The Lord’s Rescuing Business – Judges 2 & 3

“⁶ Then the Lord raised up judges to RESCUE the Israelites from their attackers. ¹⁷ Yet Israel did not listen to the judges but prostituted themselves by worshiping other gods. How quickly they turned away from the path of their ancestors, who had walked in obedience to the Lord’s commands…. ²⁰ So the Lord  burned with anger against Israel. He said, “Because these people have violated my covenant, which I made with their ancestors, and have ignored my commands, ²¹ I will no longer drive out the nations that Joshua left unconquered when he died. ²² I did this to test Israel—to see whether or not they would follow the ways of the Lord as their ancestors did.” ²³ That is why the Lord left those nations in place. He did not quickly drive them out or allow Joshua to conquer them all.

3 These are the nations that the Lord left in the land to test those Israelites who had not experienced the wars of Canaan…. the Philistines (those living under the five Philistine rulers), all the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites living in the mountains of Lebanon from Mount Baal-hermon to Lebo-hamath. ⁴ These people were left to test the Israelites—to see whether they would obey the commands the Lord had given to their ancestors through Moses. ⁵ So the people of Israel lived among the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites,⁶ and they intermarried with them. Israelite sons married their daughters, and Israelite daughters were given in marriage to their sons. And the Israelites served their gods. ⁷ The Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight. They forgot about the Lord their God, and they served the images of Baal and the Asherah poles. ⁸ Then the Lord burned with anger against Israel, and he turned them over to King Cushan-rishathaim of Aram-naharaim.^[a] And the Israelites served Cushan-rishathaim for eight years. ⁹ BUT when the people of Israel cried out to the Lord for help, the Lord raised up a rescuer to save them. His name was Othniel, the son of Caleb’s younger brother, Kenaz. ¹⁰ The Spirit of the Lord came upon him, and he became Israel’s judge. He went to war against King Cushan-rishathaim of Aram, and theLord gave Othniel victory over him. ¹¹ So there was peace in the land for forty years… ¹² Once again the Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight, and the Lord gave King Eglon of Moab control over Israel because of their evil…. ¹⁴ And the Israelites served Eglon of Moab for eighteen years. ¹⁵ BUT when the people of Israel cried out to the Lord for help, the Lord again raised up a rescuer to save them. His name was Ehud son of Gera, a left-handed man of the tribe of Benjamin.”

And this is the way that people live even today!  At times people go to church one Sunday, and The Lord is excited to see us there, but then as soon as we get out, some start to live like the world do, carelessly; living for self. Then The Lord gets angry at us, and decides to teach us a lesson, for our own good, so we grow and mature, but then we fail. And when the fail is unbearable then we cry out to the Lord (who we disregarded before), and in HIS AGAPE love, HE raises up a determined someone who comes and save us, right when we needed the most.

My pastor says: “Not because you go to McDonalds that will make you a burger”; funny but true!  People come to church thinking that just the walking into it, even sitting down and stay the service, it will make them automatically “Christians”, and that’s WRONG thinking!!!  It will not happen!  

To become a Christian you HAVE to make a commitment with The Lord.  You HAVE to confess you’re a sinner, that you need salvation, that JESUS was sent as a ransom for our sins and died in the cross for those sins, then ACCEPT HIM as the Savior & Master of your life.  This commitment, followed by discipleship and a daily living trying to be like The Lord wants us to, is what makes a person, a Christian.

Without having that encounter with God we will not become Christians, is impossible; you could dress like one, smell like one, but who discerns what’s inside of you, KNOWS you aren’t one; and at some point your true colors will come out, all because there hasn’t been a real transformation inside of your heart. Your true master is NOT GOD! HE cant be replace by any other god, because HE “ain’t”.  Our God is an awesome GOD, and when HE touches, THINGS, PEOPLE and even SITUATIONS change.  In fact those that call themselves Christians and aren’t the true thing, The Father who send me, HE calls them false prophets! Look at this RED letters…

“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. ¹⁶ You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? ¹⁷ Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. ¹⁸ A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.¹⁹ Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. ²⁰ Therefore by their fruits you will know them.[1]”

So if at any given moment, you found one of these false prophets, you immediately ask The Father and the Holy Spirit to get a hold of the person; because someone like this stains our Christian testimony and others will walk away from Christ due to their actions. And yes that judgment will be between them and Christ, but we’ll be accountable if we don’t do something about it, so we better pray for them; and if the Lord wants you to break their bubble, HE WILL lead you in when and how to do it. Please DO NOT DARE to do it at your own time, and without God’s direction; it could be detrimental to both parts.

