Main Verse: Joshua 7 and 2 Kings 5:15-27

Good morning!

            Before the conquest of Jericho the Lord specifically told Joshua, “Put every man, woman, and child to death except for Rahab and her family, bring the silver and precious metals to the tabernacle and burn everything else as tribute to the Lord (Joshua 6:18-21). Achan, son of Carmi from the tribe of Judah, believed “If the Lord does not want this merchandise, I have a use for it.” So, Achan stole a Babylonian robe and a bar of gold and hid them in his tent; Only Achan’s family knew about the stolen goodies. Unfortunately, when Israel waged war against a group of thirty-six men from Ai, the thirty-six men defeated the Israelites and chased Israel away (Deuteronomy 28:7, 25-26); imagine how Joshua felt and how the kingdoms would revere him. You would think that one person’s actions should not impede the group, however, sin never stays in a bubble and will always cause problems for the group either by new laws or revoked privileges or the loss of life. If Achan had waited a day or two, he could have taken as much as he wanted.

For all intents and purposes Jericho was a test of obedience for the leaders and for the people something the Lord had done to the Israelites from the day the nation left Egypt and just as He does for his people daily; consider it a pop-quiz with serious results and sometimes deadly results (Acts 5:1-11). My intention is not “judgmental” rather, to point out the seriousness of watching our choices and holding ourselves accountable for what we do in life especially when it comes to our relationship with the Lord. I cannot encourage you enough to carefully consider what you are doing and, “because you can do it, doesn’t mean you should do it” (Romans 14:12-16).

I.H.S.

MK