Joshua 7:16-21 – Making sure our heart is in the right place

Joshua was a diligent man, who took his God-given assignments seriously. He was an early riser as evident by the number of times this book tells us that he “rose early in the morning.”  We first encounter this phrase in Joshua 3:1 while they were camped in Shittim waiting to cross the Jordan. Then again in Joshua 6:12 as he garnered the people to march around the city of Jericho. Here in Joshua 7:14, this phrase popped up again as he rose early to deal with Achan, who caused them this needless defeat at Ai. We will see the phrase again in Joshua 8:10 where he led the people into battle against Ai after he had dealt with the root cause of their defeat. We may not think much of such a phrase but it underscores the fact that Joshua was deeply entrenched in the task he was assigned to do. This tells us that he had a deep desire when it came to honoring the Lord in all his undertakings. He was a man whose one deep passion was to see the Lord’s name vindicated and the nation restored to honor God. From him, we learn that our eagerness in a task is an indication of the urgency and importance we attach to our God-given assignment.   

Notice that up to this point, Achan remained very quiet. How much easier it would have been had he admitted to the guilt immediately after their defeat at Ai. But he did not. This passage accentuates the truth that with the Lord there is no way a sin can be concealed forever. There is no hidden sin that can remain hidden forever. Again, we heed the warning of Numbers 32:23 that says: “Be sure your sin will find you out.”  Why did Achan not admit to the guilt earlier? Why did he allow the whole camp to go through so much just to identify him? We can only postulate the reasons for his nonchalance. His conscience was seared. His unconscionable act was a sheer case of unbelief. It was a reflection of a heart that was totally devoid of the fear of the Lord. He didn’t believe that God meant what He said when He pronounced the ban. Similarly, every time we commit a sin, we are in effect showing that we have no regard for God. It is one thing to unknowingly commit a wrong, but it is quite another to blatantly disobey God’s specific instruction. We must learn to be quick to repent of our sin. Covering sin is like trying to wrap fire with paper. It’s an impossibility. So, we must not wait until a sin grows into an unmanageable proportion before we will act and repent. Our Lord Himself had warned us in Luke 12:2 that “There is nothing covered that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known.”

Joshua 7:17-18 tell us that nothing is hidden from the eye of God. So, Achan was identified as the culprit. The way Joshua went about extracting a confession from him shows us that owning up to one’s fault and honestly confessing it can be a God-honoring thing. We discredit God when we refuse to confess to our wrong. Confession of a wrong is a way of acknowledging God’s sovereignty over our lives and that He has the right to our life, and we are willing to live in subjection to His reign. Hence, we see every godly man in the Bible was quick to confess and acknowledge their flaws. God will always reciprocate an honest and sincere repentance. He will help such a person back to the path He has charted for him. That is God’s promise to us in the New Covenant. Our sin He will remember no more. Our guilt and condemnation took place at Calvary. So, John assures us that “If we confess our sin, God is faithful and just and will forgive our sin and cleanse us from our unrighteousness.”  Then why was Achan dealt with so severely? Bear in mind that his confession was wrung out of him. True confession is always accompanied by a broken heart that sincerely acknowledges one’s flaw. That person realizes how much he had hurt God and turn in contrition. This was not seen in Achan’s situation. In all probability, his was more a remorse than a repentance. Hence, he was dealt with severely.      

From the account of the sin of Achan, we are given a warning concerning greed and what it can do to a person. Greed has a way that causes us to break faith with God. We must all be wary of greed. It may be enticing, but we should learn not to focus on it. If we do, we will become attracted to it. Just remember the proverb that tells us “all that glitters is not gold.” In other words, there is always a catch to it. By giving in to any enticement we will entertain that thought that God has short-changed us and that we cannot enjoy the simple thing He has already provided for us. We must be careful with the sin of covetousness. The moment we covet and unlawfully go for things that God has not intended for us, we entertain sin that will bring with it all its anxiety. We must keep our heart rightly placed. For where our heart is there will our treasure be.

