Tag: devoted things

71. After desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin

Joshua 6:18   But you, keep yourselves from the things devoted to destruction, lest when you have devoted them you take any of the devoted things and make the camp of Israel a thing for destruction and bring trouble upon it.

Joshua 7:10   The Lord said to Joshua, “Get up! Why have you fallen on your face? Israel has sinned; they have transgressed my covenant that I commanded them; they have taken some of the devoted things; they have stolen and lied and put them among their own belongings. Therefore the people of Israel cannot stand before their enemies.

Joshua 7:19   Then Joshua said to Achan, “My son, give glory to the Lord God of Israel and give praise to him. And tell me now what you have done; do not hide it from me.” And Achan answered Joshua, “Truly I have sinned against the Lord God of Israel, and this is what I did: when I saw among the spoil a beautiful cloak from Shinar, and 200 shekels of silver, and a bar of gold weighing 50 shekels, then I coveted them and took them. And see, they are hidden in the earth inside my tent, with the silver underneath.”

So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran to the tent; and behold, it was hidden in his tent with the silver underneath. And they took them out of the tent and brought them to Joshua and to all the people of Israel. And they laid them down before the Lord. And Joshua and all Israel with him took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver and the cloak and the bar of gold, and his sons and daughters and his oxen and donkeys and sheep and his tent and all that he had. And they brought them up to the Valley of Achor. And Joshua said, “Why did you bring trouble on us? The Lord brings trouble on you today.” And all Israel stoned him with stones. They burned them with fire and stoned them with stones.

In the story of Achan, we see just how deceptive sin can be. In the midst of a miraculous victory, Achan was enticed by a robe, some silver, and some gold—certainly, none of that compares with the power of God he had just witnessed. Yet we know our own hearts can be just as easily swayed. James 1:14–15 says, “Each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.” Another aspect of sin’s deception is that it promises a benefit that it just can’t deliver. The stolen items did Achan absolutely no good; he couldn’t spend the money, and he couldn’t wear the clothes. What seemed of great worth to him was actually worthless, buried in a hole in the ground while guilt festered in his heart. The gold and silver Achan stole was stolen from God Himself. The precious metals were to be added to the treasury of the Lord, and, in stealing them, Achan robbed God directly. God is holy and is not to be disobeyed without risking dire consequences.

We fool ourselves if we think we can neglect God’s word and we will be able to keep sin from enticing and tempting us.  How can a person who chooses to neglect God’s word find the armor to fight self-interest, satan’s lies, and cultural influences?   They won’t be able to and it must be said that disobedience brings ruin even upon the innocent. Sin’s effects go beyond the initial sinner.  It will have an effect on your family and your friends.

Faith Praise

“giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,”

Psalms 113:1  Praise the LORD! Praise, O servants of the LORD, praise the name of the LORD!  Blessed be the name of the LORD from this time forth and forevermore!  From the rising of the sun to its setting, the name of the LORD is to be praised!  The LORD is high above all nations, and his glory above the heavens!  Who is like the LORD our God, who is seated on high,  who looks far down on the heavens and the earth? He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap,  to make them sit with princes, with the princes of his people.  He gives the barren woman a home, making her the joyous mother of children. Praise the LORD!

Psalms 103:20-21   Bless the LORD, O you his angels, you mighty ones who do his word, obeying the voice of his word!

Psalms 134:1    Come, bless the LORD, all you servants of the LORD, who stand by night in the house of the LORD!

Psalms 135:1-3     Praise the LORD! Praise the name of the LORD, give praise, O servants of the LORD,  who stand in the house of the LORD, in the courts of the house of our God!  Praise the LORD, for the LORD is good; sing to his name, for it is pleasant!

Psalms 145:10    All your works shall give thanks to you, O LORD, and all your saints shall bless you!

Revelation 19:5     And from the throne came a voice saying, “Praise our God, all you his servants, you who fear him, small and great.”

Exodus 15:11     “Who is like you, O LORD, among the gods? Who is like you, majestic in holiness, awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders?

Isaiah 40:25     To whom then will you compare me, that I should be like him? says the Holy One.

Jeremiah 10:6    There is none like you, O LORD; you are great, and your name is great in might.

Luke 1:52-53     he has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate;  he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty.

James 2:5    Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him?

Being mindful of what God has done, is doing, and will do ought to bring praise to our lips and faith to our heart, mind and soul.  God is in control and His plans and purposes for each of our lives.  He gives us free will (choice) to humbly serve, listen intently to whispers of His leading, faithfully follow and obey and to be used by Him.  Praise grows within our heart and mind as we yield more and more to Him.  It is easy to praise Him in good times.  In tougher times, when our heart is broken, relationships are stressed, and consequences of our sinful nature overbear us, praise seems to be buried deep and far way from our lips.  Many times David has stated in the Psalms how his heart was broken, situations were over bearing, and his friends had abandoned him.  In these Psalms he cried out with these burdens and yet finished with – Praise to God for who He is, for His love, for His power, for His might, for His salvation, and for His promises.  This is where overbearing burdens of this life turn into “Faith Praise”.  This is where the heart, soul and mind, in faith, fully trust, yield, and place whatever the situation is into God’s hand.  There is no other place to find peace for our soul than fully in His care.