I pray you understand that our CREATOR is NOT in the demolition business BUT in the RESCUING BUSINESS.  HE is a MERCIFUL GOD, that’s why when HIS people failed, over and over and over again, HE sent for them a rescuer, and HE WILL DO IT FOR US too! I pray we never take for granted HIS LOVE & COMPASSION for us, but we choose to live for HIM daily!  I pray if you made the mistake of calling yourself Christian when you are not, this moves you to call upon the Father right now, and renew your relationship with HIM; for you DO NOT have to wait until Sunday to go to church; just do it now and Sunday when you get to church, you come forth at the Alter call, and reconfirm your commitment with HIM. And I pray this for the glory of God, in JESUS name, AMEN!!!

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[1] Matthew 7:15-20

Wise words from Joshua 23

In Bible times we can see quite often how great leaders gave a final speech that included blessings, guidelines to live by, and reminders of great events so younger generations wouldn’t forget how things were ought to be.  This was Joshua case; after years leading God’s people and the Lord had given them rest from all their enemies Joshua decides to get things in order to depart from this earth. He decides to leave them some wise guidelines and some reminder of the accomplishments God did thru him. 

Today, sometimes when people feel is on their last moments of their lives, and probably after not seeing loved ones the doctors call everyone in, to give them a chance to say goodbye while these are still alive.  Sad but true story is that at times, we have not talked in ages with that one who’s about to enter their final rest, and at that moment although lots of thing can be said due to the circumstances little words can be and are expressed.  

This is why these words of Joshua are also for us, because we might have forgotten what the Lord did for our ancestors who lived for God. Maybe our closest relatives, parents or grandparents never talked to us about the great things God did for their grandparents. Maybe those who raised us didn’t walk so closed to the Lord or even served God at all; and why talking about something unknown?  

Guidelines:

·         Be very strong.

·         Be careful to love THE LORD YOUR GOD.

·         Obey all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses.

·         Do not turning aside to the right or to the left.

·         Do not associate with these nations that remain among you.

·         Do not invoke the names of their gods or swear by them.

·         Do not serve them.

·         Do not bow down to them.

·         HOLD FAST TO THE LORD YOUR GOD.

Reminders:

·         THE LORD HAS driven out before you great and powerful nations.

·         To this day no one has been able to withstand you.

·         One of you routs a thousand, because THE LORD YOUR GOD FIGHTS FOR YOU, as He promised.

·         IF you turn away and ally yourselves with the survivors of these nations (you’ve been save from)

·         IF you intermarry with them (the survivors of the nations you’ve been save from) and

·         Associate with them (the survivors of the nations you’ve been save from).

·         God will no longer drive out these nations before you.

·         They will become snares and traps for you,

·         Will be like whips on your backs and thorns in your eyes,

·         You’ll perish from this good land, which the Lord your God has given you.

·         Know with all your heart and soul that NOT ONE of all the good promises THE LORD YOUR GOD GAVE you have failed.

·         Every PROMISE has been fulfilled; not one has failed.

·         But just as all the good things the Lord your God has promised you have come to you,

·         He will bring on you all the evil things he has threatened.

·         If you violate the covenant of the Lord your God, which he commanded you,

·         If you go and serve other gods and

·         If you bow down to them, the Lord’s anger will burn against you,

·         And you will quickly perish from the good land He has given you.”

Watch out my friends! God DID NOT CAME to eradicate us, BUT TO SAVE us! The one who came to rob, kill and destroy was the thief (Satan), but GOD CAME TO GIVE US LIFE AND LIFE IN ABUNDANCE![1]

Therefore is important for us to follow HIS commands and regulations for our life to be lived to the fullest. The “secret” for us to have success is in Joshua 1:8 “Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed IN ALL you do.”

I pray you meditate on this and take it to heart, for these are God’s, not mine; and I pray for the glory of God who gives me a chance to share them with you, and I pray, in Jesus name, AMEN!

Have a great day in the Lord!!!

