It is one thing to be attacked head-on by an enemy. It is another to have somebody “play” you, as we say in New York. And in our effort to take the land we believe God has promised us, we are usually more prepared for the first than the second.
Following the Israelite victories at Jericho and Ai, the nearby cities could well imagine themselves getting picked off one by one. Who would be next? They decided to form a coalition. By pooling their military men and resources, they figured they could mount a stronger resistance to Joshua and his army.
Only one town opted out of this approach. “The people of Gibeon … resorted to a ruse” (Josh. 9:3–4). Instead of joining the neighbors in forming a large strike force, they pulled together their best Oscar-winning actors and fitted them with elaborate props. By the time all the ragged tunics, patched-up sandals, and cracked wineskins had been assembled with dusty, unwashed donkeys, this troupe looked like gold prospectors lost in a desert for two years.
They stumbled convincingly into the Israelite camp at Gilgal and told Joshua how terribly long and difficult their journey had been. For weeks they had been on the road, they claimed, until now they had little left in their packs that was fit to eat. All they wanted, they said with pathetic eyes downcast, was a treaty of peace with the invading army, so their poor wives and children back home would not have to worry about the rumors spreading along the trade routes to their distant town.
Joshua most likely assumed these men came from a town well beyond the boundaries God had drawn for Israel's possession. So how could it hurt? Why not be a “nice guy”? Give these folks a break, a little peace of mind….
The Bible records in a fateful sentence, “The Israelites sampled their provisions but did not inquire of the Lord” (v. 14).
Three days after the formalities were ratified by all parties, a scout showed up with shocking news: “Guess what, Joshua—these people are basically just over the hill! Their town is in our front yard, right where we're intending to march next.” I can imagine the color of embarrassment that began rising up Joshua's neck and face. This anointed leader had been “played” by some cunning performers.
The people quickly let him know what they thought of this blunder. “The whole assembly grumbled against the leaders” (v. 18). They were even more disgusted when they had to go protect the Gibeonites from an attack by the aggravated coalition (Joshua 10). They had to uphold the solemn word their leader had given before almighty God.
Lion or Liar?
In the spiritual conflicts we face, frontal attacks from Satan are easy to understand. The nature of the battle is clear; nothing is left to subtlety. The enemy tries to overwhelm us through discouragement, or perhaps he uses some friends to drag down our faith. Perhaps there is a faction in our church that is causing division. We see exactly what is happening, and we pray for God to give us courage and strength. The devil is like a roaring lion, says the New Testament (1 Peter 5:8), and we know he must be confronted.
But when the enemy resorts to trickery and deception, we are sometimes slow to recognize him. We often see only what we want to see instead of what is factually true. Our natural senses lead us astray. In these cases we are dealing not with a noisy lion but with a sneaky liar—in fact, the father of lies, as Jesus called him (John 8:44). Like Joshua, we come up short in the area of spiritual discernment. God knows what we should do, but we aren't sure. As a result of failing to consult with him, we suffer dire consequences.
Even good people can get off track if they rush ahead without consulting God. When our natural senses do not detect anything amiss and we lean only on our common sense, we can create a disaster. We need to slow down and remember that what looks okay is not always okay. Unless we take time to “inquire of the Lord,” we won't know until it's too late. We will make decisions that come back to haunt us.
Some may be skeptical of this kind of inquiry and say it's too mystical or emotion-based. “Just go by the Word,” they retort. Well, Joshua and his leadership team were entirely familiar with the Torah—the writings of Moses. They knew all about the Ten Commandments. They were fully informed about God's laws. The trouble is, no verse in the Torah specifically said, “Refuse to make a treaty with those who seem to have come from far away.” The Scripture would not directly have helped them avoid this particular deception.
The Israelite leaders needed to quiet their hearts before God and seek his counsel for this situation. What loving father would not want to help his precious children avoid the pitfalls of life? Psalm 73:23–24 says, “You hold me by my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory.” God wants us to turn to him with every difficult or complicated decision we face. This means admitting that our perspective is limited. We don't know what tomorrow holds. We can't see around the bend in the road—but he can.
We need to follow the example of Rebekah, Isaac's wife, who experienced turbulence during a pregnancy when “the babies jostled each other within her.” She didn't have the advantage of a modern sonogram, so she had no way of knowing she was carrying twins. Instead, “she said, ‘Why is this happening to me?’ So she went to inquire of the LORD” (Gen. 25:22). She knew something unusual was going on—but what? The Lord then revealed a great deal about the future of her two sons.
How many times in our lives do we experience a jostling within, a sense that something is not quite right, but we don't know what it is? This is the time to come away and seek the Lord.
