“But the Israelites were unfaithful in regard to the devoted things; Achan son of Karmi, 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. Now Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is near Beth Aven to the east of Bethel, and told them, “Go up and spy out the region.” So the men went up and spied out Ai. When they returned to Joshua, they said, “Not all the army will have to go up against Ai. Send two or three thousand men to take it and do not weary the whole army, for only a few people live there.” So about three thousand went up; but they were routed by the men of Ai, who killed about thirty-six of them. They chased the Israelites from the city gate as far as the stone quarries and struck them down on the slopes. At this the hearts of the people melted in fear and became like water.” (Joshua 6:1-5 NIV)
Most of the times our daily meditations begin with a story, but occasionally they are simply a Bible lesson. But who does not appreciate Bible study, realizing how profitable the word of God is to the person who not only realizes that all Scripture is inspired by God, but also refers to it in regularly in diligent study. Today, it is the latter type of a meditation. If you want to experience victory as a church or as a believer, the lesson that follows will bless you.
In the context of the opening verses, the children of Israel, now in The Promised Land, had just experienced a victory over the walled city of Jericho. God had instructed them that certain things were not to be taken from the city. They were under a ban. In spite of that, Achan sinned and took some of the things under the ban, a beautiful mantle, two hundred shekels of silver, and a bar of gold fifty shekels in weight. In short, he was unfaithful to the Lord. Not the main lesson, but you should note that sin in the camp will have an impact on others. Break it down! Sin in the church, sin in the family, and sin in your ministry group can cause you to suffer what I will term as defeat, the exact opposite of victory. Right! That is not what we want to experience, speaking of defeat. But sometimes, defeat teaches us a lesson.
AI was very much smaller than Jericho and should have been an easy victory. But even the easy things can beat you when you are not faithful. Keep asking yourself, “Do I want defeat or victory?”
The second time that the children of Israel faced AI, two things lead to their victory. First, Joshua consulted with God, and second, God’s people were not unfaithful this time.
If you take nothing away from what you have read, realize that you can learn from your defeat, make changes, stay faithful, and realize victory. Have a great Friday! Be blessed!
‘You may encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated. In fact, it may be necessary to encounter defeats so you can know what you can rise from, how you can still come out of it.” (Quote by Maya Angelou)
Still committed to the climb,
Mark L. King