Commissioned Posted November 15, 2006 Report Share Posted November 15, 2006 Q1. (Joshua 5:13-15) Why did the Commander say he was on neither side? The Commander, God the Almighty, came to Joshua as "Commander in Chief." What is the significance of this? God is revealing to us, that in all conflicting situations He is with us as "Commander in Chief." The battles that we face along our path to eternal life is the Lord's not ours. Be courageous and trust Him to bring you to victory. What did Joshua feel like during this encounter? At this encounter Joshua prostrated himself before the Lord. Recognizing that he was in the presence of the Almighty God, he was humbled and felt powerless. How did he feel after this encounter? After this encounter Joshua was encouraged to go into battle and be courageous because the "Commander in Chief" was with him and the victory was assured. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkH Posted December 10, 2006 Report Share Posted December 10, 2006 Sometime before Joshua meet the Commander, the Hebrews had left the bondage of Egypt as they were being pursue by the Egyptians, God told Moses, Stand and see the salvation of the Lord the Egyptians you see today you shall see no more forever. At first glance it seems that God is solely a God of the Hebrews and anti-Egyptians. But if you skip over to the New Testament and Jesus says, whosoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. People can get all hooked up into where they are born and who their ancestors are, and what blood line they come from. This doesn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
disciple7 Posted April 3, 2007 Report Share Posted April 3, 2007 Q1. (Joshua 5:13-15) Why did the Commander say he was on neither side? What is the significance of this? What did Joshua feel like during this encounter? How did he feel after this encounter? The "Commander" implied that he was following the orders of the LORD. He said,"...Nay, but as captain of the host of the LORD am I now come." Jos. 5:14 This was a profound truth for me. It is significant, because it changes our perspective on why the LORD enters battle. It gives me a clearer understanding of the phrase, "the battle belongs to the LORD". When Joshua first saw the "man", Joshua went to him and confronted him with the question, "Are thou for us, of for our adversaries?" When the caption of the LORD's host replied to Joshua, Joshua "fell on his face to the earth and did worship". Joshua no longer confronted on equal footing, he fell on his face and asked, "What saith my lord unto his servant?" What an example to us! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MamaBear2-4 Posted April 6, 2007 Report Share Posted April 6, 2007 Q1. (Joshua 5:13-15) Why did the Commander say he was on neither side? What is the significance of this? What did Joshua feel like during this encounter? How did he feel after this encounter? The Commander was not on either side, because the Commander was (is) "The Most High". The question wasn't whose side "Commander" was on, but rather whose side was Joshua on? Joshua was to do God's bidding, not God doing Joshua's bidding. I'm sure Joshua felt a lot like I did when I realized that he was asking the wrong question. God is not there to do my bidding--be like a "Santa" for me to get whatever I want or think I need, but rather, I am to fulfill His purposes--do whatever He wants/needs me to do for Him. I'm sure that after this encounter however, Joshua felt honored that "Commander" would give him such an honored task. I also believe that he was more aware of what he was doing, or about to do, and was very careful to do just what "commander" requested of him, so that "Commander" would be there with him in the battle(s). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkH Posted June 9, 2007 Report Share Posted June 9, 2007 Q1. (Joshua 5:13-15) Why did the Commander say he was on neither side? What is the significance of this? What did Joshua feel like during this encounter? How did he feel after this encounter? When dealing with people on opposing sides, God can be for neither side. The Word of God says all have sinned and come short of the Glory of God. If God were to side with one against another, He would also be siding with the sin that was done on the side He picked. Both sides need to come to realize that God will not pick our side; we need to pick to join God Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kaitlin Posted July 2, 2007 Report Share Posted July 2, 2007 God's will and purposes are higher than any individual or group's purposes will ever be. In declaring his neutrality, God is in no way saying that he'll just sit around and wait for an advocate for his side. However, God chooses to work through people and not just for them, and He will always find a person willing to serve him. Consider the saying "The center of God's will is the safest place to be." I'm thinking about this in the case of Joshua and the Israelites. There were so many times that they felt following God