Ready, Fire, Aim

SYNOPSIS: Joshua 9 tells the story of an ill-advised peace treaty with the Gibeonites. Why was it such a bad thing? As the text says, twice: “But they didn’t ask God about it.” Joshua’s failure to seek God first should serve as a cautionary tale as you make your decisions today. Even in small, seemingly insignificant ones, be innocent of hastiness. As Jesus would say, in all matters, large and small, “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness.” May you always, always say, “I will ask God first!”

The Journey// Focus: Joshua 9:14-16

The men of Israel looked the Gibeonites over and accepted the evidence [that they came from a long distance away]. But they didn’t ask God about it. They examined their food and it appeared old, but they did not consult the Lord. Then Joshua made a peace treaty with them and guaranteed their safety, and the leaders of the community ratified their agreement with a binding oath. Three days after making the treaty, they learned that these people actually lived nearby!

“But they didn’t ask God about it.” No matter how overwhelming the evidence, no matter how good the idea, not matter how much something makes sense, we dishonor God and in the long run, if not the short term, hurt ourselves when we leave God out of the picture.

In this case, Joshua and his leaders made a hasty decision about a nation-tribe that lived in the land of Canaan, the Gibeonites. The Lord had instructed the Israelites, in order to possess the land, to dispossess the peoples who lived there. They should have destroyed the Gibeonites according to God’s orders, but the Gibeonites deceived Joshua’s leadership team into thinking they were not a part of those city-states that were devoted to destruction.

Joshua’s mistake was in assuming! In the spiritual realm, assuming pre-decides the will of God; it presumes. The sin of presumption is a big deal in the Old Testament, and the outcome of this sin is particularly destructive to the kingdom life in Israel. Had Joshua’s team asked God for his wisdom in the matter on the front side, the leaders would have been spared this embarrassing disobedience on the backside.

Interestingly, even after discovering that the Gibeonites had deceived Israel into making this peace treaty, Joshua nevertheless honored the treaty he had just made with them. Even though it had been made under false pretenses, Joshua was not guilt free in this matter. He had not consulted the Lord. I suspect Joshua’s attitude was a precursor to what the psalmist spoke of in Psalm 15, when he spoke of those who walked blamelessly in God’s sight. Among the characteristics of such people,

They keep their promises even when it hurts. (Psalm 15:4)

Now by all rights, Joshua could have broken the treaty he had just made and killed them—but their submissive posture and willingness to take on the faith commands of the Israelite community spared them from destruction. Joshua kept his oath, even though it hurt.

Fast forward to your life. Do you assume God’s will and fail to seek his input in your daily decisions, both great and small. Do you presume upon God? Are you guilty of a ready, fire, aim approach to living out your faith in the world where God has asked you to represent him? This is so easy to do, and we probably commit Joshua’s sin more often than we think.

Today, may Joshua’s failure to ask God first serve as a cautionary tale as you make decisions. Even in small, seemingly insignificant ones, be innocent of hastiness. Seek God first in all matters, large and small. And when you are ready to move forward in a matter, follow the correct protocol: ready, AIM, fire. May you always, always say, “I will seek the Lord first!”

Hmmm…sounds like something to which the Founder of our faith has called us: seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness. Be a seek first person!