I’ve been reading a book about the OT character of Joshua. Here’s a passage which I think hit me the most (so far):
Starting at the bottom of page 92.
“At the beginning of a new period in Bible history, God sometimes revealed His wrath against sin in some dramatic way. After the tabernacle had been set up, Nadab and Abihu invaded its holy precincts contrary to God’s law; and God killed them. This was a warning to the priests not to treat God’s sanctuary carelessly (Lev. 10). When David sought to restore the ark to its place of honor, and Uzzah touched the ark to steady it, God killed Uzzah (2 Sam. 6:1-11).”
The passage also mentions Ananias and Sapphira, and connected it back to the event in Joshua where the Hebrews were told everything from Jericho was to be dedicated to the Lord. But Achan tucked away a few choice bits, so he and his family had to be killed before the people could go on to conquer the Promised Land.
I believe Americans are treating God carelessly. Because He is slow to anger, most people are thinking they can “get away with it.” They’ve sinned, nothing happened to them, so why not go on sinning?
One of the reasons (not the only reason, or even the biggest) the Promised Land wasn’t given to Abraham right away was because the sin of the Amorites hadn’t fully developed. When the Nation of Israel left Egypt, God performed all sorts of dramatic miracles. When Joshua took the people across the dry land where the flood-stage Jordan had been moments ago, the people of Jericho noticed.
By and large, the people of Jericho (and now America) don’t want to believe in God. Sure there are some (like Rahab), but mostly they think God makes things inconvenient to do business in America. “How can I make good deals if I have to treat people fairly? If I can’t lie, cheat, and steal, I can’t get ahead.”
I contend that those who follow God’s Sovereign Will are just as likely to do well. Remember Hobby Lobby and the Affordable Care Act? They came down solidly on the side of God’s Will and did okay. Rahab did okay, too. When the walls of Jericho came tumbling down, her home within the city wall was left untouched. Even modern archaeologists say a small portion of the wall stayed standing while the rest collapsed.
The bulk of America is dissing God. Like ancient Israel they think, “I believe in God, so what does it matter if I ‘go along to get along?’” The problem is that part about “going along” turns out to get longer and longer, and eventually the part about God gets left behind.
Then one day some dude will come wandering in from the desert to do battle with a few hundred prophets of the business world. The people who haven’t already jumped down from the fence on the side of money and convenience will hear, “Hey, God’s not dead.” But they’ve been sitting on the fence for so long they don’t know what to do.
There’s a saying about people who are in the middle of the road. They get hit by traffic going both ways. Or the one about the road being littered with indecisive squirrels.
Get off the fence. Be Rahab.
I’d like to point out that she, though a prostitute, was later adopted into the nation of Israel and is listed in the genealogy of Jesus.
Not bad for someone of the “oldest profession.”
