“And it came to pass at the seventh time, when the priests blew with the trumpets, Joshua said unto the people, “Shout; for the LORD hath given you the city”…Joshua 6:16

“AND THE WALLS CAME TUMBLING DOWN”

We all know the story of Joshua and the Battle of Jericho and how God instructed Joshua and the children of Israel to walk around the fortified wall of Jericho 1 time for 6 days and on the 7th day, walk around 7 times, then the trumpets blew, and they shouted…and the rest is history.

Joshua was Moses’s assistant and later his successor, who had the responsibility of leading the children of Israel into the Promised Land. But there was only one thing standing in their path to the Promised Land…the Jericho wall. Joshua who was also a military field commander could have easily made the decision to take down the walls of Jericho with the strength of an army and weaponry, but outside of being a military man, he was also a spiritual giant. Joshua knew the promises that were made by God and His covenant with the children of Israel were not meant to be taken lightly and was to be held in strict obedience.

In the book of Joshua, we see a man of faith doing exactly what God has instructed and thus a generation of people becoming a beneficiary of a promise through a covenant, but what we don’t realize is how the biblical story of Joshua and the Battle of Jericho leaves a blueprint for us on how to deal with the Jericho Walls in our modern day lives.

Let’s first define what is a Jericho Wall. A Jericho wall is a fortified wall that is standing in the way of you getting to God’s promises in your life. Just as the children of Israel was promised by God to enter in and possess a land flowing of milk and honey, they first had to knock down the walls of Jericho that were standing in the way to the promise. God’s Word is full of promises for us as well but we too sometimes have to knock down a Jericho Wall in order to enter into His promises.

There can many types of Jericho walls at different seasons during your life. Here are a few examples of some Jericho walls:

Marriage Issues
Family Issues
Financial Problems
Health Issues
Job Issues
Relationship Issues
Spiritual Issues

So now that you are familiar with a few examples of Jericho walls, here are 4 ways to knock down those Jericho walls…Joshua style!

LOOK UP: In Joshua 5:13 we read that …”when Joshua was by Jericho that he lifted up his eyes and looked. So the first thing we must do when facing our Jericho wall is to LOOK UP to God. We should recognize Who is in power and control. We must go to GOD first for help, guidance, and direction. Psalm 121 is the perfect scripture on what we must do when we are in need of help…Psalm 121…(1) “I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills from whence cometh my help…(2) my help cometh from the LORD…”

FALL ON OUR FACES: God is so Holy and sovereign that whenever we find ourselves in His presence we automatically fall to our faces in Holy worship and reverence. Joshua did the same in verse Joshua 5:14…”And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and, did worship, and said unto Him, What saith my Lord unto His servant”… We should do the same when we come to Him in worship seeking God’s will be done in a situation. We should not attempt to tell God how we think the matter should be resolved or handled. We should submit ourselves and our will in the situation and allow God to do what He does best for us. We should also place ourselves in a position so that we can be used by God throughout the situation.

TAKE OFF YOUR SHOES: One may find it odd, that God would have required Joshua to remove his shoes for in preparation of a battle. That is because the majority of the time, we are putting on our gear to go into battle but whenever you get God involved He wants us to take a backseat, rest, and watch Him do all the work. We see in Joshua 5:15, it reads” Loose thy shoe from off the foot; for the place whereon thou standest is holy…” God’s presence is so Holy that is should be respected and revered at all times but also that He is so Holy that He wants us to rest in our situation so that He can give us clear directions and guidance. The only way to do that is to kick off our shoes and relax in God’s Holiness.

MARCH AND SHOUT: Perseverance and faith! Keep doing what God has called you to do no matter how long the wait…DON’T GIVE UP! Can you imagine if Joshua and the children of Israel had given up on day 5. Or what if they had decided to sing instead of doing a shout. They would not had prevailed and thus lost out on what God had promised them…entering into the Promised Land. And last but not least, shout BEFORE that Jericho wall comes down…not afterwards. Shouting (or thanking God in advance) before you see your victory shows your faith in knowing that the battle has already been fought and won, and the victory is yours…” Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evident of things not seen”…Hebrews 11:1

Jericho walls do not have to be standing in your path to enjoying God’s promises for your life. The Jericho wall of Joshua times came tumbling down and so can yours. If you believe that God stands by His Word and His promises are “yes” and “amen”, you too can knock down every Jericho wall that is in your way!

The next time you find yourself in a difficult situation or see a Jericho wall in your life, please do as Joshua did and then watch those walls…”come a tumbling down”! PRAISE THE LORD!

Thanks for stopping by and go with Christ today!

Blessings,

Tamela