Joshua 20 - Run to Refuge

WELCOME

PASTORAL PRAYER

READ

Joshua 20 “Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Say to the people of Israel, ‘Appoint the cities of refuge, of which I spoke to you through Moses, that the manslayer who strikes any person without intent or unknowingly may flee there. They shall be for you a refuge from the avenger of blood. He shall flee to one of these cities and shall stand at the entrance of the gate of the city and explain his case to the elders of that city. Then they shall take him into the city and give him a place, and he shall remain with them. And if the avenger of blood pursues him, they shall not give up the manslayer into his hand, because he struck his neighbor unknowingly, and did not hate him in the past. And he shall remain in that city until he has stood before the congregation for judgment, until the death of him who is high priest at the time. Then the manslayer may return to his own town and his own home, to the town from which he fled.’ ” So they set apart Kedesh in Galilee in the hill country of Naphtali, and Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the hill country of Judah. And beyond the Jordan east of Jericho, they appointed Bezer in the wilderness on the tableland, from the tribe of Reuben, and Ramoth in Gilead, from the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan, from the tribe of Manasseh. These were the cities designated for all the people of Israel and for the stranger sojourning among them, that anyone who killed a person without intent could flee there, so that he might not die by the hand of the avenger of blood, till he stood before the congregation.”

INTRODUCTION

When Stephanie and I were on our honeymoon, we had one of those romantic Florida memories every newlywed dreams about: a hurricane evacuation.

You picture the honeymoon a certain way. Quiet dinners. A beach. Maybe a sunset that feels like it came preloaded with just the right music. What you do not picture is someone saying, “You need to leave, and if you do not have anywhere to go, there is a shelter available.”

When someone mentions a shelter, you usually think, “How bad is this about to get?”

A shelter only sounds like good news when danger is real.

That is part of what makes Joshua 20 so striking. God has brought His people into the land. The inheritance is being divided. The promises are being received. Then God says, “Appoint the cities of refuge.”

Even in the place of promise, life will still include danger. There will be sin, grief, accidents, death, conflict, accusation, fear, and the need for mercy.

That is Israel’s world, and that is our world.

Joshua 20 gives us a serious picture of mercy. Blood has been shed. A life has been lost. An avenger is coming. The manslayer is running. The elders must listen. The city must protect. The high priest must die before full release comes.

So here is the question this passage puts before us: Where can guilty, fearful, and endangered people run when justice is real and mercy is their only hope?

Joshua 20 tells us that the God who gives His people an inheritance also gives them a refuge.

And ultimately, that refuge is not a place on a map. His name is Jesus.

4 words: 1) RUN, 2) TELL, 3) STAY, & 4) WELCOME

1. RUN TO THE REFUGE GOD HAS PREPARED

The chapter begins with the Lord’s command: “Appoint the cities of refuge, of which I spoke to you through Moses.”

Joshua 20 is rooted in earlier instruction from Moses, especially Numbers 35 and Deuteronomy 19.

God planned this mercy before the crisis arose.

The manslayer has killed “without intent or unknowingly.” The threat is “the avenger of blood.”

Make no mistake… the danger is real. Blood has been shed, and the accused person must flee.

The refuge is commanded by God. It addresses a real moral and legal crisis. It must be appointed before it is needed. It belongs to life among God’s people.

God prepares mercy before the runner arrives.

Genesis 9:6 teaches the value of human life because mankind is made in the image of God.

Deuteronomy 19 shows that the roads and cities were intended to be accessible so the manslayer could flee and live.

Psalm 46:1 says, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”

You know what makes refuge merciful? The city is already there. The gates are already known. The road has already been marked.

The cities of refuge were God’s prepared mercy.

This passage asks us, “Will you run to the refuge God provides?”

For believers, this means we run toward God when conviction comes. The Spirit’s conviction awakens us to flee to mercy.

For those here who’ve yet to put their faith in God, this passage lovingly warns us that danger is real.

The God who values human life also judges sin.

This invitation is urgent because the danger is real.

But Joshua 20 gives specific instruction for safety…

The manslayer must come to the gate and speak.

Refuge in God’s world brings mercy and truth together.

2. TELL THE TRUTH WHERE MERCY MEETS JUSTICE

Verse 4 says the manslayer “shall flee to one of these cities and shall stand at the entrance of the gate of the city and explain his case to the elders of that city.” Then the elders receive him and give him a place to live.

The city gate was a place of public judgment and legal decision. The manslayer receives protection by coming into the light before the elders.

Joshua 20 holds together realities we often separate.

The death matters.

As does the motive.

