JOSHUA 8 - ACTS 242 NOTES

Intro:

Chp. 8 is dealing with the “Process of Regaining Lost Ground”

Israel has experienced a terrible defeat at the hand of AI because of the failure of the people.

Joshua failed because of his self confidence and Pride. He failed to seek out the Lord and to see how he should attack the City of AI.

2. Achan failed because he brought sin into the camp. He took the spoils of Jericho that were meant to be for the Lord. He disobeyed God.

because of the defeat, the people now had to go through the process of regaining the lost ground.

Alan Redepath

“ If you were to sit down alone with your bible and reflect on that record, I believe you would find yourself indelibly impressed with the fact that the recovery of lost ground in Christian experience is the most difficult problem of all. Thirty minutes of willful disobedience in the life of a child of God has often resulted in thirty years of being out of blessing”.

a moment of weakness will cost us a lifetime of regret. The perfect example was David who in a moment of letting his guard down, he started going down a road that left him making terrible decisions and it cost him dearly.

“ sin will take you farther than you wanted to go, it will keep you longer than you wanted to stay, and it will cost you more than you wanted to pay”

Process of Regaining Lost Ground

There has to be Confession ( Josh. 7:20)

1 John 1:9 NKJV

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

2. There has to be a removal of the accursed things (Josh. 7:13, 15)

the people were called to “sanctify” themselves , or to separate themselves .

3. There will be Consequences and Discipline ( Josh. 7:24-25)

the consequences was that 36 men died in battle as a result of the sin.

the discipline was that they had to put away Achan and his family. There was dead that came to Achan and his family as a result of their sin. There will always be consequences and discipline to our sins.

4. There has to be a getting back in the game (Josh. 8:1)

God told Joshua to “Arise, go to Ai”

God was calling Joshua back into the game. He was calling him to keep pressing forward to accomplish what God had called him to do.

God would tell Joshua “ Do not be afraid, nor dismayed” . This gives us insight that Joshua was fearful and possibly timid to get back to doing what God had called him to.

it is interesting that Satan used pride, self confidence and disobedience to stop Israel in their tracks. This was a successful attack spiritually that kept Israel and Joshua away from fulfilling God’s calling on their lives.

Now we see Satan shift gears and it is possible that he was using fear as a means to accomplish the same goal, using fear in Joshua’s life to keep him from fulfilling God’s calling on his life .

Transition

fear is a tactic that Satan uses in the lives of individuals who have fallen to keep them from getting up and getting back in the game

fear of failing again, fear of what people will say about us, fear of failing God again. All these things will play out in the mind and heart of an individual who is trying to get back in line with God’s will.

There has to be a battling through the fear. Josh. 1:8-9, God told Joshua not to be afraid , but instead to find courage within the word of God and within the presence of God, these are the same principals that are needed for us in battling the fear.

Insight (v2)

Joshua is told by the Lord that the cattle and the spoils of Ai shall be there booty. Here God brings the blessing of the spoils.

“ The blessing of the spoils would come after their obedience was expressed.”

5. There has to be Complete Dependence on the Lord (Josh. 8: 3-29)

in the battle we see a different commander of the army.

in chp. 7 we see Joshua take up 3,000 men. Here in chp. 8 we see Joshua take up 30,000 men, 10 x the amount as before.

but you also see something else in Joshua . He is leaning on the direction of the Lord for the victory in battle. You have a return to God’s method of victory .

A complete dependence on the leading and directing of the Lord.

A. A Dependence on The Method of Victory from the Lord (v.7)

“ for the Lord your God will deliver it into your hands”

B. A Dependence on The Judgement of the City from the Lord (v.8)

burn the city “ according to the commandment of the Lord”

C. A Dependence on The Timing of the Victory from the Lord (v.18)

“then the Lord said to Joshua, stretch the spear”

D. A Dependence on The reward from the Lord (v.27)

the livestock and the spoils they could take “according to the word of the Lord”

6. There has to be Complete Obedience to the Lord ( Josh. 8:30-35)

Disobedience was one of the main issues as to the fall of Israel. They are brought back to the place to learn the importance of obedience .

they come to a place of restoring the worship of God, in the presence of God as you see them build the altar and as they have the law written on the altar.

Redpath

“For the first time since they had crossed Jordan the people’s attention was drawn to an altar, the place of communion, the place of worship, and at the same time to the law of God written on it, the place of discipline, the place of obedience”

Law of Blessing and Cursing

Mt Ebal

was a deserted place. it was barren and rocky. The ground and the soil would be hard to bear any life in it, to bear fruit . This was the place symbolized what a life of disobedience was, a life that would be spiritually barren, hard soil of the heart, unable to produce life. Spiritually dead. Lack of blessing rather it was a place of cursing.

Mt. Gerizim

was the opposite. This was a place of life and trees and good soil. This was a pyshical sign of what a life of obedience was. a life that had good soil, a good heart to produce life, to bear fruit. it was a place of spiritual life or spiritual blessing.