Jericho Falls, Part 1

Tonight we finally move to Joshua chapter 6 and in so doing we're able to understand the greatest military siege in the Bible.

How Joshua would fit the battle of Jericho and how God used him in a great and mighty way. And tonight, you know, all of us face a different kind of Jericho. We face the kind of walls that somehow seem to be impenetrable. We face the people behind the walls that somehow seem to be impossible. And we look at the plan of God, and it seems to us inconceivable.

But yet, God always orchestrates His events, His plans, His purposes. In his time. And my prayer for you and me is that the lessons we learn in Joshua chapter 6 will enable us to fight our battles. in such a way that we understand what victory is all about. Let me read to you Joshua chapter 6, and then we'll talk about four points this evening, the charge of the victory, the challenge in their victory, the chronicle of their victory, and then the consequences of their victory.

Joshua chapter 6, verse number 1. Now Jericho was tightly shut because of the sons of Israel. No one went out and no one came in. And the Lord said to Joshua, See, I have given Jericho into your hands, and its king, and the valiant warriors. And you shall march around the city, all the men of war circling the city once. You shall do so for six days. Also, seven priests shall carry seven trumpets of ram's horns before the ark. Then on the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets.

And it shall be that when they make a long blast with the ram's horn, and when you hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout. And the wall of the city will fall down, flat, and the people will go up, every man straight ahead. So Joshua the son of Nun called the priests, and said to them, Take up the ark of the covenant, and let seven priests carry seven trumpets of rams. horns before the ark of the Lord. Then he said to the people, Go forward and march around the city, and let the armed men go on before the ark of the Lord.

And it was so that when Joshua had spoken to the people, the seven priests carrying the seven trumpets of ram's horns before the LORD went forward and blew the trumpets, and the ark of the covenant of the LORD followed them. And the armed men went before the priests, who blew the trumpets, and the rear guard came after the ark, while they continued to blow the trumpets. But Joshua commanded the people, saying, You shall not shout. nor let your voice be heard, nor let a word proceed out of your mouth until the day I tell you, shout Then you shall shout.

So he had the ark of the Lord taken around the city, circling at once. Then they came to the camp and spent the night in the camp. Now Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests took up the ark of the LORD, and the seven priests carrying the seven trumpets of the ram's horns before the ark of the Lord went on continually and blew the trumpets. And the armed men went before them, and the rear guard came after the ark of the LORD, while they continued to blow the trumpets. Thus the second day they marched around the city once, and returned to the camp They did so for six days.

Then it came about on the seventh day that they rose early at the dawning of the day, and marched around the city in the same manner seven times. Only on that day they marched around the city seven times. And it came about, at the seventh time, when the priests blew the trumpets, Joshua said to the people, Shout, for the Lord has given you the city. And the city shall be under the ban, and it and all that is in it belongs to the Lord. Only Rah the harlot, and all who are with her, in the house, shall live, because she hid the messengers whom we sent.

But as for you, only keep yourselves from the things under the ban, lest you covet them and take some of the things under the ban. So you would make the camp of Israel accursed, and bring trouble on it. But all the silver and gold and articles of bronze and iron are holy to the Lord they shall go into the treasury of the Lord So the people shouted, and the priests blew the trumpets. And it came about, when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, that the people shouted with a great shout, and the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight ahead, and they took the city.

And they utterly destroyed everything in the city, both man and woman, young and old, and ox and sheep and donkey, with the edge of the sword. And Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the land, Go into the harlot's house, and bring the woman and all she has out there, as you have sworn to her. So the young men who were spies went in and brought out Rah and her father and her mother and her brothers and all she had. They also brought out all her relatives and placed them outside the camp of Israel.

And they burned the city with fire and all that was in it. Only the silver and gold, and articles of bronze and iron, they put into the treasury of the house of the LORD. However, Rah the harlot, and her father's household, and all she had, Joshua spared. She has lived in the midst of Israel to this day, for she hid the messengers whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho. Then Joshua made them take an oath at that time, saying, Cursed before the LORD is the man. who rises up and builds this city Jericho.

