Joshua was flabbergasted. After the great victory he and the people of God had won over Jericho, they had suddenly been horribly defeated by a little nothing village called Ai. Had God let his people down, forgotten them? Joshua was convinced that God had failed his people and he called out to him for help and understanding.
He got the help he needed, but it came in a very different way than he expected. Get up off the ground, Joshua. Stop praying and deal with the sin that caused the problem. That was not what he expected.
But God revealed the source of the problem - Achan’s sin – and Israel took care of
business. It is shocking to our modern sensibilities the lengths to which he
went in dealing with this sin, but sin is no small thing in God’s eyes. But there was sin in Israel and it had to be dealt with - aggressively and forcefully.
Once the sin issue was properly put in the past, there was still the matter of round 2 with Ai. This time, with God on their side and giving them direction, and using their entire army, they went up to Ai and conquered it. God
gave them wisdom and power and they won the battle that only days before had
brought defeat.
There are some important lessons for us in this story.
First, defeat is never final for the people of God. I have lost and lost and
lost, but that does not mean that I have to give up. Just because I blew it
yesterday does not mean that I have to blow it tomorrow. I do not have to be
tomorrow what I used to be.
Second, if I want to change, I’ve got to deal with the
deep sins, the heart issues, and the hidden things that have undermined my
success. Israel could have gone up against Ai with a hundred different
strategies, but until they dealt with the sin in their midst, there would be no
victory. I need to let the Spirit speak conviction to my heart and show me
whatever there is in my life that might hinder my victory.
Finally, I need to marshal all the power that God
has given me and go to battle. When Israel took only a part of their resources,
they were turned away. But when they went up against Ai with all of their
soldiers, empowered by God, the battle turned. For any spiritual battle we face we must put on the whole armor of God, not just part of it.
Lord, thank you for never giving up, even when I feel like a failure. Thank you for being faithful and good. Forgive my sins and cleanse my heart that I may walk in your ways daily.
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