Joshua 7:1-26 | "The Anger of the LORD Burned" [Live Stream Edition]

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Sunday, September 13, 2020. Joshua 7:1-26 | "The Anger of the LORD Burned" [Live Stream Edition] Does it make you uncomfortable to think about God becoming angry? God was angry at Israel because one man was faithless and took for himself of what belonged to God. This message will require us all to understand the seriousness of sin and its consequences upon ourselves and others.

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I. Reading of Scripture

Joshua 7:1 ESV
1 But the people of Israel broke faith in regard to the devoted things, for Achan the son of Carmi, son of Zabdi, son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of the devoted things. And the anger of the Lord burned against the people of Israel.
Pray

II. Introduction

“The Anger of the LORD Burned”

A. Introduction to Theme

lit. “the nose became hot” or “the nostrils became inflamed”
Does it make you uncomfortable to think of the LORD becoming angry?
In the very early days of the church there was a man named Marcion. He moved to Rome and became a bishop.
Marcion was a heretic, meaning Marcion departed from right teaching about God. He departed from the truth.
He believed that the gospel excludes law = excludes OT = excludes god of OT.
Marcion argued that there was a distinction between the OT and NT in such a way that there are two gods in the Bible - a god of the OT (a god of anger, judgment and wrath) and a god of the NT (a god of love, grace and peace).
I wonder how many of you would agree with Marcion?
You hear about God being angry and that doesn’t sit well with you. So you say “that is an Old Testament thing.” The God of the NT is love. Jesus represents love. The God of the NT doesn’t get angry or speak about wrath and judgment anymore.
But what does Hebrews 13:8 teach us?
Hebrews 13:8 ESV
8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
Malachi 3:6 (a) ESV
“For I the LORD do not change...”
The Bible does not present two stories, an Old and New Testament story. The Bible presents ONE story.
The Bible does not present two gods, an Old and New Testament God. The Bible presents one, unchanging God!
So what is written about God in the Old Testament is true about God in the New Testament.
And today we encounter God, and He is angry!
Who is God angry at?
We want God to be angry at Israel’s enemies. For the anger to be directed OUTSIDE the camp. At the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Hivites, the Perizzites, the Girgashites, the Amorites and the Jebusites (see Joshua 3:10).
But in Joshua Chapter 7, God is not angry at them. God is angry at the children of Israel. God is angry at His people! God’s anger is directed INSIDE the camp!
In our office, we have two mail boxes. One mail box is for mail that gets stamped and is sent outside the building. Another mailbox is for inter-office mail. It doesn’t get a stamp and doesn’t need one. It stays inside the building.
Joshua 7 is a chapter that “stays inside the building.” It is a chapter directed at, and for God’s people.
As I’ve listened to sermons over the years, I’ve noticed that people like it when the pastor gets fired up and preaches against sin — as long as he is preaching against sin that is outside the camp.
But woe to the pastor, when he crosses the line, to tell his people “I’m not talking about them, I’m talking about you. I’m not talking about THEIR sin, I’m talking about YOUR sin.”
Joshua 7 is a chapter where that line is crossed. It’s not “THEM” It’s “YOU.”
And that “YOU” is a collective “YOU.” It is the people as a whole. God is angry at His people.

B. Introduction to Text

Rewind to Joshua 6. The day the walls of Jericho were brought down.
Joshua 6:17–19 ESV
17 And the city and all that is within it shall be devoted to the Lord for destruction. Only Rahab the prostitute and all who are with her in her house shall live, because she hid the messengers whom we sent. 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. 19 But all silver and gold, and every vessel of bronze and iron, are holy to the Lord; they shall go into the treasury of the Lord.”
In the Hebrew language, what was devoted to the LORD for destruction was called the [ HEREM ] . Another way of understanding the HEREM was that it belonged to the Lord. It was set a part for God.
Some things were to be saved, such as Rahab and her household, and all the silver, gold, vessels of bronze and iron.
Everything else was to be destroyed.
And Israel was given a warning - keep away from the HEREM - keep away from the things devoted to destruction - keep away from the things devoted to the Lord, lest if you take any of the devoted things, you will make the camp of Israel a thing for destruction and bring trouble upon it (6:18).
God’s commands are not suggestions.
God’s commands are not to be toyed with.
In this way, it would be better for you to turn off this stream now, or even leave this room, than to continue to hear God’s word and and disobey it, and ignore it.
God gave His people a command for what was to be done at Jericho with the spoils that God had won for His people. And the God’s people disobeyed.

