THE ERRORS OF ACHAN- PART 3
JOSHUA 7:1, 20-26
God is a faithful God but He hates one thing. It is the lifestyle of Sin. This three letter words tie the hands of God. It makes Him to be in opposition against one He should protect. It makes one beatable. Once sin is dealt with, victory and lasting result is guaranteed. It brings trouble and must not be allowed in the camp of any child of God or children of God. This was seen in the life of the Israelites when a man, violated the commandment of God and a nation of few people defeated them.
JOSHUA 7:1, 20-26
“But the children of Israel committed a trespass in the devoted thing; for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took of the devoted thing: and the anger of Jehovah was kindled against the children of Israel”
“And Achan answered Joshua, and said, Of a truth I have sinned against Jehovah, the God of Israel, and thus and thus have I done:
when I saw among the spoil a goodly Babylonish mantle, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold of fifty shekels weight, then I coveted them, and took them; and, behold, they are hid in the earth in the midst of my tent, and the silver under it. So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran unto the tent; and, behold, it was hid in his tent, and the silver under it. And they took them from the midst of the tent, and brought them unto Joshua, and unto all the children of Israel; and they laid them down before Jehovah. And Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver, and the mantle, and the wedge of gold, and his sons, and his daughters, and his oxen, and his asses, and his sheep, and his tent, and all that he had: and they brought them up unto the valley of Achor. And Joshua said, Why hast thou troubled us? Jehovah shall trouble thee this day. And all Israel stoned him with stones; and they burned them with fire, and stoned them with stones. And they raised over him a great heap of stones, unto this day; and Jehovah turned from the fierceness of his anger. Wherefore the name of that place was called, The valley of Achor, unto this day”
The Israel nation defeated Jericho and had a little nation called Ai to conquer as they are heading to the promised land. After the conquest of Jericho, God gave out a commandment to obey- but it was violated by one man called Achan. The Lord was with Joshua and his fame was noised through all that country, so the forgoing chapter ends, and it left no room to doubt but that he would go on as he had begun conquering and to conquer. He did right and observed his orders in everything. But the children of Isreal committed a tresspass, and so set God against them, and then even Joshua’s name and fame, his wisdom and courage, could do them no service. ‘Achan’, in the camp must be dealt with.
THE ACHAN'S SLIPPERY SLOPE OF SIN.
The Achan's actual stealing of those items was but the culmination of a process of sin as was seen from his own words in vs 20,21
Through his acts in verses 20-21, you see his movement towards the way of iniquity and punishment.
“ And Achan answered Joshua, and said, Of a truth I have sinned against Jehovah, the God of Israel, and thus and thus have I done:
when I saw among the spoil a goodly Babylonish mantle, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold of fifty shekels weight, then I coveted them, and took them; and, behold, they are hid in the earth in the midst of my tent, and the silver under it”
(a) “I saw”
(b) “I covet”
(c) “I took”
(d) “I hid”
It’s only the power of God that can set one free from these dangerous acts. The step brought greater damnation and punishment to Achan and his household.
1.The Serious look of the Eye ( The Stare ) vs 21
The way you control your eyes determines how far you can go
All which glitters is not gold.
This brought the fall of;
a. Eve at the garden- (Genesis 3:6)
b. The finest king, David on top of his house- (2 Samuel 11:2)
c. The prodigal son, already far before his leg took him to a far country (Luke 15:13)
This was why Job made a covenant with his eyes (Job 31:1)
Seeing things first is not sin, but the development of unholy interest.
God registers every seeings and knows which one is 'which'.
Beware of the second glance and continuous gaze.
It sets the wheels of temptation in motion.
Sin begins with a look. (atimes consummating in a lust- Matthew 5:28, Romans 6:12)
THE THERAPY;
a. Make a covenant with your eyes
b. Be disciplined
c. Give some enticing objects its proper place ( gadgets & computers)
d. Be determined to stand
e. Monitor your association
f. Engage yourself with meaningful things or work.
2. The Lust of the Heart (The Avarice) vs 21
Covetousness is going for what belongs to another which is not legitimately entitled . It maybe position or possession.
It is an extreme greed for something or an envious eagerness to possess something.
It is a powerful crave for something one do not possess.
It is a mind condition
‘How would it look like to own it all?
The message which goes from the eyes to the heart.
It controls affections & desires. It is a soul destroyer.
It makes the Word of God ineffective-
(Jesus in the parable of the Sower, the seed and the soil)
(Psalm 119:36, Proverb 28:16, Mark 7:22, Luke 12:15, 1 Corinthians 6:10.Colossians 3:5)
It comes by lusting - James 1:14
This was the undoing of;
a. First Parents at the garden(Genesis 3:6)
b. The first king of Israel in the house of Agag (1 Samuel 15:21-23)
c. Ahab for Naboth's vineyard (1 Kings 21:1-19)
THE THERAPY
a. Be determined and fight it
b. Be self - controlled
c. Live contently
d. Yield yourself to the Holy Spirit & Be disciplined
e. Guard your heart with all diligence.
3. The Consent of the Will ( His Catch) vs 21
“I saw” - Temptation through the eyes
“I coveted” - the stirring of sinful desires of the heart
“I took” - Now the will, that which moves one to act in a given way.
There is now the agreement with the heart – “to take”
It’s all about conceiving & yielding - Romans 6:13,16
Achan allowed his desire for that which he saw to exert such an influence upon his will and he did everything to satisfy that inner desire. There was a consent to satisfy an urge or a crave.
The process;
a. Chased away our first parents from Eden (Genesis 3:23-24)
b. Abased King David in front of his servant, Uriah( 2 Samuel 11:12-13
c. Made a Bishop lose his position - Judas Iscariot (Acts 1:16-20)
THE THERAPY;
a. Fill your mind with God’s Word always
b. Remember his commandment at any particular stage or time
c. Suffocate sinful desires by complete discipline
d. Refuse to feed your desires and abort it before it develops
e. Always pray for Divine strength to overcome
4. The covering of Iniquity (His Guile) vs 21
Why did he hid the material - not to be seen?
What one hids may hide him soon
He knew that what he did was wrong. So, he hid it.
One should always recognise the power of the inner conscience – and that’s our secret police officer.(1 Timothy 1:19)
A stolen material destroys reputation
We saw;
a, A self -deception
b .A struggle
c. A bondage- not free at all
d. A cover-up. ( Nobody will know)
From covetousness, it advanced to theft, graduate to deceit and then the pronouncement of a punishment. (Proverb 28:13)
This was the undoing of;
a. Gehazi (2 Kings 5:25)
b. Cain (Genesis 4:9)
c. David (2 Samuel 12:5)
d. Ananias & Sapphira (Acts 5:8)
e. Rachael (Genesis 31:35)
THE THERAPY
a. Do not give Satan a chance
b. Do not cover any sin
c. Be open and do it fast
d. Confess any sin and forsake it.
e. Depend on the grace of God to stand always
