Insider or Outsider
Journey with Joshua • Sermon • Submitted
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Introduction
Today, we are going to continue our Journey with Joshua so I will invite you to scroll or turn with me in your Bibles to Joshua Chapter 6. We will be reading the chapter in its entirety. Let us begin in Joshua Chapter 6 Verse 1.
1 Now Jericho was straitly shut up because of the children of Israel: none went out, and none came in. 2 And the Lord said unto Joshua, See, I have given into thine hand Jericho, and the king thereof, and the mighty men of valour. 3 And ye shall compass the city, all ye men of war, and go round about the city once. Thus shalt thou do six days. 4 And seven priests shall bear before the ark seven trumpets of rams’ horns: and the seventh day ye shall compass the city seven times, and the priests shall blow with the trumpets. 5 And it shall come to pass, that when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, and when ye hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city shall fall down flat, and the people shall ascend up every man straight before him. 6 And Joshua the son of Nun called the priests, and said unto them, Take up the ark of the covenant, and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the Lord. 7 And he said unto the people, Pass on, and compass the city, and let him that is armed pass on before the ark of the Lord. 8 And it came to pass, when Joshua had spoken unto the people, that the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams’ horns passed on before the Lord, and blew with the trumpets: and the ark of the covenant of the Lord followed them. 9 And the armed men went before the priests that blew with the trumpets, and the rereward came after the ark, the priests going on, and blowing with the trumpets. 10 And Joshua had commanded the people, saying, Ye shall not shout, nor make any noise with your voice, neither shall any word proceed out of your mouth, until the day I bid you shout; then shall ye shout. 11 So the ark of the Lord compassed the city, going about it once: and they came into the camp, and lodged in the camp. 12 And Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests took up the ark of the Lord. 13 And seven priests bearing seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the Lord went on continually, and blew with the trumpets: and the armed men went before them; but the rereward came after the ark of the Lord, the priests going on, and blowing with the trumpets. 14 And the second day they compassed the city once, and returned into the camp: so they did six days. 15 And it came to pass on the seventh day, that they rose early about the dawning of the day, and compassed the city after the same manner seven times: only on that day they compassed the city seven times. 16 And it came to pass at the seventh time, when the priests blew with the trumpets, Joshua said unto the people, Shout; for the Lord hath given you the city. 17 And the city shall be accursed, even it, and all that are therein, to the Lord: only Rahab the harlot shall live, she and all that are with her in the house, because she hid the messengers that we sent. 18 And ye, in any wise keep yourselves from the accursed thing, lest ye make yourselves accursed, when ye take of the accursed thing, and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it. 19 But all the silver, and gold, and vessels of brass and iron, are consecrated unto the Lord: they shall come into the treasury of the Lord. 20 So the people shouted when the priests blew with the trumpets: and it came to pass, when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, and the people shouted with a great shout, that the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they took the city. 21 And they utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, young and old, and ox, and sheep, and ass, with the edge of the sword. 22 But Joshua had said unto the two men that had spied out the country, Go into the harlot’s house, and bring out thence the woman, and all that she hath, as ye sware unto her. 23 And the young men that were spies went in, and brought out Rahab, and her father, and her mother, and her brethren, and all that she had; and they brought out all her kindred, and left them without the camp of Israel. 24 And they burnt the city with fire, and all that was therein: only the silver, and the gold, and the vessels of brass and of iron, they put into the treasury of the house of the Lord. 25 And Joshua saved Rahab the harlot alive, and her father’s household, and all that she had; and she dwelleth in Israel even unto this day; because she hid the messengers, which Joshua sent to spy out Jericho. 26 And Joshua adjured them at that time, saying, Cursed be the man before the Lord, that riseth up and buildeth this city Jericho: he shall lay the foundation thereof in his firstborn, and in his youngest son shall he set up the gates of it. 27 So the Lord was with Joshua; and his fame was noised throughout all the country.
Let’s Pray
I hope you have been enjoying this series in Joshua as much as I have enjoyed what God has been showing us. We have seen extraordinary exercises of faith. For me the faith that is being shown is inspiring, challenging, yet encouraging. This morning we read about the Fall of Jericho. There are three portraits that are painted within this battle. That is what we will look at for the next few minutes. The title of the message this morning is, “Insider or Outsider?”
The Faithless
The Faithless
The 1st portrait we see is that of the Faithless.
