Evening Sermon

October 21, 2007

sin in the camp

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This evening, I want you to think about the importance of one small word, the word "but." It is the first word in the 7th chapter of Joshua, perhaps the most significant word we find in that whole chapter. Joshua 6 was a story of triumph, as we studied last time. The city of Jericho was completely destroyed by the Lord's great power. The men of Israel, under Joshua's command, marched around that great city for six days, then on the 7th day marched around it seven times. And then they shouted a great shout. And the walls came tumbling down. The conquest had begun with an awesome display of God's sovereign power being used on behalf of his people. This was Joshua's finest moment, his greatest victory.

But, what a short step there is between a great victory and a great defeat. In one moment, there was the startling victory at Jericho. And in the next, an equally startling defeat. So what is the reason for that dramatic shift. One word, the word "but". 6:27 7:1

But the sons of Israel sinned! That was the difference. Chapter 7, beginning with that word "but", is a story of sin among God's people. This is not just some out-dated OT story that gives us a good moral. Rather, for us today, this is an accurate description of what sin is and what it will do among us. And it is a story of how we, also, must deal with sin in our midst.

If there is one painfully obvious lesson about sin here, it is that...

I.SIN AMONG BELIEVERS CAUSES GREAT TROUBLE. The attack at the city of Ai was a tragic failure. It was unexpected. It was unexplainable and incomprehensible to Joshua. He was in despair, filled with grief. In one brief moment, the morale of the army was destroyed. This is the only mention of defeat in this entire book. This is the only record of Israeli casualties.

All that trouble came because of sin in the camp. So look more closely at...

A. A description of sin. Several words used to describe this sin. v.11a "Israel has sinned", missed the mark, broken the absolute standard of law.

God's law has defined sin. Sin is objective, it is absolute, it is the same for everyone. And when we fall short of that mark, we sin.

In verse 1, we read, they "committed a trespass." Or, "they acted unfaithfully." You could translate it even stronger, acted treacherously. It refers to a conscious and willful breach of a contract. It means to break faith. It means to be unfaithful to a covenant in the same way that we use those words to describe a man who is unfaithful to his wife.

This is not a sin of unbelievers, for unbelievers have not entered into a covenant with God. No, this is the sin of believers, violating the covenant relationship that exists between them and their God.

v.15

Sin is described as a disgraceful thing. It was folly, utter foolishness, resulting from a total disregard of God. It is a serious sin. And there is no indication of repentance.

Ezekiel describes the seriousness of breaking our covenant with God, with this warning:

Ezek. 18:24 "But when a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and does according to all the abominations that the wicked man does, shall he live? All the righteousness which he has done shall not be remembered; because of the unfaithfulness of which he is guilty and the sin which he has committed, because of them he shall die."

And the conclusion is appropriate: Ezek. 18:30 "Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways," says the Lord GOD. "Repent, and turn from all your transgressions, so that iniquity will not be your ruin."

Willful, premeditated, rebellions sin is a serious danger. It can cause the heart to grow hard. That is the warning of:

Heb. 6:4 "For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, 5 and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, 6 if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame."

In many ways, the sins of believers are more offensive to God than the sins of unbelievers. Such was the sin of Achan. But what exactly did Achan do that was so terrible? v.11b

Remember last week, the command to put the precious metals under the ban, devoted to the Lord and put into his treasury?

Achan stole from God. And he lied to cover it up. He stole some precious metals, some money. And he stole a valuable and fashionable Babylonian garment. And he admits the root cause of his sin. v.20-21

He coveted. He desired something selfishly, violating the 10th commandment. He was dissatisfied with his own wealth. He saw the money, and he wanted it. So he stole it. Coveting is certainly at the heart of the sin of materialism that is very much alive and well in our society today.