With the loss of his firstborn he shall lay its foundation, and with the loss of his youngest son he shall set up its gates. So the Lord was with Joshua, and his fame was in all the land. Now for the most part, we know that story. We grew up in Sunday school, learning about the walls around Jericho. We went to VBS and learned about the walls around Jericho. Our parents probably told us about the story of Joshua and the walls around Jericho. But there are many things that we were not told. There are many things we did not understand about the battle on this day.

And my prayer for us is that we would be able to see those things this evening and thus learn how to face the battles we engage in and ultimately come out the victors. The first thing I want you to notice is the charge of their victory.

The charge of the victory. The Bible says in verse number 2: And the Lord said to Joshua, See, I have given Jericho into your hand, and its king and the valiant warriors.

God says to Joshua, now we know who is speaking, it's the captain of the hosts of the Lord. We know it's the Lord of hosts who is speaking. How do we know that? Because in chapter 5, it says this in verse number 15. And the captain of the Lord's host said to Joshua, Remove your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy. And Joshua did so. And there are no paragraph distinctions in the text, and so we know that the story continues on. And Joshua, having been out in the field on that particular time, and observing the walls of Jericho and came face to face with the Lord of hosts, realized on that day, at that time, that the victory Was theirs.

God said to Joshua: Here's your charge: you have already won the battle, the victory. Is your. Now that was a great promise to Joshua because the walls were mammoth. There was no way they would be able to penetrate those walls. And yet God says what looks like an impossibility to you is going to be made possible through me.

You will win the victory. Jericho is yours, and all the warriors within the walls are yours. There's a great lesson here for you and me. And that lesson is this: that God says, no matter how ins your problem.

No matter how impossible it may look to you, God says, you are the victor. And so many times we miss that. We forget that. We have forgotten what the Bible says concerning us as overcomers, us as victors in Christ.

You know, we fight against the world, we fight against the flesh, and we fight against Satan. That becomes our battleground. And we begin to realize that God says in John 16:3, That in the world you shall have tribulation, but be of good cheer.

I have overcome the world. I've already overcome the world. And if you're with me, you too will overcome the world. In John 12, 31, Christ says that he has won the victory over Satan.

And so therefore, because we're on Christ's side, we've already won the victory over the devil. And in Galatians 5, 24, it says, those who are in Christ Jesus have already crucified the flesh, their passions, and their desires. So, God says, you've won the war when it comes to your flesh, you've won the war when it comes to the world, and you've won the war when it comes to Satan.

So, why do You feel like you're losing. So why do you feel like you can't win? You've already won. And half the battle is perspective. Knowing that God has granted you the victory because you are in Christ Jesus, because of who he is. And Joshua would have to have an assurance that he would win, and the captain of the Lord's host is the only one who could give him that ass. The Bible says in the book of Romans, the eighth chapter, verse number 3.

But in all these things, we are over conquer. We overwhelmingly conquer through him who loved us. And Paul says, For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth. Nor any other created thing shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Paul says, we are more than just conquerors. We overwhelmingly conquer. We always win. And so the charge. For their victory was the fact that God had promised them that they would win.

That leads us to the challenge of victory. And this becomes rather challenging to you and me as well. Because God says, This is what I want you to do.

You know the story? You shall march around the city, all the men of war, circling the city once. You shall do so for six days. Also, seven priests shall carry seven trumpets of ram's horns before the ark. Then on the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets. And it shall be that when they make a long blast with the ram's horn, and when you hear the sound of the trumpet, All the people will shout with a great shout, and the wall of the city will fall down flat, and the people will go up, every man, straight ahead.

Now, think about this. You're Joshua. You're a warrior. You're a man fit for battle. You've already seen and won many battles. God's warrior. In the captain of the Lord's host, you have come face to face with you. His sword has been drawn. We saw that in Joshua chapter 5. And the Lord says to Joshua, the victory is yours. And so you can imagine what Joshua's thinking. We're going to go down there, we're going to get all our men together, we're going to. Dry the city walls, we're gonna knock them over, and we're gonna go in and win the battle.

And God says, This is what I want you to do. I want you to march around the city, but I don't want you to say anything when you march around the city. I want you to do so for six days. Then on the seventh day, I want you to do it seven times. You can imagine what Joshua must have been thinking. You've got to be kidding me. How do you win a battle like that? We are in the same boat as Joshua was. Because God says you need to win the victory.

