Today’s Reading: Joshua 7; Joshua 8; Psalm 69; 1 Corinthians 5
Scripture: Joshua 7:1, Psalm 69, 1 Corinthians 5:6-7
Joshua 7:1 But the Israelites acted unfaithfully in regard to the devoted things; Achan son of Carmi, the son of Zimri, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of them. So the LORD's anger burned against Israel.
Psalm 69:5 You know my folly, O God; my guilt is not hidden from you.
1 Corinthians 5:6-7 …Don't you know that a little yeast works through the whole batch of dough? Get rid of the old yeast that you may be a new batch without yeast…
Observation: It’s quite striking: one person acting alone, Achan, makes a bad choice and God says “the Israelites acted unfaithfully…” and we are told “the LORD's anger burned against Israel.” This plainly illustrates the responsibility every person has to the larger community to which he is connected. The result for Israel was that some in the fighting force were killed in battle because Achan took some of the booty for himself. There is no such thing as a “private sin”. I may think that what I do when no one is watching will have no effect on anyone but me, but that is not true. God knows everything. Even sin which may be concealed to others (see Psalm 69:5 above) is clearly still sin. And Paul explains that sin, like yeast, cannot be contained or isolated.
Application: So the conclusion is inescapable: What I do absolutely affects those to whom I am connected. There is an invisible spiritual link between me and the greater community around me. I cannot escape it. And this link brings a responsibility. I can introduce invisible pollution into my community through any sinful action, whether public or private. My actions and attitudes have an impact far beyond my own personal consequences. So I must keep in mind, those around me who will be affected by my life. In Achan’s case, his sin resulted not only in the deaths of the soldiers in the battle of Ai, but his whole family was killed as well. What a sad and tragic result from a single, impulsive, “hidden” sinful choice. Had Achan been aware of the horrible scope and depth what would happen, no doubt he would have resisted his greedy urge. Well, I want to get that message into my head and heart so that I may make good and Godly choices and thus bring no harm, but only blessing to those I am connected to.
Prayer: Lord, help me to live uprightly for the sake of Your love for me. But I ask You, Heavenly Father, that You would also help me to keep in mind all those who would be hurt by my sin so that I will have extra motivation to walk in purity. I want to live to bless You and to bring Your blessing to others. May I always live out the character of Jesus Christ in my life.
This I pray in Jesus’ name, Amen.
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