Old Testament Reading – Isaiah 51:8-13
New Testament Reading – Hebrews 1:1-14
Victorious Christian Living
“The God Who Fights for Us”
Joshua 10:1-43
Wayne J. Edwards, Pastor
Strange as it may seem, the Victorious Christian Life is not a life without conflict and spiritual warfare. Christians are not only at war with the world, the flesh, and the devil, but also with our own sin nature, and the more we strive for holiness, the more intense that war becomes.
- However, Western culture is growing increasingly hostile to Christianity as the hatred of the gospel is expressed openly, and the violence against Christians is increasing.
- The level of anger and vitriol against those who dare to believe the truth of God’s Word has risen to the level of pure evil, because Satan hates Christ, and if we belong to Christ, Satan hates us.
- Joshua 10:25 – “Then Joshua said to them, “Do not be afraid, nor be dismayed; be strong and of good courage, for thus the Lord will do to all your enemies against whom you fight.”
While the historical events of the Book of Joshua describe the fulfillment of God’s promise to give the land of Canaan back to Abraham’s descendants, they also parallel the spiritual progress of the Christian life.
- Egypt is a picture of the evil world that holds us in bondage to sin, self, and Satan.
- The Red Sea is a picture of those evil things that continue to attract us.
- The 40 years in the wilderness is a type of our sanctification process.
- The crossing of the Jordan River is a picture of our complete surrender unto the Lordship of Jesus Christ.
- The battle of Jericho was a picture of our victory over the sin that so easily besets us.
- The battle of AI is a picture of our attempt to walk in our own spiritual power rather than to trust the Lord with all of our hearts.
- Joshua’s compromise with the Gibeonites shows us how easily we can be deceived when we fail to seek God’s wisdom regarding every little decision.
- “Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.” 1 Corinthians 10:11
Joshua described his battle strategy by identifying four major battles, and he earmarked them in the first verses of chapters 5, 9, 10, and 11, affirming the power of God in his victories.
- “So, Joshua took the whole land, according to all that the Lord had said to Moses; and Joshua gave it as an inheritance to Israel according to their divisions by their tribes. Then the land rested from war.” – Joshua 11:23
- To live the Victorious Christian Life, believers must follow the battle strategy given to us in the Bible.
- “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” – 2 Timothy 3:16-17
1. The Sun Stands Still – Joshua 10:1-15 – Vss. 12-13 – “Then Joshua spoke to the Lord in the day when the Lord delivered up the Amorites before the children of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel: Sun, stand still over Gibeon; And Moon, in the Valley of Aijalon.” So, the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, till the people had revenge upon their enemies.”
- Alarmed about the alliance the Gibeonites had made with Joshua, five Canaanite kings united together to defeat the Gibeonites.
- However, the Gibeonites reminded Joshua of that alliance, and, being assured of God’s promise of victory, Joshua led his army from Gilgal to Gibeon, an 8-10-hour journey of 20 miles, with a climb of 3,300 feet, during the night, and at daybreak, they defeated the armies of the five kings.
- This was where God delayed nightfall until the victory was complete.
2. The Execution of the Five Kings – Joshua 10:16-27 – Vss. 22-24 – “Then Joshua said, “Open the mouth of the cave, and bring out those five kings to me from the cave.” And they did so, and brought out those five kings to him from the cave: the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, and the king of Eglon. So it was, when they brought out those kings to Joshua, that Joshua called for all the men of Israel, and said to the captains of the men of war who went with him, “Come near, put your feet on the necks of these kings.” And they drew near and put their feet on their necks.”
- The power of God that was at work through the Israelites was so strong, “No one moved his tongue against any of the children of Israel.” – Joshua 10:21
- God established His Church to be that powerful – even feared, which means to be respected and revered, but where is such respect for the Church today?
- “I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” – Matthew 16:18
3. The Balance of the Southern Campaign – Joshua 10:28-43 – Vss. 40-43 – “So Joshua conquered all the land: the mountain country and the South and the lowland and the wilderness slopes, and all their kings; he left none remaining, but utterly destroyed all that breathed, as the Lord God of Israel had commanded. And Joshua conquered them from Kadesh Barnea as far as Gaza, and all the country of Goshen, even as far as Gibeon. All these kings and their land Joshua took at one time, because the Lord God of Israel fought for Israel. Then Joshua returned, and all Israel with him, to the camp at Gilgal.”
“When they brought out those kings to Joshua, that Joshua called for all the men of Israel, and said to the captains of the men of war who went with him, “Come near, put your feet on the necks of these kings.” And they drew near and put their feet on their necks.”
- In the ancient world, such actions were customary to settle any dispute of which king won the battle and which king lost the battle.
- These five kings represented the people who had inhabited God’s land, and in Genesis 15:16, God told Abraham that his “fourth generation” would return to the land of Israel, “for that would be when the iniquity of the Amorites would be complete.” (paraphrased)
- In Psalm 110:1, King David said, “The Lord said to my Lord, sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool.”
- This is a Messianic prophecy that will be fulfilled when Jesus returns to the earth as the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, and makes the enemies of Christ and His Church as His footstool – His boot will be upon their necks.
- When we received Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, the sin of unbelief was destroyed by our expressed faith, but the sins of the flesh were only subdued.
- 1 John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, He (God) is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
