2020-01-26 Joshua 7.1-15
Notes
Transcript
1 The Israelites, however, were unfaithful regarding the things set apart for destruction. Achan son of Carmi, son of Zabdi, son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of what was set apart, and the Lord’s anger burned against the Israelites.
2 Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is near Beth-aven, east of Bethel, and told them, “Go up and scout the land.” So the men went up and scouted Ai.
3 After returning to Joshua they reported to him, “Don’t send all the people, but send about two thousand or three thousand men to attack Ai. Since the people of Ai are so few, don’t wear out all our people there.”
4 So about three thousand men went up there, but they fled from the men of Ai.
5 The men of Ai struck down about thirty-six of them and chased them from outside the city gate to the quarries, striking them down on the descent. As a result, the people lost heart.
6 Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell facedown to the ground before the ark of the Lord until evening, as did the elders of Israel; they all put dust on their heads.
7 “Oh, Lord God,” Joshua said, “why did you ever bring these people across the Jordan to hand us over to the Amorites for our destruction? If only we had been content to remain on the other side of the Jordan!
8 What can I say, Lord, now that Israel has turned its back and run from its enemies?
9 When the Canaanites and all who live in the land hear about this, they will surround us and wipe out our name from the earth. Then what will you do about your great name?”
10 The Lord then said to Joshua, “Stand up! Why have you fallen facedown?
11 Israel has sinned. They have violated my covenant that I appointed for them. They have taken some of what was set apart. They have stolen, deceived, and put those things with their own belongings.
12 This is why the Israelites cannot stand against their enemies. They will turn their backs and run from their enemies, because they have been set apart for destruction. I will no longer be with you unless you remove from among you what is set apart.
13 “Go and consecrate the people. Tell them to consecrate themselves for tomorrow, for this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: There are things that are set apart among you, Israel. You will not be able to stand against your enemies until you remove what is set apart.
14 In the morning, present yourselves tribe by tribe. The tribe the Lord selects is to come forward clan by clan. The clan the Lord selects is to come forward family by family. The family the Lord selects is to come forward man by man.
15 The one who is caught with the things set apart must be burned, along with everything he has, because he has violated the Lord’s covenant and committed an outrage in Israel.”
I. Do not take what God alone deserves.
I. Do not take what God alone deserves.
1 The Israelites, however, were unfaithful regarding the things set apart for destruction. Achan son of Carmi, son of Zabdi, son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of what was set apart, and the Lord’s anger burned against the Israelites.
2 Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is near Beth-aven, east of Bethel, and told them, “Go up and scout the land.” So the men went up and scouted Ai.
3 After returning to Joshua they reported to him, “Don’t send all the people, but send about two thousand or three thousand men to attack Ai. Since the people of Ai are so few, don’t wear out all our people there.”
4 So about three thousand men went up there, but they fled from the men of Ai.
5 The men of Ai struck down about thirty-six of them and chased them from outside the city gate to the quarries, striking them down on the descent. As a result, the people lost heart.
A. Can we take a moment to talk about money? (1)
A. Can we take a moment to talk about money? (1)
1 The Israelites, however, were unfaithful regarding the things set apart for destruction. Achan son of Carmi, son of Zabdi, son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of what was set apart, and the Lord’s anger burned against the Israelites.
Illus: Last week we talked about how God should get the glory for the victories he brings.
I want to take it down to a very practical level today. God wanted more than just lip service from the Israelites. He wanted a tangible expression from the Israelites that the spoils belonged to Him.
God did not need the gold. God could have created as much gold as he wanted out of nothing. God wanted obedience and sacrifice from the people.
Money, the gold, was the tangible way the Israelite were called to honor God. It is how he chose to provide for His tabernacle.
This principle still proves true today. God still demands that his people give a tangible expression to glorify Him. It is called tithing. We are called to set apart ten percent of what we make to give to God.
Follow the story… when Achan held back part of what belonged to God, God’s power was removed from Israel. Not just Achan, the entire community.
When you do not give, set apart what God expects, do not be surprised when you experience powerlessness and emptiness. But more than that… that our body will experience it as well.
When you don’t give the whole ten percent, perhaps just throwing a few bills in the offering plate, you are robbing God. You money shows what is really going on with your heart.
