Book of Joshua - Ch. 7, Vs. 1-26 (01/18/2004)

Park Meadows Church

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Turn to chapter 7 in the book of Joshua, please. We've almost finished with the taking of Jericho.

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Now, two or three things about Jericho. One was the way that it was taken.

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Another was that the Lord did it.

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And another was that Achan sinned.

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In Joshua 7 and 8, defeat and victory at Ai represented the flesh and the believer.

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The sin in Achan was the sin in the camp. The steps in sin are 1.

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I saw, physical. 2. I coveted, mental. 3.

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I took, consent. Now, if Jericho represents the world, turn to John 16, 33.

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And Dwayne, or Dennis, will you read that to me? Yes.

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All right. I have overcome the world. Brian, are you here?

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What does overcome mean? All right.

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Now, we're going to see if we can find that in Jericho.

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Why is it, David, that I don't mean why did

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Achan sin, but why did God not allow him to take what he wanted out of that town?

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Now, that's just as true as it can be. So, we see back in the

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Old Testament pictures of the Lord, and in his first battle in the promised land, he did it.

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This is why all of the spoils belong to the Lord. Now, in chapter 7, the first verse,

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But the children of Israel committed a trespass in the accused thing. For Achan, the son of Carmine, the son of Zebedee, the son of Zira, of the tribe of Judah, took of the accused thing, and the anger of the

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Lord was kindled against the children of Israel. What?

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The accursed, yes. Now, Roger, you're here, aren't you?

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Yes. Why, why is the sin against the children of Israel?

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Why not just against Achan? All right.

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Israel is regarded as constituting one people, God's service, and the sin of a single member pollutes the whole body.

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Now, you, you be thinking in the present -day church world, the sin of a single member pollutes the whole body and brings it under God's displeasure.

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I believe that if one of us in this group sins, it affects all of us.

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Sins known only to those who commit them, and to God may occasion calamities in a nation.

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Verse 2, And Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is beside Bethhaven, on the east side of Bethel, and spake unto them, saying,

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Go up and view the country. And the men went up and viewed Ai. This is a small town.

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It's going to be the second battle. Now, they were not to go into the city, but just bring back a report of the people.

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Three, And they returned to Joshua and said unto him, Let us not all, let not all the people go up, but let about two or three thousand men go up and smite

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Ai, and make not all the people to labor thither, for they are but few.

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There are just a few soldiers there. We see that great prosperity often tempts men to be self -confident.

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Is that true? Great prosperity, if I'll just do this.

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What one thing did they fail to do, Joy? Yes.

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They failed to clear it with God. So there went up thither of the people about 3 ,000 men, and they fled before the men of Ai.

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Now, can you imagine? They've just come off of a victory, which they didn't perform, but it was a great victory.

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Now they go to the little town of Ai. They figure they can just march in and run over it, but the small town run them off.

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When men undertake plans and reliance on their own judgment, or that of others, without inquiring of God.

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Now, if it was true back in those days, it's just as true today, because God changes not.

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They must seek his direction. They'll be likely to fail, and instead of success, men meet with speedy and sore disappointments.

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Five, and the men of Ai smote of them about thirty and six men, for they chased them from before the gate, even unto

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Shebron, and smote them in the going down, wherefore the hearts of the people melted, and became as water.

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They were utterly beaten, and by this gave ample proof that without the supernatural assistance of God, they could never do anything.

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And Joshua rent his clothes. Why, Dennis?

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All right. Now, could it have been that a lowly, what's his name, seek the favor of God, or would it have been

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Joshua and his army of intelligence?

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Who, who should seek the will of God, Dennis? All right.

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Everyone, but in that day, they were looking to Joshua. And he fell earth upon his face before the ark of the

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Lord, until the even tide, he and the elders of Israel, and put dust upon their heads.

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This was their way of mourning. It was not the consequence of this defeat, simply considered in itself, but because of the people, because the people melted and became as water, and there was little hope that they would make any stand against the enemy, and to, because this defeat evidently showed that God had turned his back on his people.

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Had it not been so, their enemies could not have prevailed, if God had led them.

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Now, that's from human standpoint. Seven, and Joshua said,

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Alas, O Lord God, wherefore hast thou at all brought this people over Jordan, to deliver us into the hand of the

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Amorites, to destroy us? Would to God we had been content, and dwelt on the other side of Jordan.

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In trouble, we should humble ourselves on the account of our sins, and implore pardon, mercy, especially inquiring why it is that God will put up with us, and seeking to know his will, that we may do it.

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Eight, O Lord, what shall I say, when Israel turneth their backs before their enemies?

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For the Canaanites, and all the inhabitants of the land, shall hear of it, and shall envision us, and shall environ us.

