Well, lately, in the last six months or so, I'd say Calvin has been absolutely obsessed with towers. As soon as we bring out his blocks, as soon as we bring out his Legos, he asks one of us to build him a tower. Just goes around asking us for a tower. I'll just come up to us out of the blue, and he'll just ask us, can you build me a tower? Tower? Tower? Tower? And this obsession that he has of towers is really only rivaled by one other obsession. That is the obsession of tearing that tower down. Because as soon as that tower is built, he seeks to destroy it. This last week, I was building a tower. And as soon as I said, OK, Calvin, the tower's finished, in comes a truck to destroy the tower, to knock it down. Oftentimes, this is how it can feel as we look at what is going on in our lives. We look around and from our perspective, we see God is working, but it feels like sometimes everything is falling down around us. It's hard for us to see how God could still be at work in what he is doing, accomplishing his purposes, accomplishing his purposes for his glory. That isn't the case, that isn't what goes on in our lives. As we look at Joshua chapter 8, we can't forget what happened in chapter 7. God had promised to give his people this land, that has been his promise throughout the book of Joshua. But given what happened in chapter 7, that promise feels like it's very much in jeopardy. From Israel's perspective, God has been building a tower. God has been winning the land. He has been giving it to them. He won the battle against the Jordan River. He divided the Jordan River. He won the battle against Jericho. And he won the battle against Achan's sin. God is building this tower. But for the Israelites, it seems like their sin is this truck that comes in just to crash through that tower, destroying what God is doing. That's what it feels like from the Israelites. However, in chapter eight here before us this evening, we see that even though God's chosen and his precious people, even though they've sinned against him, this has not foiled his plan. The tower is not destroyed, to continue the analogy. Can sin stand in the way of God executing his purpose? No. Sin cannot. That's exactly what we see in the chapter before us tonight. Despite our sin, God still accomplishes his purpose, which draws us in to worship him. Despite our sin, God still accomplishes his purpose, which draws us in to worship him. We see this as God works through Israel's second attack on Ai. In verses one to nine, we see Israel prepare for battle. And then in verses 10 to 29, we see Israel actually attack the city. And then ultimately, this leads to Israel's worship of God in verses 30 to 35. The passage opens, don't miss the way the passage opens. It opens with such kind and warm words, words that Israel needs to hear from God. Look at what God says to Joshua, do not fear and do not be dismayed. In chapter seven, Israel had real reason to be afraid. They had real reason to be dismayed. Achan's sin had put the whole company, the whole campaign in jeopardy. We saw how God values, when we looked at chapter seven, we saw how God values covenant faithfulness more than the winning of the land, the land that's already his to begin with. God told Joshua in chapter seven, I will be with you no more unless you destroy the devoted things from among you. The God who told Joshua in chapter one, I will not leave you or forsake you, was ready to leave Joshua and his people because of the heinous sin of one man. That is why these opening words that we find in chapter eight are very important. God says to his people, do not fear and do not be dismayed. We saw after Israel cleansed themselves from Achan's sin that we were told, then the Lord turned from his burning anger. God's wrath was appeased, it was satisfied. Israel can now turn again, they can return to this The campaign of conquering the land. And so God directs Joshua, telling him now how he plans to continue conquering the land. What we see in the conquest of Ai actually shares many similarities with the battle of Jericho, but it also has a few differences. First, notice the first part of the plan. God says to Joshua, take all of the fighting men with you. If you remember in chapter seven, Joshua sent spies to scout out the city of Ai. And when they came back, they saw how little Ai was compared to Jericho. And so they told Joshua, they said, don't have all the people go up. Don't make the whole people toil up there, they told Joshua, for they are few. But here in God's plan, God tells Joshua, take all the fighting men. Take all the fighting men. This is the first similarity, that all of Israel is to be represented in the battle of Ai, just as it was in Jericho. Notice also what God tells Joshua. He says, We have here the same language that we found back in the battle God gives to Joshua the guarantee of success before they ever leave camp. Joshua is to do the same thing that he did at Jericho. He's told, and you shall do to I and its king as you did to Jericho and its king. These are the similarities that we see between the battle of Jericho and the battle of Ai, similar commands being given. But we also see two differences. Two distinct differences between these two battles. First, remember that at the Battle of Jericho, the spoils of Jericho, they were