 I was going to take you through chapters five and six. I mean, I was, I'm taking you through chapter five because there is so much that the Lord was putting on my heart in chapter five that I knew that I would not do service to chapter six, which is the fall of Jericho. And so what we're looking at will be chapter five and it's preparation. I want to show you some things here in chapter five that I believe can be of help to us as believers. For those who are in leadership, there are some very basic leadership principles here. For those who are aspiring to leadership, you can learn some things by looking at this chapter. And for those who have no sense of desiring to quote-unquote lead in a sense in a church, doesn't mean that you can't be a leader wherever God places you. And so this can be of help to all of us tonight. So let's begin reading here in chapter five. And what I'll do is I'll read just verse one, give the introduction, then we'll move into verses two to conclude this chapter at verse 15. So let's read verse one, Joshua chapter five. We read so it was when all the kings of the Amorites who are on the west side of the Jordan and all the kings of the Canaanites who were by the sea heard that the Lord had dried up the waters of the Jordan from before the children of Israel until we had crossed over that their heart melted. There was no spirit in them any longer because of the children of Israel. Now chapter five, as we look at this chapter, contains insights into the conquest of the Promised Land. And we're going to see some very basic things related to Joshua's establishment as leader over the nation of Israel. We're also going to be seeing what the Lord would require of his people if they're going to enter into his promises. The people are going to need to be consecrated and that consecration will be revealed through the right of circumcision. The people are also going to celebrate Passover which will remind them of God's works in the recent past and then Joshua is going to receive his commissioning when he speaks to the commander of the Lord's hosts. And so we're going to be seeing this as the children of Israel are being prepared to enter in and to take the land that God had promised them. Now word of Israel's entrance into this Promised Land had already begun to travel. It had traveled from the east to the west. That's what's being said here in verse one because when you look at these peoples who are mentioned here you notice that he speaks of the Amorites and he speaks of the Canaanites. The Amorites were a people group that were there by the Jordan on the eastern border of what we call Israel today and the Canaanites were people who lived by the Mediterranean Sea and so what you have here is you have word that is traveling from the east to the west and from the east to the west at the approximate deepest portion is about 70 miles and so this word that the children of Israel have entered in is traveling fast and it's already going through that particular region and they're hearing the news concerning the Jews entering in but what they're really hearing is concerning the fact and notice in verse one that the Lord had dried up the waters of the Jordan from before the children of Israel until we had crossed over. So they've heard that God has done this incredible miracle. It's an obvious sign, an obvious miracle that God is in the midst of the nation of Israel. Now as you read this I was thinking just before I came tonight I was listening to a commentator not a Bible commentator, a political commentator Bill O'Reilly. Bill O'Reilly was speaking today to a husband and wife who the team that put together this mini series called The Bible that's going to come out fairly soon looks pretty interesting to me and so O'Reilly was interviewing them and I wanted to hear their take on why they made this movie and what they expected to see as a result of the series that they did related to the Bible. I think there are some 10 episodes from the Old Testament and 10 episodes from the New and I wanted to hear where they came from and so O'Reilly was asking some questions of them. He asked the wife her name was Rona if she took the Bible literally I mean are you saying these things that you've made into movie form that you actually believe these things in a literal sense and to her credit she said oh indeed I do absolutely we wanted to make this this series in a way that brings honor to the word of God and the husband was saying there is a terrible biblical illiteracy in the United States. He says we have we have American students graduating from college going overseas to take jobs and if they get in a conversation with somebody concerning biblical things he said they are completely ignorant of the Bible. He said we really think that the Bible ought to be taught once again in schools even if it's just a form of literature there are many would believe that the Bible has so many valuable lessons to learn from it that it ought to be taught and so that's what he was saying. He said I think that the Bible ought to be taught in schools awaken the literacy of the American student because they're very ignorant of Scripture and so I I was listening saying well amen to that amen I think the Bible ought to be taught