Let’s turn to the book of Joshua. Joshua is the first book of the Bible to be named after a person. The first mention of Joshua comes in Exodus as the children of Israel were being attacked by the Amalekites. Moses commissioned Joshua to go down and to lead the army of God against the enemy. Joshua, at that time, was a young man; he was Moses’ minister, or private servant. He went with Moses up into the mount, when Moses received the law from the LORD. He was with Moses when the power of God was distributed among the seventy elders to help Moses in the governing of the people. When reports came that a couple of fellows were prophesying out in the camp, it was Joshua who said, “Moses, shall I go and stop them?” Joshua is now the one that the LORD has chosen to lead the children of Israel into the promised land.

And in the book of Joshua we get some beautiful Scriptural typology. Paul, speaking of the experiences of Israel, their history of being delivered from Egypt, going through the wilderness, coming into the promised land, said, “These things all happened to them as examples for us.” That is, their’s is a typical history, so that the bondage of Egypt is equivalent to our bondage in sin. Their passing through the Red sea is equivalent to water baptism. A new relationship with God, a new life. Their wilderness experiences are typical of our early experiences in seeking to follow the LORD. “That rock in the wilderness, from which the water of life flowed, was Jesus Christ,” Paul said.

Now we come to the entering into the promised land. There are those that would make this typical of heaven, and the Jordan River as typical of death. And in some of our hymnology we find the Jordan River used as a type of death: “I will not have to cross Jordan alone, Jesus died for my sins to atone.” And so it is used as a thing of death. “Swing low, sweet chariot, coming forth to carry me home. I looked over Jordan, what did I see? A band of angels coming after me, coming forth to carry me home. Swing low, sweet chariot.” So it’s used in some of the songs to represent death.

But in reality, that would mean that the land of promise was heaven. And there are those who make that typology: that of coming into heaven, and the promises of God being fulfilled. However, there are problems with that. Inasmuch, as the first thing that happened when they came into the land is that they were in a fight. I don’t think there will be any fights in heaven. I don’t think we’ll have to do any conquering up there. I believe that when we arrive there, we have arrived, and that’s it!

So I believe that, as Paul speaks about the reckoning of the old man to be dead with Christ: “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ is living in me.” But the Jordan River is representative to that place in our spiritual growth where we come to that reckoning of that old man, the old nature, to be dead with Christ. I believe it is moving out of Romans chapter 7, where I have sought so hard in my flesh and by my works to please God, and I come to the despair of my flesh. I come to the realization with Paul, that “in me, that is in my flesh, there dwells no good thing.” And I realize that my only way to live a victorious life is through the help and the power of God. And with Paul, in Romans 7, I cry out, “Oh wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from this body of death?” And it is when I cry for deliverance, and I am looking outside of myself, the answer comes: for it is then that God begins His work of victory in my life, it is there where I reckon my old nature to be dead, and I begin to walk in the Spirit.

And as such, I begin to conquer over those strongholds that the flesh has had. I begin to see the walled cities torn down, I begin to see the giants fall, I begin to possess those glorious experiences that God has promised to the believer. I begin to really live in spiritual victory: in Christ, in heavenly places. And I believe it’s really moving in to the book of Ephesians, and into that glorious, overcoming life, that life of victory that God wants each of you to know: victory over the flesh, over the old nature because we reckon that to be dead. And we begin to see that aspect of the old nature go: the temper that we used to have, the desires we used to have, we begin to see these conquered by the Spirit of God. And I begin to take real territory, and begin to live the life that God wants me to live as His child.

And so, coming in to this full, rich life of the Spirit, we find beautiful analogies here in the book of Joshua. And as we move into the book, we will find the principles by which we overcome the enemies, we find the dangers that we have to watch for; even as we have entered into this life and we learn to walk in the Spirit, here in the book of Joshua. And thus, it promises to be an exciting journey for us, and by the grace of God, we will move with Joshua into this land, and we will begin to conquer over those areas of the world, and the flesh. And we’ll begin to see God’s Spirit working in our lives, bringing us victory where in the past we had only known defeat. And so this will be the spiritual analogy that we’ll be following, and looking for, as we move on in to the book of Joshua.

Joshua’s name was originally Oshea. It was changed by Moses as he inserted the LORD’s name into the name of Oshea, and they called him ‘Jeho-shua.’ Now, ‘shea’ means “salvation.” The ‘Jehoshua’ means “the LORD is salvation.” As you read, twice in the New Testament, references to Joshua, they call him Jesus because that is the Greek name for the Hebrew name Joshua.