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[1] John 10:10b

Holy Living Principles – Proverbs 5

To live holy lives does not mean that you are instantly perfected to the point of making no mistakes. Are you shocked?!  Living a holy life means that as we learn God’s principles we ought to regard them enough that if we aren’t directing our life in a way the principle says to the same God, that lives inside of our heart and who gave these to Solomon to write, compels us to change to the way HE’s guiding us to. In addition to other books of The Bible, the book of Proverbs is a great resource for these principles; you might want to check it out!  

Having intimacy in a relationship is no taboo in The Bible for The Lord took the care of teaching us about them; in cases very explicit, so buckle up for this is just a small example of one of those. As for the one I will be presenting I’ve decided to number the principles within this portion of chapter 5 to help us digest it on an easier way.

“Drink water from your own well— share your love only with your wife. ¹⁶ Why spill the water of your springs in the streets, having sex with just anyone? ¹⁷ You should reserve it for yourselves. Never share it with strangers.  ¹⁸ Let your wife be a fountain of blessing for you. Rejoice in the wife of your youth. ¹⁹ She is a loving deer, a graceful doe. Let her breasts satisfy you always. May you always be captivated by her love.  ²⁰ Why be captivated, my son, by an immoral woman, or fondle the breasts of a promiscuous woman?  For the Lord sees clearly what a man does, examining every path he takes. ²² An evil man is held captive by his own sins; they are ropes that catch and hold him. ²³ He will die for lack of self-control; he will be lost because of his great foolishness.”

 

At home we teach our kids in the table to keep their eyes in their plate, not to look to the neighbor’s; in schools stick to your area, and these are Bible era teachings.  Did you realize that? We start here with:

1.       Keep your eyes in your own cup

2.       Make love only to your wife

3.       Do not have intercourse with anyone else

4.       Marriage intimacy is been reserved for the couple

5.       Do not have sex outside of your marriage

6.       Your wife will bless more than anyone else

7.       Be exceedingly happy with the woman given you when young

8.       Love and grace are her possessions[1]

9.       No matter if her breast aren’t as alive and “upbeat” as when you met them, be content

10.   Let your attraction and attention for your wife be like she’s “the last coke in the desert”[2]

11.   Let you eyes not to be distracted by a woman with a low cleavage or strapless top who tempts you to lust after her

12.   The Lord who is Omnipresent is watching, ALL THE TIME; and HE sees the true colors, hers and yours

13.   You will not be accountable for her or anyone else’s sin but you own

14.   Lack of self-control can get you in deep trouble and take you to the grave, and ultimately to hell, its foolishness; do not play with it, stay rooted and planted in THE LORD!

 

Self discipline is synonymous of a strengthen mind, a self-controlled mind, and God’s Word says that HE “HAS NOT given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.”[3] Meaning that in and with HIM it is possible for us to control our character.  So if you know that left is not the good way, just stick to your right!

The previous fourteen verses on this chapter explains you why is it that we ought to stay in the right track, among those that you may maintain discretion, and may preserve knowledge.  It also will prevent you for wandering aimlessly, which is a helpful thing. We’re encouraged to avoid people who might encourage you to do wrong, because it can lead us to dishonor others and lose our dignity and not to mention, our money too.

My friend, I pray you ask The Lord to reveal you if there are people around you who are enticing you to live unholy.  In case there might be some, I pray you realize they need Jesus, so you pray for them and at the same time, you give yourself some room between you and them, otherwise it could lead you to fall into temptation and lose your faith and new commitment with The Lord. And I pray this for the glory of God in JESUS name, AMEN!!!

 

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[1] http://biblehub.com/commentaries/pulpit/proverbs/5.htm

[2] To be as desirable as a cup of water in a heated dried desert

[3] 2^nd Timothy 1:7

New Beginnings! – Joshua 24

For many, this weekend probably started it the beginning of Spring break for others, a regular weekend, yet for others it marked the time a decision was made to leave the full sinful lives by accepting God as The new Chief Manager in charge.  At the moment you choose to come to God for the forgiveness of your sins, The Lord comes and sweeps over your heart taking dirt and even dusty particles leaving it in perfect condition as a brand new baby’s heart.  Like when you buy a new car, that has that “new car scent”, so fresh or when the teacher on that first day of school says you all have started with an A in class. That’s the way is with The Lord, totally NEW!!! No spots or wrinkles, before His eyes, you are PERFECT piece, like an out of the oven loaf of bread; in fact, you are HIS MASTERPIECE[1]!!!