dedicated to the Lord. All the precious metals of Jericho were to be put in the treasury of the Lord, they were told. But at the Battle of Ai, it's spoil, their text says, it's spoil and its livestock you shall take as plunder for yourselves. If only Achan had waited just a few more days. With Achan's sin, we saw how he grasped for that instant gratification. He wanted, he took the spoil that belonged to God. In effect, he was saying, I don't want to wait until the land is conquered. I want my share of the spoil now. I want my share of the inheritance now. That's what Achan is essentially saying in his sin. Don't our hearts operate in the same exact way? Seeking after this instant gratification instead of waiting on God, instead of trusting him and relying on him, we form our own plans. We think that our way is going to be better than God's way. Our providence would be better than God's providence. We reach out for that. instant solution. If only Achan had waited just a little bit longer he would have received some of the spoil of the battle. But then we see another difference between the Battle of Jericho and the Battle of Ai. Lay an ambush against the city behind it. At the Battle of Jericho, all the army had to do was walk around the walls, and God tore the walls down, and he gave them the city for them to run in and to plunder and to put the spoil in God's treasury. God gave them the city. But here we see God accomplish his purpose, conquering the land for his people, only he goes about accomplishing the same purpose, but now in a different way, in a new way. The army of Israel will be the chief tool in God's execution of his plan. So Joshua lays out the plan that God gives him. He takes 3,000 men to go up and to attack Ai. And we'll see when we turn to look at Israel as an attack, how they lay the ambush and how they go about doing that. But for right now, we see Israel prepares for battle again. Joshua will use the main army as a diversion, drawing everyone out of the city, clearing it of the men who are in ambush, for the men who are in ambush to destroy the city. As verse 7 says, you shall rise up and ambush and seize the city. For the Lord your God will give it into your hand. Here we have that precious promise of God's work. in this battle, the plan is laid, the people are ready, they have received this comforting word from the Lord, he is with them, he has not left them, they have no need to fear and their leader is also with them. Joshua spends the night among the people, God's holy representative dwells among his people. Even in this first little bit, we see God's gracious mercy on full display. He could have abandoned his people because of Achan's sin, and he would have been just in doing so. But here we see God is not only true to his word, but he's also true to who he is. Exodus 34 tells us who God is when we're told that God is a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty. We see this in that God is gracious and that he does not abandon his people. He is slow to anger. He is steadfast in love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands. But we also see in these chapters, we see God is also committed to the purity of his people. He will by no means clear the guilty, as in the situation with Achan. Nothing can stand in the way of God's plans, not even sin. As we see in Israel's attack, as we turn to look at Israel's attack, we see that God still remains faithful to his people, giving them the land. We even see God use what happened in the previous chapter to Israel's advantage. And so let's turn to look at Israel's attack on Ai. Starting in verse 10 we see the same battle language that has been used now throughout the battles in Joshua. We saw it back in the battle of Jericho. We saw it in the battle against Achan's sin, and we see it here again. Joshua arose early in the morning. Joshua rises early. He musters his men. They set a trap for Ai. In verse 12, we're told that about 5,000 men were secretly sent into ambush, and the rest of the army openly marches against the city. Notice Ai's response. As soon as the king of Ai saw this, he and all the people, the men of the city hurried and went out early to the appointed place toward the Araba to meet Israel in battle. The army of Ai musters and marches out to meet Israel in battle. Boldly, proudly, Why not? Why wouldn't they? As we saw in their last encounter with the Israelites, they turned and ran away. I have no doubt that Ai is very confident in their battle against Israel. But they're not aware of two very key pieces of information from Israel's side. First, we're told in verse 14, But he did not know, that is the king, he did not know that there was an ambush against him behind the city. The army of Israel is ready to pounce on a defenseless city. That's the first piece of information the king is not aware of. But the king of Ai is also not aware of what we were told in verse one. The Lord is on their side. God is with them. And when the Lord is with his people, who can stand against us? And so Joshua acts as bait, drawing out the army of Ai. And in verse 15, they're pretending to be beaten before the army. And in verse 17, and not a man was left in Ai or Bethel who did not go out after Israel. But they left the city open and pursued Israel. And when the army was drawn