And in the book of Hebrews, it speaks of how that Jesus, that is Joshua, was not able to bring the people into the rest. He brought them into the land, they conquered the land, but he never brought them into the rest. And that is what Jesus Christ has done for us: our Sabbath, who has brought us into the glorious rest where we have ceased from our own labors, and now we rest in the finished work of Jesus Christ. But that is something that Joshua could not do. It was left for Jesus to bring to us the rest. So Jehoshua, “Jehovah is salvation:” and what an appropriate name for Jesus, “Jehovah is salvation.”

When Joseph was debating whether or not to take Mary as his wife, or to put her away privately, or to expose her publicly. I mean, trying to just sift out what was happening: here he was engaged, and she turns up pregnant, and she has some kind of a far out story of an angel, and the Holy Spirit, and he’s trying to work all these things out in his mind. An angel of the LORD came to Joseph, and said, “Don’t be afraid to take Mary as your wife: for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. And she is going to bear a son, and you are to call his name Jehoshua, Joshua, or Jesus (Yeshua): for he shall save his people from their sins. “Jehovah is salvation,” he will save his people from their sins.

And so a beautiful name (Joshua), and he becomes a beautiful type of Christ. So getting now into the book of Joshua, chapter 1:

After the death of Moses..

The book of Joshua, in the Hebrew, begins with the Hebrew word ‘deh, which is the Hebrew word “and.” And in some of the translations, it is translated, “Now, after the death of Moses,” or more literally, “And after the death of Moses:” which shows that Joshua is just a continuation of the story. There is no break in the story, it’s just a continuation of the Pentateuch.

And 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, to the children of Israel. And every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon, I have given you, as I said to Moses.

So the command of Joshua now, is to lead the people into this land. Interesting that Moses, who is representative of the law, could not lead them into the land of promise. The law cannot bring to you that full relationship with God. There are many people who seek to relate to God through laws, through rules, through standards. And there are many churches that help them by establishing church standards: “the do’s, the don’ts.” And they seek to, somehow, relate to God in this legal relationship. I did for years. I considered myself righteous because I didn’t smoke, I didn’t drink, I didn’t go to dances, I didn’t go to shows; and I was righteous on the basis of the things I didn’t do. And I looked at myself as righteous on the basis of, ‘I signed the pledge, and I’ll never do any of these things.’ And I had a legal relationship with God.

I thank God for the day He brought me into a loving relationship with Himself. It was so much easier to walk after love, to have love as that strong motivator within my life. That strong motivation to please God because of my love for God; and it was a lot easier to live that way, motivated by love, rather than motivated by fear.

Because I was taught, ‘Man, if the Lord comes, and you’re in the theater, you’re going to be left behind in the rapture.” And so, you know, you’re fearful of doing the wrong thing in case your timing would be off, and you wouldn’t have a chance to get back to church Sunday night and get saved again. So you would really be in bad shape, you know, if the Lord should come when he caught you in one of those bad moods. So it was that legal relationship with God. But there was no peace, there was no joy. And that’s the problem with the legal relationship with God: you are lacking the joy of the Christian experience.

What joy I found once I discovered grace. What peace I found once I discovered grace. I was no longer relating to God in a legal way, but now relating to God in a loving way. And He loves me, and I love Him. And we have this beautiful, loving relationship. And oh, how rich, and how glorious it is. The law could not do that. Moses could not lead them into the land. The law cannot bring you into that life of victory, that life of glory, that life in the Spirit that God wants you to know: that life of joy, walking in the Spirit. The law can’t do that for you. That takes the Spirit of God, and the work of God’s Spirit to bring you into that dimension of relationship.

“Moses my servant is dead; (so Joshua, you take over now). And you lead the people on into the land.” And notice: “take them over Jordan,” that death to the old life. Now a new relationship with God. They’re never going to see the cloud and the fire again, that’s a part of the old life. ‘We’re not going to be fed with manna anymore. There won’t be the water out of the rock.’ They are coming into a land that is well watered, flowing with milk and honey. They’re going to eat the fruit of the land. And they’re going to possess, now, their possessions that God has promised.

