Defeating the Enemy

Day one hundred eighty-four

I am looking forward to the opportunity to take the sacrament today and to focus my thoughts on the Lord.  How my Sunday goes is usually a good indicator of the kind of week I will have, so I try to keep the Sabbath holy and spend some time learning about spiritual things and filling my reservoir for the upcoming week.  So my prayer is filled with gratitude for the brilliant plan of the Sabbath.  I am so thankful that I have the chance every week to get myself centered in Christ so that my week can be filled with the experiences I need to grow closer to Him.  What a great way to start my week!

Joshua 9:22-27
I think I am coming to an end of what I've learned from this chapter in the Book of Joshua.  Just when I thought that there was no more to learn, something else would jump out at me and I would start researching and the next thing I know I am writing my third blog post on the same chapter.  It is like that sometimes.  This has been a chapter filled with spiritual lessons that just seem to good to not share.  

Today I want to focus on verses 22-27 and discuss ways that we can defeat the enemy.

Confrontation
Most people avoid confrontation in their lives, but there are times when we must stand up for what is right and call those that have sinned against us out.  Joshua gives us a good example of how to confront our enemy. 

Verse 22 -  When Joshua found out what the Gibeonites had done, he went straight to them and rebuked and confronted them about their sins.

This took me back to the story of when Satan tried to tempt Jesus Christ.  When Jesus was tempted He didn't ignore Satan, instead He confronted Him.  He used the scriptures to fight Satan, and with the truth brought out, Satan had to flee.  We do not have to roll over and take what Satan throws at us.  We can follow the example of Christ and use the scriptures to state the truth, we can call on Christ to be with us, and we can cause Satan to flee from our lives!

Control
Verse 27 - There is no question that Joshua and Israel made a mistake when they dealt with the Gibeonites.  However, mistakes do not have to spell permanent ruin.  Joshua realized the seriousness of what they had done and he immediately took the necessary steps to control the situation.  They can't kill them, because they have given them their word (v 19), but they can control them.

In our lives there are times when we make mistakes, it happens to everyone!  However, the mistakes we make do not have to be permanent or totally destroy us.  The Lord has promised us forgiveness and restoration if we will return to Him through repentance, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:9).  We must face the fact that our sins carry consequences that must play out completely (Gal 6:7-9), yet we can get right with the Lord.

We need to learn from our sins and our failures so that we do not fall into the same traps again.  Either we will control our sins, or they will control us!  Which it is depends on you and what you want from life.  There is forgiveness where there is repentance.

Commissioned
Verse 27 - Notice what Israel did with the Gibeonites; they took them and they put them to work carrying water and copping wood for the Tabernacle of the Lord.  Joshua took his mistake and used it to further the work of the Lord!  Wouldn't it be great if we could all see a way to do this in our lives!  Joshua's plan seems to have benefited both sides.  The scriptures indicate that these people eventually were absorbed into the nation of Israel (2 Sam 21:2-6).  Joshua took his error and used it to benefit God.

What a great example for us!  Our sins do not have to knock us out of the Lord's work, when we fail we need to accept the chastisement, the correction, and follow with repentance and allow the Lord to forgive and restore us.  What Satan meant to be your defeat can be turned into a source of great victory.  We can't undo the things we have done, but we can repent and the Lord can use them to help us grow.  What first looked like a curse to the people, eventually turned into a blessing, the same can be true for us. 

To not sin at all would be the ideal scenario, but it happens, and we need to decide how we want to deal with it.  Will we let it conquer us or will we turn to the Lord and learn from it?  The choice is ours.  Who will you allow to be your master?