Joshua 7:10-15 – Sin must be swiftly dealt with

When a ship is sinking, it is usually not caused by the water outside of it but the water within it. Similarly, Israel’s defeat at Ai was not caused by something outside of them but something within them. God now revealed to them the cause of their sinking ship. Someone had violated the ban God had placed on the spoils of the war. God specifically told them not to keep any gold or silver or articles of bronze or iron. Everything they would gather from Ai belonged to the Lord. However, Joshua 7:1 tells us that “…Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, from the tribe of Judah, took some of the things under the ban, therefore the anger of the Lord burned against the sons of Israel.”

Joshua and the people tried to figure out what went wrong with them. It was something that God knew exactly. It is He who had formed men and He knew the heart of men all along. Nothing we do or will ever do escapes His sight. So, he revealed to Joshua that there was sin in the camp. Sin, when present always brings about a negative effect on life. It always brings defeat and must be dealt with swiftly and definitively. Like yeast, a little of it will cause a whole lump of dole to rise and puff up. These verses show us what sin is like. And it will do us well to take note of them so that we will not allow it to do us in.  

Verse 11 tells us that God knows all about sin. Achan must have thought the thing he had secretly taken from the spoil gathered from the conquest of Jericho was unknown to anyone. He overlooked the fact that nothing is hidden from the eye of God. Hebrews 4:13 tells us that, “…there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.” God knows and sees everything. This verse also strongly suggests that God hates sins because it breaks trust with Him. The Lord wants to help us to be rid of sin just as he wanted to help Israel rid of sin. Yet they chose to embrace it. We cannot love the world and love God at the same time. Jesus said that we can never serve two masters. Between obeying God wholeheartedly or embracing sin passionately, we can only choose one. There is no way we can have both and yet remain neutral.    

Verses 11-12 show us that the sin was not confined to the one who violated the instruction of God. Sin is not only invasive it is also pervasive. It affected the whole camp of Israel. Sin must not be trifled with. One hidden sin by a member always affects the whole family. As a spiritual family, we do not live in isolation. A sin within the church left undealt with has the potential to drastically lower the spiritual temperature of the whole church. Every responsible member of the church must know the severity of harboring sin. Besides, we also need to know that sin always hinders our corporate progress in God. It does not just affect the individual who commits it but also affects the rest of the family. Verse 13 strongly suggests that all sin must be dealt with. We either grit our teeth and deal with it or God will have to painfully take care of it. Sin is offensive and it hurts the heart of God. We either deal with it or be done in by it.

Keeping oneself accountable before God is a responsibility each one of us in the spiritual family has to take seriously. We must know that we are not our own, we belong to the body of Christ. In sinning, a person has unwittingly assisted the devil in his scheme to devastate the fellowship of God.  We do well to take heed to Paul’s timely advice, recorded in his first letter to the Corinthians. He said, “Therefore let him who thinks he stands, take heed that he does not fall” (1 Corinthians 10:12).

Joshua 7:6-9 – What to do when things go wrong

There was probably no one who could feel the depth of Joshua’s pain. He came this far, was obedient to the command of God yet suffered such a tragedy. Never had he felt so humiliated. It was a painful moment for him, more so than anyone in Israel. He must have felt let down. Here we see Joshua before the Lord shattered and torn. Both he and the elders of Israel went into mourning putting dust over their heads. He uttered to the Lord out of a broken heart. To some extent, he was angry with the Lord and brought an accusation against Him.

 

Joshua was soon to learn that seeking and praying to God was the step in the right direction. It could certainly open the way to discover the fault line of their tragedy. He must have wondered what went wrong. Why were they so powerless even in battling so small a village?  It was pointless to blame God yet Joshua did. We must learn from his mistake and not engage in the blame game when things go wrong for us. We should seek the Lord by all means. But be aware that no amount of prayer would help if we do not identify the root cause of the problem and rectify it. When things go wrong, or when a tragedy strikes, the best cause of action is to seek the Lord, analyze where we have stumbled, repent and seek to make the necessary alignment. It will do us well to conduct a self-examination and identify the root of the problem and make the needful correction. That was precisely what Joshua did in Joshua 7:6-9.

