Your Own Personal Jericho

We've just spent the last week not eating our normal supplies of bread, donuts, bagels, one of my favorites, pizza. No pizza this week. That was tough. Even Kelsey says it's not like our family not to have some pizzas in the deep freeze. It's not. We're normally well stocked in that category, but not this week. But instead, we've been eating un-guffing bread, which represents the life of living a life without sin, a life of partaking and things that are not sinful. And we have had our focus, the importance of internalizing the spiritual bread of life, learning from and living a way of life that is the example that we see in Christ Jesus. We know that as we come out of sin, it's a life-changing event. Each of us have made decisions when we accepted Christ as our sacrifice. We got that dunk in the water that symbolized our death to sin and death to this world in this way of life. And that as Israel was let out of the hands of the Egyptian, that bondage, the corruption that was all around them, God led them out with a mighty hand. They plundered Egypt before they left. They went out with strength. They went out with the hand of God. And so as we have now come through this week of being freed again from our sin, as we repent each time that sin grabs ahold of us, as it pulls at our pant leg, we have that opportunity to go before our great Father and say we're sorry, to repent of those sins and have them washed clean again. And as we symbolize this week of not taking that bread, that normal loaf of bread that we would have, that staple maybe of our diet, but to remember what it was that we've come out of, that past way of life, the things that we don't want to do anymore, that have no business actually being part of our lives. It's a powerful opportunity that we've had this past week.

In the book of Joshua, we have an amazing story that took place during the days of Unleavened Bread, a simply amazing story. Israel, in a sense, had a fresh start when they passed through the Jordan River and entered into the Promised Land that God had brought them into.

They were renewed. They were, again, set apart.

And this is a great account that we can review today on this last day of Unleavened Bread as we exit this festival and continue living our renewed lives.

The accounts we have recorded in Joshua are simply amazing.

They're at times almost unbelievable to take in.

God's nation of Israel overcame obstacles that, in human terms alone, would have been too great.

But God doesn't only deal in human terms, does He?

As Israel overcame cities with solid defenses and great walls, they did it through and by the strength of God.

There are times that we find ourselves facing enormous walls in our own lives that seem impossible to break down by our own human strength.

But again, we are not only a people who deal with physical human terms, are we?

We put our faith in God and follow His commandments, and He will perform that great and mighty thing in our life.

You can put in your notes Jeremiah 33 verse 3, where the prophet Jeremiah is inspired to write, "'Call to me, and I will answer you and show you great, mighty things which you do not know.'" I think if we take ourselves back to many years ago for a lot of us, when God opened our minds to His truth, and He started showing us the path that He wanted us to walk, these were great and mighty things that we suddenly had our minds open to. A renewed way of living, a better way.

And think through and read Jeremiah where it says, "'I will show you great and mighty things which you did not know.'" And now here we are as God's holy and set-apart people on His holy day, recognizing that we have been set apart and we do now know mighty things.

As we begin looking at the account in Joshua, let's first look in Deuteronomy chapter 9.

Deuteronomy chapter 9, because we have a preview of sorts of Israel being told that they will enter the Promised Land.

Because when this account is shared with Israel, they're not permitted to enter the Promised Land at this time.

But Moses says this in Deuteronomy 9 and verse 1, "'Here, O Israel, you are to cross over the Jordan today and go into dispossess nations greater and mightier than yourself. Cities great and fortified up to heaven." In the New Living Translation, it says, "'Today you are about to cross the Jordan River and take over the land belonging to nations much greater and more powerful than you.'" And this is the key part. "'They live in cities with walls that reach the sky.'" I love the description sometimes that we have from this translation. "'They live in cities with walls that reach to the sky.'" Continuing on in verse 2, it says, "'A people great and tall, the descendants of Aneichem, who you know and of whom you heard it said, who can stand before the descendants of Anak. Therefore understand today that the Lord your God is He who goes over before you as a consuming fire. He will destroy them and bring them down before you so that you shall drive them out and destroy them quickly as the Lord has said to you.

Do not think in your heart after the Lord your God has cast them out before you, saying, because of my righteousness the Lord has brought me into the possessive land. But it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord is driving them out from before you. It is not because of your righteousness or the uprightness of your heart that you go in to possess their land, but because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord your God drives them out before you and that He may fulfill the word which the Lord swore to your fathers to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. This passage we just read is kind of like that preview for that next great action movie that maybe we see the commercial for the preview for them for the movie. I should have read it with that really deep manly voice like they always do with the movies. Wait! It's about to happen. I should have just read the whole section that way. But no, this is a preview of Israel entering the Promised Land, and the many accounts of the book of Joshua are like reading an action-adventure comic book. I think a lot of times our kids even when they hear these stories are entertained and like captivated by these accounts. These accounts we'll read today are exciting, and I hope as we read through them today we keep in mind this holy day that we are observing today and how these accounts fit with what we're doing here today. What we're to take out of this week of Unleavened Bread, this week that we have just completed, this final day that we are in, and that ends tonight at sunset. So let's all turn to Joshua.