1 Now Jericho was straitly shut up because of the children of Israel: none went out, and none came in.
The 1st characteristic of the faithless that is pointed out to us is the fact that they are straitly shut up. Now from this historical account we know that this was a way for Jericho to fortify their city to prevent the inevitable conquer of their city. However, that is just what is at the surface of what is taking place. You see it was no surprise to the the people of Jericho what was going to happen. If you remember back in Joshua Chapter, Rahab told the 2 spies that their reputation preceded them.
10 For we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red sea for you, when ye came out of Egypt; and what ye did unto the two kings of the Amorites, that were on the other side Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom ye utterly destroyed. 11 And as soon as we had heard these things, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you: for the Lord your God, he is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath.
Now back in Chapter 6 we are told that Jericho is shut up with no one coming in our going out. The person who denies Christ, the individual that rejects the truth of God, will attempt to shut himself or herself up. They shut themselves up against God. How do they do that? Well they do not want to hear the truth. They surround themselves with like minded people without opening up to what God has to say to them, what Followers of Jesus Christ has to say to them. They discredit and disregard the Word of God. They even go as far to say that God does not even exist. Yet they have no intelligible answer for the origin of the universe & the explanations that are usually offered is regurgitation from people with robust vocabularies but who lack common sense.
I have a friend who I have shared the Gospel with on several occasions. He frequently tells me he is a man of science yet if I asked him to identify the major parts of a cell he struggled. When that happened I realized he had just shut himself up to God. Why do people do this? They shut themselves up to God because they do not believe what they are doing is considered wrong or sinful. They try to fortify themselves with self righteousness & and justify to themselves that they are in no need of a savior. They think they have no need for Jesus.
15 And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.
No matter how much we try to shut ourselves off from God and hide behind our walls God will see right through those walls and judge the hearts of men & women. What would He find in your heart this morning Brother, Sister, Friend?
Here in our text we know that the people within these walls at Jericho knew the mighty works which God had done in support of the Israelites campaign. Despite their knowledge of God & His works they believed shutting up the gate and hiding behind the walls might save them or even buy them time. But we see what happened.
20 So the people shouted when the priests blew with the trumpets: and it came to pass, when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, and the people shouted with a great shout, that the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they took the city.
We see that God brought that wall down. The one thing they put stock in. The very object which they put their faith in. The wall which they relied upon for their safety buckled under the power of the Lord. No doubt their place of refuge quickly became a place of regret. What good is a wall against God? A wall built by the hands of man.
9 Deliver me, O Lord, from mine enemies: I flee unto thee to hide me.
The Faithless individual does not seek the Lord when times are good nor when times are troubled. They ran everywhere but to the Lord. I like that hymn that says,
“Where could I go oh where could I go
Seeking the refuge for my soul
Needing a friend to save me in the end
Where could I go but to the Lord”
The Faithful
The Faithful
The 2nd Portrait that we see is that of the Faithful.
We read earlier the specific instructions which God gave to Joshua about how to be victorious at Jericho. Joshua Chapter 6 Verses 3, 4, 5 outlines God directions for the defeat of this Canaanite city. They were to march around the city, they were to blow the trumpets, they were to carry the Ark, they were to “shout with a great shout”.
Now I have never served in the military nor do I consider myself an expert in military movements. But if I were looking at the wall of Jericho I probably would have been plotting a was to scale the wall or break down the gate. The fleshly side of me that still possesses carnal thoughts from time to time would probably adopt a philosophy to battle that sides with this quote by General George Patton who said, “There is only one tactical principle which is not subject to change. It is to use the means at hand to inflict the maximum amount of wound, death, and destruction on the enemy in the minimum amount of time.”
But just like when Joshua and the Children of Israel stood by the Jordan River, they did not have to rely on human ingenuity to successfully pass through the waters. They had to do but one thing, listen to God. When they followed God’s instruction it all worked out. I believe a lot of us, me included, would be so much better off if we just followed God’s instruction a bit more.
I read this article in the Chicago Tribune about these 2 men that were flying a small plane one Wednesday afternoon in 1998. The men were 81 & 52. The 52 year old man was the pilot and sometime during the flight had slumped over in his seat and became unresponsive. The 81 year old said that he grabbed the flight stick to the plane, prayed to God, and then radioed for help. Notice he asked God for help prior to man.
There was another pilot about 20 miles away who heard the 81 year old passenger ask for help on the radio. It is interesting that the pilot said the 81 year old sounded concerned but never frantic. So the pilot helped him locate the nearest airport and gave him instructions on how to land the little 2 seat Cessna. Emergency crews were dispatched to the airport expecting to see the aftermath of a plane crash.
