Press Through Your Challenges: Joshua 6:1-20

First Southern Baptist Church

Dr. Patrick Mead

Series: Forward

August 17, 2014

Press Through Your Challenges

Joshua 5:13-15; 6:1-10, 20; Hebrews 3:15

We're coming to our seventh and final sermon from our series called Forward. From this study, God has been speaking to us about the abundant life and how he calls us to move forward in our Christian experience to possess the abundance and fullness of our salvation that can only be experienced as we abide in Jesus Christ.

Now as we come to the sixth chapter, we are presented with yet another challenge that Joshua and the Israelites will have to face. Of course, the Promised Land is a challenge. The first challenge was crossing the Jordan River, and God got them across the river. Now they're across the river, and the next challenge is a big challenge. It is the city of Jericho. 

If you've been in church for just a minimal amount of time or if you've ever read through the Bible, most likely you've heard this story, the story of Joshua and the walls of Jericho. What these walls represent are the challenges we face in life. The walls of Jericho teach us a timeless truth. Whenever you move forward with God, you're going to face challenges. 

The abundant life is not a trouble-free life. The abundant life is not a life of comfort. Whenever you move forward with God, you're going to face challenges. You're going to have problems simply because you're moving forward with God. So what the city of Jericho represents, what the walls of Jericho represent for us is they serve as a type of the challenges we meet as we move forward with God. So a Jericho challenge is anything that opposes you moving forward with God. 

Now before we get into this passage, I think it's important that we identify some of those challenges. If you have your outline, I put a little area where you can write down some challenges you are facing right now. There are those challenges on a personal level. Maybe you have a challenge in your family. There are some family issues that are happening in your family, and there is a big challenge ahead of you.

Maybe your challenge is in your marriage or maybe with your children. Maybe the challenge is at work. Maybe you're looking for work, or maybe the challenge is trying to live out your Christian life and Christian experience in a workplace that is against you. It could be that you're trying to get over the challenge of grief because you have lost a loved one. 

It could be a financial challenge. Maybe there's a financial challenge standing before you. There's a wall before you, and you're wondering, "How am I going to get through this challenge?" It could very well be a loved one is unsaved. There are unsaved people in your life, and you want them to come to Christ. So these are just some of the things that could be challenges in your life personally.

Then, of course, we come to the church level. As we try to get out into the community, it's a challenge. Right now, if every church pastor in this area were honest, they would tell you most of their growth comes from transfer growth, Christians moving from one church to another. We sometimes get comfortable with that, especially if you're on the receiving end of it, right? 

The reality is while we're comfortable going from church to church and we're comfortable with transfer growth, here is the reality. The world is going to hell in a hand basket. If you haven't been watching the news, it's getting bigger. So that is a challenge in these communities groups. We're trying to get out there because they're not coming here. 

So it's a challenge to really change the mentality from going to church to being the church. So it's a challenge. We have a challenge called the North Campus. You can draw a circle around that challenge. We need to sell the North Campus. There are all kinds of challenges we have as a church that keep us from moving forward. Then the church as a whole, we need revival, amen? The church needs revival of God. 

If we will repent of our sins as a whole (I'm not just talking about our church; I'm talking about the church), we could turn the world upside down. I think a lot of problems we're complaining about are the direct result of a church that isn't on fire for Jesus. Then, of course, you have what is going on in our nation. We have what is going on around the world. I don't know about you, but there are all kinds of challenges, right? 

So I want you to identify those personal challenges because I believe God wants the walls to come down. I do, but how? How do we press through? How do we press through those challenges, whether they be personal, whether they be the church, or whether they be in our community? How do we do that? Well, God is going to show us through Joshua, the Israelites, and the city of Jericho.

Now let's begin the story in verse 1, chapter 6. It says, "Now Jericho was shut up inside and outside because of the people of Israel." In other words, they were terrified. They were scared of the people. They were scared of Israel. They just heard about what happened, and they saw how they went across the Jordan River. It was a miracle of God. It says, "None went out, and none came in."