As the book of Joshua opens, Israelites are camped on the eastern side of the Jordan River, just north of the Dead Sea.

We'll start in actually Chapter 2. There's a sense of excitement for the Israelites.

They have wandered for 40 years. They had an opportunity to enter 39 years earlier, yet because of false spies, because of lies, because of their heart that was hardened, or that they hardened themselves, God says that your generation will not see, not be able to taste, not be able to have in your hands this possession that I want to give you.

And so finally, the next generation, the old generation had died off.

The next generation that was raised up through the wandering is excited to know that the time has come. There's probably also a little bit of a sense of apprehension. What's this going to be?

This nation has people who already live in it. Maybe it's a little bit of apprehension similar to you or I signing our name to a house contract, or something big that we know we have a responsibility. We know that it's a big deal. That's our new address. It's kind of like that, that sense of excitement, but also maybe some apprehension was in their minds. And then there was this very delicate situation of transitioning leadership between Moses to Joshua. This is something that the founding fathers of our own nation took into consider when our Constitution was created. A way that we could transition from one form of government or one government leader to the next, whether it be a mayor on a local level, maybe the governor of a state, or even the president of the United States. That we can have peace in a transition of power like that, and the nation would continue on. But we know from history and looking at other nations that peaceful transitions are rare today. They're not the norm. More than at any other time, this can become a period of potential revolts in civil war. So there was this delicate situation. How would Israel respond to a new leader? God had appointed Joshua as the successor of Moses and had this proclaimed publicly in front of all of Israel. There was no question that God had made the transition and that Joshua was the new leader. But how would they respond? Let's pick up the story in Joshua 2 in verse 1.

And as a side note, I don't know if you guys are aware of this or not, but Joshua didn't have a father. Because it says right here, now Joshua, the son of Nun...

Don't forget, I trained underneath Steve Myers. There's a joke book that you have to read.

I had to do that at least once. My mentor would be proud of me. Now Joshua, the son of Nun, sent out two men from Acacia Grove to spy secretly saying, Go view the land, especially Jericho. So they went and came to the house of a harlot named Rahab and lodged there. I'd like to pause for a minute because this was a risky move for Joshua to send out spies again. What happened the last time that spies were sent out? Ten of them came back with a false report. Two of them came back with the truth. It caused... it created a huge problem. There was a penalty associated with it. Would the nation of Israel fall into the same trap again?

But he's been instructed, Joshua has, and he's been given a hand of leadership to lead and to guide the nation to the Promised Land. It's not a simple or an easy task. Imagine for a moment you were given that role to lead. You'd want to know what you're up against. You would want to know just to scout and to understand what all was going on. Joshua didn't know exactly how God would deliver the Promised Land into their hands. So he wanted to send out scouts. He wanted to explore. He wanted to gain information, to seek understanding, and take it to God, and to see how God would grant the victory. It's not really that much different from you or I if we do our homework for a job interview and we research a company, or if we check out neighborhoods or different things when we buy a house. We do our homework. We gain information. We bring it in, and then we take it before God. We pray about it and seek His will for what He wants us to do. So here Joshua has sent these scouts into the city. These men went in, and they stayed at a house where Rahab hid these scouts, skipping ahead to verse 8. Now before they lay down, she came up to them on the roof and said to the men, and notice what Rahab says, I know that the Lord has given you the land, that the terror of you have fallen on us, and that all the inhabitants of the land are faint-hearted because of you. For we have heard how the Lord dried up the waters of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt. That was 40 years before. And yet here is Rahab recounting this account. It's still there. It hasn't been forgotten. And what you did to the two kings of the Amorites, who were on the other side of the Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom you utterly destroyed. And as soon as we heard these things, our hearts melted. That's a powerful analogy. Our hearts melted. Neither did there remain any more courage in anyone because of you. For the Lord your God, He is God in heaven above and on earth beneath. What a powerful testimony that Rahab had, the faith that she had, to say these things. She's one of two women who are listed in Hebrews 11 in the faith chapter.

And she's one of the part of the lineage of Jesus Christ, one of the ladies who had a son, who had a son and had a son up to Christ. It's a powerful statement of faith that she shared with these men and the stance that she took to protect them, to recognize. And if we read further, she would eventually become part of Israel. She would submit and say, this is the God I want to serve as well.

