May the Lord be pleased to bless
us together this morning as we consider his word. Let's turn
to the book of Joshua chapter 7 and we'll read verse 11. Joshua chapter 7 and reading
verse 11. Israel has sinned and they have
also transgressed my covenant which I commanded them. For they
have even taken of the accursed thing, and have also stolen and
dissembled also, and they have put it even among their own stuff." This account that we have in
this chapter of Akan is a very solemn and a very searching account. Not only we observe was Achan
affected, but we also see that the whole of Israel were affected. And we should not therefore lose
sight of that very significant fact. And as we may perhaps think
and apply it to ourselves, that something that we might do might
indeed affect the Church of God. Now, Israel had been greatly
blessed and they'd been brought over Jordan into the Promised
Land. God had fulfilled his promise
to Israel and he had told them, he had warned them and he had
spoken to them. When they had compassed that
city, Jericho, seven times, and the seventh time they were commanded
to shout and the Lord spoke in this way and he said, and it
came to pass that the seventh time when the priests blew with
the trumpets, Joshua said unto the people, for the Lord hath
given you the city and the city shall be accursed even it and
all that are therein to the Lord only Rahab the harlot shall live
she and all that are with her in the house because she hid
the messengers that we sent and ye in any wise Keep yourselves
from the accursed thing. And that was comprehensive, that
was everything. Lest you make yourselves accursed
when you take the accursed thing and make the camp of Israel a
curse and trouble it. But all the silver and gold and
the vessels of brass and iron are consecrated unto the Lord. They shall come into the treasury
of the people. Well that was a very clear statement
that God had made to Israel. And we would have thought that
Israel would have learned from all the situations which they
had come into. Not least indeed that which we
just sung about in the wilderness in Moses' day. When there was
that disobedience again and The Lord saw fit to send those fiery
serpents to bite them, and so many died under that situation. And they must have been very
aware of that occasion. And now God has spoken again
to Israel, that they might be aware of that situation. And we find in this account,
there was this man Achan, a single person, a single person who did
not heed to the command of God. No, he did that which was so
wrong. He took of the accursed thing. And he answered Joshua and said,
indeed I have sinned against the Lord God of Israel and thus
and thus have I done. And we might think that because
of that statement, God would be merciful to him. But God is
a just God, and God has said what would happen. He told them
that those who did follow that way would be burnt with fire,
and all that they had. So it solemnly came to pass. He then confessed, you see, what
he'd done. He said he'd seen a goodly Babylonish
garment and 200 shekels of silver and a wedge of gold. And he said
he coveted them and he took them and he hid them in his tent.
No one knew. No one was aware of what he'd
done. Now, if we might place that upon
our own hearts today, There may be things, there may be a thing,
which one of you have done, one of, including myself perhaps,
something that we've done, which is contrary to the Word of God. Now let us remember, Akan would
appear to think that God didn't know, God didn't notice. No one
else knew. Perhaps no one else knows about
something in our lives. But God knows. God knows absolutely
about anything that we may have done in our lives, contrary to
the Word of God, contrary to His command. And maybe we've
hidden it. We've hidden it away. No one
knows. But be very clear, God knows. Be very clear, God knows. And
wouldn't it be a tragedy if the whole of the Church of God suffered
because of one sin, contrary to God's law, and God's Word
in such an account should really make us tremble, shouldn't it?
And should really make us investigate our own lives and to see whether
there was any application to us today in our life. It's a very solemn thought, isn't
it? That we should be the ones that
should bring a curse upon the Church of God. Now, I'm not speaking against
any person here in particular today at all. God knows. God brought this account into
my heart for a reason. And may that reason indeed be
revealed to us each perhaps in our own lives because it is very
easy to covet sinful things and it's very easy to walk contrary
to the work and word of God and never think that you can get
away with walking contrary to God. Never think that God doesn't
observe some secret thing in our lives. It may be that God
and you are the only ones who are aware of it. Well, the outcome was exceedingly
solemn, wasn't it? And you see, God found out this
man. God knew who he was. He wasn't
able to hide. Lots were taken. The tribe was
taken. The family was taken. Achan was
taken. He wasn't able to avoid God. My friends, you and I would not
be able to avoid God. God knows where we live. God knows the things we have
in our homes. Perhaps God knows the things which we know He does,
the things in our heart. We may be coveting things there
which are contrary to the Word of God. And so the Lord came
and this man was found out. We see the Lord was merciful
to Israel But there was that time of great questioning, wasn't
there? Joshua couldn't understand him.
