The Accursed Thing

Good afternoon, everyone, once again!

Blaise Pascal was a 17th-century French mathematician. He was also an inventor, a writer, and a Christian philosopher. In 1642, while still a teenager, he started some pioneer calculating machines, mechanical calculating machines. You ever have one of those adding machines you pulled the handle? There was just a mechanism of levers inside that gave you the answer to the additional multiplication of division in a problem.

He built 50 prototypes. This is in the 1600s, and finally built machine machines called Pascal's calculators. He built 20 different Pascal calculators. He was still a teenager, and it established him as one of the first of two inventors of the mechanical calculator. But Pascal's most influential theological work, referred to as the panze, or in English as the thoughts, is said to be an examination and defense of the Christian faith. An interesting quote from Pascal in his panze work says this, "...in each action we must look beyond the action at our past, present, and future state." And he says, "...soom it affects, and see the relations of all those things, and then we shall be very cautious." So Pascal is saying, if we stop and think how our actions affect the lives of other people, we would be very cautious, live.

So I ask, is it okay to do whatever you want, as long as it doesn't harm anyone else? Kind of a common shame today, isn't it? I can do whatever I want, as long as it doesn't harm someone else. Or, as Pascal theorized, does everything we do have an effect on the sword? Do the sins committed by people, which might first seem private, harm society as a whole? So people will say, I can do whatever I want, in the privacy of my own bedroom, with whomever I want, and it's not affecting anybody else.

But is that true? So, Flay's Pascal says, no. If you think about everything you do and how it affects others, you would be very cautious how you live. So, I remember, as a child, my parents reading the Bible story to me and my sisters on Friday night, on the Sabbath. Of course, the Bible story was produced by the church in the 1950s and 60s, and it contained graphic illustrations of Bible characters and stories that were drawn by artist Basil Wobbleton, who we call the Bible story, many of you.

And one of these stories read to me, which was also graphically illustrated, was about the sin of one person, a private sin, that caused the death of dozens of people. His actions, done in the privacy of his own home, did affect other people. Do you remember who it was? He buried secret treasure underneath his tent. It's probably not a story you have read lately or even read very often, but it's a story that's very serious for us to consider. And I will say up front that the end of the story is actually a happy ending, a much happier ending, as we'll see towards the end of the message.

So in the sermon today titled, The Accursed Thing, we're going to examine how our own lives are seen where we stand in ensuring blessings and health for the whole body of Christ, based on how we do. The accursed thing. Does everything we do have an effect? Can our actions affect the lives of other people?

If so, we would be very cautious, as Pascal said. So we'll consider the warning given to us, and it's one that we should heed before the trumpet of God sounds Jesus' return. So what is the accursed thing? Let's turn to Joshua chapter 6. Joshua chapter 6. And here you will easily remember the story of Rahab the harlot. She lived in the city of Jericho. But it's what happened after her rescue that we want to look at today.

It's a story about the accursed. So Joshua chapter 6 verse 17. Now the city, which of course is Jericho, the city shall be doomed by the Lord to destruction, it and all who are in it. Only Rahab the harlot shall live, she and all who are with her, in the house, because she hid the messengers that were sent. In verse 18, And you by all means abstain from the accursed things, lest you become cursed when you take of the accursed things.

The New American Standard Bible says, When you take things that are banned, or things under the ban, and make the camp of Israel accursed and trouble it. Verse 19, All the silver and gold and vessels of bronze and are consecrated to the Lord, they shall come into the treasury of the Lord.