amen and this and that you know but what was interesting was O'Reilly said now you don't really take it literally do you now again O'Reilly is an individual who professes to be of the Christian faith as a matter of fact he's written some bestselling books some of you are aware of him killing Lincoln and killing Kennedy and perhaps you don't know or maybe you do or maybe you don't care but I'm going to say it anyway he is going to be bringing out a book called killing Christ and so he's really on a killing spree and so as he's writing these these books and all he's trying to do it from a journalist perspective and so he's speaking and he's saying you don't really take the Bible literally do you you don't really believe that Jonah was swallowed by a great fish do you you don't believe that the earth was actually created that there was an Adam and an Eve do you and I couldn't help but listen to this man as he was speaking and I thought how interesting that he would ask questions like that which are typical of skeptics and not believers I learned a principle of biblical interpretation that I'll give to you right now I learned it when I was a college student at Biola it's very simple when the plain sense makes good sense seek no other sense so if it's not written with an obvious intention to be allegorical when it's written to be looked at and to be read in a plain way the best interpretation is to take it that way so in relation to Jonah was Jonah swallowed by a great fish well Jesus seemed to think so because and you'll find this interesting hopefully when you when you see Jesus speaking concerning his death burial and resurrection he uses Jonah as his example and that's where you get the three days from it's in Matthew chapter 12 verse 40 as Jonah was in the belly of the great fish for three days and three nights even so the son of man will be in the the belly of the earth for three days and three nights Jesus took Jonah literally Jesus didn't present the story of Jonah as an allegory he didn't do that some would argue well that's simply because he didn't have the knowledge that we have today yeah you're smarter than God but that's how it works you see was creation a little literal event or was it progressive over time people argue over that a Riley was wondering about that you don't take that literally do you well Jesus was at a wedding feast in Cana of Galilee and they had run out of wine and Mary Jesus's mother approached him and said they have no wine Jesus's response was very simple woman what have I to do with you my time hasn't come Mary goes and gives him advice he says whatever he says to you do it Jesus says go and get those water pots fill them with water then call the governor of the feast and give him a drink and so Jesus instantly created what would normally take a process simply because he can create and he can do it instantaneously listen and I'm not going to call into question the faith that O'Reilly holds I'm just using him as an example if you don't believe that God create can create the heavens and the earth simply because he's God and if you don't believe that a great fish can swallow a man and yet the man can survive then I wonder how you can believe in the resurrection of Jesus Christ because that's the greatest miracle that ever happened everything else pales by comparison to the resurrection of Christ so how can you say you don't believe that a fish can swallow a man and the man can survive how can you say you don't believe that God can create the heavens in the earth with his spoken word is instantaneously if he's so desires and yet you say you believe that God can raise the dead to life it just doesn't make sense I I'm not in the habit of limiting God I suspect God can do what God wants to do and so if God wants to dry up the Jordan well these individuals these Amorites and these Canaanites they're not being of they're not being made afraid by an allegory they're they're afraid because of something that just happened a miracle an unbelievable miracle the Jordan River which was flooding its banks because according to chapter 3 I think it was first verse 15 because it was a flood season and so they would have thought that well because the Jordan is overflowing its banks right now we have some time because we know the children of Israel are camped out there a few miles east of the Jordan we know that that because the Jordan is flooding over right now that they're going to wait until the waters recede but that's not what happens what happens is God says you're ready okay bang dry up here we go and they're hearing about it and the response is this tremendous fear that is taking place because they had thought that they would be a given time to prepare for war but it didn't happen that way God dried up the Jordan in such a miraculous way that it produced a terror in them remember verse 24 of chapter 4 that all the peoples of the earth may know the hand of the Lord that it is mighty and that's why God did that guys so that the people would know that God is a mighty God when God was speaking to Moses when he raised him up to deliver the children of Israel in Exodus 9 16 God said to Moses but indeed for this purpose I have raised you up that I may show my power in you and that my