Are you facing any big challenges in your life right now? Is there a wall blocking your path or a Goliath taunting you to fight? Sometimes God intervenes in the circumstances of our lives and flings the obstacle to the side while we simply sit back and watch Him work. Other times He tells us to strap on our sword.
When the Israelites entered the Promised Land strong nations still lived there. Armies protected fortified cities. The people did not simply vacate their homes and walk away. Yet God told Israel the land belonged to them. So, Joshua led the people across the Jordan and camped near the first major obstacle.
Victory over Jericho
Now Jericho was shut up inside and outside because of the people of Israel. None went out, and none came in. 2 And the Lord said to Joshua, “See, I have given Jericho into your hand, with its king and mighty men of valor. 3 You shall march around the city, all the men of war going around the city once. Thus shall you do for six days. 4 Seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark. On the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets. 5 And when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, when you hear the sound of the trumpet, then all the people shall shout with a great shout, and the wall of the city will fall down flat, and the people shall go up, everyone straight before him.” Joshua 6:1-5, NLT
photo courtesy of visualbiblealive.com
God declared victory over Jericho and its “mighty men of valor.” But He did not send fire down from heaven to consume the city. Instead God chose to use His people as His tool. He commanded the Israelites to fight. The battle was already won; it was a done deal in heaven. Joshua and the Israelite army merely acted on that reality.
Time to fight for God’s victory?
Sometimes we sit back in inactivity waiting for God to work when we should be fighting to take what God has already won. Yes, God still works in miraculous ways without our involvement. In those times we get to stand and watch His mighty hand from the sidelines. But other times, He calls us to strap on our sword and follow Him to victory.
Tell us about a time in your life when God has miraculously knocked down a wall or when He has called you to strap on your sword.
How can we know when it’s time to watch or time to fight?!
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