Whenever we seek to realize God’s promises to us, we will surely face opposition because that’s what Satan always does—oppose God and all who trust Him. Often, he reacts by activating others against us.
This takes place in Joshua 10 when five kings join forces to defeat the Israelites whom they view as invaders.
In Joshua 9, the Gibeonites saw Israel’s startling victories over Jericho and Ai and realized they were next. To save their lives, they sent representatives to Israel with a white flag of surrender and vowed to become Israel’s servants. Joshua accepted their submission. Adoni-bezek, Amorite king of Jerusalem, got wind of this deal and rallied four other city-states to join him against the Israelites and punish Gibeon for their betrayal.
In reality, those kings wanted to prevent Israel from claiming what God promised them as far back as Abraham—a futile attempt by Satan-controlled enemies of all that is good. They were not just fighting Israel, they were defying the glory and justice of a holy God.
God responds to this defiance by assuring Israel He will stand with them to crush these reprobates. What follows is one of the great examples in the Bible of divine/human partnership against evil. While Israel’s army slays the enemy right and left, God hurls giant “stones” at them from the heavens, slaying even more than Israel’s army. Whether this means actual stones or hailstones makes no difference because God can do either or both at the same time.
As the afternoon wears on, Joshua makes a startling decree: he commands the sun and the moon to stand still, allowing the Israelites to complete destruction of the enemy before nightfall.
God promised this territory to the Israelites, and God dramatically delivered on His promises that day. But He also expected the Israelites to do their part, to call on Him in faith expecting Him to deliver. He even allowed Joshua to command the sun and the moon, and they obeyed the word of a man. This miracle did not happen until Joshua spoke the word.
All of this happened centuries before God permanently bestowed His Holy Spirit upon us, the spiritual descendants of Israel (Romans 9-11). Later, in Jesus’ earthly ministry, He commanded winds and storms, healed the sick, multiplied food and raised the dead.
All of this is not just history. There is a profound lesson here for us today.
Fast forward to the Upper Room just before Jesus’ crucifixion. There, He promised His disciples the Holy Spirit’s presence, even better for them than His physical presence. He told them, “Greater works than I have done you will do” (John 14:12). That evening, He prayed not only for the disciples but also for future generations who would follow Him, thereby bestowing the Holy Spirit and those “greater works” upon them. That’s us!
These astonishing words of Jesus have long intrigued me. Few if any of us, have seen or known those “greater works” of which Jesus spoke. Do they even include commanding sun, moon—and more?
What avenues of divine/human partnership have we not yet experienced that will seal victories over godless foes, take us into our own Promised Lands and ultimately crush the head of Satan forever? May God teach each of us to work those “greater works!”
From the Desk of Valson Abraham 