name may be declared in all the earth and so when these people heard that God had dried up and made it possible for them to cross over the Jordan while there was no spirit in them any longer because of the children of Israel because they knew that God was on their side now verse 2 at that time the Lord said to Joshua make Flint knives for yourself and circumcise the sons of Israel again the second time so Joshua made Flint knives for himself and circumcise the sons of Israel at the hill of the four skins and this is the reason why Joshua circumcised them all the people who came out of Egypt who were males all the men of war had died in the wilderness on the way after they had come out of Egypt for all the people who had come out had been circumcised but all the people who were born in the wilderness on the way as they came out of Egypt had not been circumcised and so there is there is a work that they have to do now the Jewish men are now aware that the people of the land are in terror they're aware of that because Rehab it made that very clear when the spies had come in and she had spoken to those spies and she had said to them that there was fear in the land we saw it in chapter 3 verse 9 where where she said I know that the Lord has given you the land that the terror of you has fallen on us and that all the inhabitants of the land are faint hearted because of you and so at that time they were aware the Jews were aware that the people of the land were in terror as Rehab had already said and so military strategist would more than likely believe it wise to invade while the people were afraid of them but instead of going in notice with me God orders them to perform circumcisions on those who were uncircumcised why let me give you a ministry principle because before the campaign comes consecration before the campaign comes consecration circumcision is the emblem of the covenant God had made with Abraham and this was a covenant that gave the promised land to the nation of Israel all the way back in Genesis chapter 17 verses 9 through 11 we read God said to Abraham as for you you shall keep my covenant you and your descendants after you throughout the generations this is my covenant which you shall keep between me and you and your descendants after you every male child among you shall be circumcised and you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you so God had established the sign of a covenant which was to demonstrate that he would keep his promise to give them this land that they're about to enter in and to take but the new generation had neglected the right of circumcision during the years of wandering the men of war had died in the wilderness the boys born during that time remained uncircumcised circumcision represents their relationship to God but they had not obeyed the voice of the Lord no circumcision was never simply a cutting away of the flesh circumcision speaks of consecration circumcision represents the relationship to God and the relationship they have with God is not to be just on the outside the relationship that they have with God is to be one of the heart so circumcision is not just a physical act of removing skin circumcision is deeper than that it's spiritual because it represents a person's heart Deuteronomy chapter 10 verse 16 it says therefore circumcise the foreskin of your heart be stiff necked no longer in the New Testament in chapter 3 verse 3 of the book of Philippians Paul says or we who worship by the spirit of God are the ones who are truly circumcised we rely on what Christ Jesus has done for us we put no confidence in human effort and so before you enter into campaign before you go into serving God there needs to be a consecration of your heart there needs to be a setting apart of your life for God if you want to be used by the Lord and you want to inherit the promises of God there is a there is a consecration there's a devotion there's an opening of your heart to the Lord and there's a willing obedience to the things that he has commanded you you see before Israel faced their enemies they needed to prepare their hearts it says in verse 6 through 8 for the children of Israel walked 40 years in the wilderness to all the people who were men of war who came out of Egypt were consumed because they did not obey the voice of the Lord to whom the Lord swore that he would not show them the land which the Lord had sworn to their fathers that he would give us a land flowing with milk and honey so josh was circumcised their sons whom he raised up in their place for they were uncircumcised because they had not been circumcised on the way so it was when they had finished circumcising all the people that they stayed in their places in the camp till they were healed and so josh was circumcised their sons if you expect to be used by the Lord here's a ministry principle again consecrate yourselves to him romance chapter 12 verses 1 and 2 makes it very plain and so dear brothers and sisters I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you let them be a living and holy sacrifice the kind he will find acceptable this is truly the way to worship him don't copy the behavior and customs of this world but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think then you will