The Covenant Renewed (Joshua 8:30-35)

Our God is the God of covenant. He made a covenant with Abraham that he promised to give him and his descendants the land of Canaan, punishing the nations of rebellion and disobedience. God told Abraham to offer animal sacrifices to the Lord. When he fell into a deep sleep, God sent a smoking firepot with a blazing torch to consume the sacrifices in the alter (Genesis 15:17). In this way, Abraham and his descendants became God’s covenant people. As God promised to Abraham, the people of Israel escaped Egypt by the power of the Lord and crossed the Red Sea on foot as on dry land. God gave his people the Ten Commandments through Moses written on the stone tablets on the mount of Sanai. Giving the law upon his people, God sealed them as a law abiding nation, not a lawless one any longer. So, if they kept the law they would be blessed and prosperous in every way. Otherwise, they would be cursed and punished and cut off from the face of the earth.

The law was given twice, not chronologically but purposefully—first on the stone tablets and second on their hearts and minds. The purpose of giving the law to his people is revealed by Apostle Paul in the Epistle to the Romans Chapter 3. It is to reveal the truth that every one may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God under the law. This is the first purpose in giving the law. It says that what we do is wicked and evil in the sight of God.

“Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God.” (Romans 3:19)

And the second purpose is revealed in Romans Chapter 7. The law reveals not only what we do is wrong but also what we are is evil before the Holy One. In a mysterious way, when Adam sinned we did with him. All man is so lost and fallen that we don’t even know that we are without the light of the law of God. The law of God is like a gigantic search light, shining upon us to see who we are and what we are in the manner of total honesty and truth. When we see ourselves what we really are before the Lord we can come and ask for his pity and mercy on us. When we do that he is so compassionate and merciful that he helps us out no matter what.

“Did that which is good, then, become death to me? By no means! Nevertheless, in order that sin might be recognized as sin, it used what is good to bring about my death, so that through the commandment sin might become utterly sinful. We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin.” (Romans 7:13-14)

Israel crossed the Jordan River and defeated the city of Jericho but they were defeated by the enemies in the city of Ai. It’s because the people committed sin against the Lord. The whole congregation beginning from Joshua suffered a great deal because the Lord God stood against them right before the enemies. God revealed the sin of Israel and commanded to deal with it with all honesty and truth. Joshua obeyed the Lord and executed the removal process of the sins committed by the people of Israel and God turned from his fierce anger. After that, Joshua defeated the city of Ai completely, marching out with his whole army. Now it’s the time for Joshua to renew the hearts and minds of the people through the renewal of the covenant.

“Then Joshua built on Mount Ebal an altar to the Lord, the God of Israel, as Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded the Israelites. He built it according to what is written in the Book of the Law of Moses—an altar of uncut stones, on which no iron tool had been used. On it they offered to the Lord burnt offerings and sacrificed fellowship offerings.” (Joshua 8:30-31)

Moses set before the people of Israel a blessing and a curse—the blessing if they obey the commands of the Lord and the curse if they disobey the commands of the Lord and turn from the way that he commanded them by following other gods (Deuteronomy 11:26-27). Then Moses commanded the people to proclaim on the mount of Gerizim the blessings and on the mount of Ebal the curses when they entered the land to possess (Deuteronomy 11:29). So, Joshua built an alter to the Lord on the mount of Ebal according to what was written in the Book of the Law of Moses—an altar of uncut stones, on which no iron tool had been used. Why must uncut stones be used? Altar is the place of worship for the living God. God sees and knows the heart of worshipers even before they come to the altar. Jesus says that God seeks those who worship in spirit and truth (John 4:24). God accepts those who come before him as they are without facades and pretense.

There the people offered their God the burnt offerings and sacrificed fellowship offerings. God opened the way for his people to access to him in the specially prescribed way. Otherwise they would pay the price of life, let alone it wouldn’t be accepted. It was the privileged open door for his beloved children to access to the throne of grace. The Book of Leviticus describes the full instructions and regulations of sacrifices and offerings. God welcomes his people to come and dine with him anytime and whatever reasons all but with the strictly prescribed way given through Moses. All offering requires the blood sacrifice which signifies the death of our Lord Jesus Christ. Without blood no one can access to the Holy and Living God. Animal’s blood is the picture and copy of the blood of Christ. Only the blood of the Son can satisfy the demand of the Holy God in heaven where Christ offered his body with blood once for all (Hebrews 9:11-12). Sacrifices and offerings are the teaching tools for his children to learn how to come unto him in the time of need. Christ who is the faithful and true witness and the ruler of God’s creation spoke to the church in Laodicea whose deeds neither cold or hot to listen and open their heart to have Christ Jesus within.

“Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.” (Revelation 3:20)

Then Joshua renewed the covenant in the presence of the Israelites. Notice the time that they renewed the covenant of the Lord. They experienced both a blessing in Jericho and a curse in Ai. God is always providing the reasons why his people are required to renew the covenant again and again. It’s a reminder that God blesses if they carefully follow and obey the laws of God and curses if they do not. Throughout the Scriptures the message of blessings and curses are repeated over and over again. That much our God wanted to impress the covenant into the people’s heart and mind.

“There, in the presence of the Israelites, Joshua wrote on stones a copy of the law of Moses. All the Israelites, with their elders, officials and judges, were standing on both sides of the ark of the covenant of the Lord, facing the Levitical priests who carried it. Both the foreigners living among them and the native-born were there. Half of the people stood in front of Mount Gerizim and half of them in front of Mount Ebal, as Moses the servant of the Lord had formerly commanded when he gave instructions to bless the people of Israel.” (Joshua 8:32-33)

Joshua wrote on stones a copy of the law of Moses. All the Israelites both the leaders and the people were standing on both sides of the ark of the covenant of the Lord, facing the Levitical priests who carried it. Why did the writings on stones renew the covenant? Writing on stones means that the law of God remains forever. Our Lord Jesus says that not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen will by any means disappear from the Law until heaven and earth disappear (Matthew 5:18). All the people were standing while Joshua was writing on stones, which indicates that the law of God was being written in their hearts and minds. There also were both the foreigners and native-born.  

Half of the people stood in front of Mount Gerizim and half of them in front of Mount Ebal as Moses commanded. The covenant always has two consequences—blessings and curses. If the people carefully follow and obey the laws and decrees they will be blessed and prosperous in the land they possess. However, if they do not carefully follow and obey the laws and decrees they will be cursed and cut off from the face of God. This is the truth that the law of God produces only two results, either blessings or curses and nothing else. It is true in physical level as well as in spiritual level. For example, if anyone jumps into the ground, thinking that he can fly shall pay the price for the violation of the law of gravity. That’s called jump into conclusions. No one can disobey the law of the universe in physical level. Spiritually is true as well. There is no life in man who is telling a lie but the terror of guilt grips and haunts him. That’s called the wrath of God. There is no peace in man who commits murder. There is no joy in man who is jealous and resentful toward others. No one can escape from the coming of the wrath of God if they do not obey him.

“The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them.” (Romans 1:18-19)

There is always the consequence, being revealed of the wrath of God if the law of God has been disobeyed by anyone. Some may laugh at that, thinking that even if they commit sins nothing has happened to them. Such people are fools like saying there is no sky by blocking it with hands because they do not see the truth and reality. There is no other way to be blessed than to obey the laws and decrees of God in perfection. That’s why the Scriptures keep on urging us to carefully follow and obey all the laws of God out of fear and awe. The Scripture says that there is no inheritance for those who disobey the law of God.

“But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a person is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.” (Ephesians 5:3-5)

Then Joshua read all the words of the law to the people both the blessings and the curses. He not only wrote the laws of Moses on stones but also read in a loud voice for the people to hear and understand, so that they may obey all of them carefully and cautiously.  

“Afterward, Joshua read all the words of the law—the blessings and the curses—just as it is written in the Book of the Law. There was not a word of all that Moses had commanded that Joshua did not read to the whole assembly of Israel, including the women and children, and the foreigners who lived among them.” (Joshua 8:34-35)

How important it is to read the words of God day and night! (Psalm 1:2) All the assembly of Israel including the women and children, and the foreigners listened to the laws of God when Joshua read them. This is the way Joshua renewed the covenant of the Lord, planting the words of God in their hearts and minds. God cannot lie and he made the covenant with oath. So, the covenant of the Lord shall be kept in full forever and ever.

“Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged.” (Hebrews 6:17-18)

Prayer: Thank again Father for telling us with all honesty and truth that there is no other way to blessed except through the full obedience to the laws and decrees of the Lord. Thank you Father for the covenant with oath that it never changes but remains forever. Thank you Father for your mercy and compassion that if we listen to the words of God and repent you accept us as your beloved children and pour out your love for you are faithful and just forever. In Christ’s name. Amen.

