Joshua 8 - Steve Wiggins Daily Devotional

“Now the Lord said to Joshua: ‘Do not be afraid, nor be dismayed: take all the people of war with you and arise, go up to Ai. See, I have given into your hand the king of Ai, his people, his city, and his land. And you shall do to Ai and its king as you did to Jericho and its king. Only its spoil and its cattle you shall take as booty for yourselves. Lay an ambush for the city behind it.’ So Joshua arose, and all the people of war, to go up against Ai; and Joshua chose thirty thousand mighty men of valor and sent them away by night.” Joshua 8:1-3

I love my Google Maps app. Sure, I love it because it gives me exact turn-by-turn directions to the places I want to go. And I love it because it takes into consideration real-time events like road construction & traffic accidents and re-routes me accordingly. But I love Google Maps MOSTLY because there is no shame in it.

If I fail to make a wrong turn, Google Maps, simply finds the next best route, based on my position. That is because the goal of Google Maps is to get me where I want to be, without emptions getting in the way. Google Maps never says, “You’re such an idiot!” or “Why don’t you listen to me?”. It never tells me “You are a bonehead like your dad!”. You know, things I might hear from certain passengers in the car with me, who are stressed, late for an appointment and in a hurry.

In today’s passage, we are reminded that the Lord lays aside the shame and guilt from the previous chapter and redirects Israel toward His goal of victory in Ai. We are reminded of His grace and mercy towards His people. Once the sin has been purged, the L_rd encourages Joshua that He will again go before the army of Israel and guarantee victory. We are reminded of His forgiving character, that G_d does not hold a grudge. Once sin is dealt with, He sets us back on the path of righteousness.

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9

“For as high as the Heavens are above the Earth, so great is His lovingkindness toward those who fear Him. As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. Just as a father has compassion on his children, so the L_rd has compassion on those who fear Him. For He Himself knows our frame; His is mindful that we are but dust.” Psalm 103:11-14

Once G_d has given his assurance of victory, the details of the battle sort of fly by. Sure there is narrative and some drama with an ambush, but the whole battle only takes-up a few paragraphs, like reading a news story. The real drama is what happens at the chapter’s end: Re-Writing & Reading the Torah of Moses. And that remembrance & re-commitment is what we do when we seek His Word each day. Keep your focus on the L_rd and His Word, and the idolatry of this World will be exposed as the harlotry it is! And you will walk in victory, as the L_rd promises.

Blessings,
~Steve Wiggins
Daily Devotional, Thursday, July 24, 2014