Continuing on in Joshua 2 verse 23, after the account of Rahab hiding the men and them getting the information, then escaping, it says, So the two men returned, descended from the mountains, and crossed over, and came to Joshua, the son of Nun, and told them all that had befallen them. And they said to Joshua, Truly the Lord has delivered all the land into our hands, for indeed all the inhabitants of the country are faint-hearted because of us. It's a strong statement.

Continuing on in Joshua chapter 3 and now verse 14.

Three verse 14. So it was when the people set out from their camp to cross over the Jordan, with the priests bearing the ark of the covenant before the people, and as those who bore the ark came to the Jordan, and the feet of the priests who bore the ark dipped in the edge of the water, for the Jordan, as a side note, for the Jordan overflowed all of its banks during the whole time of the harvest. So notice that for a second. That's an important note. It's not just a river. It's not just a stream that they could just go and wade up to their waste and go across. This was a flooded, swollen river. It was the time of the year that coincided with the winter rains that had come on to the area, and it coincided with the spring harvest of the greens. Growing up near rivers in Ohio, you see when they swell. You see when they go up. You see when they overflow their banks and the trees get pulled in. And there's always the warning. And sadly, you see on the news people who decided to drive through or to play in the waters, and it's not a place to play. There's inherent dangers. And of course, Israel would have known that. They would have seen this river and said, there's no way that we can venture into it today. We've got to wait. Who knows how long? Yet what happens next? Again, verse 15, though, it says, for the Jordan overflows all of its banks during the whole time of the harvest. And now verse 16, that the waters which came down from upstream stood still and rose in a heap very far away at Adam, the city that is beside Zaratan. So the waters that went down into the sea of Erebaath, the Salt Sea, failed and were cut off and the people crossed over opposite Jericho. The location that the sea stopped or that it was blocked was 17 to 20 miles upriver that the water stopped when the priests placed their feet into the water. What an amazing account to have the water, the bed of this overflowing, flooding river suddenly stopped again so that they would be able to walk through on dry ground.

Chapter 4 and verse 17 continues the thought. So the people have now at this point crossed over. The priests are still standing where they were before when the water was stopped. And now here in chapter 4 verse 17, Joshua is standing there and says, Therefore command the priests, saying, Come up from the Jordan. And it came to pass when the priests who bore the ark of the covenant of the Lord had come from the midst of the Jordan, and the souls of the priests' feet touched the dry land, that the waters of the Jordan returned to their place and overflowed all of its banks as before. Here comes the rush. Here comes the flood again. Now the people came up from the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and they camped at Gilgal on the east border of Jericho.

Continuing on in verse 21, Then he spoke to the children of Israel, saying, When your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What are these stones? Because they erected stones there as a memorial of this amazing miracle that God had performed. So it says, When your children ask, What are these stones? Then you shall let your children know, saying, Israel crossed over this Jordan on dry land. Not muddy land, not murky land, but dry land. Not only no water, but dry land for them to cross. For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you, until you had crossed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up before us, until we had crossed over. That all the people of the earth, not, notice not just the Canaanites, not just the nation of Israel, but notice what he said, So that all the peoples of the earth may know the hand of the Lord, that it is mighty, that you may fear the Lord your God forever.

Israel crossing the Red Sea and later the Jordan are types of baptisms that Israel went through during their walk with God. We know this from 1 Corinthians chapter 10. Let's look at that just briefly. Hold your finger here in Joshua, because we'll be coming back.

But 1 Corinthians chapter 10 and verse 1.

1 Corinthians 10 and verse 1.

Here the Apostle Paul says, Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that all of our fathers were under the cloud, all passed through the sea.

All were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. All ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual rock that followed them, and that rock was Christ. We know that the crossing of the Red Sea was a parallel to the Israelites crossing... or them crossing the Jordan was a parallel to the Israelites crossing the Red Sea under Moses. Both times the nations were led by God's hand in a miraculous and powerful way.

Going back again to Joshua now chapter 5 and verse 1, let's continue looking at this, because it's a powerful aspect that we have to remember as we tie this account into what days we just finished up. The Passover that we had last week to remember the symbolism of what we're doing now versus what the Israelites did before entering the Promised Land. Joshua 5 and verse 1. So it was when all the kings of the Amorites who were on the west side of the Jordan, and all the kings of the Canaanites who were by the sea, heard that the Lord had dried up the waters of the Jordan from before the children of Israel until we had crossed over, that their hearts melted, and that there was no spirit in them any longer because of the children of Israel.

It's the same song, different verse, isn't it? They were melted before 40 years earlier when God had did this miraculous miracle, and now here again they've just seen it now with their own eyes.

