The Seriousness of Sin

The children of Israel experienced a great victory over Jericho, but their next battle met with stunning defeat, and Joshua wanted to quit. This is the same Joshua who had heard God say to him every place where you put your foot. I will give to you I gave you Jericho and I told you before he went up against Jericho that the city was yours. And I would go before you and Joshua in typical believer response is saying to God and what have you done for me lately… Familiar feeling for many of our faith can be so fragile a time.

One minor setback and we can lose our confidence in God's promises today on Renewing Your Mind. We returned to Dr. Darcy's groceries from the book of Joshua Emily will learn what it means to trust in God will also discover the consequences of trying to do it on our own. I once heard a psychologist makes a comment that the most fragile mechanism in the entire universe is the male ego that may be a bit of an exaggeration, but I'm afraid it carries all too much truth to it. If we want to see how fragile the male ego is all we have to do is read the seventh chapter of the book of Joshua 1.2 where we experience fragility is in the area of confidence and it's certainly not limited to, the male gender.

All of us as human beings know what it's like to be all filled with joy and elation and confidence, only to go through a radical mood swing and be plunged into despondency and fear and intimidation after the conquest of Jericho. You can imagine what the feelings were among the people of Israel that here God had delivered them in the supernatural and dramatic way have removed from their past. The most formidable obstacle to the conquest of Canaan. He had delivered on his promise that he would give to them every place where Joshua had set his foot and so you would think now that there would be nothing but elation and confidence among the troops and especially in the heart of Joshua. You think while the big task is over. It's all down hill from here but what transpires in chapter 7 is a major comeuppance for Joshua and for all of the people. I'm not going to start of verse one. Today I'm going to start at chapter 7 verse two Joshua sent men from Jericho to LAI, which is beside Bass Haven on the east side of Bethel and spoke to them saying go up and spiral out the country so the men went up and spied out a and they returned to Joshua and said to him, do not let all the people go up, but let about two or 3000 men go up and attack a I do not weary all the people there for the people of AI are few. So after this mission of spying the scouts come back and they say to Josh way. There's no sense sending our whole force up there.

This is a piece of cake.

This is a small little city not heavily fortified two or 3000 of our soldiers will be able to do the job with these no sense wearying the whole army. So this time the scouts are filled with confidence, how unlike the spies that Moses sent to spy out gain in the first place when they came back all terrified by the enemies. There and so we read in verse four of chapter 7. So about 3000 men went up from there. From the people but they fled from the men of AI and the men of AI struck down about 36 men, for they chase them from the gate as far as submarine and struck them down on the dissent.

Therefore, the hearts of the people melted and became like water okay. Joshua says through his troops go up there and take AI 3000 of them go up there and they are routed they are put to flight and the armies of AI pursue the Jews killing 36 of them and they come back to the camp.

Those who survive come back with their tails between their legs and now all of this confidence. All of this elation dissipates instantly and their hearts are cast down and they melt like water. What's Joshua's response will let's look in verse six. Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell to the earth on his face before the ark of the Lord until evening. He and the elders of Israel, and they put dust on their heads. They go through the ritual of morning and of grief. And Joshua said alas, Lord God, why have you brought this people over the Jordan and all, to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites to destroy us all that we had been content, and dwelt on the other side of the Jordan, oh Lord, what shall I say when Israel turns his back before its enemies for the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the land will hear it and cut off our name from the earth, then what will you do for your great name. Remember the Joshua was a student of Moses, and Moses was arguably the greatest leader in the entire Old Testament, but Moses also had his moments where he whined and complained and cursed the day of his birth and said to God, why have you made me in charge of all of these people. If you love me at all. You would've killed me, and he listened to the people say let's go back to Egypt. It was wonderful. Back in Egypt we enjoyed our lakes and our garlic's and now were in this place that were hungry all the time, and so on. The history of the wilderness experience is a history of grumbling, moaning malcontents, and it's that ragtag army of malcontents, the Joshua now takes command of and we see Joshua, the one who in the past is always been the optimist, the one who was courageous, the one who gave the good report of the nation. Now he's rending his garments and he's complaining before the Lord, saying, why did you bring us over the Jordan, why don't you just leave well enough alone wake up and happy living happily ever after living on the other side of the Jordan we wouldn't have to go up because now were humiliated and the news of this defeat is going to go all through the promised land and is going to give courage to the enemy armies so that they'll just come up and surround us and they'll beat us to death. This is the same Joshua who had heard God say to him every place where you put your foot.

