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January 13 Joshua 6-10
The devotion today focuses on Joshua chapter seven and the sin of Achan. In Joshua chapter six, Israel experienced a great victory when the walls of Jericho fell by the power of God. Without lifting a sword in battle, Israel marched, shouted, and the walls came tumbling down. But when we turn the page to chapter seven, the mood drastically goes from victory to defeat. Instead of rejoicing, there is weeping. Instead of God’s power, there is God’s discipline upon His people. Why? What happened? There was sin in the camp.
Hidden sin had crept into the camp of Israel. It was one man’s sin. What seemed like a private act of just one individual became a national disaster. The truth is - sin is never truly a private matter. When one member fails, the entire body suffers because of it. The apostle Paul echoed this truth when he wrote, “If one member suffers, all suffer together” (1 Corinthians 12:26). Our choices not only affect our lives, it also affects those around us - our family, our church, and our community.
Israel looked at Ai and was overconfident. They said, “The city is very small compared to Jericho. We don’t need to mobilize the whole army to defeat it.” Overconfidence plus hidden sin equals defeat. I’ve always been a sports fan. I can’t count the number of times that I’ve seen great teams go down in defeat because of overconfidence. Sin in the camp is even worse.
When God revealed to Joshua the reason for their defeat, it was hidden sin. Israel lost God’s presence and power because of hidden sin - sin in the camp. Until they repented and removed sin from their midst, they would not be able to move forward in victory. And Achan and his family paid a terrible price for the sin that he committed. Again, we do not sin in isolation. Our sin always affects those close to us. Also, sin always quenches the power of God in our lives.
The Bible warns that we can quench the Holy Spirit and His power (1 Thessalonians 5:19). “Quench” means to extinguish - to put out the flame. To quench the Holy Spirit is to stifle His work in our lives. The Spirit is like a fire burning within us. Willful sin, unbelief, neglect, and resistance will quench the power of the Holy Spirit. Obedience, faith, prayer, and the Word will fuel His fire.
For the power of the Holy Spirit to operate with us, sin must be confessed and removed. 1 John 1:9 says that “If we will confess our sin, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Everyone struggles with sin. Even believers stumble. The good news: Through the blood of Jesus Christ, God has provided a way for forgiveness and cleansing. We must confess our sin to God and He will forgive us. This promise restores our fellowship with Christ and the joy of our salvation.
Don’t be like Achan and try to hide and cover your sin. Don’t be like Adam, who said, “The woman YOU gave me gave me the fruit.” Don’t be like Eve, who said, “The devil made me do it.” Be like David in Psalm 51:4, who said, “Against You, You only, I have sinned and done this evil in Your sight.” Stop hiding your sin. God knows about it. Proverbs 28:13 says, “He who covers his sins will not prosper, But whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.”
Achan perished for his own sin. Jesus perished for ours. Because Christ was condemned, we are cleansed. At Calvary, justice and mercy met. Because Christ bore our sin, God is faithful and just to forgive.