Have you ever wondered what God thinks about pagan and occult nations?
Would a kind and loving God truly send down divine judgement?
What defines a nation as such anyway?
Surely such actions are not going on in today’s civilized world; right?
Thank you for joining the COME AS A CHILD BIBLE STUDY today. We are studying Chapter six of The Book of Joshua. Our group is taking a slow walk together through the pages of the scriptures of our bibles. We are using the eyes of an innocent child who is seeking answers for the first time and desiring to move closer to their awesome Father in the process. Just click the button above and you can join in with us every Thursday. Thank you for caring enough to pursue the truth of God.
Let’s see what Joshua learned about God’s truths as he and the men of Israel continued in the fighting of the battle of Jericho.
DID JOSHUA MARCH ON THE SABBATH?
Every study of The Battle of Jericho seems to have the same arguments. The first is this; “if we are not supposed to work on The Sabbath and the men from Israel marched for seven days; wasn’t that breaking the Sabbath commandment?”
We can answer that question in the same way that Jesus did. He is Lord of the Sabbath (Matthew 12:8.) These marching men were simply doing The Lord’s work. They were following God’s instructions. It is perfectly acceptable to follow and do God’s instructions and carry out His work on the Sabbath
JESUS IS LORD OF THE SABBATH
This definitely does not mean to do OUR work or follow OUR instructions for the day. The Sabbath is the time for listening carefully to God and doing exactly whatever He instructs us to do. Usually that instruction is to rest. On the day of The Battle of Jericho it was to march around the city seven times, blow the trumpets and shout.
Marching for seven days wasn’t breaking any commandments for keeping Sabbath. Being obedient to God never breaks His commandments.
THE ARK WAS EVIDENCE OF GOD’S PRESENCE
The fact that they were carrying The Ark of The Covenant was confirmation that these men were only there to do GOD’S WORK; not their own. God was making every decision in this battle. The supernatural power of Heaven was clearly the winning factor of this battle.
TAKING OUT PAGANISM
For the rest of our study of this significant battle we need to constantly be reminded that God did not allow Jericho (and the whole land of Canaan eventually) or the people who lived there to be destroyed simply because He wanted Israel to occupy the land. It was NOT about Israel moving into the land as most people think. This was more about Canaan moving out of the land.
Israel is brought into the land because everything and everyone who had lived in the land was pagan. They all worshiped other false gods instead of The One True God. Israel worshipped The One True God of Heaven and Earth. God wanted to rid the land of paganism.
Paganism was the cause for almost every battle that Israel fought from this point forward. It seems to be the root of all evil as far as God is concerned.
Almost every spiritual battle we face today is also the result of some type or form of paganism. This is yet another parallel that today’s world has with this time of Israel in the history of Jericho.
DO NOT TAKE THE CURSED THINGS
God warned everyone fighting for Israel NOT to take anything that had been used in pagan worship rituals. This would have included the idols themselves.
People can be so fickle. They quickly forget how much God hates the use of paganism.
Many living today do not even begin to understand the true meaning of paganism. They think if you are not a Christian; you are a pagan. However; pagans can be defined as people who implement and use pagan and idolatrous practices. It is true that these are not Christians; but the meaning goes much further.
True pagans are more defined by their acts of idolatry and idolatrous rituals. It is sad and unfortunate that many of these rituals can now be found commonly inside Christian churches and homes. Most of todays worshipers are ignorant of how God feels about this. Very few churches have emphasized this in their worship. Satan delights to use God’s people’s ignorance.
THE WISDOM OF RAHAB
Rahab might have fallen into prostitution; but she had the wisdom and the courage to make changes when she woke up to the truth. That moment that she came to understand the God of Israel was The One True God, she put the tools of idolatry and all pagan practices out of her home. I’m sure sincere warnings went out from her to all other family members who were not aware of how wrong and untrue these practices of their culture were.
There is a scripture found in Revelation 3:16 that speaks of how God hates luke-warm worship. To have looked the other way in Rahab’s situation (as well as our situations of today) would have been luke-warm and not appropriate. A true Christian does not stand in the middle of paganism and expect God to overlook it.
Rahab was wise enough to realize this. It saved her whole family from destruction and judgement. Her bravery and courage saved all of us in the end. This is true because the human part of our Messiah came from the blood-line of Rahab.
