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Bro. Otis Fisher
Chapter 11. We probably won't have but one more lesson in Joshua, and it deals with the cities of refuge. So if you want to, in your study, skip to the 20th chapter, you can. All of those chapters in between lists all of the kings and the people that Joshua conquered, and it's a great great horde of them.
Today we find the wicked in their distress often pursue courses which instead of relieving them, it hastens their destruction. So be careful in persisting in sin. Verse 1. Then it came to pass when Jabin king of Hazor had heard those things that he sent to Jobab king of Maiden, and to the king of Shemron, and to the king of Ashaph.
Now as we have studied Joshua, we have found the power of the Lord coming forth, and the more God's power appears, the more wicked rage against it. Which brings me to a question. Does the power of God appear first, or does the power of Satan appear first?
Dennis? All right. Greg? All right, that's a good point. Joy? All right. David? Tell them. God comes first. The worship of idols appeared first or second, Dennis? You see, as someone said, God is first.
He's first in everything. Then Satan rebels in everything. As he sets up his rebellion, it's got to be against something, or it wouldn't be rebellion. So the power of God comes first. Now as David pointed out, if you take an isolated incident, it might appear that Satan is first.
But don't ever let that fool you. Satan can originate nothing. What's that mean, Joy? This is why Satan can only twist everything, and he does a good job of it, Dennis. So remember, God is first, period.
The great I am. Verse two, and the kings that were at the north of the mountains, and the plain south of Cherith, and in the valleys, and in the border of Dor, on the west. Now this is in the area of the, as the evangelist later said, Gennesaret or Tiberias, that lake.
And to the Canaanite on the east, and the west, and to the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Presite, and the Jebusites in the mountains, and to the Hivite under Hermon, and to the land of Mespah, and they went out.
They and all of their hosts with them, much people, even as the sand that is upon the seashore in multitude, with horses and chariots, very, very many. Sounds like a formidable army to me, like the sands on the seashore.
What's he mean by that, David? There's a great lesson here. You know, sometimes we, excuse me, hesitate about the little details, the small things. We think, well, I can take care of that. I'm not gonna bother God with that.
Is that the right attitude, Dwayne? I'm sorry. You sit right there. Well, if you knew, Dwayne, you would. The little things in our life. Greg, how small a thing can we keep to ourselves and not bother God?
Nothing. What about this handkerchief in my pocket? Is that right, Dennis? Is that right, David? Now, you all are answering yes mighty quick. Well, how do we, how do we go about joy of going through the day and looking to God for everything?
You know, it's easy, it's easy for me to pray for someone about cancer and about a heart attack and about someone getting their leg cut off, about the wreck, about the world situation. It's easy for me to turn that over to God, but when it comes to the broken shoelace, I'm supposed to take care of it.
So, if we cannot understand and we cannot find a dividing place, why not just turn it all over to him? And that's not easy, because we react to the situation. But, yes, yes. You must remember, when you first regain consciousness in the morning, you've been unconscious all night, that your first thought is of him and whatever this day holds.
He has two books, the book of works and the Lamb's book of life. Your name is written in one of them. It's written in the book of life when you trusted Jesus Christ as your Savior. Your name will never be written there by your own effort.
Some classes that I have taught over the years, that would apply to some people in the class. Not in this one, I know. If your name is written in the other book, the Lamb's book of life, you didn't write it there, but you have life eternal in Christ.
There's also a book of works. It records the details of everything you have ever done, Dennis. Everything. Not just the things from salvation on, but everything. Now, we pull all of our life together in one word, everything.
That's an awesome, awesome thing. Verse 5, and when all of these kings were met together, they came and pitched together in the waters of Miron to fight against Israel. Now, all of Satan is coming. He has the largest army he could ever mount.
He comes with his horses, with his chariot, with his spears, with his swords, with everything that they used in that day and time. And the Lord said unto Joshua, be not afraid because of them. Now, we look at Joshua and at Moses, and we marvel at the things that they did, and we'd like to read stories about them, but I'm here to tell you that in every story there is a spiritual truth for us.
Let's see what it is here. Be not afraid because of them for tomorrow, about this time, will I deliver them up all slain before Israel. Thou shalt hawk their horses and burn their chariots with fire. What does it mean, David, to hawk a horse?
Well, you haven't. Joy, tell him. No, it's a good term. It doesn't mean to chop them up. Dennis, did you say below their hooves? Okay, is that right, Greg? Well, you didn't stop there. Well, now, try to get the picture.
How do you suppose that Joshua did this and to burn all the chariots? Describe the picture for me, Dennis. Like that. So Joshua came and all the people of war with him against them by the waters of Miron, suddenly, and they fell upon them, suddenly, when they least expected it.
Intending there to refresh the people had prepared themselves for a battle tomorrow, and under themselves for the offensive war they were designed to fight. Now, we don't know how he did this, but somehow he had to infiltrate the enemy's camp, burn their chariots.
They must have, during the night, not used them, of course, and they could have been parked in one place. He could have started a fire in one, and it would have spread. The horses had to be in a corral, an enormous corral, but he sent his people in, just me talking now because we're not told, but he had to send his people in among the horses and nearly hocked them all at once or cut that tendon because they would create a commotion, but that's just supposing.
