The walls of Jericho…
You’ve heard the old song with these iconic lyrics “Joshua fit the battle of Jericho, and the walls come tumblin’ down,” a song which I believe Paul Robison sung. The song was about Joshua’s exploits after he’d crossed over the river Jordon. One of the places he’d run into was a walled city called Jericho, and before we get into this, lets learn about who Joshua was.
Joshua was the son of Nun, born “Oshe’a ben Nun, Num. 13:16 ” of the tribe of Ephraim in Egypt in the year 2406. When Moses sent spies to canaan to scout the land, that was when Moses added the letter “yud” which mean (God will save) to Oshe’a name changing it to Yehoshu’a and in English “Joshua” as a prayer and giving the spies confidence in there mission as spies and that God would protect them from harm. Joshua died at the age of 110 in 1375 B.C. Incidentally, his name is the same as the Hebrew name of Jesus (Yeshua) which name is translated into English as Joshua. “But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord,” was a famous quote by Joshua and was the model for his campaign as he led the Children of Israel to the promised land over the Jordan. The most important point in the book of Joshua is that you cannot worship false gods and remain faithful to the Lord.
Joshua was a man of God even bearing the same name of God, one might say that he was a type of presence of God among his people leading them to the promised land. Moses was not allowed to cross over to see the promised land. He worked for years getting the people to the place that he was told about, only to wind up not being able to cross over himself because of a sin, that he had did before the God and the people and this is one of the most important thing that we most not forget.
If you look at the battle of Jericho, the name Jericho means his moon, sweet smelling. It was a representation of a moon god. Joshua 6:1-27 speaks of this.
Joshua 6:1-10
Now Jericho was straitly shut up because of the children of Israel: none went out, and none came in. And the Lord said unto Joshua, See, I have given into thine hand Jericho, and the king thereof, and the mighty men of valour. And ye shall compass the city, all ye men of war, and go round about the city once. Thus shalt thou do six days. And seven priests shall bear before the ark seven trumpets of rams’ horns: and the seventh day ye shall compass the city seven times, and the priests shall blow with the trumpets. And it shall come to pass, that when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, and when ye hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city shall fall down flat, and the people shall ascend up every man straight before him. And Joshua the son of Nun called the priests, and said unto them, Take up the ark of the covenant, and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the Lord. And he said unto the people, Pass on, and compass the city, and let him that is armed pass on before the ark of the Lord. And it came to pass, when Joshua had spoken unto the people, that the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams’ horns passed on before the Lord, and blew with the trumpets: and the ark of the covenant of the Lord followed them.And the armed men went before the priests that blew with the trumpets, and the rereward came after the ark, the priests going on, and blowing with the trumpets. And Joshua had commanded the people, saying, Ye shall not shout, nor make any noise with your voice, neither shall any word proceed out of your mouth, until the day I bid you shout; then shall ye shout.
This is interesting because the Lord commanded Joshua concerning following instructions. This is what men don’t want to do a lot of times, is follow instructions. They want to do what they feel in there own mind what is best for them to do. There is a formula in the structure of how God wanted things to be done a certain way . In the case of the walls of Jericho, Joshua and the people were to Circle that city once each time for 6 days. 6 is the number for man. The number 1 represents unity which is God number (Deuteronomy 6:4,5) to be joined together, organized together as one, coming as one doing one purpose. On the 7th day compass the city 7 times. We know that the number 7 is designated as spiritual perfection or completeness. 7 trumpets, 7 priests, 7 marches around on the 7th day. All the 7’s, with the Ark of the Covenant as the presence of God among them, signifying what God has spoken, it has already been completed done in heaven and on earth now being a student of math, I saw these numbers relationship 6 days,6 times around plus one day and 7 time around : 7 days and 13 time around =20 ,20 in the number of the bible means expectancy. If we look at the number separately 7 ,represents : spiritual perfection, 13 represents: illl-omen, I call it Gods numbers destruction sequence, so there you have it, destruction was pronounce on Jericho from God and it was nothing they or anybody could do about it, they were doom.
Physics, state that vibrations or voices or tones, will set up a resonant vibration or frequency in a object or material, for example: soldiers are told not to walk across a bridge in unison because it will cause the bridge to vibrate to it destruction. So take a closer look at the vibration and voices and sound, then walls of Jericho came falling down and there was great victory for the children of Hebrew. But people don’t understand that there was a formula to cause the walls to come down. Walking around the city one day set up a harmonic vibration in the soil around the structure of the wall and the wall it self. Then 6 days of people how numbered almost a million, the people of Jericho probably thought that hebrew were strange and weird people. 7 horns blowing on the 7th day set up even more of a harmonic vibration. Then the voices of almost a million people brought the final harmonic vibration that cause the walls of Jericho to disintegrate. God works with mathematics as well as with humans souls and spirits.