When they got to the airport they found a small plane that had stopped in a soggy part of grass just beside the runway. The only damage on the plane was a bent propeller. That 81 year old man asked for help and followed the instructions as if everything was riding on him following directions. In this case the life of the pilot and his own was at stake. He was able to do something extraordinary by following directions of a pilot nearby. Imagine what would happen in our lives if we followed God’s direction as if our lives depended on it.
You will find victory in your life if you are faithful. There are a lot of people if given the opportunity to be at this place in our text that would hear that they should march around a city for 7 days, then play instruments, then give out a great shout & think Joshua had lost his mind. Here we are going against this fortified city and the only thing he is telling us to do is circle, play trumpets, and shout. But the faithful Followers of God do not look at the means by which they will claim victory, they look at the cause of such victory.
57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
James Smith puts it this way, “Why so few great victories for God? Because so few expect." When you are faced with a battle do you expect victory by means which are provided from God. Or do you anticipate defeat because of your own shortcomings or inability to control the actions of others. Joshua & the Israelites where only victorious because of their faithfulness to follow God’s command.
The Fulfillment
The Fulfillment
The 3rd portrait we see is that of the Fulfillment.
Not only did we see the promise of a triumphant victory at Jericho. But we saw a promise fulfilled on an individual level as well.
25 And Joshua saved Rahab the harlot alive, and her father’s household, and all that she had; and she dwelleth in Israel even unto this day; because she hid the messengers, which Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.
It was 4 weeks ago when we looked at the Hope of the Harlot. We looked at demonstration of faith that Rahab had. She believed that God had given the promised land to the Children of Isreal. She believed it so much that she put herself in harms way to protect the men sent by Joshua. We saw that she was obedient because we red in Chapter 2 how she bound the scarlet line in the window. You see she put her beliefs into practice. James reminded us of this.
25 Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received the messengers, and had sent them out another way?
You see a person can say they believe all they want. But if the actions of a person does not match that which they say they believe then something is wrong. Someone who immediately comes to mind when I say this, well quite a few come to mind, but does everyone know who Leonardo DiCaprio is? One of the most sought after movie stars of our time. Well Mr. DiCaprio is very passionate about climate change and has even addressed bodies like the United Nations about the effects of carbon emissions and human meddling in our environment.
Now I am not trying to get lost in the weeds on a climate change debate but here is a man who takes a private jet when he could easily fly commercial while lecturing people about the need to change their lifestyle to combat climate change. Let me let you in on a secret Leo. I am no scientist but I do know that your private jet releases approximately 29% more kilograms of greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere then my little old Impala does. So he is lecturing people about something he does not do himself. Now how does that tie into what we are discussing this morning.
You can not say you Follow Jesus, you cannot say you rely on God, you cannot say you believe His Word while conducting your life in a manner that is contrary to it. You cannot profess to Follow Christ yet show little to no action that shows that faith.
14 What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him?
Rahab not only believed but she was obedient. But what is even more amazing is the fact that she believed so much that she attested to & declared the truth. How did she do that? Well God’s Word tells us she brought out all she had. That means she convinced her family to trust her faith in God to deliver them. It is not shared with us how this happened but we are shown that she was saved by God through the man of God, Joshua, being a man of honor. Rahab had faith that her and her father’s household would be spared. That kind of testimony can not only save you but those who are around you because they see God moving.
31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.
Conclusion:
This morning what camp do you fall into? The faithless or the faithful. No doubt there are those of us this morning that metaphorically have some marching around Jericho to do. We have some trumpets that need to be played. We have some great shouting that needs to take place. That are some directions from God which we need to comply with. But we have to look to God & not to ourselves. Oswald Chambers said, “When we get into difficult circumstances, we impoverish His ministry by saying, “Of course, He can’t do anything about this.” We struggle to reach the bottom of our own well, trying to get water for ourselves. Beware of sitting back, and saying, “It can’t be done.” You will know it can be done if you will look to Jesus. The well of your incompleteness runs deep, but make the effort to look away from yourself and to look toward Him.”
This morning let us recognize God for who He is, the one who saves, the one who directs, the one who directs, & the one who fulfills. This morning you have to decide are you one of the ones on the inside of the wall hiding from the work of God, or outside the wall being obedient to God’s calling. Most of the world would say they would like to be an insider. But in this context I prefer to be an outsider. I wouldn’t want to shut myself off from God, hiding behind a wall. We are called to be outsiders in this world anyway. Only passing through for a short while.
20 For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ:
This morning you choose, do you want to be an insider or an outsider!
Smith, J., & Lee, R. (1971). Handfuls on Purpose for Christian Workers and Bible Students, Series I–XIII (five-volume edition, Vol. 4, p. 81). Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.