Joshua 05: Prepare for Battle

Joshua 05:Joshua 5:1-12

There’s been a lot of talk as to how prepared we were for this pandemic, or how unprepared we were. How prepared were you spiritually? How prepared are you for other events in your life? Good things / bad things?

I think it’s helpful as we look at the book of Joshua, to see how God prepares His people. They’ve just crossed the Jordan, and they’re about to conquer Jericho, but there is still a bit of preparation that takes place before they do.

And what I want to put to you today, is that the best preparation for any battle is devoting ourselves to God, and pointing ourselves to God and his purposes and promises.

Today we don’t face Jericho and physical battles like that, but we are fighting a spiritual battle. Eg. Ephesians.  

I think we see the same principle for the physical battles here in Joshua chapter 5 as they prepare to face Jericho.

Joshua chapter 5, Israel have just crossed the Jordan. They’ve just experienced this amazing miracle from God. so they would be excited about whats going on. I’m sure they would have been quite amped to now go and invade Jericho. Even though that would have been a daunting task. After having just seen the evidence of God’s hand at work, this would have been a great motivator, and would have given them great confidence.

But what was about to happen next, may not have seemed as inspiring. It may not have seemed as exciting as crossing the Jordan. You may even question whether this was necessary just before going up against Jericho.

Look at chapter 5 vs 2-8:

² At that time the Lord said to Joshua, “Make flint knives and circumcise the Israelites again.”³ So Joshua made flint knives and circumcised the Israelites at Gibeath Haaraloth.

So, God gives instruction to Joshua to circumcise the Israelites. And this isn’t just God giving an instruction on a whim. There is a significance to what God is asking here. The next couple of verses explain why.

⁴ Now this is why he did so: All those who came out of Egypt—all the men of military age—died in the wilderness on the way after leaving Egypt.⁵ All the people that came out had been circumcised, but all the people born in the wilderness during the journey from Egypt had not. ⁶ The Israelites had moved about in the wilderness forty years until all the men who were of military age when they left Egypt had died, since they had not obeyed the Lord. For the Lord had sworn to them that they would not see the land he had solemnly promised their ancestors to give us, a land flowing with milk and honey. ⁷ So he raised up their sons in their place, and these were the ones Joshua circumcised. They were still uncircumcised because they had not been circumcised on the way. ⁸ And after the whole nation had been circumcised, they remained where they were in camp until they were healed.

So, as you know, the adult generation that came out Egypt. The men would have been circumcised while they were still in Egypt. It was part of their obedience to God. It was part of God’s covenant with His people. Part of the covenant sign that goes back to when God instructed Abraham. Remember Abraham. The one to whom God made covenant promises – descendants / blessing / land.

Genesis 17 is one of those occasions where God makes promises to Abraham is 99 years old. God appears to Him. and he says to Him,

“I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless. Then I will make my covenant between me and you will greatly increase your numbers.”  

And Abraham then falls facedown before God. and God says to him:

⁴ “As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations.⁵ No longer will you be called Abram^[b]; your name will be Abraham,^[c] for I have made you a father of many nations.⁶ I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. ⁷ I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you.

⁸ The whole land of Canaan, where you now reside as a foreigner, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God.”

⁹ Then God said to Abraham, “As for you, you must keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you for the generations to come.¹⁰ This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised. ¹¹ You are to undergo circumcision, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and you.

Circumcision was a sign of the covenant between God and His people. The covenant that promised that God would bless His people, land for God’s people. And specifically the land of Canaan that God had pointed out to Abraham.

Now you have the new generation who had now crossed the Jordan, none of them were circumcised. None of them had the sign of the covenant. So this whole circumcision episode serves a purpose. It’s to point them back to God. It’s to point them back to the covenant that God made with Abraham. It’s to point them to God’s promises. It’s to remind them of God’s purposes. An act of obedience that pointed Israel back to the promises of God.

I mean when you think about it, what is God’s purpose for Israel as a nation? Success? Great leadership? Happy people?

There’s nothing wrong with any of those things, and those could very well be by products. But the goal was always for God’s people to glorify God / to worship God. To serve God. To obey God.

I mean, just going back to the promises that God made to Abraham in Genesis chapter 17: God makes it clear that He is God Almighty. Look again at Genesis 17 vs 8:

⁸ The whole land of Canaan, where you now reside as a foreigner, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God.”

God wasn’t going to settle for just being this fairy godmother who arranged things to go Israel’s way. NO, He was to be Israel’s God. He was to be central to everything. He was to be glorified. His purposes were to be their purposes. They were to submit to His ways. Their hope was to be placed in His promises.

Eg. Nintendo Wii – recalibrating the remotes so that they are in sync.

In one sense Israel is recalibrating. There’s something that needs to be done. And that is the circumcision of a whole generation. And they need to recalibrate. They need to focus. They to get in line with what God is doing. They need to be in sync with what God is doing. Their purposes need to be in line with God’s purposes.

So that they don’t conquer Jericho for themselves. With an entitlement as if they’ve done something great. But they go ahead as God’s people, who are fulfilling the promises of God, people who are included and are on the good side of God’s purposes.

So here we have this generation, being asked to commit this act of obedience. Almost as a contrast to the previous generation that weren’t entering the land because of their disobedience.

