Joshua 7:16

Joshua 7:16 says, So Joshua rose up early in the morning, and brought Israel by their tribes; and the tribe of Judah was taken:  Again Joshua rose up early and brought the twelve tribes of Israel before him, and the tribe of Judah was separated out as the looked for the accursed thing that had led to their defeat.  Verse seventeen states, And he brought the family of Judah; and he took the family of the Zarhites: and he brought the family of the Zarhites man by man; and Zabdi was taken:  Then Joshua began to separate the families of the tribe of Judah.  Though all of Israel was affected, it was the one who had brought the accursed thing into the nation that had to be identified.  One person bringing an accursed thing into the church today can affect many Christians.  Verse eighteen adds, And he brought his household man by man; and Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, was taken.  Finally, Achan was identified as the one responsible.  Though Joshua was identified as the one responsible for the search, I believe that it was only by the power of God that he was able to identify Achan.  We cannot accuse other Christians of acting in a sinful way unless we are sure that we are following God's leadership when we do.  We cannot do so simply because we do not like or agree with what they are doing.  Verse nineteen declares, And Joshua said unto Achan, My son, give, I pray thee, glory to the LORD God of Israel, and make confession unto him; and tell me now what thou hast done; hide it not from me.  Joshua didn't just condemn Achan, but referred to him as his son and gave him an opportunity to confess and repent before God.  We should never just look for an opportunity to have a reason for other Christians, or even the lost of the world, to be punished, but should always reach out tot them with the love of God so that the may repent.  Verse twenty states, And Achan answered Joshua, and said, Indeed I have sinned against the LORD God of Israel, and thus and thus have I done:  Achan confessed that he had sinned, as we all have.  Verse twenty-one adds, When I saw among the spoils a goodly Babylonish garment, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold of fifty shekels weight, then I coveted them, and took them; and, behold, they are hid in the earth in the midst of my tent, and the silver under it. Achan said when he saw some silver and gold, he took it and buried it in his tent.  It really was doing him no good where it was, and it broke his covenant with God.  Anything that we gain outside the will of God, no matter how appealing it may be, will be just as useful as this silver and gold were to Achan in everlasting terms.  If we are guilty of trying to steal from God, we know that we cannot hide our sin from Him.  Verse twenty-two proclaims. So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran unto the tent; and, behold, it was hid in his tent, and the silver under it.  Joshua sent messengers to see if the silver and gold were where Achan said they were.  We should likewise always make sure that we know that our facts are straight if we are dealing with others.  Verse twenty-three adds, And they took them out of the midst of the tent, and brought them unto Joshua, and unto all the children of Israel, and laid them out before the LORD.  They brought the silver and gold to Joshua, but it says they laid them before the LORD.  Ultimately, that is where the sins of each individual must be laid.  Even when someone comes before the church or the preacher to profess their sins, it is to God that that person is really confessing.  Verse twenty-four declares, And Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver, and the garment, and the wedge of gold, and his sons, and his daughters, and his oxen, and his asses, and his sheep, and his tent, and all that he had: and they brought them unto the valley of Achor.  Everything that Achan owned and his family were brought to the valley of Achor.  Then verse twenty five adds, And Joshua said, Why hast thou troubled us? the LORD shall trouble thee this day. And all Israel stoned him with stones, and burned them with fire, after they had stoned them with stones.  Joshua asked Achan why he had done this and troubled Israel.  We today have to ask why we have sinned and troubled God if we are to find forgiveness.  We might think that it was extreme to kill Achan's whole family and all his animals, but what he had done had brought shame to Israel and God.  Though Achan and his family were stoned, I believe that they all had an opportunity to make things right with God.  We may suffer earthly consequences fr our sins, but if we confess and make things right with God then that doesn't matter.  Verse twenty-six concludes, And they raised over him a great heap of stones unto this day. So the LORD turned from the fierceness of his anger. Wherefore the name of that place was called, The valley of Achor, unto this day.  After the sin was dealt with, God turned from His anger.  Unless we accept Christ as our Savior and Lord, one day we will face the judgment of God, and our punishment will be much greater than that of Achan.  We will be separated from God to endure everlasting punishment.