Intro: What does God want from the people that make up this local body of believers called Immanuel? Does he want new buildings, more children for VBS, more bible study classes, what does He want? First he wants us to get our perspective right about we exist for the purpose of God living in us and among us. If we can ever get this part right then the other challenges we have will begin to be Christ shaped! That doesn’t mean we will not face challenges, that doesn’t mean we will never need to change.
The fiery darts the enemy shoots at us are aimed at uprooting and diverting us from the promise that God will be with us. God has made it clear to us that we are to be a church body that focuses on people, on rescuing lives from the kingdom of darkness and the pit of hell. He has made it clear to us that our main task as a body is to make disciples. His Holy Spirit is gifted to us to save us, seal us and send us. There is a place for you to serve we will not beg you to do so. We will not bribe you to do so if the Holy Spirit of God cannot move you to serve and be faithful then there is nothing I can do. Know if you want to be part of this body your feelings might get hurt. Your fingers might get smashed but if we can see that the ultimate goal is to glorify God and grab people out of the hand so Satan I am willing to give a little more and go a little further.
This body of believers is to minister to those within the body and be on mission to those outside it. What can happen with us is the same thing that happened to Israel in Joshua 7. They had a few victories and became over confident. Chapter 7 gives encouragement that mistakes and failure are not the end for God’s people. Chapter 7 also warns that sin is destructive and God cannot allow it to continue unchecked.
The fact that we as Christians experience defeat seems to be far too common. Constantly discouraged and defeated by sin and the assaults of Satan. If we learn anything from chapter 7 we know that it can happen but it should not be the rule it should be the exception in the life of a Christ follower. Everything comes back to perspective.
I. The Detour of sin
A) Disobedience to God’s clear command –
How did Achan know he had done wrong? He hid what he was doing. Why did God say Israel had sinned? Joshua 7.1,11 Because there were one people that God dwelt among. 1 Cor 12:12 makes it clear we are all linked together by the Spirit of God. What I do affects you and what you do affects me. If there is sin in the camp and it is one it affects us all.
How did Achan loose his perspective? James 1.13-15 “I saw, I coveted, I took.”
In C.S. Lewis’ book The Screwtape Letters, we read the story of an older demon counseling a younger demon. At one point in the book, we read these words.
You will say that these are very small sins, and doubtless, like all young tempters, you are anxious to be able to report spectacular wickedness. But do remember, the only thing that matters is the extent to which you separate the man from the Enemy [God]. It does not matter how small the sins are, provided that their cumulative effect is to keep the man away from the Light.… Murder is no better than cards if cards can do the trick. Indeed the safest road to Hell is the gradual one—the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts.
One man’s sin brought defeat to the entire nation and cost 36 lives. The things he took could never buy back those lives. Are we seeing defeat in our families, marriages, relationships etc?
Then we need to bow on our faces before God and ask where our perspective is off from His.
B) Overconfidence of God’s people
There was no prayer on the part of Joshua or the spies. It was we can take them. We don’t even need all the army.
It is so easy to have God make a way for you and then think you had something to do with it.
Ai literally means ruins or heap of stones. That is what happens when we forget that God provides the resources we have and the direction we take. Just because something is a good idea doesn’t mean it’s a God idea! Ai represents fight in our own power and with our resources not resting in God’s ability to give victory.
Over confidence will lead to 1) Lack of prayer 2) Lots of pride 3) Loss of perspective 4) Defeat
Proverbs 16:8 “Pride goes before destruction a haughty spirit before a fall” NKJV
What should we do with pride? Allow God to purge it from us by having a proper perspective. Romans 12:1-2
The detour of sin leads to the defeat of sin
II. The Defeat of sin (1.5)
The tables were turned on the Israelites. FB Meyer “There is nothing small in Christian life - nothing so small that we can combat it in our own strength. Apart from God, the smallest temptations will be more than a match for us.”
How do we guard against this? We seek to never forget our inabilities and weaknesses.
We can pray this, Lord help us to depend on your finished work and not our feeble efforts.”
Whether we realize it or verbalize it we often think this is small enough God will let us handle it ourselves. This mentality will only lead us to defeat.
We must realize no matter our strength of relationship with God we are not immune to discouragement or defeat.
6-10The same thing could happen to us. We must be on guard so that we never get caught up in wanting our own way as they did. And we must not turn our religion into a circus as they did—"First the people partied, then they threw a dance." We must not be sexually promiscuous—they paid for that, remember, with 23,000 deaths in one day! We must never try to get Christ to serve us instead of us serving him; they tried it, and God launched an epidemic of poisonous snakes. We must be careful not to stir up discontent; discontent destroyed them.
11-12These are all warning markers—danger!—in our history books, written down so that we don't repeat their mistakes. Our positions in the story are parallel—they at the beginning, we at the end—and we are just as capable of messing it up as they were. Don't be so naive and self-confident. You're not exempt. You could fall flat on your face as easily as anyone else. Forget about self-confidence; it's useless. Cultivate God-confidence.
Joshua shows us how not to and how to respond to defeat.
1) He showed signs of remorse and he prayed
2) He blamed God – Why have you let us be defeated
3) What are you gonna do about your great name.
III. The Declaration of God
Not a gentle it’s ok just come on in. Get up there is sin in the camp!!!
A) The sin of Israel – Covenant unfaithfulness, stolen, lied
B) The solution of God – Cleanse yourself (this is not for salvation but fellowship)
The break between God saying the guilty party will be found out and the stones falling and the fire flaring on Achan and His family was an opportunity for Achan and His family to confess agree with God and be forgiven.
God methodically went from Tribe of Judah, the family of the Zerahites, the household of Zabdi, and finally achan. You can’t hide from God. Whether sinners run to the top of the mountains or to the bottom of the seas, God will find them and judge them. “For God shall bring every work into judgment with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil” (Eccl 12:14)
If Achan had confessed during any of this I believe with all my heart he would not have been stoned and burned. Neither Achan or his family came forward during the time of cleansing or searching.
IV. The Discipline of Sin
Achan when confronted was condemned. Why was he judged so harshly? He confessed because he was caught not because he was repenting and remorseful. Psalm 32 read.
Someone has said, “His confession is not indicative of repentance because he would not have confessed if he had not been caught. True confession goes beyond the admission of what one has done. It includes recognition of guilt and true remorse and repentance.”
At the core of Achan’s sin was lack of trust in God’s word and warning.
A) It is not our responsibility to execute the sinner
B) It is not our responsibility to excuse the sin
C) It is our responsibility to encourage the sinner to repent and believe
Conclusion: We do not live unto ourselves. We are all part of one body. If we truly believed this we would live out God’s word. We would be moving as one body to accomplish God’s will. Paul even told us our lives are not our own we were bought with a price. You cannot hide your sin from God and you don’t have to He has paid the price for your sin on Calvary.