Another swollen river this time, though. Flood stage, and God says, that's nothing for me. It's nothing that I can't do. And now they've seen it with their own eyes.

And it was at this point, after crossing the Jordan, that the men who were never circumcised, because they grew up in the wilderness, were then circumcised here. The previous generation, when they exited Egypt, they were circumcised before they left. But for some reason, which we don't really know for sure why, the new babies born in the wilderness were never circumcised. As we know, circumcision is a sign of the covenant God made with Abraham and his descendants. And we know that for us today, God is looking for us to circumcise our hearts as we commit our lives into God. So they were all commanded to be circumcised at that point. Another aspect that ties into this feast of ungoverned bread, which we just completed now. In verse 9, continuing, on that very same day, said that this would have probably been the first Passover, it's the only Passover recorded, for 39 years. We have the original Passover leaving when they left Egypt. We have one a year later when they were at the base of Mount Sinai. That was the second Passover. And then 39 years went by.

That's an amazing time that there are no accounts of the Passover being kept. And then now here, after going through the Red Sea, after becoming circumcised, after recognizing all that God's done, taking possession of the Promised Land, this is the next recorded time of the Passover being observed. It's something that if you want to look into, I encourage you to do so because it's not something that I've always picked up on when you read through this account.

But it's powerful because it sets the renewal. It sets God saying, This is what I wanted for you. It's now yours. And all of these things are to start happening, and you're to follow through. All of these things that we just read through happen in a very short amount of time, a few days.

It's powerful. God loves His people all the way through the wilderness to the Promised Land. He provided for them through miracles, and now Israel has finally entered into this promise that God made with Abraham. He provided for a way that they experienced a type of baptism and now have kept the Passover. And for the first time, the nation of Israel is eating the produce and blessing of the land that is now theirs. Because before, when they had the grapes and they might have tasted of that land, now when the first 12 spies went in, 39 years previous, but now it's theirs to enjoy and to partake of fully.

Just an amazing account that we have of God providing for His people. And from that point on, it was just easy sailing for the Israelites. Nothing ever went bad again. No more challenges, no more difficulties, no more away. That's not how it goes, is it? It wasn't easy from that point on. What about you and me when we entered in our spiritual Promised Land? When we were let out of sinful lifestyles and we were baptized into Christ, we'd been able to eat of that spiritual food and blessing that God has provided.

And now our lives are easy breezy. No problems, no challenges. It's not the way that it is. And it wasn't the way that was for Israel either. Their first challenge upon entering the Promised Land stands before them, and boy, is it a big one. It's a big one. As we come up on the part of the story of the city of Jericho, archaeologists have excavated and examined the old city of Jericho and have found many interesting aspects to this ancient city. Jericho would have been a strong city that was thriving. Located about six miles from the Jordan River and about 17 miles away from Jerusalem, it sat at a crossroads of sort at the north part of the Dead Sea to where many travelers would have traveled past Jericho going to different cities on the west side of the Jordan.

It had a large gushing spring that flowed up from within the city, and the fertile plain surrounding the city earned the distinction the city of palm trees. The city of palm trees. We know that from two different accounts in God's Word. And the city was designed to withstand an assault. It had a double wall around it. The first part of the city was the core and it had a tall wall, and then there was a space almost as if you would think of like a racetrack that runners would run on.

That was a gap between a second wall and at the base of the second wall, the first outside wall you would come to, it was built in a way kind of like a landscape bed that had great big boulders at the base that were pushed into dirt behind them. So it wasn't just something you could remove the rocks because then you'd have dirt behind it and everything else. So it provided stability and it provided a lot of strength there. And this stone embankment was about 15 feet high. So the first bottom part of this main wall was about 15 feet tall.

And then it was topped with a brick wall that was six feet wide and 20 to 26 feet tall. So you got this embankment of big boulders of stone as a base, and then it went up from there.

Another 20 to 26 feet tall. The second brick wall, which was taller than the first, and so remember there's a gap in between that first wall and the second wall to the core of the city, that second wall was also a brick wall and it was taller than the first. It was 46 feet high. So you had these two walls with a space in between that most likely as the city grew and expanded.

People would have built homes in that second middle area because even where we know from Rahab the harlot, she had a house that was on the outer wall. So she couldn't have been on the inside outer wall. She had to be on the outside wall that her house was against when the spies were let down and when she tied the red cord in the window so that they would know where she was at.

This middle space would have trapped invaders. Let's say that somebody would have got through that first wall. They would have got into that gap and then been trapped there between the two walls and easily attacked. To the Israelites entering the Promised Land, Jericho presented a major obstacle. A major obstacle. Let's continue, though, to read what it says here in Joshua 5, verse 13. Joshua 5 and verse 13.