Now after that first day of “New Beginnings“, the battle is real because in order to keep your heart clean; your car smelling like new, and your grades on straight A’s, you will HAVE to work at it! The battle as a new creation in The Lord has already begun! But I guarantee you, that as long as you stay rooted in Christ, you ARE GOING TO SUCCESSFULLY MAKE IT!!!  This is the “key”: “Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do.^[2]” One thing we have to keep reminding ourselves for sometime will be:

¹⁴ “So FEAR The Lord and serve Him wholeheartedly. PUT AWAY forever the idols your ancestors worshiped when they lived beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt. SERVE The Lord alone. ¹⁵ But if you refuse to serve The Lord, then choose today whom you will serve. Would you prefer the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates? Or will it be the gods of the Amorites in whose land you now live? But as for me and my family, we will serve The Lord.” ¹⁶ The people replied, “We would NEVER ABANDON The lord and serve other gods. ¹⁷ For The Lord our God is the One who rescued us and our ancestors from slavery in the land of Egypt. He performed mighty miracles before our very eyes. As we traveled through the wilderness among our enemies, He preserved us. ¹⁸ It was The Lord who drove out the Amorites and the other nations living here in the land. So we, too, will serve The Lord, for He alone is our God.”

What’s really encouraging us to do is quite simple is just to turn around from our old ways. Now that the Spirit of The Lord lives in your heart, you will experience a tug in your heart when you’re about to do something that’s not pleasing Him. Like there’s a part of your heart that wants you to do something, but another is telling you shouldn’t; that my friend, that’s God telling you don’t! 

There will be times that your “party buddies” will invite you to go with them, but you’re not feeling it, then DON’T! That’s God! Some of the conversations that you used to have with your “buddies” are making you feel uncomfortable now; guess what? That’s God, because your heart, not your friend’s heart but yours is the one that’s been washed with the blood of Jesus, and you’re NOT the same anymore!

A decision was made and consequently other decision will follow, all in order to remain with that “new car scent”.  Our purification begun one day and will continue until the day that we depart from this earth; but just as it was a choice the day that we accepted The Lord, is a matter of choice to stay on the race of life with our daily commitment of living for Christ. 

Are you going to ignore God’s signs and go back to your old ways? or will you choose to independently from the world that surrounds you, serve The Lord?

The people Joshua was leading decided to remember that it was GOD who rescued them from their life of slavery.  This is what really has been happening in our lives when we aren’t serving The Lord, we became slaves of our surroundings and were used to disrupt and create discord. I want you to think about all the “miracles” The Lord had given you in the past but you didn’t realized it because as slaves your eyes were blinded.  Think about it now, you can see that the accident you had could have taken your life, but GOD spared you from it. That surgery you had could have taken your life, but GOD protected you and got you thru; that fight you had could have ended in murder but GOD spared you! Because otherwise your soul would have perished in hell forever and HE didn’t want that for you; His plans were and are for good NOT to harm you but to prosper you, and to give you life in abundance![3]

To equip you to walk this new life with the needed tools to keep yourself in victory over the circumstances of life with Christ, you will need:

1.       Find a church were The Bible is studied

It’s essential for the new life that you started to train yourself to be at church on Sundays, if you work in the morning, determine you will make it on Sunday nights.  If you work on Saturday night till late, choose to make a sacrificial offering onto God, and wake up Sunday morning on time to be at church, if you know you have to work on Sunday night.

2.       Get use to read your own Bible, inside and outside of church

Hear someone read you from The Bible is good, but is better to have a Bible you can read yourself, study from it, and highlight those Scriptures that speak to your life; so you can go back to those highlighted places as often as you need to. If you need me to help you find a church closed by you, let me know; and also if you need a personal Bible, I’ll get you one!

3.       Join a small group at church

Is in small groups were you find the difference between the way you’ve been living and the way God wants us to live.  Here we are able to ask easy and other not so easy questions about life, behaviors, doctrines, and things sometimes we hear that aren’t exactly according to God.  In these groups you will be able to meet imperfect people like us, trying to be more like God wants us to; therefore new relationships are formed. You will meet your new brothers and sisters in The Lord; some a bit older that could become like parents or grandparents in the faith.  This can and will become (as long as you allow it to) your new family in Christ.

I’m very happy that you’ve chosen to commit or recommit your life for Christ, and I pray you choose to follow HIM for when you do, your success is guaranteed!

