IN (My/Your)PLACE-II—Joshua 5:13-15
Set for Restoration—Leadership—Ready to Rumble—Commanding the Battle
Attention:
An antiques appraiser visits a San Francisco collectibles store.
Just inside the store, He notices a rather disheveled looking street cat drinking out of what he recognized as a genuine Ming Dynasty bowl—Worth hundreds of thousands of dollars!
The antiques appraiser assumes that the owner is obviously unaware of his treasure. So he schemes how to get the bowl.
The appraiser offers to buy the cat from the store owner for $100.
The owner quickly complies, selling his cat for $100!
The appraiser, acting as if on afterthought says, ‘By the way now that I have a new cat, I realized that I don’t have anything to feed her with. I’d like to buy her little saucer there. I’ll give you for $5 for it.
The owner says, “Oh, no sir. I can’t get rid of that bowl!” Its real strange that ever since I acquired that bowl on Monday, I’ve already sold 12 cats for ridiculously high prices!”
The bowl was in place & ...?...The antiques appraiser was Put in his Place!
We, as God’s people, must know our place in order to accomplish His work.
Need:
You must recognize your place in God’s battle.
Joshua came face-to-face with the Commander/captain of the hosts of heaven.
God’s people must become aware of their place in the/God’s battle.
How can we take our proper place in the battle?
3 guarantors that secure my place in the LORD’s battle.
We’ve found previously that Those securing their place in the LORD’s battle are...
1. Open to His PRESENCE(:13)
2—Those securing their place in the LORD’s battle are...
Open to His CONTROL(:14a-b)
Explanation:(:14)Authority/Command
:14—“So He said, "No, but as Commander of the army of the LORD I have now come.” And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, & worshiped, & said to Him, "What has my Lord to say to His servant?”
:14a—“So He said, "No, but as Commander of the army of the LORD I have now come.”—
By replying “No”, the man revealed that he was neither for nor against anyone in particular. Rather his purpose was to lead the military host of YHWH. The man revealed to Joshua that he was “Commander”/captain/prince/chief/overseer of the “army” of the LORD.
“No”=“Neither”—Neither for one or the other but for the will of God.—God’s providence requires doing things by His power & His way! We must allow/submit ourselves to be directed by God!
“He didn’t come to take sides, He came to take control!”—Sidney Singletary(Deacon @ Providence BC, Whigham, GA)
*Thus YaHWeH’s forthcoming battle is that to which Joshua should put his hand!
We should examine our efforts at all times as placing ourselves at the LORD’s disposal for His chosen battles. We should not view our efforts—no matter how elaborate or time consuming or Christ-honoring—as that which is ‘supported’ by the LORD. To do so is to presume upon God that He will support our cause(pious though fleshly derived effort(s)) or to audaciously assume God is in support of our best efforts.
“Commander of the army of the LORD”—
Who is this “Commander of the army of the LORD”?...
From NAC:
a.—An angel with a special commission.
b.—God himself.
c.—A pre-incarnate manifestation of Christ.
—The English translators of the NKJV saw this “man” as the pre-incarnate Christ, given that they capitalize “Commander”, pronouns, & “Lord.”
Regardless, this “Commander” certainly carries YHWH’s authority!
Dan. 10 makes it plain that angels/demons are intimately & ultimately behind & interlocked in battles of nations.
