Pastor Mike Impact Ministries Michael L Grooms

The is nothing that breeds failure like success! That’s the
story line in Joshua 7! In Joshua 1, we meet God’s man for the hour, Joshua. He
is a prepared man to take the place of Moses to lead the people of Israel into
the Promise Land! He is a servant, a soldier, and a man of faith. In these
first chapters of the book, leads the people miraculously across the Jordan
River and conquers a tremendous fortress, the City of Jericho. In Joshua 2, we
met Rahab the harlot! She is a pagan Canaanite, who put her faith in the God of
Israel, hides the spies, and saves herself and her family from the destruction
of Jericho.

 

Now in Joshua 7, we meet another man by the name of Achan.
No doubt he is one of the soldiers of the army of Israel. He grew up in the
wilderness under the leadership of Moses and experienced God’s provisions every
day; manna from heaven, water miraculously come out of rocks, great victories
over power kings like Sihon and Og, and more recently the transfer of
leadership from Moses to Joshua. He must have heard and maybe even participated
in proclaiming with the men of Israel in Joshua 1:16-18, “So they answered
Joshua, saying, "All that you command us we will do, and wherever you send
us we will go. Just as we heeded Moses in all things, so we will heed you. Only
the LORD your God be with you, as He was with Moses. Whoever rebels against
your command and does not heed your words, in all that you command him, shall
be put to death. Only be strong and of good courage."

 

Achan watched the Jordan River miraculously part and dry up
as they entered the Promise land just a few weeks earlier. He marched around
the walls of Jericho and saw them fall flat and the city destroyed. And he also
must have heard the instructions that Joshua gave all the people in Joshua
6:18-19, “And you, by all means abstain from the accursed things, lest you
become accursed when you take of the accursed things, and make the camp of
Israel a curse, and trouble it. But all the silver and gold, and vessels of
bronze and iron, are consecrated to the LORD; they shall come into the treasury
of the LORD." 

 

Achan was indeed a very blessed man! He was of the seed of
Abraham, an Israelite, God’s chosen people. He was from the tribe of Judah,
which would produce the Messiah. He had a wife and precious children. He had a
nice tent to live in. But! That is how chapter 7 of Joshua begins. Did you
notice how Joshua 6 ended? After the great victory over Jericho we read, “So,
the LORD was with Joshua, and his fame spread throughout all the country” (Joshua
6:27). Great success! Joshua is on the front page of all the newspapers in
Canaan. He leads the evening news broadcast! And most of all, he has the
testimony that the LORD was with him.

 

Great victory, but there was sin in the camp of Israel that
changed everything. One translation of verse 1 reads,

“But Israel violated the instructions about the things set
apart for the LORD. A man named Achan had stolen some of these dedicated
things, so the LORD was very angry with the Israelites….”.  Remember the instructions in Joshua 6:18-19. Achan
is known in Bible history as the man who troubled Israel (Josh. 7:25). Because
of Achan's disobedience, Israel was defeated at Ai, and the enemy killed
thirty-six Jewish soldiers. It was Israel's first and only military defeat in
Canaan, a defeat that is forever associated with Achan's name.

 

We should never underestimate the amount of damage one
person can do outside the will of God. Over the next few days, we might need to
ask the Lord what are we hiding in our secret closets that is causing defeat in
our families and church!

 

God bless!

The book of Joshua is teaching us that we conquer by faith.
All of us are on a faith journey. Everyone puts their faith in something or
someone every day. As believers we should place our faith and trust in the Lord
Jesus Christ and His Word, the Bible. Others place their faith in a person or
in a religion. Some put their faith in themselves. But the only faith that
never fails to bring joy, contentment, satisfaction, and genuine rest, is a
faith that believes and trust in the true and living God through His Son Jesus
Christ!

 

A genuine faith is evidenced by obedience to God’s Word.
James used these first chapters in Joshua to make this point in James 2:25-26: “Likewise,
was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the
messengers and sent them out another way? For as the body without the spirit is
dead, so faith without works is dead also.”

 

The Holy Spirit also directed the writer of the Epistle to
the Hebrews to use this event as one of the "by faith" examples in
Hebrews 11. The fall of Jericho is an encouragement to God's people to trust
the Lord's promises and obey His instructions, no matter how impossible the
situation may appear to be. You and I may not capture a city as Joshua did, but
in our everyday lives we face enemies and high walls that challenge us.

 

The only way to grow in faith is to accept new challenges
and trust God to give you victory. "Do not pray for easy lives," said
Phillips Brooks; "pray to be better men and women. Do not pray for tasks
equal to your powers; pray for power equal to your tasks."