And so the Israelites marched around the city of Jericho silently for seven days, and on the seventh day they marched around seven times, and on the seventh pass the Israelites shouted, the priests blew the trumpets, and the walls of Jericho came tumbling down. Rahab and her family were the only ones saved. Archaeological evidence has been found of the destruction of Jericho, and it matches the biblical narrative very well. And now let's get to the purpose of the message today in Joshua chapter 7. Silver and gold from Jericho dedicated to God would become accursed things if used for any other purpose. And we'll see what the warning is for us today as we go along. So Joshua chapter 7, I'm going to read the first 26 verses from the new Living Translation. Kind of more like a story. I'm going to read it more like a story from the NLV. So just listen along if you want to. Mightn't match exactly the verse or version. In Joshua 7 verse 1, we read, But Israel violated the instructions about the things set apart for the law. A man named Achan stole some of these dedicated things. The New King James says, took of the accursed things. The Lord was very angry with the Israelites. Achan was the son of Karmi, and his son of Ozimri, son of Zera, Judah. So after the battle of Jericho, verse 2, Joshua sent some of his men from Jericho, to spy at the town of Ai. He's a Bethel near Beth-Avon. When they returned, they told Joshua, there's no need for all of us to go out there. It won't take more than two or three thousand men to attack Ai. And since there are so few of them, don't make all that people struggle to go out there. So only three thousand warriors were sent to bring down the city of Ai. But they were soundly defeated. The men of Ai chased Israelites from the town gate, as far as the quarries, it says, and they killed about 36 Israelites who were retreating down the slope. And the Israelites were paralyzed with fear at this turn of events, and their carriage melted away. Joshua and the elders of Israel tore their clothing and dismay, threw dust on their heads, bowed face down to the ground before the arc of the Lord until evening, and then Joshua cried out, O sovereign Lord, why did you bring us across the Jordan River if you're going to let the Amorites kill us, if only we were being content to stay on the other side? Verse 10, Joshua 7, the Lord said to Joshua, Get up! Why are you lying on your face like this? Israel has sinned and broken my covenant. They have stolen some of the things that I commanded must be set apart for me. The new King James has stolen some of the accursed things. They've not only stolen them, but have lied about it and hinged among their own belongings. That is why the Israelites are running from their enemies in defeat. For now Israel itself is set apart for destruction. Because of one person.

Verse 13, God says, Get up! Command the people to purify themselves in preparation for tomorrow. So this is why it's going to have a night to think about this. For this is what the Lord the God of Israel says, Hidden among you, O Israel, are the things set apart for the Lord. You will never defeat your enemies until you remove these things from among you. God says in verse 14, In the morning, you must present yourself by tribes, and the Lord will point out the tribe to which the guilty man belongs.

That tribe must come forward with his clans, not the guilty clan. That clan will then come forward and the Lord will point out the guilty family. Finally, each member of the guilty family must come forward one by one. And the one who has stolen was set apart for destruction. This is verse 15. The person who has taken the accursed thing, you can change, says, Will himself be burned with fire, along as, for he has broken the covenant of the Lord and has done a horrible thing in Israel.

So we see here sometimes one man's sin can adversely affect others, even an entire nation. Others who apparently had nothing to do with it. Thankfully, only 36 out of a few thousand, though tragic, repercussions could have been much worse, as God declared the nation as a whole, doomed to destruction, in verse 12. He says, Until sin was removed from their midst. So verse 16, still quoting from the New Living Translation, Make your confession and tell me what you have done.

Don't hide it from me. And I say it in verse 20, It is true. I have sinned against the Lord, the God of Israel. Among the plunder I saw a beautiful robe from Babylon, two hundred silver coins and a bar of gold weighing more than a pound. For one of them so much that I took them. They are hidden in the ground beneath my tent, with the silver buried deeper than the rest. And I can still see the picture from the Bible's frame by Basil Wollerton, of this guy furtively burying stuff in the dirt under his tent, looking to make sure no one's coming.

So verse 22, So Joshua sent some men to make a search. They ran to the tent and found the stolen goods hidden there, just as they can say, with the silver buried beneath the rest. It took the things from the tent and brought them to Joshua and all the Israelites, and they laid them down on the ground in the board. Verse 24, Joshua and all the Israelites tore Achan, the silver, the robe, the bar of gold, his sons, daughters, cattle, donkeys, sheep, goats, tent and everything he had, and they brought them to the valley of Akor.