Dan. 10:1-14—“In the third year of Cyrus king of Persia a message was revealed to Daniel, whose name was called Belteshazzar. The message was true, but the appointed time was long; & he understood the message, & had understanding of the vision. In those days I, Daniel, was mourning three full weeks. I ate no pleasant food, no meat or wine came into my mouth, nor did I anoint myself at all, till three whole weeks were fulfilled. Now on the twenty-fourth day of the first month, as I was by the side of the great river, that is, the Tigris, I lifted my eyes & looked, & behold, a certain man clothed in linen, whose waist was girded with gold of Uphaz! His body was like beryl, his face like the appearance of lightning, his eyes like torches of fire, his arms & feet like burnished bronze in color, & the sound of his words like the voice of a multitude. And I, Daniel, alone saw the vision, for the men who were with me did not see the vision; but a great terror fell upon them, so that they fled to hide themselves. Therefore I was left alone when I saw this great vision, & no strength remained in me; for my vigor was turned to frailty in me, & I retained no strength. Yet I heard the sound of his words; & while I heard the sound of his words I was in a deep sleep on my face, with my face to the ground. Suddenly, a hand touched me, which made me tremble on my knees & on the palms of my hands. And he said to me, “O Daniel, man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak to you, & stand upright, for I have now been sent to you.” While he was speaking this word to me, I stood trembling. Then he said to me, “Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, & to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; & I have come because of your words. 13 But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; & behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the kings of Persia. Now I have come to make you understand what will happen to your people in the latter days, for the vision refers to many days yet to come.”
Elisha’s chariots of fire:
2Kings 6:8-17—“Now the king of Syria was making war against Israel; & he consulted with his servants, saying, “My camp will be in such & such a place.” And the man of God sent to the king of Israel, saying, “Beware that you do not pass this place, for the Syrians are coming down there.” Then the king of Israel sent someone to the place of which the man of God had told him. Thus he warned him, & he was watchful there, not just once or twice. Therefore the heart of the king of Syria was greatly troubled by this thing; & he called his servants & said to them, “Will you not show me which of us is for the king of Israel?” And one of his servants said, “None, my lord, O king; but Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedroom.” So he said, “Go & see where he is, that I may send & get him.” And it was told him, saying, “Surely he is in Dothan.” Therefore he sent horses & chariots & a great army there, & they came by night & surrounded the city. And when the servant of the man of God arose early & went out, there was an army, surrounding the city with horses & chariots. And his servant said to him, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” So he answered, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” And Elisha prayed, & said, “LORD, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” Then the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, & he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses & chariots of fire all around Elisha.”
“Said”(See :13)—rma aw-mar’—Qal Imperfect—1) To say, speak, utter—1a) (Qal)-To say, to answer, to say in one's heart, to think, to command, to promise, to intend, 1b) (Niphal)-To be told, to be said, to be called, 1c) (Hithpael)--To boast, to act proudly, 1d) (Hiphil)--To avow, to avouch. Strong—a primitive root; To say(used with great latitude).
“No”—la ‘al—Negative Adverb—1) Not, no, nor, neither, nothing(as wish or preference)—1a) Do not, let not(with a verb), 1b) Let there not be(with a verb understood), 1c) Not, no(with substantive), 1d) Nothing(as substantive). Strong—a negative particle[akin to al]; Not(the qualified negation, used as a deprecative); once(Job 24:25) as a noun--Nothing. Used 12X.
“But/Rather”(See :15)—yk keey—Conjunction—1) That, for, because, when, as though, as, because that, but, then, certainly, except, surely, since. Strong—a primitive particle[the full form of the prepositional prefix] indicating causal relations of all kinds, antecedent or consequent; (by implication)--very widely used as a relative conjunction or adverb[as below]; often largely modified by other particles annexed.
“Commander/Captain/Prince/Chief/Overseer”(See :15)—rs sar—Noun Masc.—1) Prince, ruler, leader, chief, chieftain, official, captain—1a) Chieftain, leader, 1b) Vassal, noble, official(under king), 1c) Captain, general, commander(military), 1d) Chief, head, overseer(of other official classes), 1e) Heads, princes(of religious office), 1f) Elders(of representative leaders of people), 1g) Merchant-princes(of rank & dignity), 1h) Patron-angel, 1i) Ruler of rulers(of God), 1j) Warden. Strong—from rrs saw-rar’[To have dominion]; A head person(of any rank or class).
“Army/Host”(See :15)—abu tsaw-baw' OR--(fem.)habu tseb-aw-aw’—Noun Masc.—1) That which goes forth, army, war, warfare, host—1a) Army, host—1a1) Host (of organized army), 1a2) Host (of angels), 1a3) Of sun, moon, & stars, 1a4) Of whole creation, 1b) War, warfare, service, go out to war, 1c) Service. Strong—A mass of persons(or figuratively, things), especially--Regiments organized for war(an army); by implication--A campaign, literally or figuratively(specifically--Hardship, worship).?From—abu tsaw-baw'; a primitive root; To mass(an army or servants).
