The Bigger They are, the Harder they Fall

Introduction:

· From Sheila-ism to pillow gods: Our images of God, and the images He provides for us

THERE ARE TWO PICTURES OF GOD IN THIS TEXT – GOD AS A HOLY WARRIOR, AND A JUST JUDGE.

I) God is a Holy Warrior

A. God on OUR side…(right?)

i. For us or our enemies: Whose side is God on? (vs. 13)

1. While preparing for battle, Joshua is threatened by a man w. a sword

2. Joshua’s reasonable (& misguided) question: us vs. them

ii. When God is useful to us: “God, are you for me?”

1. God the Republican/Democrat; God the American;

2. Or: starting a business, taking exams, sports…God, to help us

B. …Or us, on God’s Side?

i. Encountering God’s Holiness Changes us (vv. 14-15)

1. Reorientation: overwhelming sense of holiness reveals the true story

2. Tim Keller: “We either fight against God, or bow before him in worship.”

ii. Bowing before God the Warrior Emboldens us (vv. 6:2, 7, 20)

1. God (not Joshua) is the commander, & God (not Joshua) goes into battle and delivers the city

2. APPLICATION: Against sin, and darkness, God fights, and wins, for us

GOD IS A HOLY WARRIOR WHO FIGHTS ON BEHALF OF HIS PEOPLE; BUT HE IS ALSO A JUDGE.

II) God is Our Judge

A. God Works Through Israel to Purify the Land

i. The judgment of God and the objections we have (vv. 15-20)

1. Over, under, through, siege, or deceit… (or trumpets?!)

2. Seven days, seven marches, seven priests, blow seven horns, & the city collapses (& is burned) never to be rebuilt. (vv. 20, 24) (Picture)

3. But how is this “Holy war” compatible with a loving God?

ii. Devoted to God (vs. 21)

1. Not plunder for enrichment (as w. other nations) but devoted to God

2. The idea is that God will deal justly with

iii. The justice of God in the face of evil

1. First: we assume (wrongly) that Canaan was unjustly punished

2. We are inconsistent in our views of justice; God is not, and will perfectly execute justice on a fallen world

B. Jesus is the True And Greater Judge Who Will Judge the City of This World

i. Not just a story in the past but a prelude of what’s to come (1 Thess. 4:16)

1 Thessalonians 4:16 ESV

For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.

1. One day, the trumpets will sound again, and the judge will return

2. On that day Jesus will return to execute justice on a fallen world

ii. One day, the “city” of this world will fall

1. Jericho à Babylon:

i. One like the son of man, with his sword will come (Rev. 1:16)

Revelation 1:16 ESV

In his right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength.

ii. Seven trumpets will blast, and an earthquake will level the city

iii. “Fallen is the great city”, burned & never to be rebuilt

2. In the end, Jesus will judge the evil of our world fully, finally, and justly

iii. “For us or against us?” We all fall short…

1. We like to think: “Us vs. them.” The sword of judgment is for them!

2. BUT: Those who were on the “inside” end up destroyed, those on the “outside” are saved.” (vv. 17, & 18-19)

3. Joshua knew that his very life was threatened by a holy God

4. QUOTE: A. Solzhenitsyn

iv. …Yet one has gone through the sword of judgment for us

1. On the cross, Jesus is given over to the sword God’s justice for us

2. Jesus exhausted judgment for us, so we might experience his mercy

Transition:

Conclusion

At communion: God points us back to what he has done, so we might look forward in hope