I'd like to read, this is a powerful account. Once again, a few verses. We need to, if we didn't take time, to look at it slowly and try to put ourselves in Joshua's shoes. I think we'd fail to fully get the depth of what's going on here.

I think I might have mentioned this before with you. I'm someone who, when I meet somebody or I hear about what you do for your job or for your profession, it strikes an interest in me because I try to imagine what it would be like to do your job. I know how to do my job. I know how to do my past job. But to do your job, to understand your day-to-day, it's intriguing.

A lot of times, I have questions. I think that curiosity makes me think, what would it be like to be Joshua? Let's all put our Joshua code on today. Let's all put our Joshua hat on and think what it would be like to know that you're the commander of Israel, appointed by God. And he says, go take possession of the Promised Land that I want to give you. Take my people and lead them, guide them, encourage them.

And so here, Joshua, is this passage that we are here reading and about to see this conquest of the city. But I think if we put ourselves as Joshua's shoes for a minute, I think we'd have some questions for ourselves. Maybe some questions for God. So let's read through that passage again, and let's pause and consider what it says.

Joshua 5 and verse 13. And it came to pass when Joshua was by Jericho. This is, of course, speculation on my part. But I envision that the weight of what Joshua was asked to do was pretty high. And I imagine if I was in his shoes, as if you were, we'd have a lot of questions. A lot of, how are we going to do this? He knew he was instructed to take Jericho.

There was no question about that. But how? How would he do it? Here's a double-walled city that was before him. God says he'll deliver it, but what is Joshua's role? And so, I think you've heard the phrase that for a lot of leaderships, it's a very lonely position, because you have to make the tough decision. You have to, a lot of times, maybe even take criticism for that decision. And so I kind of think maybe Joshua was standing afar off from Jericho within sight.

Maybe on a tree line. Maybe a few trees deep back, and he's standing there because it says that when he was by Jericho, it doesn't say anyone was with him. He might have been that leader contemplating, how am I going to do this? What am I going to do? And so maybe Joshua is in this. Maybe he sees this shut-up city, Jericho, because they said they closed the door tight. Probably even closed the windows tight.

They didn't want anybody to come in, and they were set to hang out there because they were fearful. Their hearts had melted. They were not ready to allow themselves to be taken over. And so it says, as it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted his eyes and looked. He lifted his eyes. Why were his eyes down? I don't know. For sure. But sometimes when I'm deep in thought, sometimes I just look within myself. Maybe there's a rock on the ground, and I'm contemplating something. I may kick that rock around a little bit. Maybe he was praying? Probably he was praying? Because imagine if you're staring at this city and you don't know what to do next.

I want to talk to God at that moment. I'd want to meditate on what was on my mind and what God would want me to draw from it. And so he says, he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, a man stood opposite him with his thorn drawn in his hand.

That's pretty intimidating. Out of nowhere, here's this man who we know later on, as we kept reading or as we already read. It was Jesus Christ, incarnate Jesus Christ standing before him. And Joshua went to him. Was he fearful? Did he run? I know what Mike Phelps would have done. I would have said, I know where my boys are at. I'm going to run back, get some men, come back here, and hopefully you're still standing here. We'll have some reinforcements and then we can talk to you. But he doesn't do that. He says, and behold, the man stood opposite him with his sword drawn in his hand, and Joshua went to him.

He approached him. And we're not talking... I mean, you've got to think, this is Jesus Christ. He's not going to be portrayed as some weakling, as we have seen in pictures and books. He says he was a man. He wasn't just dragging this plastic sword behind him or this little sword that he didn't know what to do with.

He was a man standing before Joshua with a sword. And Joshua went to him and said, are you for us or are you for our adversaries? It's a fair question if I was again in Joshua's shoes. But he said no. But as commander of the army of the Lord, I have now come. And immediately, Joshua knew who this was because it says he fell on his face through the earth and worshipped.

So we know this wasn't an angel because angels are not to be worshipped. Even they told the encounters where they were being worshipped to rise. So we know that he wasn't an angel because Joshua fell at his face and worshipped him. And then he said, what does my Lord say to his servant? And then the commander of the Lord's army said to Joshua, take your sandals off your foot for the place where you stand as holy.

And Joshua did so. He was standing in the presence of God. Of all places, again, put myself in Joshua's shoes, standing there, seeing the city, shut up tight, double-walled, invincible. And Israel wasn't a trained army. They just crossed the Jordan. They were looking for where to place their head and where to continue to progress as God led them. And then here's Joshua probably praying again, asking for divine intervention and help. And then God delivers with his presence there and instructions, as we'll see. Continuing in chapter 6 and verse 1.