So the good news is the people are scared. That's good news. The bad news is they have secured the city. Nobody is going in. Nobody is going out. That is an extremely large challenge for a group of people who really aren't trained in battle. They're not trained in battle. So humanly speaking, from a human perspective, there is an extreme challenge before the Israelites because this untrained people now think they're going to have to siege the city of Jericho. 

So how do you meet that challenge? Well, Joshua shows us how he deals with it. It actually takes place before verse 1. In the closing verses of chapter 5 (they actually belong to chapter 6), those verses are a transition. They transition us to the second half of the book, which basically has Israel, the people of God, and Joshua occupying the land through warfare. So they're going out into the Promised Land. They're battling because that is the abundant life. You battle. That is what you do. You battle and you conquer. You enjoy the fruit of the land.

Before they could move and occupy, remember if you were here a couple of weeks ago chapter 5. They had to pause. They couldn't just run for the city and attack it as soon as they got over. No, God had them stop because there was sin in the camp. That sin is there was a whole group, a whole generation of young men, sons of Israel, who had not been circumcised. So God said, "Let's pause for a moment. Let's deal with the sin, and then you can move forward." 

So they stopped. They dealt with the sin, and then they partook of the Passover. You can't be uncircumcised and observe the Passover. They observed the Passover, and it says as soon as they observed the Passover, that is when they started enjoying the fruit of the land. That is when they started enjoying the benefits of the land flowing with milk and honey, the abundant life.

So after they experienced the land, the fruit of the land, and the abundance of the land, it's then we find Joshua going out by himself. He is near Jericho. Most likely he is there as a good commander. He is going to go and strategize. "How are we going to take the city of Jericho? How are we going to do it?" It's the normal human response.

While he is there, all alone, he has a divine encounter. Now watch this. Verse 13: "When Joshua was by Jericho, he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, a man was standing before him with his drawn sword in his hand. And Joshua went to him and said to him, 'Are you for us, or for our adversaries?'" Now I want you to see how he answers. He doesn't say yes or no. He just basically says, "This is who I am."

It says then he said, "No. I'm not even going to go there. It's not an issue of who I'm for; it's an issue of who I'm with and what I'm about to do. "And he said, 'No; but I am the commander of the army of the LORD. Now I have come.'" Notice this. Joshua at first thought he was a man. Notice the response after he identified himself as the commander of the army of the Lord. It says, "And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped…" In other words, he recognized this is not just any man; this is the commander of the army of the Lord.

Let me just say there is great discussion about the identity of the commander of the army of the Lord. We won't get into all that discussion. We'll just boil it down to what I believe it is. I believe it is the Angel of the Lord, and that means he is in the presence of Jehovah. Most likely he is in the presence of the second person of the trinity, the pre-incarnate Christ. Theologians call this a theophany. So he falls down on his face, and he begins to worship because he recognizes this is a divine encounter. 

Now this encounter is almost parallel to the encounters and the experiences Moses and Jacob had. You remember Moses had an encounter at the burning bush, right? Do you remember that? Yeah. If you know the story of Jacob, Jacob wrestled all night with an angel of the Lord, a man who we know is the Angel of the Lord. He would not let go of the Angel of the Lord until he got blessed. 

Then finally God blessed him and gave him a little limp to go and remind him, "You need to trust me. Stop taking things into your own hands." Well, this is what Joshua is having. He is having a divine encounter with God. The moment he recognizes this is none other than Jehovah himself, the Lord, he falls on his face, and he worships him. 

Now I want you to see something because here is what Joshua says in verse 14. He falls to his face. Remember, he is worshiping. Then he says, "What does my lord say to his servant?" "What do you want from me, Lord? What do you want?" Then God responds. "And the commander of the LORD's army said to Joshua, 'Take off your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy.'" Sound familiar? Yeah. That is what God said to Moses. "You are now on holy ground." 