This was the first time they were to go and attack the enemy
other than Jericho. And defeat occurred. They turned their back upon the
inhabitants of Ai and ran. Oh, and Joshua was concerned. Why had it occurred? And it's
important to realise also he was concerned about the name
of his God. And what wilt thou do unto thy
great name? See, Josh was concerned for the
great name of his God. My friends, may we today be concerned
for the great name of our God. There are not those things which
occur, which might possibly bring the name of God into disarray,
into contempt perhaps. Well, it's good to have a concern
for the name of God and for his greatness. And to be concerned
that should there be something that it is indeed ratted out
and got rid of. Well, the Lord spoke very clearly
to Joshua. in the words that we read this
morning. Israel hath sinned. One person in Israel had sinned. And that one person, the sin
was placed upon Israel as a nation. You know, that might be a word
to us as we think of it in our own lives. If we sinned, to think
that that sin It doesn't just apply to ourselves. How solemn
it applies to the Church of God. Israel hath sinned, and they
have also transgressed my covenant. That means the word that the
Lord hath spoken. They transgressed it. They've
gone in opposition to it, which I commanded them. And there are
many commands in the Word of God, my friends, which apply
to us today. There are the Ten Commandments. There are many other commands
which God has left on record which apply to us today. And the solemn reality is that
we do not want to stand amongst those who have opposed, transgressed
the covenant which the Lord has commanded. We don't want to be found like
that, do we? And yet you know sometimes, sometimes it seems
that in our lives today we think we can get away with it. And
how solemn it would be because in our lives we have not followed
God's covenant commands and because of that It might be a solemn
judgment of God upon the Church of God. We need to have a tender
conscience to ask ourselves, to examine ourselves, to see
whether we are the man, whether we are the cause of something
which might come upon in judgment to the Church of God. They had
taken of the accursed thing. And just remember, the accursed
thing encompassed everything in Jericho. Everything. They worked to lay hold of it.
And as you and I, my dear friends, think today in the things of
the world, there are many things in the world which the devil
places there as a temptation My friends, the word of God to
us is that we are not the take of the accursed thing. He'd stolen
it and dissembled also. He acted dishonestly. He followed his own way and he'd
put it even among his own possessions. Well, do we possess things amongst
our own possessions? which perhaps, as it were, we've
stolen, because we've taken things and done things contrary to the
word of God, and it is the accursed thing. Well, Israel was suffering
because of it. As I say, we have this solemn
example, we have the solemn example of the accounts of the brazen
serpent, and there are many other accounts which we won't go through
this morning in detail. You can ponder them and think
about them and consider how they apply to us. Jeremiah faced the rebellious
people in his day and age. And as you are well aware, he
spoke many words of warning through the Spirit of God. In the 16th
chapter, the 19th verse, we read this, Oh Lord, my strength and
my fortress, and my refuge in the day of affliction. The Gentiles
shall come unto thee from the ends of the earth and shall say,
Surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanity, and things wherein
there is no profit." That's the statement you see. Have we today
inherited lies, vanity, and things wherein there is no profit. It's a good test for us to lay
down as to whether things that we go after, things that we possess,
whether they fall in this category, they are of no profit. By that I mean this, no spiritual
profit. Maybe things that we have to
have and possess which we need for natural profit, but not things
that turn us away from God, which are of no profit. Just ponder
that word, no profit. The things you see that Achan
took, they were really to be of no profit. He thought they
would be, but they weren't. He disregarded God. He disregarded
that God could bless God can do for us far more abundantly
than we can ask or even think. In just the New Testament, for
a moment, remember Acts of the Apostles, the fifth chapter,
speaks of two people, Ananias and Sapphira. What did they do? They had a piece of land and
they sold it. And then they came. And what
did they do? They kept back part of the price. And they just brought a part
to the apostles feet. What they were doing was indicating
that they sold this bit of land and they were giving the proceeds
to God. But they were dishonest. They
kept back part of the price. They pretended something which
was not true. And that's a very striking word,
isn't it? They both did it. Ananias first
and then Sapphira later on. The Lord struck them both down
and they died. Yes, the Lord, he marked it. The apostles didn't know. The
Lord knew. The Lord marked it. Peter was
given the wisdom. God spoke to him and he asked
this question, why has Satan filled thine heart to lie to
the Holy Ghost? That's a great Satan, isn't it?