I will give to you. I've already given this land to you I gave you Jericho and I told you before he went up against Jericho that the city was yours. And I would go before you and Joshua in typical believer response is saying to God and what have you done for me lately. His confidence in his face is so fragile that one minor setback 36 guys are killed, and he hasn't advanced party that is routed and he loses faith he loses his confidence and now he's in morning. Well, this seems like an extreme reaction. Let's think about it for a moment. Remember that God had promised victory in here promise doesn't come to pass. Joshua thought he understood the full measure of God's commitment the full measure of God's promise to him and to his armies and when this defeat took place at the hands of the small city of a at the hands of an enemy that the Jews should've been able run over without the help of God.

Now, even with God's promise. They suffer this humiliating defeat and now all of a sudden Josh was wondering was this an allusion was I hearing things.

This can't be true because God promised that we would not ever be defeated. And here we are being defeated and so would Joshua endorse here as we are told with his fasting and morning and seeking the face of God all day is a real crisis of faith.

If you want to read an example of the dark night of the soul among believers in Scripture here it is not. Remember I said when I started to read this narrative that I was going to start in chapter 7 adverse to not in verse one. I did that for a reason to hold back the obvious explanation for this humiliating defeat at AI. Let's go back now and look at chapter 7 verse one but the children of Israel committed a trespass regarding the accursed thing for Aiken, the son of Carmines, the son of Zeb died, the son of zero of the tribe of Judah took of the accursed thing so the anger of the Lord burned against the children of his. Yes, God promised them victory.

Yes, God promised them the whole of the land of Canaan, but he also commanded Joshua and his troops to scrupulous obedience to the terms of this conflict and we saw in our last lesson that God had instituted the ban against the Canaanites, meaning in this conquest of holy war, no personal or booty was to be taken by any of the soldiers and one man in the Army disobey Aiken succumbed to the temptation to line his own pockets with the spoils from the victory at Jericho and because of one man sin. God holds the whole nation of Israel accountable and were told that it is because of this trespass but God's anger is expressed against Israel, and it is God in his judgment, and in his providence that causes this defeat. I remember when God gave the promise of conquest. He also gave the command to consecrate themselves to the law of God to remember the terms of their covenant with them, so let's continue in this story. Verse 10 so the Lord said to Joshua, get up Joshua on his face, complaining and groaning and his lack of confidence in God's it get up. Why do you live thus on your face. Israel has sinned and they have also transgressed my covenant which I commanded them, for they have even taken some of the accursed things and have both stolen and deceived and they have also put it among their own stuff. Therefore the children of Israel could not stand before their enemies, but turned their backs before their enemies because they have become doomed to destruction.

Neither will I be with you anymore. Oh, stop right there. This is the same God who just little while earlier said I will be with you and I will never leave you nor forsake you. And now he sets the Joshua. I will be with you no more, but there's not. There is that the Chicago neither will I be with you anymore unless I want unless calls attention to a condition that God imposes upon Joshua and upon the nation.

My presence will not continue with you. Unless something takes place. What is the something that God requires. Unless you destroy the accursed from among you.

Unless you punish the person who violated the terms of this covenant and remove that person from your midst unless you purify the household of Israel.

I will be with you no more. Get up. He says in verse 13. Sanctify the people and say sanctify yourselves for tomorrow because thus says the Lord God of Israel, there is an accursed thing in your midst. It was real. You cannot stand before your enemies until you take away the accursed thing from among you in the morning, therefore you shall be brought according to your tribes, and shall be that the tribe which the Lord takes will come according to families and the families which the Lord takes or come by the households and so on.

So what God institutes here is an investigation where God commands each tribe send representatives. Many boils down to the family until finally it is boiled down to the person who was guilty of this transgression, and so we read in verse 16 so Joshua rose early in the morning and brought Israel by the tribes tribe of Judah was taken. He brought the clan of Judah took the family's designs and he brought the family that is all right's man by man and said I was taken.

