Crossroads Church - Plymouth, IN
Joshua - Jesus in the Old Testament
Worship Gathering
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Crossroads Church
1650 N Oak Dr, Plymouth, IN 46563, USA
Sunday 8:00 AM
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Joshua 5:13–15 (ESV) - When Joshua was by Jericho, he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, a man was standing before him with his drawn sword in his hand. And Joshua went to him and said to him, “Are you for us, or for our adversaries?” 14And he said, “No; but I am the commander of the army of the Lord. Now I have come.” And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped and said to him, “What does my lord say to his servant?” 15And the commander of the Lord’s army said to Joshua, “Take off your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.
1. Who is this guy?
Are you choosing to be on God’s side, or are you expecting God to be on your side?
Romans 8:28 (ESV) - And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.
Are you choosing to be on God’s side, or are you expecting God to be on your side?
Romans 8:28 (ESV) - And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.
Ephesians 5:1–2 (ESV) - Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. 2And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
Galatians 5:16 (ESV) - But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.
The compelling motivation to pursue the holiness of God, is the grace of God!
Galatians 5:16 (ESV) - But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.
The compelling motivation to pursue the holiness of God, is the grace of God!
2. Why the Canaanites?
Genesis 15:12–16 (ESV) - As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. And behold, dreadful and great darkness fell upon him. 13Then the Lord said to Abram, “Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years. 14But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions. 15As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age. 16And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.”
- The Canaanites had become extremely morally corrupt – especially when it came to sexual immorality (Leviticus 18)
- The Canaanites participated in child sacrifice – the taking of innocent life (Deut. 12:29-31)
Deuteronomy 12:29–31 (ESV) - “When the Lord your God cuts off before you the nations whom you go in to dispossess, and you dispossess them and dwell in their land, 30take care that you be not ensnared to follow them, after they have been destroyed before you, and that you do not inquire about their gods, saying, ‘How did these nations serve their gods?—that I also may do the same.’ 31You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way, for every abominable thing that the Lord hates they have done for their gods, for they even burn their sons and their daughters in the fire to their gods.
Genesis 9:6 (ESV) - “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image.
God desires for us to break from sin – stand strong against temptation – don’t let it hang around.
Genesis 15:12–16 (ESV) - As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. And behold, dreadful and great darkness fell upon him. 13Then the Lord said to Abram, “Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years. 14But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions. 15As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age. 16And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.”
- The Canaanites had become extremely morally corrupt – especially when it came to sexual immorality (Leviticus 18)
- The Canaanites participated in child sacrifice – the taking of innocent life (Deut. 12:29-31)
Deuteronomy 12:29–31 (ESV) - “When the Lord your God cuts off before you the nations whom you go in to dispossess, and you dispossess them and dwell in their land, 30take care that you be not ensnared to follow them, after they have been destroyed before you, and that you do not inquire about their gods, saying, ‘How did these nations serve their gods?—that I also may do the same.’ 31You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way, for every abominable thing that the Lord hates they have done for their gods, for they even burn their sons and their daughters in the fire to their gods.
Genesis 9:6 (ESV) - “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image.
God desires for us to break from sin – stand strong against temptation – don’t let it hang around.
3. The Defeat of Jericho
As we understand, the tactics of the battle are not the important part. The obedience of Israel is the important part. They were to follow whatever God told them to do.
Joshua 6:16, 20 (ESV) - And at the seventh time, when the priests had blown the trumpets, Joshua said to the people, “Shout, for the Lord has given you the city…20So the people shouted, and the trumpets were blown. As soon as the people heard the sound of the trumpet, the people shouted a great shout…
Deuteronomy 7:1-2 (ESV) - 1“When the Lord your God brings you into the land that you are entering to take possession of it, and clears away many nations before you…2and when the Lord your God gives them over to you, and you defeat them, then you must devote them to complete destruction. You shall make no covenant with them and show no mercy to them.
Joshua 6:20 (ESV) …and the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they captured the city.
As we understand, the tactics of the battle are not the important part. The obedience of Israel is the important part. They were to follow whatever God told them to do.
Joshua 6:16, 20 (ESV) - And at the seventh time, when the priests had blown the trumpets, Joshua said to the people, “Shout, for the Lord has given you the city…20So the people shouted, and the trumpets were blown. As soon as the people heard the sound of the trumpet, the people shouted a great shout…
Deuteronomy 7:1-2 (ESV) - 1“When the Lord your God brings you into the land that you are entering to take possession of it, and clears away many nations before you…2and when the Lord your God gives them over to you, and you defeat them, then you must devote them to complete destruction. You shall make no covenant with them and show no mercy to them.
Joshua 6:20 (ESV) …and the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they captured the city.
Bible Archaeology - The Wall of Jericho
https://biblearchaeology.org/research/conquest-of-canaan/3625-the-walls-of-jerichoAnswers in Genesis - The Walls of Jericho
https://answersingenesis.org/archaeology/the-walls-of-jericho/Discussion Questions
1. Read Joshua 5:13-15. Discuss why you think the “man” answered Joshua the way he did. What do you think this entire encounter with the commander of the Lord’s army was meant to teach Joshua?
2. What do you think the people of Israel first thought when Joshua told them the military strategy God laid out to defeat Jericho? What was God committing to and what was the responsibility of Israel?
3. As we will see, most of Canaan was taken through ordinary military means. Why do you think God chose to give Israel Jericho in this miraculous way?
4. Why was it important for Israel to keep God’s command of complete destruction (Deuteronomy 7:1-2; 12:29-31)? What does this teach us about God’s holiness and what He thinks about sin?
5. What does the saving of Rahab and her family teach us about God?
6. Do you expect God to be on your side, or are you doing all you can to be on His side? How do you know you are doing all you can to be on God’s side?
1. Read Joshua 5:13-15. Discuss why you think the “man” answered Joshua the way he did. What do you think this entire encounter with the commander of the Lord’s army was meant to teach Joshua?
2. What do you think the people of Israel first thought when Joshua told them the military strategy God laid out to defeat Jericho? What was God committing to and what was the responsibility of Israel?
3. As we will see, most of Canaan was taken through ordinary military means. Why do you think God chose to give Israel Jericho in this miraculous way?
4. Why was it important for Israel to keep God’s command of complete destruction (Deuteronomy 7:1-2; 12:29-31)? What does this teach us about God’s holiness and what He thinks about sin?
5. What does the saving of Rahab and her family teach us about God?
6. Do you expect God to be on your side, or are you doing all you can to be on His side? How do you know you are doing all you can to be on God’s side?