far enough away, we're told in verse 18, then the Lord said to Joshua, Stretch out the javelin that is in your hand toward I, for I will give it into your hand. The Lord shows his complete control over the battle. When the time is right, just when the time is right, God says to Joshua, stretch out your hand. Stretch out your javelin. In this way, not only does Joshua mirror what Moses did back in Exodus 17 in their battle and victory over the Amalekites, but we also see God's chosen representative leading his people. We see God's hand is stretched against his enemies. God's hand is stretched out in power on Israel's behalf. Once those waiting in ambush saw the signal, they then rushed into Ai, and they burned the city, completely destroying it. And once they had completely destroyed the city, the ambushing army then surrounds Ai's men, and as verse 22 tells us, Israel struck them down until there was left none that survived or escaped. Do you see the totality of the destruction that is going on in this text? Everyone and everything is destroyed. Only the king, we're told in verse 23, is left alive. The totality of God's judgment against I is all-encompassing. Look at verses 24 to 26. The word all is used five times. Israel had finished killing All the inhabitants of Ai, all of them were to the very last had fallen by the edge of the sword. All Israel returned to Ai and struck it down with the edge of the sword. All who fell that day, both men and women, were 12,000, all the people of Ai. And Israel takes home the spoils of war. But the judgment doesn't end there. The judgment against the Canaanite people doesn't end there. Joshua personally executes judgment on the city. Joshua does this personally. We're told in verse 28 that he is attributed as the one who burns the city of Ai. That's the first part of the judgment. Joshua burns Ai. And then in verse 29, Joshua personally executes the king of Ai. hanging him on a tree. But Joshua is also careful enough to be obedient to the law, the law which tells him to take his body down before sunset. The Israelites follow Joshua, the leader of God's people, into battle. As God claims this land, as God gives this land to them for their worship of him, And in Joshua, we see a leader who points us to the church's true leader, pointing us to Christ. And nothing could stand in Christ's way. to accomplish his purpose, not even sin. Christ came and he was our Emmanuel. He is God with us. Just as Joshua spends the night with his people, he dwells with God's people. God dwelt among us through Christ. Christ lived and he died for you. In so doing, he conquered over sin and death. Christ is the conqueror. He died for you and died for your sins. But we also see how Jesus executes God's judgment, not only did he take on God's wrath on our behalf, he took on our penalty for sin, but we also look forward to when Christ returns. We look forward to the coming of Christ, and when he does, he will personally execute his righteous judgment on all of those who are God's enemies, all of those who are outside of Christ, and his justice will be swift. His justice will be total. will be all encompassing. That's what Revelation 19 tells us when we're given this description of what Christ's return will be like. It says, I saw heaven opened and behold a white horse. The one sitting on it was called Faithful and True. Notice what it says, in righteousness he judges. In righteousness he judges and he makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire and on his head are many diadems and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood and the name by which he is called is the word of God. Then notice what follows Jesus. And the armies of heaven are reigned like fine linen, white and pure are following him on white horses. And from his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. He will rule them with a rod of iron. He is the King of kings and the Lord of lords. We look forward to this. And on that day, we will receive a peace. We will be at peace with God, free to worship him because he has established his kingdom will be fully realized. And we will be at peace and have the freedom to worship him for all eternity. And that day is coming. And although Israel still has a few battles left ahead of them in the coming chapters, we see in the remainder of our text that Israel does just that. They stop and they worship God. They stop obeying God's law to worship Him, they have a taste of the rest that is to come when the land is conquered completely. Experiencing a taste of what we will experience for eternity in heaven, that's what we have when we gather on the Lord's Day, is it not? A taste of the rest that we have to come. What Israel does here as Israel worships is not all different from the way that we gather, from why we gather for worship every Lord's Day. Sure, the content of our worship this side of Christ is very different, but what Israel does at its core, what Israel is doing here at the end of this chapter reminds them of what God has done for them. that through the sacrifice that is offered and the law that is read, they are renewed. Not only is the covenant renewed, but they themselves are renewed and refreshed, restrengthened to go back out and to fight the rest of the battles that God has for them to conquer the land. And