 

Moses in his closing words to the twelve tribes made this
statement in Deuteronomy 33:25, “…as your days, so shall your strength be.” He
did not say, “As your strength is, so shall your days be”. We often make
excuses for not obeying the Lord and claiming His promises because we don’t
feel like we have the strength to do what He is asking us to do. Like simply
getting out of bed early to read our Bible and spend some time in prayer before
we leave for work. But an amazing thing takes place when we obey. God’s Holy
Spirit empowers us with His supernatural energy to do whatever He has asked us
to do.

 

Actually, it is when we feel the weakest that we experience
the power of God working in our lives for the journey we are facing that moment
and that day. Paul had a problem he felt was hindering him and prayed for it to
be taken away. But instead, God responded with: "My grace is sufficient
for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." So Paul went on to
say: “Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the
power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in
reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake. For
when I am weak, then I am strong.”  (2
Corinthians 12:9-10).

 

God doesn’t promise strength for tomorrow, but for today.
That is why He taught us to pray, “Give us this day our daily bread….”. We
can only live one day at a time. We can’t live tomorrow! Jesus reminded us in Matthew
6:30-34: “Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and
tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of
little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What
shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For after all these things the
Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.
But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things
shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will
worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”

 

If God tells you to simply walk around the city walls, by
faith obey Him! He will give you strength and courage for each step! Yes, He
will give you strength for the journey!

 

God bless!

Before the walls of Jericho can come down Joshua had to meet
with the Captain of the LORD’s Host. He fell down at His feet, he worshipped,
and he asked, “What does my Lord say to His servant?” Before we can become
a conqueror we must first be conquered! If we want to see the Lord do the
impossible things in our lives we must recognize and submit to His Lordship in
our lives.

 

I love what Paul wrote in Romans 14:7-9, “For none of us
lives to himself, and no one dies to himself. For if we live, we live to the
Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we
are the Lord's. For to this end Christ died and rose and lived again, that He
might be Lord of both the dead and the living.” My friend, Jesus is either
Lord of all or He is not Lord at all! And, by the way, this is a daily choice
that we make. Paul said, “I die daily…” (1 Corinthians 15:31).

 

The Lord gave Joshua specific instructions for the people
on how to bring down the walls of Jericho. Now they had to obey and follow them.
God has given us specific instructions in His Word and now we need to be
obedient and follow them. Proverbs 3:5-6 is a good verse to remember: “Trust
in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all
your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.”

 

The reason that some cannot explain or understand God’s Word
and His instructions is that they are unwilling to obey it. They want to sit
around, and try to figure it out. It's not up to you to figure out why God may
tell you to march around your Jericho, or whatever God may tell you to do.  Can you imagine what the people of Jericho
was thinking as they start looking over the walls and see the Israelites blowing
trumpets and silently marching around the city. It was ridiculous in the eyes
of the people of Jericho. They we probably saying, "Would you look at
that! Look at them! There they go. That's the stupidest thing we ever heard of.
"What are you doing down there?" "What's the matter—the cat got
your tongue?" "What are you doing, stupid?" But the people just
silently by faith kept on marching.

 

Did you know that the world can't understand us? The Bible
says, "For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish
foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God" (1
Corinthians 1:18). I believe that the great onslaught against and on the church
and God’s people has already begun in these last days! Already in the media,
and especially in Hollywood and television, they take great delight at making
fun of the people of God. And, what the devil has not been able to do in any
other way, he's going to try to stop the Church of the living God by shear
ridicule. We can get ready for Bible-believing, fundamental Christians to be
the brunt of the wickedest, most vile and lascivious insinuations and jokes
that the world has ever known.

 

Are you going to let the jeers of Jericho keep you from
obeying the Word of God. Then you are going to let the devil take you away from
a victory. There are some people who can stand almost anything but to be
laughed at. The time is coming, when the world is going to try to make us look
like fools, and we may indeed look like fools—sometimes in their sight;
sometimes in our sight. But, it's up to us to obey the Word. And, if we're
fools, we'll be fools for Christ's sake. For God does not have to justify His
commands to anybody.

God says, "Joshua, you march around the walls.
Understand it or not, this is the way it's going to be done. And, don't depend
upon your feelings. For feelings come, and feelings go; and, feelings are
deceiving. Our warrant is the Word of God, and nothing else is worth believing.

 

And so what is our job? The compliance of faith is full,
prompt, glad, unreserved, and unquestioned obedience. “Trust and obey, For
there's no other way, To be happy in Jesus, But to trust and obey.” Many times,
our faith is silent ob

Joshua 6 is a exciting chapter about the walls of Jericho coming
down by faith! That is what it says in Hebrews 11:30, “By faith the walls of
Jericho fell down after they were encircled for seven days.” That is how we
have victory in our Christian life! We are to live by faith not by our feelings,
not by our emotions, not by our circumstances or situation, not by looking at
the problem or the obstacle, the mountains or giants that have come between us
and God’s best for our lives. But by faith we look up to the greatness of God
and fix our eyes on Jesus Christ the author and finisher of our faith (Hebrews
12:2). Jesus is our Joshua and we can walk in victory every day! I know that is
easier said than done!!!!