“The LORD”(See :15)—hwhy Yeh-ho-vaw’—Noun Proper Deity—Jehovah = “the existing One”—1) The proper name of the one true God—1a) unpronounced except with the vowel pointings of ynda Ad-o-noy’. Strong—from hyh[To exist, be, become, come to pass]; (the) self-Existent or Eternal; Jehovah, Jewish national name of God.
“Now”—hte at-taw’—Adverb—1) Now—1a) Now, 1b) in phrases. Strong—At this time, whether adverb, conjunction or expletive. Used 9X.?From—te ‘ayth—Time, especially(adverb with preposition)--Now, when, etc.
“Come”—awb bow’—Qal Perfect—1) To go in, enter, come, go, come in; 1a) (Qal)--1a1) To enter, come in, 1a2) To come—1a2a) To come with, 1a2b) To come upon, fall or light upon, attack(enemy), 1a2c) To come to pass, 1a3) To attain to, 1a4) To be enumerated, 1a5) To go; 1b) (Hiphil)--1b1) To lead in, 1b2) To carry in, 1b3) To bring in, cause to come in, gather, cause to come, bring near, bring against, bring upon, 1b4) To bring to pass; 1c) (Hophal)--1c1) To be brought, brought in, 1c2) To be introduced, be put. Strong—a primitive root; To go or come(in a wide variety of applications).
:14b—“And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, & worshiped, & said to Him, "What has my Lord to say to His servant?”
Joshua immediately recognizing his ineptitude before such power/might, revering the man with the drawn sword, by “falling on his face to the earth.”
A.—True reverence is elevated thru personal humility. ‘Falling with my face to the earth’ before God/God’s desire/God’s call is the proper attitude of humility.
Some of you here are only feigned servants of Christ! You know & mimic the ways of Christians, & the language of Baptists, & the worship of God’s people...But you have no heart for it! Though you are very pious & dedicated, you have no reverence for God’s angels, nor for His Kingdom, nor for God Himself!...Because you are pious toward religion only, & are dedicated to an idea of good in God only, BUT you are not dedicated to the person God is!
B.—True reverence instills & compels the child of God to “Worship” Him. True reverence compels me to view God & every aspect of His Kingdom with a deserving awesomeness.
C.—True reverence instills & compels the child of God to willingly & joyfully place himself at his/her God’s disposal.
If my ‘god’ is something other than the revelatory God, then my life will show it!
Joshua readily addresses the man as his “Lord”(ynda)—master or controller. Being the one by whom Joshua will willingly allow himself to be directed.
*Joshua speaks to his Lord with a question. Joshua humbly asks what it is that is desired of him. Every child of God should approach God with a servant’s heart!
‘Servanthood’—Your/My personal Authority/Office is constantly challenged by God’s authority. Angels are faithful ministers/servants of God(Heb. 1:14)...
Satan—being a fallen angel(never to be undone)—masquerades as an angel of light.(2Cor. 11:14).
“Fell”—lpn naw-fal’—Qal Imperfect—1) To fall, lie, be cast down, fail—1a) (Qal)--1a1) To fall, 1a2) To fall (of violent death), 1a3) To fall prostrate, prostrate oneself before, 1a4) To fall upon, attack, desert, fall away to , go away to, fall into the hand of, 1a5) To fall short, fail, fall out, turn out, result, 1a6) To settle, waste away, be offered, be inferior to, 1a7) To lie, lie prostrate; . Strong—a primitive root; To fall, in a great variety of applications(intransitive or causative, literal or figurative).
