YOUR VICTORY IS SURE!

Joshua 8:27-35

 V. 27-35 VICTORY OVER AI IS PRESERVED

At this point in this story, Israel has followed God’s plan and achieved victory. Now, they must maintain the victory. They take two steps that make this a reality.

We can achieve victory over the flesh! We can walk in the will of God and be truly spiritual. We can be holy. We can live right. To maintain that victory, when God gives it, we must follow Israel’s example and do what they did at Ai. Here are the steps they follow!

A. V. 27-29 Victory Is Preserved By Death – Please notice that they did not leave a single person alive in Ai. No one, from the king down to the humblest servant, was spared from death in this battle. God knew that this enemy had to be eradicated, or there would be problems down the road.

As Israel dealt with Ai, the flesh is still alive, and well, we must put to death! The flesh is alive today as it ever has been. It always likes all the things that it used to enjoy, and if you turned it loose, it would run to sin like a pig to a wallow. Your flesh is not saved.

Now, we need to understand some things about our flesh if we are to have the victory over it today.

We are to reckon the flesh dead daily – 

What should or approach to sin be according to these scriptures? 

Colosians. 3:1-10

Romans. 6:11-14 

Galatians. 2:20. 

This is how we are to live practically every day. The secret to victory over the flesh lies in seeing the flesh as God sees it. It lies in being able to reckon the flesh dead. When we come to the place where we can look at our flesh and its lusts and live as if it is dead then, and only then, can we expect victory in our lives.

We don’t crucify the flesh by gratifying it! 

You cannot feed lust that enters your mind and claim to be living a life that is pleasing to the Lord. “But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof,” Rom. 13:14. The flesh must be reckoned dead every day we live. Listen, this is a conscious decision we must make in every situation we face in life.

We sin because we do not flee sin.

We sin because we allow the flesh and its lusts to control us.

We sin because we do not yield to the Spirit of God in everything!

We are told to flee those things that tempt us – 2 Tim. 2:22.

B. V. 30-35 Victory Is Preserved By Devotion

After the enemy had been eradicated and victory had been preserved, Israel finished by doing what the Lord had told them to do in Deut. 27 and 28.

Half of the nation was to stand on Mount Ebal and the other half on Mount Gerizim. The Levites were to stand in the valley between these mountains and read the cursings and the blessings. As they read the cursings, the crowd on Mount Ebal was to shout, “Amen.” When they read the blessings, the crowd on Mount Gerizim was to shout, “Amen.” This exercise was to remind them what God would bless and what He would not bless. They were also reaffirming their commitment to live by the Word of God every day!

So, in obedience to the command of the Lord, Israel made the 30 mile trip to those mountains, and they stood there facing one another across a valley that was 2 miles wide. As the commandments were read that day, they shouted, “Amen!” Imagine what that scene must have looked and sounded like that day! There was a devotion to living by the Word of God.

By the way, the name “Ebal” means, “The Heap Of Barrenness.” Ebal was a barren, deserted rock. Ebal was the mountain of cursing. “Gerizim” means “Cutting Off.” This was a beautiful, wooded mountain, surrounded by a fertile valley. Gerizim was the mountain of blessing.

Ebal reminded Israel that disobedience to the Lord would result in barrenness.

Gerizim reminded Israel that they were to be a separate people and that if they walked in the ways of the Lord, they would receive His blessings in the Promised Land.

Before Israel worshipped on the mountain, they built an altar, and Joshua wrote the words of the Law of God in the presence of all the people, vv. 30-31.

The altar was a place of death. It was a place of sacrifice. It served to remind them that they did not achieve anything by their power; they only won the Victory because God gave it to them. They were only victorious because they sacrificed their will, their pride, and their ability at the feet of the Lord.

They built the altar without tools, reminding them that their Victory over Ai was entirely the work of the Lord. They used rocks God Himself created to make a place to honor Him. The victory was not about them; it was about Him!

Application:

If we intend to enjoy God’s blessings in this life, we must learn to walk in the will of God. Before we can ever shout on the mountain, we must first kneel at the altar and acknowledge that we are incapable of fighting the battles, winning the victory, or hanging on to it after winning. If we are to win and preserve the victory day by day, then:

We must learn to live by the Word of God. 

We must learn to depend on the Lord. 

We must realize that we are helpless without Him!

The path to lasting victory begins in the altar, in the place of sacrifice, on our knees!