Facing Battles

Introduction

It is probably one of the greatest known stories. The people marched around the fortress of Jericho and the walls came tumbling down. We learned the story in Sunday School. We perhaps even marched around a building blowing horns as children. What can this story mean to us as adults? I want to invite you to listen again to the Word of God as we study Joshua 6.

Joshua 6:1–27 NIV84

1 Now Jericho was tightly shut up because of the Israelites. No one went out and no one came in. 2 Then the Lord said to Joshua, “See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its fighting men. 3 March around the city once with all the armed men. Do this for six days. 4 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. 5 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.” 6 So Joshua son of Nun called the priests and said to them, “Take up the ark of the covenant of the Lord and have seven priests carry trumpets in front of it.” 7 And he ordered the people, “Advance! March around the city, with the armed guard going ahead of the ark of the Lord.” 8 When Joshua had spoken to the people, the seven priests carrying the seven trumpets before the Lord went forward, blowing their trumpets, and the ark of the Lord’s covenant followed them. 9 The armed guard marched ahead of the priests who blew the trumpets, and the rear guard followed the ark. All this time the trumpets were sounding. 10 But Joshua had commanded the people, “Do not give a war cry, do not raise your voices, do not say a word until the day I tell you to shout. Then shout!” 11 So he had the ark of the Lord carried around the city, circling it once. Then the people returned to camp and spent the night there. 12 Joshua got up early the next morning and the priests took up the ark of the Lord. 13 The seven priests carrying the seven trumpets went forward, marching before the ark of the Lord and blowing the trumpets. The armed men went ahead of them and the rear guard followed the ark of the Lord, while the trumpets kept sounding. 14 So on the second day they marched around the city once and returned to the camp. They did this for six days. 15 On the seventh day, they got up at daybreak and marched around the city seven times in the same manner, except that on that day they circled the city seven times. 16 The seventh time around, when the priests sounded the trumpet blast, Joshua commanded the people, “Shout! For the Lord has given you the city! 17 The city and all that is 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. 18 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. 19 All the silver and gold and the articles of bronze and iron are sacred to the Lord and must go into his treasury.” 20 When the trumpets sounded, the people shouted, and at the sound of the trumpet, when the people gave a loud shout, the wall collapsed; so every man charged straight in, and they took the city. 21 They devoted the city to the Lord and destroyed with the sword every living thing in it—men and women, young and old, cattle, sheep and donkeys. 22 Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the land, “Go into the prostitute’s house and bring her out and all who belong to her, in accordance with your oath to her.” 23 So the young men who had done the spying went in and brought out Rahab, her father and mother and brothers and all who belonged to her. They brought out her entire family and put them in a place outside the camp of Israel. 24 Then they burned the whole city and everything in it, but they put the silver and gold and the articles of bronze and iron into the treasury of the Lord’s house. 25 But Joshua spared Rahab the prostitute, with her family and all who belonged to her, because she hid the men Joshua had sent as spies to Jericho—and she lives among the Israelites to this day. 26 At that time Joshua pronounced this solemn oath: “Cursed before the Lord is the man who undertakes to rebuild this city, Jericho: “At the cost of his firstborn son will he lay its foundations; at the cost of his youngest will he set up its gates.” 27 So the Lord was with Joshua, and his fame spread throughout the land.

The Truth (vs. 1-2)

As I have studied this passage and so many others in both the Old Testament and the New Testament, I have realized the truth is there are battles in our lives.

We have faced battles.

In fact, preparing this sermon, I faced a battle. I have had to deal with a family emergency that came about strictly from poor decisions of a family member. This afternoon, we as a church will walk with a family battling with loss and grief. We have people battling illness and relationship issues. We have all kinds of battles in our midst.

We are currently facing battles.

Not only have we faced battles, but we currently are facing battles.

If you are a Christian, you will face battles.

Jesus said in John 16:33

John 16:33 NIV84

33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

We will continue to face battles.

We will continue to fact battles because of the prevalence of evil in our land and satan’s desire to cause us to stumble and fall. On this side of heaven, we can guarantee that we will have battles to face. This is a good time to remind you of James 1:12

James 1:12 NIV84

12 Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.

Long before James reminds us of the crown of life that comes from the promise of God, Joshua reminds us of the tactics we can use.

