The Wars in Canaan Under Joshua.
“Arise,” said the Lord to Joshua, “go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel. Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses.” (Josh. 1:1-91Now after the death of Moses the servant of the Lord it came to pass, that the Lord spake unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses' minister, saying, 2Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel. 3Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses. 4From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast. 5There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. 6Be strong and of a good courage: for unto this people shalt thou divide for an inheritance the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give them. 7Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper whithersoever thou goest. 8This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. 9Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest. (Joshua 1:1‑9).) Up till now, we may say, there had been no fighting.
The wilderness was the scene of temptation—the place of discipline for themselves, not of fighting with others, though occasionally they had to combat foes, as in the case of Amalek. But now that they had crossed the Jordan and received their orders, they must fight for the possession of the land. Every inch of ground would be disputed by the enemy. But they had nothing to fear from the Canaanites: God was with His people, as He said to Joshua, “As captain of the host of the Lord am I now come.” He had given them the land, and accurately defined its boundaries, but specified one condition as the only principle of actual possession. “Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses.”
It was only on this condition that they could possess the land, though freely given them of God. This is an important principle; note it, and see that thou understand it well. There was no fighting, strictly speaking, until they crossed the Jordan; after that, the sword was to be drawn, and ought never to have been sheathed while there was a Canaanite in the land. They had only to trust in God and be guided by His word, and victory would follow them at every step. “There shall not any man he able to stand before thee all the days of thy life.” This was God’s sure word of promise to Joshua their leader. What an honor to be thus led, and led only to triumph—to plant the foot of victory on the neck of every foe. They were never to be left, never to be forsaken; His presence in power would always be with them, and His word would be a sure guide to them. Only they were to be very strong, very courageous, and observe to do all things according to the word of the Lord. But—alas, alas, we know what happened. They failed—they sadly failed. They followed not the God of Israel, though He was in their midst as a man of war. They never took possession of all the land which God had given to them. Nevertheless, the word of the Lord abideth sure. The day will come when in virtue of the death of their own Messiah, every man shall stand in his own lot, according to the boundaries assigned by God Himself. But now for the application ok these types.
Like Israel of old, the Christian, we may say, enters his heavenly Canaan without striking a blow. Crossing the Red Sea makes him a pilgrim and a stranger—brings him into the great scene of temptation; crossing the Jordan makes him a warrior—brings him into the scene of conflict. Thus we read in Ephesians, the great antitype of the book of Joshua; “But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” Here, then, we are clearly taught what God has done for us, not what we have to do for ourselves. In His “rich” mercy and “great” love, He has brought us out of Egypt, through the Red Sea, the wilderness, the Jordan, and landed us in our heavenly Canaan. But we are not raised up to these heavenly places, merely to enjoy our rich privileges there; we have enemies to fight, like the people of Israel under Joshua.
It is not so difficult to understand the character of the fighting under Joshua; but what, may I ask, is the character, influence, or mode of action, of these wicked spirits? Stratagem, cunning, and lies, are their most successful weapons. They will challenge thy title, question thy fitness, and in every way dispute thy present possession of the heavenlies. Thou must know thy ground well, at every point, in order to maintain it. And to this end, thou must be guided entirely by the word of God, apart from feelings—thou must know what it is to be in heaven as a matter of faith, while still on earth as a matter of fact. Thou must also understand the blessed truth of being in the presence of God in all the acceptancy of Christ, though still here in the midst of difficulties, failures, and infirmities. In short, thou must maintain, in the face of every foe, thy present title to heaven, thy fitness to be there, and thy large possessions as an heir of God, and a joint-heir with Christ. 1 John 4:1717Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world. (1 John 4:17); Rom. 8:1717And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together. (Romans 8:17).
