Joshua 06: Whose side are you on?

Joshua 5:13-6:27.

Whose side are you on?

We live in a world where you’re forced to take sides on so many different things. When you look at everything that’s going on at the moment. We live in a world that is very divided on many issues. And everybody’s pressuring you to pick a side.

And it’s difficult to be neutral on these issues. When you’re having those conversations with people, it’s difficult not to be forced into a corner where you have to pick a side.  

So what I want us to look at today is the fact that we are on a particular side. If you’re a Christian. You are on God’s side. You are on the side of one who rules the universe. You are on the side of the one who has everything under control.

Eg. Pastor going to President during a war, “I hope God is on our side.” To which the president replied, “I hope we are on God’s side, For God is always right!”

So today as we look at the next movement in the book of Joshua, we see what happened to a group of people, who were on God’s side. We also see what happened to a group of people who weren’t on God’s side. And this all happens in the midst of the historical battle of Jericho.

So, in chapter 5 vs 13-15, Joshua is going towards Jericho. And as he is traveling, he looks up, he sees a man in front of him. This man has a drawn sword in his hand. So Joshua, doesn’t know too much about this man. He doesn’t know who this man is. So he asks this man, to find out who’s side he is on, he asks him, “Are you for us, or for our enemies?” In other words, “whose side are you on?”

To which the man replies, “Neither, but I have come as a commander of the Lord’s army.” And we are told that when Joshua hears this, he falls face down to the ground in reverence and asks, “what message does my Lord have for His servant? Or as the ESV translates it, “Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped and said to him, “What does my Lord say to His servant?” To which this commander of the Lord’s army replies: “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is Holy.” And we are told that Joshua did so. Remember the story of the burning bush, Moses was asked to do the same thing.

Then we arrive at chapter 6. If this were a movie the scene would now switch from Joshua taking off his sandals, to a city. Showing the gates that are secured. Bolted and locked from the inside. A city that has been secured to keep out a looming threat. A threat that they know is inevitable. We already saw at the beginning of chapter 5, how all the Amorite kings, and Canaanite kings, how their hearts were melting in fear, because of the looming threat of the Israelites. Especially when they had heard about how God had dried up the Jordan. We are told how they didn’t even have courage to face the Israelites. These powerful kings and cities who would have normally seemed very intimidating. But now were melting in fear. And here stands Jericho. The first city on the Israelite hitlist, that will be given to them by God. Locked up. Filled with residents who are living in fear. Waiting for the imminent attack.

Then you switch to the next scene where God says to Joshua in verse 2, “See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with it’s king and it’s fighting men.” It was evident that here was city that had given up. They were waiting in fear. They didn’t even seem to have defence ready for Israel. And so God proceeds to give Joshua the instructions as to how they are to take over Jericho. Look at verse 3-5:

3 March around the city once with all the armed men. Do this for six days. 4 Have seven priests carry trumpets of rams’ horns in front of the ark. On the seventh day, march around the city seven times, with the priests blowing the trumpets. 5 When you hear them sound a long blast on the trumpets, have the whole army give a loud shout; then the wall of the city will collapse and the army will go up, everyone straight in.”

And so Joshua starts to convey to the priests what they need to do. And then he orders the army to go and march around the city, just as God had told him. And so they proceed to go about doing what God had instructed them to do. Note that the ark of the covenant leads the way. Remember when they crossed the Jordan, how the ark of the covenant was leading the way, because it was the representation of God’s presence among them. It was a reminder of God who promised them this land.

So Israel go ahead. And they do it following God’s instructions. They do it, trusting in God. Because when you look at the instructions that God gave to them. That certainly wasn’t the usual way that you conquer a city. The methods that God had instructed them to use as they surrounded Jericho, weren’t the usual methods that armies would employ when they attacked a city. They’re just told to march around the city for 6 days. They’re told not to even give a war cry, until God says that it’s time for them to shout. They were to just circle the city for nearly a week. Can you imagine how the citizens of Jericho must have felt. Waiting in anticipation to be attacked, while the Israelites march around the city once a day.

Then we get to the 7th day. On this particular day, they circle the city 7 times. And near the end of verse 16, Joshua commands the army to shout. He says, “Shout! For the Lord has given you the city.” And then he says a number of other things as well. Just look at verse 17-19:

17 The city and all that is in it are to be devoted[a] to the Lord. Only Rahab the prostitute and all who are with her in her house shall be spared, because she hid the spies we sent. 18 But keep away from the devoted things, so that you will not bring about your own destruction by taking any of them. Otherwise you will make the camp of Israel liable to destruction and bring trouble on it. 19 All the silver and gold and the articles of bronze and iron are sacred to the Lord and must go into his treasury.”