But notice, ‘every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon, I have given you,’ past tense. ‘It’s already yours, I’ve given it to you. All you have to do is go in and take it. Go in and claim it.’ And God has given to us so many things that we have not yet laid claim to. We haven’t gone in and put our foot on it, we haven’t gone in and laid claim, and said, “By the grace of God, and by the power of the Spirit, I claim that I’m not going to do this again. That’s a part of the old nature, that’s dead. I don’t have to be subject, or in bondage to that anymore. I’m going to be free through the power of God.” And we haven’t laid claim to those promises of God, and to those victories over the flesh life that God has given to us. But every place you go, every place you set your foot, every place you claim, you can take, and you can be victorious; and God wants you to live a life of real spiritual victory. ‘I have given it to you. It’s yours,’ but it is necessary to go in and put the sole of your foot down, and to lay claim to it.

(Now God had given them) every place from the wilderness and this Lebanon as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all of the land of the Hittites, to the (Mediterranean, the great sea) the Mediterranean sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your territory. (The sun there sets over the Mediterranean.)

‘It’s all yours.’ Now God gave them more than they ever possessed. They never did possess the land all the way to the Euphrates, though God had given it to them. They never did possess the land all the way to the Nile River, though God had given it to them. There is a danger that we also stop short of all that God is desiring for us, that we never come into the total victory that God would have us to experience and know, that we leave areas unconquered, areas still in the hands of the enemy. And thus, the children of Israel failed to fully possess all of their possessions. That is why, in the book of Hebrews, we are warned, “Let us beware, lest a promise having being given to us, of entering into rest, that we should fail to do so.” Let’s have, and let’s take all that God has promised, let’s enter into the fullness of the Spirit, and the walking in the Spirit. Let’s claim all of the territory that God has given to us.

No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life: for as I was with Moses, so will I be with you: I will not leave you, nor forsake you.

What a beautiful promise of God to Joshua: “No man is going to be able to stand before you, no man can rob you of your victories. I’ll be with you all the days of your life, I will not leave you, I will not forsake you.” And that’s exactly what Jesus said to you, “Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the age.”

(And so the LORD said to Joshua) be strong and of good courage: for to this people you shall divide the inheritance the 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.

And so, the promise of God to Joshua of His presence, and of His power, to be with him. But then the exhortation to Joshua of ‘being strong, being very courageous.’ ‘Observing all of the law,’ which means that the five books of Moses had already been written at this point. And he was to observe to do all, ‘according to the law of Moses my servant, that he commanded; and don’t turn away from the law to the right hand or to the left.’ It is interesting how that so often a person feels that they have a special case. “Yes, I know God said that, but it doesn’t quite apply to my situation. You see, mine is different, mine is an exception.” When God established His laws, He really didn’t establish exceptions. If you want to be really prosperous, then don’t turn to the right or to the left: just follow and obey the law of God. Don’t look for loopholes, don’t look for special dispensations; but just observe the law of God, and the promise of God is that He will prosper you in all you do.

Actually, in the first Psalm, that “blessed man who delights himself in the law of the LORD; and meditates in it day and night. He shall be like a tree that’s planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he does will prosper.” The promises of God to that person who will obey the law of God, not turn to the right or the left, but will keep the commandment of the LORD.

This book of the law (so it had already been codified, it had already been written in the book) the book of the law shall not depart from your mouth; but you shall meditate in it day and night, (the psalmist was probably thinking of this command when he wrote that first Psalm.) 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. (God’s rules for prosperity and good success are found within the law) 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 cure for fear and anxiety is the consciousness of the presence of God. Again, David in the 23rd Psalm, said, “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in the green pastures: he leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul: he leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. (And) yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil:” Why? Because “thou art with me.” The presence of the LORD is that which dispels fear. The consciousness of the presence of the LORD: it dispels fear. God is with me, I will not fear. I need not fear, for the LORD has promised to be with me wherever I go.

Now, it is interesting that over and over the LORD is encouraging him, telling him to be strong. In fact, in verse 6 He says, “be strong,” in verse 7 he says, “only be strong,” in verse 6 he says, “be of good courage,” in verse 7 he says, “be very courageous,” and then again in verse 9 he says, “be strong and of good courage,” and then he said, “do not be afraid or dismayed.” Now, when the LORD says, “Don’t be afraid,” it usually follows that’s why He said it: I am afraid. And Joshua was probably a little fearful. I mean, after all, it’s a pretty heavy responsibility that has been laid upon him. Up to this point, he’s only been a servant, a servant of the man Moses. And now all of the responsibilities of leading these three million people into the land falls upon his shoulder, and he realizes, ‘Hey, this is more than I can handle. I don’t know if I am equivalent to this, I don’t know if I can handle this.’ And thus, the LORD, over and over, is encouraging him to ‘be courageous, be very courageous, be of good courage, be strong, be strong, be strong, don’t be afraid, don’t be dismayed: because I will be with you, and I will do the work.’