I do know this, that the aid which God gives is not designed to supersede or render needless human effort. Greg, God could have prevented them from even using the horses. He could have, David, he could have overcome them with sickness that swept their camp.
Why is it that he involved Joshua in this, David? Alright, we find the same thing today, Joy. God doesn't do it all. Well, he does, but we're involved in it, and he does the part that he does to encourage us to make an effort to be involved in it and to render us successful while we're involved in it.
Is that right, Greg? So, don't look to God to take care of everything automatically without being involved yourself. I think we find that true every day, every moment of the day. We've prepared a meal here.
God could have prepared that meal without our aid. He didn't. He could have caused you all to just appear here without driving, but he didn't. Verse 8, and the Lord delivered them into the hand of Israel who smote them and chased them unto great Zidon and to Mesopotamia and unto the valley of Mespa and eastward, and they smote them until they left them none remaining.
First of all, God did away with their chariots. He did away with their horses. They had to fight on foot, and they lost. And Joshua did unto them as the Lord bade him. He hawked their horses and burnt their chariots with fire.
The reason for this special command was that the Lord designed to lead the Israelites to trust in him. Do you see that? And to not trust in military might. To show that the land of promise, there was no use of the horses.
And finally, to discourage their traveling as they were to be in the agriculture and not a traveling people. So they had no use for the horses. Now, if you will skip over to verse 20, we find some words that are very, very potent to us.
In verse 20, for it was the Lord to harden their horse hearts, that they should come out against Israel in battle, that he might destroy them utterly, and they might have no favor, but that he might destroy them as the Lord commandeth Moses.
For it was the Lord. This is a phrase that we can utter after everything, anything. It was the Lord, in this case, to harden their hearts. What's he mean, harden their hearts, David? All right. The hardening of the heart, does not that call for the softening of the heart?
Also, on the other side, there's a great lesson in this. For it was the Lord to harden their hearts, or to soften their hearts. But we're still involved. Even Satan's people are involved. We're playing out, going through the motions of our life, but it's all orchestrated by God.
For it was the Lord to harden their hearts, that they should come against Israel in battle, that he might destroy them utterly, that Joshua might destroy them utterly, and they might have no favor, but that he might destroy them as the Lord commanded Moses.
To harden their hearts, it was the design of God's providence, not to soften their hearts to a compliance with the Israelites, but to give them up to their own animosity. What if they had gone the other way?
What if they'd just given up and say, here we are, come take us, we'll be your slaves forever, and there was no battle. Greg, we can play the what-if game all day long. It just didn't happen that way.
That's so their abominable and incorrigible wickedness might be punished. Now, is he not going to punish people, Satan's people, after, toward the end of life, after the resurrection, after the great white throne judgment?
Is there not going to be a punishment for those that stand against God? Well, why is he doing it here? If the people had been allowed to live, the Israelites would have mixed in with them, but be entire among themselves in the possession of the land.
God wanted them to possess the land. I cannot help but think about our involvement in Iraq and Iran. The only way we'll ever win completely is to totally eliminate them, but we're too educated to do that, too sophisticated.
But know this, that when God has determined to destroy a man, he'll let them pursue the way of folly and ascend to their ruin. Yes. When you mingle, Greg, when you mingle something with the pure something, does that make it more pure?
An absolute law of science, it makes it less pure. You can take a gallon of white paint and put one drop of black into it and it's not white anymore. This country, in tolerating sin, has become part of it.
And at that time came Joshua and cut off the Anak cut off the Anakite, Anak you pronounce it, when from the mountains of Hebron, from Deborah, from Arab, from the mountains of Judah, and from all the mountains of Israel, Joshua destroyed them utterly with their cities.
He couldn't do that today. He couldn't fight this war today like that. There was none of them Anakites left in the land of the children of Israel, only in Gaza and Gath and Asherah there remained. So Joshua took the whole land according to all that the Lord had said unto Moses, and Joshua gave it for an inheritance unto Israel according to their divisions by their tribes, and the land rested from war.
That concludes the war. We're going to see next week the cities of refuge. Now if you don't know about the cities of refuge, you'll be sure and study next week's lesson. I think it's in the 20th chapter.
I may be wrong there, but look for the city of refuge. I want to know why they were established. I want to know how far apart they were, how many there were, and what the process of refuge provided. All right, is there anything?
We have plenty of time this morning to discuss anything. I don't know why. Anybody have a good answer? Yeah, which brings me to another question. Why does God leave our adversaries? Why does God leave them here?
Why does he have them come against us? David, why does God have in the world and always has had evil? I think it's to make us more fit for heaven. It's to make us, as David said, more Christ-like. Yes, I don't have a good answer other than it pleases God to do it that way, and I can see that it makes me to become more like Christ because I'm not naturally.
So God has the punishment here for us to see, and none of this overcomes or does away with the law of the land. Anything else? David? Dwayne? Dennis? Calling the roll. You. Dismiss us, will you?