Now the question is…Is it just where he is standing, or is he referring to the fact that he is near Jericho? Remember Jericho is the challenge, right? Jericho is the challenge. He is standing before Jericho. He has an encounter with God. All of a sudden, God says, "Oh, by the way, you are now standing on holy ground."

What is he talking about? The ground around him? I believe he is talking about not just the ground you're standing on, but your problem is now holy ground. Can I get an amen? Your problem, your challenge, your financial problem, your marriage problem, your health problem is now holy ground. 

Here's what he did. He was able to turn his challenge and his problem into an altar for worship, not a reason for worry. Did you notice that? He is on his face. He is worshiping. I believe the fact that he is on his face and worshiping is a direct result of what took place in chapter 5 because they paused long enough to deal with the sin in their lives.

Now they had an awareness of God and his presence. He was sensitive to the presence of God. Here he is. He is standing before the challenge. We don't know this. It's not in the text, but he could have very well been praying. All of a sudden he looks up, and there's the Lord. There's the Lord. He doesn't worry about the challenge. Instead, he lets that become his altar for worship. 

I want you to think about that. I want you to think about your challenge…that one, or the many…you just identified. Some of you are worried about that challenge. Why? Because we're human. We worry. If it wasn't a part of our nature, God would have never commanded us, "Do not be anxious." Why did he command us? Because naturally in our humanness we're going to worry, right? Instead, he falls on his face. He is worshiping the Lord.

Do you know what happens when you turn your challenge into an altar for worship? What happens is you, in essence, are aware of the presence of God. Now all of a sudden God is saying, "I'm with you. I know there's a challenge before you, Joshua. I know you're wondering how you're going to take the city, especially now that they have secured it. You have all these young guys who don't even know how to fight. You're wondering, 'How am I going to overcome this challenge?'"

By worshiping there, God is saying, "I am with you. I go before you. By the way, this isn't your battle. I am the commander of the Lord's army. I'm the one fighting for you. I'm the one going before you." The same God who is saying that to Joshua is saying that to you today, child of God. Do you believe it? Yeah. So do you want to know how you press through your challenges? You turn that challenge into an altar for worship, not a reason for worry. He is on his face. He is worshiping. 

You need to listen for God's voice while you worship. Here's what happens. As soon as he realizes it is the Angel of the Lord, the commander, that he is in the presence of God, he falls on his face. He worships. Then he asks this question, which is a very important question because it tells us he is ready to hear from God. "What does my lord say to his servant?" You have to prepare yourself to hear from God. Do you know that? How do you prepare yourself to hear from God? You worship. Hearing from God and worship go hand in hand. 

Many people want to hear from God without even coming and pausing and worshiping him. How many of you come here on Sunday mornings with the anticipation and this expectation that as I worship, God is going to speak to me? Do you come here with that expectation? You should if you come to worship. God speaks. We have a God who speaks. So you have to prepare yourself to hear from God. You do it through worship. 

So Joshua is worshiping. He is humbled. He simply says, "Lord, what do you want to say? Lord, what do you want me to hear?" By doing that, he is saying, "God, I'm under your authority. I want to hear from your Word. I want to do your will. What do you want me to hear, God?" That is what worship is. Do you know that? Worship is submission. Worship is raising your hands and saying, "I surrender." Worship is saying, "God, you are God and I'm not." That's what worship is, and that is what Joshua is doing. That's how you prepare yourself to hear from God.

Acts, chapter 13 is a great example of worship and prayer and God speaking to his church because in Acts, chapter 13, it says all the church leaders were worshiping and praying before God. As they were worshiping and praying, guess what? The Holy Spirit spoke. He speaks today, by the way. He is speaking now. As the Scripture says, "Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts."

So they're worshiping. The Holy Spirit tells them, "Set Paul and Barnabas aside." What happens is they go on their first missionary trip. If it wasn't for them worshiping and listening to the Lord, listen. They went and they obeyed, and the whole world was changed because of that. Acts, chapter 13 and their obedience to the call to missions has brought the gospel to you and me.