And then, the moment arrives. Look at verse 20:

20 When the trumpets sounded, the army shouted, and at the sound of the trumpet, when the men gave a loud shout, the wall collapsed; so everyone charged straight in, and they took the city.

Then look at what happens next:

21 They devoted the city to the Lord and destroyed with the sword every living thing in it—men and women, young and old, cattle, sheep and donkeys.

We need to understand a bit of background here. We need to dig a little bit deeper into the Canaanites to understand why this is happening. God doesn’t just knock people off as collateral damage along the way. There is a purpose behind what is happening here. And there is a lesson here for us to learn as we look at the destruction and death in Jericho, and also in various other cities as we continue into the book of Joshua.

The Canaanites were enemies of God. We see this in Leviticus. Where God is giving the law to Israel. In Leviticus chapter 18, it says this:

18 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘I am the Lord your God. 3 You must not do as they do in Egypt, where you used to live, and you must not do as they do in the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you. Do not follow their practices.

And then as the chapter goes on, God lists a whole lot of sins that they must avoid at all costs. And then you get to verse 24 of Leviticus 18:

24 “‘Do not defile yourselves in any of these ways, because this is how the nations that I am going to drive out before you became defiled. 25 Even the land was defiled; so I punished it for its sin, and the land vomited out its inhabitants. 26 But you must keep my decrees and my laws. The native-born and the foreigners residing among you must not do any of these detestable things, 27 for all these things were done by the people who lived in the land before you, and the land became defiled. 28 And if you defile the land, it will vomit you out as it vomited out the nations that were before you.

The Canaanites were Godless people. They were a people that lived to gratify their own desires. They worshipped idols. One of the Canaanite gods called Molech, to whom they would sacrifice their children. They were bad. They had done evil in the eyes of the God. They deserved destruction.

What we see Israel doing to Jericho, and to the other nations that they go in and attack. They are carrying out God’s judgement on the Canaanites. Not as self appointed judges. Or as self appointed executioners. But God has commanded them to do it.

There’s a lesson to be learned here. This story should make us sit up and take note. Because when we see what happens to the occupants of Jericho. Men and women, young and old. We see here that God doesn’t tolerate sin. God will not tolerate sin. And offenders of God will be dealt with.

Now you may look at Jericho, and you may think. Ok, maybe that’s ok then. God can deal with them. They sacrificed babies. They did all sorts of things that offended God. But you need to realize that you’re also an offender of God. You need to realize that you’re also a sinner, and your sin needs to be dealt with.

It’s a very dangerous place to be. When you start comparing yourself to other people. and because you live a more moral life than them. Or you think that you’re more charitable than them. You think that they’re bad, and that you’re not so bad. The Bible, God’s word, tells us that we all have sin that needs to be dealt with. We’ve all done stuff that has offended God. In fact by our very nature, we are all sinful. Our hearts are sinful. Our thoughts are sinful, our words and actions are sinful. In fact often our lack of action is what is sinful.

But one of the lessons to be learnt here is that God hates sin. And we need to all realize that we are sinners. Don’t sit there this morning and think that you’re not so bad. The point is that you are bad. And your sin needs to be dealt with. As Christians, as people who know the big picture. We know that as Christians, Jesus died on the cross for our sins. Jesus paid the price for our sins. He paid the price for those who turn to him and ask him for forgiveness. The only way that our sins could be taken care of was for someone who wasn’t sinful to take on our punishment for us. Sin is that serious. And God isn’t going to just brush it under the carpet.

But even though God won’t let sin go unpunished. Even though God hates sin, and has to do something about it. He listens to those who turn to him. and we see that as well in Joshua 6. We saw in verse 17 when Joshua was instructing them what to do, to leave Rahab and her family alone. We see it again in verse 22. Look at what he says:

22 Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the land, “Go into the prostitute’s house and bring her out and all who belong to her, in accordance with your oath to her.”

