God Promises Victory Over Our Enemies
The Lord said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid of them; I have given them into your hand. Not one of them will be able to withstand you.” Joshua 10:8
As Joshua faced the armies of five kings who had joined forces, he could well have remembered Israel’s terrible defeat at Ai when one man had disobeyed God. Israel had been victorious in a second battle at Ai. But now they faced a much bigger battle.
God told him not to fear, he’d give these kings into Joshua’s hand. After an all-night march from Gilgal, Joshua took the five armies by surprise, and they fled. God hurled large hailstones down on them, and “more of them died from the hail than were killed by the swords of the Israelites” (Joshua 10:11).
Emboldened by God’s promise and action on their behalf, Joshua courageously commanded the sun to stand still so that they’d be able to finish the battle before nightfall. And the sun stood still for a full day (Joshua 10:11-14). The irony here is that the Canaanites were receiving God’s judgment for the abominable things they did, one of which was to worship Baal, god of the Sky [1]. Now they were defeated by hailstones and the sun’s standing still. The God of Israel ruled over the sky, including the sun.
Sometimes, I’ve tried to muster up courage to do something I knew God wanted me to do. I’ve felt totally incapable of doing it. The dangers or pain were real. My overactive imagination vividly painted the worst-case scenario. I saw myself falling flat on my face. I’ve failed before, many times. Even after reciting all the verses that should have encouraged me, I still felt afraid.
How had Joshua been so bold as to command the sun to stand still? As I look at him, I see all the steps leading to this action. For more than forty years he’d been Moses’s assistant as God prepared him to become his successor. Joshua had seen God faithfully keeping his promises to Moses, and later to himself at Jericho and the second battle at Ai. Joshua acted on God’s command to attack these kings. He saw what God had done with the hail and courageously stepped out in faith.
Is God asking you to boldly step out in faith? What preparation have you received so you”ll be able to do this? What has God promised you? What has he already begun to do in this situation?
Do not be afraid, be strong and courageous. God is going with you into the battle.
Dig Deeper:
God told Joshua two other times “do not be afraid.” What was the occasion in Joshua 1:1-9 and in Joshua 11:6? What did Joshua tell his own army in Joshua 10:24-25?
We’re at war—see Gen 3:15 (Children of Eve) and Revelation 12:17 (followers of Christ). How can we be prepared for the battles we face according to Ephesians 6:10-18 and 2 Corinthians 10:3-5?
Read Romans 8:35-39 and Colossians 2:11-15. What has Christ done to guarantee we’ll be more than conquerors?
Nancy J. Baker
This devotion is part of our Do Not Be Afraid series.
[1] Revell Bible Dictionary, The. Grand Rapids: Fleming H. Revell, 1990, 117.
Comments
There’s Victory in Christ.