Principles Of Victory And Defeat

by G.M. Hydon, Toronto, Canada | Category: Spiritual Lessons From Joshua | Jun 1985

OVERVIEW

Let us be assured, there are principles which govern our lives and dictate our success or failure (in God's framework of measurement) as disciples together of the Lord Jesus Christ. Life for us is not simply a series of unfolding events. There are "elementary truths" (Heb. 5:12) governing its progress which may be discerned from God's Word. These form principles which apply uniformly to our activities and therefore are primary determinants of victory or defeat in what we do. These principles, or at least some of them, can be found illustrated for us in the well-known accounts of the battles of the children of Israel at Jericho and Ai (Joshua chs. 6,7,8). Like them, we may be sure we are engaged in warfare, for the Scriptures say so (Eph. 6:12). But it may be' sadly conjectured that Christians have supplied far too many illustrations of battles lost, often because of a false reliance on human tactics and the absence of an understanding and observance of divine requirements.

RECEIVING NOT EARNING

It is easy to lose sight of this principle when reading the accounts of the various battles of the children of Israel. We could even think that the often considerable and exhausting physical effort in the awful carnage so often described, was in some way the essential means to victory. Not so. Days before the trumpets sounded, Jehovah declared to Joshua (6:2) that He had already delivered Jericho into his hands. From this we learn that, fundamentally, the outcome of all spiritual battles is determined by the degree to which we receive the victory from the Lord, rather than the effort we put into trying to earn it. As Paul gloriously declares to present-day Christians, "We are more than conquerors through Him" (Rom. 8:37) and again "When I am weak, then I am strong" (2 Cor. 12:10). Notice how the defeat at Ai also proves this point. Joshua mistakenly thought that victory depended on the strength of the soldiers (7:3). However, the reality was that God would not grant the victory and thus their efforts were futile. We should remind ourselves here that the people thought they were doing the right thing in attacking Ai at that time, but they were actually proceeding in ignorance of a more important priority, which we shall now discuss.

GOD FIRST

Jericho was a place of firstfruits. The battle was the first to be undertaken by the Israelites after crossing the Jordan. As indicated above, the Lord was going to ensure their victory; but what of the spoils of the battle? To whom would they belong? They had to learn that victory is not only from the Lord it is for the Lord. The Lord had already foreshadowed His "resurrection victory" over the death curse suffered by a fallen creation. This victory was demonstrated in the seasonal harvest and the replenishment of the herds, and it was to result in the firstfruits of the increase being brought to Him (see for example Exodus 34:19-24). Hence it is not surprising that He should command that all of the spoils of this first victorious battle should be brought into the treasury of the Lord's house (6:24). It was simply the application of a divine principle.

Despite warnings however, Achan had other ideas. As the historian Josephus puts it, "thinking it a very hard case, that what spoils he ... had found, he must give to God, who stood in no need of it, while he that wanted it must go without" (Antiq. V.1.10). This thinking led to the defeat at Ai and the subsequent judgement on Achan and all that he had (7:24). Two principles are evident from this. Firstly, God's portion must be given first (and in full) if we are to enjoy an ongoing victorious experience. Secondly, individual sin can weaken the witness and effectiveness of others. That deserves a few more words.

UNITY

Joshua led an army around Jericho; it consisted of all the people. In the heart of one man, Achan, was the sin of covetousness and when this hidden failing resulted in the people not giving to God all that He required it was the whole company who suffered, not just Achan. There is a divine expectation of unity in relation to the people of God. Thus any failure of a part is also a problem for the whole. The sin of the individual was regarded by God as a sin of the people (7:11). It follows that if further tragedy was to be avoided then the offending party had to be dealt with summarily (v.12).

Now is this a principle for us today? Certainly 1 Cor. 5:6 and 10:6-11 indicate that is the case. The judgement called for in the first instance, to preserve the purity and effectiveness of the church in Corinth, was to expel the wicked man (5:13). The illustration of sin spreading like yeast in dough is used in Gal. 5:9 to describe the potential impact of false doctrine, which if unchecked leads to sinful practices. How careful we need to be in this matter! External circumstances, like the defeat at Ai, may be used by God as part of the corrective process if the people fail to take action themselves. We may read again the solemn statements regarding potential judgement of Christians today in this context (cf. 1 Cor. 11:29-30; Heb. 10:30).

Perhaps we should respectfully note here that the principle fundamentally applies to those carrying spiritual responsibility because of their position as the people of God today in churches of God. It cannot refer to sin by an individual member of the Church which is the Body of Christ affecting other members, as that Church is inviolable (Mat. 16:18). We suggest that friends reading this series of articles who have not been added to a church of God will greatly benefit from looking further into the purposes of God regarding a collective and separate people for Himself, to whom the truths discussed in these pages primarily apply. This leads us to a related point, which certainly determines the degree of victory experienced both by individuals and by God's people as a whole.

TO OBEY IS BETTER THAN SACRIFICE

This truth was enunciated through Samuel (1 Sam. 15:22), but like all the principles regarding God's dealings with men, it is of timeless application. Joshua did not need to construct theories of how the walls of Jericho would fall down when the people shouted and the trumpets sounded; he needed only to understand that the Lord's command was to take a specific number of trumpets and use them as He directed. Again, what would have happened if Joshua had decided to offer animal sacrifices instead of circling the city? Even more importantly, what if he had left the Ark (which typified Christ) at Gilgal when the people went off to Jericho? These questions are obviously rhetorical, the principle is clear - victory is critically dependent on full obedience.

What an example is Joshua in this! God declares of him (Josh. 11:15) that "he left nothing undone of all that the LORD commanded" and the result was victory after victory consummated in the statement that "the land had rest from war" (v.23). We, too, are commended for what we obediently do, not simply what we know (Jas.1:25), nor our good intentions. In relation to our spiritual warfare, God has told us to put on specific armour (Eph. 6:11); we risk defeat if we ignore all or part of this command, or substitute our own ideas.

FAITH, LOVE AND VISION

It is appropriate here to also touch on the principle of faith. Not only in the character and actions of Joshua, but also in regard to Rahab, we have a splendid example of how to triumph through faith. Faith and obedience (already referred to above) are linked in the Scriptures (Rom. 16:25-26) and it is clear that this remains a vital issue for us today. Lessons on Rahab's faith which brought her the victory of deliverance from the judgement of her disobedient city (Heb. 11:31) have been addressed in the March issue of this magazine. Joshua's faith is simply recorded in the statement that "By faith the walls of Jericho fell" (Heb.11:30).

By faith we likewise can have access to divine power to demolish strongholds (2 Cor. 10:4) which the apostle tells us can take the form of arguments or pretension. These are things over which we can experience victory in our spiritual warfare. Other important pre-requisites of victory could be further developed. For instance the matters of steadfastness and of love for God. Joshua, in his last days, reminded the people that these too were necessary to victory (23:8-11).

How essential it is to grasp the vision of God working through a perfect balance of all these principles to bring victory to His people. Joshua seems to have gained this from the Lord, as exhibited in his confident leadership. What of us? If we have begun to see the truth of God for today, then we can live in its victory by applying the same principles that Joshua did in his day. Paul grasped such a vision and victoriously proclaimed, "I was not disobedient to the vision (Acts 26:19). Sadly, Re was faced with some who suffered spiritual defeat and who brought about the erosion of the testimony. We have both an opportunity and a responsibility to be living victoriously for God today.

(All quotes from NIV).

G.M. Hydon, Toronto, Canada | Jun 1985
Spiritual Lessons From Joshua