Now Jericho was securely shut up because of the children of Israel. None went out and none came in. And the Lord said to Joshua, see, I have given Jericho into your hand. It's king and the mighty men of valor. I would have said, I don't get it. It's shut up tight, double-walled. What do you mean you've given it to my hands? How do we do this? And then God says, you shall, tells him how. He says, you shall march around the city, all of you men of war. You shall go around the city once, then you shall do six days. And seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of ram's horns before the ark. But the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall go the trumpets. Shall come to pass when they make a long blast with the ram's horn, and when you hear the sound of the trumpet, that all the people shall shout with a great shout, and the wall of the city will fall down flat, and the people shall go up every man straight before him. That's unbelievable. Again, here you've just seen the Jordan River parted. You've seen God's mighty hand. You've tasted the fruit of the Promised Land. And this is the plan to walk around for seven days? Maybe, in my, again, Mike Phelps' mind, I would think, what would the people of the city think? Would they laugh at us? Would they ridicule us? How about we get to day two of marching, we skip to day seven? That accomplishes the same thing. We do what you want us to do. But in all of this, one of the key things to point out in all of this, is we don't see Joshua providing feedback to God, do we? We don't see if Joshua is trying to compromise, trying to merge maybe what he sees with his eyes, versus what God wants him to do. We don't see that. We see someone who is faithful, someone who is courageous to approach a man with a sword standing out of nowhere. We see somebody who knows who fights his battles, who knows what the truth of God is, who knows that this is his land that God has promised to him through his descendants many, many generations before. And so when this plan of God comes to, is explained to Joshua, we don't see him backing off. We don't see him trying to talk some other thoughts into God. What do we see him do in verse 6?

He said to the people, "...proceed and march around the city, and let him who was armed advance before the ark of the Lord." Continue in verse 10. Now Joshua had commanded the people, saying, "...you shall not shout or make any noise with your voice, nor shall a word proceed out of your mouth, till the day that I say to you, shout, then you shall shout." So he had the ark of the Lord circle the city, going around it once, and then they came into the camp and lodged in the camp.

Verse 14, "...and the second day they marched around the city once and returned to camp. So they did six days, but it came to pass on the seventh day that they rose early, about the dawning of the day, and marched around the city seven times in the same manner. On that day only they marched around the city seven times, and the seventh time it happened, when the priests blew the trumpets, that Joshua said to the people, Shout, for the Lord has given you the city." And verse 18, "...and you, by all means, abstain from the accursed things, lest you become accursed when you take of the accursed things, and make the camp of Israel accursed and trouble it.

But all the silver and gold, the vessels of bronze and iron, are consecrated to the Lord, and they shall come into the treasury of the Lord. So the people shouted when the priests blew the trumpets, and it happened when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, and all the people shouted with a great shout that the wall fell down flat. Then the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they took the city. And they utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, young and old, ox and sheep and donkey, with the edge of the sword." The Hebrew word for utterly here is haram, which can mean to completely destroy or dedicate for destruction or to exterminate.

It's a garge full of meaning word. Here, the city was doomed by the Lord for destruction. Dedicated to God was the city of Jericho. What else is interesting is all of this happened on the seventh day that they marched around, which is also the last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. This day that you and I are here enjoying and partaking of today was the day that these walls fell down. There's great symbolism in this account of the ultimate victory that God has over sin. Because Jericho was a sinful city. It was not God's people.

And on the seventh day, we have overcome sin again through the calendar. We've wrapped up another Feast of Unleavened Bread, which symbolizes bringing in the unleavened bread of Christ, putting away more sincerely and with more dedication our sinful past, the things that continue to grab our pant leg or cause us problems.

We are called to utterly destroy sin from our lives. We are set apart, dedicated to God, and we must work hard at being this new creation we've been called and accepted to become. There's great symbolism on the seventh day that the walls of Jericho fell down, and there's great symbolism on the day that we are observing today. Continuing on in Joshua 6, verse 24, they definitely could have used the newer clothing.

They could have used sandals that they would have found. They could have used the food that were in jars and in stores inside the city. And food would have been in jars, not grocery stores. I didn't mean stores in that way. My mind just went a whole other place. It was not in my notes, so I'm going to stop there. They definitely could have used all the plunder of that city. They could have taken it. I've got a couple of pears to have, as any other army would have done. But God didn't want his people to be reminded of the sinful way and false worship of the Canaanites.

He wanted them to remain uncontaminated. God desired that we also remain clean and without sin. He has again brought us through this Feast of Unleavened Bread, Follow along with Matthew 16, where we thought about sin—the impact of that sin, the impact of removing that sin from our lives. What a powerful, again, time that we've been in. Continuing on in Joshua 6, verse 27, So the Lord was with Joshua, and his fame spread throughout all the country.

