Today, we focussed our thoughts on Joshua 9. Powerful alliances began to form in both the north and south of Canaan. Tribal warfare had gone on for years, then suddenly deadly enemies united against the Israelites. Battles had to be fought.
It illlustates an important point. Satan puts up opposition when we try to do right. The enemies of righteousness unite to fight truth. The more we grow in our spiritual life, the more our faith advances, the more violent the opposition will become.
Satan knows how to change tactics to suit his purpose. He can come like a roaring lion, or like a subtle serpent. The story of Joshua's encounter with the Gibeonites illustrates this point. Joshua failed to seek counsel from the Lord and entered into a partnership with the Gibeonites. As Christians we need always to pray - yes, pray without ceasing! It means taking everything to God in prayer.
We all need always to have that prayerful dependence on God and His guidance all the time. Before entering into any partnership - be it a life partner, a business joint venture with someone, we need to seek God's will.
The Book of Joshua is more than just a record of battles and military victories. We need to dig deeper and seek the inner meaning of this book. Canaan symbolies our sanctified life. There are battles to be fought and won. We have an enemy with whom to contend with during our earthly pilgrimage. Our battles will only be over when we finally arrive in Heaven to be with the Lord forever.
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