Be Strong

Joshua fought the battle of Jericho, Jericho, Jericho. Joshua fought the battle of Jericho

and the walls came a-tumbling down. You may talk about your men of Gideon, you may talk about the

men of Saul, but there's none like good old Joshua at the battle of Jericho. He was certainly there.

It's a well-known African-American song. It's a great song and it's a fun children's song and

you'll probably go out of here singing it tonight. So bad luck, there you go. But the problem is when

you get to Joshua 6 and you read about the destruction of Jericho, you soon realise that

Joshua 6 does not give Joshua the glory for this battle and for this victory. It lies very much

in the Lord's hands and that's what we're going to see as we go through this message tonight.

The scene is set at the end of Joshua 5, which we didn't read. We read a few weeks ago.

There's a vision. So I hope you've got your Bibles open. If you're looking at the end of Joshua 5 and

into Joshua 6, that's where I'm speaking from, the commander of the Lord's armies appears

to Joshua and a sword is in his hand and he looks really intimidating. He's ready for a fight,

but so is Joshua. And Joshua asks him a really bold question. Whose side are you on? Us or our enemies?

And God's answer to him is neither.

Yahweh, the Lord God, has a message for you. Get your shoes off. You're standing in a holy place.

It's a holy place because he's in the presence of God and Joshua is having something like the same

experience that the former leader Moses had had when he encountered God at the burning bush.

Get your feet off. Get your sandals off. This is holy ground to be standing in my presence.

And you see here that God is holy and he demands our respect whether you believe in him or not.

He doesn't play favourites. Everybody's accountable to him.

God's people are about to completely devastate St. Jericho.

So the end of the story, you get, this is the end of the story. I'm going to give it to you right now.

Verse 24. They burned the whole city and everything in it and they put the silver and the gold and the articles of bronze and iron into the treasury of the Lord's house.

And what we read is a story where women and boys and girls and animals are completely obliterated by the people of God.

So think for a moment and feel the severity of what is going on here.

Australians go to war against nations who do such things.

At the moment we have troops fighting in Iraq against ISIS.

We participate in the United Nations humanitarian missions to protect vulnerable people groups who are attacked by other nations that have genocidal intentions.

We fight about these things.

And here we have it in the Old Testament part of the Bible.

How do we reconcile God being behind a genocide?

I had a conversation with somebody earlier in the day and they were talking to somebody after one of the services this morning.

And the way they dealt with it is to say we don't want to know too much about the Old Testament because it's a different God in the Old Testament to the God that we encounter in the New Testament.

And that is absolutely not true.

Back in Genesis, God made promises to Abraham.

In Genesis 15, as the sun was setting, Abraham fell into a deep sleep and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him.

And then the Lord said to him,

Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own,

and they will be enslaved and they'll be mistreated for 400 years.

But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves,

and afterwards they will come out with great possessions.

You, however, will go to your fathers in peace and be buried at a good old age.

But in the fourth generation, your descendants will come back here.

For the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure.

The sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure.

And so you start to see that this is not about genocide,

and it's not about favouritism.

This is about the judgment of God who doesn't play favourites.

The time has come for the Amorite citizens of Jericho to be judged for their rejection of God.

God has been patient and forbearing for hundreds of years,

and time is now up and his judgment is about to fall on them.

Now if you think that's unfair,

then we could look further ahead in the Bible

and see that God would later do the same thing with his own people.

He will send them into exile from the Promised Land

because God does not play favourites.

So the commander of the Lord's army

is both a comfort and a warning to Joshua.

Comfort in that God is leading them to what will be

a heartening, breathtaking victory,

but a warning in that God is king.

He doesn't play favourites.

If the people of God turn away from him,

there will be no special pleading.

We will all come under his judgment.

So the commander brings this message of great reassurance.

Verse 2, chapter 6.

See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands

along with its king and its fighting men.

The Lord will win the battle of Jericho.

He is holy.

He is the sovereign king.

Joshua is about to participate in God's victory.