 

Remember Joshua is engaged in a conversation with the Captain
of the LORD’s Host by the walls of Jericho. The LORD is giving him specific
instructions about the next step to take. And no doubt the instructions seemed
very foolish and unreasonable. But they were to be observed and obeyed! This past
Sunday, in my last message as interim pastor at Friendly Community Church in
Burgaw, I preached on Titus 3. Paul was giving instructions to Titus to help
him organized and minister to the churches on the island of Crete. At least twice
in chapter 3, Paul told Titus to teach the believers there “to learn and be
careful to maintain good works”.

 

We all need a spiritual maintenance program for our lives.
And God has given us a maintenance manual called the Bible! It has very simple
instructions on what we should do on our Christian walk every day. Things we
should do and things we shouldn’t be doing. Paul told Timothy in 2 Timothy 3:16 that the Bible, God’s Word, teaches us doctrine. It tells us who
God is. It tells us who we are and what our purpose in life is and what life is
really all about! So many people today are living vain and empty lives and they
wonder why. I can tell you why and it is because we have forgotten the main
instruction Book, the Bible. Not only does the Bible tell us who we are and
what life is about, it gives us reproof. It warns and tells us when we are
wrong and have gotten on the wrong path in life. But it does even more! It then
corrects us and tells how we can be forgiven and get back on the right path.
And finally, it tell us and gives us instructions on how to stay on the right
path! God has an awesome maintenance program for our lives! Are you reading and
applying it to your broken life, your broken family, your broken relationships?

 

You can’t help but notice that God’s in plan and instructions
the emphasis is on the number seven: seven priests, seven trumpets, seven days
of marching, and seven circuits of the city on the seventh day. The number
seven is written clearly into the life of Israel: The Sabbath celebrated on the
seventh day of the week; seven weeks from Passover is Pentecost; the seventh
year is the Sabbatical Year; and after forty-nine years (seven times seven)
comes the Year of Jubilee. Three of Israel's feasts fall in the seventh month:
the Feast of Trumpets, the Day of Atonement (Lev. 16), and the Feast of
Tabernacles.

 

In biblical numerology the number seven represents
completeness or perfection. The Hebrew word translated "seven"
(shevah) comes from a root that means "to be full, to be satisfied."


The Jews were announcing the arrival of the "Year of
Jubilee" for Israel in their new land. God's people today can march in
triumphal procession because of the victory of Jesus Christ over all the
enemies of God (Rom. 8:37; 2 Cor. 2:14; Col. 2:15). We should be living like
victors, not victims. God's people don't simply fight for victory but from
victory, because the Lord has already won the battle.

 

Reckon on His promises and obey what He tells you to do,
and you also will have the victory.

 

God bless!

Joshua 6 is a very exciting chapter where the walls of
Jericho fall! This is a chapter that teaches us that we conquer by faith! It is
by faith alone that we connect with the resources of God, the resources of
heaven to face the enemies in our life, to face the challenges, the obstacles,
the giants. Only by faith can we overcome! “And this is the victory that
overcomes the world” (1 John 5:4). In these first five verses of Joshua 5
we learn several lessons about conquering our Jericho’s by faith.

 

We can’t help but notice that the people of Jericho are in
fear of the nation of Israel. The news of Israel's Exodus from Egypt and their
recent victories east of the Jordan had already spread to Canaan and put the
people in panic (Josh. 2:9-11; see Deut. 2:25; 7:23; 11:25; 32:30). "I
will send My fear before you," God had promised; "I will cause
confusion among all the people to whom you come, and will make all your enemies
turn their backs to you" (Ex. 23:27).

 

It was said that Mary Queen of Scots feared John Knox's
prayers more than she feared an enemy army. But is society today afraid of what
God's people may do? Probably not, and it's mainly because the church hasn't
done very much to display the power of God to a skeptical world. Today it
appears that the church is so much like the world that the world takes little
notice of what we do. We imitate the world's methods; we cater to the world's
appetites; we solicit the world's approval; and we measure what we do according
to the world's standards. Is it any wonder that we don't gain the world's
respect?

 

But not so with Joshua and Israel! They were a conquering
people who made no compromise with the enemy but trusted God to give them the
victory. Theirs was a march of triumph that put the fear of God into the hearts
of the enemy.

 

In verse 2, we see that the victory had already been won!
All Joshua and his people had to do was claim the promise and obey the Lord. Victorious
Christians are people who know the promises of God, because they spend time
meditating on God's Word (1:8); they believe the promises of God because the
Word of God generates faith in their hearts (Rom. 10:17); and they reckon on
these promises and obey what God tells them to do. To "reckon" means
to count as true in your life what God says about you in His Word.

