.png)
Day two: The power of worship. The power of silence.
The daily march around the city must have looked odd for the inhabitants of Jericho. More to the point, it must have felt odd for the warriors of Israel! The point of marching around the city was not to show the strength or might of the nation. The whole point of marching around the walls of Jericho was to show Israel’s faithfulness to God through an act of worship.
Joshua instructs the people to make no battle cry as they travel around the city. From the viewpoint of military strategy, this would have appeared odd. In silence, we offer the Lord the fullness of our attention and our lives. Thus, it is important that we cultivate the habit of silence through which we allow God’s voice to direct us.
Thoughts: What does worship do to the weary soul? And how does practicing silence help us to listen more and speak less?
Joshua 6:12-
v12 Joshua got up early the next morning, and the priests took up the *ark of the *Lord. v13 The 7 priests that were carrying the *trumpets marched in front of the *ark. They were making the *trumpets sound. Some soldiers went in front of the priests that were making the *trumpets sound. Other soldiers followed the *ark. The priests made the *trumpets sound all the time. v14 This is how they marched round the city on the second day. They did this once and then they returned to their tents. They did this for 6 days.
v15 On the 7th day they got up at dawn and they marched round the city in the same way. But this day, they did it 7 times. v16 The 7th time, the priests made a long, loud noise on the *trumpets. Joshua told the people, ‘Shout, because the *Lord has given the city to you. v17 The city and all that is in it belongs to the *Lord. All the people must die. Only Rahab and the people with her in her house will live. This is because she hid our two men. v18 Keep away from the things that belong to God. If you take any of them, you will die. You would make trouble for the *Israelites, and you could cause the *Lord to kill them, too. v19 Every metal object in the city belongs to the *Lord. The gold, iron and silver belong to him. You must store them with his valuable things.’
v20 When the *trumpets made their loud sound, all the people shouted loudly. When they did this, the walls fell down. Every man went up into the city. And they took the city. v21 They gave the city to the *Lord. So they killed every living thing in it. They killed men and women, young people and old people, cows, sheep and other animals.
Verses 12-14 The *Israelites had to learn to be patient. They had to learn to trust God. They probably wondered why they had to walk round the city for seven days. God was not in a hurry. God is never in a hurry. The *Israelites had to learn this.
There are times when we must be patient with God. He does not always answer our prayers quickly. Sometimes we have to wait a long time.
Verse 15 There may be many reasons why the *Israelites had to walk round the city 13 times:
· They learned to be patient.
· God increased their *faith.
· The *Israelites frightened the people in Jericho.
The *Israelites did not argue with the instructions that God had given. God sometimes tells us to do strange things. We might not know why. God always knows best! God always asks us to do things that will be good for us or for other people. We should not doubt the instructions that God has given to us.
Verse 16 ‘The *Lord has given the city to you.’ God has already given the *victory! All the *Israelites had to do was to obey God.
God has given us *victory over our enemies. Our greatest enemy is *sin. When Jesus died, he defeated *sin. We have *victory because Jesus died for us.
Verses 18-19 In Deuteronomy 20:10-14 God gave to the *Israelites some rules about war. They could keep the valuable things from towns and cities that they defeated. But at Jericho God said that all the valuable things belonged to him.
This was their first *victory. God likes to receive the first of everything. In Deuteronomy 26:1-2, God gave the *Israelites some rules about the harvest. They had to give the first fruit of each harvest to God. This may be the reason why God wanted all the valuable things from Jericho.
God wants the best from each one of us. He wants us to give to him the first of everything. This includes our money, our time and our work.
Verses 17 and 21 Some people ask, ‘Why did God demand the death of innocent people?’ Deuteronomy 20:18 tells us the answer. The people who lived in *Canaan were very bad people. They might teach the *Israelites to do bad things. They did bad things when they *worshipped their gods. They might teach the *Israelites to *sin. The people who lived in *Canaan were not innocent. They were guilty of very bad things that made God unhappy. God had given them time to change. But they refused to do the right things. So God had to punish them.
God wants us all to confess our *sins to him. Jesus died so that God would forgive us. But, if we do not invite God into our lives, God will be our judge. Then, God will punish us too, for our *sins.
Verse 20 Hebrews 11:30 says, ‘By *faith the walls of Jericho fell.’ Joshua had *faith. He believed that God would do something great.
The people had *faith. They walked round the city. They did not know why. They believed that something would happen. Something did happen! The walls fell down!
· Think about this. How strong is our *faith? Do we do what God asks us? Do we see what God has done for us?
Verse 21 The *Israelites gave everything in the city to God. God had told them to do this (Joshua 6:19).
Shout for the LORD has given you the victory! Your praise God can use to rumble hell and and tear down the walls that are against us.
On the Cross Jesus tore down the walls that were against us. The curtains that veiled his glory and presence from us. We can take the city of God that has been prepared for us. We can come boldly to his presence because of the blood of Jesus shed.
Thank you for another great day of Zoom Battle Prayer.