Whispers of God

“O God, you have rejected us, broken our defenses; you have been angry; oh, restore us.”

“Have you not rejected us, O God? You do not go out, O God, with our armies.”

“And the LORD said to me, ‘Say to them, Do not go up or fight, for I am not in your midst, lest you be defeated before your enemies.’”

Psalms 60:10  Have you not rejected us, O God? You do not go forth, O God, with our armies. Oh, grant us help against the foe, for vain is the salvation of man! With God we shall do valiantly; it is he who will tread down our foes.

Psalms 20:7    Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.

Psalms 44:5  Through you we push down our foes; through your name we tread down those who rise up against us.  For not in my bow do I trust, nor can my sword save me.  But you have saved us from our foes and have put to shame those who hate us.  In God we have boasted continually, and we will give thanks to your name forever.  But you have rejected us and disgraced us and have not gone out with our armies.

Psalms 118:9  It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in princes.  All nations surrounded me; in the name of the LORD I cut them off!

Isaiah 8:17     I will wait for the LORD, who is hiding his face from the house of Jacob, and I will hope in him.

Isaiah 12:1  You will say in that day: “I will give thanks to you, O LORD, for though you were angry with me, your anger turned away, that you might comfort me.  “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the LORD GOD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.”

Joshua 7:12    Therefore the people of Israel cannot stand before their enemies. They turn their backs before their enemies, because they have become devoted for destruction. I will be with you no more, unless you destroy the devoted things from among you.

Deuteronomy 20:4    for the LORD your God is he who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies, to give you the victory.’

1 Chronicles 10:1 Now the Philistines fought against Israel, and the men of Israel fled before the Philistines and fell slain on Mount Gilboa.  And the Philistines overtook Saul and his sons, and the Philistines struck down Jonathan and Abinadab and Malchi-shua, the sons of Saul.  The battle pressed hard against Saul, and the archers found him, and he was wounded by the archers.  Then Saul said to his armor-bearer, “Draw your sword and thrust me through with it, lest these uncircumcised come and mistreat me.” But his armor-bearer would not, for he feared greatly. Therefore Saul took his own sword and fell upon it.  And when his armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he also fell upon his sword and died.  Thus Saul died; he and his three sons and all his house died together.  And when all the men of Israel who were in the valley saw that the army had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned their cities and fled, and the Philistines came and lived in them.  The next day, when the Philistines came to strip the slain, they found Saul and his sons fallen on Mount Gilboa.  And they stripped him and took his head and his armor, and sent messengers throughout the land of the Philistines to carry the good news to their idols and to the people.  And they put his armor in the temple of their gods and fastened his head in the temple of Dagon.  But when all Jabesh-gilead heard all that the Philistines had done to Saul,  all the valiant men arose and took away the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons, and brought them to Jabesh. And they buried their bones under the oak in Jabesh and fasted seven days.  So Saul died for his breach of faith. He broke faith with the LORD in that he did not keep the command of the LORD, and also consulted a medium, seeking guidance.  He did not seek guidance from the LORD. Therefore the LORD put him to death and turned the kingdom over to David the son of Jesse.

I heard a person from “Proverbs 31 ministry” reflect on the busyness of life and they said “I have to take time to hear the whispers of God first thing everyday.  If I don’t I find myself getting caught up by the shouts of this world and am unable to hear God”.  A simple reflection of the past week and see if this is not true.  Is not God our purpose and reason for living this side of eternity?  Why  do we find it hard to commit to daily spending time in His word and in prayer, seeking to know Him deeper and the purpose and plans He has for our life?  Go back and reread these scriptures again and see what happens in the lives of those who; breach faith, seeking guidance apart from God, devoted to destruction (set their heart on things other than God), trust in princes, trusted in their own power, strength and what they own.  We are accountable to humbly serve, honor, obey and follow God.  How can we do this if we can’t hear His whispers of guidance?  How can we do this if all we have in our lives are the shouts of what this world has to offer?  The answer is – WE CAN’T!!!  Everyday needs to start with, be maintained throughout and end with Him.  Commit to spending time in His word and prayerfully seeking God for guidance for the day.  It is clear God turns away from those who reject, turn away, and lukewarmly seek Him.  Seek and desire Him with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind – if you do this His whispers become shouts and the world shouts turn to whispers.