When I was in college, we played the funniest joke on one of our roommates. He came back from work one night, and he was exhausted. He quickly jumped into bed; it was almost midnight. When he did, I looked at my other roommates, and I told them that I had a dastardly idea. In the next few minutes, we proceeded to set his clock for 7:00 AM and trick him into getting up for class at midnight. He was the only one who had 1st hour the next day, and it worked like a charm. He got up, took a shower, got dressed, and grabbed his books heading to class. When he opened the door to go outside, he quickly realized that it was still evening when he saw the pitch-black darkness, and he might have had a whole bunch of guys behind him laughing. Don’t worry, he was a good friend. I know you’re thinking: “with friends like that, who needs enemies?!”
We have all been deceived. We have all been tricked. Joshua was deceived. He had just led Israel into defeating the nation of Ai. Before that victory, he had led Israel in destroying the powerful city of Jericho. Now, it was on to the next foe. Then, it happened. A few emissaries from a “faraway” land showed up at his door and tricked Joshua into signing a peace treaty with them. When he saw the moldy bread in their bags, the broken wine skins, and their worn-down sandals, he believed their scheme. You see, the Gibeonites were “next door neighbors” to Israel. They feared that Israel would destroy them like all the other nations, so they had to come up with a plan, and it worked to perfection.
When we think of what happened, it is not hard to see Joshua’s failure. The Bible is clear in verse 14 of Chapter 9: “Joshua did not inquire of the Lord.” How many times are we guilty of the exact same thing? Maybe, we trust in our own abilities in the moment. Maybe, we are blinded by what we want instead of what God wants. Maybe, we look at a task, and see it so small, that we don’t think God is needed. I know that we would never say these things; we just “live them out!”
When you don’t involve God in the details of your life, you are living as if God doesn’t exist. When you live as if God doesn’t exist, you’ve become a “practical atheist.” Joshua had been so dependent on God in the past. What happened this time? I think it’s a case of “me-centric confidence!” He had just won two mighty wars. He was probably feeling pretty good about himself. He may have focused more on strategy than on spiritual power. No matter what the cause, he carelessly did not include God in his battle plans. Listen, we cannot afford to “cut God out” when we need him for our marriages, children, and church. We need God for wisdom about both our big decisions and small decisions.
Maybe, a more realistic view of the “enemy” will help us avoid such carelessness. Sometimes we see Satan as that roaring lion in 1 Peter 5:8 which is true, but then we fail to see him as the liar that he truly is in John 8:44. Are you in danger of being deceived by the “enemy?” Are you living in a false sense of security? Are you leaving God out of your plans? Take a minute and reread James 4:13-17 and be reminded that God MUST be at the center of our daily plans! If we trust in him, there is nothing that we can’t achieve by his holy will!
We have all been deceived. We have all been tricked. Joshua was deceived. He had just led Israel into defeating the nation of Ai. Before that victory, he had led Israel in destroying the powerful city of Jericho. Now, it was on to the next foe. Then, it happened. A few emissaries from a “faraway” land showed up at his door and tricked Joshua into signing a peace treaty with them. When he saw the moldy bread in their bags, the broken wine skins, and their worn-down sandals, he believed their scheme. You see, the Gibeonites were “next door neighbors” to Israel. They feared that Israel would destroy them like all the other nations, so they had to come up with a plan, and it worked to perfection.
When we think of what happened, it is not hard to see Joshua’s failure. The Bible is clear in verse 14 of Chapter 9: “Joshua did not inquire of the Lord.” How many times are we guilty of the exact same thing? Maybe, we trust in our own abilities in the moment. Maybe, we are blinded by what we want instead of what God wants. Maybe, we look at a task, and see it so small, that we don’t think God is needed. I know that we would never say these things; we just “live them out!”
When you don’t involve God in the details of your life, you are living as if God doesn’t exist. When you live as if God doesn’t exist, you’ve become a “practical atheist.” Joshua had been so dependent on God in the past. What happened this time? I think it’s a case of “me-centric confidence!” He had just won two mighty wars. He was probably feeling pretty good about himself. He may have focused more on strategy than on spiritual power. No matter what the cause, he carelessly did not include God in his battle plans. Listen, we cannot afford to “cut God out” when we need him for our marriages, children, and church. We need God for wisdom about both our big decisions and small decisions.
Maybe, a more realistic view of the “enemy” will help us avoid such carelessness. Sometimes we see Satan as that roaring lion in 1 Peter 5:8 which is true, but then we fail to see him as the liar that he truly is in John 8:44. Are you in danger of being deceived by the “enemy?” Are you living in a false sense of security? Are you leaving God out of your plans? Take a minute and reread James 4:13-17 and be reminded that God MUST be at the center of our daily plans! If we trust in him, there is nothing that we can’t achieve by his holy will!