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What is it? And cut off our name from the earth, and what wilt thou do unto thy great name?

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He speaks of God's great name. The name of God is great.

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Greatest in the world. Whatever happens, we ought to pray that this would not be polluted.

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This should be concerned more than anything else is God's great name. This we should fix in our eye, and we cannot urge a better plea than this.

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Lord, what wilt thou do for thy great name? Ten, and the

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Lord said unto Joshua, get thee up, wherefore lest thou, wherefore liest thou thus upon thy face?

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It's plain that there was nothing in Joshua's prayer or complaint that was offensive to the

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God, but let's see. Israel has sinned.

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Now Israel has sinned, notice that, and they have also transgressed my covenant, which

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I commanded them. For they have even taken of the accursed thing, and have also stolen, and dissembled also, and they have put it ever among their own stuff.

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Now, Greg, how did

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God know that? He could have told them who did it, but he says

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Israel. They, from the human standpoint, they then have put themselves out of the will of God, and therefore are liable to the same destruction which belongs to this accursed thing.

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Why is it that God is taking this approach to the accursed thing,

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Joey? Well, that's all right.

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John, why, why did they not get by with this?

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All right. It was all of that, plus he, it's his victory, not man's victory.

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He's the one, he did it all, and they cannot steal part of it.

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Therefore, the children of Israel could not stand before their enemies, but turned their backs before their enemies, because they were accursed.

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Neither will I be with you anymore, except you destroy the accursed, accursed from among you.

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You have to destroy that thing. Now, Greg, is it the thing that he is after?

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All right. Thirteen.

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Up, sanctify the people, and say, sanctify yourselves against tomorrow.

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For thus saith the Lord God of Israel, there is an accursed thing in the midst of thee,

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O Israel, thou canst not stand before thine enemies until you take away the accursed thing from among yourselves.

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Joshua, all of the time that God spake, lay prostrate on the ground, and the

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Lord tells him to get up. Fourteen.

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In the morning, the Lord still speaking, in the morning, therefore, you shall be brought according to your tribes.

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Now, I want you to take note of how he narrows this down. Now, let's say that the man that sinned is over here, and he can watch all of this, or hear about it.

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In the morning, therefore, you shall be brought according to your tribes, and it shall be that the tribe which the

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Lord taketh shall come according to the families thereof, and the family which the

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Lord shall take shall come by households, and the household which the Lord shall take shall come man by man.

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The Lord taketh. He's going to declare him guilty.

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And it shall be that he that is taken, now notice the pronouns, shall be that he that is taken with the accursed thing shall be burnt with fire, he and all that he hath, because he hath transgressed the covenant of the

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Lord, and because he hath wrought folly in Israel. The punishment which the

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Lord brings upon the workers of iniquity is punishment here.

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It is a forewarning of stiffer things, and it'll come upon them hereafter.

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Sixteen, so Joshua rose up early in the morning, and brought Israel by their tribes, and the tribe of Judah is taken.

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Now, I don't know how he indicated that. It could be by the, what were the two stones, the

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Thurman and something else. It could be by those that they inquired, yes or no, but he proceeds in the inquiry from heads of tribes, of heads of families, and from heads of household, to a particular person, until the criminal was found to be

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Achan. Didn't make a mistake, did he? Who, on Joshua's warning, confessed the fact of having concealed for his own use in the floor of his tent, spoiled both in garment and money.

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Now, what was that man thinking as he saw it narrowing down?

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Maybe they're to pick him. Maybe to pick the other tribe.

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It had to be him. And he brought the family of Judah, and he took the family of the

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Zorites, and he brought the family of Zorites, man by man, and Zebodai was taken.

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All Israel came near by tribes, and the tribe was fixed on.

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Then that tribe came by families, and one family was fixed on.

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Then came that family by its households, and one household was fixed on.

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And then that household, coming man by man, one man was fixed on.

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It didn't take long, did it? And he brought his household man by man, and Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zebodai, the son of Zerah, and the tribe of Judah was taken.

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Well, what about all of his neighbors?

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The idea of keeping secret this sin. Dennis, can you keep a sin secret?

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It's hard to believe that he was sincere in his acknowledging that if it had to wait until there was no one else, well, your sins will find you out sooner or later.

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Joshua said unto Achan, My son, give, I pray thee, glory to the Lord God of Israel, and make confession unto

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Him, and tell me now what thou hast done. Hide it not from me.

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John, did Joshua know what he had done by this time? John?

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No, but he didn't.

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By declaring truth, for God is glorified when the truth is confessed. 20.

