An angel must be an overwhelming sight. Imagine meeting one who identifies himself as the commander of the Lord's army! Such was the case for Joshua shortly before the battle of Jericho. But the angel's words are even more arresting.
Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man
standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him
and asked, “Are you for us or for our
enemies?”
“Neither,” he
replied, “but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.” Then
Joshua fell face down to the ground in reverence, and asked him, “What message
does my Lord have for his servant?”
The commander of the Lord’s army replied, “Take off your
sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so. Joshua
5:13-15 NIV
Joshua asks a straightforward question. While scouting the city of Jericho he runs into this large, armed, angelic being. Resisting the urge to flee he gulps and simply asks "are you going to help us or hurt us?"
Joshua had already been communicating with the LORD--already receiving instructions from Him--and His plan was being implemented. It would make sense that the Angel Commander would be part of that plan. But this angelic being brings an unlikely answer.
For most of us, we see the world around us in only two shades: those things that help, and those things that do not. Cars help us or they do not, computers help us or they do not, co-workers help us or they do not; and as pragmatic individuals, the things that don't help we avoid, trade,or discard. But notice in our two color system who the arbiter of "help" or "hinder" is--it's us! Try as we might to be self-less and sensitive and humble, most of the time we evaluate life in terms of how it affects us. In other words, we act and speak as though we are the center of our universe-everything pivots around us! Hmm. Does it?
Perhaps this is reading between the white spaces of the narrative, but it seems the angel is telling a great truth by simply answering honestly. Put simply, the angel communicates that he works for God; he was on a mission for God; he is on station and awaiting further instructions from God. A Holy God is the pivot point of the universe! Not Joshua.
This is not to say that Joshua is unimportant or the battle for Jericho is unimportant. Clearly to God they were not. But the mission, the battle, the victory were from God, not Joshua (and his marching around the city). God's army knew who was in charge.
Again, stretching the narrative a bit, perhaps the angel heard the question and realized that Joshua wouldn't comprehend the complete response. God's plans didn't fit an "either / or" question! God was at work doing something far bigger and more complex than just a miraculous battle in the deserts of Palestine. God still works in large ways.
John Piper once wrote that God is at work in our lives in a million ways, and we may be aware of just three things He is doing. So the times when life doesn't seem to make sense (to us), or things don't seem to be progressing (for us), or our life has more questions than answers, rest assured that God is at work at all times in ways we cannot comprehend. When our prayers go unanswered perhaps it is because we pray amiss-- even while God is at work providing exactly what we need.
Though the angel at Jericho had some trouble with Joshua's question, I can assure you that God does not! He is for us! But, God remains the pivot point, not us--and that is a great thing! We can trust Him! He is good, all the time.
