We can probably reconstruct the scene with a measure of accuracy, based on what we read in the Bible and in the writings of the Spirit of Prophecy. The Israelite army in full battle dress, no doubt equipped with weapons taken from the destroyed Egyptian army, washed up on the shore of the Red Sea forty years earlier.
If the moon was shining, we can be sure the spears and shields sparkled in its silver luminescence. We do know from Scripture, as we will see, that it was night when Joshua marched his forces to the city of Gibeon, now under siege by the armies of five Amorite kings.
The timing of this confrontation, sadly, was the result of a big mistake Joshua had made, as many will remember. The rulers of Gibeon had tricked the leaders of God’s people into an alliance, by means of a few loaves of moldy bread (Josh. 9:12)! And if only Joshua had consulted the Lord to find out what to do in this situation, the armies of Israel would not—at least at this particular moment—have been engaged in this forced night march.
But Joshua and his fellow leaders had in fact given their word to the people of Gibeon, and this word they had determined to honor. This time didn’t forget to ask the Lord for direction. We can find God’s counsel to Israel’s military leader in the following passage:
And the Lord said unto Joshua, Fear them not; for I have delivered them into thine hand; there shall not a man of them stand before thee (Josh. 10:8).
The following verse tells us:
Joshua therefore came unto them suddenly, and went up from Gilgal all night (verse 9).
A night march is a good ruse for achieving surprise, which appears to have happened in this case.
This is how the Romans were able to surround and defeat the slave army of Spartacus in 73 B.C, when the forces of Lucullus and Pompey, through a forced night march, were able to join the armies of Crassus in time to overwhelm Spartacus and his troops.
In verses 10-12 of Joshua chapter 10, the story of the battle between Israel and the Amorites resumes:
And the Lord discomfited them before Israel, and slew them with a great slaughter at Gibeon, and chased them along the way that goeth up to Bethhoron, and smote them to Azekah, and unto Makkedah.
And it came to pass, as they fled from before Israel, and were in the going down to Bethhoron, that the Lord cast down great stones from heaven upon them unto Azekah, and they died; they were more which died with hailstones than they whom the children of Israel slew with the sword.
Then spake Joshua to the Lord in the day when the Lord delivered up the Amorites before the children of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel, Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon; and thou, Moon, in the valley of Ajalon.
Before the Sun Stood Still
Two points are clear, so far as the roles of both God and His people in this struggle are concerned:
1. God is fighting miraculously for Israel.
2. Israel is fighting also.
God is sending hailstones down on Israel’s enemies, and these are inflicting more damage on the enemy than the soldiers of Israel themselves. Remember what we read:
They were more which died with hailstones than they whom the children of Israel slew with the sword (verse 11).
So while God is clearly doing more on Israel’s behalf than Israel is doing, the Israelites are still doing their part. The following Ellen White statement offers a powerful insight into a key lesson from this story:
Joshua had received the promise that God would surely overthrow these enemies of Israel, yet he put forth as earnest effort as though success depended upon the armies of Israel alone. He did all that human energy could do, and then he cried in faith for divine aid. The secret of success is the union of divine power with human effort [1].
In other words, before the sun stood still, Joshua and his soldiers had done all in their power to prevail. And when they could do no more, when the day was so far spent that they couldn’t finish the battle, Joshua knew God had to step in, and do what only He was able to do. Sadly, it is this secret of success, which the servant of the Lord describes in the above passage, that has fallen upon hard times in much of modern and postmodern Adventism.
Years ago, when I was in freshman orientation at Pacific Union College, one college official was trying to admonish us about diligence in study. And at one point he stated, rather emphatically: “Salvation may come by faith, but good grades come by works.”
This dear man, sincere though he may have been, made it obvious by this statement that he didn’t truly understand Biblical righteousness by faith. This flaw in his reasoning was not unique to him by any means, misperceiving as it did the part which the inspired writings command us to perform in the saving process. Contrary to what this lecturer was telling us during that freshman orientation session, every legitimate human endeavor—whether in the classroom, the workplace, or wherever—is made successful through active divine-human cooperation.
And our salvation, contrary to what many believe, is no different.
Hebrews Chapter 11
This New Testament chapter offers perhaps the best collective witness to the practice of righteousness by faith from throughout the Bible story, reflected in the lives of godly heroes across the centuries. For good reason, it is often called the Faith Chapter.
Many of us know these verses well: “By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice” (Heb. 11:4). “By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death” (Heb. 11:5). “By faith Abraham . . . went out, not knowing whither he went” (Heb. 11:8). “By faith Moses . . . refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter” (Heb. 11:24). “By faith they (the Israelites) passed through the Red Sea” (Heb. 11:29).
And what should I more say? for time would fail me to tell of Gideon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthah, of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets:
Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions,
Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens (verses 32-3
But perhaps the strongest verse in this chapter is the following, where the actual phrase “righteousness by faith” is used. This is one is about Noah:
By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith (verse 7).
That sounds like a whole lot of human effort! How did Noah become an heir of righteousness by faith? By building an ark, and warning the world of the coming Flood! Obviously this was done through faith in God, who gave Noah the strength to fulfill his mission. But Noah had to do his part as well. He didn’t simply pray and sit quietly under a tree, waiting for the ark to magically rise from the meadow! He, his sons, and others involved in the project had to cut down the trees, prepare the timber, construct the ark, and by word as well as deed proclaim to the world that its last chance for salvation was at hand.