And Joshua said to Achan, Why have you brought trouble on us? The Lord will now bring trouble on you. And all the Israelites stoned Achan and his family and the pals agreed he put stones over Achan which remained to this day. That is why the place has been called Valley of Trouble. Valley of Trouble ever since, so the Lord was now no longer angry. In 1 Chronicles 2 verse 7, Achan is referred to as Acha, the Troubler of Israel, the Troubler of Israel who violated the ban.

The NIV puts it this way in 1 Chronicles 2.7, Acha traveled in Israel by violating the ban on taking devoted things. So this Valley of Trouble is the Valley of Akor, which is actually a play on the name Achan, actually. So the accursed thing for the purpose of our message today is anything that is God's that we take for ourselves, or anything that got us to have or do. In other words, sin or sinful behavior or breaking God's commandments.

So here's the point and major lesson of the account for you and me. Achan's sin defiled the members of the community as well as himself. It had far-reaching effects throughout the nation of Israel. A similar situation is seen with the sin of Adam and Eve. Think of the effect on the whole of humanity from one couple's sin.

Adam and Eve's rebellion destroyed the perfect relationship the human race would have enjoyed with God. Just think, one lady, Eve, who took off the fruit of the novel, which we could call the banned tree or the accursed tree, affected the lives of all of humanity, both male and female, in every country, on every continent, of every race, of every generation, of every century for the past six thousand years or more. From just that one couple. We fool ourselves if we think that our sin only affects us.

This obedience brings ruin even upon the innocent. So, sin's effects go beyond the initial sinner is what we see from the effect of what Achan did. What are some examples of hidden sins that we may be harboring that affect the whole church? What could affect the well-being of our families and our congregation? I mean, how about hidden jealousy? Do any of us have any hidden jealousies? Covertousness. Do we want what other people have? Hate. You know, some people in the church, you just don't really like, or maybe even detest. Idolatry. Do you have that are at a higher position than God? Immorality. Are you harboring some kind of illicit relationship or illicit affection? Drunkenness. How much do we drink? Do we drink too much sometimes? Do we get inebriated? Addictions. What do we have in our lives that we just not totally control? Gossip. Do we spread rumors? Pass along information that's not ours to give? You know, I mean, I don't know, right? I'm just coming up with stuff. But I don't know what's in another person's heart. You don't know what's in another person's heart because we always judge by outward appearance and by the fruit of what we see. I know what's in my heart. I know where I fall short of perfect obedience to God's commandments. But of course, I don't know what's in your heart. It's between you and God in your personal and private life. Only you could know that. Only you could know if an Aitken-style event is shortchanging your relationship with God. So, we have to ask ourselves, is there anything in my life, anything in the way I'm living my life that is affecting not only me, but the congregation, the health of the church, the health of the body of Christ as a whole. We told in 1 Corinthians chapter 11 and 2 Corinthians 13 to examine ourselves. Examine ourselves as to whether we're in the faith. Of course, it's a good thing to do on a regular basis, not just before passing. But let's talk about the story of Aitken a bit more and see what else we should take note of. In Joshua 7 verse 13, God actually gave Aitken a night to consider his sin and to come to repentance. Remember, God asked the nation to purify itself before the sinner was to be revealed the next day. Aitken did not do that. He did not obey God's mercy, but waited until the next day when he was found out. But what about us? When we have a sinner or a hidden fault, do we delay in asking God for forgiveness? Is this a warning and a caution for us too? Some people ask, why did God destroy Aitken's whole family as well? Isn't that a little... Proverbs 15 verse 27 tells us that a greedy man brings trouble to his family. A greedy man brings trouble to his family. So what a greedy man does does affect others in his family. Perhaps Aitken's children had already begun to exhibit their father's traits of covetousness, disobedience, and disrespect for God's commands. It's possibly helped Aitken hide the treasure and may have even been accomplices in the crime. Because in the culture of that day, living in tents in the desert, it would be very hard to bury stolen treasure, Babylonian clothing, and the dirt under your tent without your family knowing. Very true in those days. The lesson for us is don't allow sin to go on under your nose without distancing yourself from that sin or making sure that it ceases. Many Christians today believe the Old Testament punishment upon Aitken's family was excessive, that it was rather drastic. And they'll say that Jesus was so merciful when he worked. Well, why was that Old Testament God so mean? We think of the mercy demonstrated by Jesus as a woman at the well who had five husbands, or the woman caught in adultery who has a Jewish woman could have been stoned according to the law. Why didn't Aitken receive similar mercy? After all, wasn't the rock that Israel followed Jesus?