And so the really important question is not what Joshua asked,

which is, whose side are you on God?

He is Lord and God and king.

He doesn't answer to us.

We are accountable to him.

And so the question is,

are we giving ourselves to his purposes?

Are we on his side?

Are we on his side?

Do we care and participate in his mission

to bring men and women and boys and girls into his kingdom

to live for Christ as the redeemed people of God in the world,

which is what he calls us to be?

The last words of Jesus to his disciples at the end of Matthew,

are going to all the world and make disciples of all nations,

baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son

and of the Holy Spirit.

And lo, I am with you always until the very end of the age.

We have been given a very clear mission from God.

And wind the clock back 1,400 years to Joshua,

he is being given a very clear mission by God

to enter and conquer the land,

to lead the people of God into the place

where they can live and enjoy life as his people,

to begin to enjoy his salvation.

St. Paul's vision is to know,

to treasure and to represent Jesus.

And in a way, it's an expression of Matthew 28.

It reminds us that we are saved for a purpose

and God graciously saves us

and allows us to participate in his work in this world.

So for the Israelites, Joshua 6,

the current mission is Jericho.

It's mission impossible.

It's fortress Jericho.

The city's closed up.

The mighty walls seem impenetrable.

And from a human point of view,

this is just impossible.

But the Lord speaks to Joshua

and reassures him saying,

verse 2,

I have delivered Jericho into your hands

along with its king and its fighting men.

And so God gives,

right through the early chapters of Joshua,

he's giving Joshua reassurance after reassurance

as they step into this fearsome land,

into this land of the giants.

And as they come into the land

and as they begin to participate

in the first fight to take control,

this first victory will be the Lord's.

So the verse of our series,

Joshua chapter 1, verse 9,

Joshua 1:9

God's been preparing him.

Have I not commanded you?

Be strong and courageous.

Do not be terrified.

Do not be discouraged.

For the Lord your God

will be with you wherever you go.

And then in chapter 2,

Rahab's revelation,

which was there to encourage the spies,

I know that the Lord has given this land to you

and that a great fear of you has fallen on us

so that all who live in this country

are melting in fear because of you.

When we heard of it,

our hearts melted

and everyone's courage failed because of you.

For the Lord your God

is God in heaven above

and on the earth below.

So three words of encouragement,

I have delivered Jericho into your hands,

I am with you

and your enemies there melting in fear.

And then God asked Joshua to do something

that seems completely ridiculous.

Parade around the city.

Ark of God out front,

priests blowing trumpets,

do it every day for six days

with all the fighting men,

maybe 600,000 men following behind,

walk in absolute silence

and then on the seventh day,

wear yourselves out,

do it seven times

and wait for my command

and when I say shout,

you shout!

It's a religious parade.

It's like an Anzac Day march, you know.

Thousands of soldiers

and no tools

to be able to breach the city's impregnable walls.

I'm an engineer by background

and I went looking for

the biggest bulldozer in the world the other day

because I wanted a way

to knock down the walls of Jericho

because it could have brought my engineering to be.

Komatsu 575,

they use them in northwest Australia.

Really big

and they can push 45 cubic metres

which is about 100 tonnes of earth

at one time.

And one of those I reckon

would have gone through Jericho's walls

in about 30 minutes.

But Joshua didn't have tools

or capacity like that.

Some of the children's Bibles

and I'm not sure we didn't see it on the screen

a minute ago

showed that the people of Jericho

mocking them as they march.

But the Bible doesn't say that.

600,000 men

marching around the city

six days in a row

in absolute silence

I think would have brought

a sense of fear

and foreboding

to the people

who were behind the walls.

Rahab has already told the spies

that

the hearts

of the people

in the city

were melting

with fear.

So the Ark of the Covenant

is out the front

of this parade

the symbol of God's presence

he had led them

right through the desert

and the priests

a week or two before

had stepped into the Jordan River

in flood

put their feet

into the water

with the river flooding

and God just stopped the river

and the whole nation

walked across

on dry land

into the promised land.

