Amelia Church of Christ - Christian Church in Amelia, OH near Cincinnati in Clermont County

Welcome to week #8 in our super-sized summer series called Heroes. We started this journey back in June, and it’s been an incredible ride. We’re spending the summer exploring the lives of some of God’s heroes from the Old Testament in the Bible.

Last week, we explored a heroic act of a fellow named Joseph. Joseph heroically turned down the intense sexual advances of Potiphar’s wife. And as we walked with him through the progression of his temptation, we discovered that there is freedom available for us. The chains of sexual sin can be broken in our lives. It was a difficult day because of the hurt and pain so many of us are carrying from our sexual mistakes. But it was also a great day. I’ve talked with some of you and it was so exciting to hear about how God is setting you free in this area of your life.

God’s got some more great stuff up his sleeve for us today. Today we’re focusing in a hero named Joshua.

Just like last week with Joseph, the life story of Joshua is far too long to cover in a single message. So we’re going back to one defining moment in Joshua’s life. Today, God is going to teach us his truth as we explore the story of Joshua and the battle of Jericho. The story is found in the book of Joshua, chapters 5-6. Let’s pray as we dive into this incredible story.

Let me set the scene for our story. After 40 years of wandering in the desert, God had opened the way for the Israelites to enter into the land of Canaan, the Promised Land. He had commissioned Joshua to lead the Israelites into this land. And that’s where we pick up our story. If the Israelites were going to enter this new and wonderful land of God, they would have to go through Jericho.

Jericho was the most important Canaanite fortress city in the Jordan valley. This is all that remains of ancient Jericho today, but in its prime, Jericho’s defensive structure seemed impenetrable. Massive walls encased the city on all sides. It was an awe-inspiring sight. The thought of permeating the walls of Jericho and defeating the city must have seemed ludicrous. No one gets past Jericho. And yet, this was the roadblock that stood between the Israelites and the Promised Land. Jericho stood between Israel and the victory that God had promised them.

What’s your Jericho? What is it standing between you and the Promised Land? What is the roadblock between you and the victory God has promised for you? Is it an ongoing sin? Intense, searing pain? Grief that seems like it will never go away? Guilt that hangs like a cloud over your life wherever you go?

What is your Jericho? What is it standing between you and the victory of God?

Whatever it is, the story of Joshua contains truth that we need to understand as we come up against our Jericho.

In our story, the citizens of Jericho knew the Israelites were approaching. So they went into full lockdown. The gates of the city never opened. No one was permitted to enter or leave Jericho.

And that’s where we find Joshua. Surveying the city of Jericho. Probably trying to figure out how to attack and conquer such a massive fortified city.

Joshua 5, starting in verse 13. “Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?”

“Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the LORD I have now come.” Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, “What message does my Lord have for his servant?”

The commander of the LORD’s army replied, “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.” (Joshua 5:13-15, NIV)

This is an amazing scene. Joshua is surveying Jericho, sizing up the chances of his army against this mighty city. All of sudden, he looks up and sees a man with a sword in his hand.

Figuring that this man might possibly be a scout sent from Jericho, Joshua cautiously approached him.

The Bible says, “Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?”

“Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the LORD I have now come.

Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence…” (Joshua 5:13b-14a, NIV)

Who is this man that is talking to Joshua? That’s a common question people have when they read this story.

He identifies himself as “commander of the army of the LORD.” Obviously we’re not talking about a mere man here. Joshua recognizes this as a divine being, because he falls facedown in worship.

So a lot of people conclude that this must have been an angel. Maybe even Gabriel or Michael, the archangel. But there’s a problem with that. Joshua bowed down and worshiped the commander of the LORD’s army, and the commander accepted his worship.

Angels are not to be worshiped. Angels do not accept worship.

In Revelation 19, the Apostle John encounters an angel. The Bible says, “Then the angel said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!’” And he added, “These are the true words of God.”