The one who became Christ? Well, no, it's actually not just an Old Testament punishment. You think of the passage about the death of Ananias and Sapphira in Acts chapter 5. Think about the judgments of Christ during the Great Tribulation, where the blood of men is pictured as flowing up to the horses in God's wrath. Sin will not be tolerated forever, and Scripture provides personal warnings to each of us. So the story of Aitken and other biblical narratives give us sufficient information to understand that God is holy, and He's not to be disobeyed without risking the consequences. And so what about me? What about you? What's buried in our spiritual closet? What's buried under the dirt in my tent? What's buried under the dirt in your tent, shall we say? What are you hiding from God? That's something secret. What's going on in your life that will have a negative effect on those around you? What are you not repenting of and given the chance? But let's break the subject down and bring it a bit closer to home for a minute. Think about the Council of Elders in the Church. Now, I'm not saying there's anything wrong on the Council of Elders, right? But imagine, though, if one of the counselors had an issue between him and God, would it affect the operation of the of the counselor as a whole? Of course it would, if one of the twelve had something going on that they... Or what if someone in the Home Office Administration had this respect for one of God's commandments? Could it affect the whole staff, even if others didn't know about it? Of course it would. It would affect the staff. Or what if someone here in the congregation had a secret sin that he or she was not working on through it from his or her life? Would it affect the health of the whole body meeting here today? It would. It's... What if a husband or wife has a troublesome weakness that they're not overcoming? Could it affect the whole family? It certainly affected Aiken's family. And you think, what if an apartment of young adults or rental home of college students had one of the roommates engaging in bad or sinful behavior? Could it affect the whole apartment? You know, it would, right? A husband's not right with God. So, you know, just think about it. I don't know of anyone else's situation but my own. But you do. You know about the struggles between you and God and His law each day. But are you affecting others in the way you live, whether privately or publicly? So don't be an Aiken. Don't be an Adam. Don't be an Eve. Don't be a Saurus the Fire, right? Where God has to bring down judgment eventually on you. And the story of Aiken reminds us that we should immediately confess our sins and not wait until we're caught. Aiken's confession came only after he was confronted by Joshua in that verse number 20. He did not come forward when Israel failed in its first take the city of Ai. He was still hiding his sin even when the lengthy investigation was underway. He saw other tribes being called up and eliminated. Other families being called up and eliminated. And he still didn't say anything. Aiken forced Joshua and forced God the whole elimination process until he was singled out. Did he not think that eventually his sin would be exposed?

And do we not think that eventually our sins will be exposed if not repented of? And we have to ask, just how close is Jesus Christ's return for each of us in our life? Why would we delay in going before God to admit what we've done? I'm reminded of a warning given to us in Revelation chapter 16. Let's turn over to Revelation 16 for a moment. The upcoming Festival of Trump that's on Monday pictures the time of Jesus returned as King of kings and Lord of lords. But it will come unexpected for those who are not close to God. Revelation 16 verse 15, Behold, I am coming as a thief. Lest is he who watches, keeps his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame. So we must keep our garments, our lives spotless and clean. We must remove any blamish to remain to our life. We must have a repentant heart as we live each day. Look at Zephaniah chapter 1 for a moment. Zephaniah chapter 1. Because here we're reminded of the sudden destruction that comes upon the world at the time of the end, when a trumpet then sounds the alarm. That alarm must not catch us by surprise. We cannot have anything under the floor of our tent when that trumpet sounds. Zephaniah 1 verse 14, Great day of the Lord is near. It is near and hastens quickly. The noise of the day of the Lord is bitter. There the mighty man shall cry out. Verse 16, A day of trumpet and alarm against the fortified cities and against the high towers. So we must be ever watchful and vigilant so that the day of trumpets not come upon us as a support for even the mighty man cry out. The point I'm highlighting here today is don't wait to become right with God. Don't wait to repent of whatever it is that's separating you from relationship with our Father in heaven. Don't wait to confess your wrongs to God like Achan did. We must leave it a repentant spirit each day. The first Thessalonians chapter 5 for a moment. Read the first six verses. First Thessalonians 5 verse 1. Paul tells the Thessalonians, But concerning at times and the seasons, brethren, you have no need that I should write to you. For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night. Because Christ see that when he was talking to his disciples. Verse 3, at first Thessalonians chapter 5. For when they say peace and safety, then some destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman, and they shall not escape. But verse 4, But you, brethren, are not in darkness. So that this day should overtake you as a thief. You are all sons of light and sun. We are not of the night, nor of darkness. Therefore, let us not sleep as others do, but let us watch and be sober. Yes, we must watch and be ready for when the trumpet sounds, and with an always-repentant heart. We ought to be living in the light of God, not living in darkness. As God was concerned, Achan's confession came too late, past the dead or made.

