SOUL
Bible in a Year – Day 74: Steppin’ Out
Mar 14th
Today’s Reading: Joshua 16, 17 & 18
Everywhere you turn in the Old Testament, there are these little prophetic breadcrumbs – things that may have seemed insignificant at the time, but which point to something in the future. Today’s reading is no exception. If you remember, God gave the people of Israel the land of Canaan. He helped them to defeat and/or drive out the people who lived in the towns and villages of the land. He gave them instructions on how to divide up the land.
And, for some, that was all they needed in order to go stake their claim. However, Joshua 18 tells us that there were 7 tribes that were a little late off the starting block. Now, keep in mind that it wasn’t because they were afraid of the people (the people had already been conquered). They just seemed unwilling to pry themselves from their former way of life and enter into this new way – to step into God’s promise.
Immediately, I am struck by the similarities between this episode and the Jews’ rejection of Jesus many generations later. You see, it wasn’t that the Jews were unprepared to receive the Messiah. In fact, they had all of the information that they needed and were in eager anticipation of God’s promised Savior. Of course, they were thrown off a little bit by the fact that Jesus didn’t really arrive on the scene the way they thought he would, but even with that bump in the road, a knowledgeable individual could have discerned that this man was fulfilling Scripture. Even a casual observer would have seen and understood that there was certainly something about this guy that was special.
In fact, many of them did. The Pharisees, it seems, at least had some inclination to believe that Jesus was sent from God – perhaps not the Messiah, but at least a prophet. But, even though they knew there was something about this guy, they wanted to first dismiss him and later, to crush him. Why? Because Jesus represented a choice – the same kind of choice that 7 tribes faced in the days of Joshua.
The people could choose to step into God’s promise – to embrace a new way of living – or they could go on living under the old system. The problem was, in both cases, God nullified the old system. In ancient Israel, the manna stopped coming. In Jesus’ day, he set himself in opposition to the Jewish leaders so that people had to make a choice. The old way was no longer valid.
To be more accurate, the old way (in both cases) was a precursor to the new way. The old way was the warm-up act that goes on before the headliner. What Joshua was saying to the Israelites and what Jesus would echo so many years later was, “Here it is! This is what you’ve been waiting for. This is what you’ve been praying about, whining about, moaning about and then praying about some more. This is the headline act!”
Of course, those 7 tribes weren’t so eager for the headliner. The leaders of the temple weren’t so eager for Jesus. Why? Because to accept the new way meant taking a step away from the life that they had always known. To take that step meant to step out of the old way, to recognize it as the warm-up act and to begin to function differently. That kind of step is never easy to make, but often it is the only way that we can remain in step with our God.
Bible in a Year – Day 73: A Real Estate Lesson
Mar 13th
Today’s Reading: Joshua 12, 13, 14 & 15
They say that a picture is worth a thousand words, but since I’m shooting for 500, I guess I should go with half a picture. My intention was to show you a picture of ancient vs modern Israel – not to spark a political debate about Zionism, but simply to give you (and me) a point of reference when reading about all these ancient boundaries. The trouble is that such a map was really difficult to find. In fact, as I’m typing this, I’m waiting for some of my wise theology/Biblical history friends to gift me with such a map. If I get one before I’m done with this post, I’ll gladly share it with you.
Nonetheless, the land that God gave to the tribes of Israel was vast and it was inhabited by a whole bunch of other people. My question is this: what is so special about this piece of land? I mean, the people of Israel walked through the wilderness for 40 years. There are a lot of places they could have walked during that time. Or, prior to the whole “you screwed up so you get to walk around for 40 years,” God could have just sent them back into Egypt to conquer the Egyptians. After all, Egypt was a pretty great place and certainly and all-out thrashing of Pharaoh and his crew would have brought massive amounts of fame to God and his people.
So what was it about the land of Canaan that was so special? The short answer is that real estate is all about location, location, location:
A map of the Middle East through the eyes of Ancient Israel
As you can see, Canaan is smack dab in the middle of what was, at the time, “The World.” Sure, maybe it wasn’t the georgraphic center, but it was the crossroads of the Middle East. Major trade routes cut through Canaan and it served as a connection between the major economic centers of Egypt, Mesopotamia (shown here as Assyria) and Crete (shown here as Caphtorim). On top of that, this was a great land to grow things and raise animals. It was the perfect place to launch the perfect nation.
After all, that’s what Israel was supposed to be. These were God’s people with God’s blessing and God’s law. Had they followed those laws (and retained that blessing) then Israel would have become a lasting Superpower and we would be looking to them for leadership in the world today. Instead, the people of Israel failed to follow God’s instructions and, over time, their profile would continue to shrink until today, when the nation is a tiny shell of what it used to be.