But why did he steal the piece of clothing, the mantle from Babylon? Because it was fashionable and expensive. He wanted to be in style. There is a certain amount of worldliness in that sin, wanting to be popular and wanting to give the impression of power and affluence and prestige. So he stole the coat as well. And knowing that he was sinning, knowing he was guilty, he hid his ill-gotten treasures in his tent. But his sin found him out. v.22-23

As it always does, sin causes great trouble. Let's study here the description of that trouble for Achan and the Israelites:

B. A description of trouble. What happened because of this one sin of this one man? Trouble came to all of Israel. v.2-5

In confidence, perhaps over confidence, Joshua moves on from Jericho to the next battle ground, a much smaller and vulnerable city. He doesn't even take all his men, receiving the report that they weren't necessary. The result was disaster.

v.12a

What happened to them? Because of the sin in the camp, the Lord was no longer with them to bless them. Surely, that is the greatest description of trouble. v.12b

And the trouble caused by sin is not limited to the offender. Sin among Christians brings trouble to the whole body. Today, sin, even the sin of one person, will bring great trouble to the whole church.

We often think only as individuals, and not in terms of the church. But as Christians, we are a body. We belong to one another and we share our lives together. That is the church. If you sin, you don't just harm yourself. You harm the whole body.

Sin will always cause trouble. But the deceitfulness of sin is our inability to see that trouble ahead of time. Because of Satan's craftiness, sin appears as something good.

Isn't that what happened to Adam and Eve? Gen. 3:6 "So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate."

Sin seems good at the time, Satan makes sure to that. I am certain that Achan had no intention of bringing harm upon his fellow Israelites. I am quite certain, that most of the sins that you and I commit are not done with the thought of intentionally harming ourself or our church. But that is the result.

Sin doesn't seem harmful when we do it. But it is. Actually, we don't think that it will be exposed, but sin done in secret will be found out. In Jesus' own words: Luke 12:2 "For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, nor hidden that will not be known. 3 "Therefore whatever you have spoken in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have spoken in the ear in inner rooms will be proclaimed on the housetops."

God's omniscience means that he knows everything that we do, say, and even think. Too often we are willing to gamble that it will be different for us.

A former zoo keeper illustrates it this way: "Racoons go through a glandular change at about 24 months. After that they often attack their owners. Since a 30-pound raccoon can be equal to a 100-pound dog in a scrap, I felt compelled to mention the change coming to a pet raccoon owned by a young friend of mine, Julie. She listened politely as I explained the coming danger. I'll never forget her answer, he writes. "It will be different for me..." And she smiled as she added, "Bandit wouldn't hurt me. He just wouldn't." Three months later, Julie underwent plastic surgery for facial lacerations sustained when her adult raccoon attacked her for no apparent reason. Bandit was released into the wild.

Sin, too, often comes dressed in an adorable guise, and as we play with it, how easy it is to say, "It will be different for me." The results are predictable.' Sin among believers causes great trouble. Therefore,

II.SIN AMONG BELIEVERS MUST BE EXPOSED. Do you understand the connection? It is crucial for our application of this chapter to our church today. Sin causes great trouble among believers and therefore must be exposed. Exposure is God's way of dealing with sin.

Our way is much less confrontational. We ignore sin. In the church, if there is obvious and flagrant sin in the life of someone else, we ignore it and hope it will go away. After all, we reason, if we say something about it, the problem will just get worse. But that is not God's way. And that is certainly obvious here.

Joshua's response to trouble should provide a valuable lesson for us. When trouble comes, we ought first to consider if there is sin in our midst, and plead for God's mercy. Joshua shows us:

A. The responsibility of leaders to plead to God for mercy. v.6-9

He tore his clothes, he fell upon his face before the Lord, and covered his head with ashes. He was joined by the elders.

What was he doing? Joshua is demonstrating his grief and his humble repentance. His attitude is demonstrated by his actions. His grief was real and the sorrow of his heart was real. He could do nothing except plead to God for mercy. He wanted to know what the problem was, so he asked God.

And not knowing about the specific sin, he was on thin ice. He very nearly crossed the line of beginning to grumble. v.7

But he knows his place. v.8

And he is most concerned about God's honor. v.9

Joshua, in his troubles, is most concerned about God's honor.

Illus: I heard a very successful pastor speak one time about a difficult time for his large congregation. Despite the previous evidence of God's great blessing upon that church, several things had gone wrong recently. He said that his first response was to look for sin. His first response was a sincere and humble attempt to examine himself and the church for sin. I was startled by that response. Most large churches today would get out the church growth manuals, and implement various pragmatic solutions to make the church grow. Instead, this man looked for sin.

