Moses is gone and Joshua is now leading the Israelites into the Promised Land. And if you’ve taken the time to read Joshua 10, he’s leading like a boss. The Gibeonites have made peace with Joshua and the Israelites and they were attacked by the five Kings of the Amorites.
Joshua gets word from Gibeon that they have been attacked so he marches all night and takes the enemy by surprise. Enter now, a scene from the manliest, most battle heavy combat war hero movie ever filmed.
So much happens throughout Joshua 10 and you should absolutely read through it for yourself, but here is my perspective as I dove into this chapter and sought to relate it to my life.
We want this to be about God taking down our enemies until we realize we are the enemy unless we have surrendered on His terms.
Look at verse 25. “And Joshua said to them, “Do not be afraid or dismayed; be strong and courageous. For this the Lord will do to all your enemies against whom you fight.”
Joshua has summoned the five Amorite Kings who were hiding in a cave, and basically made a public display of them. Having the Israelite leaders step on their necks, put them to death, and offer the pep talk he gave here in verse 25 before hanging their bodies on display until sundown.
Joshua has now taken the entire region through a war the God waged…against His enemies.
Here is where it hits home.
If we aren’t for God, if we aren’t on His side, then we are at war with Him. In fact, our sin causes this to automatically be the case. We are like the countries that Joshua was hunting down and conquering.
While Joshua 10 is definitely a strong reminder of how much God cares for us, it’s also a strong reminder of why we need God. We see a picture of the severity of sin that must be punished, and that punishment is death.
The good news is this. We don’t have to be at war with God. We can surrender on His terms and those terms are Jesus. It’s Jesus or nothing. Those are terms of surrender I’m good with and I pray you are too.
Blessings.
VC Devotionals 