Glorifying God Through Obedience
ss=MsoNormal align=right style='text-align:right'>1) 7-6-08…AM…SBC 2)“Glorifying God Through Obedience”
Joshua 7-8
Introduction:
Ø A man once visited the King of France and the King was so pleased with him he was invited for dinner the next day. The man went to the palace and the King meeting him in one of the halls, said, “Why, Sir, I did not expect to see you. Why are you here?” The man replied…“Did not your majesty invite me to dine with you?” said the astonished guest. “Yes,” replied the King, “but you did not answer my invitation.” The man then replied, “A king’s invitation is never to be answered, but only to be obeyed.”[1]
Ø Obedience is the next lesson to be taught to Israel from our text this morning
What we want to see from this story this morning is that…
Proposition: The happiness of the Creature is found through obedience to the Creator.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Background: Promised land account----------Jordan River Crossing----------Victory over Jericho
· As a nation, they saw God’s faithfulness to them time and time again, however
Transition: The victory at Jericho was soon replaced by the agony of defeat[2] because of disobedience to the Creator
7:1 (Read)
1- To understand this verse we must go back to 6:18-19
2- The text tells us that the people of Israel “broke faith” with the command of 6:18-19
· וַיִּמְעֲלוּ – “break faith, commit a violation, i.e., act. in a manner which is untrustworthy or unreliable in relation to an agreement or relationship”[3]
· By his actions, Achan was saying, “God, I believe in you. I know you care for me and have demanded certain things from me, but God I know what is best for me, not you.”
3- The problem wasn’t with the gold or silver being sinful or wrong – it was an obedience issue
4- Achan directly disobeyed the command of God (shook his face in the fist of God)
· The Israelites learned that God would punish them if they disobeyed God’s covenant, and that Israel could only be victorious as long as it was faithful to His covenant.[4]
5- God’s reaction to their disobedience was one of anger
· The picture of God burning with anger is the picture of someone who is extremely angry at the circumstances around them (nose flaring and reddened face)
Ex) baseball managers and umpires getting angry with each other
- God cannot sin in His anger like you and I can for God is perfectly Holy and can’t sin
- God exhibited justifiable or righteous anger in this situation
· God essentially was saying, “After all I have done for you by giving you life and breath, by giving my only Son to die for you this is how you treat me?”
Ø this begs us to ask the question: What did Achan/Israel do to make God so angry? (They sinned)
Application: What is sin and how does your sin affect God?
1. What is sin?
a- sin is the failure to conform to God’s Law (Bible) in speech, action and thought (10 commands)
b- sin literally means to miss the mark (shooting at a target)
c- our sin comes when we aim at another target - deer hunting
d- all the evil and bad elements of this world can be traced back to the corruption of sin (Gen 3)
Show slide of 1 John 1:8-10
2. How does your sin affect God?
a- A holy God cannot look on sin and not be angry – sin is what messed up His creation
b- Sin makes you the object of God’s punishment – Romans 6:23
c- The sin of man separates him from a relationship with the Creator
Ø Show Gospel Bridge Tract Pictures #2, 3, 4
Transition: Achan’s sin was grievous before God and it plunged the entire nation into sin and defeat
7:2-9 Read (The Defeat by Ai)
Ø Israel went to conquer Ai
Ø Israel went based on the report of the spies
Ø Israel was defeated by lowly Ai
Ø Israel now cowered in fear of their enemies - this was never God’s intention for them
Ø Israel’s leader (Joshua) cried out to God for the cause of this defeat
7:10-26 Read: v11 v14-15 v19-21
Ø the reason for the defeat is given to Joshua – there is sin in Israel
· חָטָא : miss goal, commit an error
Ø Achan’s choice to disobey God now results in punishment Read v22-26
Application: As it was with Achan so it is with all who disobey – sin must be punished
(unsaved)
Ø Because God is holy, He must judge or punish all that is unholy or He would no longer be holy.[5]
Ø God’s punishment of sin will be fair and according to the truth
Ø All people, without exception, will die and come under the judgment of God (Heb. 9:27)[6]
Ø The records of the unbelievers will render them guilty before God and unworthy of eternal life.[7]
Ø Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but one day every knee will bow before Christ
Bad News: You and I both sin, our sin angers a holy God, we will be punished for our sin
· please hold on because the good news is coming
Ch8
Ø when the relationship with God was restored, and the sin removed, Israel was able to defeat Ai.
Conclusion:
1- Israel’s happiness was not found in the presence of Achan’s sin – his sin brought pain and heartache
· your sin may seem pleasurable now, but it will not last and one day you will wake up feeling empty
· why not find happiness by obeying the One that created you and gave you life
· don’t shake your fist in the face of God and say, “I’ll do things my way thank you very much!”
Quote:
“You have not really learned a commandment until you have obeyed it.… The [world and]church suffers today from [people and]Christians who know volumes more than they practice.” —Vance Havner[8]
(Evangelist of the 1900’s)
Proposition: The happiness of the Creature is found through obedience to the Creator.
Good News
Ø Show Gospel Bridge Tract Pictures #5, 6, 7
2- (Unsaved) If you have not put your trust in Jesus Christ to save you from your sin the Bible calls you the enemy of God
Reconciliation – God’s eternal wrath is removed from those who trust in God to save their souls
Illustration: You are on a crashing plane and you won’t take the parachute that will save your life
3- (Saved)
- Maximum Happiness is what we are bound to pursue – but it can only be found in a relationship with Christ
- Sin affects your relationship with God – you can’t be close to someone you constantly offend
- True worship is found by delighting in obedience to the Creator
Quote “Obedience” song and close in prayer
----
[1]Paul Lee Tan, Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations : A Treasury of Illustrations, Anecdotes, Facts and Quotations for Pastors, Teachers and Christian Workers (Garland TX: Bible Communications, 1996, c1979).
[2]John F. Walvoord, Roy B. Zuck and Dallas Theological Seminary, The Bible Knowledge Commentary : An Exposition of the Scriptures (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1983-c1985), 1:343.
act. active voice
[3]James Swanson, Dictionary of Biblical Languages With Semantic Domains : Hebrew (Old Testament), electronic ed. (Oak Harbor: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997), DBLH 5085.
[4]Carl Friedrich Keil and Franz Delitzsch, Commentary on the Old Testament. (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 2002), 2:55.
[5]Paul P. Enns, The Moody Handbook of Theology (Chicago, Ill.: Moody Press, 1997, c1989), 377.
[6]Paul P. Enns, The Moody Handbook of Theology (Chicago, Ill.: Moody Press, 1997, c1989), 378.
[7]Paul P. Enns, The Moody Handbook of Theology (Chicago, Ill.: Moody Press, 1997, c1989), 378.
[8]Robert J. Morgan, Nelson's Complete Book of Stories, Illustrations, and Quotes, electronic ed. (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2000), 588.