Joshua 5:13-15
Idols of the Heart
Many things were changing for Israel and especially for Joshua.
1. Moses had died \\#Jos 1:1\\.
2. Joshua had been chosen by God to be their new leader \\#Jos 1:2\\.
3. Israel had crossed into the enemy’s land (Jos 3-4).
4. The manna from heaven had ceased \\#Jos 5:12\\.
5. Israel was being sent to fight against the one of the most defensive
cities in the land.
Joshua needed time to meditate, to pray and, to strategize. While near the
city, he sees someone with a sword drawn for battle. Swords are like guns.
You don’t pull one unless you are ready to use it.
In such a situation as that, Joshua has little choice but to check the stranger
out. So he approaches and challenges the stranger.
At least, Joshua thought he challenged the Stranger. As it turned out, the
Stranger challenged him. Although it is not specifically stated in the text,
this is not a mere mortal man, neither is it an angel. This is none other Jesus
Christ!
How do we know this was Christ? Two reasons:
1. \\#Jos 5:14\\ "And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did
WORSHIP…." Angels do not receive worship, only God.
Revelation 22:8 And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had
heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed
me these things.
9 Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of
thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book:
worship God.
2. \\#Jos 5:15\\ The presence of this One alone made the ground where
Joshua stood, holy ground. This likewise happened to Moses.
Exodus 3:5 And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy
feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.
This is called a Christophany, that is, a pre-incarnate appearance of Jesus
Christ on the earth.
1. You talk about a surprised Joshua! But that is only the half of it.
2. Joshua had asked the question, "Whose side are you on?"
3. The Lord’s answer is that He did not come to BE on either side. He is
there to Captain the HOST OF THE LORD; that is, He is there to take over.
Might I say, the only way the Lord will show up for anything is to be in charge.
1. Some people have the tag that says Jesus is my Co-Pilot.
2. If He is, your co-pilot’s chair is empty.
3. Jesus is either there to lead or He is not there at all.
The question is, "What is Joshua going to do? Is he going to yield to the Lord
God Almighty or not?
1. The answer should seem obvious, but it is the same question you and I
face everyday.
2. Will we watch that or turn it off?
3. Will we act that way or change our behavior?
4. Will we tithe or spend that money on ourselves?
Joshua was the new leader of these people.
He had his own leadership style to develop.
He needed to demonstrate that he was as good a leader as Moses.
what would he do?
Joshua did not hesitate. He immediately surrendered himself to the Lordship of
Christ, placing himself as the Lord’s servant.
There is a lesson there. The best leaders are the ones who know how to serve
God.
Some thoughts:
I. You can not be saved if you have never surrendered control of your life
to Jesus Christ.
A. \\#Romans 10:8-9\\Gives two conditions for salvation.
1. You must believe.
a. Believing is not an option.
b. You must believe that what the Bible says about Jesus Christ
is true.
c. I feel for the many religionists of this world. The Muslims,
the Hindues, the Catholics, the Jews, the Mormons—yes, even
the Baptists, the Methodists—for if they do not believe what
the Bible says of Jesus, they cannot be saved.
John 6:29 Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye
believe on him whom he hath sent.
2. You must confess the Lord Jesus Christ.
a. Simply put, that means you must surrender to Jesus as your
Lord and Master.
b. This means that if you prayed a prayer but did not surrender
your life, you are still lost.
c. In order for salvation to take effect, both of these
ingredients must be present.
(1) You can call it believing and surrendering.
(2) You can call it faith and repentance.
(3) But if both of them are NOT there, there is no salvation!
3. Religion is filled with many lost members because their
constituents have never surrendered control of their lives!
B. \\#Ezekiel 14:1-3\\
1. Idols of the heart - These leaders in Israel had made gods
within their hearts.
a. Theirs were literal idols of gold, silver, or wood.
b. Any thing that you have not surrendered to the Lord is an
idol.
c. Hunting, football, work, yard work, sleep, suntans,
television, liquor, drugs, pornography, night clubs.
2. \\#Eze 14:3-4\\ God also calls these things "stumbling blocks
of iniquity;" that is, they are sinful things that make you
stumble.
a. To stumble means to trip and fall.
b. You can’t enter into heaven because you keep falling down at
the door.
c. Have you ever tried to walk out of wal Mart with anything
electronic? It seems like 9/10 times the cashier doesn’t
deactivate the electronic thief device and you set off the
alarms.
d. sin is like that, except sin won’t just set off an alarm. It
slams down the door!