Even Jesus did this, on occasion spending full nights in prayer. He was perfect, yet he felt the need to consult with his Father. Incredibly, our track record for decision making is full of past mistakes—yet we neglect to approach God at the very moment when we need his direction most. We need to get away to our heavenly Father and say, “What is this all about? Are you trying to tell me something? Lead me by your Spirit in the path I should go. Show me things I cannot see with my natural eyes.”
Prayer was never meant to be just a recitation of our laundry list of needs and desires. For too many of us, prayer has become a monologue rather than a dialogue. When we run out of things to ask for, we stop praying. If we would stay in God's presence a little longer and listen, he would pour out his heart and mind to us. He would tell us invaluable insights into our circumstances. He would counsel us on some family problem or testy relationship at work. He would reveal whether we should say yes or no to a present opportunity. We need his guidance, and the good news is that he is more than willing to give it if we ask in faith.
More Than Once
David, the “man after God's own heart” (see 1 Sam. 13:14; Acts 13:22), was always at his best when he took time to seek the Lord's will on what he should do. Shortly after David became king, the warlike Philistines decided to test his resolve. Did this monarch still have the nerve to stand up to them the way he had done years before as a gutsy teenager with Goliath? Or had he gone soft by now? They sent their raiders into a certain valley in Israel. “So David inquired of God: ‘Shall I go and attack the Philistines? Will you deliver them into my hands?’” (1 Chron. 14:10).
God said yes, and David's army moved out, winning a great victory. But later, the Philistines came back to the same valley. “So David inquired of God again” (v. 14). This time God gave a different attack strategy from the first. It involved circling around and waiting for God's signal, “the sound of marching in the tops of the poplar trees” (v. 15). In the end, the Israelites were hugely successful.
Notice that David inquired of God more than once. And again, there was not one statement in all the Law that spoke to this unique situation. David knew he needed specific direction from God about this. He didn't assume that because he had whipped the Philistines once he could beat them any day of the week. Instead, he showed a humble attitude and asked for fresh direction.
Today our Father is always ready, willing, and more than able to guide us through life situations. He rejoices when we inquire of him in a trusting, childlike manner.
The entire pastoral staff at the Brooklyn Tabernacle knows that God has definite, specific plans for our church, and it is vital for us to seek his direction. During each week, for example, I face the need to prepare a message. Does God want me to begin a new series on a certain topic? If so, how long should I stay on it? What specific spiritual truth does he want me to convey to the congregation? Does he want me to give words of comfort this week, or a challenge to greater faith in Christ? What would Jesus focus on if he spoke this coming Sunday? He wants to share his heart with every shepherd entrusted with feeding God's flock.
God tells us, “I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth” (Isa. 42:16). We may not think we are blind—
but often we are. We don't see everything. We need God's 360-degree vision. That is what “inquiring of the Lord” is all about.
Sometimes God communicates with us through the “gentle whisper” that Elijah heard on the mountain (see 1 Kings 19:12). These are spiritual promptings, positive or negative, that God gives us. He checks us ever so slightly in our spirit, giving us pause, when we are about to head down a wrong path. Or he fills us with a sense of peace and joy when he approves of the direction we are heading in. It takes spending time with God and a teachable heart to pick up these subtle signals. But we can learn them, for the Scripture tells us that “we have the mind of Christ” (1 Cor. 2:16).
There is also the matter that, in the past, God has spoken to his people through dreams. Four different times God spoke to Joseph, the husband of Mary, in this way (Matt. 1:20; 2:13; 2:19; 2:22). These were specific warnings and directives for the unique situation the parents of the Christ child were facing. God has promised that he will communicate with us, too, in this way (see Acts 2:17, quoting Joel 2:28). Not every dream we have is from God, but we must not rule out the possibility.
At other times God seeks to guide us through little things that happen in everyday life. An old friend calls us unexpectedly. We have a chance encounter with a stranger on the street. An idea pops up in our mind out of nowhere. In each case, something may register as a confirmation or warning from God.
These things most often occur as we live with a humble attitude of “Lord, I'm lacking the wisdom to make these decisions on my own. In fact, I can really mess things up if left to my own devices. I need your insight and direction. As you led the Israelites, lead me. As you guided Rebekah and Joseph and David, guide me. Especially warn me about any situation that may look right on the outside, but in reality is a trap set by Satan.”
God will not fail to answer such a prayer. He is all-knowing and all-powerful. He can protect us and steer us. Martin Luther, the great sixteenth-century Reformer, said once to a spiritually skeptical person, “That you despair of yourself and doubt your own power does not displease me; but this displeases me, that you also despair of the power of God.”1 We must never question God's ability to put us on the right path and keep us there.
