“Make sure you are very strong and brave! Carefully obey all the law my servant Moses charged you to keep! Do not swerve from it to the right or to the left, so that you may be successful in all you do. This law scroll must not leave your lips! You must memorize it day and night so you can carefully obey all that is written in it. Then you will prosper and be successful.”
-Joshua 1:7,8
When Joshua and the nation of Israel was about to cross over to the Promised Land, ADONAI made specific commands that Joshua and every Israelite must obey in order to live long and successfully occupy the land. They were not to swerve from it to the right or to the left but their lives must be characterized by complete trust on the word of ADONAI.
The Israelites were confronted with the harsh realities of the power of the enemy at Jericho. The enemy lived in a well-fortified city. Its gates were strong, made to withstand a long siege that Israel was about to attempt. There were a lot of giants living within the city and its warriors were seasoned because war was a way of life at that time. The wall surrounding the city was so thick and wide, chariots could run on top of it. From atop the wall, the enemy could easily rain down arrows, spears, large stones and even boiling oil as Israel attacks. The enemy was ready. These were the hard facts.
What did Joshua have? A ragtag army who were fed and nurtured by ADONAI in the desert. They had plenty of women andchildren who were marching along with them. Their weapons were those that were plundered from previous war campaigns, otherwise, many had farm implements. These were the facts. BUT, they had the word of ADONAI – the promise of victory! As long as they obey His word, they would have success and prosperity. This is the Truth! They had seen the works of wonder that ADONAI performed in their midst and no god among the Canaanites and even Egypt had ever done anything like it.
What was ADONAI’s strategy? All the warriors of Israel must march around the city silently for six days and on the seventh day, as they were marching around the city seven times, while the priests were blowing their trumpets, Joshua was to give a signal and all the army was to give a shout of victory and the walls would collapse and the warriors were to charge into the city straight ahead. In short, ADONAI already wrote the history of the campaign against Jericho and He has given them victory.
In the natural mind, no sane general would follow such an outrageous plan. There were too many uncertainties. What if the wall won’t collapse? As they ran to attack the city, the enemy could easily shoot them down with arrows and spears; and as they scale the wall, hot boiling oil would surely be poured on the helpless warriors. Can they risk such a loss? Joshua would be the laughingstock of the whole Canaanite world!
Either trust the word of ADONAI ELOHIM or withdraw. What’s the cost? In the natural mind, the enemy had all the advantage. Isn’t this always the dilema of every believer? To be or not to be…that is the question!
Fact – what you can see with your eyes, hear with your ears, smell with your nose, taste with your tongue and feel with your hands. Truth – every atom, particle, molecule in the whole of creation were made by the word of ADONAI and He sustains all of it by the word of His power. He is the only One who can suspend the natural laws. What He created, He can uncreate.
Joshua must have remembered when ADONAI parted the Sea of Reeds. He must have remembered the sun standing still until he defeated the army of Amalek. Most recently, he witnessed ADONAI parting the Jordan river so Israel could cross over on dry ground into the Promised Land. His own clothes did not wear out and his sandals remained good for the whole 40 years of wandering. He saw ADONAI’s faithfulness as He fed them daily with manna and provided water from the Rock who was YESHUA the Messiah. Is there any doubt at all that ADONAI would fulfill His promise?
This is the difference between knowledge on facts and the living experience of Truth. Knowledge just makes people arrogant but Truth sets people free! Free to do the right thing. Free to be supernatural and divine!
Have you experienced the Truth? To experience Truth is to experience true life. If all you have are facts, then all you have might be true lies!
מלאך
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