Then he brought his household man by man, and Aiken, the son of, the son of Zeb died, the son of Sarah of the tribe of Judah is taken now. Joshua said to Aiken. My son, I beg you give glory to the Lord God of Israel and make confession to him and tell me what you have done and do not hide it from me spotlight now is on Aiken Joshua knows that Aiken is the guilty one. He confronts him and he says give glory to God and tell the truth I beg don't lie do not conceal make your confession and they can answer Joshua and said indeed, I have sinned against the Lord God of Israel and this is what I have done when I saw among the spoils, a beautiful Babylonian garment, 200 shekels of silver and a wedge of gold weighing 50 shekels, I coveted them and took them in there. They are hidden in the earth in the midst of my 10 with the silver under and then Joshua sent messengers and they went and investigated the story that Aiken had told and they discovered the things that had been hidden. Joshua says in verse 25. Why have you troubled us.

The Lord will trouble you this day, so all Israel stoned him with stones and they burnt them with fire.

After they had stone them with stones on Joshua Cook Aiken. The booty his sons his daughters. This auction is body sushi stoned to death and they raised over him, a great heap of stones still there to this day. So the Lord turn from the fierceness of his anger. Therefore, the name of that place is been called the Valley of a core to this day of the skirt was the blood of contemporary readers sit waiting. The guy was wrong.

He disobey the law of God, but is not God's response a bit harsh after all he owned up to. He confessed his sin. He told the truth he pled guilty and it's as if Joshua said thank you very much Aiken Caleb just wouldn't have a choice here because God said unless you kill him.

I will be with you no more. And so we see in this incident that God's promise to give the land to his people was not without obligations upon Joshua and his people that they had terms that they had to fulfill conditions they had to meet in the condition here was to maintain the ban and Aiken violated the terms of this covenant with God and serve God punished Aiken and God punished the nation now then God did deliver AI into the hands of the Jews, but not until this act of contrition had taken place. Now there's some things we have to be careful here we see the principal in the New Testament of excommunication where if a person within the church is guilty of gross and heinous sin and remains impenitent. It is the law of the new covenant that the person be removed from fellowship in the church not only for their well-being, but also for the purity of the church. Such was the case in the Corinthian community. When Paul commanded the removal of the incestuous man from the house of God and yet at the same time, there is the warning in the New Testament against precipitous action against people in the church because there's always going to be sin in the church and always tears growing along with the weight and we were warned not to try to go in there and just clear out all the tears for fear that would allot the week itself. That's why this kind of action is reserved for gross and heinous crimes by which the whole community is corrupted during the Reformation. 16th-century when the church was split asunder.

The question that the theologians faced was this what are the marks of the true church, and in essence the answer. The reformers gave was this, there are three marks of a true church. The gospel is truly preached. The sacraments are duly administered in the church exercises discipline elements not in passing, because we live in a time where church discipline has almost been completely lost in the life of the church, not the stone people and but this incident should serve as a reminder to us of how serious God takes your home is in that is sobering and it should cause us to stop and consider if there is compromise in our own lives and we allow the desire of the things of this world to distract us from God's purposes and commands were learning important lessons as we continue Dr. RC Sproul series on the book of Joshua if you'd like to continue your own study. We will send you all 10 messages for your gift of any amount to litigator ministries it's contained in a single MP3 CD you can give your gift online@renewingyourmind.org or you can call us at 800-435-4343 Renewing Your Mind is the listener supported outreach of regular ministries since 1971.

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Thank you for joining us today and we hope you make plans to be with us again next Saturday as we close, let's listen to this final thought from RC. The Bible makes it clear that not all suffering that we receive in this world is a result of God's judgment or God's corrective discipline upon us. The book of Job makes that clear. The ninth chapter of John makes that clear. And we ought never to just leap to the conclusion any time we suffer a great setback that it's because of some particular sin, but we've gone so far to demonstrate that point that we sometimes are inclined to forget that sometimes adversity that we face is a result of God's corrective discipline and that's what he was doing here.

He was demonstrating to his people who would groan overconfident confident in their own abilities. Now that they think that they could go and defeat this whole people and be loose in their obedience to the terms of the covenant.

So God brought them up short. He put Joshua on his face and he reminded the people he was the only on his terms land