4. Look at God’s warning:
a. \\#Eze 14:6\\ - Repent; Cast away your idols, Make Jesus Lord.
b. \\#Eze 14:8, 10\\ - If not, you will be destroyed.
c. \\#Eze 14:21\\ - These people were not just talking about a
a spiritual salvation.
(1) They were leaders in the nation of Israel. So God said
that He would be four sore judgments upon the land.
(2) Going to hell will make those four judgments look like
a Sunday after picnic.
C. Get this, you must have surrendered to Jesus or you are still lost!
Don’t let this sinful act send you to hell.
II. You can not be a disciple of Christ unless you are presently surrendered
to Christ as your Lord.
A. Joshua 5 is a picture of every Christian’s decision to keep Jesus as
Lord or not.
1. CROSSING THE RIVER JORDON UNDER THE SHADOW OF THE ARK is a
picture of salvation at the foot of the cross.
2. PROMISED LAND is a picture of the Christian life.
3. JERICHO AND OTHER BATTLES are pictures of the growth and the
trials Christians must face.
4. JOSHUA BEFORE HIS LORD is a picture of every Christian who must
decide on a daily basis who will be Lord today?
B. It is not easy to live the surrendered life.
1. Paul compared it to dying EVERYDAY.
1 Corinthians 15:31 I protest by your rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus
our Lord, I die daily.
2. Giving yourself to death everyday is difficult.
3. Yet, without doing so, you cannot be Jesus’ disciple.
Luke 14:33 So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he
hath, he cannot be my disciple.
C. \\#Luke 9:23\\ - Jesus gave three marks of a disciple:
Luke 9:23 And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny
himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.
1. One must deny thyself
a. That means keep first things first.
b. It may come as a surprise but life is not about us.
c. Life is about honoring God.
2. Take up thy cross.
a. This has to do with our devotion.
b. Devotion is the distance between our first and second love.
c. In this sermon, Jesus is not only telling us that we must be
prepared to die for Him.
d. He is also telling us that we must be willing to supply the
cross!
e. We must be willing to volunteer death if that is what our God
asks us to do!
f. That is devotion.
3. And follow me.
a. To follow the Lord in service and, if need be, in death is
faithfulness.
b. The chorus of the old song say it.
Where he leads me I will follow,
Where he leads me I will follow,
where he leads me I will follow;
I’ll go with him, with him, all the way.
(Where He Leads Me, by E.W. Blandy)
D. Jesus adds another word - "DAILY." One can’t get away from the fact
that discipleship is a daily discipline.
E. If you don’t want to be a disciple, you do not have to be.
1. If you do not want to surrender to Christ as your Lord, you do not
have to do so.
2. You will be a liar and a fraud if you do not, because that is the
commitment you made when you were saved, but still, you do not
have to do so.
3. However, if you are saved and not surrendered, you will lose
some things.
a. You will lose your peace.
b. You will lose your power.
c. You will lose the presence of God on your life.
III. You can not know not for sure that you are saved if you are not presently
surrendered to Christ as your Lord.
A. I am amazed by some of the things I have seen in the lives of church
goers.
1. I am amazed at how many never surrendered to get saved in the
first place.
a. As I have already said, churches are filled with counterfeit
Christians.
b. I believe I will be even more amazed when I get to heaven and
attempt to look up some of the folks I preached to!
2. I am amazed at how many do not really have any assurance that they
are saved.
a. I do not know how many there are, but, over the years, I have
heard of many who speak about how they went for years with no
assurance.
b. Of course, one reason may be that you are not saved.
c. But even many who seem to be saved lack assurance.
B. My friend, I am going to be blunt with you.
1. You can never be certain you are going to heaven if you are not
surrendered to the Savior.
2. How could you be?
3. The proof that you are going to heaven IS your relationship with
Jesus.
a. The proof is not a prayer.
b. The proof is not a membership.
c. The proof is not an attendance pin.
4. The proof is that Jesus is Master of your life.
What was the proof that Joshua belonged to Jesus? It was not that he was the
leader of the nation of Israel. It was when he saw his Lord, he bowed,
worshipped, and submitted to Him. Will you do likewise this morning.
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