Many times God calls us to tasks, then as we look at them, we measure them with our ability, and our capacity, and say, “I’m not able to do that.” Somehow we think that when God calls us to do something, that, then we have to figure out how we are going to do it: and we have to apply our talents, and our abilities, and we have to work hard, and figure this whole thing out. And that is a mistake. God will not call you to do anything but He will also equip you to do it. And so the callings of God are the enablings of God. And if God has called you to do something, you don’t need to fear. Jeremiah was called to go and speak to the king, and he said, ‘He’ll never listen to me, I’m only seventeen years old.’ But God had called him. And the callings of God are the equipping of God.

So Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying, Now pass through the camp, and command the people, saying, Prepare provisions for yourself; for within three days you will cross over this Jordan, to go in to possess the land, which the LORD your God has given you to possess.

So the orders came out through the camp: ‘Get ready. Pack up. Three days we’re moving on. In three days we’re going to cross the Jordan, we’re going to go in and begin to possess the land that God has promised to our fathers.’

Now, you remember that there were the three tribes that came to Moses and asked for their inheritance on the other side of the land: the tribe of Reuben, the tribe of Gad, and half the tribe of Manassah.

And so the Reubenites, the Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh, (who wanted their inheritance in the land of the Amorites that they had already conquered) he (Joshua)said to them, Now you remember the word which Moses the servant of the LORD commanded you, saying, The LORD your God is giving you rest, and has given you this land. Your wives, your little ones, your livestock, shall remain in the land which Moses gave you on this side of Jordan; but you shall pass before your brethren armed, all your mighty men of valour, to help them; Until the LORD has given your brethren rest, as he has given you, and they also have taken possession of the land which the LORD your God is giving them: then you shall return to the land of your possession, and enjoy it, which Moses the LORD’s servant gave you on this side Jordan toward the sunrise. And they answered Joshua, saying, All that you command us we will do, and wherever you send us, we will go. Just as we heeded Moses in all things, so we will heed you: only the LORD your God be with you, as he was with Moses. And whoever rebels against your command, and does not heed your words in all that you command him, shall be put to death: only be strong and of good courage.

Now it’s interesting that the men said the same thing to him that the LORD had said three times: “Be strong and be courageous.” And now the men of Reuben, and Gad, and Manasseh say the very same thing. Sort of confirmation: God said something to him, and now people come along and say the same thing. And as they say it, you realize, ‘Well, it must have been God who said it to me. It must have been God speaking to me,’ because here is confirmation as they repeat the very thing that God had been saying: “Be strong and be courageous.”

So they pledged their allegiance, they pledged their obedience. “We will come in, we will fight until the land is taken. May the LORD be with you. Be strong, be courageous.”

CHAPTER 2

So Joshua the son of Nun sent out two men from Acacia grove (the place that they were staying) to spy secretly, saying, Go and view the land, especially . So they went, and came to the house of a harlot, named Rahab, and they lodged there.

I don’t know why Joshua sent the spies. Moses had done the same thing forty years earlier with disastrous consequences. Maybe that’s why he only sent two spies instead of twelve. But it would appear that even though God had been saying, “Be strong and be courageous,” he was still a little reluctant, and perhaps fearful.

The message that the spies received came from Rahab: how that the people feared, and were trembling because they had heard of the God of the Israelites. And so their report to Joshua was that of the fear of the people. In verse 24 they reported to Joshua, “Truly the LORD has delivered all of the land into our hands; for indeed all of the inhabitants of the country are faint hearted because of us.” It is interesting that they recognized that the fear, the faint heartedness of the people, were spelling their doom. When you begin to fear, when you’re fainthearted, you’re in a weakened position. The LORD is constantly saying to Joshua, “Be strong, Joshua. Don’t be afraid. Be very courageous. Be strong. I’ll be with you.” Now he hears, concerning the enemy, that they are fainthearted. And thus, he is encouraged.

So, he sent the two spies in. They came to the house of a harlot, named Rahab, and they lodged there. The city of Jericho was an exceedingly wicked city. God was using the nation of Israel as His tool of judgment. Within the city: a prostitute, a harlot, named Rahab, who received them in.