And let me tell you what you need to do. God says this very clearly. Now think about this. You're Joshua and God says this to you.

You've heard that it was said, you should love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I say to you, love your enemies. And pray for those that persecute you. Well, that's ridiculous. What do you mean, pray for those that persecute you? Same situation. You've heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbor. That's no big deal. Everybody loves their neighbor, as long as their neighbor is good to them. But then God says, but I say to you, you love your enemy, and you pray for those who persecute you.

God says, you have heard that it was said, an eye for an eye, a tooth for tooth. Oh, yeah, we've heard that before. But I say to you, did not resist him who is evil. But whoever slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if any wants to sue you and take your shirt, let him have your coat also. And whoever shall force you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to him who asks of you. And you do not turn away. from him who wants to borrow from you. You see, what God says to you is almost as ridiculous as what he said to Joshua.

Listen to what he says to the Apostle Paul in the book of Romans chapter 12. Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. To anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all men. If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men. Never take your own revenge, bel, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord. But if your enemy is hungry, feed him, and if he is thirsty, give him a drink, for in doing so you will heap burning coals upon his head.

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil. With good. See, these are God's marching orders. And we read those things, we say, that's not how it works, Lord. It might work for you, but it doesn't work for us. We have to do things differently. And Joshua came back to the Lord and said, You know, that's not how you win a battle, that's not how you go to war. March around the city and don't say anything. How do you win a battle doing that? And you see, this was the challenge. It was a challenge, listen, of faith.

A challenge of faith. That is, Joshua was challenged to believe what God said. Remember Hebrews 11? Hebrews 11, verse number 30, says this, By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they had been encircled for seven. Days by faith, the walls of Jericho fe down. See, you have to come to the point. That you will believe what God says no matter how ridiculous it sounds to you.

Or you'll never win a battle. And here's Joshua coming to realize that what God said really seems kind of ridiculous. But.

God said it. And Joshua was a man who lived in obedience to God and was willing to do whatever God had told him. So, the first thing I want you to see about the challenge of their victory is the prerequisite of faith.

The Bible says he who comes to God must believe that he is. Comet by the Word of God. Romans 10:17, right? Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. You must learn to believe what God has said. No matter what situation you're in, you must begin to learn what God has said about that situation in order that you might be obedient to what He says. You see that's what grieves me so much about the church in 21st century Christianity. Because pastors have gotten away from preaching the word.

People don't know what God has said. Therefore they can't live by faith because they don't know what God has told them to do. They don't know what to trust God for or how to trust God. And you see, that's a travesty. Remember years ago, we wrote a book called How to Choose a Church. You ever read this booklet? It pretty good. It's the best thing we ever put in print. How to Choose a Church: Seven Principles. Ironclad principles that will tell you where you need to worship God. The very first one is that wherever you go, the Word of God must be paramount.

And in this book, that we tell you, how do you know when you go to church that the Word of God is paramount in that? Church, what does it look like? How do you know? And that is so important. So, when visitors come, we give them the book. We give them the tapes because we want them to know that Christ Community Church has an objective. And that's to fulfill those seven principles. But it begins with the Word of God being paramount because people need to know how to live their lives according to the Word of God.

Folks, that's so important. Because if you don't know what God says, you can't live a life of faith because faith is believing in what God has already said.

The Bible says in Hebrews 11:6, without faith, it's impossible to please him. So, you have a whole bunch of people who go to churches where the word of God is not preached, and people can't please God because they don't know what God has said. Without faith, It's impossible to please God. You'll never please God unless you know what He has said, because you'll never know how to be obedient to what He has said. And therefore, it's imperative that the word of the Lord be taught. But this was the challenge for Joshua.

God told him to do something. Just like God has told you to do certain things when you go to war. And if you don't do them, you lose. And it's not God's fault that you lose. It's your fault because you refuse to believe in what God has already said concerning your situation and the battle you are facing and what God has required you to do. Second thing I want you to notice is the patience of faith.

By the way, this is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith. 1 John 5, verse number 4, right? This is the victory that overcomes the world. What's that? Your faith. How do you overcome the world? You believe in what God has said about what you are to do. That's how you win. And you see, we need to come to grips with what God has said. What Caesar's a point number two, the patience of faith.

