Dealing With the Enemy
Notes
Transcript
Handout
Wow! Victories over Jericho!
Victories over sin!
Victories over Ai!
After an awesome Worship service of ReDedication and Commitment to God at Mt Ebal and Gerizim Israel is ready to march on destroying their enemies and possessing everything God has promised them.
Wow! The Battle is now on!
Israel has learned everything they need to obtain their promise. Well, not exactly.
1 And it came to pass, when all the kings which were on this side Jordan, in the hills, and in the valleys, and in all the coasts of the great sea over against Lebanon, the Hittite, and the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, heard thereof;
2 That they gathered themselves together, to fight with Joshua and with Israel, with one accord.
When all the kings of Canaan heard what had happened to Ai and to Jericho, they joined forces to seek to defeat Israel.
Isn't it amazing how the devil's crowd will join up to fight God's people?
Just look at the way Jesus was treated by His enemies.
The Pharisees and the Herodians hated one another, but they came together in the common effort of seeing Jesus put to death.
Another friendship that was formed over the death of our Lord was that which was formed between Herod Antipas and Pontius Pilate.
We are still seeing these same kind of alliances formed in our day!
See, Israel faces physically the same spiritual battles that we face as we try to live our lives in Christ and possess our possessions that God has blessed us with.
10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.
11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
Jericho = the world.
1 John 5:4 (KJV 1900)
4 For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.
Ai = the flesh.
24 O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?
25 I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.
Today, we are introduced
Gibeon.
Joshua 9:3–4 (KJV 1900)
3 And when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done unto Jericho and to Ai,
4 They did work wilily, and went and made as if they had been ambassadors, and took old sacks upon their asses, and wine bottles, old, and rent, and bound up;
Gibeon = the devil.
7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
Remember the promise!
2 Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel.
3 Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses.
4 From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast.
5 There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.
6 Be strong and of a good courage: for unto this people shalt thou divide for an inheritance the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give them.
7 Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper whithersoever thou goest.
8 This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.
You may have defeated the world, and you may have defeated your flesh, but the other enemy, Satan, we must still contend with his attacks.
8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:
Thankfully, the Lord has not left us without a word in this matter. In this passage, we can see a portrait of Satan and the way he works. As we will see, there is a danger in letting our spiritual guard down.
Let’s take some time today to study this passage and learn more about how the enemy operates. There are some lessons in this passage we need to take to heart when the enemy get A Little Too Close For Comfort.
Satan is Deceptive
Satan is Deceptive
How does Satan Deceive?
Deception
Deception
Joshua 9:4 (KJV 1900)
4 They did work wilily, and went and made as if they had been ambassadors, and took old sacks upon their asses, and wine bottles, old, and rent, and bound up;
When the Gibeonites heard that the Israelites were headed in their direction, they devised a scheme pf deception to trick Israel into making a peace treaty with them.
They dressed in old clothes, carried old bread and wine and pretended that they were from far away. They did everything in their power to trick Israel.
Ill. What a picture of our enemy, the devil!
The Bible tells us in Eph. 6:11 that we fight an enemy that uses “wiles” to get his way in our lives. The word “wiles” refers to “deceit, trickery, cunning arts.” You see friends, Satan would like nothing better than to trip you up and cause you to fall into one of his traps.
Just before Jesus died, He told Simon Peter that Satan desired to have him that he might sift him as wheat, Luke 22:31–32.
Luke 22:31–32 (KJV 1900)
31 And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat:
32 But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.
Satan wants to do the same to you and me. He wants us to fall. He wants us to fail, and he will stop at nothing to bring that to pass.
7 Moreover he must have a good report of them which are without; lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.
tells us that Satan uses “snares” to catch his prey. This word refers to “a trap set by a hunter in order that he might capture his prey.” So, Satan uses deceptive wiles, just like the people of Gibeon did.
Duds
Duds
4 They did work wilily, and went and made as if they had been ambassadors, and took old sacks upon their asses, and wine bottles, old, and rent, and bound up;
5 And old shoes and clouted upon their feet, and old garments upon them; and all the bread of their provision was dry and mouldy.
The Gibeonites had taken every step possible to deceive Israel into believing that they were from a far away country.
They carried old sacks on their donkeys, broken and bound up wine skins, patched shoes, shabby clothing and even some moldy bread. Their entire aim was to trick Israel.