Joshua did what he was told to do from God and Moses, he didn’t question. Sometimes in our own lives, we can’t achieve what we want to do in God because we allow that “wall” in our lives to dominate what God has told us to do to destroy that wall. He gives us specific things to do to combat the problems we face in our ministries, families, relationships, jobs, etc, and we refuse to listen because of one thing: because its not done our way. If we allow ourselves to control our lives, then we will go just where our lives would take us, nowhere. Joshua heard the words of God ,and was obedient and that day, called all the people together and said “look this is what we’re going to do. God told me that the victory is ours, that city is ours, but we have to follow the process.”
If you look the symmetry of the priest being in from, it parallels to today. The priest were announcing the presence of God coming forth, just as the pastors of today are doing the same. The Ark of the Covenant was after the priest to show that God has the victory over all. No matter what kind of situation goes on in your life, no matter what wall is keeping you back, from being who God wants you to be, He says “I am able to destroy that, if you follow the process.” Leaders can’t be leaders because they’re still held up by the same mentality that kept them bound by the same people who they were around or mentors who couldn’t get beyond who they were. So mentees tend to carry the sins of that mentor because he can’t help from teaching, because he hasn’t been set free from it. So, in all that, we catch leaders creating leaders that are clones of themselves with the same issues and problems that they have, causing other people under there leadership to have some of the same issues. This causes others to continually be bound by that “wall,” that “Jericho,” in your life that you need to destroy. God says the only way you will destroy it, is to allow Jesus (Joshua)the lord of our salvation to guide your feet to your victory. We can’t get any victory because we’re too worried about staying in defeat. Joshua heard the word, abided by it told it to the people and didn’t deviate from it.
Joshua was like the second Moses. Moses was in the old land, on the other side of the Jordan; Joshua became the obedient leader that God wanted in the new land. The Ark of the Covenant followed everywhere they went even when they walked into the land, the people heard that they carried and ark before them. Every nation that came against Israel was was utterly destroyed. So Jericho got confused. Now think of the power of God operating in your life, in that situation that causes you to be bound, that situation that causes you to be weary about trying to get over something. God has shown you how to tear down that wall, but you can’t listen because you believe more of what the situation might be, then you overcoming tha wall sistuation in your life. But God says there is nothing too hard for Him to overcome, we really don’t understand the power that He wants to give you will only come when you allow yourself to hear the victory in a battle or circumstance like Joshua did. People like to hold on to that “wall,” and build a memorial to it. They think that God gave them that “wall,” but if the Word of God can’t penetrate the wall, neither can it you, nor will you have the ability to grow.
In all that you do place God in the front. He will send the signal, blow the trumpet, allow him to destroy the wall so that you will see clearly what that wall was all about. You can destroy the wall with the power of God, by following the formula like Joshua did. If you want to walk around the mess in your life; write it on a piece of paper, set it on the floor and walk around it each day for 6 once, and on the 7th walk around it 7 times and on the 7th time shout the victory over that situation. When you shout mean it. You might say “who will carry the Ark?” The Ark…is you! His presence is in you. But if you need reassurance, take the Word and place it in your hand as you walk around. As you walk around that wall shout with the victory that the mess in your life has been destroyed. Joshua 6:1-16
Some may declare that you don’t have a wall. If that thing has been bothering you from day 1, bothering you life, ministry, walk around it. Say to God, this is the problem. Walk around that thing and as you walk, contemplate on the victory already happening, saying to God that He has the spiritual completeness over the situation. Whatever the thing may be, if its you that iscausing the problem, then God will destroyed the mess in you! PPsalm 51:10
Moses gave up on the people; on God’s heritage. Even though he was a great leader, he gave up because the people burdened him so much. When God gave him instruction to speak to the rock to give water to the people, he instead smote the rock, called the people a name for they worried so much. Moses was a leader of the people, and all that princely training he got did help him one bit, but he took responsibility on Himself instead of listening to God. That is why there is a difference between and Joshua spirit and a Moses spirit.
When God gives us instruction we should do what He tells us to do, not doubting. Completeness, spiritual perfection and completeness is what 7 stands for. When men become 1 under the direction of God, there is spiritual victory over any spiritual or natural problem. Are you ready for a wall to come down in your life? The Spirit of God begins to break down the situations in your life. The only time spiritual completeness will take place is when we let Him break down those walls freely, so that all the masks and hidden thing that you might have place in the back of you mind can be revealed, and all the mess will be destroyed in your life. We will be better leaders, fathers, individuals that God is asking us to be in these last days.
Be Joshua. Hear the Word of God. Allow it to activate. So you can do things that lead to spiritual completeness.