Some would argue that this contraction is part of God’s grand plan. I somehow doubt it. I think that God can use Israel’s historical unfaithfulness and work his plan even through that brokenness. (BTW, there isn’t a nation on earth that has followed God’s plan, so everybody get off your soapbox.) I have to wonder, though, how different our world would be today if Israel had stayed true to God’s ways. Perhaps you and I wouldn’t even be here. Maybe there would be no salvation for the Gentiles. Maybe we wouldn’t even be having a conversation about ancient vs modern Israel. Who knows? Only one guy…and he ain’t tellin’.
Bible in a Year – Day 72: Sneak (Political) Attack
Mar 12th
Today’s Reading: Joshua 9, 10 & 11
A thought occurred to me as I was reading these passages. This rampage of military might – this wave of brutality in the form of the army of Israel – is very reminiscent of the great flood. This time, however, it was people and not water that flooded the land. It was the swords and spears of the Israelite army that brought death and destruction to the land. But the result was the same. God destroyed the godless nations in the land of Canaan.
For it was the Lord himself who hardened their hearts to wage war against Israel, so that he might destroy them totally, exterminating them without mercy, as the Lord had commanded Moses. (Joshua 11:20)
Again, remember the point that God made to the Israelites back at the end of Moses’ life. He was going to give them victory for his purposes, not because of anything they did or deserved.
With that said, however, I have to take a moment to marvel at Joshua’s military leadership. Let’s face it, part of the reason that God put this guy in charge was that he had what it would take to run a military campaign. Sure, God was fighting for the Israelites, but so were…well…the Israelites. And Joshua helmed the army with the kind of precision and wisdom that is the envy of any battle commander. He used sneak attacks, ambushes and brute force to absolutely destroy some incredibly powerful nations.
You know, it’s been said that God helps those who help themselves and, while that idea may not necessarily be based on any Biblical text, I think it probably fits in this context. What do you think would have happened if the people of Israel had gotten lazy? What if they just stopped preparing for battle, since they knew that God was on their side? What would have happened if they just got arrogant and stopped paying much attention to Joshua’s leadership or to observing the law of the Lord?
What happens when we do that? Sometimes I think the biggest fault of the Church is that we get arrogant and lazy. After all, God is on our side, right? We plaster our cars with bumper sticker theology like “God said it. I believe it. That settles it.” We declare proudly that God will punish our enemies and we “arm” ourselves with the “sword” of Scripture – at least in our words. In reality, most of us are doing very little to prepare for the real battles. We are, in essence, sitting in our comfy armchairs and screaming at the TV. We’re launching verbal assaults on those with whom we disagree. But we’re lazy and arrogant.
How many people have actually studied the things they are blabbering about? How many people know what the Bible has to say about political or economic policy? How many people have sought the Lord’s advice on immigration? How many people have anything but a cursory knowledge (often based on inaccurate information) about the beliefs and philosophies of our “founding fathers?”
The truth is that in our laziness, we have allowed a few blabbermouths to tell us what to think and believe. Then, in our arrogance, we have parroted whatever we heard them say last. And while this isn’t the place for political commentary, let me just say that I’m sick of Christians being used as political pawns. We need to wake up and read our Bibles (presumably, you’re doing that with me) and seek the Lord!
Like the people of Israel, we need to look to God to discover where he wants us to do battle. We may discover that our true foes are those we thought were on our side. Worse yet, our allies might actually be “across the aisle.” How often do we think about that when we go to the ballot box?
Bible in a Year – Day 71: You Stole Fizzy Lifting Drink
Mar 11th
Today’s Reading: Joshua 5, 6, 7 & 8
Success and failure. For any leader, there is a double-edged sword. You make decisions – calculated, but risky – and, when they work out in your favor, you are hailed as a hero. When they don’t work out, though, there is hell to pay. For Joshua, his honeymoon period as leader of the people of Israel came to an abrupt halt when the troops were routed at Ai.
Understand that just prior to that pummeling, Joshua and the Israelites had enjoyed an incredible victory at Jericho using one of the strangest military tactics in history. It was a plan that could have only worked if God was in it. And so, armed with new confidence in God’s ability and willingness to route their enemies, Joshua sent out his men to make quick work of Ai.
There was only one problem. There was a key piece of information that Joshua didn’t have. He didn’t know that one of his own people had defied the command of God when they conquered Jericho. One man had messed it up for everybody by stealing what was to be devoted to God. As I read this, I couldn’t help but think of Gene Wilder’s rant toward the end of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971).
