Category Archives: Joshua

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A Spiritual Vacation or a Spiritual Victory

A Calling to Conquer

SYNOPSIS: God always leads us in triumph. There is always more territory he has destined us conquer. There are always more enemies he has empowered us to defeat. And while a part of you may yearn to sit back and relax, the glory of what it means to be Christian is to march forward as more than a conqueror. And why would we not embrace our calling to conquer? We have the promise of God that he himself will drive out our enemies.

The Journey // Focus: Joshua 13:1,6

When Joshua was an old man, the Lord said to him, “You are growing old, and much land remains to be conquered.… “I myself will drive these people out of the land ahead of the Israelites.”

We will rest when we get to heaven. Until then, there is still work to be done. I am sorry to disappoint you if you were thinking of your Christianity as a spiritual vacation. It is not; it is a spiritual victory. Of course there are ebbs and flows in the journey of faith, but there will always be more promises to possess, territory to claim, enemies to overcome and victories to secure.

Thus it will always be. That is the ongoing saga of redemptive history. While God brings us through challenges and gives us victory over our enemies, the end has yet to be written. Of course, the outcome has been predetermined, but it is still in the making. That is why we say he leads us from victory to victory.

While the promises of God are as good as done, and even though the outcome has been predetermined, that never means the believer gets to sit back and rest on their laurels. God’s rest is not a piece of geography—not at this point, anyway—it is a spiritual condition of triumph. That triumph is experienced in the advance of his kingdom through our lives. Through the work that he has given us to do, we are victorious—and that is what propels us along our journey of joyful rest.

That is evident in the story of Joshua 13. General Joshua has been one of history’s most brilliant military strategist. He has won conquest after conquest against enemies that were fiercer, stronger, better equipped and more battle hardened than Israel’s army. Moreover, God was on their side, and city after city fell into Israel’s hands. But after a long period under Joshua, the time had come for others to lead in the remaining battles.

Yes, battles remained. Get used to it! In preparation for the end of his career, God told Joshua to divide the land between the twelve tribes. He was to assign specific geographical territory to each tribe, even though some of it was yet to be firmly in Israel’s possession. So why divide the land between the tribes before Israel had conquered it?

For one thing, Joshua was advancing in years and the day of his death was looming. The task would not be complete by the time of his passing. Furthermore, there would not be a singular leader over Israel for the next four hundred years as they continued to possess and settle the land, so God assigned Joshua the task of allotting the land among Israel’s tribes, clans and families.

But while that is the practical reason for counting their chickens before they hatched, there was also a faith reason. God was on their side, and he would see to it that the land came under their possession. While they would have to work and war to possess it, we are told by God, “I myself will drive these people out of the land ahead of the Israelites.” God’s promise to work on Israel’s behalf was so certain, that the division of the land could be made even before it was conquered. God’s promise is as good as done. God was asking Israel through this division of land to picture what he had promised. Again, the faith principle is that we need to picture what we want to possess.

So what is the point? Simply this: God always leads us in triumph. There is always more territory to conquer. There are always more enemies to defeat. And while a part of you may yearn to sit back and relax, the glory of what it means to be Christian is to march forward as more than a conqueror. And why would we not embrace our calling to conquer? We have the promise of God that he himself will drive out our enemies.

Yes, the time will come for rest soon enough. In the meantime: onward toward yet another predetermined victory.

Going Deeper: Memorize Romans 8:37-39, “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

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FaithList: Naming Names

Don't Jump Past the Genealogies

SYNOPSIS: Perhaps you think that reading through the seemingly endless lists of names in Scripture is unnecessary. Maybe you think taking the time to utter these names is boring, meaningless and a colossal waste of your time. But let me ask you this: why do you think God, in his providential oversight of bringing the Bible into existence, saw fit to include so many statistical and genealogical lists? Do you think it was merely for historical purposes? Or are they to build the faith of his people? I would argue for both. Don’t neglect these genealogical praise songs!