Now, think about this. You march around the city six days. Six days. Seven times on day number seven. Why? Why does God do that? What is the purpose behind all that? Why can't you just walk around it one day and be done with it? O not just two days or three days? Or why not just seven days and seven times? Why, six days and then seven times on day number seven? You have to understand what God is doing here. And I don't have all the answers. Believe me, I don't. But, you know, it's important for all of us to come to grips with how God is trying to help His people understand what they are to be doing.

Now you can imagine, just imagine with me for a moment, you're a warrior. And Joshua comes to you and says. The victory is ours. God has spoken. This is what we're going to do. Gives the orders. We're going to march around the city. Going to come back to camp. That's going to be it. No problem. Guys get up in battle array. They march around the city. You know, thinking in their minds, you know what? We're marching around the city, 600,000 plus men strong to show them how powerful we are. We're going to intimidate them.

So we're going to walk around the city. We back that night and say, boy, I't wait till tomorrow because tomorrow we're going to battle. You see? Because Joshua didn't tell him the whole scenario. He just told him one day at a time. He didn't say, for six days we're going to do this, then on the seventh going do that. He said, okay, this is what we going to do today. So the next day they get up, they think, okay, now we're going to war. So they get ready for battle. And Joshua says, okay, we're going to do today what we did yesterday.

And the guy's just thinking, okay, are you sure you want to do it again? Yeah, we can do it again. So they do it again. So the guys go back to the camp that night and they're thinking, okay, man, tomorrow must be the day. It must be day number three.

All right, so they get ready for battle on day number three and they get up to go. And Joshua says, Okay, this is what we're gonna do: we're gonna do the exact same thing today that we did the last two days. And you hear the guys thinking, wait a minute, Joshua must not be receiving the message from the Lord, clearly. Something must be wrong with Joshua's relationship with the Lord because. He can't be asking us to do this again, can he? See, this is the patience of faith. The patience of faith. Faith always demonstrates itself by having a willingness to wait, no matter what, for God to speak.

That's faith. Listen to Hebrews chapter 6, verse number 11. And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence so as to realize the full assurance of hope until the end, that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who, through faith, Patience inherit the promise through faith and patience because faith demonstrates itself the best by patiently waiting on God to act according to what he has already said. And so here is God testing their faith by teaching them something. Listen, more important than winning.

over the city. And listen very carefully because you see when you go to battle there's something more important than you defeating the enemy. There's something more important than you defeating the adversary. And the book of Proverbs tells us what it is. Listen to this. He that ruleth his spirit is better than he that taketh a city. Proverbs 16, 32. You see, God was teaching them that in order for them to win the battle on the outside, they had to first win the battle on the ins.

You see that? God was teaching them patience. None of us like to be taught patience. We don't pray for patience anymore. Because whenever we pray for patience, God grants it to us. And therefore, we don't want to get that request answered. But the bottom line is that God was teaching them to wait on him. I love the story that's told about General George S. Patton. Who had an unusual way of selecting leaders for promotion? He would line all of his candidates up. He would say, Men, I want a trench dug behind the warehouse.

Dig it eight feet long, three feet wide, and six inches deep. Then the gener would leave the men to their work, un to them, however.

He would go to a room in the warehouse, next to where the digging tools were kept. As the men were getting out the tools to dig the trench, Patton could hear every word they said. Some complain that this is a demeaning work for a lieutenant. or that the trench should be dug by power equipment. Others would gripe about having to dig a stupid, pointless trench in such lous weather. Others would argue about why in the world the gener would want a trench only six inches deep. But finally one of the men would say, Who cares what the old so-and-so wants to do with a trench?

Let 's dig it and get over with it. And that was the man that General Patton would promote to leadership. The guy who would say, you know what? Doesn't make any difference what the old man wants. We're just going to do what the old guy said. Case closed. You see, God is looking for people who will not complain, who will not begin to grumble and gripe because God is asking them to do something that they don't think is reasonable. Don't think for one moment that Israel thought marching around the walls was a reasonable request because it's not.

But they would be obedient to what God had already said. And this becomes very important for us because the challenge Centers around our faith. That's the prerequisite and the patience of that faith to learn to wait for God to answer.