Our church spent the past week discussing, praying about, and studying Joshua 6. We spend several nights, meetings, dinners, and lunches mulling over what God is saying through each passage. For me, this passage was a little dry - mostly full of instructions and the carrying out of those instructions - but after my husband's sermon on Sunday, God squeezed the juice out for us to "drink".
Joshua 6 tells the story of the destruction of Jericho by way of Joshua, the army, the priests, and the ark marching around the walls that hid the city. For a long time, no one was allowed in and no one was allowed out. Because of their inability to go in or out - being handicapped by fear - there was no spirit left in them - no fight left. The army with Joshua was instructed to march around the walls once daily for 6 days and on the 7th day to walk 7 times, shout as loudly as possible, and the walls would fall down. After the walls fell, Joshua sent a special ops team to retrieve Rahab and her family as promised. The army was commanded to destroy every man, woman, child, and livestock but to gather all the bronze, iron, silver, and gold for the Lord's treasury; they were told not to keep anything for themselves. After everything was burned and eliminated, except for Rahab and family, Joshua invoked a curse of the Lord on anyone who tried to rebuild Jericho.
The Fall of Jericho can be broken into two main points:
1) The touch point of Heaven to Earth.
2) 3 things God says are important.
1) The army was to take the ark (the Holy "box" in which God's presence dwells) and march around the city. God issued his word to the nation, the commandments were carried out, he walked alongside them as they marched and amazing things happened. John 14: 15-31 can be referenced here where we obey, we become one spirit, and we walk with God. If the Holy Spirit (the touch point) is not with you, then your plans will fall short - you'll be fighting alone. It is of utmost importance to listen to him, adhere to his commands, and walk with him as we carry out his plans.
2) 3 things God says are important:
--After the walls fell, Joshua said to save Rahab because she was important. A similar story comes from Luke 15 that speaks of the one lost lamb from 100 sheep. If one is missing, a shepherd looks for her until he finds her. When he finds her, he rejoices and welcomes her with open arms and a loving heart. Of all the people God could have saved, he saved ONE family. He saved the ONE repentant sinner and her family; she was so valuable in the eyes of God that he made sure she made it out of the massacre alive.
--There were valuable items in the city that were to be collected for the Lord's treasury. If ONE person kept anything for himself, it would affect the entire nation. A little bit of sin can affect the whole body. When one part is out of alignment, the whole body can't function at full capacity.
--The weapons of our warfare are blessings and curses. Joshua pronounced a curse (issued from God through Joshua) over the city for anyone who rebuilt Jericho. When God blesses or curses something, it carries a heavy weight with it. When Jericho decided they were anti-God, HE issued a curse on them. We can come into alignment with God and issue his blessings over his people. He can issue curses too but through the proper channels - through trusted people in authority who understand the seriousness of a curse. We deal mostly in blessings and God defends us from curses issued on us from people outside the church.
I'm praying for all those who read this to be able to hear your instructions or guidance from God and for you to have boldness and the desire to be obedient as you carry out his plans. Be sure to do exactly as he says and if you sin along the way, go back to him with a repentant heart. Fight your battles WITH God in the lead.
Joshua 6 tells the story of the destruction of Jericho by way of Joshua, the army, the priests, and the ark marching around the walls that hid the city. For a long time, no one was allowed in and no one was allowed out. Because of their inability to go in or out - being handicapped by fear - there was no spirit left in them - no fight left. The army with Joshua was instructed to march around the walls once daily for 6 days and on the 7th day to walk 7 times, shout as loudly as possible, and the walls would fall down. After the walls fell, Joshua sent a special ops team to retrieve Rahab and her family as promised. The army was commanded to destroy every man, woman, child, and livestock but to gather all the bronze, iron, silver, and gold for the Lord's treasury; they were told not to keep anything for themselves. After everything was burned and eliminated, except for Rahab and family, Joshua invoked a curse of the Lord on anyone who tried to rebuild Jericho.
The Fall of Jericho can be broken into two main points:
1) The touch point of Heaven to Earth.
2) 3 things God says are important.
1) The army was to take the ark (the Holy "box" in which God's presence dwells) and march around the city. God issued his word to the nation, the commandments were carried out, he walked alongside them as they marched and amazing things happened. John 14: 15-31 can be referenced here where we obey, we become one spirit, and we walk with God. If the Holy Spirit (the touch point) is not with you, then your plans will fall short - you'll be fighting alone. It is of utmost importance to listen to him, adhere to his commands, and walk with him as we carry out his plans.
2) 3 things God says are important:
--After the walls fell, Joshua said to save Rahab because she was important. A similar story comes from Luke 15 that speaks of the one lost lamb from 100 sheep. If one is missing, a shepherd looks for her until he finds her. When he finds her, he rejoices and welcomes her with open arms and a loving heart. Of all the people God could have saved, he saved ONE family. He saved the ONE repentant sinner and her family; she was so valuable in the eyes of God that he made sure she made it out of the massacre alive.
--There were valuable items in the city that were to be collected for the Lord's treasury. If ONE person kept anything for himself, it would affect the entire nation. A little bit of sin can affect the whole body. When one part is out of alignment, the whole body can't function at full capacity.
--The weapons of our warfare are blessings and curses. Joshua pronounced a curse (issued from God through Joshua) over the city for anyone who rebuilt Jericho. When God blesses or curses something, it carries a heavy weight with it. When Jericho decided they were anti-God, HE issued a curse on them. We can come into alignment with God and issue his blessings over his people. He can issue curses too but through the proper channels - through trusted people in authority who understand the seriousness of a curse. We deal mostly in blessings and God defends us from curses issued on us from people outside the church.
I'm praying for all those who read this to be able to hear your instructions or guidance from God and for you to have boldness and the desire to be obedient as you carry out his plans. Be sure to do exactly as he says and if you sin along the way, go back to him with a repentant heart. Fight your battles WITH God in the lead.
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