“When the people heard the sound of the rams’ horns, they shouted as loud as they could. Suddenly, the walls of Jericho collapsed, and the Israelites charged straight into the town and captured it.” —Joshua 6:20 NLT
Get to the Good Part
“Now it came about when Joshua was by Jericho, he raised his eyes and looked, and behold, a man was standing opposite him with his sword drawn in his hand, and Joshua went to him and said to him, ‘Are you for us or for our enemies?’” —Joshua 5:13 NASB
“He said, ‘No; rather I have come now as captain of the army of the Lord.’ And Joshua fell on his face to the ground, and bowed down, and said to him, ‘What has my lord to say to his servant?’” —Joshua 5:14 NASB
“The LORD is a warrior; the LORD is His name.” —Exodus 15:3 NASB
“From His mouth came a sharp sword to strike down the nations. He will rule them with an iron rod. He will release the wrath of God, the Almighty, like juice flowing from a winepress. On His robe at His thigh was written this title: King of all kings and Lord of all lords.” —Revelation 19:15-16 NLT
“Joshua fell on his face to the ground, and bowed down, and said to him, ‘What has my lord to say to his servant?’
And the captain of the Lord’s army said to Joshua, ‘Remove your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy.’ And Joshua did so.” —Joshua 5:14-15 NASB
Before the
Discussion Questions
Describe a time in your life where you wished you could skip the hard part or monotonous part in order to get to what you perceived to be the good part. Looking back can you see the value in going through the difficulty or the monotony? If so, what value did that time provide?
What is your initial response to the statement “victory isn’t the good part. Victory is the result of the good part?”
Try and imagine yourself in Joshua’s place in Joshua 5:13-15. What do you think he’s feeling knowing what he’s facing? How would you feel? And what encouragement would you get from being visited by the commander of the LORD’s army?
Read Exodus 15:3 and Revelation 19:15-16. How do these images of God along with that presented in Joshua 5:13-15 line up with how you typically imagine Jesus?
We often want the celebrations in life, but very rarely are we willing to readily surrender some of the things it’ll take us to enter into those celebrations. What are some things God might be calling you to surrender in order to enter into those celebrations you’re looking for? What’s holding you back from surrendering?