And rather ominously

the Ark of God

is front

centre

out the front again

at Jericho.

So verse 20

when this trumpet

sounded

the people shouted

and at the sound

of the trumpet

and when the people

gave a loud shout

the wall collapsed

so that every man

charged straight in

and they took the city.

God destroyed

an impenetrable

fortress.

They didn't breach

the wall

God did.

It was his victory

he did everything

the people

had the joy

of participating

in the victory

that God

had won

and all glory

to him.

Huge echoes

of this type

of thing

in the New Testament

I'm just going to one

but we could go

to other ones

Ephesians 2

very succinctly

says

it is by grace

you have been saved

through faith

and this not

from yourselves

it's the gift

of God

not by works

so that no one

can boast

for we are

God's workmanship

created in Christ

Jesus

to do good works

which God

prepared in advance

for us to do.

So the cross

of Christ

is all God's

work

it's his

initiative

it's his

kindness

it's his

mercy

it's his

grace

he has

destroyed

the wall

of human

sin

that separates

us from

the love

and the mercy

of God

that stops

us seeing

God for who

he really

is

is

and quite

remarkably

he brings

us

to a

completely

new life

where we

can live

for Christ

and enjoy

him forever

he allows

us to do

his good

work

so this

whole passage

is about

God's glory

it is about

who he is

and you see

that in chapter

6 verses

17 to 19

the city

and all

that are in

it are to

be devoted

to the

Lord

only Rahab

the prostitute

and all

who are with

her in her

house shall

be spared

because she

hid the

spies

we sent

but keep

away from

the devoted

things so

that you

will not

bring about

your own

destruction

by taking

any of

them

otherwise

you will

make the

camp of

Israel

liable to

destruction

and bring

trouble

on it

all the

silver and

the gold

and the

articles of

bronze and

iron are

sacred to

the Lord

and must

go into

his treasury

and then in

verse 21

they devoted

the city to

the Lord

and they

destroyed

with the

sword

every living

thing in

it

men and

women

young and

old

cattle

sheep

and

donkeys

it's the

moral dilemma

again

it's a

very strange

expression

everything

was devoted

to God

that meant

that every

living thing

was killed

men

women

children

infants

animals

and all

the precious

metal from

the city

into the

treasury

for the

future

building

of a

temple

to God

no

person

would

share in

the spoils

of this

victory

to the

victor

would go

the spoils

this is

the Lord's

victory

and so

all honour

and glory

and praise

to him

because he

is the

unbeatable

foe

now if you

don't have

some moral

discomfort

about this

event

it means

you're really

well taught

or a bit

numb to

something that

you should

have some

feeling about

the

wholesale

slaughter

of a

city

and all

its

people

does not

sit

comfortably

and yet

throughout

the Bible

salvation

and

judgment

always go

hand in

hand

salvation

or rescue

only means

something

when you

understand

what you

have been

rescued

from

and what

you have

been

brought

to

and you

see that

in Joshua

6

in the

face of

God's

judgment

there is

great

mercy

one person

and her

family are

saved

Rahab

the

prostitute

a person

that most

would have

judged as

unworthy

she wasn't

the one

you would

have picked

if you

were lining

up to

find the

one citizen

of Jericho

that we

will save

the woman

of faith

who saw

the hand

of God

at work

who in

chapter 2

had said

to the

spies

the Lord

your God

is God

in heaven

above

and on

the earth

beneath

now then

please

swear to

me

by the

Lord

that you

will

show

kindness

to my

family

because I

have shown

kindness

to you

give me

a sure

sign

that you

will spare

the lives

of my

father

and mother

and my

brothers

and sisters

and all

who belong

to them

that you

will save

us from

death

she

recognised

God

for who

he was

she seized

the moment

she pleaded

for her

safety

and when

