Israel faced the Gibeonites in the promised land after conquering Jericho and Ai. These people lied to Joshua saying they were from a far country whose wine bottles burst due to the distance they traveled over so much time, and their bread was mouldy. They lied because they would be destroyed should Joshua know they were of the land.
Bread and wine.....
Hmmm...
Christ's work of the cross was symbolized by bread and wine.
Josh 9: (4) They did work wilily, and went and made as if they had been ambassadors, and took old sacks upon their asses, and wine bottles, old, and rent, and bound up; (5) And old shoes and clouted upon their feet, and old garments upon them; and all the bread of their provision was dry and moldy.
The old shoes also imply feet shod with preparation of the gospel of peace.
Eating the bread and drinking the wine of communion speaks of believing the truths of the cross. Mouldy bread and broken wine bottles would speak of a false message of the cross that offers no life. It's like a counterfeit to the fruit of Life, in the form of the knowledge of good and evil.
Jesus resurrected so as to not see corruption. Spiritually, the bread would not be mouldy nor the wine bottles broken.
Satan offers something so close to truth, but lifeless. What is more religious sounding than knowledge of GOOD AND EVIL? But it's knowledge and not life! So many believers are legalistic and have the knowledge of good and evil. No life in them. Self improving self, instead of the Spirit.
Here is where Joshua failed:
JOSHUA 9 (14) And the men took of their victuals, and asked not counsel at the mouth of the LORD.
We need to go to the WORD to deal with questionable issues.
What is interesting is that the GIBEONITES were part of the people called HIVITES. The name HIVITE is a derived form of EVE, or EVE-ITES. Eve had the same problem Joshua did. She fell for the counterfeit, lifeless, fruit. And it's how the devil saved his own neck. Had Adam and Eve eaten fruit of life in their innocence, they would have driven satan out of earth like God did from heaven. Satan had to "plug" humanity up with the false fruit in order to save his own neck and not be overcome.
Similarly, the enemy survived in Canaan when Israel entered through the false "fruit", so to speak.
The corrupted version of the cross is self improving self in legalism. It is no threat to the devil, since the enemy's whole principle was being one's own god as he tempted Eve with. "Ye shall be as God."
the truth is our flesh cannot improve itself, and mouldy bread and broken wine bottles simply depict corruptible flesh, not the true flesh and blood of Christ. And such false christianity depicted by mouldy bread and broken winebottles, that depicts legalism, rides upon self improving self in legalistic means.
Only God's LIFE and SPIRIT can save us, not ourselves and our religious good works.
After three days (a spiritual reference to the cross again), Joshua learned the truth about the deceivers.
Joshua 9:16 And it came to pass at the end of three days after they had made a league with them, that they heard that they were their neighbours, and that they dwelt among them.
A three day time period that equals the time Jesus was dead and then arose speaks of really coming to grips with the GOSPEL MESSAGE. It's like we experience the three days when we come to the full revelation of what the cross is all about in truth when it comes ot our salvation. Legalists, for example, can be said to have never come to the THREE DAY understanding of true resurrection life.
And when he learned the truth of the liars, he turned the bad situation into a good one, like we can do with our failures. He made these people carriers of wood for the sacrifices made at the altar.
Joshua 9:27 And Joshua made them that day hewers of wood and drawers of water for the congregation, and for the altar of the LORD, even unto this day, in the place which he should choose.
The message is that we can turn our errors and lessons learned from them into the means for FUEL FOR SACRIFICE and WORSHIP!
Joshua realized the truth after THREE DAYS. Three days is when Jesus resurrected from the dead. Three days after they made a league with the deceivers was the time they arrived at their city GIBEON.
A ONE Day or TWO Day understanding of the cross is incomplete. It only involves the death and burial. No emphasis on the RESURRECTION LIFE that is represented by the THIRD DAY REVELATION, because the third day was when Jesus resurrected by the SPIRIT. Lack of the full three days’ experience of Jesus will leave out the ALL-IMPORTANT NOTE OF RESURRECTION LIFE, which is ETERNAL LIFE that cannot die. THAT is the LIFE that defeats the devil who had the power of DEATH.
Let’s fuel our need to rely on Jesus by these mistakes. It is wonderful that MISTAKES CAN BE TURNED AROUND TO BECOME SOMETHING BETTER if we love God.
Romans 8:28 KJV And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
Make your mistakes FUEL to burn your hunger and desire to rely on God.
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