SERVICES: SATURDAY 6PM | SUNDAY 9AM & 10:45AM. 

We Livestream at www.FaithFellowshipWeb.com/livestream, through the FFC App, and YouTube.

What Side Are You On?

Words of Faith Final

What Side Are You On?

Words of Faith 8-27-2020

Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2020

Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com

Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL

To unsubscribe, follow the directions at the end of this devotion.

<>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <><

 

Joshua 5

    [10] On the evening of the fourteenth day of the month, while camped at Gilgal on the plains of Jericho, the Israelites celebrated the Passover. [11] The day after the Passover, that very day, they ate some of the produce of the land: unleavened bread and roasted grain. [12] The manna stopped the day after they ate this food from the land; there was no longer any manna for the Israelites, but that year they ate of the produce of Canaan.

   [13] Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, "Are you for us or for our enemies?"

    [14] "Neither," he replied, "but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come." Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, "What message does my Lord have for his servant?"

    [15] The commander of the Lord's army replied, "Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy." And Joshua did so.

 

          Joshua and the Israelites were finally in the land! They celebrated the first Passover in the land as a remembrance of the mighty hand of God in the Exodus.  As a sign that they were finally out of the wilderness part of the journey, the manna that had supported them for so many years stopped.  They began to eat food from the land God had promised to them.

         Joshua set out alone to scout city of Jericho.  He went by night to see for himself what they were up against.  As he stood near the city, he suddenly saw a man with a drawn sword.  What a startling sight!  Thinking the man might be from some other army or even a traveling mercenary, Joshua asked, "Are you for us, or for our enemies?"

         The answer to Joshua’s question is an important one, and so is the answer.  "Neither," he replied, "but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come."  It was suddenly clear that this was the Lord's battle, not Joshua’s! 

         The commander of the Lord’s army appeared to be surveying the situation but probably had come specifically to meet with Joshua.  Joshua fell down in reverence and asked what message the Lord might have for him.  The answer is timeless.  "Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy." And Joshua did so.

         Armies have always tried to claim the endorsement of God or their gods for the battle they fight.  They want to know if God is on their side.  These days it is popular to claim that the Lord is on the side of one army or another.  The profound truth that Joshua discovered is that the Lord is not on any side!  The Lord is on the Lord’s side. 

        The real question is much simpler.  Are you on the side of the Lord?  Joshua was powerfully reminded that the Lord is not some mercenary that we call on special occasions to win a big battle.  He is not on any "side".  He does not belong to any nation or political party.  He is the Lord God of all creation.  The question for every individual and group is to ask, is this-- Am I on the side of the Lord?  The only way to respond to Him is with reverence and submission.

           Who was the commander of the Lord’s army?  An angel or a manifestation of God like the burning bush?  We don’t know for sure. Many conclude that this was Christ Himself before He entered flesh to live for a while among us.  

           It is most important for us to see that the Lord is more than ready to fight the battles of life.  But we must also realize the importance of asking the right questions.  It is never a matter of asking the Lord be on “our side” of a conflict or issue.  God is not a member of any political party or a citizen of any earthly nation.  It is critical that we reverence ourselves before the one true and living God and ask humbly if we are wholly committed to be on His side.  What side are you on? 

 

          Father God, it is so easy to get lost in my own tiny perspective and expect You to come along and fight the battles of my own creation.  Forgive me.  I humble myself before You.  What I want is not important.  I want to be on Your side.  Reveal Your way to me.  I am ready to follow.  In Jesus’ name.

 

<>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <><

© 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

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

SUBSCRIPTIONS - To receive the Words of Faith devotion five days a week, send an E-mail message addressed to join-words-of-faith@hub.xc.org. To stop receiving Words of Faith, send an E-mail message addressed to unsubscribe-words-of-faith@hub.xc.org.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -     

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.