The Tactics

The Word of God

The first tactic is the Word of God. The Lord speaks to Joshua and gives him exact instructions on how to face this battle. The very first word of God in this passage is found in verse two. Don’t miss this. The Lord said to Joshua, “See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and fighting men.” I bolded, italicized, and underlined one word. The tense of this word shows that it has already been done. The word of God tells me that the battle they were fixing to face had already been won! Did you catch that? If we confess to be Christians, every battle we face has already been won in the Name of Jesus!

Romans 8:35–39 NIV84

35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 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.

It is not I will deliver you people, God says “I already have delivered this battle ground to you and you have won!” Here is another tactic we have when facing battles.

The Way of God

We have the way of God. In Joshua 2, the battle tactic does not include conventional warfare. There is no mention of trenches, batteries, a battering ram or hiding in secret to make a sneak attack. In fact, God has the people do quite the opposite. God tells the people to march around the walls, in plain view, and with the pageantry of horns and the ark of the covenant. It became a time of worship instead just a battlefield. What a lesson that is for us! God desires for us to face a battle by declaring His glory!

2 Corinthians 10:4–5 NIV84

4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

The Wisdom of God

Another tactic that shows up, even in 2 Corinthians 10:5b, “We take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” This is the wisdom of God. If we take captive every thought, there is no room for thoughts that are negative, fearful and full of doubt. The wisdom of God comes about His word and His way. He gives us a reverent expectation:

Zechariah 2:13 NIV84

13 Be still before the Lord, all mankind, because he has roused himself from his holy dwelling.”

Exodus 14:14 NIV84

14 The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.”

With these tactics, we can face any battle with the Blessed Assurance Jesus is Mine!

Notice the tokens we are given when we face battles.

The Token (vs. 17-25)

Just so we are on the same page, a token is precious keepsake that we might hold on to. I see three specific tokens we can take and fight battles with in the Name of the Lord!

The Promise

The first is the promise! We see here the culmination of promise after promise. In fact, the Bible is full of His promises. The promises of God are so established, we can bank on them being delivered. Matthew Henry wrote, “As promised deliverances must be expected in God’s way, so they must be expected in His time.”

We can be assured just as this example in Joshua 6, that God will work for us for His good in His time!

Romans 8:28 NIV84

28 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.

The reason we can bank on that is because another token we have and we see here is His presence.

The Presence

What a sight it must have been to see seven priests carrying the horns and carrying the Ark of the Covenant. The Old Testament shows us over and over when that scene happens, the presence of God is there! But on this side of the resurrection, we can glory in the fact that our God is with us and not limited to an Ark of the Covenant. 2 Chronicles 13:12

2 Chronicles 13:12 NIV84

12 God is with us; he is our leader. His priests with their trumpets will sound the battle cry against you. Men of Israel, do not fight against the Lord, the God of your fathers, for you will not succeed.”

Notice one more token that we see here.

The Persistence

That is the persistence of God. God was persistent with the Israelites and He was persistent even with the Canaanites. They had been given plenty of opportunity to report and turn to the Lord, just as Rahab and her family did.

In the Book of Genesis, the Lord spoke to Abram and tells him that he will be the Father of many nations. He shares with him in a dream that his people will be enslaved for 400 years and they will return to their land.

Genesis 15:16 NIV84

16 In the fourth generation your descendants will come back here, for the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure.”

The Amorites are also the same people as the Canaanites. God has been persistent with them and they knew of the Lord and His ways. However, for the most part, they chose not to follow the Lord. Rahab and her family did, and they were spared.

You and I have a decision when we face a battle. We can believe the truth, the tactic and cling to the tokens the Lord demonstrated at the Battle of Jericho. Or we can cling to fear, worry, and doubt. However, I want to remind you that all we have to do is to trust.

The Trust

As we trust God, there are three things we need to remember.

His Plan is Simple

The Israelites only had to march 13 times around a city then shout! It doesn’t get much easier than that!

He is True to His Word

God proved to Joshua and the Israelites that He is faithful and true to His word.

His Goodness Cannot Be Silenced

The last thing, His goodness cannot be silenced.

Joshua 6:27 NIV84

27 So the Lord was with Joshua, and his fame spread throughout the land.

Joshua faced the battle with the Lord. We can too.