April 19, 2016

© 2015-2016 David Lee Ministries – All Rights Reserved.

Our Prayers Are Answered for His Name’s Sake (Joshua 8:1-29)

After removing the sin of Israelites the Lord turned from his fierce anger. It’s the wonderful promise of God that all his children made by the cleansing blood of Christ Jesus have second chance in the marvelous grace of the Lord only if they repent and change their mind and heart to obey him. Not just one time offer, but over and over again if we repent our sins and ask for his pity then the merciful Father forgives us and purifies us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). It’s because the demand of the Father has fully been met by the ransom blood of the Son Jesus Christ once for all. That’s the Ai experience for Joshua and his people. Once again the Lord God forgave the sins of the assembly of Israel for they had admitted the wrongs by obeying God’s commandment to punish Achan and all his belongings. That’s what our Jesus taught us to do, taking the drastic actions to get rid of the part of body which committed sins. 

“Then the Lord said to Joshua, ‘Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Take the whole army with you, and go up and attack Ai. For I have delivered into your hands the king of Ai, his people, his city and his land. You shall do to Ai and its king as you did to Jericho and its king, except that you may carry off their plunder and livestock for yourselves. Set an ambush behind the city.’” (Joshua 8:1-2)

Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid and do not be discouraged.” This is the phrase that the Scripture is saying over and over again. Why not be afraid and not be discouraged? The answer is God says so. What really caused him to fear was God himself who led them out to be defeated by the enemies of Ai because of the sin committed by the man Achan. God’s fierce anger was revealed against the whole assembly of his people because he could not bear the sin of them. God told Joshua that they robbed the things dedicated to the Lord and commanded him to destroy what was devoted to destruction. When they obeyed God turned from his wrath and anger against his people. So, only God can make people tremble and fear and make them not be afraid. It is beautifully illustrated in the Gospel that when our Lord Jesus walked on the water the disciples on the boat in a stormy night were terrified because they thought it was a ghost. Jesus immediately told them, "Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid." It was Jesus who terrified them and stopped fear in them.

“Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. ‘It’s a ghost,’ they said, and cried out in fear. But Jesus immediately said to them: ‘Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.’” (Matthew 14:25-27)

The Lord said to Joshua to take the whole army with him and go up and attack Ai. Previously, Joshua sent not the whole army but three thousand for the attack of Ai and they failed miserably. God is telling that the whole assembly of God’s people is involved in the fight of holy war although the number isn’t important at all for God. Gideon and his three hundred men defeated the hundred thousand of Midianites (Judges 7:22). In the time of King Hezekiah, God slaughtered one hundred and eighty-five thousand in the Assyrian camp by the angel of the Lord (Isaiah 37:36).

Remember God is not fighting for Joshua’s sake but for his holy name’s sake because the time has come for the judgment against the Amorites. It is God who has delivered into Joshua’s hand the king of Ai, his people, his city and his land. So, they shall take the city as they did Jericho and its king. God graciously allowed them to carry off their plunder and livestock for themselves. And God commanded to Joshua to set an ambush behind the city. God can work out in thousand and one different ways. Read the Book of Acts and observe how the Holy Spirit worked every time in a different way. Our God is eternal and never repeats the same way he did it before.

“So Joshua and the whole army moved out to attack Ai. He chose thirty thousand of his best fighting men and sent them out at night with these orders: ‘Listen carefully. You are to set an ambush behind the city. Don’t go very far from it. All of you be on the alert. I and all those with me will advance on the city, and when the men come out against us, as they did before, we will flee from them. They will pursue us until we have lured them away from the city, for they will say, ‘They are running away from us as they did before.’ So when we flee from them, you are to rise up from ambush and take the city. The Lord your God will give it into your hand. When you have taken the city, set it on fire. Do what the Lord has commanded. See to it; you have my orders.’ Then Joshua sent them off, and they went to the place of ambush and lay in wait between Bethel and Ai, to the west of Ai—but Joshua spent that night with the people.” (Joshua 8:3-9)

Joshua chose thirty thousand of his best fighting men and sent them out at night for an ambush behind the city between Bethel and Ai. They were carefully told to be alert and be ready to attack the city according to the arrangements what the Lord had commanded to do. Three things we can observe out of the battle against the city of Ai. First, the Amorites were proudly confident and pursued the Israelites as they did before, leaving the city open.