The Journey // Focus: Joshua 12:1-2

These are the kings east of the Jordan River who had been killed by the Israelites and whose land was taken. Their territory extended from the Arnon Gorge to Mount Hermon and included all the land east of the Jordan Valley: King Sihon of the Amorites… King Og of Bashan, the last of the Rephaites….The king of Jericho…The king of Ai, near Bethel…The king of Jerusalem…The king of Hebron…

We have seen it many times already in reading through the Old Testament: endless lists of meaningless names—at least, meaningless to us. But not meaningless to the people of Israel! Every name is a story—a God-story, to be specific—of God’s provision for his people and punishment for his enemies. And every time Moses or Joshua wrote these lists down, they became a kind of checklist of praise for the people of Israel. You might say, they were praise songs for statisticians. God even loves the numbers geek!

As I have said before, we might be tempted to just skip over these names when we come to them in our Bible reading—at least I am. But I would encourage you not to do that. As an act of worship, read the names out loud. Of course, you won’t know how to pronounce half of them, so just make them up. Remind God of what he did for his people. Of course, God doesn’t need reminding, but in reminding him, you are really reminding yourself that the activity of God is rooted in history—it is real; that God is for his people—he is not an uncaring, distant deity; and that God fulfills his promises—which includes empowering his people to overcome their enemies.

I would then encourage you to list out your own victories. Write a “faithlist” of things that God has done for you. Go back into your past and dredge up your God-stories back up. Write down the things he has done for you lately. Include little provisions and big miracles. Remember what God has done and memorialize it on a list. Then thank God for each one of those answers—out loud. Do it as an act of worship. Remind God of how great he is. Of course, he already knows his own greatness, but you will be building your own faith as you do it.

Perhaps you think that what I am suggesting is unnecessary. Maybe you think it is a colossal waste of your time. But let me ask you this: why do you think God, in his providential oversight of bringing the Bible into written form, saw fit to include so many of genealogical and statistical lists? Do you think it was merely for historical purposes? Or are they to build the faith of his people? I would argue for both. They are to remind us that God’s work is not merely spiritual fable; it is rooted in history. Moreover, what God has done in history is to teach us that he will do again. Since he is a covenantly faithful God, the interventions, provisions and victories that he wrought for his people in the past, he will work into the lives of his people today.

These statistical and genealogical praise lists are powerful. That is why I would suggest that you come up with your own from time to time in your journey of faith. There is an old gospel song authored in the late 1800’s by Johnson Oatman that captures what I am calling you to do. When I was growing up, my faith community periodically sang this song, Count Your Blessings. One of the verses and the chorus went like this:

So amid the conflict, whether great or small,
Do not be discouraged; God is over all.
Count your many blessings; angels will attend,
Help and comfort give you to your journey’s end.

Count your blessings;
Name them one by one.
Count your blessings;
See what God hath done.

Truly, God has been good!

Going Deeper: Why don’t you try counting your blessings today? Make a faithlist of all that God has done for you. You will be amazed at God’s goodness and filled will more faith to take on the day ahead.

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From Promise To Fulfillment: The Story of Faith and Obedience

Align Your Life to God's Promises

SYNOPSIS: God has made thousands of promises in his Word to his people. Some of them are specific to that time and to those people, but most are general promises that are for you to possess. Picture them! That is an act of faith. Then align yourself to possess them. That is an act of obedience. Faith and obedience—may that be the testimony of your life.

The Journey// Focus: Joshua 11:16-18,23

So Joshua took this entire land: the hill country, all the Negev, the whole region of Goshen, the western foothills, the Arabah and the mountains of Israel with their foothills, from Mount Halak, which rises toward Seir, to Baal Gadin the Valley of Lebanon below Mount Hermon. He captured all their kings and put them to death, Joshua waged war against all these kings for a long time…. So Joshua took the entire land, just as the Lord had directed Moses, and he gave it as an inheritance to Israel according to their tribal divisions. Then the land had rest from war.

God had promised Israel a land—the land of Canaan. The promise was made to Abraham hundreds of years before Joshua 11 as a condition of the covenant the Lord made with this man who would become the father of many nations, including Israel (that story is contained in Genesis 12-25), and much later, the father of our faith (Romans 4:16) The rest of Genesis all the way thorough Judges tells the story of Israel’s circuitous journey to physically get to the Promised Land (Exodus-Numbers), enter it to possess it by dispossessing the nations who lived there (Joshua), and then settle it (Judges).