the day

of judgment

came

she was

absolutely

safe

one

family

safe

from the

judgment

of God

out of

all the

families

of Jericho

that's

echoed in

other places

in the

Bible

when you

see Abraham

pleading

with God

over the

cities

of Sodom

and Gomorrah

you can't

get much

lower than

Sodom

and Gomorrah

but Abraham

was pleading

that God

wouldn't

destroy

these cities

and in

destroying

the cities

maybe sweep

up some

righteous

people

who didn't

deserve

to die

so he

said if

there's 50

people there

will you

save the

city

yes I'll

save it

40 people

will you

save the

city

yes I'll

save it

30 people

will you

save the

city

yes I'll

save it

20 people

Lord please

forgive me for

asking one

more time

but if there's

10 people in

those cities

will you spare

those cities

and God says

I'll spare

them

but in

in the end

only lot

and two

daughters

walked out

of those

cities

and were

saved

from all

the

inhabitants

of Sodom

and Gomorrah

in Matthew

Matthew 7 · chapter mention

chapter 7

the Lord

Jesus himself

said

for wide

is the

gate

and broad

is the

road

that leads

to destruction

and many

enter through

it

but small

is the

gate

and narrow

the road

that leads

to life

and only a

few

find it

so the

truth of

the matter

is that

none of

us deserves

to escape

God's

judgment

it is

only by

his

mercy

lots

and lots

of people

in the

world

and around

us

and even

within us

here tonight

have heard

about God's

great news

about the

Lord Jesus

Christ

and they

have chosen

to reject

it

or put

it to

side

and to

ignore it

for the

time being

whatever it

is

but there

is not

another

route

I was

talking to

one of

my friends

recently

he has

a dad

whose

idea of

helping

my friend

his son

to become

a man

when he

was on

the threshold

of adulthood

his dad

brought him

from the

country

brought him

to the

city

took him

to

King's

Cross

paid

for the

strip shows

and the

sex

that was

how he

formed

his boy

and that

is the

baggage

that my

friend

carries

God

in his

mercy

brought

my

friend

to

Christ

even

with

his

distorted

attitudes

to

sex

he

saved

him

from

his

old

life

he

brought

him

to

something

new

his

dad

still

is

a

cranky

old

selfish

self

self

selfish

sex

obsessed

man

he's

bitter

he's

divisive

to his

children

he's

heard

about

Jesus

and he

refuses

to turn

to him

he is

like a

pig

rolling

in its

own

filth

he

refuses

to reach

out to

the one

who would

rescue

him

and who

would

make

him

clean

but if

he keeps

saying

no to

Jesus

he is

effectively

saying yes

to the

judgment

of God

bring it

on

my

friend

lives

with

grief

and

distress

in his

extended

family

it's

not a

happy

place

but

what a

blessing

that he

has been

brought

to new

life

in his

own

family

the

Lord

Jesus

has been

extremely

gracious

to him

despite

his

brokenness

and sin

he's

been

able to

make

a new

life

with

Christ

walking

away

from

the

darkness

of

the

life

that

his

earthly

father

inducted

him

into

friends

we

haven't

just

been

saved

for

eternity

the

grace

and the

mercy

and the

kindness

of God

means

that we

have been

permitted

to begin

a

completely

new

life

with

him

now

Rahab

was

saved

from

terrible

judgment

she

was set

free

to begin

again

she

was given

a place

amongst

the

people

of

God

and

despite

the

scandal

of her

former

life

she

would

later

be

honored

as

a

woman

of

faith

who

took

her

chance

and

reached

out

and

she

grabbed

the

salvation

that

God

offered

her

she

was

God's

workmanship

recreated

and now

enabled

to do

the

good

works

that

God

had

for

her

to

do

so

what a

hope

we have

in

Christ

doesn't

matter

what

you've

done

or

what

you've

become

it

is

not

too

late

to

turn

to

Christ

to

receive

his

cleansing

forgiveness

to

begin

a

brand

new

life

doing

the

good

things

that

he

has

prepared

in

advance

for

you

to

do

Amen

for

use

of

I

I

mean