Ask, Wait, and Listen
Good decisions are more important than quick decisions. Yes, I know our society places value on people who are “decisive.” They don't dally around; they go ahead and “pull the trigger” with confidence. Some business guru even said, “Management is the art of making good decisions with insufficient information.” As Christians, we need to admit that our knowledge will never be sufficient. God is the only one on whom we can count to see us through these Gibeonite deceptions every time. As we ask, wait, and listen, God will be our faithful guide.
I was reminded of the importance of this truth a few years ago when a major television network wanted to feature our church on a prominent news program. The producer came to see Carol and me and seemed impressed by what was happening, by the troubled lives being changed, and especially by the choir of amateur singers that had won several Grammy awards. He openly admitted he was not a Christian, yet sensed something out of the ordinary. “What's the energy I feel around this building?” he asked.
“That's not energy,” I replied. “What you're sensing is God's presence and the love he has put into people's hearts.”
As we talked, he said he wanted to focus the story on the diverse nature of the choir, with people representing many nations of the world. This seemed innocent enough, and our music department felt it would provide a great exposure for us to a national viewership at no expense. It would help sell the choir's CDs and DVDs. The producer asked to visit a choir rehearsal so he could see how Carol and the group prepare their music. We told him we would arrange for one of our staff to be his host that evening.
But from the onset I felt a gnawing uneasiness within me. I began to pray about this seemingly great opportunity. The more I prayed, the more convinced I became that we needed to proceed cautiously. I knew the media always have their own agenda, and they rarely put Christianity in a good light. Based on what they might record and how they might edit it, this producer had the power to tell a story very different from the true one.
Some people around me thought I was being overly suspicious. They felt we should jump at this invitation. It would be great for the church.
I wanted some more time. The producer sent an email asking what the holdup was. He repeated his excitement for the story and how sure he was that we would love the outcome.
Only then did I find out from the staff member who had hosted him for the rehearsal visit that he had, during a break, approached one of the singers who just happened to be young, attractive, single, and female. He quickly asked for her phone number. She wisely refused to give it.
Neither Carol nor I have ever regretted saying no to this opportunity for national television exposure. We believe the producer's behavior was a warning from God. It took time, of course, for this kind of thing to bubble to the surface. A quick decision would not have been the right decision.
We must never forget that when Israel spent forty years in the desert, the cloud did not follow them; they followed the cloud. Moses trusted totally that God's plan was the only safe course. This did not mean the group was always led to comfortable places with fresh water and palm trees. Sometimes the cloud took them to hard spots. But it was all part of God's plan.
A wise decision requires discernment. One of the gifts of the Holy Spirit we desperately need today is “distinguishing between spirits” (1 Cor. 12:10). This gift, like the others, is for the purpose of building up the church. Some contend that these gifts are not available to us anymore but were limited to a previous era of church history. But no biblical passage warrants such a position. In fact, we need this particular gift more than ever in our time. Satan is out to deceive as many as he can. We need God's X-ray vision to see through his ploys and strategies.
Indeed, the apostle John directly told us to
test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world…. They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world…. We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us…. This is how we recognize the Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood (1 John 4:1, 5–6).
Something that initially seems like an open door from the Lord can turn out to be a trap. We need to inquire of the Lord and trust the Holy Spirit to help us discern God's plan. Only in this way will we keep from missing out on the good things he has for us.
Notice the seriousness of taking any other approach:
“Woe to the obstinate children,”
declares the LORD,
“to those who carry out plans that are not mine,
forming an alliance, but not by my Spirit,
heaping sin upon sin;
who go down to Egypt
without consulting me;
who look for help to Pharaoh's protection,
to Egypt's shade for refuge” (Isa. 30:1–2).
When we make plans governed merely by our human thinking, we run headlong toward tragedy. The plans we are sure will lead to great things instead have us ending up back in “Egypt”—a place of bondage we should have been delivered from long ago. We end up back where we started before God ever called us out to his special purpose.
Going beyond the “Sensible”
Granted, God's leading may not “make sense” to us at first. I am sure that more than a few Israelite soldiers questioned the order to march around the city of Jericho once a day and otherwise do nothing. Can't you just imagine their mutterings to one another? “We look silly out here! This is really dumb. And you know the Canaanites are up there on the walls and in the towers studying our every move. They're going to know everything about us. We're losing the surprise factor. This Joshua really is a rookie, isn't he?”
But God had a bigger plan in mind. He wasn't confused at all. He wasn't stalling for time until he could figure out something better. On the seventh day, his victory strategy would be dramatically unfolded for all to see.
