Complimentary Story
Many of us remember the children's church song about Joshua and Jericho... “Joshua fought the battle of Jericho, Jericho, Jericho...Joshua fought the battle of Jericho and the walls came a-tumbling down.”If we took a poll of Bible-reading Christians and asked what the battle of Jericho was about, most of us would recount a similar version of the children’s song...God gave Joshua strategy to bring down the walls of Jericho, right?
Yes, that's right...it’s just not completely right. You see, the story we recount is really just the beginning of the story.
Let me digress to another familiar story...this one is about Jesus. You remember Him, right? The God-man who came down from heaven to save from hell all who would believe. Right? Yes, that’s right...it’s just not completely right. Jesus’ primary mission wasn’t to save us from hell, but rather to deliver us into His Kingdom. Saving us from hell is the by-product of what Jesus came to do. Colossians 1:13 NASB, “For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son.”
Now, back to Joshua and Jericho... “and the walls came tumbling down.” Yes, God gave Joshua a strategy to bring down the walls of Jericho. This is true. But WHY did God do this? “It shall be that when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, and when you hear the sound of the trumpet, 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 ahead.” (Joshua 6:5 NASB).
The walls came down so that the people could go in and take the city. This was the goal. But so many times we read the story and we fail to look beyond the wall.
So, here we are today. Many of us who are Christians, with access to the wisdom and understanding of God through the Holy Spirit; can see that there is a wall in our country – an obstacle between us and the life of victory and freedom that reflects what God has in store for those who love Him. What are we to do? We have seen the wall, a partly hidden group of political traitors called the “Deep State.” We have gotten close to the wall, through underground journalists and careful digging outside of the mainstream media. We have been tooting our horns at the wall as we shout out the recently revealed plans of the enemy as he uses corrupt politicians in America to move us closer to a submissive socialist society and then to a one-world government. And I believe that soon the wall will fall...soon we will see what has remained hidden on the other side. Surely we have had more than glimpses already of the evil nation hiding behind its fortress.
But I have a question for you today, friend. Are you simply waiting for the wall to fall? What happens when it does? Are we prepared to go in, as Christians representing God’s Kingdom, once the wall falls? Just as God brought the wall down so the Israelites could go in and take Jericho, He is calling us to prepare to go straight in. We must be seeking and obeying God’s instructions during this unique time in our country’s history. There is an overlap of the world’s kingdoms and God’s Kingdom...like two colliding storm fronts. God has called us to fight for His Kingdom to advance. This means we must look beyond the wall. It is easy to see the wall (our current political circumstances), and to focus on that. We risk missing God’s intent for us during this time. Our role goes beyond identifying corruption and evil. Our role is to lead others out of the dominion of darkness and into the Kingdom of light. When the wall falls are we prepared to do that? To go straight in and take a stand against the dark powers, and pull out those wanting to be rescued and redeemed?
We must look beyond the wall. Isaiah 26:2-3 (NIV), “Open the gates that the righteous nation may enter, the nation that keeps faith. You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in You. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord Himself, is the Rock eternal. He humbles those who dwell on high, He lays the lofty city low; He levels it to the ground and casts it down to the dust.”
Anxiety roots and grows as we keep our focus on our circumstances, the wall so-to-speak; but peace is from God. Peace roots and grows as we look to God our Father and trust Him, and obey what He has called us to. Let’s not stop short. The wall will fall...will we be ready to go straight in?
Almighty God, I pray today that You would give us a strategy to take back enemy territory for Your Kingdom. Help us to not be discouraged by the great wall that stands before us; but help us to have mercy and compassion on the many souls living behind that wall whom You desire to save. When the wall falls, help us to have the courage to go in and fight for the lost. Father God, use us during this time. Show us the path to ‘go straight in’ and rescue those trapped in the dominion of darkness. Holy Spirit, stir up the gift of evangelism as our greatest weapon. For Your Word never returns void, God. We hold it out now to those who are perishing as a hand of hope and help. Give us Your strategy for the world and give us Your love to share, God. Amen.
Chris McMahan, ‘Tea-vangelist’
Tea4Jesus.com
Email:
LoveJesusAndTea@gmail.com
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