After years in the
wilderness the people of Israel were finally on the verge of entering their
promised land. But just at the crucial time their leader, Moses, died. In his place Joshua responded to God’s
challenge and, with the people crossed into the Promised Land, ready to take
possession of it. But they weren’t going to get it without faith and without a fight.
They needed to drive out their enemies. As Joshua camped
near Jericho contemplating his plans and strategies he looked up and saw a man
facing him with sword drawn. Joshua faced him and asked whose side he was on
and in response the man told him that he was the Captain of the Lord’s army.
Joshua fell on his face and asked, “What do you want me to do?” He was told to
take of his shoes because he was standing on holy ground.
Why did this man appear to Joshua? Joshua was about to
undertake a major challenge for God and he needed a vision that would be
sufficient to prepare him for the task. He was about to embark on a military
campaign – he needed to know that Lord’s army was with him. Like Joshua before
we take on any mission for God, we too need a vision of him that is sufficient
for the task.
In Isaiah 6, God revealed himself to Isaiah, In Ezekiel 1
and 8, to Ezekiel and in Revelation 1 and 4 to the apostle John. In each case
the vision he gave to the prophet was appropriate to the task they were to
perform. God has called us in to the land of promise, the land of service. He
has given us a commission – go into the world make disciples, preach the word,
set the captives free, feed the poor, heal the sick. But we cannot hope to
accomplish this mission without a revelation of God.
We can plan, strategize and theorise, we may even see some
success. We can adopt spiritual disciplines, pray, read, give, fellowship and
serve. We can pump ourselves up with self-motivation, the 7 keys to success,
the be-happy attitudes and the power of positive thinking. But without a vision
of God, our successes won’t be sustained and we will find ourselves once again
in the wilderness hopping from hilltop to hilltop scanning the horizon for some
fresh motivation and blessing or reward for our labour.
The only way Joshua could face his enemies was for God to
reveal himself to him. The only way Isaiah and Ezekiel could preach was to see
God first, the only way John could prophecy was to have a vision of Jesus.
Unfortunately for many of us our only experience of God is hearsay. We have
heard of the revivals, God’s blessing and miracles. We may even have seen them
– but they are always someone else’s. Job had this same experience. He was a
righteous man and suffered because of his righteousness, yet his experience of
God was based on hearsay – until God spoke out of the whirlwind (Job 38). After
God revealed himself Job could say “Before I had heard about you but now I have
seen you for myself” (Job 42:5). Is your knowledge of God based on hearsay, or
have you seen him for yourself? Have you delighted in the testimony of others
as you go from those hilltops to hilltops or have you had your own revelation
of him?
When Joshua saw the Captain of the Lord’s army he fell down
at his feet and asked ‘what do you want me to do?’ When Isaiah saw God he
confessed his sin, when Ezekiel received his vision he fell down and worshiped
while John fell down as though dead. In each case their response was recognition
of God’s holiness and their uncleanness. All they could do was worship.
As you seek God’s help, expect him to reveal his holiness
and your need. Expect to recognize your inadequacy, and then rejoice that Jesus
has reconciled you to him and that you can approach this Holy God. The vision
we need today is a vision of a Holy God who allows us to approach him though
Jesus and then to show us that aspect of his character that will prepare us for
the mission to which he call us. It is this God who will equip us and motivate
us to complete the commission he has given – our only response is to worship.
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