In none of this chapter’s examples of practical faith did the people listed practice what some would call the “let go and let God” formula for spiritual success. Yes, they had faith in God, just like Joshua and his army did at Gibeon. But they actively cooperated with God’s power by doing all that was in their own power to accomplish.
Divine Power and Human Effort
The following Ellen White statement, from the story of the resurrection of Lazarus, helps us understand this point so well:
“Take ye away the stone.” Christ could have commanded the stone to remove, and it would have obeyed His voice. He could have bidden the angels who were close by His side to do this. At His bidding, invisible hands would have removed the stone. But it was to be taken away by human hands. Thus Christ would show that humanity is to co-operate with divinity. What human power can do divine power is not summoned to do. Christ does not dispense with man’s aid. He strengthens him, co-operating with him as he uses the powers and capabilities given him [2].
Some folks tell us that fighting sin and Satan is entirely “God’s department.” But we encounter a big problem with this theory when we read verses like the following:
Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God (II Cor. 7:1).
For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, and against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places (Eph. 6:12).
Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin (Heb. 12:4).
Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
For it is God which worketh in you, both to will and to do of His good pleasure (Phil. 2:12-13).
Submit yourselves therefore to God; resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
Draw nigh to God, and He will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double-minded (James 4:7-8).
Now let’s look at some Ellen White statements on this subject:
The fact that Christ has conquered should inspire His followers with courage to fight manfully the battle against sin and Satan [3].
If we are faithful in doing our part, in cooperating with Him, God will work through us to do the good pleasure of His will, but cannot work through us if we make no effort. If we gain eternal life, we must work, and work earnestly. . . . Our part is to put away sin, seek with determination for perfection of character. As we thus work, God cooperates with us [4].
The Lord does not propose to perform for us either the willing or the doing. This is our proper work. As soon as we earnestly enter upon the work, God’s grace is given to work in us to will and to do, but never as a substitute for our effort [5].
Each day he must renew his consecration, each day do battle with evil. Old habits, hereditary tendencies to wrong, will strive for the mastery, and against these he is to be ever on guard, striving in Christ’s strength for victory [6].
We have a work to do to resist temptation. Those who would not fall a prey to Satan’s devices must guard well the avenues to the soul; they must avoid reading, seeing, or hearing that which will suggest impure thoughts [7].
We must come, we must resist the Devil, we must strive to enter in at the strait gate, we must run the race with patience, we must fight the fight of faith, we must wrestle with principalities and powers, we must agonize before God in prayer, if we would stand blameless before the throne of God. We must have the faith that works, or it will be powerless [8].
The work of gaining salvation is a co-partnership, a joint operation. . . . Human effort of itself is not sufficient. Without the aid of divine power it avails nothing. God works and man works [9].
Man must work with his human power aided by the divine power of Christ, to resist and conquer at any cost to himself. In short, man must overcome as Christ overcame. . . . This could not be the case if Christ alone did all the overcoming. Man must do his part; he must be victor on his own account [10].
Conclusion
In closing, we return to the story of Joshua and the battle when the sun stood still. Like Israel’s great general and the armies of the Lord in the valley of Ajalon, we as individuals, and God’s church in this present hour, must persevere both in the struggle for everlasting life and in the corporate struggle for the integrity of our witness—internal and external—as God’s final covenant community.
False theories of grace and salvation, misunderstandings of the faith-and-works question, have brought about doctrinal indifference, moral vacillation, a relaxation of vigilance, together with widespread personal and institutional disregard for the written counsel of God. But genuine faith is neither the abdication of responsibility nor the shirking of duty. Instead, it is vigorous prosecution of our God-ordained struggle against sin and apostasy. The two key ingredients to success in our Christian journey will ever be God’s power and humanity’s perseverance.
To those who possess the faith of the heroes of Hebrews 11, the divine promise to Joshua still holds true, regarding spiritual adversaries both corporate and personal:
Fear them not; for I have delivered them into thine hand; there shall not a man of them stand before thee (Josh. 10:8).
REFERENCES
1. Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 509.
2. ----The Desire of Ages, p. 535.
3. ----The Great Controversy, p. 510.
4. ----Review and Herald, June 11, 1901.
5. ----Testimonies to Ministers, p. 240.
6. ----Acts of the Apostles, p. 477.
7. ----Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 460.
8. ----Review and Herald, Sept. 6, 1892.
9. ----Acts of the Apostles, p. 482.
10. ----Testimonies, vol. 4, pp. 32-33 (italics original).
Pastor Kevin Paulson holds a Bachelor’s degree in theology from Pacific Union College, a Master of Arts in systematic theology from Loma Linda University, and a Master of Divinity from the SDA Theological Seminary at Andrews University. He served the Greater New York Conference of Seventh-day Adventists for ten years as a Bible instructor, evangelist, and local pastor. He writes regularly for Liberty magazine and does script writing for various evangelistic ministries within the denomination. He continues to hold evangelistic and revival meetings throughout the North American Division and beyond, and is a sought-after seminar speaker relative to current issues in the Seventh-day Adventist Church. He presently resides in Berrien Springs, Michigan