And the Walls Came Tumbling Down
And the Walls Came Tumbling Down
Joshua 8:28-29 So Joshua burned Ai and made it forever a heap of ruins, as it is to this day. And he hanged the king of Ai on a tree until evening. And at sunset Joshua commanded, and they took his body down from the tree and threw it at the entrance of the gate of the city and raised over it a great heap of stones, which stands there to this day.
Just a moment ago, Israel’s bravest warriors were fleeing for their lives from enemy garrisons. Just a moment ago, thirty-six seasoned veterans got cut down like pine saplings in a hurricane. Just a moment ago, the most valiant leader in all the earth, the man who’d seen God thunder at Sinai and pave a road through the Red Sea and crumble ancient fortress walls with invisible musical notes, was flat on his face, covered in dirt, completely bereft of confidence. Just a moment ago, the shrill, thundering echoes of that fateful curse-word, ‘retreat,’ a word that angels of God and the people of God should know nothing of, resounded along the dark cliff walls surrounding Ai, sending a rumble through every unseen, unknown corridor of the cosmos. Just a moment ago, all signs pointed to a gruesome, grueling perception that hell might actually win this time.
Friend, we’re living in dark days right now. Days of great apostacy under the guise of ‘deconstruction.’ Days of grave debauchery under the guise of ‘sexual freedom.’ Days of genocidal mania under the guise of ‘healthcare.’ Days of blatant idolatry under the guise of ‘progressivism.’ And spiritual casualties are littering the grounds. Even seasoned saints are murmuring ‘retreat’ under their breath. Even the most glass-half-full preachers have started to bury their heads in silent anguish before God, not knowing exactly how to stop the onslaught. “Did you bring us here to die?” Joshua questioned the LORD in his bewilderment. And if you haven’t asked that question yet yourself, you haven’t been paying attention.
Ah, but never forget that the story of history has always been the story of Heaven’s advance and hell’s retreat! God can still bring revival to His people. God can still turn our redeemed compromises into counterattacks. So pray hard! Don’t stop yearning for spiritual awakening! Behold! Christ is still building His church and the gates of hell are collapsing all round!