Here was a resident of Jericho, who recognized who God was, who wanted to be on God’s side. Remember what she said in chapter 2. Remember she wasn’t an Israelite. She didn’t have the same insight that they had as to who God is. But yet she recognized that He was God. so back in chapter 2 she says to the spies in chapter 2 verse 11: She was saying how they had heard of what God had done. How he had dried up the Red sea for the Israelites. How he had helped them destroy two of the Amorite kings: so she pleads with the spies that she and her family will be spared. And in chapter 2 verse 11 says this:

When we heard of it, our hearts melted in fear and everyone’s courage failed because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven  above and on the earth below.

Do you see here how she recognized who God is? And God saved her. God spared her. So back to chapter 6 and look at verse 23.

 23 So the young men who had done the spying went in and brought out Rahab, her father and mother, her brothers and sisters and all who belonged to her. They brought out her entire family and put them in a place outside the camp of Israel.

24 Then they burned the whole city and everything in it, but they put the silver and gold and the articles of bronze and iron into the treasury of the Lord’s house. 25 But Joshua spared Rahab the prostitute, with her family and all who belonged to her, because she hid the men Joshua had sent as spies to Jericho—and she lives among the Israelites to this day.

Here is a prostitute and her family. Out of a bad bunch of people, she was probably one of the worst. In fact if Leviticus 18 that we looked at earlier is anything to go by. If you had to go and read that chapter, you’ll see that God doesn’t look favourably on sexual sin. And Rahab was a prostitute. One who would have committed many sexual sins. One who would have led many others into committing sexual sins. But yet, she is the one God saves.

Here’s the thing to note about the gospel. Your sin is what condemns you, but your lack of sin isn’t what saves you. In other words, the criteria for being saved isn’t who has sinned the least. The criteria for salvation isn’t who has lived the best life. The criteria is that you are a sinner who needs a saviour. And you recognize that need. You recognize that God is so great as Rahab did. He is the Lord of heaven and earth. And we are not worthy of knowing him. the only way that we can know him, is if He is merciful to us.

Rahab was saved by the grace of God. Rahab was on God’s side. So there is another lesson to learn to hear. As much as God hates sin, as much as sin is offensive to God. And God is offended by all sin by the way. Not just the extreme ones like sacrificing babies. As much as God is offended by sin. He still makes it possible for people like you and I to know him and relate to him. Those who recognize that God is God. Those who recognize that he is the one who rules all things. He is the one who deserves all the glory and praise. He is the one to whom we should turn to for mercy.

And we are in the fortunate position today where we can see that mercy at the cross. We can turn to Jesus. Do you want to be on God’s side? Turn to Jesus. Admit that your salvation doesn’t lie in your hands because you’re not capable. But that Jesus took care of it on the cross.

Do you notice in this chapter, in fact, do you notice in this book, how everything is to be done God’s way. All the decisions, all the strategies, what happens to everything. Joshua doesn’t go on TV and say, “My Fellow Israelites this is what we are going to be doing. . .” and then the following day Social media is going crazy because they don’t like what he’s doing. And then there’s a press conference where people get to question the actions. And then there’s an opposing party that wants to take Joshua to court because they feel it’s unfair.

No, Israel wasn’t a democracy, it was a Theocracy. Israel was a state run by God. And they did exactly what God said. Without question. And nor should they question God, because God knows best. In our country and in our political systems throughout the world, we have every right to question what our leaders are doing, because they’re human. They can get things wrong. Yes, we believe God has put them in those positions, but we know they are fallible. But in Israel, when God says Jump, you say how high. It’s a reflection of their faith.

When it comes to being a Christian, we need to have that kind of relationship with God. Where we trust him. Where we believe He knows what is best for us. Even when you’re going through bad times. Even when you find it difficult to trust Him. If you are on God’s side, you are on the winning side. God is working everything out for His glory. Which means His side wins. And He demands our devotion.

Eg. Liverpool supporters and their dedication.

What kind of follower of God are you? How dedicated are you? We see in this passage, that if you are going to be on God’s side, he demands full devotion. All the spoils of victory are his. All the plans that we obey are His. We do things God’s way.

Questions for Home Group

Read Joshua 5:13-6:27

• How would you describe Israel’s obedience in chapter 6?
• Read Leviticus 18 vs 3; vs 20-28. What does this tell you about the reason behind the killing of the Canaanites and the inhabitants of Jericho?
• What does the sparing of Rahab and her family teach us about salvation?
• What does this chapter teach us about devotion to God? see how many times the word ‘devoted’ is used.
• What does this teach us about our devotion to God?