To lie to the Holy Ghost. Lying to God. Well, do we lie to God? Do you and I lie to God? That's
a great test, isn't it? Do we lie to God? Have we lied
to God? Are we lying to God? Well, my friends, we don't want
to be left, do we? To that situation, that condition. What it means
is we're really treating God as someone who is of no consequence. We're treating God as though
he's just a nonsense, a nobody. How do you treat God? How do
we treat God? Do we really treat him as the
almighty God? As the ruler of the universe?
As that God who has made us? As that God who has controlled
us? Do we desire to honour and glorify our God in our lives,
whatever the cost? Here was that disobedience. Now then, We have some gracious
testimony and words to instruct us as to how we should respond
in the day and age in which we live. And the Lord, thankfully,
has given us so much, so many words of advice and evidence When Paul wrote to the Corinthians
in the second epistle, he said, are you not unequally yoked together
with unbelievers? I mentioned that before. It's
a good word to young people, especially in thinking of boyfriends
and girlfriends and husbands and wives. It is very important
that you understand not being unequally yoked together with
unbelievers. You should seek out earnestly
to be yoked together with believers. Indeed, not only in marriage,
but also in business. You should be concerned for that. He goes on to say, for what fellowship
hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion hath light
with darkness? That's easy to understand, isn't
it? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? Or what part hath
he that believeth with an infidel? That's the solemn truth. We're
either believers or we're an infidel, which means we're an
unbeliever. And what agreement hath the temple
of God with idols? These things were idols. He coveted them. Will a grievan
have the temple of God with idols? For ye are the temple of the
living God. As God hath said, I will dwell
in them, and walk in them, and I will be their God, and they
shall be my people. Wherefore, come out from among
them, and be separate, saith the Lord. and touch not the unclean
thing. Don't touch it. Now, are we then
in a vacuum? No, we're not. The Lord has said this, and I
will receive you, and will be a father unto you, and ye shall
be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty." You see,
there's no vacuum when we follow the Lord. There's no vacuum when
we keep the Lord's commands. There is a wonderful promise
to inherit, that the Lord will receive us. Well, there's no greater blessing,
is there? Doesn't it put the things of this vain world in
a right context? It shows us how futile they are,
how passing they are. And yet, to receive this from
our God. Oh, He will receive you. I will
receive you. You shall be my son's and daughters
saith the Lord Most High." Now in the next chapter, the
seventh chapter, the Apostle says this, For godly sorrow worketh
repentance to salvation, not to be repented of. There are many things in our
lives perhaps we may repent, but here's a good thing. Godly
sorrow. Now if we have, if we are in
a situation like Achan, it would be a good thing if the Lord gives
us repentance, godly sorrow for it. That's because that means
that we're sorry because we've offended God. We might sometimes
be sorry because we've offended our friends or our mother or
father. But the important thing is to
realise if we've offended God. So, he says here, Godly sorrow
worketh repentance, true salvation, not to be repented of, for the
sorrow of the world worketh death. For behold this selfsame thing,
that ye sorrowed after a godly sword, what carefulness it wrought in
you. Oh, you see, there's a change.