Joshua 11 is at the heart of the conquest story—it is where the rubber of faith meets the road of fulfillment. When the Lord had commissioned General Joshua to lead Israel to cross the Jordan and go into the land to drive out the nations, he first gave him a picture of what the Promised Land would look like:

I promise you what I promised Moses: ‘Wherever you set foot, you will be on land I have given you—the Negev wilderness in the south to the Lebanon mountains in the north, from the Euphrates River in the east to the Mediterranean Sea in the west, including all the land of the Hittites.’ No one will be able to stand against you as long as you live. For I will be with you as I was with Moses. I will not fail you or abandon you. (Joshua 1:3-5)

Joshua needed to picture what God wanted him to possess. He also needed to hear God’s twin promise of presence and power to maintain the courage it would take to go up against nation after nation that were bigger, better equipped and more experienced in war than the Israelite army. Which brings up several important points relevant for our faith journey today about moving from God’s promise to their fulfillment in our lives:

  • We have to picture God’s promises if we hope to possess them—that is what “faithing” it is all about (“Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see. Through their faith, the people in days of old earned a good reputation.” Hebrews 11:1-2)
  • The best of God’s promises are way bigger than what we can imagine, and even way bigger than what we need. God’s promise to Joshua was basically the entire Middle East. What that tells us is that God gives in abundance, which is simply defined as more than we need. (“God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.” Ephesians 3:20)
  • The bigger the promises, the bigger the opposition to those promises we will face. The Enemy knows what is at stake in the people of God possessing the promises of God, so he throws up obstacles of every kind to discourage us from staying at the task of claiming them. Even though he is a defeated foe, he won’t go down without a fight. (“Since the first day you began to pray for understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your request has been heard in heaven. I have come in answer to your prayer. But for twenty-one days the spirit prince of the kingdom of Persia blocked my way. Then Michael, one of the archangels, came to help me, and I left him there with the spirit prince of the kingdom of Persia.” Daniel 10:12-13)
  • The promises of God are sure, but they are not automatic. We have a part to play: we have to possess them. God can’t possess them for us; we have to give spiritual effort to bring them into our possession. That too, is called faith: bringing in through spiritual effort from the unseen realm into our reality what God has already established. (“Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. 13 For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.” Philippians 2:12-13)

God promised a land, then empowered Israel to possess it, but Joshua and company had to go out and fight to claim what was theirs by divine declaration. And they did. Notice how similar the reality of their victory was to the original promise:

Joshua conquered the entire region—the hill country, the entire Negev, the whole area around the town of Goshen, the western foothills, the Jordan Valley, the mountains of Israel, and the Galilean foothills. The Israelite territory now extended all the way from Mount Halak, which leads up to Seir in the south, as far north as Baal-gad at the foot of Mount Hermon in the valley of Lebanon. (Joshua 10:16-18)

God has made promises to you, too. It may not be a literal land, but it is a territory. Faith is the activity of claiming it; of bringing it into your possession. Picture what he wants you to possess—that is faith. Believe that it is yours by diving declaration—that, too, is faith. Then get after it. Possess what you have pictured. Align your prayers and your resources—spiritual, physical, financial—to possess it. Giving spiritual effort to possess God’s promises—that is called obedience.

Faith and obedience—that is the story of those who possess the promises.

Going Deeper: God has made over 6,000 promises in his Word to his people. Some of them are specific to that time and to those people, but most are general promises that are for you to possess. Picture them! That is an act of faith. Then align yourself to possess them. That is an act of obedience. Faith and obedience—may that be the testimony of your life.

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When God Fights For You

Predetermined Victory

Make no mistake: God still fights on behalf of his people. In a realm that you usually can’t see, there is a battle, and God is at war to bring about complete and utter victory for his kingdom. And while that victory may not be seen like you and I would want, let’s be perfectly clear about this: the outcome is predetermined and the victory has already been won! If you don’t believe that, then as they say, fast-forward to the end of the book and you will see it: we win!

The Journey// Focus: Joshua 10:9-13

Joshua traveled all night from Gilgal and took the Amorite armies by surprise. 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. 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. 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: “Let the sun stand still over Gibeon, and the moon over the valley of Aijalon.” So the sun stood still and the moon stayed in place until the nation of Israel had defeated its enemies.

