Joshua Chapter 9 and 10

Survey

 

Intro:   Here in Joshua ch.9 we see the Children of Israel make another common mistake / Danger of walking by sight !

A) In 2 Cor. 5:7 we are told that we are to walk by faith & not by sight / and in 1 Jn. 5:4 we are  told  whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world; our faith.

 

B) Note the victory is not in how we feel about something / it is not in feelings

or emotions but in our faith ! In what we believe !

1)  Learning to walk by faith & not by our sight or our feelings or emotions is an essential part & vital part of the Christian life

 

C) As we look at this Chapter tonight lets see what we can learn about the danger of walking by sight / as well as what it means to walk by faith ! v.1-27

 

 

While Israel was at Mt. Ebal and Mt. Gerizim, reaffirming their commitment to the Lord, the kings in Canaan were getting ready to attack. A) They had heard about the defeat of Jericho and Ai and were not about to give up without a fight.

 

B) It was time for them to go on the offensive and attack these Jewish invaders.

 

C) But Israel’s greatest danger wasn’t the confederation of the armies of Canaan.

1)  It was a group of men from Gibeon who were about to enter the camp and deceive Joshua and the princes of Israel.

D) We are reminded that  Satan sometimes comes as a devouring lion (1 Peter 5:8)

your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.

          1)  In the combined armies of Cannan we see the enemy like Lion

E) But sometimes he comes as a deceiving serpent and we must be alert and protected by the spiritual armor God has provided for us

1)  The serpent reflects the cunning & craftiness of the enemy . That we see in the Gibeonites

 

 

Gibeon was located only twenty-five miles from the camp of Israel at Gilgal and was on Joshua’s list to be destroyed.

A)In Deuteronomy 20:10-20, God’s law stated that Israel must destroy all the cities in Canaan.

 

The reason for this command was that the people whom they      would find living in the land would be involved in perverse           life styles and religious practices.

 

They sacrificed infants to their false gods./ They worshipped their gods in all sorts of sexually perverse acts.

The very nature of their religious practices meant that they would eventually wipe themselves out

 

God wanted every aspect of that to be REMOVED from the land.

God knew that if ANY of that was to remain that it could eventually infect and destroy His people.

 

So God ordered that the people and their religious practices to be destroyed

Their places of worship destroyed./ Their idols destroyed.

The knowledge and understanding of those people and their                           practices were to be TOTALLY driven from the land.

 

God's sentence upon such things was DEATH./ There could be NO covenants... NO peace treaties with them.

The UNGODLY influences could not co-exist with God's people

 

V.24 We are told that Somehow the Gibeonites knew about this law and decided to use it for their own protection.

1)The Gibeonites assembled a group of men and equipped them to look like an official delegation from a foreign city.

 

C)Their clothing, food, and equipment were all designed to give the impression that they had been on a long and difficult journey from a distant city.

1)  Satan is a counterfeiter and “masquerades as an angel of light” (2 Cor. 11:14)

 

D) The Gibeonites put on a great masquerade in seeking to deceive the people of Israel.

          1) They were convincing w/ their worn out sandals / ragged clothes & moldy

            bread .

 

E) But we see the Children of Israel’s real error in v. 14 Then the men of Israel took some of their provisions; but they did not ask counsel of the LORD.

 

See they were walking by sight :

Prov. 3;5,6 Trust in the Lord w/ all your heart & lean not to your own understanding / in all your ways acknowledge Him & He will direct your paths

A) Joshua &  the Children of Israel failed to do this very thing ! They failed to consult the Lord / they fail to consider his will.

 

B) Now this is a danger that each one of us can find ourselves in at times / where we forget to consult the Lord / we make a decision that we shouldn’t make

1)  Or we find ourselves being led by our feelings & our emotions

 

C) The thing we must realize is our Christian walk transcends our feelings & our emotions !  We need to walk by faith !  Became very real to me

1)  Time in my life / felt nothing lasted over a year .