 

The things we read in this account did show us what is the one definite thing that we must do, as well as one thing we must not do, when we encounter a tragedy in life. Like Joshua, we must turn humbly to God and repent and plead with Him to show us where we have gone wrong. This was what Joshua did. He rent his clothes and fell upon his face before the Ark. This was an act of humility before the presence of God. In his failure to seek the Lord before the attack of Ai, and his heeding the advice of the spies to send only 3,000 men to battle it, he had shown a degree of pride. And that must be dealt with.  

 

And what we must not do is this: never blame the Lord for any difficult time we encounter in life. Verse 7 tells us that he blamed God saying, “Alas, O Lord God, why did You ever bring these people over the Jordan, only to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us? If only we had been willing to dwell beyond the Jordan!” Like Joshua, we can develop the tendency to blame God for our personal failure too. People do have unwholesome thought concerning the intention of God when a thing goes wrong. We must avoid such thoughts because God is never the author of evil. Let us heed the warning of James1:13-15. We are told that when facing a temptation, we are not to say, “’I am being tempted by God’; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death”. Succumbing to temptation is a result of one acting in the flesh. So never, never blame God.

 

Perhaps the one redeeming act of Joshua here was that he was still concerned for the name of God. He did not want God’s name to be dragged through the mud because of their failure. This teaches us to always seek to preserve the honor of God. And the best way to do that is to think before we act. Remember, if we will not take the time to do it right the first time, we will always need to find the time to do it again. That will slow our progress. So, let us seek to do it right all the time, every time. 

Joshua 7:1-5 – Don’t take victory for granted

The conquest of Jericho was certainly wonderful. Joshua, we discovered, was not only a great leader but also a military strategist. He had shown great eagerness to press on to conquer the rest of Canaan. His strategy was to dissect the land in the middle, separating it into two halves – the north and the south. His first campaign was then to move up north, conquer it, before moving south to take it. However, he was soon to discover that not all the enemies he had to face would be hiding and cowering behind walled cities. He soon realized that the road to complete victory was also paved with hindrances and setbacks. Like him, we who wish to advance in the journey of life must also know that the road to complete victory is not automatic. Living an overcoming life demands that we take positive steps to cope with hindrances and setbacks aimed at retarding our walk and hinder our progress.

At this point, the whole of Israel was still at Jericho. We see no indication that Joshua made any inquiry of the Lord concerning what his next step should be. He sent spies to reconnaissance Ai, a little insignificant village which they had underestimated. The spies returned with the suggestion that they need not send an entire army for so small a place. Their estimate was that two to three thousand men would be sufficient to take Ai.  Taking up their suggestion, Joshua only sent 3,000 men to claim that village but they were routed. This was their first defeat in Canaan. Thirty-six of the children of Israel were struck down. The whole camp became discouraged and their heart melted.  

There are two lessons we can learn from Israel’s first defeat in the promised land. Firstly, we learn that there is a necessity to seek the mind of God in our spiritual expedition. We see no indication that Joshua consulted the Lord on what he should do before he sent the 3,000 men to confront Ai. Seeking the direction of God in any undertaking is needful if we desire success. Secondly, we must know that success in life takes a series of overcoming. Winning one battle should not be equated to winning the whole war. They could have allowed their recent victory over Jericho to undermine their necessity to show care in the future undertaking. Giving thanks for every success is needful but careful planning for every endeavor is just as needful. We must not take for granted that success will be automatic because of one victory. From Joshua’s first defeat in Canaan, we must learn not to take things for granted. We must not rest on the laurel of our past success. Every endeavor in life has to be approached with proper estimation and appreciation of the situation. Let us not be blindsided by an overconfidence till we are left overlooking the potential dangers that may be looming. Seeking the Lord’s direction is paramount in every step that we take.     

Joshua 6:26-7:1 – Sin is invasive

The success at Jericho was supposed to have started a string of victories. At least this was what the children of Israel thought since God had promised to be with them. Even such a formidable city like Jericho, which was so well fortified could not withstand against Israel. Immediately after the victory, Joshua was quick to make them pledge that they would not try to refortify the city. Anyone who violates the oath would suffer the loss of both his first and last born. A person attempting to rebuild the city would have to do so against the will of God. And just as the Lord had promised that He would be with Joshua, He did. Soon Joshua was well acknowledged by everyone as the leader and his fame went before him far and wide.