The accused person must be heard.

The community must discern.

The avenger must be restrained.

AND The vulnerable must be protected.

This is ordered justice under the command of God.

Israel needs testimony, elders, process, and examination because human beings are limited.

We misread motives. We rush to conclusions. We protect ourselves. We retaliate. We excuse ourselves.

God’s law trains His people to be serious about truth and careful with people.

Numbers 35 distinguishes intentional murder from unintentional killing.

Deuteronomy 19 warns against shedding innocent blood.

James 1:19 calls us to be “quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger.”

1 John 1:7 says, “If we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another.”

Think of the difference between a courtroom and a comment section. A courtroom, at its best, requires testimony, evidence, witnesses, order, and judgment. A comment section often requires only outrage and speed.

Joshua 20 is much closer to the courtroom than the comment section.

So, what difference should this make in our everyday life?

In marriage and families, in relationship with one another… we are to slow down enough to listen before sentencing one another in our hearts.

With children and teenagers, we do not treat every failure as rebellion or every explanation as an excuse.

We learn to ask, listen, discern, correct, and restore.

At work, Christians should care about truth, process, fairness, and mercy.

The gospel makes us humble because we know we are finite and sinful.

In the church, we resist harshness and naïveté.

A healthy church faces sin head on, and gives sinners room to come into the light without being devoured.

Some of us want mercy without truth. We want comfort without confession. Others want justice without mercy. We want wrongdoers exposed but not restored.

Joshua 20 brings both truth and mercy together.

But even after the manslayer is received, the story continues.

He is safe, but he is not home.

Refuge is also a place of waiting.

3. STAY WHERE GRACE HOLDS YOU UNTIL RELEASE COMES

Verse 6 says the manslayer “shall remain in that city until he has stood before the congregation for judgment, until the death of him who is high priest at the time.”

Then he may return to his own town and home.

The manslayer is protected, but ordinary life does not resume immediately. He is spared from death, but he must remain in the city.

His freedom comes after the death of the high priest.

Even unintentional bloodshed carries weight. A life was lost. Yet God provides a merciful structure that protects the manslayer and opens the way home.

The death of the high priest marks a turning point. The passage points us toward priesthood, mediation, death, and release.

The high priest’s death becomes the boundary between protected exile and restored return.

Numbers 35:26–28 clarifies that the manslayer must remain in the city until the death of the high priest.

Hebrews 7:25 says Christ [as our great high priest] “is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him.”

Hebrews 9:26 says Christ appeared [as our redeemer] “to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.”

This passage is acknowledging the slow work of discipleship.

Some of us want mercy to remove all consequences immediately.

But Joshua 20 teaches us that mercy may protect us while God teaches us to wait, grieve, heal, and live under His care.

In real life, we know this to be true from our own experiences… forgiveness does not always rebuild trust instantly.

Mercy may begin with repentance and require time, truth, and faithfulness.

In leadership, restoration requires more than pretending nothing happened.

God’s mercy is real, and wise process matters.

In suffering, God may give you refuge before He gives you relief.

You are held by His mercy while you wait.

In the formation of our spiritual lives, the city of refuge reminds us that believers live in an already and not yet reality.

What do I mean when I say that?

We are truly safe in Christ, but we are still waiting for home.

We are justified, being sanctified, and waiting for glorification.

So stay near the means by which we experience grace… Stay in the Word. Stay in prayer. Stay with the church. Stay at the Table. Stay where mercy is spoken and truth is loved.

And remember this: refuge does not make God’s people passive.

Being safe in Christ does not mean we are sidelined from spiritual conflict… It means we are secured for it.

Paul says in Ephesians 6, “Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.”

That is not a call to panic.

It is a call to stand firm in what God has already given.

In Christ, you have truth for the lies, righteousness for accusation, the gospel of peace for fear, faith for the fiery darts, salvation for your mind, the Word of God for battle, and prayer in the Spirit for endurance.

Refuge is not the opposite of readiness.

In Christ, God shelters His people and strengthens them to stand.

So, Metro Life Church, remain today where grace holds you… Stay near Christ. Stay filled with the Spirit. Stay alert in prayer. You are safe in Him, and because you are safe in Him, you can stand.

Next Joshua names the cities.

The names and locations teach us this important truth… God’s refuge is not hidden in one unreachable corner. He brings mercy within reach.

4. WELCOME OTHERS TO THE REGUGE GOD PROVIDES

Verses 7 and 8 list six cities: Kedesh, Shechem, Kiriath-arba, Bezer, Ramoth, and Golan. They are spread across the land, west and east of the Jordan.

