The Purpose of Obedience

GETTING STARTED

When reading about the nation of Israel in the Old Testament, I find it quite easy to be judgmental. There certainly seems to be no shortage of foibles in God’s chosen people, and foremost was their penchant for disobedience to God’s commands. Like a good Monday-morning quarterback, I question how they could make the very same mistake over and over again. (Perhaps focusing on their obedience problem helps me forget that I have one of my own!) To be fair, there are also parts of Israel’s story that showcase such a profound faith, such a deep courage in the Lord, that I am moved to reconsider my criticism.

Where would you place yourself on the obedience spectrum? Does faithfulness to God and trust in him come easily for you? Or, does just reading the word obedience cause consternation?

READ THE WORD: JOSHUA 8:10-29 (ESV)

¹⁰Joshua arose early in the morning and mustered the people and went up, he and the elders of Israel, before the people to Ai. ¹¹And all the fighting men who were with him went up and drew near before the city and encamped on the north side of Ai, with a ravine between them and Ai. ¹²He took about 5,000 men and set them in ambush between Bethel and Ai, to the west of the city. ¹³So they stationed the forces, the main encampment that was north of the city and its rear guard west of the city. But Joshua spent that night in the valley. ¹⁴And as soon as the king of Ai saw this, he and all his people, the men of the city, hurried and went out early to the appointed place toward the Arabah to meet Israel in battle. But he did not know that there was an ambush against him behind the city. ¹⁵And Joshua and all Israel pretended to be beaten before them and fled in the direction of the wilderness. ¹⁶So all the people who were in the city were called together to pursue them, and as they pursued Joshua they were drawn away from the city. ¹⁷Not a man was left in Ai or Bethel who did not go out after Israel. They left the city open and pursued Israel.

¹⁸Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Stretch out the javelin that is in your hand toward Ai, for I will give it into your hand.” And Joshua stretched out the javelin that was in his hand toward the city. ¹⁹And the men in the ambush rose quickly out of their place, and as soon as he had stretched out his hand, they ran and entered the city and captured it. And they hurried to set the city on fire. ²⁰So when the men of Ai looked back, behold, the smoke of the city went up to heaven, and they had no power to flee this way or that, for the people who fled to the wilderness turned back against the pursuers. ²¹And when Joshua and all Israel saw that the ambush had captured the city, and that the smoke of the city went up, then they turned back and struck down the men of Ai. ²²And the others came out from the city against them, so they were in the midst of Israel, some on this side, and some on that side. And Israel struck them down, until there was left none that survived or escaped. ²³But the king of Ai they took alive, and brought him near to Joshua.

²⁴When Israel had finished killing all the inhabitants of Ai in the open wilderness where they pursued them, and all of them to the very last had fallen by the edge of the sword, all Israel returned to Ai and struck it down with the edge of the sword. ²⁵And all who fell that day, both men and women, were 12,000, all the people of Ai. ²⁶But Joshua did not draw back his hand with which he stretched out the javelin until he had devoted all the inhabitants of Ai to destruction. ²⁷Only the livestock and the spoil of that city Israel took as their plunder, according to the word of the Lord that he commanded Joshua. ²⁸So Joshua burned Ai and made it forever a heap of ruins, as it is to this day. ²⁹And 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.

DIGGING DEEPER

As the army of Israelites executed their maneuver against Ai, what did God command Joshua to do? While Joshua’s obedience to this command roused the ambush, ultimately who was responsible for the battle’s outcome (vs. 18)?
(Keep in mind that Ai had previously opposed Israel, thereby declaring itself an enemy of both Israel and the one, true God. Ai’s destruction was not only part of God’s plan in advancing Israel in the Promised Land, but an act of judgment as well.) How many people were in Ai, and of those, how many survived Israel’s attack (vss. 22-25, 29)? At what point in the battle did Joshua lower his raised weapon (vs. 26)?
Take some time to think about the relationship between Joshua/Israel and God, especially in the completion of this battle strategy. How was the Israelites’ victory interconnected with their obedience to God’s commands?
Where is God calling you to obey today? Are you willing to trust him in this situation, depending on him for whatever outcome lies ahead?

RESPOND TO GOD

While it was Israel who faithfully implemented God’s strategic plan, God was undoubtedly the one who gave the victory. Success after all has always been, and will always be, his grace to give. Our lesson here isn’t that obedience equates to triumph in all our “battles”; we’ll still suffer our own personal defeats, even as we obey God. The purpose of obedience is not gaining a victorious outcome, but being in relationship with God (and a part of what he’s doing to redeem a lost world). The takeaway then, is that we should obey God in whatever he calls us to, acknowledging that all things are acts of his will and not simply the work of our hands. In doing so, the victory becomes purely a measure of our trust in and dependence on him.

Spend some time talking to God about where you are on the obedience spectrum. Honestly confess to him where you’re at and the areas where you need his help and guidance.
Praise God for his grace in your successes and his loving presence in your defeats. Acknowledge that he is God and you are not.