Conquering your spiritual Jerichos

Are you nearing the “Promised Land” of something in your life? Have you stood fast, patiently waiting for your prayers to be answered, and now see the fruition of those prayers on the horizon? Perhaps you are near to receiving from God something you have longed for. This is not the time to give up and quit! You can conquer your “Jericho” and receive all that God has in store for you.

Even if you are beginning to possess your Promised Land, so to speak, this is no time to sit back and relax. The start of each year is a time to take stock of the past year and of what you have accomplished or have yet to accomplish. It’s also a time to make plans and set goals.

We can look forward to the future at the beginning of a new year, hopefully anticipating the good things to come. But we shouldn’t be surprised if there are more battles to face. Instead, we must know how to win the victory in order to possess what God has promised us. We must be ready for our spiritual Jerichos.

You see, Jericho was the first battle the Israelites fought after they crossed the Jordan to go in and take possession of the Promised Land. But God gave the Israelites the plan for taking this city and winning this battle without a fight! This battle was to be won with the high praises of God in their mouths and with a shout of victory!

JOSHUA 6:1–5,16,20
1  Now Jericho was straitly shut up because of the children of Israel: none went out, and none came in.
2  And the Lord said unto Joshua, See, I have given into thine hand Jericho, and the king thereof, and the mighty men of valour.
3  And ye shall compass the city, all ye men of war, and go round about the city once. Thus shalt thou do six days.
4  And seven priests shall bear before the ark seven trumpets of rams’ horns: and the seventh day ye shall compass the city seven times, and the priests shall blow with the trumpets.
5  And it shall come to pass, that when they make a long blast with the rams’ horn, and when ye hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city shall fall down flat, and the people shall ascend up every man straight before him. . . .
16 And it came to pass at the seventh time, when the priests blew with the trumpets, Joshua said unto the people, Shout; for the Lord hath given you the city. . . .
20 So the people shouted when the priests blew with the trumpets: and it came to pass, when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, and the people shouted with a great shout, that the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they took the city.

Jericho, the first city the children of Israel took for their possession as they journeyed toward Canaan, was not won by fighting a battle! Think about that! God instructed the Israelites to march around Jericho every day without making a sound. They had their marching orders even though in the natural, the instructions didn’t seem to make any sense. Then on the seventh day, the Israelites were to march around Jericho seven times.

The seventh time, as they blew the trumpets and shouted and praised God, the walls fell down. The Israelites simply went in and took possession of what God had promised them! The Israelites didn’t fight in this battle. They just obeyed God’s instructions, shouting and praising God, and God gave them the victory.

In order for Christians living under the New Covenant to possess our “Canaan land,” we, too, will have our spiritual Jerichos we must take for God’s glory. God has placed desires and goals in each one of us—pursuits and dreams—that are His will for our life. We all have our Jerichos we need to possess. But God has promised to give us our spiritual Jerichos! It will be done by His power and for His glory, not by our own might or strength, and we will give Him all the praise for it!

Our Christian experience on earth is in a spiritual sense what going through life was in the natural for the children of Israel. The Israelites fought natural enemies that loomed as giants. Our warfare is not against natural enemies, but against supernatural enemies that sometimes seem to loom as giants. However, under the New Covenant, the Lord Jesus Christ has already defeated our enemy, Satan! We need only to stand our ground in Jesus’ victory, declaring God’s Word, and praising God for our triumph in Christ.

God didn’t promise that you wouldn’t encounter some spiritual Jerichos in life. But He did promise that through Him, you can conquer every spiritual Jericho because He promised you the victory in every circumstance in life through Christ (1 Cor. 15:57; 2 Cor. 2:14).

Therefore, when you come up against your spiritual Jerichos, begin to encompass them one by one with the Word of God: “Greater is He who is in me than he who is in the world!” “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” “By His stripes I am healed.” “I am more than a conqueror through Jesus Christ.” “God always promises me the victory in every circumstance!” “All my needs are met according to God’s riches in glory through Christ Jesus” (1 John 4:4; Phil. 4:13; 1 Peter 2:24; Rom. 8:37; 2 Cor. 2:14; Phil. 4:19).

After you’ve stood your ground with the Word, then demonstrate your faith in God’s miracle-working power to give you your rightful possession by praising Him. As you praise God wholeheartedly in faith, watch those walls or obstacles fall down in front of you! No devil or evil circumstance can stay in your presence when you learn how to praise God sincerely with your whole heart!

God doesn’t bring adversity into the lives of His children; He’s not the one who causes negative situations in your life (John 10:10; James 1:17). The Bible says Satan is your adversary (1 Peter 5:8). God didn’t say you wouldn’t have any tests or trials in life, but He did promise to give you the victory in every test and trial.

But you have to do as the Israelites were instructed: “. . . Believe in the Lord your God, so shall ye be established . . .” (2 Chron. 20:20). You’re going to have to believe God’s Word before you can be established and prosper in this life! And you demonstrate what you believe by praising God with absolute confidence in His Word!

Do you want the walls that have tried to hinder you in the past to fall down right in front of you so you can march in and take what God has promised you? Begin to shout and praise God with a voice of triumph because you know who you are in Christ. Shout and praise God with a voice of triumph because you are fully persuaded that what God has promised, He is able also to perform!

Every time you come up against a spiritual Jericho, don’t let it make you afraid. You have the victory in Christ! Simply begin to march around those impossibilities with shouts of victory, praising God in advance for your triumph.

Faith believes. Faith trusts. Therefore, faith praises! Boldly proclaim your faith in God. even though a “Jericho” may be standing right in your way! Don’t let that frighten you! That’s no obstacle to God! Demonstrate your confidence in God by praising Him even before that Jericho falls down in front of you, and then stand back and watch God work. Obstacles can’t stay in the presence of God’s people when they sincerely praise the Lord for His greatness and His faithfulness to His Word.

In my Christian walk, Satan has thrown up some seemingly insurmountable obstacles in front of me as I’ve been marching along my road in life. There have been financial pressures associated with overseeing a worldwide ministry, and there has been sadness over losing my father. But even when Satan puts up walls right in front of my face, I just keep on marching because I have received my marching orders from the Lord.

I continue to quote the Word, saying, “Every need of the ministry is met according to God’s riches in glory.” “Greater is He who is in me than he who is in the world.” “I cannot fail with the Greater One on the inside.” And I keep marching.

Your situation may seem to grow darker and darker, as you feel that you’re marching right into the night. But if you’ll keep marching and praising God, sooner than you may think, you’ll hear a crack in that barrier and daylight will dawn for you.

If you’re diligent to stand on God’s Word in faith and to give Him the praise due His Name for His faithfulness to His promises, sooner than you think, that barrier will begin to fall away from you so you can march over the top of it the victor! Begin to praise God for His wonderful faithfulness to His promises. Praise God, because His mercy endures forever! Nothing can stop a child of God when he learns how to praise God from the depths of his heart!

Whatever you are facing in life right now, whatever you desire to obtain in 2004, if you will learn how to praise God before you see your answer, God will give you the victory! Whatever you need from God, it’s available right now if you’ll just begin to take God at His Word and praise Him for the provisions He’s already made for you in His Word!

Yes, you might have to stand your ground for a period of time. Your situation may not change overnight, and your desires may not be fulfilled in a single day. But if you’re faithful to trust in God and in His Word and praise Him for the outcome, the day will come when you will see your victory with your own eyes! Refuse to give up! Stay in God’s Presence, singing His praises, and you will see your faith gloriously rewarded!

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