And the place to do that is on our knees. And in times of trouble, it is the responsibility of leaders to plead to God for mercy, looking for the evidence of sin. And if we would do that, I believe that we would get a similar response as Joshua. "There is sin in the camp."

The Lord's answer was simple and direct. v.10-11

Now, Joshua had work to do, because not only must leaders plead to God for mercy, but it is also:

B. The responsibility of leaders to announce God's truth to the people. Joshua talked to God about the people. Then he talked to the people about God. Not knowing who the guilty party was, he proclaimed fearlessly that there was sin in the camp. And he set out to expose it.

v.13a Consecrate yourselves. Set yourselves apart. Sanctify yourselves. In other words, repent of your sin! This was a serious call to repentance. That wasn't just holy talk. That wasn't empty preaching that went in one ear of the people and out the other. This was reality. This is exactly what Joshua set out to do, to consecrate the people to the Lord.

And he had a plan, obviously depending entirely upon God's direct revelation. v.14-15 v.16-19

Can you imagine what Achan was thinking or feeling during this process? How could he possibly remain silent? Joshua was announcing God's truth, which included the specific command to repent. It sure would be helpful if we still had this direct revelation from the Lord today, for God himself identified Achan. But we don't. So we have to rely on the work of God's holy spirit as the word is proclaimed.

According to 2 Timothy 3:16 "All Scripture is God-breathed." Therefore, as Paul continues, it... 2 Tim. 3:16 "...is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness."

Teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness. For what purpose? "So that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." Four things that the Scripture is useful for, including rebuking. The Scripture exposes sin. The Scripture defines sin. The Scripture identifies and exposes sin, and with that rebuke, calls you to repentance.

Therefore Paul continues to Timothy the preacher,

2 Tim. 4:1 "I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: 2 Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching."

Yet how great is the temptation to ignore that warning. How often we fail to accept the rebuke of God's word. We just go on as always. We don't try to change, even if we agree that we should. Repentance is not apologizing, it is not being sorry that something happened. Repentance is turning away from sin.

The story of Achan demonstrates to us today that sin among believers must be exposed. That is not simply an OT idea fit for the nation of Israel. It is idea that must be part of any church that wishes to be faithful to God's word. It is a NT idea also, as clear as clear can be. And if you believe that God's word is infallible, and if you believe that it is inspired, then you must believe and apply the lesson Paul teaches the church in 1 Corinthians 5. The sin at Corinth was sexual immorality. And the solution? Expose the sin, and put out of your fellowship the guilty party!

Paul explains why this is so important: 1Cor. 5:6 "Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? 7 Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. 8 Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. 9 I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexually immoral people. 10 Yet I certainly did not mean with the sexually immoral people of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. 11 But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner--not even to eat with such a person. 12 For what have I to do with judging those also who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside? 13 But those who are outside God judges. Therefore "put away from yourselves the evil person."

Can it be said any more clearly? If someone claims to be a Christian, but lives in sin without repentance, he must be put out of the church. That is a definition of what we call church discipline. One of the vows you took in joining the church is a vow of submission to that discipline as it is administered by the elders.

Because it causes so much trouble, sin among believers must be exposed.

It is always an edifying question to ask ourselves. Is it possible that there is sin in our camp? The sin of sexual immorality, perhaps? Satan is certainly using sexual sins to destroy many churches today. We must be on guard.

What about other sins? Is there dishonesty in the church? Are there people dealing dishonestly in their business? Are there people stealing from their employers, or stealing from the government?

What about God's command to keep the Sabbath day holy? What about sins of the tongue? Is there gossip, grumbling? Are there harmful or unkind words spoken about one another?

Sin among believers causes great trouble and must be exposed. And because that sin is a sin against God,

III. SIN AMONG BELIEVERS MUST BE PUNISHED JUSTLY. Achan's example was certainly much more than just exposing the s. Just punishment, corresponding to that sin, was inflicted.

A. Just punishment corresponds to the seriousness of willful sin. Again, keep in mind that this was deliberate and willful violation of the covenant God had established with Israel. The OT law provided for many sacrifices to be offered as an atonement for sin. But willful rebellious sin was treated more severely. There was a distinction made between unintentional and intentional sins.