“Early the next morning Joshua mustered his army, and he and the leaders of Israel marched before them to Ai. The entire force that was with him marched up and approached the city and arrived in front of it. They set up camp north of Ai, with the valley between them and the city. Joshua had taken about five thousand men and set them in ambush between Bethel and Ai, to the west of the city. So the soldiers took up their positions—with the main camp to the north of the city and the ambush to the west of it. That night Joshua went into the valley. When the king of Ai saw this, he and all the men of the city hurried out early in the morning to meet Israel in battle at a certain place overlooking the Arabah. But he did not know that an ambush had been set against him behind the city. Joshua and all Israel let themselves be driven back before them, and they fled toward the wilderness. All the men of Ai were called to pursue them, and they pursued Joshua and were lured away from the city. Not a man remained in Ai or Bethel who did not go after Israel. They left the city open and went in pursuit of Israel.” (Joshua 8:10-17)

Note that all the men of Ai were called to pursue the Israelites and not a men remained in Ai or Bethel who did not go after them. They even left the city open and went in pursuit of Israel. This is exactly what’s going on in human history. Mass killing and hurting others by one class or country have repeatedly been occurring in the earth centuries over centuries. Tremendous efforts with genius minds, skills, and monetary investments have been made to stop the killings and abuses each other, but it never improves the morality of humans at all. Regardless of the recurring failures, the proud humanity doesn’t accept it honestly but instead keeps on pursuing the ideas and minds, thinking that they can improve and make an idealistic world. This is called the flesh in the Scriptures. It doesn’t surrender to the One who created the heavens and the earth but always opposes him in every way (Galatians 5:17). The forces behind the human flesh and proud mind are the authorities, the rulers, the powers of this dark world, and the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms (Ephesians 6:12).

Second, it shows the thoroughness of God’s judgment as were demonstrated in Noah’s day by the flood and in the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by the burning sulfur. 

“Then the Lord said to Joshua, ‘Hold out toward Ai the javelin that is in your hand, for into your hand I will deliver the city.’ So Joshua held out toward the city the javelin that was in his hand. As soon as he did this, the men in the ambush rose quickly from their position and rushed forward. They entered the city and captured it and quickly set it on fire. The men of Ai looked back and saw the smoke of the city rising up into the sky, but they had no chance to escape in any direction; the Israelites who had been fleeing toward the wilderness had turned back against their pursuers. For when Joshua and all Israel saw that the ambush had taken the city and that smoke was going up from it, they turned around and attacked the men of Ai. Those in the ambush also came out of the city against them, so that they were caught in the middle, with Israelites on both sides. Israel cut them down, leaving them neither survivors nor fugitives. But they took the king of Ai alive and brought him to Joshua. When Israel had finished killing all the men of Ai in the fields and in the wilderness where they had chased them, and when every one of them had been put to the sword, all the Israelites returned to Ai and killed those who were in it. Twelve thousand men and women fell that day—all the people of Ai.” (Joshua 8:18-25)

No one could escape from the hand of the Lord Almighty. All the men of Ai in the fields and in the wilderness had been put to the sword and killed as well as those who were in the city. Twelve thousand men and women fell that day, all the people of Ai. This is the preview of the Day of the Lord which shall be coming one of these days in the most suddenness and unexpectedness. In fact, history has been moving toward the end of all and the new beginning of eternal life. Individual life reveals the truth exactly that all dies without exception. The death rate is flat 100% despite of the medical science advancements and outstanding achievements as the Scripture soberly says so.

“Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment.” (Hebrews 9:27)

The physical death is not the end of story because there is the second death which is called Hades in the Scriptures.

“But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.” (Revelation 21:8)

So, the author of Hebrews warns seriously not to fall into the hands of living God by continually rejecting all the opportunities and chances given justly and fairly to everyone.

“It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” (Hebrews 10:31)

Third, God answers our prayers. Joshua did not draw back the hand that held out his javelin until he destroyed all who lived in Ai. Holding out his javelin is the expression of prayer.

“For Joshua did not draw back the hand that held out his javelin until he had destroyed all who lived in Ai. But Israel did carry off for themselves the livestock and plunder of this city, as the Lord had instructed Joshua. So Joshua burned Ai and made it a permanent heap of ruins, a desolate place to this day. He impaled the body of the king of Ai on a pole and left it there until evening. At sunset, Joshua ordered them to take the body from the pole and throw it down at the entrance of the city gate. And they raised a large pile of rocks over it, which remains to this day.” (Joshua 8:26-29)

Jesus says so pertinently to Peter that until he prays for either binding or loosening whatever on earth will be bound or loose in heaven as well.

