Where Are The Joshuas?

While the people of Israel were still at Rephidim, the warriors of Amalek attacked them. Moses commanded Joshua, “Choose some men to go out and fight the army of Amalek for us. Tomorrow, I will stand at the top of the hill, holding the staff of God in my hand.” So Joshua did what Moses had commanded and fought the army of Amalek. Meanwhile, Moses, Aaron, and Hur climbed to the top of a nearby hill. As long as Moses held up the staff in his hand, the Israelites had the advantage. But whenever he dropped his hand, the Amalekites gained the advantage. Moses’ arms soon became so tired he could no longer hold them up. So Aaron and Hur found a stone for him to sit on. Then they stood on each side of Moses, holding up his hands. So his hands held steady until sunset. As a result, Joshua overwhelmed the army of Amalek in battle. After the victory, the Lord instructed Moses, “Write this down on a scroll as a permanent reminder, and read it aloud to Joshua: I will erase the memory of Amalek from under heaven.” Exodus 17:8-14 (New Living Translation, NLT)

I have heard ministers refer to this passage and point out the need for people to be like Aaron and Hur, holding up the arms of the spiritual leaders and supporting them. I wholeheartedly agree. But, one thing we miss in retelling this story is that there would be no need for Aaron and Hur if there was no Joshua to fight the battle. And in today’s Christian church, where are the Joshuas?

The Lord needs some warriors these days. He needs people who will fight in the Spirit and in the natural. Is He asking us to go out and take part in physical warfare? No, but He may ask you to go to your job and stand up for Jesus. God is looking for people who will be salt and light to this world, which means going beyond the four walls of the church to impact society.

Years ago, when television was a new invention, instead of having a vision of how they could use it to spread the Gospel and influence people for Jesus, the church chose to view it as something they didn’t need to be associated with. After all, God really didn’t want them to be involved in something as frivolous as entertainment, did He? And some ministers even saw television as a tool of the devil. Had Christians had the vision to go out and take over the sphere of television and other realms of entertainment, think of how different our culture would be today. But there were no Joshuas willing to go out and fight in that area of society.

We tend to divide things into secular and spiritual. However, if we do anything for the glory of God, the secular becomes spiritual. To promote and advance the kingdom, we have to take over the areas that have been held by the devil. We can’t sit in our pews and sing Amazing Grace while the world falls to pieces because of our apathy.

Just think of where we would be as a nation if more Christians decided to go and fight for the Lord in the realm of politics. And what if more Christians stood up and decided to take over the education system that has been revising our history and teaching doctrines of devils to our children? Where are the Joshuas?

God has promised us the victory, but what good is that if there are no warriors on the battlefield? When Christians sit back and do nothing, the devil takes ground. We cannot shrink back any longer and allow the world to go to hell. We have to take up the sword of the Spirit and go out in the world and take it over for Jesus. We have plenty of people standing on the hill overlooking the battle, but not nearly enough people fighting in it. So, suit up, fellow believers, and let’s go fight. Infiltrate secular arenas and influence them for the Lord . Be a Joshua.