original question how could God kill all of those innocent people and the Bible's answer is that your question is misguided because there's no such thing as an innocent person the Bible says all have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God that there's none right no not one that we've all sinned we've all gone astray each one has gone his own way the Bible says in Isaiah that the Lord laid on Jesus the iniquity of us all and so for people who don't really believe in a God who is holy who is righteous who's just this becomes a very very difficult passage you'll remember that when the Gentiles started getting saved in the New Testament people wondered whether or not a Gentile would have to become a Jew in order to become a Christian and in Acts chapter 15 verse 29 James the half-brother of Jesus says lay upon them no greater burden than these necessary things that you abstain from things offered to idols avoid idolatry from blood that means sacrificing drinking blood from things strangled and from sexual immorality he said if you keep yourselves from these you do well in other words purity propriety decency we're supposed to be things that marked the Christian and the child of God the Lord passed judgment on the Garden of Eden the Lord passed judgment to the people in the flood the Lord passed judgment on the Jewish people when he allowed the Assyrians to come in and and discipline them and the Babylonians to come in and discipline them and everyone when they bring up this question should also be reminded about another curse and that was the judgment that fell upon Jesus at Calvary you see God is going to judge wickedness and sin he's going to do it in the person of Jesus he is going to lay our sin on Jesus the great exchange is going to take place he is going to be given our punishment and we are going to be given his reward he is going to be given our unrighteousness we are going to be given his righteousness and now we begin to understand what the Bible says and the Lord will lay on him the iniquity of us all because God will be holy and God will be just and God is a God of infinite mercy infinite grace infinite love and in verse 22 it says but Joshua had said to the two men who had spied out the country go into the harlots house I'm from there bring out the woman and all that she has is you swore to her in other words oh we made a deal there's someone in this doomed City that has been set aside for destruction that we've promised salvation because they honored us and they honored God we made a covenant with them and we're going to keep our covenant with them the faith that brought the walls down also brings Rahab's family out of the place of certain judgment and this is exactly what the Bible teaches in the New Testament that the world that was doomed destined to die that God has a people that he's assigned not for judgment but for salvation the Bible says again for God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son that whoever believes in Him wouldn't perish but have everlasting life because God didn't send his Son into the world to condemn the world but that through him they might be saved because the world was already under judgement some people forget the rest of the passage of scripture in John chapter 3 where it says and I don't want to miss state it so I want to say it exactly how it says for God didn't send his Son into the world to condemn the world but that him through him it might be say verse 18 he who believes in Him is not condemned but he who does not believe is condemned already because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God and this is the condemnation that the light has come into the world and Men loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil you see people will toy with the idea well certainly Rahab and her family can't be the only people in the whole city who were deserving of salvation the right answer is no one in the city was deserving of salvation but God is going to save them again in verse 22 it says Joshua said to the two men go into the harlots house bring them out the faith that brought the walls down also is the same faith that brings them out of certain judgment and now we begin to understand what it says in Hebrews when it says by faith the walls came down and by faith the harlot is saved how because by faith that is they believed the promise of God consider the Covenant again William MacDonald writes quote the grace of God not only made provision for her safety but it also elevated her to a place of ancestry of David and ultimately of the Lord Jesus Christ in Matthew chapter 1 verses five and six do you know who you see in the lineage as a direct descendant of David and then Jesus Rahab she's not just simply saved out of a city that's destined for destruction but this woman called the harlot is going to be at ancestry.com when you type in the name Jesus McDonald writes grace not only saves us from the destruction but also guarantees our exaltation he writes faith is the hand that takes hold of Grace and they take hold of her and so apparently all of the things that were talked about earlier she obeyed in verse 23 it says and the young men who had been spies went in and brought out Rahab her father her mother her brothers all that she had so they brought out all of her relatives and left them outside the camp of Israel look at this verse 24 but they burned the city and everything in it was with fire now I want you to note that quickly before the burning is the salvation in other words she's rescued they burned the city only the silver the gold the vessels of bronze and iron they put into the Treasury of the house of the Lord and by the way these are going to be the only things that will survive the fire once Rahab and her family are safely taken out of Jericho it is burned the reason why I think this is such an important thing is before this world comes to a crashing halt before everything in it is destroyed and burned God sets out to rescue you to redeem you to reconcile you and I see in this also a kind of a picture of a world that's under judgment a rapture that God's gonna rescue you before the burning everyone and everything in the city was to be destroyed the only thing accepted gold silver and bronze for the house of the Lord and the point becomes no one takes anything for themself and it says in Joshua spared Rahab the harlot her father's household and all that she had so she dwells in Israel to this day you know it's interesting to me about that