At this I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “Do not do it! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God!” (Revelation 19:9-10a, NIV)

When John bowed down to worship the angel, the angel stopped him cold. Worship is never given to and never accepted by angels.

Back to our story with Joshua, that creates a problem for figuring out who this guy really was. Joshua bowed down and worshiped the man in front of him, and the man didn’t stop him. Instead, he accepted Joshua’s worship.

This wasn’t an angel. In fact, I only see one possible answer to this man’s identity. And for some of you, I’m getting ready to blow your mind.

The commander of the LORD’s army was Jesus.

Now immediately, there seems to be a problem. The story of Joshua happened around the year 1400 B.C. 1400 years BEFORE CHRIST! How could this be Jesus if he didn’t make his appearance in the manger in Bethlehem for another 1400 years?

We have to realize that Jesus is eternal. You have to understand that Jesus’ physical birth wasn’t the first time he appeared in our world. The Old Testament has several instances of theologians call a Christophany.

There’s your big word for the day. A Christophany is a manifestation of the preincarnate Christ. In other words, it is an appearance of Jesus in our world before he took on human flesh and was born in Bethlehem. The Old Testament contains a lot of stories where it really could only be an appearance of Jesus…a Christophany.

Now, that’s some pretty heady stuff to wade through. Don’t worry. I’m going to take off my professor’s hat now. I’m finished teaching and now I’m ready to preach the paint off the walls.

But we had to get this straight in our minds because it totally changes the way we view the story. To know that Joshua was actually encountering Jesus absolutely changes everything!

With that in mind, let’s go back to the story and discover God’s truth for us this morning. Let’s dive in and discover how Jericho is defeated, in Joshua’s life and in our lives.

First of all, victory begins with surrender. Sounds backwards, doesn’t it? But that’s how it is with the ways of God. They don’t often make sense to us. But to see Jericho defeated, it begins with surrender.

Go back to Joshua’s encounter with Jesus. “Joshua went up to him and asked, "Are you for us or for our enemies?"

"Neither," he replied, "but as commander of the army of the LORD I have now come." (Joshua 5:13b-14a, NIV)

Joshua approached it backwards when he asked the Lord, “Are you for us or for our enemies?” His ultimate question was, “Is God on my side?” Instead of asking the better question: Am I on God’s side?

And look at how Jesus responds to him. Joshua asks, “Are you for us or for our enemies?”

I love this. The Lord looked at him and said, “Neither.”

That’s a classic God answer. Because, since the Israelites are God’s people, you would fully expect him to say, “Of course I’m on your side.” But he doesn’t. He is not interested in being on Israel’s side. He was calling Israel to be on his side.

The battle of Jericho hadn’t even begun yet, but the battle was going to be won or lost in this moment. Joshua had to understand that if the battle was going to be won, he had to keep his role in perspective.

We exist to please God. God doesn’t exist to please us. We exist to glorify God. God doesn’t exist to glorify us.

If you want to overcome your Jericho, it starts here. Realizing that you are a servant of God. Not the other way around.

And I think we know that in principle, but it’s not as easy to show it in practice. So many of us tend to see God as some cosmic Santa Claus who is there to cater to our every whim. And sometimes he does a pretty lousy job because he doesn’t always give me what I want when I want it.

Doesn’t God know that I need a new job? He doesn’t expect me to work in this rat hole for the rest of my life, does he?

God really should do something about my spouse. Obviously the problems in our marriage couldn’t be my fault.

God knows this has always been my dream. Why hasn’t he delivered on it yet?

Why hasn’t God healed me? What is his problem?

All of those are significant issues. I don’t mean to minimize any of it. Whatever your Jericho is, I know it’s big. But in all those examples, did you notice a trend? Who was at the center of it all? Me. Everything revolved around me. And the question we often ask is, “Why isn’t God on my side?” Wrong question.

Am I on God’s side? There’s the right question.

