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God's Way or No Way

Words of Faith Final

God's Way or No Way

Words of Faith 9-10-2020

Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2020

Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com

Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL

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Joshua 8

    [10] Early the next morning Joshua mustered his men, and he and the leaders of Israel marched before them to Ai. [11] The entire force that was with him marched up and approached the city and arrived in front of it. They set up camp north of Ai, with the valley between them and the city. [12] Joshua had taken about five thousand men and set them in ambush between Bethel and Ai, to the west of the city. [13] They had the soldiers take up their positions--all those in the camp to the north of the city and the ambush to the west of it. That night Joshua went into the valley.

    [14] When the king of Ai saw this, he and all the men of the city hurried out early in the morning to meet Israel in battle at a certain place overlooking the Arabah. But he did not know that an ambush had been set against him behind the city. [15] Joshua and all Israel let themselves be driven back before them, and they fled toward the desert. [16] All the men of Ai were called to pursue them, and they pursued Joshua and were lured away from the city. [17] Not a man remained in Ai or Bethel who did not go after Israel. They left the city open and went in pursuit of Israel.

    [18] Then the Lord said to Joshua, "Hold out toward Ai the javelin that is in your hand, for into your hand I will deliver the city." So Joshua held out his javelin toward Ai. [19] As soon as he did this, the men in the ambush rose quickly from their position and rushed forward. They entered the city and captured it and quickly set it on fire.

    [20] The men of Ai looked back and saw the smoke of the city rising against the sky, but they had no chance to escape in any direction, for the Israelites who had been fleeing toward the desert had turned back against their pursuers. [21] For when Joshua and all Israel saw that the ambush had taken the city and that smoke was going up from the city, they turned around and attacked the men of Ai. [22] The men of the ambush also came out of the city against them, so that they were caught in the middle, with Israelites on both sides. Israel cut them down, leaving them neither survivors nor fugitives. [23] But they took the king of Ai alive and brought him to Joshua.

    [24] When Israel had finished killing all the men of Ai in the fields and in the desert where they had chased them, and when every one of them had been put to the sword, all the Israelites returned to Ai and killed those who were in it. [25] Twelve thousand men and women fell that day--all the people of Ai. [26] For Joshua did not draw back the hand that held out his javelin until he had destroyed all who lived in Ai. [27] But Israel did carry off for themselves the livestock and plunder of this city, as the Lord had instructed Joshua.

    [28] So Joshua burned Ai and made it a permanent heap of ruins, a desolate place to this day. [29] He hung the king of Ai on a tree and left him there until evening. At sunset, Joshua ordered them to take his body from the tree and throw it down at the entrance of the city gate. And they raised a large pile of rocks over it, which remains to this day.

 

      The victory at Ai was very different from that at Jericho. The Israelites did not march around the walls of Ai seven times. The city's walls did not fall miraculously. Israel had to conquer Ai through a normal combat operation.

      The strategy for the capture of Ai was nothing less than ingenious from a human perspective.  As instructed by the Lord, Joshua sent a large force to hide in the mountains near the city.  Another contingent appeared to approach in plain view and lured the king and his army out of the city. A third force then ambushed the army while the first attacked and burned the city.

      When the king of Ai saw Israel's army, he took the bait. Pursuing the Israelites who pretended defeat, the city of Ai was left unguarded. At Joshua's signal, the other troops quickly entered and set the city on fire. Before they could gather their wits, they were caught in a pincer movement of Israelite soldiers and were destroyed.

      We do not know why God chose this method and plan for victory that was so very different from Jericho's destruction.  Perhaps it was to make the point that God is not limited to any one method of working. He is not and will not be stereotyped in His plans, methods, or operations.  

      There is an important lesson here. We humans are very prone to attempt to predict the ways of God. Because God worked in a particular way in one situation, we often assume that He will work in that same way again. 

      We sometimes even create formulas for attempting to make God act in a particular way. We think that if we pray in a certain manner, then God will be obligated to act as He did before.  This simply is not so.  We cannot manipulate God.  Had the Israelites treated the situation at Ai as if it were Jericho-- marching in circles for seven days-- they would have been utterly defeated again.

      The big lesson here is to let God be God.  He is very good at His job. He will choose the goal, method, and plan.  If we listen, trust, and obey, we will find ourselves walking in His victory.  It may be a plan to march and let Him fight the battle, or it may be a complex strategy involving hard work.  The key is to listen to Him. His way.

 

     Father God, I confess the temptation to try and make You do what I want done in the way I want it done.  I confess that You are God Almighty.  Your ways are not my ways.  Your paths and decisions are beyond tracing out.  I am listening.  You are God.  In Jesus' name.

 

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© Jeffrey D. Hoy 2005, 2020

Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy - Faith Fellowship Church (EFCA)       

2820 Business Center Blvd.

Melbourne, Florida 32940 (321)-259-7200

Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com

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The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail excluding Federal holidays. Please feel free to forward this devotion to a friend who might be blessed by this devotion. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2010 Jeffrey D. Hoy. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to forward this copyrighted material or use portions of it with appropriate notation of the source for non-profit purposes.