“It’s all there, black and white, clear as crystal! You stole fizzy lifting drinks! You bumped into the ceiling which now has to be washed and sterilized, so you get nothing! You lose! Good day, sir!” – Willy Wonka
God basically says the same thing in Joshua 7:10-12:
The Lord said to Joshua, “Stand up! What are you doing down on your face? Israel has sinned; they have violated my covenant, which I commanded them to keep. They have taken some of the devoted things; they have stolen, they have lied, they have put them with their own possessions. That is why the Israelites cannot stand against their enemies; they turn their backs and run because they have been made liable to destruction. I will not be with you anymore unless you destroy whatever among you is devoted to destruction. (Joshua 7:10-12)
You lose. Good day, sir!
And so, armed with this new information, Joshua slinks off to find out who made him (and, in his eyes, God) look like a fool. Of course, he finds that person, a man named Achan, and “takes care” of him. The Israelites then go on to route Ai with the help of God and some of Joshua’s military prowess.
And then, we get this great scene of all the people of Israel coming together between two mountains and reading the law of Moses – just as God had commanded. The series of events is an incredible reminder of how God’s plans can work, if only we follow them. Sure, Joshua and the people of Israel had a bit of a hiccup when they failed to follow God’s instructions, but when they corrected their error, God’s path was still there for them – waiting for them to come back.
He does the same for us – marks out a path and waits for us to walk down it. Sometimes, we stray, but the path is still there. We just have to get back on it in order to go where God wants us to go. And, once there, we’ll realize that his plans were always better than ours anyway.
Bible in a Year – Day 70: Parting, Part 2
Mar 10th
Today’s Reading: Joshua 1, 2, 3 & 4
Whenever a new leader is installed, the pundits and political observers always look for some sign that he or she truly has been passed the baton – you know, not just on paper, but in reality. For Joshua, that meant not only having the blessing and following of the people of Israel, but also (and more importantly) the blessing of God himself. Fortunately for Joshua, he would receive both very shortly after he succeeded Moses as leader of his people.
First comes the encouragement of the people of Israel, after Joshua has commanded them to prepare for entry into the promised land:
Then they answered Joshua, “Whatever you have commanded us we will do, and wherever you send us we will go. Just as we fully obeyed Moses, so we will obey you. Only may the Lord your God be with you as he was with Moses. Whoever rebels against your word and does not obey it, whatever you may command them, will be put to death. Only be strong and courageous!” (Joshua 1:16-18)
This is just about as ringing of an endorsement as Joshua could have hoped for from the people of Israel. Of course, maybe he shouldn’t put too much credence in it, given the fact that they said, “Just as we fully obeyed Moses, so we will obey you.” A little revisionist history there, but I think their hearts were probably in the right place. But their allegiance may have been conditional. Look at the next phrase: “Only may the Lord your God be with you as he was with Moses.”
The people, as hard-headed as they were, realized that Moses had a special relationship with God – one that had benefited the people of Israel greatly. Now that Moses was gone, they were just hoping and praying that Joshua would have the same kind of relationship. After all, their biggest battles were in front of them. They would need a little extra God power on their side. They needed to know that God had granted Joshua the same kind of favor that he had granted Moses.
Of course, God was there to give them the answer. Just as he had done at the Red Sea as Moses was taking his place as leader, God once again parts the waters for his people to cross – this time the waters of the Jordan River. Now, I don’t think it’s any coincidence that these two miracles – so similar to each other – take place at the beginning of Moses and Joshua’s leadership. For Moses, he needed something big to happen – something that couldn’t be explained away and something that proved that God was for the Israelites and not just against Egypt. For Joshua, the burden of proof was different. What he needed was a spiritual link to Moses – some indicator that, in the eyes of God, Joshua had inherited something from Moses. And so, like a biological son receiving the physical appearance of his father, this “spiritual son” received a miracle from God that mimicked his spiritual father.
Interestingly enough, however, God may have been making a statement about the on-again-off-again relationship that the people of Israel had with him in the way the miracle happened. In the Red Sea parting, the Israelites crossed on dry ground and the Egyptians drowned – two statements about two different people groups. In the Jordan River crossing, however, the ark of the covenant had to remain in the river in order for the water to be held back. If the priests carrying the ark had moved on, presumably, the waters would have started to flow again. So, this time, in the midst of confirming his blessing of Joshua, God seems to be saying, “but you people of Israel don’t deserve this. You need a surrogate to stand in your place and hold back the water.”
What great prophetic imagery of the surrogacy of Jesus who holds back the torrents of death from us, the undeserving people.