It was told the king of Jericho, Behold, men have come here tonight from the children of Israel to search out the country. So the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying, Bring out the men who have come to you, who have entered your house: for they have come to search out all the country. Then the woman took the two men, and hid them, and she said, Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they were from. And it happened as the gate was being shut, when it was dark, that the men went out: where the men went I don’t know: but pursue them quickly; for you may overtake them.

So she lied to the king. It brings up the issue of situational ethics: is it right to lie in certain circumstances? Are there times when it would be better to lie than to tell the truth? It’s a hard issue to deal with because you can make up suppositional cases where it would seem that maybe a lie would serve a better purpose than the truth. And yet, the Scripture clearly commands us to “lie not one to another.” We read, where, “lying lips are an abomination unto the LORD.” Again, “Speak the truth one to another.” And if Jesus declared, “I am the way, the truth, and the life,” it seems incongruent that he would encourage us in a situation to lie.

I think that a lot of times it is wisdom to say nothing. I do not believe that you can ever really justify a lie. But I think that many times it is wise just not to say anything.

But I could never encourage a person to lie. Her lying was wrong. She probably felt that by lying she was saving their lives. That, perhaps, is true. However, it is a sign of a lack of faith of God being able to take care of these men. If she had sufficient faith in God, she should know that God would be able to protect them and take care of them. She thought she was helping by her lie.

Paul the apostle speaks of those who have come to a fallacy of logic in the declaring that, by their lying, God is glorified, and that people glorify God because of the lie that I tell. ‘Therefore, how can God judge me for lying when the lie brought people to praise the Lord and to glorify God?’ And Paul puts down that concept rather thoroughly, speaking very strongly against it. Saying that, (if the truth and the grace of God is magnified because of my lie, it’s alright to lie,) he said, “..whose damnation is just.” I mean, he’s really heavy on these kind of lies. Now, there are those today that have that philosophy. There are people today going around with exciting, thrilling, glorious testimonies of miraculous, marvelous things that God has done, which are all untrue. But they get people excited. ‘People get saved when I tell this big whopper, you know? Therefore, how can God judge me, because look how many people that have accepted the LORD when I told this monstrous lie?’ You can’t justify it. “Speak the truth one to another. Lie not one to another.” So she lied. There’s no justifying of it, she was wrong.

For she had brought them up to the roof of her house, and had hidden them with the stalks of flax, which she had laid in order on the roof (so they were under these stalks of flax). So the men pursued them by the road to Jordan to the fords: and as soon as those who pursued them had gone out, they shut the gate of the city. So before they laid down, (the men on the roof, before they went to sleep) she came up to them on the roof; And she said to the men, (and here are tremendous expressions of faith that are noted in the New Testament, in Hebrews 11; as she makes the ‘Hall of Faith’) I know that the LORD has given you the land, that the terror of you has fallen on us, and that all of the inhabitants of the land are fainthearted because of you. (This is the message that they needed to hear that they carried back to Joshua.)

She knows that Jehovah has given them the land. Now, how she knew the name of the God of Israel is not told, except that “His name and His fame had spread abroad.” She uses the name “Yahweh, or Jehovah” here.

For we have heard how Jehovah dried up the water of the Red sea for you, when you came out of Egypt; and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites, who were on the other side of the Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom ye utterly destroyed. And as soon as we heard these things, our hearts melted, neither did there remain any more courage in anyone, because of you: for Jehovah your God, he is the God in heaven above, and in the earth beneath.

So, what a broad kind of a concept of God she had received, only through hearsay. They had heard about what God had done: they heard how God had parted the Red sea, they heard of how they had destroyed the Amorites on the other side of the river. And hearing of the work of God, the Spirit of God did a work within her heart, creating a faith and a knowledge, and an understanding of God that was really beyond the revelation.

It is much like the thief on the cross, who said to Jesus, “Lord, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” How did he know he was a king? Probably the inscription that Pilate had put on the cross: Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews. But, how did he know that a man dying on the cross was coming into his kingdom? You see, even the disciples at this point figured the whole idea of the kingdom is over. Expressing their views on the way to Emmaus, they said, “We had hoped that in him was the salvation of Israel: we had hoped that he was the king, we had hoped that he would establish the kingdom. We had hoped that, but now they crucified him. And it’s been three days already.” With the crucifixion, came the death of the hope of the disciples. But somehow this man on the cross had the concept of the kingdom yet to come, though Jesus was dying. He had a faith that could only have come from God planting that faith in his heart. He had a knowledge, and an understanding that was beyond his capacity to have because of the work of God’s Spirit. And God’s Spirit works in our hearts, and in our lives in that same way, planting that faith. “Lord, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” What an example of the sovereign grace of God in the salvation of the lost: the faith that God put in the heart of this man that was dying.