“Face”—Mynp paw-neeym' plural(but always as sing.) of an unused noun hnp paw-neh'—Noun Masc.—1) Face—1a) Face, faces, 1b) Presence, person, 1c) Face(of seraphim or cherubim), 1d) Face(of animals), 1e) Face, surface(of ground), 1f) as adverb of locative/temporal—1f1) Before & behind, toward, in front of, forward, formerly, from beforetime, before, 1g) with prep—1g1) In front of, before, to the front of, in the presence of, in the face of, at the face or front of, from the presence of, from before, from before the face of. Strong—The face(as the part that turns); used in a great variety of applications(literally & figuratively); also(with prepositional prefix) as a preposition--Before, etc..
“Earth/Ground”—Ura eh’-rets—Noun Fem.—1) Land, earth—1a) Earth—1a1) Whole earth(as opposed to a part), 1a2) Earth(as opposed to heaven), 1a3) Earth(inhabitants), 1b) Land—1b1) Country, territory, 1b2) District, region, 1b3) Tribal territory, 1b4) Piece of ground, 1b5) Land of Canaan, Israel, 1b6) Inhabitants of land, 1b7) Sheol, land without return, (under)world, 1b8) City(-state), 1c) Ground, surface of the earth—1c1) Ground, 1c2) Soil, 1d) (in phrases)—1d1) People of the land, 1d2) Space or distance of country(in measurements of distance), 1d3) Level or plain country, 1d4) Land of the living, 1d5) End(s) of the earth, 1e) (almost wholly late in usage)—1e1) Lands, countries—1e1a) Often in contrast to Canaan. Strong—from an unused root probably meaning to be firm; The earth(at large, or partitively a land).
“Worshiped/Bowed down/In Reverence”—hxv shaw-khaw’—Hithpael(reflexive/reciprocal) Imperfect—1) To bow down; 1a) (Qal)--To bow down; 1c) (Hithpael)--1c1) To bow down, prostrate oneself—1c1a) before superior in homage, 1c1b) before God in worship, 1c1c) before false gods, 1c1d) before angel. Strong—a primitive root; To depress, i.e. Prostrate(especially reflexive, in homage to royalty or God).
“What”—hm mah maw OR--hm mah mah OR--M ma maw OR--M ma mah ALSO--hm meh meh—Interrogative Pronoun—1) what, how, of what kind—1a) (Interrogative)--1a1) What?, 1a2) Of what kind, 1a3) What?(rhetorical), 1a4) Whatsoever, whatever, what; 1b) (Adverb)--1b1) How, how now, 1b2) Why, 1b3) How!(exclamation); 1c) (with preposition)--1c1) Wherein?, whereby?, wherewith?, by what means?, 1c2) Because of what?, 1c3) The like of what?—1c3a) How much?, how many?, how often?, 1c3b) For how long?, 1c4) For what reason?, why?, to what purpose?, 1c5) Until when?, how long?, upon what?, wherefore? Strong—a primitive particle; properly, interrogative--What?(including how? why? when?); but also exclamation--What!(including how!), or indefinitely--What(including whatever, & even relatively, that which); often used with prefixes in various adverbial or conjunctive senses. Indefinite Pronoun—2) Anything, aught, what may. Used 27X.
“Lord”—Nwda aw-down' OR--(shortened)Nda aw-don' OR--ynda—Noun Masc.—1) Firm, strong, lord, master—1a) Lord, Master—1a1) Reference to men—1a1a) Superintendent of household,of affairs, 1a1b) Master, 1a1c) King, 1a2) Reference to God—1a2a) The Lord God, 1a2b) Lord of the whole earth;--1b) Lords, kings—1b1) Reference to men—1b1a) Proprietor of hill of Samaria, 1b1b) Master, 1b1c) Husband, 1b1d) Prophet, 1b1e) Governor, 1b1f) Prince, 1b1g) King; 1b2) Reference to God—1b2a) Lord of lords (probably = "thy husband, Yahweh”);--1c) My lord, my master—1c1) Reference to men—1c1a) Master, 1c1b) Husband, 1c1c) Prophet, 1c1d) Prince, 1c1e) King, 1c1f) Father, 1c1g) Moses, 1c1h) Priest, 1c1i) Theophanic angel, 1c1j) Captain, 1c1k) General recognition of superiority, 1c2) Reference to God—1c2a) My Lord, my Lord & my God, 1c2b) Adonai(parallel with Yahweh). Strong—from an unused root(meaning to rule); Sovereign, i.e. Controller(human or divine).