There is a direct connection of your pocketbook to the power of God. If you want to see the hand and power of God removed from your life, rob God by not giving him what he requires.
BTW, this is not jus
If you want to see God move in power in your life, give the whole tithe.
8 “Will a man rob God? Yet you are robbing me!” “How do we rob you?” you ask. “By not making the payments of the tenth and the contributions.
9 You are suffering under a curse, yet you—the whole nation—are still robbing me.
10 Bring the full tenth into the storehouse so that there may be food in my house. Test me in this way,” says the Lord of Armies. “See if I will not open the floodgates of heaven and pour out a blessing for you without measure.
B. Israel forgot who brought the victory, and who deserved the spoils. (2-5)
B. Israel forgot who brought the victory, and who deserved the spoils. (2-5)
2 Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is near Beth-aven, east of Bethel, and told them, “Go up and scout the land.” So the men went up and scouted Ai.
3 After returning to Joshua they reported to him, “Don’t send all the people, but send about two thousand or three thousand men to attack Ai. Since the people of Ai are so few, don’t wear out all our people there.”
4 So about three thousand men went up there, but they fled from the men of Ai.
5 The men of Ai struck down about thirty-six of them and chased them from outside the city gate to the quarries, striking them down on the descent. As a result, the people lost heart.
jsh 7:
Illus: It is easy to see the need for God when a task is so great that you can’t handle it. That was Jericho for Israel.
It is a whole lot harder to depend on God when You think you are strong enough on your own. That was Ai.
No sooner had Israel left Jericho that they forgot that it was God who brought the victory. Almost instantaneously Israel began to think that they were the military force and in that pride God needed to remind them they were nothing without him.
How often to we step away from moments where we see God do mighty things in our lives only to allow our ego and pride to convince us that we are the great ones.
This the the very thing we talked about last week: that we as sinners forgiven by Christ do our best to prove that we don’t need forgiveness. We try to show that We are the good ones, not God.
Self righteousness comes from the same heart which doomed Israel at Ai, and will trick you into a false salvation today.
What happened in Ai, and happens in churches across america, and in this church today is clearly explained in 2 timothy:
2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, proud, demeaning, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy,
3 unloving, irreconcilable, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, without love for what is good,
4 traitors, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,
5 holding to the form of godliness but denying its power. Avoid these people.
II. Do not blame your mess on God. (6-9)
II. Do not blame your mess on God. (6-9)
6 Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell facedown to the ground before the ark of the Lord until evening, as did the elders of Israel; they all put dust on their heads.
7 “Oh, Lord God,” Joshua said, “why did you ever bring these people across the Jordan to hand us over to the Amorites for our destruction? If only we had been content to remain on the other side of the Jordan!
8 What can I say, Lord, now that Israel has turned its back and run from its enemies?
9 When the Canaanites and all who live in the land hear about this, they will surround us and wipe out our name from the earth. Then what will you do about your great name?”
A. Don’t take credit for what God deserves, and then give God credit for what you deserve. (6-9)
A. Don’t take credit for what God deserves, and then give God credit for what you deserve. (6-9)
6 Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell facedown to the ground before the ark of the Lord until evening, as did the elders of Israel; they all put dust on their heads.
7 “Oh, Lord God,” Joshua said, “why did you ever bring these people across the Jordan to hand us over to the Amorites for our destruction? If only we had been content to remain on the other side of the Jordan!
8 What can I say, Lord, now that Israel has turned its back and run from its enemies?
9 When the Canaanites and all who live in the land hear about this, they will surround us and wipe out our name from the earth. Then what will you do about your great name?”
Illus Joshua in our story attempts to blame God for their defeat?!?!
Even though Israel tried to fight in their own strength, AND had held back what belonged to God, they still tried to blame God.
Notice the echo of Moses’ wickedness come through Joshua “Why did you bring these people”. Same song different verse.
God had been faithful all along… it was is Israel who stepped away from the always faithful God.
God is, and always will be faithful to accomplish His plan for His Kingdom. The moment we cease to see the hand of God at work, it is NOT that God has ceased working, it IS that we have stepped away from the always faithful God.
God will not use men who rob him, He will not use people who see no need for him, and He will not use people who try to take credit for what He does.
God will not use churches who rob Him, He will not use churches who see no need for Him, and He will not use churches who try to take credit for what he does.
10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.