Obviously, it doesn’t always work this way, but when it does, boy howdy! The situation was different back then, and it called for God to step in on Israel’s behalf in a way that left no doubt in the minds of friend and foe alike that Yahweh was on the side of his people. Similar to the ten plagues and the parting of the Red Sea, clearly God was fighting for Israel. And it wasn’t a fair fight. It never is when God gets involved.

Israel was taking possession of their Promised Land in fulfillment of the centuries old covenantal promise that God made with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. That meant the Canaanites, a particularly brutal, sinful, godless amalgam of city-states, had to be dispossessed from that land. So city-by-city, Joshua was on a winning streak where they didn’t barely eke out victories; these were blowouts. And in this case, not only was the Israelite army crushing the Amorites, God steps in and through a hailstorm of epic proportions, laid waste to the enemy. We are told that more died by the hail than by the sword.

Then, if that weren’t enough, Joshua put his foot on the gas to completely destroy whoever was left. The day was coming to a close, the sun would soon set before the job got done, so he even called out to the sun and moon for them to freeze in place. Imagine that: a man making demands of the solar system just so he could finish his work before nightfall. And it happened! Seriously, the only time before or since, the sun literally stood still and the moon didn’t budge until Israel had pitched a complete game, a shut out—and a no hitter at that.

Don’t you wish that was your testimony with every problem you face? I do! But most times, that is not what is called for. Typically, God has other methods for accomplishing his will. We are not literally going into a physical land to dispossess nations, so what Joshua did would be completely inappropriate for God’s people today. We are to take possession of spiritual lands by capturing people through the gospel and bringing them under the loving reign of Jesus Christ. It is a bit different today than in Joshua’s day.

However, make no mistake that God still fights on behalf of his people. In a realm that you usually can’t see, there is a battle, and God is at war to bring about complete and utter victory for his kingdom. And while that victory may not be seen like you and I would want, let’s be perfectly clear about this: the outcome is predetermined and the victory has already been won! If you don’t believe that, then as they say, fast-forward to the end of the book and you will see it: we win!

Take heart today, my friend. In whatever battle you face, you have a God who fights for his people. Surely the Lord fights for you in the unseen realm—sometimes in a way that even leaks into the visible realm—just like he fought for Joshua:

Surely the Lord fought for Israel that day! (Joshua 10:14)

In an earlier battle, once again Joshua led Israel to a stunning victory over the evil and defiant Amalekites. When the battle was over, we are told that Moses built an altar there and named it “Yahweh-Nissi (which means ‘the Lord is my banner’). He said, ‘They have raised their fist against the Lord’s throne, so now the Lord will be at war with them.’” (Exodus 17:15-16)

Yahweh Nissi—the Lord is just as much your banner as he was theirs!

Going Deeper: What is your battle today? Take heart, Yaweh Nissi will do whatever it takes to march you on to victory!

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Ready, Fire, Aim

Seek God First

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!

Going Deeper: What is on your to do list today? What is on the drawing board for your future? Have you asked God first? Have you sought his input before you move a step forward? If not, do it. If you have, keep doing it!

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Don’t Sacrifice Future Blessings For Temporal Fixes

Trust and Obey, For There's No Other Way

SYNOPSIS: God desires to bless us—he really does. But there is a path to blessing that we must follow. The path is against the grain of human reasoning and self-gratification, but it is the one and only path that God has chosen for his people to walk. What is that path? It is to ruthlessly truth and completely obey God! Walk it, my friend! It always leads to untold blessing! And on that path, don’t sacrifice a future of promised blessing that arrives only through trust and obedience for quick but temporal fixes that will end up destroying you.

The Journey // Focus: Joshua 8:2

You will destroy Ai this time as you destroyed Jericho and its king. And this time, you may keep the plunder and the livestock for yourselves.