Refuge is made accessible across Israel’s inheritance.

Verse 9 widens the scope: “These were the cities designated for all the people of Israel and for the stranger sojourning among them.”

The refuge is for Israel and for the stranger living among them.

God’s justice and mercy reveal His character to Israel and through Israel.

The stranger can see what kind of God Israel has. He is holy. He values life. He restrains vengeance. He protects the vulnerable. He commands truth. He makes room for mercy.

Exodus 12:49 says, “There shall be one law for the native and for the stranger who sojourns among you.”

Isaiah 56 anticipates foreigners being gathered to the Lord.

Ephesians 2:13 says, “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.”

Near my house there are road signs on 436 before a hospital emergency entrance. They are clear, repeated, and visible because the person searching for help may be panicked, confused, and running out of time.

God makes the way to refuge visible.

Metro Life Church… make the refuge of Christ clear and accessible.

Use language people can understand, practice hospitality that reflects the gospel, and welcome sinners with truth and mercy.

Be the kind of people that those who are lost can approach without wondering whether we actually believe the gospel we preach.

In mission, we do not merely tell people to clean themselves up. We say, “There is a refuge. His name is Jesus. Come to Him.”

For believers, this widens our welcome.

For those who’ve yet to respond, this widens the invitation.

The refuge is for all who come.

Joshua 20 leaves us with a deep question for our lives…

CHRIST-CONNECTION

What refuge is there for the guilty? What refuge is there for those who cannot say, “I did not mean it,” because sometimes we did?

What refuge is there when anger was chosen, lust was cherished, pride was defended, bitterness was nursed, lies were useful, and selfishness was intentional?

Here we see a God who provides refuge, a priest whose death marks release, and mercy that upholds justice.

Jesus is the greater refuge.

He is the one Savior given for sinners. “There is salvation in no one else.” He does more than give us directions to safety. He becomes our safety.

Jesus is the greater High Priest.

In Joshua 20, the manslayer remains until the death of the high priest. In the good news of the gospel, our Great High Priest lays down His life for His people. He is both priest and sacrifice. He offers Himself.

Jesus is the innocent One who became guilty for the guilty.

The city of refuge protected the unintentional manslayer. Christ receives sinners because He bore guilt in their place. “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:21)

Jesus is the refuge who keeps His people.

In Joshua 20, the elders protected the manslayer from the avenger of blood. In Christ, no accusation can finally condemn those who belong to Him.

Romans 8 says, “Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies.”

Jesus is the refuge who brings us home.

The manslayer waited for the death of the high priest before returning home. Christ has already died and risen.

His death secured our release. His resurrection guarantees our future. His ascension means He intercedes for us now. His Spirit draws us to Him, keeps us in Him, and forms us into people who become places of gospel refuge for others.

So, the Big Question I asked at the beginning of this message resolves here:

Where can guilty, fearful, and endangered people run when justice is real and mercy is their only hope?

Run to Christ.

Run from excuse-making, self-punishment, reputation, religious performance, delay, and despair.

Run to Christ.

Believer, you do not have to hide from the God who has already provided refuge for you in His Son.

If you are not yet trusting Christ, the door of mercy is open now. You do not need to make yourself safe before coming to Jesus. Come to Jesus because He alone is our safety.

Before we come to the Communion Table, take a quiet moment before the Lord.

Where have you been running instead of Christ?

Where have you wanted mercy without being honest of your need?

Where have you demanded justice without mercy?

Where do you need to receive again the refuge God has given you in His Son?

CLOSE

God knew His people would need mercy in the land.

He knew life would be complicated by sin, death, grief, danger, and accusation.

So He gave them a refuge where truth could be told, justice could be honored, vengeance could be restrained, and the endangered could be protected.

But Joshua 20 also points our understanding beyond this text, alone.

A city could shelter the manslayer,

but only Christ can save the sinner.

A city could protect until the priest died.

Christ, our Great High Priest, died and rose to bring us home.

A city could refuse to hand over the one who came for refuge.

Christ will not lose anyone the Father has given Him.

So, Metro Life Church, run to refuge.

When conviction comes, run to Christ.

When pressure rises, run to Christ.

When shame speaks, run to Christ.

When anger burns, run to Christ.

When you are tempted to hide, run to Christ.

And as you receive His mercy, become the kind of people who make His refuge visible in this church and wherever you go throughout our city.

The gospel gives us courage to come into the light.

It shows us justice satisfied in the cross of Christ.

It brings us to the refuge of Jesus, and in Him, it brings us into our true, eternal home.