Have a GREAT new life in Christ!!!   

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[1] Ephesians 2:10

[2] Joshua 1:8

[3] Jeremiah 29:11; John 10:10b

Do Not Be Afraid! – Joshua 10

“2b And the Gibeonite men were strong warriors. 3 So King…  of Jerusalem sent messengers to several other kings… 4 “Come and help me these five Amorite kings combined their armies for a united attack. They moved all their troops into place and attacked Gibeon. 6 The men of Gibeon quickly sent messengers to Joshua… “Don’t abandon your servants now!” they pleaded. “Come at once! Save us! Help us!... 7 So Joshua and his entire army, including his best warriors, left Gilgal and set out for Gibeon. 8 “Do not be afraid of them,” the Lord said to Joshua, “for I have given you victory over them. Not a single one of them will be able to stand up to you.” 9 Joshua traveled all night from Gilgal and took the Amorite armies by surprise. 10 The Lord threw them into a panic, and the Israelites slaughtered great numbers of them at Gibeon. Then the Israelites chased the enemy along the road to Beth-horon, killing them all along the way to Azekah and Makkedah. 11 As the Amorites retreated down the road from Beth-horon, the Lord destroyed them with a terrible hailstorm from heaven that continued until they reached Azekah. The hail killed more of the enemy than the Israelites killed with the sword. 12 On the day the Lord gave the Israelites victory over the Amorites, Joshua prayed to the Lord in front of all the people of Israel. He said, “Let the sun stand still over Gibeon, and the moon over the valley of Aijalon.” 13 So the sun stood still and the moon stayed in place until the nation of Israel had defeated its enemies.”

The immediate reaction when news come in, especially “bad news” is let our minds run in fear.  Facing the unknown and the “what if’s” can be terrifying.  We cannot allow our thoughts to start cooking in the stove of our mind, and on hi; this could become a consuming fire that is not good for us but for those around us as well.

The men of Gibeon in spite of being strong warriors they got afraid because all the Amorite kings had joined forces to attack them, and he either knew or at least suspected he was going to be annihilated.  I’m not sure if you ever been in a situation where you feel if you do not make that call at this moment, if you he/she do not shows up now, or if you do not get in the mail that answer that you need at the precise moment, is like a rush of desperation it’s at about to happen. Have you? It’s a terrible feeling! You start getting shortness of breath, your muscles get stiff or start to shake all over, you start to sweat, and the stomach is rumbling not of hunger by the way, but of fear, this anxiety episode has been created due to that fear. Fear to the unknown, of losing life, mind, job, health, a loved one… you name it!

My friends, we can’t allow Satan to get a grip of our hearts thru fear, it could be catastrophic!  Fear, insecurities and doubt, they’re all related and in excessive amounts all lead ultimately to panic.  In the Garden of Eden, Eve was tempted and immediately doubt arouse and troubled her, clouding her mind to the point that she fell for it, and then in her fear kicked in mixed with the reality that she was the only one that sinned, she share the fruit.  At the end, we all know what happened, humanity got marked for eternity! And that happens when we allow fear to get a hold, a grip on us; the dent that it makes, although might not be physically seen, could be a damaging permanent mark.

In Joshua 10, Gibeon’s men made that desperate called to Joshua, who immediately inquired The Lord what to do about it?  The Lord encouraged Joshua with “Do not be afraid of them, for I have given you victory over them. Not a single one of them will be able to stand up to you.”

How many times when you have no clue about what to do, choose to do like Joshua?! That’s the point here today; we ought to inquire to God about what to do and when to do things! When we do; the outcome of the situation presented we know is been ordained by God; and we know that at the end will benefit us. When you know that you know that you know, that God told you to do something, and you did as HE indicated you to, HIM as a responsible party if you will, HE will respond on your behalf. And when Satan comes around with one of his lies, you can confidently ignore him for you follow God’s plan.  Is like telling a girl, you are a boy; hello… if she has all the girl parts, guess what, no matter who says what, she’s a girl! 