Now as you prepare yourself to hear from God, that's when you begin to listen for God to speak a promise to your challenge. As he is worshiping, remember verses 13-15 are connected to chapter 6. So God already spoke to him the first time. He said, "By the way, you are on holy ground." Then he is going to give him a promise. Here's the promise.

Verse 2 of chapter 6: "And the LORD said to Joshua, 'See, I have given Jericho into your hand, with its king and mighty men of valor.'" Church, that is a promise. Can you look at it closely? What kind of promise is it? Can you tell me? What is the tense? Past tense. "I have given you the land." Not, "I will give you Jericho." That's important, don't you think? I think it's very important. It's a past-tense promise in which God says, "I have given it to you." 

Now of course they had to do their part. It's conditional on their obedience, but God says, "It's a done deal. Joshua, when you guys go forward, you're not fighting for victory." In fact, they're not even going to have to fight at all. "You're fighting from victory. I have already given you the victory." 

Let me tell you, church, in Christ we have the victory. We have the victory. So he gives him a promise: "I have given you Jericho." Let me tell you, God used Chad this morning to talk about the promises of God because the same God who gave Joshua a promise is the same God who will give you a promise. If you will pause and worship him and allow him to speak a promise to your situation, he will do it. He will do it.

However, you need to be very careful because when God gives a promise (and he will), how he decides to answer that promise and how you think he should answer that promise may be on two different spectrums, amen? I am sure that if Joshua was a praying man (and I believe he was), when he prayed, "Lord, give us the military strength. Give us the ability to rush that city. I want you to strengthen those guys so they can fight in battle," you can imagine what he was praying.

Here's what God does. Here's what God loves to do. He loves to do the absurd. Naaman had a problem with it, right? "What? You're telling me to dip seven times into the Jordan River? I'm not going to do it. That's unusual." God works that way. God may choose to give an absurd plan for your challenge, and that is what he does.

Listen to verse 3. He gave him a promise. "I have given you Jericho. Now here's what you have to do." "You shall march around the city, all the men of war going around the city once. Thus shall you do for six days." "So for six days, you march around the city, okay?" Verse 4: "Seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark. On the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets."

Now listen to verse 5. "And when they make a long blast with the ram's horn, when you hear the sound of the trumpet, then all of the people shall shout with a great shout, and the wall of the city will fall down flat, and the people shall go up, everyone straight before him." Now that's unusual. That's why I tell you they're not Baptists. The Baptists I know don't shout. I think we should. Now I'm a shouting Baptist, but God gave him an unusual plan. Humanly speaking and from a military standpoint, that is foolish. That is foolish. 

Not only that, but he says, "I want you to blow trumpets." The trumpets weren't the silver trumpets of warfare; they were the rams' horns, the shofar. They would blow those for celebration and worship. You say, "Well, that's an unusual plan." It sure is. It's an absurd plan, but it's a perfect plan. Here's why it's perfect. 

Did you notice the number seven? Yeah. "You need to march for seven days. On the seventh day, you march around the city seven times. You need to get seven priests with seven horns. Every day they are to be blowing the horns. When you get on that seventh day and you get around that seven times, then they're going to have a long blast. That is when they are to shout." 

At the center of it all, it's not Joshua. It's not the Israelites. It's not the priests. It's the ark of the covenant, because the ark of the covenant symbolized God's power and presence. Now here's why it's a perfect plan. 

First, this plan gives God all the glory. Amen? To go to war without even having to fight gives God all the glory. That is how God answers the prayers. That is how he answers our challenges. He does so in such a way that will give him the most glory.

Secondly, it's now going to strengthen the faith of the Israelites. Can you imagine if they obey (and they do), after marching and doing everything God said he would do and he supernaturally brings the walls down, I don't know about you, but I'm ready to take on anybody, amen? Yes. Wow. Look what God can do when you obey his voice. So God gave an unusual, absurd plan.

