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JOSHUA 7
Lesson #08
BE AN OVERCOMER BY NOT ROBBING GOD
- Memory verse: Luke 6:38
- Read Jos 7:1-9
- “ the children of Israel committed a trespass ”
- Achan kept the offering that belonged to God.
- It was a violation of the congregational commitment made to Joshua and to God.
- It was not only robbing God but it was robbing his brothers and sisters of the victory. In this way, we are our brother’s keeper to some extent.
- It was a violation of the principle of unity. Victory comes only through unity of the Spirit.
- Joshua sent men to spy on the city of Ai to determine the extent of the battle that was ahead. (2)
- To reach the town of Ai was a rough climb through a ravine up some rugged mountains about 15 miles from Jericho.
- The over confident report:
- The spies RETURN ed with an over confident report that comes from trusting in your own strength.
- This over confidence comes from not giving God the glory for past victories.
- Why did the Israelites fail to conquer the city of Ai?
- God could not give them the rest of the cities until the first one was fully dedicated to God.
- God did not direct them to go on to Ai. (2)
- It was over self-confidence as they sent 3,000 instead of the 30,000 soldiers that God told them to take in Joshua 8:3.
- Joshua was unaware that God was not with him. How did that happen?
- When a leader takes his eyes off of the Lord, he loses his direction.
- When a leader takes his eyes off of the Lord, he is in danger of getting in front of God
(1) Why was God angry with all the people for one man’s sin?
instead of following God.
- Joshuas prayer: (7-9)
- He based his prayer on Gods reputation of faithfulness to His promise. (7)
- He based his prayer on Gods reputation before the pagan tribes. (8)
- He based his prayer on Gods name in which resided sufficient power to gain victory. (9)
- Read Jos 7:10-21
- “Israel has sinned”
- Both Achan’s sin and Joshua’s sin. (11). When one sinned, they all sinned. God saw them as a unified group.
- Sin causes separation from God and causes the flow of blessing to stop (12).
- Discovering the source of the sin:
- Notice it was a narrowing down from tribe to family to the Individual determined by casting of lots.
- Achan’s confession (20):
- The objects he took were things valued in the world.
- A garment signifying success and power.
- Silver and gold signifying wealth.
- Achan confessed his sin but he still had to pay the consequences of his sin.
(11)
- Read Jos 7:22-26
- The consequences of sin:
- Everything that belonged to Achan was burned as an accursed offering or dedicated to God.
- All of the people in Achans family were stoned by the rest of the people. Notice that judgment was accomplished by all the children of Israel. (24)
- Why did all the members of his family have to pay for this mans sin?
- In the Old Testament, God was working first with families and then with the nation of Israel. At this point in time, Israel was just becoming a nation.
- In this we see the importance of the aspect of unity. God viewed the Israelites as a unified group so that when one sinned, all sinned. To emphasize this unity, Achan and his family were made to be examples of the consequences of sin.
- Whether we like it or not, individual sin affects the whole group. The same was true of Adams sin.
- We hear today the excuse that if the sin is between consulting adults, its OK because it does not affect other people. This excuse is wrong. Sin always affects others around us in some way whether it is obvious on the surface or not. There are always spiritual consequences that affect the whole group because Satan gets victory and power when man falls into sin.
- “the accursed thing”
- God desires that man honor Him with obedience. When man does not honor God with obedience, disobedience and rebellion disrupt the unity of the group.
- Achan robbed God of the “accursed thing”.
- Everything in Jericho was supposed to be a first fruits offering to God. That meant that everything in Jericho was set apart and dedicated to God for destruction. The words, “accursed thing” means = set apart and dedicated to God for destruction.
- To give God a first fruits offering meant that the people trusted God by faith for greater victories in the future.
- God would give the people the spoils of war in the future, but not from Jericho. That meant patience on the part of the people. They needed to wait for future blessings from subsequent battles by keeping their lust under control.
- When Achan robbed God of the “accursed thing”, he brought that destruction on himself and his family. In other words, he identified himself with the accursed thing. The sin became more than the objects he took, it became the attitude of his heart.
- Robbing God is a curse:
- We have a New Testament story that is similar.
- Read Acts 5:1-3 The story of Ananias and Sapphira
- If we do not give it to God, it is appointed to destruction anyway.
- It is better to give to God so that God gets the glory and we get the blessings for obedience. (Luk 6:38)
- Principles from Joshua 6 and 7. What important lessons (principles) do we learn about the ways that God uses to fulfill His plan?
- =1= God cannot give us the rest of the victory until we have learned obedience to Him. (Jos 7:12)
- =2= Give to God and He will give to you. (Luk 6:38)
- =3= Presumption and self confidence lead to defeat. (Jos 7:2-5)
- =4= Humility and reliance on God lead to victory.
- =5= Sin affects the whole camp. (Jos 7:11 1Cor 5:6)
- =6= Unity of righteousness blesses the whole group and is the key to victory.
- =7= Man, as head of the household, is responsible for the direction of his household to see that God receives the glory and the obedience. (Jos 7:24-25)
- =8= A man’s sin affects his whole household in a negative way.
- =9= A mans righteousness positively affects his whole household.
- Memorials:
- We have been keeping track of all the memorials that God instructed the Israelites to establish as evidence of their progress.
- 12 stones in Gilgal
- 12 stones in the Jordan:
- In this chapter we have a third memorial:
- Stones in the valley of Achor:
- What significance is the new memorial in Joshua 7:26?
- Mark the place where God taught you that robbing God is a curse and that sin and disobedience bring destruction. (Jos 7:26)
- Read Heb 12:3-11
- Achor means = “trouble”.
- Forgive the pun but if you’re in the valley of trouble you’re “achan” (aching).
- Is the battle ever the same after sin and disobedience have been dealt with? We will see in the next lesson.
: Mark the place of your new birth experience where you were raised with Christ with newness of life. (Jos 4:3)
Mark the place where you were baptized and buried with Christ in the waters of baptism. (Jos 4:9)
- We have all been guilty of robbing God en some way: in glory and in honor, by a word of witness, an offering, our time, our talent, etc.
- Pray and ask Gods forgiveness.
HOMEWORK
JOSHUA 8
This is a self-study. Please do not send homework answers to the teacher forcorrection.
- Application of Joshua 7:
- Is there a promise you have made to God that you have not kept?
- Is there an area of your finances where you have not trusted God?
- Is there an area of your life that God wants you to give over to Him that you have not yielded?
- Preparation for Joshua 8
- Read Joshua 8:1-13
- Is the spiritual battle ever the same after sin and disobedience have been dealt with?
- Why? Or why not?
- Read Joshua 8:14-29
- What new attitudes must be present to gain victory after sin?
- What is the significance to us today of the fourth memorial Joshua established in Jos 8:29?
- Read Joshua 8:30-35
- Read Deu 27:9-13 John 4:5-9,20-24
- Why did they build the altar on Mt. Ebal?
- Why was the altar made of whole uncut stones?
- What significance to us today is this object lesson of the two mountains?
- Think about it: Is breaking a promise justified when it was obtained deceitfully by others?
- Memory verse: John 4:24
