Being Deceived

Day one hundred eighty-two

I am in a state of transition.  This year has brought with it the transition of a mother of children to a mother of adult children, and soon it will bring the change of having only one of my adult children living at home.  It also brings with it the opportunity for me to rejoin the work force.  I have dedicated 19+ years as a stay at home mom to my family and now I am looking at jumping back into the world of employment.  It is a little scary, but it also allows me the chance to have some new experiences, which I am looking forward to.

I have a job interview today, my second since I started applying for jobs.  Surprisingly, I am not too nervous,  more excited at the chance to stretch myself a little.  I also think the calmness comes from my faith that the Lord will put me where I need to be.  My prayer this morning was filled with gratitude for all the blessings that have come into my life as I go through these transitions.  Gratitude for the ability to see the Lord in my life and to have faith that He will be there always.  And a request that I might know that whatever the result of the interview is, it is what it is supposed to be. 

Joshua 9:1-13

The people of Israel have just defeated the city of Ai and are preparing to march deeper into Canaan as they claim the promised land which the Lord had given to them. They now have a couple of impressive victories under their belts. They have seen the great walled city of Jericho defeated and they have witnessed the pesky little town of Ai defeated too. However, before they will ever see another victory, Israel must learn a valuable lesson about being deceived.

In the battles and stories related to Israel's conquest of Canaan, we can see a picture of our lives as children of God as we struggle to obtain the victories in our lives. We can see parallels between the battles Israel fought and the ones which we fight in our lives. In fact, these cities that they have faced all teach us a spiritual lesson.

Jericho - A type of the world - It was defeated, it's strongholds torn down by the power of God.  We have the promise of victory over the world in our lives too, "For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith." (1 John 5:4)

Ai - A type of the flesh or sin- It, too, was defeated, and we have the promise of victory over sin as we battle for the Lord, "And since man had fallen he could not merit anything of himself; but the sufferings and death of Christ atone for their sins, through faith and repentance, and so forth..." (Alma 22:14)

Gibeon - A type of the devil - This is a battle that still must be fought. However, we have been promised victory in this area as well. To obtain it, we must trust the Lord and do His will. The devil can be defeated, "Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." (James 4:7). Eventually, the devil will get exactly what he deserves! (Rev. 20:1-10).

But today we must still contend with him. Fortunately, the Lord has not left us without a word in this matter. Chapter 9 recounts Israel's experience with the people of Gibeon, and in it we can see a portrait of the devil and his devices.

The Devil Can Be Deceptive (vv 1-13)

Alliances (v 1-2) When all the kings of Canaan heard what had happened to Ai and to Jericho, they joined forces to seek to defeat Israel. Isn't it amazing how the devil's crowd will join up to fight God's people? Just look at the way Jesus was treated by His enemies. The Pharisees and the Herodians hated one another, but they came together in the common effort of seeing Jesus put to death. Another friendship that was formed over the death of our Lord was that which was formed between Herod Antipas and Pontius Pilate. We are still seeing these same kind of alliances formed in our day!

Wiles (v 4)  When the Gibeonites heard that the Israelites were headed in their direction, they devised a scheme to trick Israel into making a peace treaty with them. They dressed in old clothes, carried old bread and wine and pretended that they were from far away. They did everything in their power to trick Israel.

What a picture of our enemy, the devil! The scriptures tells us in Eph. 6:11 that we fight an enemy that uses "wiles" to get his way in our lives. The word "wiles" refers to "deceit, trickery, cunning arts."  Satan would like nothing better than to trip us up and cause us to fall into one of his traps.

Just before Jesus died, He told Simon Peter that Satan desired to have him that he might sift him as wheat (Luke 22:31-32). Satan wants to do the same to us. He wants us to fall. He wants us to fail, and he will stop at nothing to bring that to pass. 1 Tim. 3:7 tells us that Satan uses "snares" to catch his prey. This word refers to a trap set by a hunter in order that he might capture his prey. So, Satan uses deceptive wiles, just like the people of Gibeon did.

Wares (vv 4-5) - The Gibeonites had taken every step possible to deceive Israel into believing that they were from a far away country. They carried old sacks on their donkeys, broken and bound up wine skins, patched shoes, shabby clothing and even some moldy bread. Their entire aim was to trick Israel.

This is a good reminder to us that when the devil comes to tempt us, he does not do so in a red suit with a pointy tail and horns, carrying a pitchfork. When the devil comes into our lives to cause trouble, he can appear as an angel of light (2 Cor. 11:14). He will make his plan appear to be the perfect thing for our lives. So, beware of every impulse that comes down the line. Check out everything by holding it to the standards found in the scriptures and the words of the prophets.  Seek personal revelation regarding the truthfulness if you are doubting.  The Lord will always lead you in the right way!

Words (vv 6-13) - Notice that in these verses, these men from Gibeon lied (vv 6, 9, 11-12); they claimed to be something they were not (vv 8-9); and they were careful in what they referred to (v 10). They did not mention anything that had happened since Israel had crossed Jordan, giving the impression that they had indeed been traveling for quiet some time.

Again, this is a perfect picture of our enemy, Satan. He will use slick and enticing speech to get us to yield to his plans for our life. He has practiced this kind of trickery since the Garden of Eden when he talked to Eve (Gen. 3:1-6). He told her that she could question God's Word (v 1); He told her that God did not really mean what God had said (v 3); He told her that God was really just holding out on her (v 5). In other words, the devil will give you every reason in the world to justify the things he wants you to do.

How good is Satan at using his words?  Think about:

What did the devil tell Cain to get him to kill Abel?
What did the devil tell David to get him to sleep with Bathsheba?
What did the devil tell Judas to get him to betray the Lord Jesus?
What has the devil told you in the past; and what is he telling you now?

2 Cor. 2:11 tells us that Satan desires to gain an "advantage" over us and to do this, he will use every trick in the book to get us to follow him. Be careful!

1 Peter 5:8 tells us "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour" . Yikes! All that we have from the Lord, he wants, and to get it, he will do anything!

This has been a great wake up call!  Sometimes we forget that we need to be vigilant all the time.  We forget that we are fighting an enemy that never stops.  Life gets moving along and we are so wrapped up in it that we don't see Satan making his way into our lives.  It is good that the scriptures give us these reminders to help us stop and take stock of the things that are going on in our lives.  I know that after this study session I will try to be a little more alert and aware when it comes to the deceptions in my life!