learn to know God's will for you which is good and pleasing and perfect if you want to be used by the Lord for sake the way of the world and pursue the Lord be not conformed but be transformed by the renewing of your mind you want to be used by the Lord don't be fighting and arguing all the time about what you're free to do don't be getting caught up with these arguments about all the things that I can still do and be saved what you need to do is say Lord if there's anything in my life that keeps me from being used by you then Lord may that be taken away I yielded to you right now I dedicate myself to you I want to be used by you after a crazy weekend in in Ensenada back in 1973 Cinco de Mayo I spent some time with my friends I was always a Christian I'd been a Christian for two years a little over two years and two of my friends were army buddies and I went down to Ensenada for a weekend Cinco de Mayo we bought two cases of beer and we drank them between the three of us before we got from Newport Beach to the San Diego border by the time we got to Ensenada and started hitting the bars we were already on our way to being totally drunk and so we're doing the Boilermakers are doing the tequila shots are doing all of that and we did that for three days we bought Jose Cuervo we had a Volkswagen van they had a giant moon roof kind of sun roof thing I still remember standing up with a bottle of Jose Cuervo yelling at people Jose's alive I've got him in this bottle I still remember doing that drunk for three days a Christian a Christian somebody says oh you just weren't saved because Christians don't drink no I was a Christian and I was drunk very drunk and I came home and my sister Madeline was in my parents home and in the kitchen and I walked in as 22 years old and I walked into the kitchen very hungover and she says to me do you have a good time this weekend and I said I had a great time man we were crazy for three days Madeline I had a great time and then I broke down and began to sob and I poured my heart out and I wept and I said God be merciful to me I am miserable I've gone back to the world I'm in sin God forgive me God forgive me I went to church there was an evangelist his name was Mario Muriel perhaps some of you have heard his name and Mario gave an invitation and he said there are people out here right now who are believers who are living for the world and not for Jesus and you're miserable and you need to get right with God and if you're here right now and you need to get right with God Mario said stand to your feet I want to pray for you and I stood and I wept and I said God forgive me a sinner I do not want to go back to the vomit that I have left like the dog that returns to the vomit I don't want to go back I don't want to go back like the pig returning to the mire that it's been washed from I am a child of God I'm not a dog and I'm not a pig I'm your son forgive me that's how not easy it wasn't easy but that's how quick it is when you actually humble yourself and say God forgive me and from that point that was in May think of the mile weekend in September of 1973 is when I started going to Biola because I said I've got to do something with my life that honors God I went to a Bible college in September of 1973 after a few months of rededicating my life to Christ I started teaching a home Bible study in Norwalk and this church really is the fruit of that small Bible study that took place back in 1973 40 years ago in September and that's because I made a decision to consecrate myself to God I don't want the old world anymore I don't want the old life anymore I want to have the fresh life that comes through Jesus Christ if you want to be used by the Lord consecrate yourself consecrate yourself consecrate yourself it's interesting in verse 9 how it says the Lord said to Joshua this day I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you therefore the name of the place is called Gilgal to this day he says I've rolled away the reproach of Egypt in a lot of years in Egypt they had become slaves and they were reproached they were held in disdain by the Egyptians they were ashamed but now they're standing in the promised land they've been free freed by God and so by way of application when we're saved we are freed we're freed from bondage and we are now established as free people in Jesus Christ we are free in him like Paul says in Romans 6 17 and 18 God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered and having been set free from sin you became slaves of righteousness and so they were in bondage but God rolled away that bondage God roll it away from them and now they're standing there on the on the shore there the western shore of the Jordan they're in that region there and they're there as free people now this new position will make it possible for you to wage spiritual warfare and it makes it possible for you to become victorious it's interesting how that it says in verse 8 so it was when they had finished circumcising all the people that they stayed in their places in the camp till they were healed now there's quite obvious reason for that as they've gone through the painful action of circumcision there's going to be a time where they're going to need to just recuperate so that