“I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” (Matthew 16:19)

This is a profound mystery which we cannot fathom its depth and height and width and length. It reveals that there is an unbreakable relationship between the visible on earth and the invisible in heaven. Although God can work out everything on his own, even the creation of another universe, he waits the prayers of the saints on earth until he acts. Prophet Jeremiah prophesied about the invasion of the Babylonians and the exile in the foreign land for seventy years (Jeremiah 29:10). Prophet Daniel was one of the captives and witnessed all the events during the exile while serving the kings as the second man in the mighty kingdom. He was illuminated by the marvelous visions and revelations and known the mysteries of God throughout the captivity in Babylon. When the prophesied seventy years passed, Daniel began to pray to God that he would send his people back to the land of Canaan just as he promised through Prophet Jeremiah. Daniel made a plea to God not for his people’s sake but for his name’s sake.

“In the first year of Darius son of Xerxes (a Mede by descent), who was made ruler over the Babylonian kingdom—in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, understood from the Scriptures, according to the word of the Lord given to Jeremiah the prophet, that the desolation of Jerusalem would last seventy years. So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes. I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed: Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments, we have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws. We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our ancestors, and to all the people of the land. ‘Lord, you are righteous, but this day we are covered with shame—the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, both near and far, in all the countries where you have scattered us because of our unfaithfulness to you. We and our kings, our princes and our ancestors are covered with shame, Lord, because we have sinned against you. The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him; we have not obeyed the Lord our God or kept the laws he gave us through his servants the prophets. All Israel has transgressed your law and turned away, refusing to obey you. ‘Therefore the curses and sworn judgments written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against you. You have fulfilled the words spoken against us and against our rulers by bringing on us great disaster. Under the whole heaven nothing has ever been done like what has been done to Jerusalem. Just as it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come on us, yet we have not sought the favor of the Lord our God by turning from our sins and giving attention to your truth. The Lord did not hesitate to bring the disaster on us, for the Lord our God is righteous in everything he does; yet we have not obeyed him. ‘Now, Lord our God, who brought your people out of Egypt with a mighty hand and who made for yourself a name that endures to this day, we have sinned, we have done wrong. Lord, in keeping with all your righteous acts, turn away your anger and your wrath from Jerusalem, your city, your holy hill. Our sins and the iniquities of our ancestors have made Jerusalem and your people an object of scorn to all those around us. ‘Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, Lord, look with favor on your desolate sanctuary. Give ear, our God, and hear; open your eyes and see the desolation of the city that bears your Name. We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy. Lord, listen! Lord, forgive! Lord, hear and act! For your sake, my God, do not delay, because your city and your people bear your Name.” (Daniel 9:1-19)

It is certain that if we are experiencing the answers of prayers someone else must have been praying for us. What is then prayer? Prayer is our expression of the dependence on God. There is nothing we do not depend on God to live life. Jesus says that he is the bread of life and the light of the world. In the parable of the unfortunate widow, our Lord Jesus says that we should always pray and not give up.

“Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.” (Luke 18:1)

We in Christ are always either in prayer or faint. If we do not depend on God for everything, even a single breath of air we shall faint. We’re designed and made to depend on him always. Prayer is not our tool to execute our own agenda or program but our honest plea for God to act according to his promise and will for his holy name’s sake. That’s the reason we are given full of promises in the Scriptures. Obviously, it’s useless if we do not pay careful attention to the words of God’s promise. How can we pray to God if we do not understand his promises and plans? Psalmist says so pertinently.

“Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither—whatever they do prospers. Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away. Therefore, the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.” (Psalm 1:1-6)

Prayer: Thank you Father once again for the promise of forgiveness only if we repent and for listening and answering our prayers just as you have promised in the Scriptures. May we help us to depend on you in every corner and area of our lives from sex life, work, study, recreation, relationship to church life. In Christ’s name. Amen.

April 9, 2016

© 2015-2016 David Lee Ministries – All Rights Reserved.

God Fully Prepared and Equipped Joshua (Joshua 5:13-15)

When students start a new semester, they think about how to cope with it first and make certain plans to execute in order to succeed in classes. When people get a new job, they think about how to manage it probably for the bright future down the road. New born Christians are as well thinking about how to live worthy of calling in Christ in order to please the Lord of salvation. Joshua and the people of Israel stood the same position where they began a new life in the land of promise after crossing the Jordan River. God knew what Joshua needed to be prepared and equipped for the life ahead in the new land where there were the hostile and formidable enemies waiting for the bloody fight. This short passage lays out the essential nature of life in Christ Jesus. It’s a completely different dimension of life because the life in Canaan represents the resurrection life through the death in the Lord Christ Jesus.