If he confessed, he sinned some time before. God might just have been merciful to him. Look at Proverbs 28, verse 13, because here we see an indication that if you confess before your family, it just might go well for you.

We should confess our sins immediately and not wait until we're caught. To be sorry we were caught is not true repentance. In Proverbs 28, verse 13, He who covers his sins will not prosper. And Achan and his family certainly did not prosper. But whoever confesses and forsakes them, who is mercy.

And it seems to me that if the night before, all the trades came before Joshua and God to be singled out, if the night before Achan had said, it's me, you don't have to go to all that trouble, you don't have to spend the whole day figuring out who did it, maybe God would have been more merciful to him. Some biblical critics ask, why must the inhabitants of the land of Canaan be eliminated like this anyway? Like the city of Ai, they're supposed to destroy everyone from that city. Why must the inhabitants of the land be eliminated when Israel enters into the Promised Land? Little Leviticus 18 for a moment. This is a common question of people say that the God that Israel followed was very harsh. But there were reasons why other cities and other tribes and other nations had to be eliminated from the Promised Land when the Israelites took over. And it's because many of those other tribes and nations lived very depraved lives. Leviticus 18 gives a long list of the depravities that engulf the people of the region. Much of it is sexual deviancy and incest. And the Israelites were not to let this continue when they entered the Promised Land.

Lest, of course, so they may start doing similar things. Let's read the last half of the list towards the end of Leviticus 18. Just imagine where I would say that this kind of living was just allowed to go on unabated. Leviticus 18 verse 3, it says, According to the doings of the land of Egypt, where you dwelt, you shall not do. And according to the doings of the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you, you shall not do, nor shall you walk in their ordinances. In verse 20 of Leviticus 18, Moreover, and here comes a list, you shall not lie calmly with her, to defy yourself with her. You shall not let any of your descendants pass through the fires of Molech. That's child sacrifice, because there's a lot of child sacrifice going on today, don't we? Nor shall you profane your name with your God, I am the Lord. You shall not lie with a male, as with a woman, there's an abomination. You shall not mate with an animal, or defy yourself with it. Nor shall any woman stand before an animal, to mate with it. It is perversion. Do not defy yourselves with any of these things. For these nations are defiled. God says, they're all doing it, which I am casting out now before you. For the land is defiled, therefore I visit the punishment of its iniquity upon it, and the land vomits out its inhabitants. So the way these nations were living was totally depraved. That's one of the reasons that Israelites were told to destroy everybody in the back. Israel was to remove these inhabitants in their evil practices. Many of them got told to rout out and destroy. And quite honestly, we may not all be here today, if it wasn't for a core group of nations in our world that have basic laws that are based on Judeo-Christian trade in general, that have slowed down the tide of evil. Because of God's laws being basically applied in a Judeo-Christian way. But now we're seeing that all slide, aren't we? Now we're seeing our nations slide into a lot of these things that we see listed in Leviticus 18. Let's move to the New Testament for a moment and read 1 Corinthians chapter 10.

