Lucifer and his minions have been using every resource to derail God’s plan of redemption for the human race. They were able to lead astray an entire adult generation and the Godhead knew there would be heavy losses in the future because of mankind’s free will.

Nevertheless, the God was determined to continue their plan of redeeming the human race and Jesus entered the virtual time run to instruct Joshua how to proceed in the Promised Land.

The first task was getting the entire camp across the Jordan River when the water levels were at their highest after the spring rains. The river was anything calm as the Israelites approached the swollen waters.

It required faith on the part of the priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant to step into the water, wade out a little deeper, and then begin to see the power of God split the waters just like He did with the Red Sea after the exodus. Their faith held and could not stop the Hebrews from entering the land of milk and honey.

The second task was taking the strongly fortified city of Jericho. The weak link again was humanity. Would the Hebrews follow Joshua’s order and march around the city? It was a simple task that didn’t take much effort, but oh so important to Jesus. Lucifer was unable to stop the people and then holy angels pushed the walls down.

Lucifer then searched for a man during the chaotic battle for the city that he could seduce with greed. Achan found gold, silver and clothing during combat and was able to secrete it away to his tent without being noticed. God saw what took place, and in the next battle, 36 men died because of Achan’s transgression. 

Joshua sought the Lord and Jesus revealed there was sin in the camp. The Son of God systematically narrowed the search until it was revealed that Achan was the culprit. There would be defeat as long as Achan was alive, but the punishment did not end there as his entire family was killed along with every animal he owned.

Lucifer sent a group of Hivites who lied about being from a far country. They were really from a nearby city-state that wanted a peace treaty with the Hebrews to ensure their survival. Joshua was taken in by the deception, and from that day, paganism and idolatry was given root among the Hebrews.

There is much we can learn from these events, and if we take heed, we can avoid Lucifer’s pitfalls and live a victorious life in Christ.

Print out the sermon outline and let's examine the Scriptures together Sunday morning at 9:00 AM PST.

Yours in Christ,

Pastor John S. Torell