Joshua and Judges: Experiential Sanctification; Joshua deals with affliction, Jos 7:1-9; Rom 5:17-21; 6:15-23; 2Co 4:7-18.

Title: Joshua and Judges: Experiential Sanctification; Joshua deals with affliction, JOS 7:1-9; ROM 5:17-21; 6:15-23; 2CO 4:7-18.

 

Announcements / opening prayer:

 

 

JOS 7:1 But the sons of Israel acted unfaithfully in regard to the things under the ban, for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, from the tribe of Judah, took some of the things under the ban, therefore the anger of the Lord burned against the sons of Israel.

 

Hiding sin away and only wearing a façade of godliness is using your life as you choose, which is the antithesis to sanctification.

 

ROM 5:17 For if by the transgression of the one [Adam], death reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.

 

The new creature in Christ has grace [all of God’s gifts freely given] and righteousness [true life] as their rulers. We are to submit to them as their subjects.

 

ROM 5:18 So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men.

 

Justification is pure confidence before God. You have been truly expiated.

 

COL 2:13-14

And when you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him [not alone but in union], having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us and which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.

 

Alive together with Him has such significance. We found life independent from Him at the fall of us. But He came that we may live no longer alone but with Him. Why hide anything from Him?

 

This is why you can be so open with God the Father about every weakness. He has canceled it out so it does no longer stand as a barrier between you and Him.

 

He doesn’t want these things to plague us and to accumulate so much baggage and deep mud that becomes and encumbrance that we cannot run the race set before us. We must deal with them with Him, not alone, and not ignoring them by burying them in our tent, but with Him, the Healer and the caster out of demons [imagery].

 

ROM 5:19 For as through the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous.

 

Do you see this verse and see who you are now? You were doomed, but through Him you were made perfectly righteous. It’s a new day. One wonders what this day will hold. Do you see it as such? The journey of following Him is an adventure in sanctification and righteousness. It is, “Pick up your cross and follow Me.”

 

ROM 5:20 And the Law came in that the transgression might increase; but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more,

 

ROM 5:21 that, as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

 

ROM 6:15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? May it never be!

 

ROM 6:16 Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness?

 

ROM 6:17 But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed,

 

ROM 6:18 and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.

 

ROM 6:19 I am speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness, resulting in further lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness, resulting in sanctification.

 

You did what you were before; now do as you are now by means of the word and the Spirit as a new creature in Christ.

 

ROM 6:20 For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness.

 

ROM 6:21 Therefore what benefit were you then deriving from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the outcome of those things is death.

 

ROM 6:22 But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life [you have it!].

 

ROM 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

 

No longer under the wages of sin we are to now live our eternal life. Will you? This takes determination and tenacity since there are so many enemies in our midst.

 

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JOS 7:4 So about three thousand men from the people went up there, but they fled from the men of Ai.

 

JOS 7:5 And the men of Ai struck down about thirty-six of their men, and pursued them from the gate as far as Shebarim, and struck them down on the descent, so the hearts of the people melted and became as water.

 

Joshua emotes instead of thinking and completely fails, but only for a short time like all of us.

 

JOS 7:6 Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell to the earth on his face before the ark of the Lord until the evening, both he and the elders of Israel; and they put dust on their heads.

 

Joshua and the elders of the people were also deeply affected, not so much at the loss of thirty-six men, as because Israel, which was invincible with the help of the Lord, had been beaten, and therefore the Lord must have withdrawn His help.

 

It is a very natural expression of grief to tear the clothes in front of the breast by which the sorrow of the heart was to be laid bare. This was not only common among the Israelites but was very widely spread among the other nations of antiquity.

 

Instead of thinking and coming up with a solution, Joshua emotes and complains. He fails as a believer and as a leader.

 

JOS 7:7 And Joshua said, "Alas, O Lord God, why didst Thou ever bring this people over the Jordan, only to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us? If only we had been willing to dwell beyond the Jordan!

 

He sounds very much like the Israelites who would not believe the report given by him and Caleb who spied out the Promised Land.

 

NUM 14:2

And all the sons of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron; and the whole congregation said to them, "Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness!

 

Some interpret this as Joshua struggling with God in prayer and therefore innocently struggling with his faith. While I see some of that here I also see failure of faith. God has promised the land to them and has told Joshua plainly what would be the only reason for a failure like this.