Ooooohhh booooiiiiiiyyyyy…..

A convicting passage alert!!!

This one may hurt folks!!!!

😲

Joshua 7 is where I am this morning as I make my way through the Old Testament in my usual chapter by chapter, orderly fashion.

Joshua is the Lord’s successor to Moses for the people of Israel~ HE will be the one to lead them into the Promised Land of Canaan (that the people had been circling for the past 40 years while God provided for their every basic need-remember: even their SHOES did not wear out in those 40 years! ).

The preceeding chapter (Chapter 6) tells of the Lord’s very specific commands for the Israelites to destroy everything that is in the city of Jericho – leaving nothing behind that could lure their hearts away from God .

The story of the walls of Jericho coming down is told in this chapter as is the rescue of Rahab (because of her obedience, she is listed in the lineage of Jesus)!

Chapter 7, however, begins with these simple words:

BUT, the sons of Israel acted unfaithfully and violated their obligations in regards to the things { that were considered “off limits”} under the ban…

THEY TOOK SOME THINGS FOR THEIR PERSONAL GAIN.

This means they disobeyed… We need to be clear that not everyone was disobedient but Israel is a NATION (God’s people) and the NATION was to be set apart as holy and different in the eyes of other countries so God would be given the glory as THE only God.

The “rules” were not given to the nation that “if most of you do as I -God- says then you will be a blessed people”…

Nope.

His expectation was that ALL would be obedient to Him for ALL to receive everything that He had promised.

So when SOME of the people disobeyed, perhaps without many others even being aware of it, God’s anger burned against the NATION of Israel.

Verse 2 tells us that the next city after Jericho to be conquered on their way to Canaan was the city of Ai.

After the army for Israel was chased off in defeat by those in Ai, the NATION felt this:

Verse 5- the hearts of the people melted {in despair and began to doubt God’s promise} and became like water {disheartened}.

So, in the face of disobedience, the people of Israel are surprised that they don’t get to be successful at every turn…getting to win every battle.

I think of our country – the USA….many people believe that the US is truly a “nation under God” and therefore is entitled to receive all the blessings of the Lord without much effort.

People were shocked that 9/11 could actually have happened…that we, as a nation, were somehow immune to such an act of terror.

Obviously, the lessons of Pearl Harbor had been forgotten…

We are not immune to the evils of this world just because we made a pledge of allegiance…

When mass shootings, terror attacks, car accidents, cancer, senseless murders or OD’s happen, do we, too, find ourselves questioning whether the promises of God are true…don’t we? Don’t we “deserve” better than that kind of suffering?

Let’s be honest be with ourselves about that for a minute…

Do we question the character of God…His sovereignty…His goodness…His always present and never failing power…when suffering hits?

Do we think, because this horrible thing has happened, God is punishing us…has forgotten us….has removed His hand from us…?

Sounds a bit like the Israelites if you ask me…

The lesson of the OT tells quite the different story of God throughout all the trials and pain of the Israelite people…the story of the Exodus is proof~

He never left them

He never quit on them.

Even in the hard times that He did not shield them from, He stayed right by them READY to resume their relationship when they were ready to turn their hearts back toward Him.

He asked them, and continues to ask us, for obedience to His plan….His way to do things….

He says, you CAN do it your way…but My way is paved with love if only you will trust Me.

When the Israelites, or us, vear off the straight and narrow path, God does allow the world to affect us… We get hurt…we suffer consequences…we have to deal with being disciplined.

And, even when we are being obedient, we still get affected by the cnsequences of those who have gone their own way.

Doesn’t seem fair if we are doing the right thing, does it?

But, as I said, it was the NATION He chose to set apart…not the individuals.

Moses was not immune to the disobedience of the people.

Joshua lost that battle to Ai….not because HE did something wrong but because they all suffered the consequences of the few.

Here’s the gist of this commentary…

Bad things happen.

That we know.

Sometimes, it is on account of a conseqence to choice we may have made for ourselves. We may have been disobedient to the plan and will of God.

However, other times, we are not being punished. . .we are not forgotten….we are not unseen …we are not unloved….we are not looked over…we are not an oversight when bad things happen to us….we are being affected by the consequences of choices made by others in this world.

We need to remember that we are part of this world that God created and therefore – FAIR OR NOT- we will be affected by those who choose the path not of God.

We are still considered a NATION – God’s chosen people…we have still been made in His image…we are still a part of the world that Jesus came to save…

Remember: Jesus died to save us from the sins that hurt us, lure our hearts away from Him, that take us down a much harder road than He ever wanted for us to experience.

Christ’s death and resurrection are part of God’s plan to RESTORE His people to Him and the way things should be…we were created to live in a garden, remember?

We need to be aware and accountable to our choices…are we being disobedient to what God would have us do??

Frankly, we all need forgiveness on a regular basis.

BUT, this world needs saving too … are my actions in this time of trial, struggle, pain, sickness, grief reflecting a heart that still trusts in the goodness and plan of God or am I like the Israelites where my heart becomes dismayed and distrusting when bad things happen?

It is sobering to think that my response to suffering also has as much an impact on others as does what it is that is causing my suffering….

How Jesus died on the cross brought about salvation before He was ressurected…

How I respond, how the Israelites responded, in the face of defeat or illness or senseless wandering brings glory to God.

The Israelites were THE chosen nation of God…I , and you, are His beloved…we are also to reflect God in all times and situations.

Why?

Why in the pain?

Why in the suffering?

Why in the illness?

Why in sorrow?

Why in the confusion?

Why when we don’t get our way?

Why when the plan isn’t what we thought?

BECAUSE HE IS GOD.

YAHWEH.

JEHOVAH JIRAH.

ABBA.

He is worthy of all the glory, all the time.

It is good to be held accountable to that.

Post note: Chapter 8 tells us that after the people repented, God told Joshua to not be afraid to try again…so Joshua set out to do battle with Ai for the second time and was victorious because Israel was completely dependent on God for success.