One of their most successful wiles is to insinuate, or boldly to affirm as the case may be, that Christians cannot enter or enjoy heaven till after they die—that their deliverance is not complete. This is one of the most subtle snares of the enemy, and by this lie thousands are deceived. He insinuates that our deliverance is not complete, neither as to the law, the flesh, or the world. Hence the bondage of many. But to those who know the truth as to their position in a risen Christ, it is a barefaced falsehood. Does not God say in His word, that we are now seated in the heavenly places in Christ; that we may now enjoy the good things of heaven as the fruit of our own country; just as the children of Israel began to eat of the old corn of the land of Canaan, when the wilderness manna ceased? But no, says the adversary however sure you may think yourself of heaven, you cannot be there until you die; crossing the Jordan means the act of death. Hence the falsehood of Satan has become the belief of many Christians. “We believe we shall go to heaven when we die,” is the doctrine of nearly all Christendom. Comparatively few would say, “We are there already, in Christ, and who shall separate us?” Not, observe, “We hope to join Christ in heaven when we die”—though that also is true—but being joined to the Lord now, we are there already, as one with Him; hence the challenge of faith is, “Who shall separate us?” Unless the Christian is master of his position, Satan will beguile him to settle down in his lie. When we die and go to heaven, our fighting days are done. We shall need no armor there, thank the Lord. The soul rests in the paradise of God, and the body sleeps in Jesus until the morning of the first resurrection.
Christ Risen, The Measure of Our Deliverance.
And now, my soul, may I ask, What knowest thou for thyself of these blessed truths? Knowest thou what true Christian ground is, as to thy standing in the presence of God? Faith answers, Surely the deliverance which Christ has wrought out for us is perfect. All depends on the completeness of His work. Christ risen from the dead is the measure of our deliverance: and being made the righteousness of God in Him, our title is clear to be in the same glory with Him. But as the enemy bears me such a grudge, because I am so much better off than he is, he tries Ids utmost to weaken my hold of the truth, to interrupt my fellowship with Christ, to hinder my enjoyment of His love, and to dim my apprehension of His glory. On the other hand, he will try hard to ensnare with present things, lawful and unlawful. These are some of the things that we have to war against. But the easiest way to victory is to hold fast the truth and walk in the light as God is in the light.
Good, and true, my soul. But in what way is “Christ risen the measure of our deliverance?” It is a matter of faith, and perfectly plain to those that believe. We were dead in sin, Christ died for sin; and we can now say, we have died with Him, or, died in His death. But God quickened us together, raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. And now, being associated with Him in life, united to Him by the Holy Ghost, we are entitled, as a matter of faith, to regard the flesh as done with before God, as if our old nature had been nailed to the cross, and brought to its end there, and we received our new nature in resurrection. This is what St. Paul says in writing to the Galatians: “They that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.” He does not say, “They are to crucify it,” as if it were something to do, or something going on. But “they have done it.” And it is done in the case of every one who receives a crucified Christ. Therefore it is all true to faith and in God’s sight. The raising up of the twelve stones out of the bed of the river Jordan, where the feet of the priests stood, and setting them up at the camp in Gilgal, is a striking type of our being raised up with Christ, and seated in heavenly places in Him.
But all who understand the meaning of the Red Sea and the Jordan will have no difficulty on this point. The former shadows forth deliverance from the slavery of sin and Satan, the justification of God’s people, and the judgment of their enemies. These blessings flow from the death and resurrection of Christ for us. But this brings the people into the wilderness, the place of sojourn; the land lies before them. The latter is a very different type. There is no rod of judgment lifted up over the waters, as at the Red Sea. When the feet of the priests that carried the ark of the covenant approached the Jordan, the overflowing waters fell back, and the children of Israel passed clean over. They now leave the wilderness, enter Canaan, the manna ceases, and they eat of the fruit of the land. This shadows forth the blessed Lord going first down into the waters of death, and bringing us into the heavenly places. Clearly, then, the Red Sea represents Christ as dead and risen for us; the Jordan, as our death and resurrection with Him; or, as one has forcibly said, “The grand point of the Red Sea is what Christ brings us out of, and that of the Jordan is what Christ brings us into.” Bless the Lord, Ο my soul, thy deliverance is complete! the world, sin, Satan, death, and judgment are behind thee. And now, having explained the allusion to the wars in Canaan, the course is clear. Buckle on thine armor, brace it tightly; put to the sword every wrong thought, feeling, desire, motive, or object, by which Satan might gain an advantage over thee. All spiritual blessings in heavenly places are thine; see that thou maintain thy possession of them in present enjoyment. And at the same time, see that thou maintain a holy and consistent testimony here on the earth.