they can actually be in condition to go in and and to war but I would say this and and he who has ears she who has ears let you I hope you hear this because not all people can receive what I'm about to say and it's not because you're you're unable to it it may be because you haven't come to understand this yet but it's an absolute truth that all the old church fathers were well aware of and and the better known commentators of this age are very aware of this what I'm about to share with you and it's this sometimes consecration is accompanied by pain sometimes being set apart for the use to the Lord is accompanied by pain when they receive their circumcision there was pain involved in that act of consecration and and this is where a lot of people especially I'd say in the 21st century in 2013 this is where a lot of people especially young believers or those who have have yet to to go through scripture and see the whole counsel of God this is where many have their difficulties because they have a difficult time believing that walking with the Lord is really something that may have a painfulness to it because they're they've been hearing so many messages that speak concerning that that God wants them to be the head not the tail that they don't understand that that you're you're going to be conformed into the image of the one who has been referred to as the wounded healer Jesus Christ suffered for us and promises that we have in scripture relate to the fact that there will be times of suffering that all people who follow Christ are going to endure I wish I could stand sit up here right now and say to you yes what man if you're not walking with Jesus Christ if you give your heart to him right now I want to give you a promise from God you will never have another lousy day in your life you will always have a wallet full of money you will never have any problems with your back or your face you'll never have children you'll never have any of the the pain that accompanies life it's all going to be so good I just don't understand why you don't just give your heart to Jesus right now how can you don't do that well the bottom line is consecration is accompanied by pain how do we know that well one they were consecrated but they had to heal up there was some pain involved in their circumcision but sometimes consecration is accompanied by pain somebody once wrote when God wants to drill a man thrill a man and skill a man when God wants to mold a man to play the noblest part when he yearns with all his heart to create so great and bold a man that the world should be amazed watch his methods watch his ways how he ruthlessly perfects whom he royally elects how he hammers him and hurts him and with mighty blows converts him into shapes and forms of clay which only God can understand all man's tortured heart is crying and he lifts beseeching hands yet God bends but never breaks when man's good he undertakes how he uses whom he chooses and with mighty power infuses with every act induces him to try his splendor out God knows what he's about all you need to do is spend some time looking at some of the men that God uses and you'll see what I'm saying Abraham was given a tremendous promise your wife Sarah will conceive in her old age and she will bear you a son you shall name him Isaac and in him all of my promises will be transferred and yet what does God say to Abraham take your son your only son and sacrifice him to me if you don't think that that command tore at the heart of Abraham you haven't thought very deeply Jacob Jacob wrestled with an angel and when he wrestled with that angel and he wrestled all night when it was time for the angel to to leave the angel reached and touched him in and his hip was out of place and he became a cripple and he limped for the rest of his life remembering that encounter with God Moses was on his way with his wife and sons and the Bible simply says and God sought to slay Moses Elijah was pursued by an evil king and his wife David hidden caves from those who pursued him Isaiah Jeremiah Ezekiel all suffered Daniel was put in a lion's den and you can multiply this over and over and over again all you need to do is look at the the original Apostles and ten of the original twelve were martyred the Apostle Paul ultimately was beheaded he's he writes concerning the things that he's gone through the whippings the beatings the times he's been overdone overboard in in the ocean the various stripes that he had received in the jailings he writes about them to the Corinthians so sometimes consecration will include pain don't be surprised when when it seems that things aren't going well for you don't don't be surprised about don't be surprised I'm not saying that you should go to bed tonight saying God would you please hurt me I'm not saying that I'm just saying don't be surprised why because God will allow things into your life that break you so that the things that at one time where your joy and your pleasure will lose their luster so that your joy and pleasure is going to be transferred from things of this earth to those things which are above and heaven becomes a more glorious place and heaven becomes a greater desire and a stronger appetite than any other pleasure or any other place on earth