God told Israel to completely destroy Jericho—an evil city that was a part of an exceedingly evil culture—which happened to stand directly in the way as Israel entered the Promised Land. It was the first city of conquest, and as such, it was the first-fruits of sorts—the initial battle of the many battles to come in their conquest of Canaan. These first-fruits belong to God—in this case, and in every case. God says, “Give me the best (that is, the first part), then I will give you the rest. This is how you will honor me and keep me first in your life.” Thus with Jericho, the spoils of the battle were to be totally devoted to the Lord by totally annihilating this evil city and everything in it.

Yet one man, Achan, secretly, selfishly, and in willful disregard to what God has just commanded, took some plunder for himself (Joshua 7:20-21), and as a result of his individual disobedience, national disgrace settled upon Israel. The Israelites lost the next battle—one they should have easily won—and scores of warriors died. Because of the sin of one man, the whole nation suffered. Sound familiar? That is exactly what happened when Adam sinned,

When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned. (Romans 5:12)

When you read the story of Achan’s punishment—and the brutality of his entire family being executed for his sin—and you are both feeling sorry for them and miffed that God overreacted, keep in mind that thousands of Israelites were mourning the deaths of their warrior sons who had been killed in battled because of this one man’s selfish act. That will put the harsh consequences of disobedience placed upon Achan, along with his entire family, into a sobering but more understandable light.

The take-away from this story, and it is a sad one, is that Achan could have had everything his heart desired had he just followed the Lord’s commands. As we see in this next battle, the soldiers were free to take the plunder.

When Israel had finished killing all the men of Ai in the fields and in the wilderness where they had chased them, and when every one of them had been put to the sword, all the Israelites returned to Ai and killed those who were in it. Twelve thousand men and women fell that day—all the people of Ai. For Joshua did not draw back the hand that held out his javelin until he had destroyed all who lived in Ai. But Israel did carry off for themselves the livestock and plunder of this city, as the Lord had instructed Joshua. (Joshua 8:24-27)

Achan made the mistake we often make: We sacrifice a future of promised blessing that arrives only through trust and obedience for quick but temporal fixes that will end up destroying us. Call it what you will—delayed gratification, long-range planning, ruthless trust—waiting upon God in faith and obedience is the job of the Christian. And scripture is replete with promises for those who do:

No one who trusts in you will ever be disgraced, but disgrace comes to those who try to deceive others. (Psalm 25:3)

Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart’s desires. Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust him, and he will help you. (Psalm 37:4-5)

Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. (Matthew 6:33)

The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of all the earth. He never grows weak or weary. No one can measure the depths of his understanding. He gives power to the weak and strength to the powerless. Even youths will become weak and tired, and young men will fall in exhaustion. But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint. (Isaiah 40:28-31)

God desires to bless us—he really does. But there is a path to blessing that we must follow. The path is against the grain of human reasoning and self-gratification, but it is the one and only path that God has chosen for his people to walk.

Walk it, my friend! It always leads to untold blessing!

Going Deeper: Here is a prayer I would invite you to join me in lifting to the Lord: “Dear Father, would I have been an Achan if I were in his place? Would I have given into temptation and disobeyed you? Am I doing that now in some area of my life? Oh Lord, I don’t even want an answer to that—I just want you to purge me of any disobedience and faithlessness. I want to be pleasing to you. I don’t want to bring shame and injury upon my family or my church. I want to partake of the amazing blessings that come by trust and obedience. I want to be a part of the Joshua crowd, not the Achan clan. Lord, cleanse me and set my feet on solid ground. Lead me in the way everlasting. Establish my coming and my going so that I am completely devoted and pleasing to you!”

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Painful Lessons

Private Actions Affect Public Relationships

SYNOPSIS: Does God still punish a community of faith when there is sin in the camp like he did when the whole nation of Israel suffered for the sin of one man, Achan? Of course, Israel was unique in that it was a theocracy, and we don’t live under that system today in our pluralistic democracy. So what was applied to Israel may not be exactly applied in our nation—although I suspect there is still a divine principle at play. Yet each of us does live in theocratic community if we belong to a family or a church. And in that sense, we need to give careful thought as to how our individual behavior might affect those who share life with us in the community. Here’s the deal: My private actions affect my public relationships.

