Let us continue to worship our Creator God by listening and learning from His Word. Open your Bibles to Joshua 7…..
We noted last week from the first part of Joshua 7, some Israelites disobeyed God in Jericho and when they tried to win the City of Ai, 3000 Israelites were killed! God warned them not to take any of the devoted things from Jericho, otherwise destruction would come.
Read along with me now Joshua 7:10-26……
v10-12:
- God explains why they lost the battle at Ai
- God warns them but gives them another chance to continue His relationship with them
- God’s truth must be followed (Joshua 6:18….)
v13: The people had to consecrate themselves in preparation for the removal of sins; “consecrate” = sanctify, purify, to be cleansed, dedicate oneself to God
v14: God called everyone to present themselves before God; then God will reveal the sinning family
Now, God already knew who sinned! Isn’t interesting why God would require every tribe, every clan, every family, every person to present themselves to God. If you were one of the Israelites called to present yourself before God, how would you feel and what would you be thinking??
Why do you think God would call every person to present themselves before Him, when God already knows every heart??
It seemed God wanted every person to be accountable!
And so, v16: every tribe came forward before the Lord
v16-18: In the presence of all, God chose the tribe, the clan, the family, and the person guilty of sin!
Without reading v19 again, when Joshua found out who was guilty, how should have Joshua reacted??
Now look again at v19….. How did Joshua treat Achan??
v19: Joshua confronted Achan with the opportunity to repent!
v20-21: Achan confessed his sins and repented.
How do we know he repented??
Achan acknowledged he sinned against God and gave back everything he stole.
v22-26: Per God’s judgment, all Israel stoned and burned Achan, his sons and daughters, and all his belongings. How do we know it was God’s judgment? The Lord then turned from His fierce anger.
There was much pain caused by one sin: God was hurt. Joshua was frustrated and questioned God. All Israel had to face God and deal with the punishment of sin.
What can we say about God regarding this story??
What can we say about sin based on this story??
What else should we think about to apply to our lives??
What can we say about God regarding this story??
God is Holy but empowers people to be with Him. God desires to relate to people with His presence and instructions.
God is Holy and cannot have sin in His presence!
God gets hurt when people sin.
God is merciful and will provide a way to get back to Him.
What can we say about sin based on this story??
Sin is not following what God says.
Sin will bring suffering to the sinner and to associates.
Sin may be hidden from the public but God knows and will be dealt with.
Sin must be personally confessed to God and repented from to be forgiven.
What else should we think about to apply to our lives??
It is important to remember God’s instructions and obey them!
Achan and his family forgot or they knew and just disobeyed God’s Word and they paid the ultimate price with their lives.
Joshua forgot God’s Word and he was reprimanded!
Everyone is accountable to God!
