Is There Sin In The Camp?

"…for thus saith the LORD God of Israel, There is an accursed thing in the midst of thee, O Israel: thou canst not stand before thine enemies, until ye take away the accursed thing from among you." After Israel experienced their great victory at Jericho, one of the men from Israel's army took of the spoils of Jericho and hid them in the floor of his tent. Israel proceeded to the next city called Ai, but during that battle 36 Israeli men died and the rest fled in defeat. All because one man named "Achan" disobeyed God, and did  that which was forbidden by God. "…and the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel." case 36 men died. Why, because Achan disobeyed God and caused Israel to lose their power and standing with God. God saw Israel as one, just as He sees the family as one, and the Church as one. Achan's family was also disgraced by his sin, for Achan was not the only one stoned to death for his crime, his family died along with him.  Our hidden sins , if not confessed, will always result  in  harm  to those that we are closest to.

 

Who’s Side Are You On?

(Jos 5:13-14) "And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, there stood a man over against him with his sword drawn in his hand: and Joshua went unto him, and said unto him, Art thou for us, or for our adversaries? And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host of the LORD am I now come." In the above verse the man's answer was probably not what Joshua expected. You see, his answer was meant to teach Joshua that it's not a question of whether or not the Lord is on your side, but rather, are you on the Lord's side? God's side is always the right side, and God asked Joshua before the battle of Jericho, if he wanted to take Jericho his way or God's way. For you see, this man was none other than (Our Lord Jesus) the Son of God, Captain of the host of the armies of heaven, and he was willing and ready to fight for Israel but he needed Joshua’s heart first. Jesus appeared here to remind Joshua as he did to Moses that the battles in his life can only be won his way, and the fall of Jericho proved it!  And it’s still the same today, for we can either fight our battles in the flesh and lose, or we can fight them God’s way and win.  Brethren, even today God still wants to know; “who’s side are you on?”

Christ Jesus Our Spiritual Rock

(1Cor. 10:3-4) "…;And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ." This text is a direct reference to (Exodus 17) where Moses was commanded by God to strike the rock at Mt. Horeb so Israel would have water to drink in the wilderness. Little did Israel know that God was painting a picture of the Messiah (Jesus Christ) who would come to provide spiritual drink to His Church.  1) God's Rock was Jesus Christ. There are many people in this world that want you to believe that the Apostle Peter or some other man is the true rock of the church, but this is contrary to scripture. (1Cor. 3:11) " For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ." chief corner stone (Eph. 2:202) God's Rock provided spiritual drink. Once we taste of God's Spiritual drink we will "never thirst"( John 4:14 for He satisfies all who are saved. 3) God's Rock followed Israel. Just as God's Rock was always available to nourish Israel, Jesus is always available to the saved, nourishing and providing as we travel life's road.

 

The Tree Of God’s Provision

(Ex. 15:24-25) "And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink? And he cried unto the LORD; and the LORD shewed him a tree, which when he had cast into the waters, the waters were made sweet:…"  God never promised Israel an easy road to the Promised Land, but he did promise to provide and care for them along the way. God wanted Israel to look not on their circumstances but rather on His promises, and so the first lesson that God taught Israel was that He could make bitter water sweet if they would just but cast a tree into it, for that tree represented the cross of Christ. Brethren, we live in a bitter world, and just as the waters at Marah were too bitter to drink, so is life without God's help. God provided Israel a tree, just as He provided us with His Cross! Once we like Israel get saved, we need to look to the promise of the cross in every situation in life. For as the tree made the bitter waters sweet at Marah, so does the promise of the Cross  make our lives better when we trust in the Christ of the cross, Jesus!

 

Things That Hinder Christian Service

(Mark 4:19) "And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful." This passage was spoken by Jesus to his disciples as he taught on the Parable of the Sower. He wanted them to be careful because this world has many ways of pulling us away from serving God and bearing fruit. Christian be careful, for what you find yourself doing the most in this life is what you love the most! There is nothing wrong with loving to do certain things, but God knows if you love something more than you love Him. Sometimes the cares of this world take up our life and time, but brethren be careful for cares and problems can also keep us from serving God, and many people use them as excuses for why they don't serve or bear fruit anymore! And what about "the deceitfulness of riches?"  Jesus said that money is not evil in itself but loving it and serving it more than God is evil! How often Christians are sucked into this trap, thinking that if they just make more money, that they can then give or serve more. Riches are "deceitful" not necessarily sinful, so be careful Christian, you may no longer be serving God but rather Mammon ?

 

The Protecting Cloud Of Christ

(Ex. 13:21-22) "And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud,
to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light;
to go by day and night: He took not away the pillar of the cloud by day, nor
the pillar of fire by night, from before the people." Another way that God
wants us to see Jesus Christ in the Old Testament is through the protective
cloudy pillar by day, and the fiery pillar by night, that led  Israel out of
Egypt.  In (Heb. 3:5) the Bible says that Jesus said, "I will never leave
thee, nor forsake thee." One of the greatest truths about our Savior Jesus
is that he will never leave us, nor stop protecting us. In (Exodus 14), God
led Israel through the Red Sea. He was a light to Israel as they followed by
day and night, but he was also a darkness to Pharaoh and Egypt as they tried
to destroy Israel from behind. In this chapter it is said that God was in
the cloud, in the presence of the "angel of the Lord." In the Old Testament
Jesus was described by this title, and we need to see that he not only
guides and leads the saved, but he also protects them from the enemy that
tries to attack from behind.  (Isa. 52:12) says, "For ye shall not go out
with haste, nor go by flight: for the LORD will go before you; and the God
of Israel will be your rereward." The word "rereward" is an old English word
that means, "he's got your back." Thank You Lord Jesus!

The Blood Of The Lamb

(Ex. 12:13) ". and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the
plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of
Egypt." Pharaoh and Egypt have always been pictures in the Bible of the
flesh, or sin, or bondage. For 430 years Egypt held Israel in bitter
slavery, and it wasn't until God sent his deliverer Moses unto them that
they were given hope, but it wasn't Moses that delivered Israel from their
cruel bondage, it was the blood of a lamb!  For centuries the Jews have
celebrated the Passover in remembrance of the night on which the blood of
the lamb kept them from the final plague of God upon Egypt, but little did
they know that that lamb represented Jesus who would come some 1400 years
later. And, just as the angel of death passed by the homes of those who were
under the blood of the lamb, so will God's final judgment of hell, and
condemnation pass by those that have been saved and born again by the blood
of his cross. Just as Egypt held Israel in slavery so the guilt of sin holds
mankind, but thank God that God sent us our deliverer Jesus Christ to shed
his blood as a lamb, to make every  repentant sinner "perfect" (Heb.10:14)
through his final blood sacrifice! Praise His Name!