Ill. When the devil comes against you, he will not do so in a red suit with a pointy tail and horns. He will not be carrying a pitchfork and he will not smell like sulphur. When the devil comes to your life to cause you trouble, he will appear as an angel of light. 2 Cor. 11:14,
14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
He will make his plan appear to be the perfect thing for your life.
So, beware of every impulse that comes into your mind.
Check out everything by the Word of God and by the will of God, listening to the voice of the Holy Spirit, John 16:13,
13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.
and the Lord will always lead you in the right way!
Discussions
Discussions
Joshua 9:6–12 (KJV 1900)
6 And they went to Joshua unto the camp at Gilgal, and said unto him, and to the men of Israel, We be come from a far country: now therefore make ye a league with us.
7 And the men of Israel said unto the Hivites, Peradventure ye dwell among us; and how shall we make a league with you?
8 And they said unto Joshua, We are thy servants. And Joshua said unto them, Who are ye? and from whence come ye?
9 And they said unto him, From a very far country thy servants are come because of the name of the Lord thy God: for we have heard the fame of him, and all that he did in Egypt,
10 And all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites, that were beyond Jordan, to Sihon king of Heshbon, and to Og king of Bashan, which was at Ashtaroth.
11 Wherefore our elders and all the inhabitants of our country spake to us, saying, Take victuals with you for the journey, and go to meet them, and say unto them, We are your servants: therefore now make ye a league with us.
12 This our bread we took hot for our provision out of our houses on the day we came forth to go unto you; but now, behold, it is dry, and it is mouldy:
Notice that in these verses, these men from Gibeon lied, v. 6, 9, 11–12; they used claimed to be something they were not, v. 8–9; and they were careful in what they said and in what they referred to, v. 10.
They did not mention any of the events that had taken place since Israel had crossed the Jordan River. This gave the impression that they had indeed been traveling for some time, and did not know about Israel’s victories at Jericho and Ai.
This is a perfect picture of how our enemy, the devil, operates. He will use slick and enticing speech to get you to yield to his plans for your life. He practiced this kind of trickery in the Garden of Eden when he talked to Eve, Gen. 3:1–6.
• He taught Eve that she should question God’s Word, v. 1
• He taught Eve that God did not really mean what He has said, v. 3
• He taught Eve that God was keeping His best blessing for Himself, that He was holding out on her, v. 5.
In other words, the devil will give you every reason in the world to justify the things he wants you to do. Then when you have followed him and are out of God’s will and in trouble, he will discard you like a piece of trash and leave you to rot in your sins!I wonder:
1. What did the devil tell Cain to get him to kill Abel?
2. What did the devil tell David to get him to sleep with Bathsheba?
3. What did the devil tell Judas to get him to betray the Lord Jesus?
4. What has the devil told you in the past; and what is he telling you now?I
11 Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices.
This verse teaches us that Satan desires to gain an “advantage” over us, and to do this, he will use every trick in the book to get us to follow him into failure. Be careful!
8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:
tells us what the devil is up to today.
He wants you.
He wants your family.
He wants your marriage.
He wants your children.
He wants your testimony.
He wants your church.
If you have it, and you got it from the Lord, he wants it; and to get it, he will do anything!
Not only is he Deceptive but he is also
Satan is Destructive
Satan is Destructive
Diminishes Our Understanding
Diminishes Our Understanding
14 And the men took of their victuals, and asked not counsel at the mouth of the Lord.
Notice that in verse 7, Joshua initially was a little skeptical of these so-called ambassadors. He questioned them about their origin again in verse 8. Joshua is to be commended for his caution, but he gave up just a little too soon! When the Gibeonites showed him their clothes, their food and the broken wineskins, Joshua was more than impressed and he believed their story!
Disregards God’s Opinion
Disregards God’s Opinion
14 And the men took of their victuals, and asked not counsel at the mouth of the Lord.
Notice that Israel ate with the Gibeonites and did not even take the matter to the Lord in prayer. To break bread with someone in that day was considered to be a sign of unalterable friendship. But what they considered to be the right thing to do turned into a problem because they did not take the time to take the matter to the Lord in prayer first and neither did they take the time to wait on His answer. As a result, they stepped out of the will of God and had to suffer the consequences!
Disrupts Separation
Disrupts Separation
15 And Joshua made peace with them, and made a league with them, to let them live: and the princes of the congregation sware unto them.
16 And it came to pass at the end of three days after they had made a league with them, that they heard that they were their neighbours, and that they dwelt among them.