There’s something else that Israel does to point them back to God. They celebrate the Passover. Which is a God given reminder of what God did for them in Egypt. And they do it just after a statement that God makes to Joshua in verse 9:

⁹ Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you.” So the place has been called Gilgal^[c] to this day.

¹⁰ On the evening of the fourteenth day of the month, while camped at Gilgal on the plains of Jericho, the Israelites celebrated the Passover.¹¹ The day after the Passover, that very day, they ate some of the produce of the land: unleavened bread and roasted grain. ¹² The manna stopped the day after^[d] they ate this food from the land; there was no longer any manna for the Israelites, but that year they ate the produce of Canaan.

So here they are. Remembering God’s promises. Reminding themselves what God has done. Circumcision. The Passover. And then also enjoying the blessings of God’s promises. Eating food from the land. No longer relying on manna, which was a great way of God providing for them. But that phase was now over. And they could enjoy the fruit of the land that God had promised. And they could recognize that it was from God. The covenant God who had saved them.

Remember chapter 3 and 4, we looked at the stones that were laid as a reminder of what God had done. This week, circumcision, is a reminder, a sign of the covenant, pointing to the Gods promises. The Passover was something the Israelites did to keep pointing to that night when their families were spared the judgement that was shown to the Egyptians.

You may also remember just before they crossed the Jordan river, God asked them to consecrate themselves. To go through a cleansing where they reflected on God and His Holiness. Remember the Arc of the Covenant was carried and visible as a reminder of the Holiness of God, and the presence of God, and the promises of God.

All of these things to bring their attention back to God. These things help Israel to keep the focus where the focus should be, so that it doesn’t become about them. But it stays about God.

Where is your focus?this morning? In the universe that you live in, who does everything revolve around? YOU? Or God Almighty?  Maybe you need reminding that whatever is happening in your life, is more about God’s purposes than it is about your misery. Not to undermine any struggle that you may be going through. And not to say God doesn’t care. Actually, it’s quite the opposite. God does care about you. He cares about you so much that He’s included you in his plans and purposes. It’s for His glory and for your good.

If we are going to call ourselves God’s people, we must remember that HE IS OUR GOD. He is GOD and we are His people. But He is God. That’s his place in your life. Your relationship with God isn’t one for your convenience. Your relationship with God isn’t one so that everything in life can go your way. It’s so that everything can go God’s way.  

The writer of Psalm 42 was prepared. But without going into too much detail. The Psalmist is going through some big struggles. He feels like God is far away. He’s overwhelmed by whatever He is facing. But there’s refrain, a chorus if you will in this Psalm, which is in Psalm 43 as well. In fact the 2 Psalms go together. The refrain says this in verse 5, and in verse 11 at the end of the Psalm:

⁵ Why, my soul, are you downcast?
    Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
    for I will yet praise him,
    my Savior and my God.

Despite all that he is going through, he can put his hope in God. He can say, for I will yet praise him, my saviour and my God.

Here’s a guy who is in a space in terms of how he feels, like God has forgotten him. If you look at verse 9 and 10 of Psalm 42:

⁹ I say to God my Rock,
    “Why have you forgotten me?
Why must I go about mourning,
    oppressed by the enemy?”
¹⁰ My bones suffer mortal agony
    as my foes taunt me,
saying to me all day long,
    “Where is your God?”

But yet there in verse 11 he says:

¹¹ Why, my soul, are you downcast?
    Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
    for I will yet praise him,
    my Savior and my God.

How could he say that? How could, even though he was going through such turmoil. Instead of blaming God, instead of abandoning God, he could still look to God as his hope and saviour and salvation.

The answer, he had been prepared for this. He remembers back to a time when his focus was on God. He mentions when he used to go to the temple with God’s people. When times were good. And because of being part of that culture, a culture of worship and pointing to God.

Are you prepared for when things are going to go bad? Are you spiritually prepared? Are you prepared in such a way, that you’ll be able to look to God, you’ll be able to put your hope in Him, your saviour and your God.

Are you prepared for when things go well, and you’ll experience God’s blessings? Are you prepared in such a way that those blessings that you recognize where they come from? That when those blessings take place your eyes will still be fixed on Jesus.

If you’re involved in some form of ministry at church? Are you prepared for that? Do you see your purpose in that ministry to be for God’s glory? Not for your ego, or for your agenda, or to show how great you are. But for the glory of God.

We need to keep reminding ourselves of what God has done for us. As Christians, we need to go back to the cross. We need to look to Jesus. We need to realize where our hope lies.

Are you prepared? Whether it’s victory or defeat that lies ahead of you? Are your eyes fixed on Jesus? Is your concern for God’s ultimate purposes? Is God’s place in your life, the place of God? the one who reigns over every aspect of your life?

Home Group Questions:

Read Joshua 5 vs 1-12

1. Why did these circumcisions have to take place? Vs 4-6
2. We read in Genesis 17 that circumcision is a sign of God’s covenant with Abraham, what promises were made to Abraham in Genesis 17 vs 4-8? Note the significance of the promises made in Gen 17, and the point in Israel’s History in Joshua 5.
3. In this passage, we see the Israelite males being circumcised, we also see Israel celebrating the Passover and enjoying the food from the land. Why are they doing these things just before conquering Jericho?
4. What are some of things that we can do keep our focus on God, and prepare us to face whatever comes our way, whether it’s a trial, a battle or God’s blessings?

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