and the Lord has a way of doing that consecration sometimes is accompanied by pain don't be upset at the Lord when things aren't going the way you want them to go because God has a way of working out his pleasure and conforming you into his image through these things in verse 10 so the children of Israel camped in Gilgal and kept the Passover on the 14th day of the month at twilight on the plains of Jericho so they have a celebration once again there's an act of devotion an act of remembrance that is performed they partake in Passover which once again is to remind them of their deliverance from bondage in Egypt if you're going to be used by the Lord you need to return to the first things if we're going to be used we need to take strength and hope in what God has done in the past we need to remember how God has moved on our behalf we need to remember his goodness and his power how he has moved and worked and how he has done wonderful things Passover was to remind them that he had delivered them from Egyptian bondage and so they celebrated Passover and remembered his goodness they remembered the power that he had already shown them and there's a good thing in remembering what God has done in the past in your life there's a scripture in Jeremiah chapter 6 verse 16 that says thus says the Lord stand in the ways and see and ask for the old paths where the good way is and walk in it then you will find rest for your souls to look back at what God has done when you celebrate communion you remember what Jesus has done you remember how he has met you and in your spiritual life there are times that you need to look back at those stones of remembrance those places where God met you there are ordinances and things that you can enjoy that remind you of what God has done and if you're going to be somebody used by the Lord you need to remember what God has done and yet move forward to what God still wants to do now it says it verses 11 and 12 they ate of the produce of the land on the day after the Passover unleavened bread and parched grain on the very same day now the manna ceased on the day after they had eat the produce of the land and the children of Israel no longer had manna but they ate the food of the land of Canaan that year God had supplied for them this bread from heaven it's called manna manna means what is it it was like coriander it was very sweet to the taste and and God had had miraculously provided for them so that they had no hunger and as they were there in their journey they were always provided for but now that they're entering into the promised land God begins to give them permission to live off the produce of the land that he has provided for them so in verse 13 it came to pass when Joshua was by Jericho that he lifted his eyes and looked and behold a man stood opposite him with his sword drawn in his hand Joshua went to him and said to him what's up no he said went up to where you from man no he he said to him are you for us or for our adversaries so he said no but as commander of the army the Lord I've now come Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshipped and said to him what does my Lord say to his servant the commander of the Lord's army said to Joshua take your saddle off your foot for the place where you stand is holy and Joshua did so Joshua this is the commissioning of Joshua even as Moses had spoken to the Lord when he was called Joshua is now receiving his call now notice what it says here Joshua sees someone with a drawn sword and he's the general he Joshua is the general and as the general he sees someone with the with the sword drawn and he approaches him in order to confront him when I was in the military we were trained that when you encounter a potential enemy that you're supposed to tell them to identify themselves they were what we called the general orders you had to memorize them and you had to be able to give these general orders whenever somebody asked what's the sixth order what's the fifth order with the eleventh order you had to be able to do that out of basic training I believe that you have the same thing in boot camp in the Marine Corps Navy and all it's the general orders and so we had to memorize them and and I still remember that that they had us memorize certain certain orders called general orders in the eleventh general order what was like this you're to challenge all persons on or near your post and do not allow any to pass and what you will do is you will see them and you will say something I know I have veterans in here you will say halt who goes there identify yourself that's what Joshua is doing here halt who goes there identify yourself he's actually doing military protocol when he sees someone with the drawn sword doesn't recognize him as the general he approaches him and he challenges him that's what he's doing he's a military man and he's challenging him that's not always the safest thing to do I remember in basic training we had to walk century we had walk around and the barracks and in case somebody would intrude intruders would come sometimes they would come into your barracks and they would they would rob you and things like that and so you actually had to have centuries and so I had to pull guard duty called the guard duty I had