I was reminded of this truth back in the spring of 2003 when two wonderful people in our church made an appointment to see me. Mark and Gail McKellar, a forty-something African-American couple, were very earnest in their desire to serve the Lord. Mark worked in public relations for the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation, while Gail served in the finance office at the church.
“Pastor Cymbala,” they began nervously, “we don't quite know how to say this, but … we've been praying about something, and we want to bring it to you. We feel as if God is calling us to some kind of ministry with Native Americans in Arizona.”
I sat stunned by their words. It sounded totally out of left field. “Uh, have either of you ever been to Arizona?” I asked, trying to find a trail of some kind here.
“No, Pastor.”
“Have either of you ever worked with Native Americans here in the East?” I asked.
“No, Pastor.”
This made absolutely no sense to me. I reasoned in my mind that this was a fine and sincere couple who had gone off on a bit of a tangent. At least they had no children to be affected by this upheaval. Still, I as their pastor needed to gently steer them back to reality.
But not so fast! The room was quiet as I felt the Holy Spirit speaking to my heart. Don't discourage them. I am in this. Just help them.
I looked up and finally said, “I believe this is from God. Would you like me to make some contacts for you? I'd be glad to see what I can do.”
They broke out in big smiles. We prayed together that day that God would lead them in a sure path, even though this was far away both geographically and culturally from all they had known in life to this point.
Mark and Gail made a one-week scouting trip to Phoenix soon afterward. They had only one advance appointment that I had managed to arrange for them. They flew in on a Saturday evening, checked into a motel, looked in the phone book, found a church with the words “All Tribes” in its name, and decided to attend the next morning. They hoped and prayed that God would somehow lead their steps.
The guest speaker that morning was the president of American Indian Bible College in Phoenix. A denominational leader was also there, who took the couple to lunch, listened to a description of their burden, and began opening doors for them throughout the coming week. They visited several reservations and got to meet Indian pastors. They realized that the best avenue for lay workers such as themselves would be to try to become teachers in Native American schools.
Back in New York, they got busy getting their teaching credentials in order. Awhile later they moved to Phoenix. They spent two years as interns at All Tribes Church. Then they both landed teaching positions in the public schools of Holbrook, a town of 5,000 along Interstate 40 just outside the Navajo Nation reservation in northeast Arizona. Gail teaches fourth grade there, while Mark teaches eighth-grade social studies. Many of their students are Navajo.
Every weekend finds them working with the children and youth at a native church in Bidahochi, thirty miles north on the reservation. Friday nights are given to teen outreaches; they drive a van all over to pick up kids whose homes are rocked by alcoholism and drug addiction as well as a huge dose of hopelessness. They have seen many youth come to Christ in these meetings. On Sundays they lead the children's church ministry. Mark occasionally preaches there as well.
This couple could not be happier. They are exactly where God intended for them to be. I am so glad now that I didn't squelch their vision back in 2003. God's ways were indeed higher than anything I imagined.
If Mark and Gail had been required to take a personality test, I'm sure the results would have been that they “didn't fit the profile.” But the early church turned the world upside down without the help of psychological profiles. Had Jesus relied on tests, would he have chosen Peter, the fisherman from Galilee with no rabbinical training that we know of? Yet Peter ended up being the “apostle to the Jews” (Gal. 2:8). He certainly would not have chosen Judas, who became the betrayer. The apostle Paul, with his impressive Jewish education—complete with a diploma from the esteemed rabbi Gamaliel—was chosen by God to be “the apostle to the Gentiles” (Rom. 11:13)! Somebody must have ignored their test scores.
There is a place for human logic and judgment—but not if these things undermine God's plans for our lives through the ministry of the Holy Spirit. We were made for more. And we will discover that “more” as we ask repeatedly for the Lord to reveal his will. We must never accept that something is good until we have sought God earnestly in prayer. Joshua learned that the hard way at Gibeon. He moved too quickly.
The Bible says that “everything in the world—the cravings of sinful people, the lust of their eyes and their boasting about what they have and do—comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever” (1 John 2:16–17). Our first priority must always be to learn and then do the will of God. Everything in this world around us will soon disappear. True greatness is found in simple surrender to God's plan for our lives. As Jesus explained the day his family members came to visit him, “Whoever does God's will is my brother and sister and mother” (Mark 3:35). Doing the will of God is how we attain intimacy with Christ.
We can learn the purpose of God as we fill ourselves with his Word and then look to him for direction with a surrendered heart. Soon, doors will open, and we will experience the deep joy of living in the center of God's will.