 

D) At 1st it was very frustrating but it became very liberating as I made a decision that I was going to worship & seek the Lord regardless of how I felt .

1)  That whole year I rarely felt anything / times prayers ceiling / worship

    no where / but God used me more than ever had !

 

E) Great time of growth & victory learning to walk by faith & not by sight

1)  Learning that feelings would follow actions !

 

Now we must remember that this Book of Joshua is all about entering Canaan and living there.

 

      In JOSHUA 8 we are told about how the Israelites were to relate to the Lord in the land.

 

            They were told that they MUST look to the Law of God.

 

            They would be blessed if they kept it and cursed if they didn't.

 

      In Chapter 9 we see the importance of God's people to SEEKING            His guidance if they are to find themselves FREE from destructive influences in their life in Canaan.

 

     

      Had Joshua INQUIRED of the Lord, the Lord would have REVEALED the deception to them.

 

            But as a result of NOT seeking the Lord's advice, they entered into that ungodly alliance that in time caused them MISERY.

            Ultimately these Gibeonites remaining in the land DID POLLUTE          the Israelites and led to the tragic time of defeat in the period covered in Judges.

 

            They turned after the gods of the Canaanites and God allowed them to be brought into captivity because of their idolatry.

 

 

      ALL of this was because they entered into this UNGODLY ALLIANCE....

 

            ALLOWING this influence to remain in the midst of God's        people.

 

           

NOTE: They made this UNGODLY ALLIANCE because they trusted in their own judgment and DID NOT inquire of the Lord.

There is an OLD HYMN that says:

 

            "O what NEEDLESS pain we bare when we do not carry EVERYTHING to God in prayer".

 

            We bring so much suffering and pain upon ourselves because we DO NOT inquire of God.

 

            What SEEMS so plain to you may be the very thing you MUST  ask God about.

 

            This decision in Joshua 9 seemed so plain.

 

                  "Look at the bread, the wineskins, the clothes & shoes"

 

 

      NOTE: You would think that they would have learned a lesson just a few days earlier at Ai

 

            They were DEFEATED because they did NOT pray before the battle to seek direction from God

 

            We might think: "What in the world is wrong with these guys?"

 

            But we have done the same thing time and again ourselves

 

There are great lessons for us in this account of life in Canaan.

 

1.) The Gibeonites gained this place of co-existence by DECEPTION.

 

      "We know that God said there can be no treaties" (v.24).

 

            They KNEW that the KEY to Israel's conquest of Canaan was to make no alliances with the inhabitants of the land                  

 

            They KNEW that the ONLY way to drag Israel into ruin was to                       DECEIVE them into an UNGODLY ALLIANCE

 

            So they devised a DECEPTION to trick them into an alliance of                        peaceful co-existence that was forbidden by God.

 

      Like the Gibeonites, Satan is a LIAR and a DECEIVER.

 

            Satan is seeking to draw you BY DECEPTION into an ungodly                 alliance that will WEAKEN your position.

 

                  He makes sin look so alluring.... So attractive..... So                             REASONABLE

 

                  Satan is ALWAYS suggesting that you can find happiness                           and peace by IGNORING the clear guidance from God.

 

            He loves to press you into action RIGHT NOW.

 

                  "NO TIME to seek God's counsel."

 

            One reason why this is such a successful strategy of Satan is that we are sometimes afraid that God will say NO

 

 

 

            LISTEN: Isa 28:16 he that believeth shall not make haste.

 

                  IF you really believe that God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life, THEN you do NOT have to be afraid of God saying NO...... THUS, you will NOT make hasty decisions

                 

 

      NOTE: Satan is such a liar that we dare NOT trust our own judgment

 

            Prov. 28:26  He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool:

 

            IF we do, Satan can DECEIVE us into a place of COMPROMISE and WEAKNESS and BONDAGE

 

 

      Satan attempts to get us to VIOLATE the clear cut commands of Scripture

 

            The Bible warns us against UNGODLY ALLIANCES.