What an amazing ending to the story that we've just read through. And the story goes on. We could be here for the whole afternoon reading more of the conquests, more of the story of Joshua and God working with his nation of Israel. Some have said that these are just made-up stories, that they didn't really happen. Is this all that it is? Just stories that we have here? Is there archaeological proof that this existed and proof of God's inspired word?

In 1990, archaeologist Bryant Wood wrote in the Biblical Archaeology Review about his findings in Jericho. He mentioned that parts of the outer and inner wall had collapsed outwardly, which allowed the Israelites to enter the city. His conclusion, based on studies of the devastation of the city, are fascinating. He said, and this is a quote, Was this destruction at the hands of the Israelites? The correlation between the archaeological evidence and the Biblical narratives is substantial. And he lists several points that we'll go through. One, the city was well fortified. As I mentioned, it had this double wall that's been excavated and the height of these walls. Second one, the attack occurred just after the spring harvest.

They could tell this because of the jars full of grain that were inside the city, that were still there later to be found. The city was set up with that internal spring and all this food to stay there for years. They say it probably could have been a couple years that they could have remained in this city with the wall shut up because of the source of water and the source of food from the spring harvest. So they know that it was tied, just as God says here.

Third way, the inhabitants had no time or opportunity to flee with their food stores. They didn't have an opportunity to flee. They couldn't leave. The wall came down and immediately they were captured. And this is, again, because if they were able to flee, they would have taken things. They would have taken their food. They would have taken their clothing. But there is no account of things being taken because it was all there for archaeologists to find. Another, the siege was short. It wasn't a long siege. It might have been a little bit longer than a week because we have the seven days that they marched around the city and a few days before when they closed the city up tight. So the siege was short. Fifth way, the walls were leveled, and it says here, possibly by an earthquake. The walls were not found to be broken down like normal armies would go and attack a city and break the walls. These walls, they found, fell outward, which is odd for anything other than the hand of God. What it allowed, though, is when it fell outward, the Israelites could climb up on top of the rubble and then get their way into the city, which we also see when in Scripture it says they went up into the city. So again, this is all being seen by archaeological review.

The sixth point, the city was not plundered. When they did their undigging, that's not the right word, when they dug around and did their excavating around the city, they found unusually large stores of carbonized grain that were found in the ruins. An invading army would have taken the food for their own use, but this was not the case because God says they were not to take any of those things. And the seventh aspect that has been confirmed, the city burned.

And this is a quote, perhaps before the city was burned, exactly as the Bible describes. It's one of those accounts that some people say is just a story, but we have now confirmed a lot of the truth that lines up perfectly with God's Word how many years later. Let that kind of sit in your mind when somebody challenges your beliefs, challenges what we have recorded in God's Word. It's one of many examples that we have here of confirming the truth of God's Bible. So again, why is this story important for us today?

As I mentioned at the beginning, there are times when we find ourselves facing enormous walls that are impossible to break down by our human strength. I think there are two ways that we can apply the story in the situation of Jericho today and in relation to us observing this last day of Unleavened Bread. The first one is, what is or what will be your Jericho this next year? What will be your Jericho this next year?

What will be your seemingly invincible obstacle that will be in front of you? We know with any obstacle in life, it takes strength to overcome. Where did Joshua get his strength from? It's part of the story that I purposely skipped over until now. Let's go back to Joshua 1, the very beginning of the book. Where did Joshua get his strength? Joshua 1, verse 1. After the death of Moses, the servant of the Lord, it came to pass that the Lord spoke to Joshua, the son of Nun, Moses' assistant, saying, Moses, my servant is dead.

Now therefore arise. Go over this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them, the children of Israel. Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon, I have given you, as I said to Moses. Verse 5. No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life, as I was with Moses, so I will be with you.

I will not leave you nor forsake you. Be strong and of good courage, for to this people you shall divide as an inheritance of land, which I swore to their fathers to give them. Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law, which Moses, my servant, commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go.

This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.

And verse 9. Have I not commanded you, be strong and of good courage? Do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. The requirements here for Joshua and the nation were not to see the power within their own hands, not to do things by their own might, not to make influential relationships with the nations, or to just seek success. All things that many people today seek after. But Joshua was instructed differently. He was told, be strong and courageous. Point number one. Obey God's laws. Point number two. And constantly read and study God's instructions.