If we are blessed with a concern, a godly sorrow, yes, we're careful
of what we're doing, what we're saying, what we're thinking.
What carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing of your
sounds, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea,
what zeal, the change, the blessing of God. A real concern to do
God's will is follow Him. Vehement desire, zeal, yea, what
revenge, in all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear
in this matter. Well, it's important, isn't it,
that you and I clear ourselves in these things, that we are
honest before God. Wherefore, though I wrote unto
you, I did it not for his cause that I had done the wrong, nor
for his cause that suffered wrong, but that I care for you in the
sight of God. might appear unto you. You see, there's a desire. And what the Lord tells us then
in the last verse, I rejoice therefore that I have confidence
in you in these things. Well, may we be given that grace
to truly be able to examine ourselves very carefully When the Apostle Paul wrote to
the Hebrews, he reminds them of despising Moses' law. We know those people that we've
sung about, they despised Moses' law. He that despised Moses'
law died without mercy under two or three witnesses. How much
sore a punishment suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who
hath trodden underfoot the Son of God, and hath counted the
blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified an unholy thing,
and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace." Well, we have
really a different level here, don't we? The Apostle is directing
us very clearly to that great sin and that sore punishment
of those who suppose, of how much sore punishment, suppose
ye, shall he be thought worthy who has trodden underfoot the
Son of God. I wonder if that's true. of you
today, trodden underfoot, the Son of God. What that really
means is ignoring the blessed truth of God, and have counted the blood of
the covenant, wherewith He was sanctified an unholy thing. How do we value the blood of
Christ today? What do we think of it? Is it precious? The Apostle Paul
knew what it was. He describes it as the precious
blood of Christ. The blood of the covenant. How
valuable is it to you and me today? How do we value it? Now, the
Word of God is very solemn. How much sorer punishment. Suppose ye shall be thought worthy
to be trodden underfoot by the Son of God. Ours is a tremendous
favour and privilege to have the Word of God to read, to hear
the Word of God preached, My friends, also, ours is a very
solemn responsibility. These children of Israel, they
were under a great responsibility to keep the Word of God, to keep
the command of God. And one person disobeyed the
command of God. And the result was, Israel has
sinned and has transgressed my covenant which I commanded them. We think of that in New Testament
times. Well, my friends, it applies
to each one of us. Have we or are we treading underfoot
the Son of God? We need to think of it, don't
we? We need to ponder it very carefully. We need to think of
it as it regards ourselves. We're often looking at other
people. Don't look anywhere else. Let us look at ourselves. We
have trodden underfoot the Son of God and have counted the blood
of the covenant. wherewith he was sanctified an
unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace." Well,
my friends, may we not have despised the great and glorious plan of
salvation. May we indeed recognize the truth
of God's Word. The Apostle goes on to say, It
is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. He also goes on to say, for you
had compassion of me in my bonds and took joyfully the sporting
of your goods, knowing in yourselves that you have in heaven a better
and an enduring substance. Cast not away therefore your
confidence which hath great recompense of reward. For ye have need of
patience, that after ye have done the will of God, which is
a command, ye might receive the promise. For yet a little while,
and he that shall come, will come, and will not tarry. Now the just shall live by faith,
but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in
them. But, O my friends, may we be
within this but. We are not of them who draw back
unto perdition, but of them that believe to the saving of the
soul. O my friends, this morning, may
we truly believe before God to the saving of the soul and realise
what it means It means to be under the blood of Christ. It
means to know that he has died and redeemed us from all our
sins and that we today are not treading underfoot, the Son of
God. But our concern is to be found
keeping his law and his commands and not therefore coming under
this condemnation. Israel hath sinned. and they
have also transgressed my covenant which I commanded them for they
have even taken of the accursed thing and have also stolen and
dissembled also and they have put it even among their own stuff. Amen.