God's Commander

The Israelites have now entered the Promised Land as promised to Abraham by God Himself. They have crossed over the Jordan River two million strong and are positioned to take Jericho. We can only imagine that Joshua had more than a few moments of weakness and doubt as he observed the walled city of Jericho from their camp. In the first chapter of the book of Joshua God reminds him “Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid nor dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” God’s plan was always to reveal Himself to the entire world through the Israelites; He would always go before them and would fight their battles much in the same way He goes before us and fights our battles.

As Joshua looks out upon this huge sprawling Israelite camp, he must have felt more than just a bit of apprehension for the pending attack on Jericho. Jericho was a walled city that was well fortified and manned to withstand any army the area could produce. In the solitude and proximity of his own campsite the pressure Joshua must have naturally felt would have been overwhelming.  “And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, a man stood opposite him with sword drawn in His hand.” Joshua 5:13. Joshua asks the man if He is on our side or the adversary’s side. “So He said, ‘No, but as Commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.’” What happens next is one of those moments that God inspired to help us understand the majesty and personality of the coming Messiah, Jesus Christ.

“And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshipped, and said to Him, ‘What does my Lord say to His servant?’” What a scene this must have been where the head military leader of Israel, the general of the entire Israelite army prostrates himself on the ground in worship. Usually when we encounter an angelic visitation in the bible we always see the angel firmly informing the man or woman not to worship them. That they are only the messenger and to worship the One who sent them, the One True and Living God, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

With retreat back across the Jordan River now impossible and Joshua preoccupied with the coming battle, we watch as his heart quickens and asks this heavenly visitor “What message does my Lord have for his servant?” His reply must have been both comforting and chilling at the same time as he begins to discover the identity and majesty of his guest. “The commander of the Lord’s army replied ‘Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.’ And Joshua did so.” Joshua 5:15.

Moses also had a similar confrontation with God back in Median as he was tending his father-in-laws sheep. At that time God chose to speak to His servant from a burning bush. As a quick aside, have you ever wondered why God commands these two men to remove their sandals and stand barefooted on the earth before Him? Well, we don’t know for sure, but could it be that God does not want anything to separate us from a relationship with Him. Even the thin layer of a leather sandal’s sole is too much isolation between us and a loving God.  Indeed God desires us to come to Him simply and commune or sup with Him. To always desire a solid and uninterrupted connection to the infinite love He has for His creation.

A friend of mine wrote these words in a worship song most of us have sung at church “Come just as you are…feel the Spirit’s call.”  This well might be the most profound sentence ever penned by  mortal man. Where Jesus Himself stands at the door of the church and knocks to be let in. He stands just outside of every human heart beckoning every soul to let him in. What a gracious God we worship! What a Savior to behold who was willing to be falsely accused, mocked, beaten and crucified by the very ones He created in the first place. Son of God…Son of man, a gentleman who stands so capable of redeeming every human heart but patiently waits for permission to enter into a loving relationship with you.

So what decision will you make? “But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:15