This is one of the major themes in the book of Joshua - the Lord, strong and mighty in battle! We have already noted that in every situation, including all the battles, Joshua gives credit to the Lord -- the Lord God as warrior who fights our battles and gives victory according to His purposes. In previous articles, we examined Joshua's overall 'divide and conquer strategy' for occupying the Promised Land. We discussed the battle with the Five Kings and the defeat of southern Canaan. Next we will see (starting in chapter 11) Joshua moving against the Northern alliance of Canaanite kings.
Before we follow Joshua as he turns north, I want to discuss a question that has been asked throughout the ages - Does the doctrine of God's sovereignty necessarily kill human efforts including our efforts to spread the gospel? You may ask, “What has this question to do with the book of Joshua?”
Let us think about it for a moment. Joshua keeps telling the people that the Lord is strong and mighty; the Lord fights for them; the Lord has promised to give them the land; the Lord will give the victory. So the question was the same for them - Why should we put on armor, and why should we train for battle when the Lord is the one who sovereignly ordains that we live in the Promised Land? Will our lack of effort thwart God's eternal plan?
There is no record of Joshua or the people asking this question, nor do we see this attitude displayed anywhere in this book. Even when God so clearly tells the people what He plans on doing, (see Joshua 10:8) the people obediently and enthusiastically participate in the work by going forth to battle. And that is what I want you to see, that these divine reassurances do not stifle the efforts of God's people but actually stimulate the godly to work obediently and enthusiastically. The truth of God's sovereignty, when understood correctly, does not weaken human response. Historically we see that a good solid understanding of God's sovereignty energizes the efforts of believers. We also know this experientially when it dawns on us that God's sovereignty also means that even with our best efforts, we are assured that God will give success to His purposes.
We do love our plans, don't we? But that does not mean that God will see to it that all our plans will work out. When the pre-incarnate Christ appeared to Joshua the question was, "Are you for us or for our adversaries?” Christ, otherwise known here as the Captain of the Lord's host, replied, “No; rather I indeed come now as captain of the host of the LORD” (Joshua 5:13-14). I take the ‘no’ here as another way of saying God's eternal decree is independent of the will of man. Could it be any different knowing the limitations of the human mind? It would take a big ego to actually think that we might make better decisions than the God who is omniscient, just, and benevolent to His children. No, clearly the Captain of the Lord's host, Christ, is doing the will of the Father and not obligated to the will of man. Even as much as we hope and pray for it, we may not place any obligation upon God to give us success in whatever we plan, but we are assured that God is all wise, merciful, and has all good intentions toward His people.
All of us have a calling from God. You may be called to work serving others, or you may be called to make a product. You may be called to study the Word and to preach. Whatever your calling, you are called to do your duty to 'the glory of God' and as such, to work to the best of your ability. "Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men ..." (Col3:23). There are no insignificant callings, and the trash man is of no less value than the preacher.
What if something beyond your control happens to change your intended plan? Assuming you have done all that is humanly possible to assure success, you have an assurance that God is sovereign even when things don't work out as you have planned. What a blessing this assurance can be! When you prepare for work, you will do all that you can to assure success, and when the day is done, though all things seem to fall apart, and at the end of the day all you hold is a basket full of frustration, you can affirm with all confidence that the Lord is sovereign over all things. When you pick yourself up the following day, are you tempted to throw up your hands and give up? Perhaps, but those believers, trusting in the One who redeems their work for His purposes--- even in the worst of days---will give their very best efforts in whatever task that is assigned to them.
If you are a preacher, you will prepare and preach your heart out. Yet even then, Sunday afternoon you may feel that your preparation and preaching might have been in vain. Nevertheless, you leave the results in the Lord's hands and start fresh Monday morning in wholehearted preparation in anticipation that the Lord may meet with you and, through your study, bless His people.
If you are a Christian parent and have faithfully brought your children to worship, patiently explained the gospel, exampled the life of a believer in your marriage and your interaction with your children, yet your child rejects the gospel, you may rest assured the Lord has not lost His sovereignty. You continue to pray, live the life, explain the gospel, and above all to love your child in all hope that the Lord may perhaps someday save your child for His glory.
If you are a health care professional, it is likely that someday you will unintentionally err in your treatment of a patient. But you study hard to keep up with the best information so that whatever diagnosis or treatment option you may have missed the previous day you will not miss again. You will pray for the patient that, though suffering, they will find comfort in the gospel and proper treatment.
If you are a truck driver, you may find yourself missing a delivery date due to something beyond your control, or you may be involved in some sort of mishap. You mark that down as a lesson learned, putting it behind, working and studying to improve your future performance. Even with a loss of wages you may be confident that, having given it your best effort, the Lord works all things for His glory and your ultimate good.
If you are an airline pilot, you will often find yourself subject to the lack of performance by many other people with resulting challenges added to your own responsibilities. Not everyone is a believer; therefore, many will lack a divinely given moral code and added motivation to do all things 'as to the Lord.' In a more extreme situation a terrorist may blow up your aircraft. Even in death, you will know that you did the best you could in a situation that was certainly ordained by the Lord who loves His children.
Indeed, in the worst of cases, you know that the Lord has ordained not only the outcomes of your life but also the day of your death - and that should give you great comfort. Whether you live with great successes or great disappointments, the fact of God's great love and His sovereignty ought to give you great hope but never cause you to neglect your best efforts.
No doubt, though we acknowledge full faith in the sovereignty of God, we will continue to have our fears and anxiety about various outcomes. In this life we will all experience this tension, but a solid understanding of God's sovereignty ought to help us in our doubts and fears. Who is able? The Lord, strong and mighty, He is able!