17 And the children of Israel journeyed, and came unto their cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, and Chephirah, and Beeroth, and Kirjath-jearim.
18 And the children of Israel smote them not, because the princes of the congregation had sworn unto them by the Lord God of Israel. And all the congregation murmured against the princes.
19 But all the princes said unto all the congregation, We have sworn unto them by the Lord God of Israel: now therefore we may not touch them.
20 This we will do to them; we will even let them live, lest wrath be upon us, because of the oath which we sware unto them.
21 And the princes said unto them, Let them live; but let them be hewers of wood and drawers of water unto all the congregation; as the princes had promised them.
In these verses, we see that the Israelites ability to be God’s separated people was hindered by their decision to make a covenant with the Gibeonites. God had told them to utterly destroy the inhabitants of Canaan and to make no covenants with them at all. Deut 7:2 says,
2 And when the Lord thy God shall deliver them before thee; thou shalt smite them, and utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor shew mercy unto them:
Satan is Defeated
Satan is Defeated
22 And Joshua called for them, and he spake unto them, saying, Wherefore have ye beguiled us, saying, We are very far from you; when ye dwell among us?
23 Now therefore ye are cursed, and there shall none of you be freed from being bondmen, and hewers of wood and drawers of water for the house of my God.
24 And they answered Joshua, and said, Because it was certainly told thy servants, how that the Lord thy God commanded his servant Moses to give you all the land, and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land from before you, therefore we were sore afraid of our lives because of you, and have done this thing.
25 And now, behold, we are in thine hand: as it seemeth good and right unto thee to do unto us, do.
26 And so did he unto them, and delivered them out of the hand of the children of Israel, that they slew them not.
27 And Joshua made them that day hewers of wood and drawers of water for the congregation, and for the altar of the Lord, even unto this day, in the place which he should choose.
Denounce the Enemy
Denounce the Enemy
22 And Joshua called for them, and he spake unto them, saying, Wherefore have ye beguiled us, saying, We are very far from you; when ye dwell among us?
When Joshua found out what these people had done, he went straight to them and rebuked them and confronted them about their sins.
Deal With the Enemy
Deal With the Enemy
27 And Joshua made them that day hewers of wood and drawers of water for the congregation, and for the altar of the Lord, even unto this day, in the place which he should choose.
There is no question that Joshua and Israel made a mistake when they dealt with the Gibeonites. However, mistakes to not have to spell permanent ruin. Joshua realized the seriousness of what they had done and he immediately took the necessary steps to control the situation. They can’t kill them, because they have given them their word, v. 19, but they can control them!
Dispatch the Enemy
Dispatch the Enemy
27 And Joshua made them that day hewers of wood and drawers of water for the congregation, and for the altar of the Lord, even unto this day, in the place which he should choose.
Notice what Israel did with the Gibeonites. They took them and they put them to work carrying water and chopping wood for the Tabernacle of the Lord. Joshua took his mistake and used it for the glory of the Lord! The Bible even indicates that these people eventually got right with God and were absorbed into the nation of Israel—2 Sam 21:2–6.
2 And the king called the Gibeonites, and said unto them; (now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; and the children of Israel had sworn unto them: and Saul sought to slay them in his zeal to the children of Israel and Judah.)
3 Wherefore David said unto the Gibeonites, What shall I do for you? and wherewith shall I make the atonement, that ye may bless the inheritance of the Lord?
4 And the Gibeonites said unto him, We will have no silver nor gold of Saul, nor of his house; neither for us shalt thou kill any man in Israel. And he said, What ye shall say, that will I do for you.
5 And they answered the king, The man that consumed us, and that devised against us that we should be destroyed from remaining in any of the coasts of Israel,
6 Let seven men of his sons be delivered unto us, and we will hang them up unto the Lord in Gibeah of Saul, whom the Lord did choose. And the king said, I will give them.
Joshua took his error and used it for God!
Conc: Joshua and Israel thought they were making a treaty with people from a far away land. However, they found themselves shackled to a Gibeonite!
Has this ever happened to you? Maybe you are in the middle of it right now. You listened to your flesh, or the devil and now you are in a mess.
Will you let God turn your failure into fruit?
Why not bring that thing to the Lord and let Him turn you failure into something He can use for His glory? Maybe you are not even saved. The devil has you! Maybe you would like to come and give your life to Jesus right now and watch Him save your soul and transform you for His glory. If you need Him this morning you come as He calls!