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The Gospel Observer
"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations...teaching them
to observe all that I commanded you, and lo, I am with you always,
even to the end of the age" (Matt. 28:19,20).
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December 8, 2013
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Contents:
1) Achan's Sin (Edward O. Bragwell, Sr.
2) Foolish Disregard (Gary Henry)
3) News & Notes
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-1-
Achan's Sin
by Edward O. Bragwell, Sr.
Fresh on the heels of an astounding victory at Jericho, the young
Israelite nation, under Joshua's leadership, focused on the next
objective in their campaign to capture Canaan -- the land promised
by Jehovah. Ai, a small town, was next on the list. Upon
their return, the men sent to spy out Ai advised Joshua to send only
two or three thousand men against Ai "for the people of Ai are few"
(Josh. 7:3). The men of Ai turned the battle into a rout,
chasing the Israelites back to where they came from, striking down
thirty-six men in the process, almost completely demoralizing Joshua
and Israel.
Joshua could not understand why God would bring them over the Jordan
only to be destroyed by the Amorites. He poured out his heart
to the Lord about the matter. Then the Lord revealed the
reason for this defeat. Achan had taken spoils from Jericho,
which were forbidden of the Lord, and had hidden them among his
stuff. This sin had to be corrected before God would permit
Israel to continue her conquest of the promised land. Achan,
his family, and his livestock were stoned and burned along with the
rest of his goods. What a price to pay for one sin.
After the matter was corrected, Israel, with the guidance and help
of God, defeated Ai. (Read Joshua 7 and 8.)
Achan's case illustrates the power of sin. His sin caused a
whole nation to suffer. "But, that was back then," says
someone, "what about now?" The Hebrew writer compares sin back
then and now: "For if the word spoken through angels (during the Old
Testament era, see 1:1-eob) proved steadfast, and every
transgression and disobedience received a just reward, how shall we
escape if we neglect so a great a salvation, which at the first
began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed to us by those who
heard him" (Heb. 2:2-3, read also Heb. 10:28,29).
The case of Achan refutes three popular myths about sin.
Myth: One sin won't hurt.
How often have you heard it said that it won't hurt to do it just
this one time -- "it," meaning whatever sin is under consideration
at the time? Achan's one sin hurt him greatly, along with his
family, his nation and the cause of his God.
One sin does hurt. "For whoever shall keep the whole law, and
yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all" (Jas. 2:10).
Eve's one sin brought death to the whole world. Moses' one sin
caused him to miss Canaan (Num. 20:7-13). Nadab and Abihu's
one sin cost them their lives (Lev. 10), as did Uzzah's (2 Sam.
6:1-8) and Ananias and Sapphira's (Acts 5). The rich young
ruler only lacked one thing to inherit eternal life (Lk. 18:22-23),
but lacking that one thing caused him to go away sorrowful.
Simon the Sorcerer was said to be "poisoned by bitterness and bound
by iniquity" after committing one sin (Acts 8:23).
One who thinks that one sin will not hurt needs to be aware that one
sin may very well be a launching pad for many other sins.
Joseph's brethren became envious of him. This fostered a
hatred to the point they could not even speak peaceably to
him. This was followed by conspiracy and bodily harm.
They sold him into slavery; and, to cover up their crime, they lied
to their father (Gen. 37).
David, a man after God's own heart, looked on a woman to lust after
her. This led to fornication. Then, in a futile effort
to cover his sin, he resorted to treachery and finally had the
woman's husband killed (2 Sam. 11). Did his one sin
hurt? He wrote, "My sin is always before me" (Psa. 51:3).
Apostasy from the Lord is taken one step at a time. Paul urges
Timothy to preach so as to prevent apostasy, then explains why the
urgency by showing how apostasy progresses. First, "they will
not endure sound doctrine." Such people begin their downward
slide into apostasy by becoming annoyed at sound preaching --
preaching that truly reproves, rebukes and exhorts. Secondly,
"they will heap up for themselves teachers" to scratch their itching
ears. They will seek and find teachers to teach it their way
-- more pleasing to the ear and less negative toward sin.
Thirdly, they will turn their ears away from the truth and be turned
aside to fables. Going, going, gone! They have completed
the plunge into apostasy. But, where did it start? When
they took the first step of not enduring sound doctrine.
Each sin that one does weakens his resistance to the next one until
he finally develops a seared conscience.
Myth: One's sin is nobody's business but his.
Achan's sin affected the entire nation. It hindered their
progress in capturing Canaan. His sin caused all the children
of Israel to be rebuked: "But the children of Israel committed a
trespass regarding the accursed things" (Josh. 7:1); "Israel has
sinned, and they have transgressed My covenant which I commanded
them" (Josh. 7:11). This sin caused the whole nation to suffer
defeat: "Therefore the children of Israel could not stand before
their enemies" (Josh. 7:12). Achan's household was gravely
affected by his sin (Josh. 7:24).
The fornicator of 1 Corinthians 5 affected the whole church.
Paul asked, "Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole
lump?" While it may be true that some sins, because of their
personal nature, only hurt the individual and his relationship to
God, all too often an individual sin has a way of hindering the
gospel of Christ and hurting other members of one's family and/or
congregation.