posted as a century and I can still remember they would give to us an axe handle and you would walk around with this axe handle out there in the middle of nowhere you're afraid I have to be honest with you man I I was afraid I'm carrying this axe handle around and I'm praying for the hours that I had to walk out there Jesus you know Jesus don't let anybody come I was in my bunk and I heard a guy outside my window yell halt who goes there identify yourself and then I hear this other guy answer him say and he said something like how shut up and so that guy says halt identify yourself that guy says shut up mind your own business then I hear the guy who's given the order take that axe handle and pop the guy with it you can hear go pop like that and then what happened I didn't see it I was laughing too hard the guy must have taken the handle from him and you could hear the guy who had been just a moment before yelling halt who goes there you know identify yourself all like it here was him going how how how has it was pounding him with his axe handle it can be dangerous I just said man go on in I don't you know I don't care go on in you know just don't hit me I don't know those guys Joshua that's basically what he's doing here he sees an intruder he approaches them and he asked him a question are you on our side or are you on our adversary side whose side are you on now what's interesting is the way this guy responds I want you to see this when he says in verse 13 are you for us or for our adversaries verse 14 so he said no that doesn't make any sense the way I speak English that's not how you're supposed to answer that and yet he says no what do you mean no well I'm not on your side I'm not on your adversary side the fact of the matter is I'm on God's side I'm not taking the side of man I am here to enforce what God would have done the one who's being spoken to here is not just an ordinary man he's not challenging a man he is challenging someone greater than a man what is happening here is you're having something that is called a theophany or a Christophany it is a pre incarnate appearance of Jesus Christ it's before Jesus Christ takes upon himself human flesh in his incarnation this is an old testament appearance of Jesus is called theophany God appearance is also called Christophany a Christ appearance I prefer using the term Christophany because this is an appearance of Jesus Christ what he is doing is he speak into Jesus Christ in pre incarnate form and Jesus is the commander of the host of the Lord you see in Old Testament I could give you quite a number I'll just give you a few you can see instances in the Old Testament this kind of thing these Christophany's from Genesis following in Genesis chapter 18 verses 1 through 33 Abraham has a conversation with the man who is actually God and in that passage Jesus shows up he spends time with Abraham he discusses details about the fate of Sodom but it's the Lord who speak into him not an ordinary man and not an angel in Genesis chapter 32 verses 22 through 32 I mentioned earlier Jacob Jacob had a wrestling match with what is referred to as the angel of the Lord I mentioned how the angel touched his hip and Jacob ended up realizing that he had wrestled with God in Genesis 32 30 he said I have seen God face to face and yet my life has been delivered in the book of Daniel you have Shadrach Meshach and a bed ago if you're a vegetales person it's Rack Shack and Benny and and and they they some of you have listened to that huh I have grandchildren and they refused to worship the golden image the throne as we know into a fiery furnace but there is a fourth man who appears in Daniel 3 25 says his appearance is like a son of the gods Isaiah chapter 6 records Isaiah actually seen a pre-incarnate Christ he sees Jesus he has a vision and in the year the King as I died he said I saw the Lord he was high and he was lifted up and so he explains my eyes have seen the King the Lord of hosts and in John 12 41 John says these things Isaiah said when he saw his speaking of Jesus when he saw his glory and spoke of him and so what you have here is you have a pre-incarnate appearance of Christ and he's the commander he's powerful he's majestic he's awe inspiring and he is intimidating and when he says who he is I'm the commander of the army of the Lord notice the response it says he fell down on his face to worship now if this were not God then what Joshua is doing is wrong should be judged because worship is reserved for God alone and this commander would not have received his worship he would have rebuked him because you see that you see it in Acts chapter 10 when Cornelius the centurion has invited the apostle Peter to come and to see him you see that when Peter enters into his home that Cornelius falls down at his feet in front of him to worship him and according to Acts 10 25 and 26 Peter says stand to your feet I'm but a man you see the same thing when John the revelator in the book of Revelation when he falls at the feet of the angel there in Revelation 19 verse 10 as well as Revelation 22 verse 9 he falls down and he worships and and he is told this is not what you do your worship is reserved for God alone and so this tells me that this commander of the army of the Lord is