When you create a paper plane, nobody has the right to argue with you about the things it has or not for you have the certainty of its components because you created, right? It is the same principle, Satan can try to lie at you but when God says:  “Be not Afraid, I got your back!” you have to be sure He’s got your back! AMEN!!!? Choose to believe GOD, ALL THE TIME!!! If you have a doubt, present Him with a suggestion for HIM to confirm to you, and HE WILL!!!  He LOVES for us to inquire Him about the way to go about things in life, so HE will answer you.  I challenge you to try it; then share with the world the confirmation God has given you, and remember BE NOT AFRAID for “If God is for us, who can be against us?”[1] HE CAN AND WILL DO THE IMPOSSIBLE for you!!![2]

I pray you choose to believe in God, from this day and on, like never before! That the next time you be afraid or puzzle when taking a decision you choose to suggest God for a confirmation, and be open to receive the needed answer; I pray that no doubt be stronger or greater than the love you have for God. “For God so loved the world that He GAVE His one and only Son, that whoever BELIEVES in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”[3]

If you do not have an established relationship with the Lord, just ask Him to forgive you of your sins, recognize that HE LOVED you so much as to send Jesus to die in the cross for your sins, and receive His forgiveness by living for Him, accepting HIM as the only Savior & Master of your life.   Find and join a church that studies the Bible, and be open to the new family of Christ; if you need me to help you find one closed by, inbox me a message.

Have a great day in the Lord; remember, I’m praying for you!

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[1] Romans 8:31 NIV

[2] Joshua 10:11-12

[3] John 3:16 NIV

Beware... Your sin will find you out! – Joshua 7

“But the Israelites were unfaithful in regard to the devoted things^[a]; Achan son of Karmi, the son of Zimri,^[b]the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of them. So the Lord’s anger burned against Israel. ² Now Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai…” So the men went up and spied out Ai. ³ When they returned to Joshua, they said, “Not all the army will have to go up against Ai. Send two or three thousand men to take it and do not weary the whole army, for only a few people live there.” ⁴ So about three thousand went up; but they were routed by the men of Ai,⁵ who killed about thirty-six of them. They chased the Israelites from the city gate as far as the stone quarries and struck them down on the slopes. At this the hearts of the people melted in fear and became like water. ⁶ Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell facedown to the ground before the ark of the Lord,… ⁷ And Joshua said, “Alas, Sovereign Lord, why did you ever bring this people across the Jordan to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites to destroy us?... ¹⁰ The Lord said to Joshua, “Stand up! What are you doing down on your face? ¹¹ Israel has sinned; they have violated my covenant, which I commanded them to keep. They have taken some of the devoted things; they have stolen, they have lied, they have put them with their own possessions. ¹² That is why the Israelites cannot stand against their enemies; they turn their backs and run because they have been made liable to destruction. I will not be with you anymore unless you destroy whatever among you is devoted to destruction. ¹³ “Go, consecrate the people. Tell them, ‘Consecrate yourselves in preparation for tomorrow; for this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: There are devoted things among you, Israel. You cannot stand against your enemies until you remove them. ¹⁴ “‘In the morning, present yourselves tribe by tribe. The tribe The Lord chooses shall come forward clan by clan; the clan the Lord chooses shall come forward family by family; and the family the Lord chooses shall come forward man by man. ¹⁵ Whoever is caught with the devoted things shall be destroyed by fire, along with all that belongs to him. He has violated the covenant of the Lord and has done an outrageous thing in Israel!’” ¹⁶ Early the next morning Joshua had Israel come forward by tribes, and Judah was chosen. ¹⁷ The clans of Judah came forward, and the Zerahites were chosen. He had the clan of the Zerahites come forward by families, and Zimri was chosen. ¹⁸ Joshua had his family come forward man by man, and Achan son of Karmi, the son of Zimri, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, was chosen.¹⁹ Then Joshua said to Achan, “My son, give glory to theLord, the God of Israel, and honor him. Tell me what you have done; do not hide it from me.” ²⁰ Achan replied, “It is true! I have sinned against theLord, the God of Israel. This is what I have done: ²¹ When I saw in the plunder a beautiful robe from Babylonia,^[c]two hundred shekels^[d] of silver and a bar of gold weighing fifty shekels,^[e] I coveted them and took them. They are hidden in the ground inside my tent, with the silver underneath.”²² So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran to the tent, and there it was, hidden in his tent, with the silver underneath. ²³ They took the things from the tent, brought them to Joshua and all the Israelites and spread them out before the Lord. ²⁴ Then Joshua, together with all Israel, took Achan son of Zerah, the silver, the robe, the gold bar, his sons and daughters, his cattle, donkeys and sheep, his tent and all that he had, to the Valley of Achor. ²⁵ Joshua said, “Why have you brought this trouble on us? The Lord will bring trouble on you today.”Then all Israel stoned him, and after they had stoned the rest, they burned them. ²⁶ Over Achan they heaped up a large pile of rocks, which remains to this day. Then the Lord turned from his fierce anger.” 