It’s all about surrender. It sounds backwards, but surrender is the key to victory. Even if things aren’t going well with your Jericho, even things in your life seem to have ground to a halt, even if it really doesn’t make sense any more, we surrender to God, trusting that he is all wise and all loving. Trusting that he sees what we can’t see and he is control, even if things seem out of control.

Now, let me show you something else that you may not have noticed in our story. The Bible says, “Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?”

“Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the LORD I have now come.” (Joshua 5:13b-14a, NIV)

Did you catch that? Joshua asked, “Are you on our side or their side?”

Jesus answered, “Neither…but I’m here.”

Sometimes submitting to God simply means believing that he is here. You have faith that he is with you. It doesn’t require you to understand what he’s doing. It doesn’t require you to approve of what he’s doing…or what he’s not doing.

Sometimes surrendering to God just means believing his promise when he said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” (Hebrews 13:5b, ESV)

That’s the test. Can you surrender to God when that’s all you have to hold onto? There may be a season where this is the only promise you have while you stare at your Jericho. It’s so big. The walls seem impenetrable. But your God has promised to be with you. The first step in victory is realizing that is enough for you. It begins with surrendering to the God who is here.

The Lord’s instructions to Joshua continue in chapter 6. Picking it up in verse 2, the Bible says, “Then the LORD said to Joshua, “See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its fighting men. March around the city once with all the armed men. Do this for six days.

Have seven priests carry trumpets of rams’ horns in front of the ark. On the seventh day, march around the city seven times, with the priests blowing the trumpets.

When you hear them sound a long blast on the trumpets, have all the people give a loud shout; then the wall of the city will collapse and the people will go up, every man straight in.” (Joshua 6:2-5, NIV)

Joshua followed God’s pretty strange instructions to the letter. For six days, they marched around Jericho one time. Then on the seventh day, they marched around the city seven times. The priests sounded a long trumpet blast, the people yelled, and the walls of Jericho came crashing down. The Israelites marched in and killed all their enemies. It was a great and improbable victory when the great city of Jericho fell.

But there are a couple more truths in this story that aren’t necessarily obvious, but are definitely essential. When it comes to your Jericho, you simply can’t afford to miss this.

Victory is guaranteed. Oh yeah. How do you like me now? How does it feel knowing that your victory over Jericho is guaranteed?

Isn’t that some “health and wealth,” “God will always give you what you want” preaching? Nope. This is Bible preaching.

Check out Joshua 6:2. “Then the LORD said to Joshua, "See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its fighting men.” (Joshua 6:2, NIV)

The battle hasn’t even happened yet. But God still says, “I have delivered Jericho into your hands.” He doesn’t tell Joshua, “I will deliver.” He says, “I have delivered.” God speaks as it is has already happened. He talks like Jericho had already been defeated…because it had.

Victory over Jericho was guaranteed to Joshua. The victory was his. The battle was just a mere formality, because the victory was already decided by God.

Once Joshua got his perspective straightened out…once he learned that God wasn’t on his side, but instead that he was on God’s side…his victory was guaranteed.

And that same promise given to Joshua is also given to us. Victory over your Jericho is guaranteed.

This is kind of long, but man, it is good. Listen to these words from the book of Romans.

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?

He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies.

Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?

Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:28, 31-35, 37-38, NIV)

Because of the victory of Jesus’ death and resurrection, we are more than conquerors. Nothing can separate us from God’s love for us. Nothing can keep God’s power from working in our lives. These verses tell us that God will “graciously give us all things,” including victory over the Jericho of our lives.

Victory of your Jericho is guaranteed! But here’s the way this deal works.

Victory is guaranteed, but God gets to define what victory is. Remember the first step to victory? Surrendering to God. Submitting your life to him. Yielding your will to his will.