 

                  2Cor. 6:14   Be ye not unequally yoked together with                             unbelievers:

 

            That is the CLEAR teaching of the Word of God

 

                  There are COUNTLESS numbers of people suffering misery today in their marriages and businesses because the have VIOLATED this clear cut command from God

 

      NOTE: They were deceived into thinking that SOMEHOW their case would be DIFFERENT

 

            You ask them: "Have you sought the Lord on this.... "Have you prayed about this?"

 

            The usual answer: "This guy is different...." "No way this guy can be wrong"

 

      They think that they can VIOLATE the counsel of God and NOT suffer.

 

            They practice EVANGELISTIC DATING.... ("I'll marry him and lead him to Christ")

 

            Satan will use DECEPTION to get you into an UNGODLY                              ALLIANCE

 

                  There are those who will even PRETEND to be a Christian to                                 WIN the bride.

 

           

      NOTICE: The UNGODLY ALLIANCE will ALWAYS weaken your      position.

 

            There is ALWAYS the pressure to COMPROMISE.

 

            Always a DOWNWARD pull.

 

      We DON'T need that because we have that fight already.

 

            We need to make room in our lives for those things that will pull us UP.

 

 

     

2.) We can not allow the flesh to peacefully co-exist with us

 

      Rom. 13:14   But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof.

 

      What does God say about:

 

            This attitude...... This action...... This habit.

 

            Don't think that you can bend the rules

 

            Not even in the SMALLEST degree

 

      NOTICE:

 

            There are things that will look great to your flesh

 

                  Things that you have NO BUSINESS allowing into your life.

 

                  But because they are dressed in such an alluring package                             you DON'T check with God because you DON'T want a NO.

 

            There are things that you THINK you can allow around and NOT get burned.

 

                  I know that God says no, but I can handle it.

 

     

            Gal. 6:7   Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.

 

            That thing that seemed SO LITTLE as to not matter, is the thing that will RUIN you.

 

 

There are ways to AVOID ungodly alliances.

 

1.) ALWAYS seek advice from the Word in EVERY decision of life

 

      NEVER think that God's Word doesn't apply to your situation.

 

      You CAN NOT go against God and win!!

 

            If you go AGAINST what God says you are BOUND to lose.

 

 

2.) NEVER make a decision unless you seek the advice of God in prayer.

 

      No matter how good it looks to you, seek God.

 

            It might look like a SURE thing, like the Gibeonites

 

            But things ARE NOT what they seem.

 

      If you make a decision based only on the VISIBLE evidence you will make a WRONG decision.

 

            Satan is a GREAT deceiver.

 

            "TRUST in the Lord with all you heart....."

 

            Because THEN you won't be caught in a trap.

 

      NOTE: Think about it

 

            The ETERNAL and OMNISCIENT God invites us to inquire of Him

 

            It is FOLLY to refuse this offer and instead lean on our own understanding

 

     It is blasphemy to NOT believe in God

 

            But I believe that it is worse to say: "I believe in God" and then NOT seek God for wisdom and direction.

 

God is ABLE to rescue us from our UNGODLY ALLIANCES.

 

Josh. 9:21   And the princes said unto them, Let them live; but let them be hewers of wood and drawers of water unto all the congregation;

 

      You might look at that verse and say: What does that have to do with my present pain and suffering from trying to peacefully co-exist with the world, the flesh and the devil?

 

            The Gibeonites ended up cutting the wood for the fire on the altar where the sacrifices would be offered to God.

 

            They ended up drawing the water that the priests washed in to purify themselves in their ministry before the Lord.

 

            The very alliance that entangled them ended up leading God's people to forgiveness and worship

 

 

The very thing that entangled you becomes the thing which drives you to the cross where you see the UNDESERVED love and mercy and grace of God.

 

      When you see your UNGODLY ALLIANCE and what it has done to        the Lord and you, you become broken.

 

      But that is where you begin to see the true depth of God's love.

 

      Your heart is set ablaze with new devotion and adoration for God BECAUSE of His mercy.

 

      And you have a new CONTEMPT for such alliances.