Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Evening Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/ev/ev20070415.htm

THE PREINCARNATE MINISTRY OF JESUS CHRIST
Part XXVI: Other Reputed Theophanies Of The Preincarnate Christ
C. Christ's Ministry As Captain Of God's Hosts: Supplying Conquest In Our Righteous Conflicts
(Joshua 5:13-6:21)
  1. Introduction
    1. Conflict with others is never easy, but at times God calls us to face conflict in His will for our lives.
    2. If in following God He leads us into conflict for His sake, we can be assured of blessing in the process as we trust and obey Him and His Word, the lesson of Christ's Preincarnate Ministry in Joshua 5:13-6:21:
  2. Christ's Ministry As Captain Of God's Hosts: Supplying Conquest In Our Righteous Conflicts.
    1. Besides appearing as the "Angel of the Lord", the Preincarnate Christ is believed by reputable theologians to have appeared in other Old Testament "theophanies" (John F. Walvoord, Jesus Christ Our Lord , p. 54).
    2. One such passage is Joshua 5:13-6:5 (Ibid.), and its Joshua 5:13-6:21 context shows Christ as Captain of God's Hosts gives victory for the righteous conflicts His people face as they trust and obey Him:
      1. Upon crossing the Jordan River by God's clear, miraculous work to part that body of water at its flood stage (Joshua 3:15, 16-17), and with that river now returned to its flood stage behind them, Joshua and Israel faced inescapable war with Jericho, a foe God said He wanted them to destroy, Joshua 1:1-4, 5.
      2. However, Jericho was tightly closed inside a wall structure that seemed humanly insurmountable, 6:1:
        1. Joshua 6:1 simply notes that the city of Jericho was tightly closed up because of Israel's presence.
        2. This statement in light of archaeological evidence reveals Israel faced a seemingly insurmountable obstacle: (1) in Joshua's era, Jericho had a "six-foot-thick wall" built on the "edge of the mound" where the city sat, and an inner wall twelve to fifteen feet from the outer wall that was "twelve feet thick," Merrill F. Unger, Arch. and the O. T., 1973, p. 147. (2) These walls were nearly thirty feet high, and surrounded the city of about 8 acres, Ibid.; Ryrie St. Bib., KJV, 1978 ed., ftn. to Jos. 6:2-5. (3) Stretching over the inner and outer walls, houses were built, Ibid., Unger.
      3. Nevertheless, the Preincarnate Christ appeared to Joshua as the Captain of the Lord's hosts to direct and aid him and Israel in successfully battling and defeating Jericho in God's will, Joshua 5:13-6:5:
        1. First, the Preincarnate Christ told Joshua to submit to God's leading to defeat Jericho: (1) While Joshua was near Jericho, Christ appeared to him as a soldier with a sword drawn in His hand, ready for conflict, Jos. 5:13a; Ibid., Ryrie, ftn. to Jos . 5:13. (2) Joshua wondered if He was a friend or foe, so he asked the Warrior to identify himself, Jos. 5:13b. (3) Christ identified Himself as the Captain of the Lord's hosts, Jos. 5:14a. Joshua responded by prostrating himself in worship and asking what was His message, Jos. 5:14b. (4) Christ had Joshua do what He had Moses do when He called him to lead Israel out of Egypt: Joshua was to remove his sandals as he was in the presence of his God and Master, and Joshua obeyed, Jos. 5:15; Ex. 3:5; Ibid., Ryrie, ftn. to Ex. 3:5.
        2. Second, having directed Joshua to submit to Him, Christ told Joshua to lead Israel to trust and obey God in defeating Jericho: (1) Israel was to march around the city once a day for 6 days, and do so 7 times on the 7th day before shouting after the priests blew the trumpets; they were to trust God would then cause the city walls to fall so that Israel could take the city, Joshua 6:2-5. (2) Joshua and Israel obeyed this command, Jos. 6:6-15: when the priests blew the trumpets on their last trip around Jericho, summoning God's aid in faith in His promise to help in war in Numbers 10:9, and heeding Joshua 6:5, God leveled the walls, and Israel defeated the city, Jos. 6:16, 20-21. (3) Archaeological evidence reveals that "the outer wall had tumbled forward down the slope of the mound, and the inner wall with the houses erected on it, had fallen into the intervening space. Reddened masses of stone and brick, together with ashes and charred timbers, showed that a conflagration [a fire] had accompanied the fall of the city" just as Joshua 6:20-24 relates, Ibid., Unger, p. 148! (brackets ours)
Lesson: After being led by God to submit to Him and then being told by Him how to destroy Jericho, by faith and obedience in God, Joshua and Israel fought and defeated Jericho against superhuman odds!

Application: (1) We believers are to try to live in peace with all men, Romans 12:18. (2) However, IF God's Biblical leading and directives lead us into conflict with others, we must accept God's leading in the process, and trust and obey His Word at each step! He will help us gain HIS victory in the conflict!