through the desert was way too difficult, and they often wished they would have stayed in bondage in Egypt. When they chose to desert God's side time and time again, it was because they thought they perceived a better, easier, or more comfortable route. Time and time again, they found that God was no longer fighting with them if they fought for themselves. So is God's will the safest place to be? Physically, not always, but spiritually, we could not be any safer. Luke 9:23-25 And He said to all, If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow Me. For whoever will save his life shall lose it, but whoever will lose his life for My sake, he shall save it. For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world and loses himself, or is cast away? Joshua left that meeting encouraged, knowing that God was for him--or rather assured that his choice of sides was right, that he had chosen to stand with and for God. Yet as we apply this to our lives, we see (such as in the case of martyrs and those persecuted for their faith) that we must not expect to come out of the fight with anything but our souls within us, covered by the blood of Christ. Yet truly, this is everything, because anything--huge amounts of wealth, a long, healthy, happy life, the whole world for that matter; when the sum of these, no matter how great it would be, is placed as a fraction over infinity (which is representative of eternity), and then divided by infinity, the numerator [top number] (which is representaitve of our earthly life), comes out equal to zero. Bottom line, proven mathematically, our entire life on earth in light of eternity comes to nothing, zero! It is but a split-second decision that determines everything. With this in mind, no matter what lies ahead on the battle field, let us stand and fight and emerge victoriously with Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
janspiljard Posted July 2, 2007 Report Share Posted July 2, 2007 Q1. (Joshua 5:13-15) Why did the Commander say he was on neither side? What is the significance of this? What did Joshua feel like during this encounter? How did he feel after this encounter? There is discussion among the scholars as to why the Commander of God's army declares himself neutral. There is even doubt about if he really is declaring himself neutral. There are also different interpretations on who this Commander was. Some scholars say an angel of the Lord, some say Jesus. Only very few state that He is God himself. Assuming it is God himself, it is logical that He answered "Neither" (many translation have "No" here). Because the Commander of the Army of the Lord, is not for or against any human army. God is the Creator of everything and all. The significance of the neutrality of the Commander has to do wit the level of his army. It is God's army, not a human army. God's army does not enlist in a human army. That should be the other way around. The human army is the "lower" of the armies and should therefore enlist in God's army and serve. The Commander of God's army fought on the side of Israel, God's chosen people, in this situation. God's army was doing most of the work. The Israelites participated in the war (enlisted in God's armyfor this battle) to finish things off. Joshua at first reacted to the appearing of the Commander with suspicion, with the logical question, "Are you friend or foe?" The Commander answers "neither" (or "No") and then tells Joshua that He is the commander of God's armies. Joshua's immediate and logical reaction is to fall down prostrate and worship. And asking the Commander, "How can I serve You?" This worship by Joshua is accepted. This could indicate that the Commander of God's army is not an angel of the Lord. Angels of the Lord woulds not accept human worship, but point to Who should be worshipped, God himself. After the encounter Joshua is confident about the upcoming Battle of Jericho. God's army would fight that Battle, while Israel's army watched. And God confirmed to Joshua that He had given Jericho to Joshua (Joshua 6:2) jan spiljard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhouston Posted July 7, 2007 Report Share Posted July 7, 2007 Q1. (Joshua 5:13-15) Why did the Commander say he was on neither side? What is the significance of this? What did Joshua feel like during this encounter? How did he feel after this encounter? He is on neither side because He is a representative of God, or even possibly God Himself. This is similar to God's interaction with Abraham at Mamre when the 3 visitors appeared to tell Abraham that Sarah would have a child and to begin the covenant process that had been promised before. Abraham recognized these visitors as special because he bowed before them and also referred to then as My Lord. In God's call of Moses, he was told to remove His sandals because he was on Holy ground, just as Joshua was. Whenever God speaks to us, we are to assume that He is wanting us to be obedient, not us to be questioning of Him. Also, for God to be on the side of Israel, that would have had