11 The Pharisee was standing and praying like this about himself: ‘God, I thank you that I’m not like other people—greedy, unrighteous, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.
12 I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of everything I get.’
13 “But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even raise his eyes to heaven but kept striking his chest and saying, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner!’
14 I tell you, this one went down to his house justified rather than the other; because everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
12 I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of everything I get.’
13 “But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even raise his eyes to heaven but kept striking his chest and saying, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner!’
14 I tell you, this one went down to his house justified rather than the other; because everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
lk 18:10-
B. The quickest way to cease to see God work is to take credit for what He does. (10-12)
B. The quickest way to cease to see God work is to take credit for what He does. (10-12)
jsh 7:6
6 Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell facedown to the ground before the ark of the Lord until evening, as did the elders of Israel; they all put dust on their heads.
7 “Oh, Lord God,” Joshua said, “why did you ever bring these people across the Jordan to hand us over to the Amorites for our destruction? If only we had been content to remain on the other side of the Jordan!
8 What can I say, Lord, now that Israel has turned its back and run from its enemies?
9 When the Canaanites and all who live in the land hear about this, they will surround us and wipe out our name from the earth. Then what will you do about your great name?”
Illus: It was fun being apart of the LSU championship season.
We won… right?no. The LSU football team won.
I did not win anything, and neither did you. The players and coaches won.
Your fandom, yelling at the refs through your TV screen, and even game attendance did not affect the scores of a single game. You were a spectator to the game. In fact, the cheerleaders, band, and even mike the tiger himself don’t get credit for the win, and did not affect the score of a single game.
We get to enjoy the championship and the fun along with the football team. In reality, we don’t get credit for the championship, that alone goes to the team.
When God works in your life and mine, we often face the temptation to celebrate as if we accomplished it. We must remember that every bit of Glory from your life and our Church goes to Jesus Christ.
7 Therefore, submit to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
9 Be miserable and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.
10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.
III. Give glory to God. (13-15, 19)
III. Give glory to God. (13-15, 19)
13 “Go and consecrate the people. Tell them to consecrate themselves for tomorrow, for this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: There are things that are set apart among you, Israel. You will not be able to stand against your enemies until you remove what is set apart.
14 In the morning, present yourselves tribe by tribe. The tribe the Lord selects is to come forward clan by clan. The clan the Lord selects is to come forward family by family. The family the Lord selects is to come forward man by man.
15 The one who is caught with the things set apart must be burned, along with everything he has, because he has violated the Lord’s covenant and committed an outrage in Israel.”
jsh 7:
19 So Joshua said to Achan, “My son, give glory to the Lord, the God of Israel, and make a confession to him. I urge you, tell me what you have done. Don’t hide anything from me.”
Jsh
A. Giving glory to God is seen in your confession of sin.
A. Giving glory to God is seen in your confession of sin.
Illus: The first step to giving God glory is the confession that we have attempted to be glory theifs. It was the confession of Achan that he took what was not his.
Giving God glory is more than just giving him credit for the good he has done. He is glorified when you confession your sin.
Do you need to confess that you have held back your tithe from God.
Do you need to confess that you have lived in a way that does not depend on Him?
Do you need to confess that do not give God the credit he deserves?
Do yo need to confess that you have attempted to take credit for what He has done?
Do we as a church? That is why we have a time of invitation.
Now… just because Achan confessed did not mean there were not consequences…
24 Then Joshua and all Israel with him took Achan son of Zerah, the silver, the cloak, and the bar of gold, his sons and daughters, his ox, donkey, and sheep, his tent, and all that he had, and brought them up to the Valley of Achor.
25 Joshua said, “Why have you brought us trouble? Today the Lord will bring you trouble!” So all Israel stoned them to death. They burned their bodies, threw stones on them,
26 and raised over him a large pile of rocks that remains still today. Then the Lord turned from his burning anger. Therefore that place is called the Valley of Achor still today.
A price needed to be paid for Achan’s wickedness. Achan paid it.
**Achan was stoned… Jesus was crucified vs. 24-26**
For the sins you confess today, a price needs to be paid for your wickedness. Jesus paid it.
**Achan was stoned… Jesus was crucified
8 If we say, “We have no sin,” we are deceiving ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1. How do we rob God?
2. How is confessing sin giving God glory?