Why am I being defeated?

I want you to notice here that Joshua WAS NOT, who sinned, but one person from the group of people whom he was with and whom he was leading, was who had sinned. In other words, one scabby sheep was spoiling the flock.  Watch out, who you are hanging around with!!! This guy, Achan, he dared to take some of the devoted things for the Lord for himself; then he hid them.  Apparently no one had seen what he did, and I’m sure he might have thought “Well no one had seen me, therefore who’s going to accuse me?” But the truth of the matter is that God’s omnipresence saw what had happened, and “Can anyone hide from me in a secret place? Am I not everywhere in all the heavens and earth?" says the LORD.”[1]   So, The Lord Himself was who revealed to Joshua that there was sin in the camp and it had to be dealt with.

When we deliberately choose to walk away from The Lord, literally we are walking away from the under the Lord’s protective umbrella, and we’ll get rained on; because of our own fault. You can cry before the Lord for His help, all you want, BUT if there’s unconfessed sin in your life, your enemies will defeat you! You’ve brought destruction upon yourself due to your sinful behavior/actions. God will not be for you, until you deal with it!

The Lord’s plan is not to destroy us, that’s the thief/devil’s plan: “The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My (Jesus) purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.”[2]  The Lord wants us all to come to repentance. “For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign Lord. Repent and live!”[3]

At time unfortunately for whatever reason, we tend to depend more on our physical abilities and consulting the Lord becomes our back up plan, or our plan c, then we find ourselves regretting. Seems in life that’s how we learn, when the afflictions to our flesh due to our wrong doings bring us the opportunity to reflect on our past actions, so we do not hurt again.  

What to do?

Going back to our passage, the guilty party didn’t confess his sin, until he was confronted.  After The Lord revealed to Joshua that there was sin among them that they have to purify themselves, confess sins, and make peace with God. He explained how things were going to be done; HE chose to let him wait until the next morning to reveal it publicly to everyone at the same time, and all in a very organized way. 

First, all the tribes were to be gather in one place and The Lord was going to single out the tribe whom the sinner was from.  From that tribe’s clans, HE was single out the clan the sinner was from; and then from the clan’s HE was single out the family who had the sinning member, and then from that family HE would single out the individual who had sinned. And as planned, that’s how it went.  So this Achan, didn’t confessed immediately, I’m not sure how he dared to think he wasn’t going to get away with it, but the thing is that confessing until it was too late, didn’t do no good for him at all! Because after Joshua recovered the stolen goods, he was taken out of the camp to the valley and there he was stoned, and burned. This appeased the Lord’s anger; and reassured the people that God is not to be played with or taken lightly.

I pray this becomes a wakeup call to all of us, to keep our records straight with the Lord at all times.  As soon as we realize that we’ve sinned, immediately is time to confess, we shouldn’t wait. Why? As Moses was telling his people, “But if you fail to keep your word, then you will have sinned against the Lord, and you may be sure that your sin will find you out.”[4] In other words if you stop being faithful to the Lord and you sin against Him, HE WILL EXPOSE YOU! And really, God REALLY does it better!!!

My friend, fixing our records with The Lord, is having a conversation with Him as simple as the ABC…

A-dmit that you are a sinner, and need salvation

B-elieve that God sent JESUS (HIS gift to us) to die at the cross to pay for our sins

C-onfess The Lord as your only Savior & Master of your life.

After this believe that God had cleanse your sins, and ugly past, and HE sees you as a brand new creation with new opportunities to stay clean as long as you believe that with Him everything is possible! 

I pray you have chosen to have this conversation with HIM for the sake of yourself.  I also for Him to lead you to the church you need to be at where HIS Word is preached, and idol worshiping is inexistent. I pray you develop a desire to study His Word and pray DAILY! And you join a Bible study group in church, that will help you discover that you have new brothers and sisters that are eager to meet you and grow in the Lord with you. And I pray for the glory of God, in Jesus name, AMEN!!! 

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[1] Jeremiah 23:24

[2] John 10:10

[3] Ezekiel 18:32

[4] Numbers 32:23