so notice how Israel worships. An altar is built on Mount Ebal. We see here Joshua who was told in the first chapter, only be strong and courageous, be careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. That's what he was told. We see him obey the law that Moses had commanded. This wasn't a randomly chosen mountain. But this was a specific, they were specifically told that on this mountain they were to stop and they were to set up an altar. Deuteronomy 27.4, Moses says, and when you have crossed over the Jordan, you shall set up these stones concerning which I command you today, where? On Mount Ebal. And they offer sacrifices to the Lord. They offer burnt offerings and peace offerings. That's the first part of their worship and what they're doing here on Mount Ebal. And then the second part of their worship service, Joshua copies the law. He writes on stones a copy of the law of Moses. And as he's doing this, we see and we're told that God is in their midst. Look at verse 33. All Israel, sojourner as well as native-born, with their elders and officers and their judges, stood on opposite sides of the ark before the Levitical priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord. The people surrounded the Lord. God was in their midst, and as they worshiped, God was there. And the law was read so that all can hear, sojourner as well as native born. That's Rahab as well as the spies who went in and rescued her. So that all can know. Not just what God has done, but how God wants them to live. You see the similarities of how we worship today. God gathers us in. God brings us in, gathering us in from the world, And we come to him, we come to him weary and broken from our battles, weary and broken from the various fights that we have with the world, from looking different than the world. And what do we do when we gather together? We're reminded of, through the preached word and through the sacraments, we're reminded of the sacrifice of Christ. Reminded that he was the lamb who was slain, as Revelation describes him. Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God. And where is he gathering people from? The text continues in Revelation, from every tribe and language and people and nation. You have made them a kingdom of priests to our God, and they shall reign on earth. Not only does God bring us in to worship him and what Christ, and remind us of what Christ has done, but God is also with us when we worship him. God is with us. Remember what Christ said in Matthew 18, that when people gather in his name, he said, for where two or three are gathered in my name, there I am. among them, there I am among them. When you gather together for worship, just two or three, whether it's in your homes or here on Sunday mornings and evenings publicly, God is with us, God is with you. He has not left you, he has not forsaken you, we do not need to fear. He is with us here right now. Have you ever thought of worship like that? Coming to meet with God who is with us. God moves in great ways to accomplish his purposes. One of his purposes that we've seen in Joshua is to establish a safe place, to establish a nation, to establish a sanctuary for his people where he would dwell with them and they would dwell with him. And what would his people be doing? Worshiping him. We have that place as we gather here tonight. We've been blessed to have the open liberty that we can safely gather across our country here, but there are many brothers and sisters across the world who don't have that liberty. But when we gather together on Sunday, gathering to sing praises to God, to be reminded of what Christ has done, to hear scripture be read and preached from, to pray earnestly together, we find rest in God. Bring our weary bones, our weary souls in and we find a rest and we find our spirits to be renewed. That we may go back out into the world. May go back out and face the battles that are before us, knowing that even there, that God is with us. Week after week, we do this. Week after week, God has given us this source of renewal, this source of rest, this source of refreshment. Week after week, we will do this until Christ returns, and we join with Him and all who have gone before us to worship God for eternity. So can sin stand in the way of God executing his purposes? No, sin cannot. In fact, we learn here in the story of Ai, as we keep it in the context of what happened with Achan and his sin, we see that despite our sin, despite our sin, God still accomplishes his purposes, which draws us in to worship him, draws us in to worship him. So as you leave here tonight, I would encourage you to know, know that God is working in your life. He is doing far more than we can think or imagine. We do not need to fear, and we do not need to be dismayed. It may feel like your sin is like a truck that's tearing down the tower as soon as it's built, but that isn't true. God is still at work. In Christ, you have been cleansed from your sins. In fact, he is using you to accomplish his purposes. And through the Holy Spirit, we are being renewed day by day as we await the return of the conqueror, the return of Christ. Let us continue to remember that we do not need to fear or be dismayed. God is with us. He is at work in us and not even sin can stand in the way of God's purposes. So let's pray.