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And Achan answered Joshua and said, Indeed, I have sinned against the

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Lord God of Israel, and thus and thus have I done. When I saw among the spoils a goodly

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Babylonian garment and 200 shekels of silver and a wedge of gold of 50 shekels weight, then

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I coveted them and took them. And behold, they are hid in the earth in the midst of my tent and the silver under it.

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Now, how did the man know exactly what he had taken? Greg?

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Yes. Both in he wanted it, but more than that, he coveted it, and he he saw it.

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Maybe he didn't count it when they were in the battle, but he did when he got home.

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22. So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran into, unto the tent, and behold, it was hid in his tent, and the silver under it.

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Now, Joshua sent messengers. They ran to the tent.

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Why run, Roger? Well, it was not only to test the truth of the story, but to clear

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Israel from the charge of guilt. Having discovered the stolen articles, they laid them out before the

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Lord, and they took them out of the midst of the tent and brought them unto

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Joshua, and unto all the children of Israel, and laid them out before the Lord. And Joshua, and all

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Israel with him, took Achan, singular, the son of Zerah, and the silver, and the garments, and the wedge of gold, and his sons, and his daughters, and his oxen, and all his asses, and his sheep, and his tent, and all that he had, and they brought them unto a valley of Achor.

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And Joshua said, Why hast thou, singular, troubled us?

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The Lord shall trouble thee, singular, this day. And all

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Israel stoned him, singular, with stones, and burned them with fire, after they had stoned them with stones.

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Now turn to Deuteronomy 24 16. Dennis, would you read that for us?

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Now I may differ than any other teacher that you had, but I believe it only

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Achan and his animals were killed because of this law.

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You, they stoned him with stones, and burned them with fire, after they had stoned them with stones.

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The singular number being used in the first clause of the verse, and the plural in the last, leaves, leaves it doubtful.

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Now, the Vulgate is very clear when you read it.

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All Israel stoned him, and all that he had was consumed with fire.

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And all Israel stoned him with stones, and raised over him a great heap of stones.

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It is possible that Achan, his oxen, asses, sheep, tent, and all his household goods were destroyed.

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But his sons and daughters left uninjured. But you may ask, well, why are they brought out to the valley with the rest of the people?

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I think it was, I think this was the effect of fear.

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In those children, that they would be forever deterred by their father's punishment, and from an issue of his example for them.

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He and all his property, cattle as well, were brought into the long, broad ravines, and after being stoned to death, his corpse was all, his corpse with all belonging to him, were consumed in ashes by fire.

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All Israel was present, not only as spectators, but active agents, as many as possible in inflicting the punishment.

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And they raised over him, singular, a great heap of stones, and to this day, so the

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Lord turned from the fierceness of his wrath, wherefore the name of that place was called the

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Valley of Achor, unto this day. From the whole of this account, we see that it is exceedingly sinful to sin.

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And the great danger, notwithstanding its first reproaches, approaches by covetousness, many lives and many souls have been destroyed.

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Now, the Lord pronounced death. He still could have been a

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Christian, but he had to pay for his sin. I believe, in a church of today, that if one of us sins, it will affect the others.

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You won't know anything about it for a while, but it will affect.

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And until that sin is straightened with God, it will affect that person.

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Now, who fears the love of money, provided that he can get riches from it?

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Though the intensity of this desire, every part of the surface of the earth has been dug up.

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For money, an open foe may be resisted and repelled, because he's known.

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But the covetous man, who, as far as his personal safety will admit, is outrageous, is outraging all of the requisitions of justice, is an unseen pestilence, sowing the seed of discontent and ruin in the society.

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This man's covetousness led him to break the law of God, and nearly provided the destruction of the

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Israeli camp, all of the people. But God would not let that.

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There's a story told of a doctor playing golf with a friend, and they got on the subject of sin.

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And the man said, listen doc, you say if I have sinned, don't you know whether you've sinned or not?

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Well, I guess I do. Don't you know what your sin is?

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No. I don't know exactly what it is. If you don't know, then guess at it.

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The next time the doctor played with him, he said he guessed it right the first time.

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Well, this thing was sin.

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The people had had to start off right. This cleared the tribe.

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It punished the guilty, and they can move on. Now the next time they go to AI, they'll take it.

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But that's in the rest of the story. Yes, I do not sin against you.

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I wrong you, but I sin against God. I wish we could remember that.

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Anything anybody would like to add? Dennis, did you learn anything?

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Yes, I did. Roger, did you learn anything? Don't need to ask

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David because he knew it all. Greg, would you dismiss us, please?

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The word sanctify here, well, it means that, but it means to get your life right.

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To not have anything else that will occupy your mind. As you come before the

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Lord, don't be thinking about the roast at home, or the new car you're going to get tomorrow, or the better job you're going to get.