神必使我们得胜
约书亚记八章1至10节
1耶和华对约书亚说：不要惧怕，也不要惊惶。你起来，率领一切兵丁上艾城去，我已经把艾城的王和他的民、他的城，并他的地，都交在你手里。
2你怎样待耶利哥和耶利哥的王，也当照样待艾城和艾城的王。只是城内所夺的财物和牲畜，你们可以取为自己的掠物。你要在城后设下伏兵。
3于是，约书亚和一切兵丁都起来，要上艾城去。约书亚选了三万大能的勇士，夜间打发他们前往，
4吩咐他们说：你们要在城后埋伏，不可离城太远，都要各自准备。
5我与我所带领的众民要向城前往。城里的人像初次出来攻击我们的时候，我们就在他们面前逃跑，
6他们必出来追赶我们，直到我们引诱他们离开城；因为他们必说：这些人像初次在我们面前逃跑。所以我们要在他们面前逃跑，
7你们就从埋伏的地方起来，夺取那城，因为耶和华─你们的神必把城交在你们手里。
8你们夺了城以后，就放火烧城，要照耶和华的话行。这是我吩咐你们的。
9约书亚打发他们前往，他们就上埋伏的地方去，住在伯特利和艾城的中间，就是在艾城的西边。这夜约书亚却在民中住宿。
10约书亚清早起来，点齐百姓，他和以色列的长老在百姓前面上艾城去。
信息分享
今天所读的故事，与昨天所读的完全是两个调子。第七章记载以色列民进攻艾城时惨败，究其原因，是因为亚干犯罪，连累全民。如今，神既惩治了罪恶，便会继续帮助以色列民进入迦南。我们岂不是有过相同的经验吗？曾几何时，我们因为犯罪而与神的关系疏离，以致我们在撒但的面前连番败北。直至圣灵帮助我们认罪、悔改，与神和好，神便使我们更新，我们能够再过得胜的生活。
请留意，神如今愿意把进攻的战略告诉约书亚，而约书亚亦乐意去聆听。神再次对他说：「不要惧怕，也不要惊惶，我会与你同在。」而且，还加上一句：「我已经把胜利交在你的手里。」我们今天也是站在同样的有利阵地来与撒但争战。我们并非要死拼才能得胜，反之，基督已为我们赢得了胜利。撒但已经成为手下败将，可是他却不肯去承认；他力图反败为胜，所以我们今天仍要与他战斗到底。我们要战胜他其实不难，只要在基督里向他夸胜，因为只有基督才能把他彻底击败。
神将进攻的战略告诉约书亚，最终他们便顺利夺取那城。我们或许很难明白神为何要他们杀尽当地的居民，这可能与迦南人的罪大恶极有关。神已经给予他们多次悔改机会，他们却置诸不理。(神要以色列民在旷野飘流四十年，已经让他们有额外四十年的悔改机会。)神要将他们的地给予以色列民，但由于他们的罪性难改，如果让他们继续在那地生活，以色列民将来便会很容易与他们交往及通婚，以致日渐受他们的影响而离弃神。我们在日后的历史中，便发现以色列民确实深受留在该地的迦南人影响，以致逐渐远离神。
神的道路永远是最好的道路；因祂在一开始就预知到事情的结果。祂知道我们若不依照祂的计划和旨意而行，就会招致甚么后果。深愿我们从以色列民身上学到这功课。
ON THE WINNING SIDE WITH GOD
Joshua 8:1-10
1 Now the LORD said to Joshua: “Do not be afraid, nor be dismayed; take all the people of war with you, and arise, go up to Ai. See, I have given into your hand the king of Ai, his people, his city, and his land.
2 And you shall do to Ai and its king as you did to Jericho and its king. Only its spoil and its cattle you shall take as booty for yourselves. Lay an ambush for the city behind it.”
3 So Joshua arose, and all the people of war, to go up against Ai; and Joshua chose thirty thousand mighty men of valor and sent them away by night.
4 And he commanded them, saying: “Behold, you shall lie in ambush against the city, behind the city. Do not go very far from the city, but all of you be ready.
5 Then I and all the people who are with me will approach the city; and it will come about, when they come out against us as at the first, that we shall flee before them.
6 For they will come out after us till we have drawn them from the city, for they will say, ‘They are fleeing before us as at the first.’ Therefore we will flee before them.
7 Then you shall rise from the ambush and seize the city, for the LORD your God will deliver it into your hand.
8 And it will be, when you have taken the city, that you shall set the city on fire. According to the commandment of the LORD you shall do. See, I have commanded you.”
9 Joshua therefore sent them out; and they went to lie in ambush, and stayed between Bethel and Ai, on the west side of Ai; but Joshua lodged that night among the people.
10 Then Joshua rose up early in the morning and mustered the people, and went up, he and the elders of Israel, before the people to Ai.
Message
What a different story this is from the story we read yesterday. In chapter 7 Israel was defeated because of one man's sin. Now sin has been confessed and put away so God is with them all the way. We know what that is like in our own experience, don't we? There have been times when sin has interrupted our fellowship with God so we have only known defeat in our daily living. Then when God's Spirit has dealt with us and we have confessed our sin and coldness, God has come to us in a new way. We have found victory in the place of failure.
Notice too that now God is willing to tell Joshua how to attack the enemy and Joshua is willing to listen. Again God says, 'Don't be afraid, or dismayed. I am with you'; and adds, 'I have already given you the victory'. That is our position today. We do not fight for victory - Christ has already won it for us. Satan is a defeated foe, but he will not recognise that fact. That is why we have problems---Satan is still fighting us. The only way we can defeated him is to claim the victory we have in Christ. The one person who can always defeated Satan is Christ.
God gave Joshua the plan of attack and it worked. It seems hard to understand why all the people in these cities were killed. The reason behind God's command was the wickedness of the people in the land of Canaan. God had given them every opportunity to repent and they had not done so. (They even had an extra 40 years while Israel was in the wilderness.) God had given their land to Israel but the wickedness of the Canaanites was so bad that God knew the Children of Israel would be dragged down by them if they were left in the land to intermarry and influence the Israelites. This happened with those who were allowed to remain in the land and they brought trouble to the people of God.
God's way is the best way. Let's never forget that. He sees the end from the beginning. He knows what will happen if we do not follow his plan and will. Let the example of Israel be a lesson for us all.