That surrender means that you allow God to define what victory is. For example, if you have a terminal illness, that is your Jericho. And in your mind, victory over Jericho means that God will heal you. But God decides that victory will look different. Instead of healing you in this life, God allows the illness to take your life so he can bring complete, total, eternal healing to you in heaven. Did you achieve victory over your Jericho? Absolutely. But God was the one who defined what victory would look like.

This is a test of submission. God has made you more than a conqueror. There is no Jericho in your life that cannot be defeated. Your victory is guaranteed…but victory in God’s sight may not be what you had in mind. Which, once again, means taking your will and making it subservient to God’s good and perfect will.

This is really important when we pray. When God doesn’t answer my prayers the way I would like, can I still trust him? Can I still submit my life to him? He will bring victory to me, but he gets to define what that victory will be.

And he also gets to decide when the victory will happen. Victory is not only defined by God, but it is given in God’s time. And God’s time is rarely the same as my time. I want it done yesterday. God’s timing is usually different.

In our story, God told Joshua to have the Israelites march around the city of Jericho once a day for six straight days. Don’t do anything except march around it.

Then, on the seventh day, march around the city seven times. Tell the priests to blow their trumpets. Have all the people shout. And then, God said, “I’ll bring the walls down. Then you can march into the city and claim victory.”

Don’t you think that Joshua and the Israelites would have rather God said, “Go get ‘em right now! The city is yours and I’ll bring the walls down immediately!” I know I would have preferred that.

But instead, they had to go through this ritual for seven long days. They were probably ridiculed by the people of Jericho who saw their enemies doing nothing except walking around the city. This was a great test of patience and obedience for the Israelites. Instead of giving them immediate victory, God did it in his time.

In our microwave, instant-gratification culture, we don’t like to wait on anything. If I have to wait more than 30 seconds at the Wendy’s drive-thru, I’m irritated. If I’m in the 12-items-or-less checkout line at Kroger and the person ahead of me has 13 items, I’m unhappy. That’s how we are, isn’t it? We’re not very good at waiting.

But to see victory over our Jericho, we have to understand that it will come about in God’s time.

Look at these verses from earlier in Israel’s history. These verses tell what happened after the previous generation of Israelites were released from captivity in Egypt.

“When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.” So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea.” (Exodus 13:17-18, NIV)

As God was leading his people to freedom, he didn’t take them on the shortest route. He knew that the shorter route would bring battles that they were not prepared to fight. So instead, he took them the long way around.

And he does the same thing with us today. Writing about these verses, Steven Furtick said, “God knows me much better than I know myself. And sometimes He takes me the long way because He knows that if He took me straight to my destination, I wouldn’t be ready.

Are you single and wishing God would hurry up and bring you a man? Maybe God’s taking you the long way for a reason… to cultivate and prepare and stabilize you.

Do you feel like God has got you in a place of obscurity and monotony in this season of your life? Maybe God is sharpening your skills, perfecting your gift, and fortifying your character.

Are you praying a prayer that seems to be met with silence from heaven? God is infinitely wise, and He knows what you need, when you need it, and He’s navigating your route according to His limitless knowledge.

Sometimes God takes us around by the desert… the long way…because He knows what battles are ahead, and when we’re ready to fight.”

God will lead you into battle with your Jericho. And he will give you the victory that he has decided on…but he will do it in his time.

Have you seen how every step on the path to victory is a test of trust? Victory begins with surrender. Do I trust God enough to submit my entire life, all that I am, to him?

Victory is guaranteed…but God gets to define what that victory is. If his idea of victory and my idea of victory aren’t the same, am I ok with that? Can I trust his wisdom more than my own?

Victory is given in God’s time. I want Jericho to go down now, but God seems to be in a holding pattern. Nothing is happening right now. Can I trust that God’s victory will come in God’s time? Can I be content with that?

Every step of the way is a test of trust. God will bring down your Jericho in his way and in his time…if you submit to him. If you trust him.

Mike Edmisten

Tags: Heroes, God's timing, Jericho, Joshua, surrender