Some of you have a challenge, if not all of you. If you're like me, I often come with a perfect plan for God to follow. "God, here's how you should answer this. Boy, you would really get a lot of glory." What I find is God always answers in a way that will be for our good. You say, "Well, what is for our good?" Where we are able to demonstrate faith that pleases him. Where we are conformed more into the image of Christ. That's for our good. 

It's good that you become more like Jesus. It's not comfortable becoming more like Jesus, but it's good that you become more like Jesus. Amen? Being comfortable and becoming more like Jesus are not compatible. It's very painful, but what God does is he allows us to face these challenges. He will answer these challenges in a way that will strengthen our faith and conform us more into the image of Christ. Then he will answer that challenge in a way that gives him all the credit.

So listen. While you turn that challenge, while you turn that problem into an altar for worship, you listen. You listen for God to speak. He will speak. You listen. He'll give you a promise. He may give you several promises. Then you listen for those promises. You wait for him to unfold those promises in your life, but you also realize he may choose an absurd way to fulfill that plan. I've had a lot of plans fulfilled in a way I didn't want him to fulfill them, but it turned out for my good and for his glory.

Now you have your promise. Your challenge is before you. The next thing you do is you celebrate. You celebrate God's victory over your challenge with faith and obedience. They still had to do their part. They had to believe. When you have a true belief and a true faith, when you place your faith in a promise, it will move you to action. We call that obedience. 

So here's what happens. There's no question on the part of Joshua. That's why I believe I don't see any complaining going into the Promised Land because when you're living the abundant life, you're in the Spirit. You're open. You're willing to do whatever God wants to do. So when he gives him the plan and tells him, "Here's what is going to happen, and here's how you're going to do it," it's interesting. 

Moses was reluctant. "I can't speak. Can you send somebody else?" Not Joshua. Verse 6: "So Joshua the son of Nun called the priests and said to them, 'Take up the ark of the covenant and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark of the LORD.' And he said to the people, 'Go forward. March around the city and the let the armed men pass on before the ark of the LORD.'" No complaint from Joshua. Now you go to verse 8, and there is no complaint from the people. 

"And just as Joshua had commanded the people, the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams' horns before the LORD went forward, blowing the trumpets, with the ark of the covenant of the LORD following them. The armed men were walking before the priests who were blowing the trumpets, and the rear guard was walking after the ark, while the trumpets blew continually.

But Joshua commanded the people, 'You shall not shout or make your voice heard, neither shall any word go out of your mouth, until the day I tell you to shout. Then you shall shout.'" So here's the picture. Nobody is complaining. They have the orders. "We're going to march around the city six times. The priests are going to blow the shofar each day. While you're walking those six days, don't shout. Don't say anything."

Here's what happens. When God moves us forward and he gives us a promise, God will oftentimes put us in a holding pattern. We have to wait. Now in a generation that likes instant gratification, I don't want to have to walk around six days, Lord. Can you hurry up this process? Can we slip it into the microwave and, boom, it's gone? It's done with? That is not how God works. 

Here's where many people will not have victory over a challenge or pass through the challenge because they don't like the idea that they're having to walk around the city for six days. They did. They walked around the city. It says they went around the first day and the second day, and they did exactly what God told them to do for six days straight.

Can you imagine the struggle the Israelites had? Now we don't see it on the pages of the Scriptures, but can you imagine about the third day? You're looking to the next guy going, "Do you ever feel like we're walking around in circles?" Do you ever feel like you're going nowhere while you're waiting for God? Well, God puts us in those patterns because he wants to strengthen our faith. They persevered. They did not give up. Why? Because while they were waiting, I guarantee you they clung to the promise of God.

I just read the classic book The Pilgrim's Progress for the second time in my lifetime. You need to read that if you haven't read it. Great book. The story is an allegory of the Christian life. A man by the name of Graceless is saved, and he becomes a Christian. Christian is making his journey to the celestial city. He ends up in a castle called the Doubting Castle, where Giant Despair runs the castle. 