“Say”—rbd daw-bar’—Piel(intensive/intentional/repeated/extended) Participle—1) To speak, declare, converse, command, promise, warn, threaten, sing—1a) (Qal) To speak; 1c) (Piel)--1c1) To speak, 1c2) To promise; 1d) (Pual)--To be spoken. Strong—a primitive root; perhaps properly--To arrange; but used figuratively(of words)--To speak; rarely(in a destructive sense)--To subdue.
“Servant”—dbe eh’-bed—Noun Masc.—1) Slave, servant—1a) Slave, servant, man-servant, 1b) Subjects, 1c) Servants, worshippers(of God), 1d) Servant(in special sense as prophets, Levites etc.), 1e) Servant(of Israel), 1f) Servant(as form of address between equals). Strong—A servant.?From—dbe aw-bad’—Verb—a primitive root; To work (in any sense); To serve, till; Enslave, etc.
Argumentation:
Mat. 20:26-28—““Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave--“just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, & to give His life a ransom for many.””
Eph.6:10-11, 13—“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord & in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.”.....“Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, & having done all, to stand.”
Ps. 95:7-8—“For He is our God, And we are the people of His pasture, And the sheep of His hand. Today, if you will hear His voice: “Do not harden your hearts, as in the rebellion, As in the day of trial in the wilderness,”
Mat. 7:21—“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.”
Jn. 10:27—““My sheep hear My voice, & I know them, & they follow Me.”
Prov. 3:6—“In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.”
Lk. 4:1, 14—“Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan & was led by the Spirit into the wilderness,”.....“Then Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, & news of Him went out through all the surrounding region.”
Rom. 8:10-14—“And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you. Therefore, brethren, we are debtors--not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.”
2Tim. 2:1-7—“You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier. And also if anyone competes in athletics, he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. The hard-working farmer must be first to partake of the crops. Consider what I say, & may the Lord give you understanding in all things.”
Gal. 5:19-25—“Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, & the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions & desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.”
Eph. 5:8-16—“For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, & truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of those things which are done by them in secret. But all things that are exposed are made manifest by the light, for whatever makes manifest is light. Therefore He says: “Awake, you who sleep, Arise from the dead, And Christ will give you light.” See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.”
Illustration:
I have only a vague memory of a Cordele, GA newspaper reporter/I can’t even remember ‘why’ our church was interviewed—perhaps it was an event we were hosting or about the AWANA program we were implementing/What I remember about the interview is that she could not grasp how Christians could allow someone else—Jesus— to direct their lives!/She was NOT Open to GOD’s CONTROL
Our place in the Camp Gordon Johnston Days Parade this Saturday at 10:30/If we arrive too late we will completely miss ‘advertising’ Jesus/If we take our float down any road other than the designated route, it will not be seen—All our efforts will be wasted/The Open to GOD’s CONTROL
A Lieutenant Recognizes & Receives orders from his Captain/Communicates with & works under that Captain’s authority/Open to GOD’s CONTROL
Application:
?Your Eyes Open to God’s CONTROL?
*Unless I’m Open to His CONTROL, in every situation, I’m NOT in my Place!
?Is YOUR Place Secured in God’s battle?
Am I willing to allow my Authority to be subsumed under God’s?
CONCLUSION:
Visualization:
“Oh, no sir. I can’t get rid of that bowl!” Its real strange that ever since I acquired that bowl on Monday, I’ve already sold 12 cats for ridiculously high prices!”
Have you secured your place in God’s battle?
Action:
Those securing their place in the LORD’s battle are...
2—Open to His CONTROL(:14)
1—Open to His PRESENCE(:13)
Pt. 2 only! Presented 03/04/2018am to:
FBC Cbelle
206 Storrs Ave.(SE Ave. A)
Carrabelle, FL 32322
Pts. 1-3 Presented 03/19/2000pm to:
Providence Baptist Church
975 Providence Rd.
Whigham, GA 31797