Myth: One can keep sin hidden.
Achan probably thought that he had done a pretty good job of hiding
his ill gotten gain. It was hidden in the earth in the midst
of his tent -- in the privacy and safety of his own home. God
knew it all along and ultimately all Israel found out about
it. Every diligent Bible reader today also knows about it.
Moses warned the children of Israel: "be sure your sin will find you
out" (Num. 32:23). One can never sin and rightly feel secure
in the belief that no one will ever know. There are too many
ways for even secret sins to become known for one to depend on the
protection of secrecy. We once heard the story of two
preachers, traveling far away from home, stopping at a tavern and
deciding to have a little drink. After all, they were so far
away from anyone who knew them that their secret sin would never be
known. Since no one knew them or that they were preachers no
harm would be done. As they were about to leave they got into
a mild argument about who would pay the bill. While they were
discussing the matter, the bartender leans over and says, "That's
all right fellows, we don't charge preachers in here." No, my
friend, do not count on your sins remaining hidden.
Sin is never hidden from God: "And there is no creature hidden from
his sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of him to
whom we must give account" (Heb. 4:13).
More often than we may realize our sin is not hidden from
others. When Moses killed the Egyptian, "He looked this way
and that way, and when he saw no one, he killed the Egyptian and hid
him in the sand." Still the thing was known (v. 14). We
may be more transparent than we think. We may be seen when we
are not aware of it. But, if no one on earth ever knows -- God
knows and will judge us according to the works done in the body,
whether good or bad (2 Cor. 5:10).
One sin, not repented of, can make a big difference. Let us
not have any illusions about it. Just one sin does hurt.
Just one sin may very well hurt someone else. Just one sin may
very well be found out by others. It is already known by the
Lord, for sure. Let us be careful. Strive to avoid even
one sin. When we do sin, we need to correct it immediately, to
minimize the damage it can do to ourselves and others.
Achan, his family, and all Israel suffered from a sin that Achan
thought he had carefully concealed. We should not go and do
likewise.
-- Via Guardian of Truth XXXV: 17, pp. 526-527, September 5, 1991,
http:// www.truthmagazine.com/ archives/volume35/ GOT035250.html
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-2-
Foolish Disregard
by Gary Henry
To dismiss God from our decisions is a most foolish thing to
do. The reality of God is the most massive truth we'll ever
encounter, and the most consequential. It is folly to omit
this truth from our thinking, as if we expected it to move out of
our way.
Some individuals disregard God by adopting the intellectual position
that He does not exist. These have thought the matter through
and come to the conclusion that there is no God. In their
conduct, they may live as if there were a God and may even adhere to
a certain spirituality, but their position, at least
philosophically, is that a personal God does not exist.
If God does exist, such a denial is obviously unwise. But many
of us disregard Him in a way that is no less foolish. We do
this when we simply conduct our lives without taking God into
serious account. This is a more practical kind of
atheism. We pay lip service to a God who "perhaps" exists, but
we believe that this God can be safely set aside in the actual
conduct of our day-to-day affairs. He has no real impact on
our lives. In Psalm 14:1, it is this kind of "fool" who is
described. He says "There is no God" not so much by his
dubious philosophy, as by his disobedient lifestyle.
There is a sense in which this kind of atheism is more arrogant than
any other. In Psalm 10, for example, we are shown how
PRESUMPTUOUS it is to disregard God: "The wicked in his proud
countenance does not seek God; God is in none of his thoughts"
(v.4). "He has said in his heart, 'I shall not be moved; I
shall never be in adversity'" (v.6). "He has said in his
heart, 'God has forgotten; He hides His face; He will never see'"
(v.11). "He has said in his heart, 'You will not require an
account'" (v.13).
When we live in this manner, we trivialize God in the most
blasphemous way. Unlike the atheist who believes there is no
God to be dealt with, we believe that we don't really have to deal
with the God who does exist. We think that, for all practical
purposes, He can be ignored. But if God is our Creator, our
disregard only shows us to be foolish. It does nothing to
diminish Him.
-- Via WordPoints.com, April 29, 2013
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-3-
News & Notes
Let us who are Christians continue to remember the following in
prayer:
Virginia Fontenot (who has stage 4 cancer), Jean
Calloway, Shirley Young, Peggy Lefort, Cheryl Crews,
and Terry and Pam MacDonald.
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The Steps That Lead to Eternal Salvation
1) Hear the gospel, for that is how faith comes (Rom.
10:17; John 20:30,31).
2) Believe in the deity of Christ (John 8:24; John
3:18).
3) Repent of sins (Luke 13:5; Acts 17:30).
4) Confess faith in Christ (Rom. 10:9,10; Acts
8:36-38).
5) Be baptized in water for the remission of sins
(Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; 22:16; Rom. 6:3,4; Gal. 3:26,27; 1 Pet.
3:21).
6) Continue in the faith; for, if not, salvation can
be lost (Heb. 10:36-39; Rev. 2:10; 2 Pet. 2:20-22).
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Park Forest
CHURCH OF CHRIST
9923 Sunny Cline Dr., Baton Rouge, LA 70817
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evangelist/editor: Tom Edwards (225) 667-4520
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