 

"Be of good cheer," Jesus told His disciples; "I
have overcome the world" (John 16:33). "And they that are
Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts" (Gal.
5:24). "Now is the judgment of this world; now shall the prince of this
world be cast out" (John 12:31). Christ has conquered the world, the
flesh, and the devil; and if we reckon on this truth, we can conquer through
Him. It's possible to believe a promise and still not reckon on it and obey the
Lord. Believing a promise is like accepting a check, but reckoning is like
endorsing the check and cashing it.

 

In verses 3-5, the LORD gave Joshua some simple
instructions on what they needed to do to conquer Jericho. “March around the
city one time a day for six days, and then on the seventh day march around the
city seven times, and on the last time, blow the trumpets, and everyone give a
loud shout. And you win!!!!” All Joshua and the people had to do was to be
obedient! If we are faithful and obedient in the little simple things, God will
miraculously take care of the big things!

Simple things like, read your Bible daily, pray daily, go
to church regularly, serve the Lord by being kind to others, being unselfish,
give to others, overcome evil with good, and so on. Very simple daily things,
like just walking around the big walls of the enemy and shouting the victory!
Then stand back and watch God work miracles in your life!

 

How are you responding to the daily “test of obedience” in
your life?

 

God bless!

Today is a very special day! First, it’s Sunday, the LORD’s
day! We celebrate the event of the greatest impossibility in human history! The
resurrection of Jesus Christ! On Friday, He had been crucified and was buried.
But on the first day of the week, He arose from the grave victorious over sin,
death, hell and the grave, never to die again. He ever lives to save us and
make intercession for us!!!!! His resurrection is the greatest proof that God
can do the impossible!

 

It is also a special day for Edith and me. Today will be my
last Sunday to preach and to be the interim pastor of Friendly Community
Baptist Church in Burgaw North Carolina. We have had the privilege to be a part
of this wonderful fellowship of believers for the past two years! It has been a
marvelous and wonderful experience. Souls have been saved, people have been
baptized, families have joined the church, and we have experienced a genuine
revival of God’s Holy Spirit taking control of the church! Our new pastor, Adam
Kord, received an 100% vote of affirmation. He and his wife Julie will be here
next Sunday to take the leadership and shepherd this flock of God’s people! It
has been an awesome two years!!!!

 

Today is also very special for my family as we have the privilege
of dedicating our preemie grandson, Luke, to the Lord. As soon as he was born
at one and a half pounds in Roanoke Memorial Hospital two years ago this month,
and not expected to live, this fellowship at Friendly Community took him in
their hearts, (along with many, many others around the nation and world), and
prayed fervently for him and his survival! He is a miracle baby! God did the
impossible and today we will celebrate this, as his parents, Chris and
Kimberly, present Luke to the Lord and we dedicate his life to the glory of
God! He is a “special needs child” and we believe that God has a special
purpose and plan for his life! Our God is Awesome!!!!!

 

In the last verses of Joshua 5, Joshua had an encounter
with the Captain of his faith outside the walls of Jericho as he was doing
reconnaissance. He was facing an impossible fortress he was tasked to conquer,
and he desperately needed help! That is when God shows up! Joshua falls to his
face and worships, takes off his shoes, and listens to God’s instructions as to
how to go about conquering this great city.

 

In the first verses of Joshua 6, we have the specifics of
those instructions. I can’t imagine what is going through Joshua’s mind as he
hears them. They absolutely make no human sense! March around the walls once a
day for six days, with the priest leading with trumpets and the ark, and with
all the men of war and the rest of the people following them. And march in
complete silence. No talking, no trumpet blowing. Then on the seventh day, do
the same thing six times but on the seventh time, blow the trumpets and all the
people shout with a great shout! God then promised that the wall of the city
would fall flat!

 

Sounds crazy! But that was God’s instructions and Joshua
simply obeyed by faith and shared them with the people! We must first
understand that the Bible is not a book to be explained but a book to be
obeyed! God's plan for the conquest of Jericho was seemingly foolish, but it
worked. God's wisdom is far above ours (Isa. 55:8-9) and He delights in using
people and plans that seem foolish to the world (1 Cor. 1:26-29). Whether it's
Joshua with trumpets, Gideon with torches and pitchers (Judg. 7), or David with
his sling (1 Sam. 17), God delights in using weakness and seeming foolishness
to defeat His enemies and glorify His name.

 

When the angel told Mary that as a virgin she would
conceive and give birth to the Christ child, and that her elderly cousin
Elizabeth was also going to give birth to a son, he reminded her that “With God
nothing is impossible” (Luke 1:37).

 

Today, you can trust the Lord to do the impossible in your
life!

 

God bless!