to be Holy and blameless. God's judgment was about to fall on Canaan, but that didn't mean that Israel was in the right. God is the only righteous One in this whole equation. Joshua did everything right in this encounter with God. I believe His obedience to God came so easily because He was primarily a soldier. A good soldier is obedient to His commander. He and Caleb had demonstrated extraordinary faith when they scouted the Promised Land and God rewarded them for that faith. As Moses' aide, He had seen how God rewarded faithfulness and punished disobedience, so He was well aware that it would be wise to do whatever this man with the sword told Him. First, he fell to the ground in reverence, then he inquired of the man (God) instead of trying to dominate the conversation. Finally, he obeyed God when He was told to remove his sandals. I wonder if Joshua realized the significance of this request. As Moses' trusted assistant, I wonder if he would have listened to Moses recount his call by God? I like to think that he had heard Moses' story many times , so that when the request was made of him, he recognized that he was being called by God for this task, and that God would be with him every step of the way. Joshua's obedience resulted in Jericho's defeat and "...the Lord was with Joshua, and his fame spread throughout the land." (Joshua 6:27) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FaithHopeNGrace Posted July 25, 2007 Report Share Posted July 25, 2007 Q1. (Joshua 5:13-15) Why did the Commander say he was on neither side? What is the significance of this? What did Joshua feel like during this encounter? How did he feel after this encounter? The COmmandersaid he was on neither side because he was on God side and the isrealites and Joshua needed to be on their side. This implies That God Is the Great COmmander and no one can defeat Him. Joshua was awestruck and excited to hear what His Lord Had to say that he fell to his knees and worshipped him. Joshua felt invincible and that no one could come against him and defeat him for His was on the Winning side. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeborahBurr Posted November 25, 2007 Report Share Posted November 25, 2007 Later in this same book of Joshua, Joshua himself says "choose you this day whom you will serve". He had learned that Our God is the Commander in Chief not only of Angel armies but of all the earth and that by choosing to serve Him, he could be assured of God's presence with him, no matter the circumstance Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig Posted January 26, 2008 Report Share Posted January 26, 2008 Q1. (Joshua 5:13-15) Why did the Commander say he was on neither side? What is the significance of this? What did Joshua feel like during this encounter? How did he feel after this encounter? El Shaddai was truly on neither side. The question was and is -- who is on His side? The significance is that Joshua needed to be on the side of God, because this was God's battle. Joshua knew He was in the presence of the Living God and after the encounter he felt encouraged and confident that God was with Him. That the victory was El Shaddai's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akier Posted February 19, 2008 Report Share Posted February 19, 2008 Q1. (Joshua 5:13-15) Why did the Commander say he was on neither side? What is the significance of this? What did Joshua feel like during this encounter? How did he feel after this encounter? The Commander made known that He is the Commander of the Lord's Army. He was establishing whom Joshua served, himself or the Lord. Joshua immediately bowed and acknowledged the Lord as the Commander. The Lord then enlisted Joshua in His battle and made known the outcome. It was no longer Joshua's battle - but the Lords. Joshua recognized Him as Lord and submitted Himself under the His Lordship. He was humbled and gave Honor to the Lord. He was strengthened and encouraged for the battle, knowing the Lord would fight for him. He also knew the battle was already won. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juanieg63 Posted March 5, 2008 Report Share Posted March 5, 2008 Q1. (Joshua 5:13-15) Why did the Commander say he was on neither side? What is the significance of this? What did Joshua feel like during this encounter? How did he feel after this encounter? The commander said he was not for either because the army of Israel needed to be for him. They needed to do the will of God. We cannot bend God to our wills but have to conform our will to His. I think Joshua before was kind of stumped as to how the Israelites were to defeat this insurmountable foe. After the encounter, he had a battle plan and felt assured that God was truly with him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gjuneangel1940 Posted March 24, 2008 Report Share Posted March 24, 2008 he didnt need to be on any sideGOD had it all taken care of as he is our help in times of trouble. joushua was fearfull at first then he was humble. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bspaeth Posted March 29, 2008 Report Share Posted March 29, 2008 Like most of the posts before me I feel the same way that the commander was God and that he did not have to choose a side because it was more of Joshua fighting for his side and his plan. During the encounter I would suspect that Joshua was fearful and reverent of God. I think that Joshua knew how lucky he was to stand in the presence of the Commander. That experience help him to have the confidence to go on ahead and obey what God had told him. I think of all the great military commander in history and one thing that they were able to do was to put a great sense confidence in their troops. Then that confidence helped the men to be something great to go beyond their own means. I think something of the same for Joshua and the battle. With the confidence from the Lord he knew that he could go and lead the Army of the Israelites in the victory over the city of Jericho. These are just my thoughts! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Negondeni Posted April 14, 2008 Report Share Posted April 14, 2008 God cannot be on our side, rather we can be on His side. If one is on my side, then I can defend him, I can fight on his behalf. I can stand for him and fight his enemies. So God of Might Himself is the Almighty, therefore it's we His children who must be on His side because He alone can fight for us and not us fighting for Him. As people we need to see God as our defender in everything. Joshua felt happy that he has come across the Almghty Who is assuring him of victory. He felt even more courageous and zealous to go out there and confront his enemies because he new then that he was on God of Might's side. He was even the happiest person on earth realising then that the Lord of Hosts is his and the Israelites' Defender. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
misterg Posted May 12, 2008 Report Share Posted May 12, 2008 I nsometimes forget that while God was the God of the Israelites, the God of Abraham, Issac and Jacb, He is still the God of all creation and Lord of the nations. While He specifically chose the people of Israel to enter a covenant relationship with Him, he was still concerned for other peoples. I'm sure He took no delight in the destruction of other people; in fact, He must have been saddened to think that there was no there was no other recourse of action. At the same time, Joshua needed to understand that He had to be on God's side, not the other way around. When we pray in the Lord's prayer, "Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven," we are saying that His will should be done, regardless of what our wishes are and what our will is. We need to conform our will to God's, not the other way around. Because this came at a moment of where he's about to engage in the battle of his life, Joshua found the strength and courage he needed, knowing that God was going to be with him. It is both encouraging and uplifting kinowing that he would not have the weight of this battle squarely on his shoulders, but that God would help him gain the victory. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CANTWELL Posted May 28, 2008 Report Share Posted May 28, 2008 Q1. (Joshua 5:13-15) Why did the Commander say he was on neither side? What is the significance of this? What did Joshua feel like during this encounter? How did he feel after this encounter? The challenger said that He was on neither side because He was the one superior not they so He couldnt support them they were the ones to follow Him,In life we tend to try to make up or own rules then we try to bring God to side with us instead of siding with God from the word go and waiting for His perfect will to be accomplished concerning our lives.The significance of this is that it opened Joshuas eyes so that He realised whom he was dealing with, The Mighty warrior (The Commander of the army of the YahweH .Who was the one in Authority not Him.Thats why He lay down prostrate face to the ground in reverence & worshipJoshua felt Awed and empowered By His Presence and after the encounter He Knew that With the lord on His side the Battle was won already. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delivered Posted June 10, 2008 Report Share Posted June 10, 2008 Q1. (Joshua 5:13-15) Why did the Commander say he was on neither side? He was on one side only, God's side. He is the head person in charge of God's army. What is the significance of this? Once Joshua knew that the man he saw with his sword drawn, ready to battle was the captain of the army of the Lord (self Existent or eternal; Jehovah) Joshua knew this man, the head person in charge, was sent by Jehovah. Great significance indeed. What did Joshua feel like during this encounter? Joshua perceived that this person was divine, not a human, nor an angel, as he prostrated himself in worship, humbly asking in servitude," tell me what to do?" How did he feel after this encounter? He was full of "faith" ready to do battle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sopranogram