With regard to the intentional sin of Achan, the Lord gave Joshua specific instructions: v.15

Why such drastic measures? This was a serious matter. This was a disgraceful thing. It requires a severe penalty. Achan was put to death, because he did a disgraceful thing. He violated God's demands that all of Jericho be devoted to him and put under the ban. He coveted, he stole, and he lied. And he was punished.

B. Just punishment also provides a reminder of the consequences of sin. The Lord wanted to be sure that his people understood the consequences of sin. v.24-26

In effect, this was a memorial, a reminder of what happens when we fall away from the Lord. Even the name of the place was a reminder. This was a warning not to sin, a deterrent.

God's word says that you are responsible for your actions. And just punishment provides a reminder of the consequences of sin. It does something else, too.

C. Just punishment removes God's curse from his people. Again, this lesson is plain as day in Joshua 7. God was angry when his people sinned. His anger burned. v.1b

Just punishment removes that anger. v.26 v.12 God says, "I will not be with you until you deal with sin." v.13 God says, "You will not be successful until you deal with sin."

You might be wondering this morning, "But what about grace?" What about forgiveness? What about the gospel? Good question. Let me end by shifting gears just a little. Let me leave you with this wonderful idea.

D. Just punishment provides the context for the covenant of grace. In other words, until you understand God's principles for justice, you cannot fully understand the extent of his grace.

Illus: Hosea: terrible situation. Israel is compared to Hosea's wife Gomer, who is nothing less than a prostitute. And because of her terrible sin, Israel faces God's judgment. Hos. 2:6 "Therefore, behold, I will hedge up your way with thorns, And wall her in, So that she cannot find her paths."

Hos. 2:9 "Therefore I will return and take away My grain in its time And My new wine in its season, And will take back My wool and My linen, Given to cover her nakedness. 10 Now I will uncover her lewdness in the sight of her lovers, And no one shall deliver her from My hand. 11 I will also cause all her mirth to cease, Her feast days, Her New Moons, Her Sabbaths-- All her appointed feasts. 12 "And I will destroy her vines and her fig trees, Of which she has said, 'These are my wages that my lovers have given me.' So I will make them a forest, And the beasts of the field shall eat them. 13 I will punish her For the days of the Baals to which she burned incense. She decked herself with her earrings and jewelry, And went after her lovers; But Me she forgot," says the LORD.

At this point, you expect the worst, the fullness of God's justice and judgment. But look at the next verse: Hos. 2:14 "Therefore, behold, I will allure her, Will bring her into the wilderness, And speak comfort to her. 15 I will give her vineyards from there, And the Valley of Achor as a door of hope; She shall sing there, As in the days of her youth, As in the day when she came up from the land of Egypt."

The valley of Achor, the valley of trouble, the valley that represents the awful consequences of sin, will become a valley of hope.

I don't want to leave you without hope this evening. I want to warn you to take sin seriously. I want to warn you about the terrible consequences of sin. I want to say as clearly as I can that God will not bless us as a church if we tolerate sin. I want to tell you that if you tolerate sin in your life you will have trouble.

BUT THERE IS HOPE. Hos. 2:18 "In that day I will make a covenant for them With the beasts of the field, With the birds of the air, And with the creeping things of the ground. Bow and sword of battle I will shatter from the earth, To make them lie down safely. 19 "I will betroth you to Me forever; Yes, I will betroth you to Me In righteousness and justice, In lovingkindness and mercy; 20 I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness, And you shall know the LORD. 21 "It shall come to pass in that day That I will answer," says the LORD; "I will answer the heavens, And they shall answer the earth. 22 The earth shall answer With grain, With new wine, And with oil; They shall answer Jezreel. 23 Then I will sow her for Myself in the earth, And I will have mercy on her who had not obtained mercy; Then I will say to those who were not My people, 'You are My people!' And they shall say, 'You are my God!'"

God will restore his people to himself. God will allure his wayward people back to himself. God will pledge himself to be married to us. He will be our God and we will be his people.

Who can turn the Valley of Achor into a door of hope? Only Jesus. Jesus endured God's justice and the just punishment corresponding to all the horrible sins that we have committed. And the context for the covenant of grace is an understanding of that punishment which Jesus endured for us.

And so my final word this evening is repent. Turn from your sins. To quote the Apostle Peter's sermon in,

Acts 3:19 "Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, 20 "and that He may send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before."

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