III. Exposition

A. Unfaithfulness of Israel

Joshua 7:1 (a) ESV
“But the people of Israel broke faith in regard to the devoted things”
Here is a literal translation of the Hebrew text:
The NET Bible
tn Heb “But the sons of Israel were unfaithful with unfaithfulness concerning what was set apart [to the LORD].”
Israel was unfaithful with what belonged to God.
They were stewards of God’s Word and mis-managed God’s instructions.
They obeyed when outside the walls of Jericho - and witnessed God’s deliverance of Jericho into their hands.
But they disobeyed once inside Jericho - failing to devote all to God that belonged to Him!
They were faithful to God when confronted with something difficult.
They were unfaithful to God when confronted with something easy.
We don’t have trouble trusting God when our lives depend upon it.
But can we trust God in the small, seemingly insignificant moments?
Can we FOLLOW THROUGH in faith?
*Here is a warning for some of you trusting God right now for something impossible. You need God to make a way when there is no visible way forward. You need God to bring about healing, or to provide for a need —
WHEN God does heal you, when God does provide for you, when God does see you through this impossibility — be warned! You will be most vulnerable.
Because immediately after God does something miraculous, like making the walls of Jericho to fall flat on the ground at a shout — you’ll be tempted to think that the little demonstrations of faith don’t matter anymore. And you’ll fail in faithfulness.
Look what happened to Israel with a smaller city of AI, fresh off victory from a larger city of Jericho:
Joshua 7:2–5 ESV
2 Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is near Beth-aven, east of Bethel, and said to them, “Go up and spy out the land.” And the men went up and spied out Ai. 3 And they returned to Joshua and said to him, “Do not have all the people go up, but let about two or three thousand men go up and attack Ai. Do not make the whole people toil up there, for they are few.” 4 So about three thousand men went up there from the people. And they fled before the men of Ai, 5 and the men of Ai killed about thirty-six of their men and chased them before the gate as far as Shebarim and struck them at the descent. And the hearts of the people melted and became as water.
God told Joshua to be “strong and very courageous” ! God went ahead of Israel, and fought for Israel, instilling within Israel’s enemies a fear of God that made their heart melt like wax.
God gave Jericho into the hands of Israel, and Israel did not lose one in that battle!
But now at Ai, a small city, Israel experiences what her enemies experience as ISRAEL’s hearts melt and become like water, and thirty six men are lost in what should have been an easy battle.
Joshua 7:6–9 ESV
6 Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell to the earth on his face before the ark of the Lord until the evening, he and the elders of Israel. And they put dust on their heads. 7 And Joshua said, “Alas, O Lord God, why have you brought this people over the Jordan at all, to give us into the hands of the Amorites, to destroy us? Would that we had been content to dwell beyond the Jordan! 8 O Lord, what can I say, when Israel has turned their backs before their enemies! 9 For the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the land will hear of it and will surround us and cut off our name from the earth. And what will you do for your great name?”
Sin has real consequences, because of how sin misrepresents God’s great name.
As a Christian, you bear the name of Christ! If you live in sin, you tarnish HIS NAME!
Joshua 7:10–13 ESV
10 The Lord said to Joshua, “Get up! Why have you fallen on your face? 11 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. 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. 13 Get up! Consecrate the people and say, ‘Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow; for thus says the Lord, God of Israel, “There are devoted things in your midst, O Israel. You cannot stand before your enemies until you take away the devoted things from among you.”
In verse 11, the Lord states the problem clearly: Israel has sinned.
Israel has transgressed my covenant that I commanded them.
ISRAEL sinned. ISRAEL broke faith. NOT GOD!
God remains faithful, but because of His faithfulness Israel will be destroyed if they do not repent.
It’s not that Israel WILL not stand before their enemies, it is that they CANNOT stand before their enemies, because they have become devoted to destruction because within their camp is something that belongs to the LORD for destruction.
God is serious about sin.
God is serious about Hell.
1 Corinthians 15:50 ESV
50 I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.
Revelation 21:8 ESV
8 But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.”
God is serious about these things because God is faithful, God is holy, God is righteous, God is just.
Don’t be tempted to think like Marcion - that the God of the New Testament would never condemn anyone to Hell. For it is in the New Testament, in Romans 1 we read these words:
Romans 1:18 ESV
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.
God has not changed. He is the same.
In Joshua 7 God calls out sin in the camp.
Joshua 7:14–15 ESV
14 In the morning therefore you shall be brought near by your tribes. And the tribe that the Lord takes by lot shall come near by clans. And the clan that the Lord takes shall come near by households. And the household that the Lord takes shall come near man by man. 15 And he who is taken with the devoted things shall be burned with fire, he and all that he has, because he has transgressed the covenant of the Lord, and because he has done an outrageous thing in Israel.’ ”
Joshua 7:1 (a-b) ESV
“But the people of Israel broke faith in regard to the devoted things, for Achan the son of Carmi, son of Zabdi, son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of the devoted things...”

