Captain on Deck

The Captain's Command
Text: Joshua 5:10-15

As Israel stood on the threshold of the Promised Land, Jericho loomed before them as an impossible obstacle. The Jordan River was behind them, but the walls of Jericho stood in front of them. Humanly speaking, Joshua had every reason to be thinking, planning, and perhaps even worrying about what would happen next. Before God ever gave Joshua the battle plan for Jericho, however, he first gave him something much more important, a personal encounter with the "Captain of the LORD's host."
This passage reminds us that before God accomplishes great things through us, he first desires to accomplish his work in us. Joshua's encounter with the Captain teaches us the proper approach and attitude every believer should have toward Jesus Christ.

The Captain of the LORD's Host
The mysterious appearance of "the captain of the host of the LORD" is best understood as a pre-incarnate appearance of the Lord Jesus Christ. Hebrews 2:10 calls Christ "the captain of our salvation." In Joshua 5, He appears as the Supreme Commander of heaven's armies, while Hebrews presents Him as the Author, Leader, and Prince of our salvation.
Joshua was about to receive God's plan for conquering Jericho, but first he had to learn a greater lesson: victory belongs to those who recognize who is truly in command.

Joshua's Approach 
Joshua may have been meditating or praying about the challenge that lay before him when he was interrupted and noticed a man standing nearby, his sword drawn. He became interested in who this stranger was. He inclined himself to approach Him. He began inquiring by asking, "Art thou for us, or for our adversaries?"
Joshua lifted up his eyes and looked. Scripture repeatedly reminds God's people to lift their eyes beyond their circumstances. Psalm 121:1-2 declares, "I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth." Jesus likewise challenged His disciples in John 4:35, "Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest."
The Lord's answer was surprising: "Nay." The issue was never whether God was on Joshua's side. The issue was whether Joshua was on God's side. Moses once stood before Israel and asked, "Who is on the LORD'S side?" (Exodus 32:26). Later, Joshua himself would challenge the nation, "Choose you this day whom ye will serve" (Joshua 24:15).
When we face uncertainty, our first question should never be, "Lord, are you blessing my plans?" Rather, we should ask, "Lord, am I submitted to yours?" That question keeps us humble and guards us from trying to enlist God in our own agendas.
Believers can rest in the promise of Romans 8:31 that God is for those who belong to him, yet every day we must ask ourselves, "Am I walking on the side of God?"

Joshua's Awakening 
The Captain's answer awakened Joshua's heart, because we see that immediately Joshua fell on his face, worshipped, and sought instruction.
Joshua's recent accomplishments suddenly faded into the background. He had just led Israel across the Jordan on dry ground. He had overseen the circumcision of the nation. He had celebrated the Passover. He had watched the manna cease as Israel began eating the fruit of the land.
Yet none of those accomplishments impressed the Captain. Joshua realized he was not the highest authority. There was a greater Captain on deck.
Leadership in God's work is never about prominence; it is about submission. John the Baptist expressed the proper spirit when he declared, "He must increase, but I must decrease" (John 3:30). The closer we draw to Christ, the smaller we become in our own eyes and the greater he becomes in our hearts.

Joshua's Answer
Joshua responded, "What saith my lord unto his servant?" His words echo the response of Saul on the Damascus road: "Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?" (Acts 9:3-6). Joshua had faithfully served Moses for more than forty years, and although he had become Israel's leader, he never ceased being God's servant.
No matter how great our calling, our position never places us above our Lord.
Jesus said, "The servant is not greater than his lord" (John 13:16). Paul introduced himself not as an apostle first, but as "a servant of Jesus Christ" (Romans 1:1; Titus 1:1).
The Christian life begins and continues with the heart of a servant. The Lord is not looking merely for talented people; He is looking for yielded people.

Joshua's Attitude
The Captain instructed Joshua to remove his shoes because he stood on holy ground. Notice the order: the submission came first, then came obedience. The ground was not holy only because of its geography related to God's promise. It was holy because of God's presence.
Today, every believer is indwelt by the Holy Spirit. Our lives belong to him. Therefore, we are called to live in obedience to being holy and blameless before him in love  (Ephesians 1:4).
God's commands may not always make sense to the world. They may even seem unusual. Yet when God speaks, obedience is always the right response. Joshua would soon receive one of the strangest military strategies ever recorded: marching around Jericho instead of attacking it. But because Joshua had already surrendered to the Captain, he was prepared to obey whatever the Lord commanded. Trust always precedes obedience, and obedience always precedes victory.

Joshua's personal encounter with the Lord was designed to humble him privately before God would use him publicly. Jericho would never have fallen under Joshua's leadership if Joshua had never fallen under the Lord's leadership. Before Joshua led Israel around the walls, he bowed before the Captain.
The same principle remains true today. Many believers want God to bless their plans, but God first calls us to surrender to his. The question is not whether God is on our side.
The question is whether we are fully on His.
When the Captain is on deck, our proper response is to humble ourselves, worship him, seek his will, and obey his word. That is the pathway to victory, not only in Joshua's day, but in every believer's walk with Christ today.