NO GOD HIGHER THAN OUR GOD
We can see here that the seven priests carrying the seven trumpets in front of The Ark of The Covenant clearly put God’s name on the victory. No other pagan god had such powers. The occult worshipers of Jericho could not destroy the walls of a fortified city simply by marching around it. This happens only with God’s covenant people. The One True God is the only God with true power.
The covenant that the people of Israel had with God was the most significant factor in this victory. God was for them.
We know that the pagans living within the strong walls of Jericho had no relationship with God at all. They practiced the occult and artifacts of their history tell us this was evident in their culture.
It was clear that all of these occult and pagan practices were not acceptable to God. God had waited patiently and given the Canaan culture every chance to change. He desired that they accept Him as their God and turn away from the false gods they worshipped. These people knew the stories of God from Abraham. They did not believe. The truth was never accepted by them.
NO OTHER GODS
The land was steeped in pagan and occult rituals. These were only multiplying. God was about to change that pattern before He allowed any of His people to enter and inhabit the place.
Our Almighty God commanded that everything living inside the city of Jericho (except for Rahab and her family members) should be destroyed.
What did you think when you heard of this?
Probably there were innocent women and children living among those in Jericho. Maybe there were some men who might have eventually been changed; but God said to destroy them all with the sword. Their time of grace had run out.
If we have a loving God, why would this happen?
PAGANISM AND OCCULT ARE LIKE A CANCER
This shocking thing happened because paganism and occult practices are like a cancer that spreads quickly through the whole body. It festers and grows if you leave it alone. You must cut it out. If people from that culture had been left in the land; their ways would have infected the ways of those who were following God’s ways.
God had spent 40 years of wilderness training on these people. It took that long to implement His best ways to live into their daily lives.
The occult practices and paganism of the culture of the new land had to be addressed. God had hoped for change among this culture; but it had not come forth. He had waited patiently until this moment. He would not sacrifice His own to a pagan culture. They KNEW about God. These people understood that God was powerful and amazing. They had heard of how He had destroyed the other pagan cultures as the Israelites had moved forward toward them and God’s promises for the descendants of Abraham.
In previous battles God had confronted their main idol (Baal.) The end of that confrontation had resulted in the destruction of the people living in that land. They too had been to stubborn to listen and/or change to the ways of The One True God.
Still; in this place of Jericho they did not respond or change. It was their choice to die rather than to convert to following the Covenant which God had established with Israel.
HOW OUR WORLD IS LIKE JERICHO
Many do not realize that we live in the middle of a nation taken with the same pagan/occult attributes as Jericho back in the days of the historical battle that God won for Israel. Even now some people would rather die than change their practices. They say they follow the ten commandments; but in practice they dishonor them.
Open your ears and eyes people.
Look and listen to the land and you will come to realize what is going on.
Quit sleeping through things that God has called abominable. Wake up and turn.
BECOMING AWARE OF YOUR OWN SURROUNDINGS
Things that God said He would completely destroy surround our present cultures every night and day. We must release them. Slay them. Change them. It is the purpose of Christianity to run these demonic attributes out of our nation before God calls down such a divine judgment upon us. America must let go of the pagan and occult practices taking place upon our own homeland’s soil.
What on earth am I talking about here?
If you wish to understand this phenomenon further, I would suggest reading a very eye-opening book by Rabbi Jonathan Cahn. It is called The Return of The Gods. I’ll try to reference a way to order it below this article.
This well detailed book vividly describes how our nation has taken on the ways of the ancient pagan gods of Egypt. We have allowed these demons (they are false gods) to return. On the founding of America; a clean slate was presented. It was one that honored God. Demonic activity has no power in a God honoring nation. Over the years this has changed. We have become very pagan in many of our beliefs. When you clean house and one demon leaves; if you don’t keep that house filled with God honoring activities; the demon comes back and brings seven more. This has happened to America.
Our nation is so steeped in paganism that many do not even realize what they do. Several generation have passed without proper training in The Word of God. These pagan things now take place even inside the organizations we call churches. It is critical for our future that we become educated, equipped and ready to change this dangerous pattern.
We have a completely different battle of Jericho that exists within our own gates.
WHAT CAN WE DO?
Another good place to start the change is to become aware of the scriptures which back up the fact that these pagan and occult things are an abomination to God. Not many seem to notice. Become aware and walk with God. Begin with a study of Deuteronomy 18:9-12, Galatians 5:20, Ephesians 6:12, 2 Timothy 3:5-8, Amos 5:26-27, Isiah 47:9, 1 Samuel 31, 1 Chronicles 10:13-14 and there are more that you will discover as you go along. Pray. Ask God to reveal the truth to you. Beg Him to show you what to do about it. Repent. Fast. Turn. Teach others.