So with this woman: the sovereign grace of God manifested in her faith. And so, “by faith, Rahab, survived and did not perish with the other inhabitants of the city of Jericho.” It comes in Hebrews 11, the ‘Hall of Faith.’ It also comes in James, who speaks of the works as being the outgrowth of her faith: “faith without works being dead.” And of course, she also figures in the genealogy of Joseph, the husband of Mary. God was the father of Jesus, but the husband of Mary. And so she figures in his genealogy in Matthew chapter 1.

Now she prays to them, I beg you, swear to me by Jehovah, since I have showed you kindness, that you will show kindness to my father’s house, and give me a true token: Spare my father, my mother, my brothers, my sisters, and all that they have, and deliver our lives from death. So the men answered her, Our lives for yours, if none of you tell this business of ours. And it shall be, when the LORD has given us the land, we will deal kindly and truly with you. (So a covenant was made.) Then she let them down by a rope through the window: for her house was on the city wall, she dwelt on the wall. And she said to them, Get to the mountain, lest the pursuers meet you; hide there for three days, until the pursuers have returned: and afterward you may go your way. And the men said to her, Now we will be blameless of this oath of yours which you have made us swear. Unless, when we come into the land, you bind this line of scarlet cord in the window through which you let us down: and unless you bring your father, and your mother, your brothers, and all your father’s household, to your own home. And so it shall be, that whoever goes outside the doors of your house into the street, his blood will be upon his own head, we will be guiltless: whoever is with you in the house, his blood will be on our head, if a hand is laid upon him. And if you tell this business of ours, then we will be free of the oath which you made us swear. And she said, According to your words, so be it. And she sent them away, and they departed: and she bound the scarlet cord in the window.

The scarlet cord, of course, is symbolic of the blood. As is in Egypt: the children of Israel, the blood on the doorpost, the house was spared. So now, here in the city of Jericho, this woman who had received them, makes them swear that when they take the land, they’ll spare her family. They said, ‘Alright, we’ll make a deal. You hang this scarlet cord, symbolic of the blood, out the window, and we guarantee the safety of everyone who is in the house. If anybody goes out of the house, then their life will be taken, they will be responsible for their own destiny. But if they remain in the house, they will be safe.’

God has provided a refuge for us and it is in Jesus Christ. He said, “Abide in me. Let my words abide in you. If any man abides not in me, he is cast forth as a branch; men gather them, and they are burned in the fire.” That place of refuge, that place of safety is in Jesus Christ: covered by the blood of Jesus Christ. I am safe, I am secure, I am eternally secure. I thank God for that security that I have in Christ, that glorious realization, and sense of security in Him. Abiding in Christ, nothing can remove me out of His hand. Thank God for that assurance and that hope.

So they departed, and they went to the mountain, and they stayed there for three days, until the pursuers returned: and the pursuers sought them all along the way, but did not find them. So the two men returned, descending from the mountain, they crossed over, and they came to Joshua, and they told him 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 fainthearted because of us.

Next week we’ll take the 3rd chapter and we’ll move along maybe a little faster, maybe a little slower. Who knows? But we don’t have time to get into the 3rd chapter, we would have to just rush it too quickly to jump into it tonight. And so, as my wife said, “If you got to do anything, dismiss them earlier than later.” So this special dispensation comes to you from Kay.

I’m looking forward to that work of God’s Spirit that He is wanting to accomplish in our lives this week: and I pray that your heart would be open to the Spirit, that God would be able to work freely in your life: bringing you into those places of victory. That this week you will take territory that God has already promised, God has already given: that you will lay claim to the promises of God and begin to inherit the blessings of the walk in the Spirit. May you find God’s Spirit working in your life, destroying some of the enemies, some of the walls, some of the giants. And may you just learn what it is to know that victory that He gives to us in our places, in our areas of personal weakness. May God make this a special week in your life, and in my life, as we follow after Jesus Christ and as we seek to live for his glory. God be with you, and bless you, in Jesus’ name.

Edited & Highlighted from “The Word For Today” Transcription, Pastor Chuck Smith, Tape #7063
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