Josh (12-07-08)
Dec 7, 2008
“Turning Defeat into Victory” Josh 8:1-
Once Joshua .. ( & Achan ) confessed .. & then .. judged the sin that had defiled their camp God then led Israel once again
( a great lesson we learn from this chapter .. is this )
No matter what mistakes we make the worst mistake of all is when we have fallen .. & / or sinned not to get up / cleanse ourselves / try again ( you see ) .. the victorious Christian life is nothing .. if it isn’t a series of new beginnings [1]
Psalm 37:23-24
23) the steps of a man are established by the Lord
& He delights in his way
24) when he falls, he will not be hurled headlong
because .. the Lord is the One who holds his hand
Being held by God’s hand is a wonderful theme thruout the Bible turn with me to John 10:24-30 for an example
24) the Jews then gathered around Him / Jesus & were saying to Him .. how long will You keep us in suspense .. if You are the Christ .. tell us plainly
25) Jesus answered them I told you & you do not believe .. the works that I do in My Father’s name these testify of Me
26) but you do not believe because you are not of My sheep
27) My sheep hear My voice & I know them .. & they follow Me
28) & I give eternal life to them & they will never perish & no one will snatch them out of My hand
29) My Father .. who has given them to Me is greater than all .. & no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand
30) I & the Father are one
I must teach us this before we go any further
for it is a hard lesson that God teaches here but none the less .. a lesson of great imp
As we read thru Ch 8 make sure to notice the difficulty it took to recover lost ground
Within the life of every believer 30 min of disobedience can result in way too many years of misery
( lost ground .. is at times .. hard to recover )
Ask any preacher who is caught in a moment of digression / disobedience
if any lesson from this Ch is to be remembered it is just that .. sin carries with it terrible consequences / ie: jimmy swaggart
But also don’t forget what we read in v1
as Joshua once again hears the Lord say “do not fear or be dismayed”
( to every one of us I say ) the fear of the future & the discouragement over our past are reactions that often accompany failure depression / loneliness / doubts
We look back & remember the mistakes that we made in our past & then .. we look ahead & wonder …
is there any future for people who fail so frequently & foolishly as we do [2]
( & so our Lord says to Joshua & us )
understanding our hearts & our thoughts
“do not fear or be dismayed”
( & like everything to a true believer ) the only real answer & true confidence in our moments of discouragement / fears comes thru hearing & believing .. God’s Word [3]
Look .. God always has a plan for His people & the only way for us to have victory is to obey His instructions
In Joshua’s 1st attack on Ai he followed the advice of his spies & used only part of the army .. but in v1 God’s plan was .. “take all the people of war”
The Lord also told Joshua to use an ambush & take advantage of Ai self-confidence ( v2-29 ) stemming from Israel’s 1st defeat ( 7:1–5 ) where they chased Israel away in retreat
But watch the sadness of this next statement as God says to Joshua & Israel …
giving Israel the right to claim all the spoils ( what is the sadness you say )
Look .. had Achan waited only a few days he could have picked up all the wealth that he ever wanted or needed
God always gives His best to those who leave the choice & results up to Him .. & wait upon His timing
( See: 1 Pet 5: 6-7 )
1 Peter 5:6-7
6) humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God .. that He may exalt you at the proper time
7) casting all your anxiety / cares on Him .. ( why ) because He cares for you
People .. the lesson is clear when we run ahead of the Lord we can rob ourselves of blessings that we cannot see or imagine in our future ( that God has in store for us ) & we can hurt ourselves & others in our going ahead of God [4]
In v2-29 God gives His plan to Joshua which is opposite of what Joshua did ( obviously God wanted to use all the people )
We learn from this episode a great spiritual lesson or two
1st of all .. there must be a recognition of the enemy & its potential & also our own weaknesses & strengths
The primarily reason for the defeat in Ai was Israel’s dependence & overconfidence in their own ability [5]
( remember the spies said to Joshua )
( 7:3 ) “… do not let all the people go up only about 2 or 3,000 men need go up to Ai do not make all the people toil up .. they are few”
According to v17 Bethel was also involved & defeated as well as Ai ( why they are there .. we are not told ) [6]
But we are told that God told Joshua in v18 to lift his spear as a signal for Israel to enter Ai & capture it .. & burn it down
the men of Ai & Bethel were trapped & it was then a simple matter for the army of Israel to destroy them
& much like Moses at the battle vs Amalek in Ex 17:8–16 where Aaron & Hur held up Moses arms while Joshua & Israel prevailed …
so Joshua held up his spear until .. the victory was won ( v26 ) [7]
I want you to know something so important & wrongly thought about our God of the O.T.
Do not ever think that this battle & victory “was the slaughter of innocent people” but it was clearly .. the judgment of God against an evil society that had long resisted His grace & truth [8]
v29 he / Joshua hanged the king of Ai on a tree until evening & at sunset Joshua gave command & they took his body down from the tree & threw it at the entrance of the city gate & raised over it a great heap of stones that stands to this day
Deut 21:22-23
22) if a man has committed a sin worthy of death & he is put to death & you hang him on a tree
23) his corpse shall not hang all night on the tree but you shall surely bury him on the same day ( for he who is hanged is accursed of God ) so that you do not defile your land which the Lord your God gives you as an inheritance
The previous heap of stones we saw built in Gilgal were stones of defeat .. due to Achan sin ( 7:25–26 )
25) Joshua said .. why have you troubled us the Lord will trouble you this day & all Israel stoned them with stones & they burned them with fire after they had stoned them with stones
26) they raised over him a great heap of stones that stands to this day & the Lord turned from the fierceness of His anger .. therefore the name of that place has been called the valley of Achor ( or trouble ) .. to this day
but this heap of stones in Ai was a memorial of Israel’s victory over their enemy
& so we see that obeying the Word of the Lord brings victory .. out of mistakes [9]
And as the Lord began this message so we close with this thought …
no matter what mistakes we make the worst mistake of all is when we have fallen .. & / or sinned we don’t get up / cleanse ourselves & try again ( you see ) .. the victorious Christian life is nothing .. if it isn’t a series of new beginnings [10]
So get up .. don’t allow satan to bring you to a place of fear / disappointments / doubts / failure
( get up you born again warrior )
Verses:
Ps 37:23-24
John 10:24-30
1 Pet 5:6-7
Ex 17:8-16
Deut 21:22-23
----
[1]Wiersbe, W. W. (1996, c1993). Be strong (Jos 8:1). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[2]Wiersbe, W. W. (1996, c1993). Be strong (Jos 8:1). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[3]Wiersbe, W. W. (1996, c1993). Be strong (Jos 8:1). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[4]Wiersbe, W. W. (1996, c1993). Be strong (Jos 8:1). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[5]McGee, J. V. (1997, c1981). Thru the Bible commentary. Based on the Thru the Bible radio program. (electronic ed.) (2:21). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.
[6]Wiersbe, W. W. (1996, c1993). Be strong (Jos 8:14). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[7]Wiersbe, W. W. (1996, c1993). Be strong (Jos 8:14). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[8]Wiersbe, W. W. (1996, c1993). Be strong (Jos 8:14). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[9]Wiersbe, W. W. (1996, c1993). Be strong (Jos 8:14). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[10]Wiersbe, W. W. (1996, c1993). Be strong (Jos 8:1). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