The Journey// Focus: Joshua 7:11-13

The Lord replied to Joshua, “Israel has sinned and broken my covenant! They have stolen some of the things that I commanded must be set apart for me. And they have not only stolen them but have lied about it and hidden the things among their own belongings. That is why the Israelites are running from their enemies in defeat. For now Israel itself has been set apart for destruction. I will not remain with you any longer unless you destroy the things among you that were set apart for destruction. Get up! Command the people to purify themselves in preparation for tomorrow. For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Hidden among you, O Israel, are things set apart for the Lord. You will never defeat your enemies until you remove these things from among you.

Israel had just experienced the extreme thrill of defeating the great walled city of Jericho. It was an impenetrable fortress by ancient standards, but it collapsed like a house of cards before the Lord’s people. Then, just days later in the next battle, Israel was unexpectedly stunned at the fierce resistance of the small band of fighters at a little village called Ai. In a matter of hours, God’s people went from the sublime to the ridiculous. Ai was a relatively small and defenseless city of no account, yet its defenders fought for their very existence against the superior Israelite army—and Ai punched Israel in the mouth. Thirty-six of Israel’s fighting men were immediately killed in battle, and the rout was on. Israel was stunned, humiliated and disheartened.

All because of the sin of one man—Achan!

No matter how many times we moderns read the ancient story of the Israelites, we run across stories like this, Achan’s sin, and are left shaking our heads in wonderment—and not in the positive sense of wonderment. This is not a warm, fuzzy and inspiring story. And there are many like it with which we must contend as we journey through the Old Testament.

When we read these stories—and admittedly, we don’t have the backstory in every case—we are struck with a bad case of the fear of the Lord. There is no denying the anxiety we feel over his fierce holiness along with his swift and sweeping judgment against human violation of that holiness, for if this happened because of one sin, we don’t stand a chance before God for our many sins.

Furthermore, the story in Joshua 7 is not just a one off; there have been plenty. To name a few, we have witnessed the death of Nadab and Abihu for offering unholy fire on the altar (Leviticus 10), the execution of a blasphemer who cursed God’s name during a fight (Leviticus 24:10-23), the gruesome killing of a man who brought a Moabite woman into his tent to have sex with her—in broad daylight (Numbers 25), and now the stoning of a young man named Achan, along with his entire family, because he kept some of the expensive plunder from the battle of Jericho for himself.

Not that we would condone any of these sins—nobody who truly follows the Lord would justify any of these deliberate violations of God’s commands. Even still, the immediacy and severity of the punishment is hard to swallow for people like us who live at a time where consequences for actions seem to be decreasingly certain. So we read stories like this, and if we do anything with them at all, we simply toss them into the “Painful Lessons” file.

One of those painful lessons here is the corporate-ness of sin. In our culture, we worship individualism. In fact, the early heroes who built our nation are praised for their rugged individualism. We are proud of that and happen to believe that it is the superior way to live. While we nod our heads in agreement that whole community is important, we tend to see the parts as more important than the whole; the many are servant to the one. What child at school hasn’t whined that the whole class was punished for the actions of one student? To our western mindset, that is the height of unfairness.

Yet while we embrace the idea of unity, and the blessings that derive from it, why would we not accept the opposite? Why should we be surprised when the whole community suffers because an individual violates its values? If God favors corporate unity (Psalm 133:1-3), why would he not lift his favor from the community when sin invades it through an individual member? It cuts both ways—the whole is blessed when the parts are right; the whole is cursed when the parts are wrong.

I suspect you are still not convinced. I don’t like it either. But we have been so steeped in a cultural mindset of individualism that we simply cannot, or will not embrace God’s response to community when life in the community goes sideways. Of course, Israel was unique in that it was a theocracy, and we don’t live under that system today in our pluralistic democracy. So what was applied to Israel may not be applied to the same degree in our nation—although I suspect there is still a divine principle at play.

Yet each of us does live in theocratic community if we belong to a family or small group or ministry team or church. And in that sense, we need to give careful thought as to how our individual behavior might affect those who share life with us in the community. And while we don’t suffer the same degree of punishment that Achan and his family suffered, we can—and should—learn the painful lesson of Achan: My private actions affect my public relationships.

I love painful lessons, said no one ever—but thank God for them.

Going Deeper: Take a moment to prayerfully consider how your private attitudes, habits and actions affect your public relationships.