So, my wife and I are doing the "Bible in a Year" thing right now, and we just hit the book of Joshua. Now, I love Joshua. It’s high-stakes, high-energy, and full of miracles. But there’s this one scene in chapter five that is just… awkward.
Imagine Joshua for a second. He’s the new leader. He’s got the weight of the world on his shoulders. He’s staring at the walls of Jericho—this massive, "un-winnable" fortress—and he’s probably running through his tactical plays. Do we go left? Do we go right? Do we build ladders? How are we going to win?
Joshua 5:13-14 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?” “Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.”
You see, Joshua’s heart was focused on the wrong enemy. He thought the battle was Joshua vs. the Canaanites. He thought God was a "resource" to help him win his fight. But the Commander showed up to remind him that this was God's fight.
The Bible is very clear that we have an enemy, but it’s rarely the person or the "wall" standing in front of us. Paul reminds us in Ephesians 6:12 that our struggle isn't against flesh and blood. When we get frustrated with our spouse, our boss, or that difficult neighbor, we’re looking at the wrong enemy!
Joshua’s response to this "Neither" was beautiful: continuing in Joshua 5:14-15, Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, “What message does my Lord have for his servant?” 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 realized that when you’re in the presence of the Commander, you don't give orders—you take them. We don’t pray our will be done, we pray God’s will be done.
This points us directly to Jesus. Jesus didn’t come to join our political parties, our personal vendettas, or our "side" of an argument. He came to surrender His life according to the Father’s will. Through the cross and the empty tomb, Jesus has already won! When we stop trying to recruit God into our plans and instead surrender to His Lordship and rest in the victory already won, the walls of Jericho start to look a lot smaller.
As we head into our prayer time, let’s make sure we are facing the correct enemy and following the correct Leader.
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First check your "sides" by asking yourself: "Am I trying to get God to bless my agenda, or am I surrendering to His?" Spend a moment asking the Holy Spirit to reveal if you've been fighting "flesh and blood" instead of the real spiritual battle.
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Second, pray for others and the real battle they face: As you pray for your friends, family, our community, our nation, your “enemy”, don't just pray for their circumstances to change. Pray that people would encounter the "Commander." Pray that their eyes would be opened to the spiritual reality of their situation.
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Lastly, take off your sandals. The Commander told Joshua to take off his sandals because he was on holy ground. Today, in your heart, "take off your sandals." Give up your right to be in control. Let Jesus be the Commander of your day.