not simply an angel this is God in in in a human appearance and that's why he falls down on his face to the earth that's why he worships him and that's why he says what does my Lord say to his servant and verse 15 says then the commander of the Lord's army said to Joshua take your sandal off your foot for the place where you stand is holy and Joshua did so what would you command me to do what do you have for me take your sandal off your foot what does that mean remove from yourself your love for the world remove from yourself the pollution of the world from your soul consecrate yourself to me your shoe reminds you of the fact that you walk you use shoes because you walk what God is saying is I want you to remove the pollution from your life do you want to be used by the Lord I do I do if you want to be victorious if you want to be used by God you need to be called consecrated established obedient and ready and ready when Isaiah saw the Lord he realized that he was a man of unclean lips and he said and I dwell amongst the people of unclean lips an angel took a call from the from the fire and placed it on his lips purified him God said who can I send who will go for me then Isaiah said here in my Lord send me have you done that lately have you done that lately here on my Lord send me why can't he send you why can't he use you why what is there keeping him from using you in a wonderful way what is it is it worth it is it worth not being used by God I have to tell you the most the greatest and most joyful thing that I do is serve Jesus Christ I have to tell you that's the truth the most fulfilling pleasing thing that I do is serving the Lord the greatest joy and peace and and and love and satisfaction comes from serving Jesus Christ I had enough of the world I had enough of the drinking I had enough of the drugs I had enough of the anger I had enough of the materialism I had enough of the garbage who needs it who needs it I was in Monterey at the pop festival in 1970 used to have pop festivals I don't even know they still do Monterey pop festival 1970 I had dropped magic mushroom and had been smoking pot I was 20 years old and I was walking through the festival when a guy a woman a man a woman young man young woman and a little boy probably about four years old they were long their hippies with long stringy blonde hair I still remember them little boy had long stringy blonde hair like his mom and dad they had made clothing and out of sheets white sheets the woman had a granny dress these come granny dresses now a granny dress is what Marie wears but they were granny dresses it's true and the guy was wearing a shirt kind of was a flowing shirt and you know just the pants that they that Tommy Bahamas now makes the linen look they were barefoot the little little kid had a sheet that had been cut like a robe and they walked by me and when they walked by me a thought hit me I'll never forget it and the thought was that's your future that's your future you're going to end up with somebody you're going to have your kid you're not going to have two nickels rubbed together to put shoes on your feet you're going to have to take whatever people throw away and try and make that into clothing because I wasn't working because if he's didn't like to work I did not like to work so I never would have provided for himself I never would have provided for my family I would never provided for a wife I'd have never had any of those things and I don't know that the Holy Spirit was speaking my heart at that time yet to convict me I would like to believe that it was one of the ways that God was using to draw me to himself because that wasn't a thought that was original with me that was something that came from outside of me not inside of me I never thought that before I never thought about it before and I saw and I looked and I said that's me that's what I'm going to be like if I keep doing these drugs and I keep drinking like this that's what I'm going to be like that's my future just walked in front of me and it affected me so much that I didn't smoke pot for a day that's the truth man I went to my friends and I said man I put down man I put down I'm not going to smoke pot anymore really I'll come on man no I'm not going to smoke pot anymore and I didn't all day and I did the next day that was a hard day I used to smoke pot almost every day I look back at those times and I say that's a different man that's a different life that's a different world a different way of thinking because it was because I didn't know Jesus and when I got saved at 20 everything changed and that's when I began to learn some of the lessons I'm trying to encourage you to if you want to be used by God consecrate yourself to him here am I Lord send me I want to be used by you I want to talk about you I want my life to count for something I want to leave a mark I want to do something that people will remember I want to be used by you and I started praying that at the age of 20 when I got saved and I prayed that to this day I want to be used by you I don't want anything in this world to drag me from the place of being used to a place of being set on a shelf I encourage you guys learn the lessons of Joshua if you want to conquer be consecrated be consecrated