However, not everything was well as thought. The first word "but" in Joshua 7:1 tells us that something was brewing underneath the surface. This connective “but” shows a contrasting situation. They should have grown from strength to strength and no one would be able to stand against them just as the Lord had promised. But unknown to them, there was a man by the name of Achan who had secretly violated the commandment of the Lord. Little did they know that this renegade had disobeyed and kept something from the ban for himself. Remember in Joshua 6:17-18, they were specifically told that the city would be under a ban and they were not to take anything or preserve anyone except for Rahab and her family. They were told not to covet the silver nor the gold, not even the articles of bronze or iron. Everything was placed under a ban and should belong to God. No one should attempt to keep anything for himself. So, Joshua 6:21 says the people utterly destroyed “…everything in the city, both man and woman, young and old, and ox and sheep and donkey, with the edge of the sword.”  But Joshua 7:1 tells us something was wrong. God was upset with the people. What they didn’t know was that someone in the midst had put the entire nation in jeopardy.  

This record of the sin of Achan underscores a divine principle as a warning to the church. As a family, the consequence of our wrong is never a private matter. Because we are connected to each other. Like it or not, the whole family will be implicated by one member’s sin. The person who sins becomes that weak link in the fellowship and opens the whole family to the attack of the enemy. First Corinthians 12:26 tells us that the flaw of one member of the body affects the entire family. It behooves us as a responsible member of the family to be considerate because what we do affects the whole spiritual family. All of us should keep a short account with the Lord. The sin we commit may seem well covered, but it has a way to be exposed.    

We need to be aware that the consequence of sin is not just confined to the person who sins. It will impact the lives of the people around him or her as well. No matter how much we refuse to admit, all of us are guilty of the sin of Achan at some point in life. We need to know that there is no way we can totally hide or cover our sin. We must deal with it or risk affecting the whole body. Remember what Moses said in Numbers 32:23: “Be sure your sin will find you out.” So, please keep short accounts with God!     

Joshua 6:22-25 – Keeping and living the promise

Integrity demands that we keep our promises. God expects us to be people of integrity, hence keeping our promises is important. We must keep the promises we make to God but we must also keep promises made to others. This principle is underscored by the record of Joshua 6:22-25. Remember how Rahab risked her life to protect the two spies who went into Canaan to recce the land. Knowing that it was a matter of time that the city would fall into the hand of Israel, she made them promise to preserve her life and that of her family members if she preserved theirs. The spies agreed with a condition that she must tie a scarlet cord on the roof of her house on the day that they would come and conquer the land. That was exactly what she did. Many conjectured that the red scarlet cord foreshadows the blood of Christ that saves us. It is true that forgiveness and redemption of our sin are only secured through the precious blood of Christ. As many as receive Him to them He gives the power to be children of God. We can count on God to keep His promise.

Now that the wall of Jericho had fallen. The words given by the spies to Rahab had to be kept. Joshua assigned the two spies who entered into the agreement with her to look into the matter. Apparently, a part of the wall where Rahab’s house was located was left standing. She and her family were then brought to safety. The promise made to her was kept. And we are told that at the time of the writing of this book, she was still living. Because she and her family were Gentiles, they were made to live outside the camp of Israel for a season. This was stipulated in Leviticus 13:45 and Deuteronomy 23:3. However, we know that God’s grace was richly extended to her and her name was grafted into the ancestry of David, through whose line our Lord came.    

We can deduce a few important lessons for our application from this account. Firstly, we must be people whose word is our bond. We become trustworthy people when we keep our word and fulfill the promises we make. Besides, as believers, we represent God. How do we expect people to trust God when we, His representatives, fail to keep ours? Secondly, the scarlet cord is a foreshadow of the blood of Christ. We surmise that there is no other name given under heaven where we can find redemption, the forgiveness of our sin. If we desire to be the recipients of the promises of God, we must align ourselves with God and His people. Thirdly, the grace of God is no respecter of person. Like Rahab, our past may be sordid, but when we allow Christ to do His abiding work, we will become a candidate for His glorious end. Fourthly, to be truly sanctified, we need to live a totally set apart life. Just like Rahab and her family who stay outside the camp, sanctification is required so that we get ready for the transforming grace of God to release its full impact. We live a life set apart so that we may prove the effectiveness of the will of God for our life.                 