Posted June 10, 2008 Report Share Posted June 10, 2008 Q1. (Joshua 5:13-15) Why did the Commander say he was on neither side? What is the significance of this? What did Joshua feel like during this encounter? How did he feel after this encounter? I agree with many of the responses regarding the response of the Commander. God does not take sides in human affairs. He follows His agenda--not ours. What kind of God would He be if He allowed Himself to be controlled by His creation? And yet, in some respects, He does exactly that when He creates human beings with the ability to choose whether they will serve Him or not. It is humbling to realize that the choices I make regarding how I will live before God affect my Creator, but they can never thwart His ultimate plan for His creation. If Joshua felt anything like I do, this realization causes me to want to make choices that are in keeping with God's plan for all of His creation--which includes me. I am extremely interested in Joshua's falling on his face in awe during this encounter. I think this is the reaction any human would have in realizing that s/he had been called into the presence of God. Yet, is this the tone of our worship to Him? If God stood at the front and revealed himself to us as we worship, I wonder how (or if) our worship would change? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will09 Posted July 13, 2008 Report Share Posted July 13, 2008 The Commander said he was on neither side because neither side was with God. This is significant because it took more than to be of God's chosen people for God to assist them. It also took their obeisance and willingness to follow the Lord. During the encounter, Joshua probably felt very frightened, especially because the Commander had said He was on neither side. After God had led the Israelites through the wilderness and they had finally crossed into the Promised Land, Joshua now had to cope with the fact that God may not be with them. After the encounter, he may have felt relieved that he was doing God's bidding, and overjoyed that the Lord had not abandoned him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
servant for Christ Posted July 27, 2008 Report Share Posted July 27, 2008 Q1. (Joshua 5:13-15) Why did the Commander say he was on neither side? What is the significance of this? What did Joshua feel like during this encounter? How did he feel after this encounter? He said neither because it is not the question if God is on our side, but are we on God's side? God is always with us. The sinificance is that God is still on our side, regardless of what we may be going through. Do we trust and believe the Lord in what He says He will do? Joshua felt the presence of the Lord as his forefathers did, he knew he was on holy ground, the Lord appeared to him. After the encounter, he knew that Lord God Almighthy would be with him where ever he went, he did not have to worry or fret, he believed and trusted the Lord. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cw4Yah Posted August 3, 2008 Report Share Posted August 3, 2008 Q1. (Joshua 5:13-15) Why did the Commander say he was on neither side? What is the significance of this? What did Joshua feel like during this encounter? How did he feel after this encounter? In the realm of the Father, there is no sides, just his direction that matters. In the matters of men, it isn't what side, its are you His, doing His will, obeying His commands and seeking Him. We must realize that when we are doing His will we are on His side, and not choosing the god of this world's side. Joshuas must have felt the awesome reality of whom He was speaking to, in response to His statement, then he fell on his knees fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, 'What message does my Lord have for his servant?' recognizing that He came from the presence of Yahweh. He then had confidence of a victory. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bfloyd Posted August 11, 2008 Report Share Posted August 11, 2008 That he wanted Joshua to know that he needed to follow His Plan that is right and true and not the plans of men. That his plan will bring victory and that we need to follow him with faith and not despair. The significance of this is that we are shown that we must accept the Lords plans as they are right and it all happens in his time. Humility and Love for his Lord knowing that he will be with him and if we follow Gods Plan we will have Victory. Encouraged and strengthened in his Faith in the Lord and what the Lord will do for all those that trust in his plans. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reva Posted August 11, 2008 Report Share Posted August 11, 2008 We get into trouble when we jump into things believing that God is on our side. We should first pray for guidance and follow God's plan for us. If we are following close to God, then He is on our side because we are on His side. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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