“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)

Before fighting against the city of Jericho, an invincible fortress, Joshua was in want to find out how to attack the city. Right at the moment of need, the Lord God met and gave him what he really needed to know and fully equipped him. First of all, he was instructed by commander of the army of the Lord that it’s God’s war, not Joshua’s. This remarkable encounter with a man standing in front of Joshua with a drawn sword in his hand shows how the Spirit of the Lord leads and guides the people of his own after they have joined into the kingdom of God. Joshua asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?” He eagerly wanted to know whose side the strange man was. But the man replied, “Neither, but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.” Joshua thought that he could determine the side either for him or for his enemy. But it’s not true. The Lord determines whether he put some to his side and others to the enemy’s. It’s because the salvation of mankind is solely coming from the Lord God. Prophet Isaiah prophesied the remarkable statement for all humanity.

“As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:9)

The chief commander of the army of the Lord is God himself. He came to visit Joshua to assure and change him that the Lord was the commander of this war against the Canaanites. Joshua prostrated to the ground in awe and paid honor and respect to the Lord. Then, he asked the man, “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.” Joshua did so. It exactly reminds of Moses when he went up to a mountain where the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush (Exodus 3:2).

When Joshua was occupied with the thought of who were his friends or enemies, God directed him to think that the place he was standing was holy. It is significant for us to understand that the nature of Christian’s warfare truly belongs to God. It is God’s holy warfare. Apostle Paul admonishes the saints in Ephesus to be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power by putting on the full armor of God, so that they can take their stand against the devil’s cunning and crafty schemes.

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Ephesians 6:10-12)

It lays out the essential structure of our life in Christ Jesus. It’s fundamentally fighting the holy war. The enemy is not our neighbors and other people but the devil who holds the fortress of darkness and evil. Where we’re standing in the midst of enemies is the holy place in the sight of God whose throne is heaven and the earth is his footstool. What is the reason God would destroy the Canaanites? It’s not for the sake of the Israelites but his name’s sake. God promised Abraham that he would bring his descendants back from Egypt in the fourth generation for the sin of the Amorites had not yet reached its full measure (Genesis 15:16). So, this is God’s judgement upon the peoples and nations for their sin when the due time comes. Joshua and his people were called to be God’s instruments to be part of God’s plan. So are the Christians called in this age. The sin will be judged by the hand of God as prophesied by the Law and the Prophets.

The first thing taught by our Lord Jesus we shall pray is “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.” That is what Christians are called for. It’s not our name be hallowed but his name in any circumstance, whether in home, work place, business deal, classroom, interview, vacation, or anything else. Apostle Paul urges us to live a life worthy of the calling we have received. What is it? It is, “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.” (Ephesians 4:1-2) It’s because God’s name shall be honored and glorified in every aspect of our lives. Essentially our life in Christ Jesus is a spiritual battle against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Humility and patience like our Lord Jesus demonstrated on the cross is the only way to defeat the evil powers of this age.

That’s the essential nature of the new life in Christ. Our Lord Jesus demonstrated exactly the life we shall follow now and forevermore. That is the obedience to the Father, the Lord of glory. Though he was God who is the Judge of all, he did not condemn the fallen race but offered his body on a cross, shedding his blood for the redemption of sinners.

“’I have much to say in judgment of you. But he who sent me is trustworthy, and what I have heard from him I tell the world.’ They did not understand that he was telling them about his Father. So Jesus said, ‘When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he and that I do nothing on my own but speak just what the Father has taught me.’” (John 8:26-28)

Apostle Peter wrote in his letter to the saints about the Lord’s enduring love and sacrifice for the sin of the world in order to make the believers in him righteous and holy.

“When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. ‘He himself bore our sins’ in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; ‘by his wounds you have been healed.’ For ‘you were like sheep going astray,’ but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.” (1 Peter 2:23-25)

Prayer: Thank you Father for teaching us the essential nature of the new life in Christ and fully preparing and equipping us to fight the good fight, participating the holy war of God Almighty. May your name be hallowed in all circumstance. In Christ’s name. Amen.

March 14, 2016

© 2015-2016 David Lee Ministries – All Rights Reserved.