B. Theft of Achan

“For Achan the son of Carmi, son of Zabdi, son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of the devoted things.”
Learn this principle: The sin of one may bring judgment on the whole.
This text does not say the Lord’s anger burned against ACHAN.
This text says the Lord’s anger burned against the children of Israel.
The people as a whole suffered because of the sin of ONE MAN.
Joshua 7:16–23 ESV
16 So Joshua rose early in the morning and brought Israel near tribe by tribe, and the tribe of Judah was taken. 17 And he brought near the clans of Judah, and the clan of the Zerahites was taken. And he brought near the clan of the Zerahites man by man, and Zabdi was taken. 18 And he brought near his household man by man, and Achan the son of Carmi, son of Zabdi, son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, was taken. 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.” 20 And Achan answered Joshua, “Truly I have sinned against the Lord God of Israel, and this is what I did: 21 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.” 22 So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran to the tent; and behold, it was hidden in his tent with the silver underneath. 23 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.
What was Achan’s sin?
Achan took for himself what belonged to God.
Achan was a thief. Achan stole from God.
Do you want a New Testament example?
Acts 5:1–6 ESV
1 But a man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property, 2 and with his wife’s knowledge he kept back for himself some of the proceeds and brought only a part of it and laid it at the apostles’ feet. 3 But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land? 4 While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not at your disposal? Why is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to man but to God.” 5 When Ananias heard these words, he fell down and breathed his last. And great fear came upon all who heard of it. 6 The young men rose and wrapped him up and carried him out and buried him.
Ananias kept for himself what belonged to the Lord, and in doing so lied against the Holy Spirit.
Sin is an act committed against God.
With both Achan and Ananias, these were not sins committed outside the camp, but inside the camp.
In both cases, the actions of one affected the whole.
The same applies within the Church.
The actions of one affect the whole.
In high school and college I was in the marching band. We were taught this lesson on the field — we were only as good as our weakest marcher.
If a person was off on their timing, notes, or marks, it affected the whole!
This applies to whatever you are familiar with - a sports team, a business . . .
One person can bring down an entire organization!
Some of you in the Church are sinning against God. And you are bringing down the whole church because of your sin and faithlessness. You are withholding for yourself what belongs to God.
One clear demonstration of this is in tithes and offerings.
Malachi 3:8–10 ESV
8 Will man rob God? Yet you are robbing me. But you say, ‘How have we robbed you?’ In your tithes and contributions. 9 You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing me, the whole nation of you. 10 Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need.
Jesus said:
Luke 11:42 ESV
42 “But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and every herb, and neglect justice and the love of God. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.
In some of your bank accounts, right now, sits what belongs to the Lord. That 10%, that tithe, that minimum standard of generosity is the Lord’s whether you give it to him or not.
And by you continuing to associate with a church without supporting that church financially you are hindering the whole and keeping back what belongs to God.
In some of your garages right now, sits what belongs to the Lord.
In some of your homes, you enjoy what was bought with what belongs to the Lord.
On some of your calendars, you’ve scheduled for yourself what belongs to the Lord.
Some of you know the right thing to do, and you do not do it. And you sin against the Lord. And you sin against the church.
Like Achan, you sin in matters of worship —
Worship belongs to God! And whenever worship is viewed as something meant to serve ourselves, or to please ourselves, we’ve made worship about us and not about God — and that kind of sin affects us all!
As the Church we are ONE body.
What kind of pastor am I if I don’t point this out and call us ALL to faithfulness? This is the kind of message you wish wasn’t online or broadcast out! Let’s keep this quiet! Let’s not publically expose our failures.
But did you know, the same thing could be said about Joshua 7!
In the ancient writings victories were celebrated! Defeats were hidden and buried . . .
Yet here, God does not cover up His people’s failure in His word, but He preserves it, for our instruction.
This is why the church has overseers, this is why the church has a process for accountability, this is why we have Matthew 18 for offenses and Titus 3:10 for those that stir up division and 1 Corinthians 5 for sexual immorality.
Because God is not toying around! Your faithfulness matters. Your faithlessness matters too.
Romans 14:23 (b) ESV
“For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.”
James 4:17 ESV
17 So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.
A local church that does not have a process or willingness to follow through with discipline may suffer destruction, because they do not take the things of God seriously.
Achan is called in 1 Chronicles 2:7 the “troubler of Israel” because he broke faith in the matter of the devoted thing and he brought trouble on the whole of Israel.
Joshua 7:1 ESV
1 But the people of Israel broke faith in regard to the devoted things, for Achan the son of Carmi, son of Zabdi, son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of the devoted things. And the anger of the Lord burned against the people of Israel.