All of the above is very helpful. However; there is only one true and sufficient answer. Our Deliverer is Jesus Christ. He is the answer. Seek His help. Follow His truth. Once you have realized things you never understood before; open your eyes even wider and begin to monitor your children and your daily living environment. Do the things in your home honor the ways of God? Are they true and based on scripture? What about your work, your school, your community as a whole? Most importantly; what about your current place of worship? If people attend churches only to find the ways of the world; what good have we accomplished? It is a trap that the enemy of God loves to deceive people into falling into.
LOOK AROUND YOUR LIFE
What television shows scream of these pagan and occult activities? We have become the frog in boiling water in relation to our choices of entertainment. Can you find anything new that might be harmful in the cartoons that your kids are watching? What is being taught in their classrooms that you haven’t been aware of before? What cultural practices that seemed innocent enough before now seem to be unacceptable to you now? Do you have any wrong traditions?
I’m sure the people of Jericho were just enjoying their culture too. They all probably just wanted to get along together. Perhaps they even thought accepting the unacceptable would accomplish that. It did not work then and it will not work now.
Maybe the little things like witchcraft, sorcery, spells and fortune-telling and communicating with the dead seemed harmless to them too.
We have Jesus. Also, we have the holy scriptures. All we have to do now is to learn and turn. Those actions always touch God’s heartstrings. God loves to show people mercy and forgiveness. Jericho wasn’t asking; are we?
He also has to declare divine judgement to nations who destroy His Kingdom purposes. Otherwise; there would be no Kingdom. Sometimes God must pronounce judgement for the good of all. That is why He is God.
We still have a choice.
Time is getting short though.
A NEW AND HEALTHY NATION OF GODLY PEOPLE
God had to think of the welfare of those who WERE willing to keep His ways and continue to worship Him and Him alone. This was His priority. He was building a whole new nation which would serve as a pattern for other nations to come. God wasn’t just creating new nations; He was establishing the foundations of a whole new Kingdom called The Kingdom of Heaven. Within this nation of love there would be no paganism or occult practices. Those things are demonic. Demons will not inhabit God’s Kingdom. God’s plan for Israel or any other nation NEVER included paganism.
The test for the loyalty of the People of Israel lay in the hard task of destroying every living and breathing thing left in Jericho that did not belong to God. From where we are in the story right now; the Israelites passed this test. Time will prove the rest of the story. If anyone cheated or slipped up they would bring trouble into the nation.
If you are actively practicing pagan and occultist activities today; you too are bringing trouble upon your household and also upon the nation where you live. Don’t try to deceive others by saying some are good and some are bad. It is all pagan and God hates paganism. This isn’t a little matter. It is a matter of great importance to all of us.
THE RESULTS OF DIVINE JUDGMENT
One has to understand here that Jericho had already been judged by God and pronounced guilty.
The same thing had already happened with Egypt when God sent the plagues. It continued with Sodom and Gomorrah when God burned the place down. This also happened during the great flood when God saved only Noah and his family. Judgement was announced. The punishment followed. Those of faith in God survived. The people who would not follow God were destroyed.
Those who changed got to escape and live an abundant grace-filled life. These are those who were willing to turn. They were redeemed by their obedience to God. Their hearts were changed and their actions were directed toward God. The harmful things were put aside and a new joy came to them all.
One cannot choose to live in both places.
A firm and faithful decision must be made and carried out in order to receive such grace and forgiveness.
GRACE FOR THE REDEEMED
The first thing God told the army of Israel to do was to bring Rahab and her family safely outside the gates of the city and onto the outskirts of Israel’s camp.
This was Rahab’s “place of safety.”
We are told that when end-times escalate the people of God living through such times will be given a “place of safety.” It is comforting to think of this in light of how fast prophecy is being fulfilled before our eyes today.
Let’s consider this parallel that exists in this prophetic story of Jericho a little further later.
What exactly does the scripture teach us to look forward too even during tribulation and end-times? How is it the same picture of Rahab and her family in relation to Israel and the former inhabitants of Jericho?
Next week (in our Thursday study) we will begin to break down some of these details in relation to the world today.
In the meantime be the Rahab of your community. Listen. Learn. Repent. Turn. Share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with all. Remove the pagan practices and replace them with godly practices.
You never know what might become of your simplest action if it is mixed with God’s will.