So he and his companion, Faithful, are in the Doubting Castle. They can't get out. Giant Despair is beating them and beating them and beating them. He is going to beat them to death. Then finally, Christian takes this key out of his pocket, and it's the key of Promise. It's the key of Promise that opens up the door and enables him to get out of the Doubting Castle.

That's the same. When you're going around and around in circles and you're waiting for God to act, don't give up. You pull out the key of promise. You open up that door, and get out of that castle of doubt. You keep believing. You keep walking. If you have to go 12 weeks, if you have to go 12 years, do not stop believing the promises of God. They did not stop.

Not only that, but they worshiped. That horn, that shofar, was not for wartime. It was for celebration and worship. So when they were walking around the city, they were in essence declaring God and his goodness and his almightiness, and they were worshiping. While they worshiped, while they waited, they watched. 

Here's what happened. Look at verse 20. Now they've already gone around the seventh day. They've marched around seven times. Here's what happens. Verse 20: "So the people shouted, and the trumpets were blown." The shout wasn't a shout of wartime; it was a shout of praise. "As soon as the people heard the sound of the trumpet, the people shouted a great shout, and the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they captured the city."

I was reading through the Bible. God put me in Ezra, chapter 3 this past week. In Ezra, chapter 3, they're rebuilding the temple. They lay the foundation of the temple. It says in Ezra, chapter 3, after they laid the foundation of the rebuilt temple, the priests got out the horns. They blew the horns, and the people shouted. They were praising God for the finished work.

I believe when they shouted and praised God here in Joshua, chapter 6, they were praising God for the victory. They were praising God that now the walls had been pushed down. That is what the Hebrew suggests. It's almost as if God is pushing the walls down from the top. He flattens the walls for them. He flattens the challenge for them. 

You can imagine. The walls are tall. So all of a sudden, they shout. The walls are pushed down flat. Now they're walking up. They're on top of the city, and they're capturing the city. Not one time did they have to do any kind of military action. It was all based upon worship and praising God. So they captured the city. I believe the same God who flattened the walls of Jericho is the same God who can flatten the walls of your challenge. Do you believe that? 

So here's what I want to do. I want to challenge you. We're going to incorporate this into our worship service. You can use your outline this coming week, and I want you to start today. I made some little devotionals. Here's what I want you to do. You've identified your challenge. Now today, spend some time with the Lord. Let him begin to speak a promise to your situation. Let him speak that promise to your challenge. It may take a couple of days. It may be that you don't have a promise from this week. Don't give up.

Here's what you do. I want you to take that challenge you have or challenges we have on all levels. I want you to circle them for six days. Every day, go before the Lord and circle your challenge, okay? Then we're going to come back next Sunday, and we're going to come up front, those of you who take the challenge and those of you who want to see walls come down in your lives, walls come down in our communities, walls come down in the lives of other people. We're going to stand up front, and we're going to pray, because I believe God wants to do some great things. 

Will you take the challenge? I will, because I have some challenges. I want to see God bring the walls down. Some of you are here this morning, and the greatest challenge you have is the wall of sin that keeps you from having a relationship with the one true God. Guess what? Jesus has broken down that wall. Through his death, his burial, and his resurrection, you can have eternal life. You can have a relationship with God.

In a moment, we're going to have a song of invitation. I want to invite you. If that's you today, I want to invite you to come forward and just say, "Pastor, I need Jesus. I want the wall of sin in my life to be broken by the blood of Jesus Christ, and I want to have a personal relationship with God." Let's bow our heads and our hearts before God.

Father, we just praise you, God, that you're a God who puts challenges in our lives so you can do mighty miracles. There are challenges that are represented here today. There are Jericho challenges, God, that many by faith are going to put before you and just ask, God, that you bring those walls down. 

God, we pray that in the coming weeks and the coming months, we can have testimonies of how you brought the walls down in people's lives. God, we pray that you get all the glory. We pray for that man, that woman who is here this morning who doesn't know Christ. We pray that they would come this day and give their life to Jesus. In Jesus' name, amen. 

Let's sing. Let's worship. Let's stand, and then we'll conclude.