C. Anger of the LORD

“And the anger of the LORD burned against the people of Israel.”
Joshua 7:24–26 ESV
24 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. 25 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. 26 And they raised over him a great heap of stones that remains to this day. Then the Lord turned from his burning anger. Therefore, to this day the name of that place is called the Valley of Achor.
Achan stole and lied.
He did not admit his sin until he was called out and there was nowhere else to hide.
Achan’s destruction was total. He suffered, and his family suffered too.
This burning of Achan and all he had is rare, even for Israel, but it shows here the seriousness of what he had done.

IV. Conclusion

A. Gospel Proclamation

The Anger of the Lord Burned, because Israel was unfaithful.
The sin of one man affected the whole.
Achan stole from God, withholding for himself what was devoted and belonged to God.
But the Gospel of Jesus tells us that God is always faithful.
Romans 5:12 ESV
12 Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned—
Romans 5:18 ESV
18 Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men.
That one act of righteousness was the cross.
Jesus as one, took upon Himself the sin of all, and bore the wrath of God on the cross for that sin - for our sin.
And He alone, is able to save us!
He alone, is the foundation upon which the Church is built. While we are responsible for calling out sin and repentance in the church, we know that the church stands and will always stand in Christ.
And because of Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection in power, we don’t have to wait until we are caught in sin.
But we can hear this Gospel Proclamation:
1 John 1:9 ESV
9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
In Jesus we are free from condemnation.
Romans 8:1 ESV
1 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
And God disciplines us because He loves us.
1 Corinthians 11:32 ESV
32 But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world.
And there is coming a day when:
Luke 8:17 ESV
17 For nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest, nor is anything secret that will not be known and come to light.

B. Application

God takes sin seriously.
God’s commands are not suggestions.
God’s commands are not to be toyed with.
Your sin impacts more than yourself. It affects innocent people. It affects the whole.
What you do in private, matters publicly.
This is not meant to scare you away from the faith. But it is mean that you take the faith seriously.
What happened to Achan will likely not happen to you in this life. But there is a judgment coming. And many will claim to know Christ in that day, but will depart into eternal fire (Matthew 7).
Achan attempted to gain, and in his attempt to gain he ended up losing all.
The Gospel says the way to gain is to lose all for Christ.
Luke 9:23–25 ESV
23 And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. 25 For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself?
Will you repent?
Will you deny yourself?
Will you take up your cross?
And follow Jesus?
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