passage Rahab according to the text was alive when Joshua wrote these words fast-forward to the New Testament and Matthew fast-forward to Hebrews and the statement in Hebrews chapter 11 where Rahab is spared and she's taken out by faith we have every reason to believe she's alive even to this day and then the curse on the city look what it says in verse 26 then Joshua charged them at that time saying cursed be the man before the Lord who rises up and builds this city Jericho he shall lay its foundation with his firstborn and with his young as he shall set up its gates so who's Josh will giving the charge to I think it's the people of Rahab's household in other words I don't think it's just simply the people of Israel but remember some of the Jews would have been tempted to go back to Egypt I'm going to suggest you that maybe some of Rahab's household would be tempted to rebuild the city in which their ancestors live and again it becomes a type in a picture of people who want to rebuild a life in a place that's doomed and destined for judgment this world is not your home this world isn't going to last and by the way the curse was literally fulfilled in first Kings chapter 16 verse 34 during the reign of King hey Ahab there was a guy named CL of Bethany who tried to rebuild Jericho when he laid the foundation he lost his firstborn son when he established the gates he lost his youngest son where's me again points out the prophecy was literally fulfilled he says it at what cost he says quote how foolish people are we to defy God's Word and rebel against his will when you make the choice to say that God's Word and God's will doesn't apply to me then almost invariably the consequences applied the prophecy had three specifics the city would would be rebuilt by one man the builders oldest son would die when the work on the city began the builders youngest son would die when the work was completed by the way that's exactly what happens and it says in verse 27 so the Lord was with Joshua and his fame spread throughout all the country why because Joshua was willing to let the Lord of hosts be his commander you know a lot of Christians reserve the right to remain Lord over their own lives and so the most important thing becomes in overcoming and conquering the strongholds is who's going to be in charge of your life is it going to be Jesus is Jesus the one who's in charge of your life does your private worship inform your public walk and remember without faith it's impossible to please God and faith doesn't mean like what Mark Twain said you know faith is that word that we use to describe things that aren't really true but according to the Bible that's not what faith is at all faith isn't believing things that aren't true faith is the confidence that what God says is exactly true faith isn't belief absent evidence the children of Israel obeyed Joshua in verses six through nine the people respected God's Word and listened to God's Word and then obeyed God's Word and their evidence their obedience was evidence of the people's unity and cooperation and single purpose and then the Lord gave them the victory the people had patience and faith in verses 10 through 14 again why didn't the people just march around and shout once why six days why no talking again discipline cooperation obedience submission in the details and to remain quiet not just the first day not just the second day not just the third day or the fourth day or the fifth day or the sixth day but to wait for the seventh day and then all together say the same thing brought about a miracle you know James says that the person who can control their mouth that person is a perfect person the people trusted God for the impossible who ever heard of taking a city by marching and shouting and trumpets but again the story is the story that's really our story the Ark of the Covenant the very presence of Christ in our life means that Jesus is willing to do the work of dealing with what has to be different in our life so they obeyed the word of the Lord in detail in verses 17 through 25 and so it is with us if we're ready to let Jesus be the commander if we're ready to obey Him in the big things as well as the small things then the life will be different we're gonna have communion in just a moment we're gonna all partake together so we're just gonna have a closing song let's pray Heavenly Father Lord when we look at this particular passage and we see all that it contains there's so much rich information Lord sometimes there's so much information that we get overwhelmed and we lose sight of the great big picture we get bogged down and we think is God good is God decent is God loving is God gracious and then Lord we remember what Jesus has done for us we remember the sacrifice of Jesus that Jesus comes into the world to seek and to save that which is lost that Jesus comes and he lays down his life in a perfect sacrifice so that we can be rescued so there are sins can be forgiven and that we can be delivered from a world that is destined for judgment it is inescapable and the only way that we're going to escape is a covenant and again Lord we remember what the Bible says in the New Testament that at the Passover when Jesus broke the bread and he gave it to his disciples and he said take this and eat it all of you this is my body which will be broken for you and again the Bible says that he gave thanks and praise and he took the cup and he said this is the cup of My Blood the blood of the new and the everlasting covenant which will be shed for the remission of sins and when you drink it remember me that Lord we remember when we eat this bread and we drink this cup not only the promise that we made to you but if the promise that you made to us that if we would believe you and trust you that a real Jesus could be the satisfying solution to the problem of our sin that the incredible thing isn't that the world is going to be judged but rather that there are some who can escape judgment those who place their faith and their confidence in the promise the promise that Jesus would save us that we would in fact be saved and so again Lord once again we renew that covenant we renew those vows we remind ourselves of promises made and promises kept in Jesus name Amen let's partay

Channel: Calvary South Denver

Views: 11,946

Rating: 4.7762237 out of 5

Keywords: Calvary Chapel, Gino Geraci, Christianity, Bible Study, Joshua, Conquering Strongholds

Id: 0HKmTa8hT9c

Length: 69min 33sec (4173 seconds)

Published: Fri Jan 06 2017