Joshua 6:6-21 – Four needful elements to victory

Joshua deeply absorbed the instruction of the Lord. He knew with deep conviction that only in total surrender would victory be experienced. As a godly and responsible leader, he was determined to go through with God’s plan. He did not try to take matters into his own hand and attempt to fight his way through. Instead, he carried out God’s instructions to the very letter. From how he executed the unusual plan that God had given him, we glean some elements for ourselves if we are to experience personal success in our own godly endeavors.    

Firstly, Joshua showed determination and tenacity to follow God to every detail of His word. In other words, he simply obeyed everything expected of him. God instructed them to go around the city once a day for six days. Seven priests were assigned to lead the entourage, bearing and blowing ram horns. These were followed by armed men in front of the Ark, and rear guards following after it. The rest of the people were told to follow after quietly. They were told not to say a word till the seventh round on the seventh day. It was then that they would be commanded to shout.  Doing things God’s way, no matter how illogical it may seem, always brings victory. People would often run everywhere seeking all kinds of new programs hoping to achieve success. Yet what is required of us is simply to walk obediently, patiently, consistently, humbly and determinedly with God in the things He had revealed to us. We recall the instruction given in Colossians 2:6-7. It is to “…walk in Him (the Lord)…being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you (we) were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude.” The word “walk” is a very consistent activity. Many of us may not be able to cover much ground running, but we can cover a great distance when we maintain a consistent and determined walk.

Secondly, we must maintain a dedicated walk. Bear in mind that they had to walk around the city once daily. Nothing happened for six days. Even when they walked for six rounds on the seventh day, still nothing happened. When nothing seems to happen in our life, we all do have the tendency to try and seek new methods and try new ways. Imagine if they had given up the third or fourth or fifth day when nothing happened, they would not have experienced the victory they had. They could have given up on the sixth round of the seventh day, they would still experience nothing. It was not until they dedicated themselves to complete all that they were instructed to do, then did the wall come crumbling down. Like them, if we are to experience success in our walk, we need to be dedicated and persistent, and consistent to what we were told to the very end. To do so requires dedication. So we need not only determination but also dedication.

Thirdly, to experience success, we need to destroy especially those things that will be a hindrance to our victory. The instruction of Joshua was to destroy everything and everyone, except for Rahab and her family members. They must utterly destroy everything in the city, both man and woman, young and old, and ox and sheep and donkey, with the edge of the sword. The point is this, if they didn’t, those people would be a negative influence to their life. When we have established the strongholds in our lives, we must eradicate them leaving no trace for our past to be resurrected. When we leave some of our past that need to be eradicated into our life, we have brought needless excess baggage into our spiritual journey that could hinder our walk.

Fourthly, we need to deal with our desires. God knew the tendency the people had. He knew they could be enticed by the gold, silver and precious things of that cursed city. They might be tempted to become covetous and keep a portion of it for themselves. Everything was placed under a ban. It was to be wholly dedicated to the Lord. No one was to keep a part of it or they would be under a curse. God wants us to deal with our greed and desires in life. No matter how attractive the material things of the world may seem, we must not be enticed by them. First John 2:15-16, instruct us not to “…love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life is not from the Father, but is from the world.”

From the account given in these verses, we learn how to journey successfully with God. We need to do so with determination and dedication. We also need to destroy anything that stands in our way that can hinder our progress with God. And finally, we must also deal with our earthly desires that can entice us and deviate our attention from God. Remember the things that we love and hold dear to our hearts are just borrowed. They are not ours at all. Jesus grants them to us to brighten our life. We must roll back the curtains of our memory every now and then, and consider where God has brought us from and where we could have been. And be reminded that it’s only in Christ alone that victory is truly secured. Thanks be to God!