Point number three. What a powerful three points for us to live our lives by, to be strong and courageous, to obey God's laws, and then to be a student of His Word. Then how do we deal with our Jericho, then? How do we deal with our Jericho? We have to first and foremost have faith in what we know. We have to have that unbroken faith. Let's look at Hebrews 11, chapter 28. Because this account that we just read through in Joshua is also listed in Hebrews, chapter 11, within the faith chapter, because it took faith for them to do what they did.

Hebrews 11, verse 28. It says, By faith he kept the Passover in this Franklin in blood, lest he who destroyed the firstborn should touch them. By faith they passed through the Red Sea as by dry land, whereas the Egyptians, attempting to do so, were drowned. By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they were encircled for seven days. It was by faith that these things happened. It was by faith that God led His people through the sea, through the Jordan River, through the conquest of the Promised Land.

And it's through faith that God works mightily in our lives. It takes faith for us to be here today, a normal work week, a Friday. It takes faith for us to trust God. It takes faith for us to change our lives and allow Him to work mightily within us. It takes faith to tackle your Jericho. It takes faith to trust that it'll be okay. All these things start with faith, and that is how we can first start dealing with our Jericho.

What else do we do? We follow what we know. We follow what we know. This is that doing part that each of us have to do when we face our Jericho. As the Israelites follow the Lord's instructions given through Joshua, we have also been given instructions to follow God's way, to be different, to stand strong. We have been given strength to tear down strongholds of sin in our lives, to overcome obstacles that have been built up in our lives for maybe years, to tackle those things that we do not want part of our life, to stand against society's pressures, to be different.

I was thinking as I was considering this point of tearing down a stronghold, have you ever buried something like a post in the backyard or in the ground? You dig a hole, you put that post in there, and then later you come back and you try to remove that post. You remove that stick, you remove whatever was in the ground, and it's solidly in there, almost like it's buried in concrete.

Now, when you first dug that hole and you put that post in the ground, it was easy to pull back out. The ground hadn't settled back around it. It wasn't solidified. But over time, over years, that ground got hard around that post, and to remove it took a lot of work. It took a lot of difficulty. This is that dual-edged analogy, because when you have sin that sits in your life for a long amount of time, it can be difficult to pull that out, to allow God to work and really struggle to get that sin out of our lives.

God can do it, but He needs our help. He wants us to be involved in the process. He doesn't just say, I'll just do it. He says, you have to make the choice to be involved as well. But on the flip side, that's dingy posts that's stuck in the ground. What about all those years that you've kept the Feast of Tabernacles? Those years that you have followed God? Those years that you have told an employer, I won't work on the Sabbath? All those years that have, over time, become that hardened ground around your heart to protect it, to keep it where it needs to be.

You and I have made those tough decisions in life. We've battled sin, and we are to continue battling sin as we exit these days.

It is possible, because of God's help, to have sin removed from our lives and to keep it out. But it's going to take work, and it's going to take effort on our part to continue to keep it out.

It's an interesting thought to consider. What is, or what will be, your Jericho this next year? This obstacle that seems so difficult for you to move past, so difficult to handle. And I know, from just a short time we've been here, there are some of you who've been battling your Jerikos this year. And they're still ongoing. You're in the midst of them.

But for some, there will be new Jerikos that will come up. You may be standing at that tree line, as Joshua maybe was doing, staring at your Jericho, wondering what are the next steps. Where do I go? What will I do? Yet God will be there for you. God's always been there for us. We just have to wait, and we have to listen, and we have to see how He will deliver.

Let's look at Luke, chapter 17.

Luke chapter 17, as we wrap up today's message.

Luke 17 and verse 26.

Luke chapter 17 and verse 26.

Luke chapter 17 and verse 26.

And we've been called to stand strong. These are just a couple of the ways that we can apply the account of Israel in the city of Jericho as we exit this feast of Unleavened Bread. It's just an amazing account that we have recorded of God working with His people in a miraculous way. Each year, when we take the Passover and keep the days of Unleavened Bread, we remember that it took the life of the Son of God to cleanse us of our sins. It took His precious blood to wash us and to make us pure. And as we are cleansed, we can stand before God righteous and whole. We are no longer a slave to the world and the sin that it has to offer, but we stand as a servant of the Most High. As the Israelites were led out of Egypt by God's mighty hand, we have been led out of a sinful past through Jesus Christ. We were led through the Red Sea, or the Jordan River, in a sense, when we were baptized into Christ. We have tasted the fruit of God's beautiful way of life as the Israelites enjoyed the blessings of the Promised Land. And with the help of Jesus Christ, let us fight against the strongholds of our lives to preserve all that we have been given by God. Through the support of our High Priest, let us resist sin in every form, shape, and fashion. And through the power of our Savior, let us conquer anything that stands between us and God so that we may be found standing at the end. And to hear, Come, you blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.