It answers the question of why we are talking about Achan today. It tells us why we study the story of Adam and Eve, and the truth, the knowledge of good and evil. It tells us why we study the story of David and his repentance in Psalm chapter 51. It tells us why we must follow God and His commandments. 1 Corinthians 10 verse 1. I'm going to read the 12 verses. 1 Corinthians 10 verse 1, Moreover brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that all that fathers were under the cloud or passed through the sea, or baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, or ate the spiritual food, or drank the same spiritual drink, for they drank of that spiritual rock that followed them, and that rock was Christ. But with most of them, God was not well pleased, for their bodies were scattered in the wilderness. And these things became our examples to the extent that we should not lust after evil things as they also lusted. You know, we don't do the same thing. Do not become idolaters, as some of them, as it is written, people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play. I think that's the story of the golden calf there, I think, that I'm there in verse 7. Verse 8, Nor let us commit sexual immorality, as some of them did. And in one day, 23,000 Israelites fell. Nor let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted and were destroyed by serpents. Nor complain, as some of them also complained and were destroyed by the destroyer. In verse 11, These things happen to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, the ends of the ages have come. Therefore, let him who thinks he stands say, Key, lest he fall. So, in the story that was written for our example, the story of Achan, was to see that God held the whole camp of Israel accountable. accountable for the act of one man. And God viewed it as a sin for the whole... As a warning for the church, it shows us that we cannot progress and move ahead if we have known sins in our lives. Because God views the church as a unit, too. It's the body of Christ as a unit. Achan's behavior illustrates how one person, one family, or a few members of the congregation, when pursuing their own selfish desires and agendas, impacted an entire group. Achan's name, the Hebrew Akan, A-K-A-N, is a play on the word akor, A-K-O-R, and akor means trouble. So, akan and akor are related words, and it means trouble. Remember, the Valley of Trouble is what it was called after Achan and his family were stoned and burned. Achan's death and grave was called the Valley of Akor, which means disturbance and trouble.

Even though the crime was committed by one person, the whole nation was considered guilty. The nation was responsible for the obedience of every citizen and was charged with the punishment of every offender. So, Achan, if allowed to continue, could infect that greater portion of the people, kind of like as leaven leavens the whole lump, you know? But who was ancient Israel, and what was their purpose? They were a people called of God, to set a different example, to be a witness to the world of his way. And it was through Israel that God would grant a Savior. The nation had a very important role to play.

And Israel had a very high calling. They're expected to live differently than the other nations. We, too, have a very serious high calling as God's church. Interestingly, the story of Achan goes far beyond this historical account, or some ancient tale of Israelites evolved. It has prophetic significance. I want you to turn with me to Isaiah chapter 65.

Isaiah chapter 65, because Achan is mentioned in prophecy. It has prophetic significance that you may not be aware of. The valley of Akor, this valley of trouble, is used to describe the Messianic age and a time of restoration that will result for these sentence of Israel after they pass through trouble in the end time. So, Isaiah 65 verses 9, this is a millennial prophecy. For reed, I will bring forth descendants from Jacob. That's Israel, right? Descendants from Israel. And from Judah I'll bring an heir of my mountains. My elect shall inherit it, and my servants shall dwell there.

The city or town of Sharon shall be a fold of flocks. And the valley of Akor, a place for herds to lie down, for my people who have sought me. So, what I'm reading here is, after a time of great tribulation, the herds of cattle will lie down peacefully in what used to be called a valley of trouble, the valley of Akor.

But great tribulation will come first upon the modern descendants of the tribes of Israel, because our people are in complete and total rebellion against God. That many in our nation, not rooted out, will cause suffering to come upon us all. And then, after great tribulation, the story of Akon, the valley of Akor, will bring a ray of hope to Israel, a place for herds and flocks to figuratively lie down in peace. Let's turn to Hosea, if you would, final passage in Hosea chapter 2, verses 14-16, and then 19-20. Hosea chapter 2, verse 14, chapter 2, verse 14, Therefore, behold, I will allure her, will bring her into the wilderness and speak comfort to her.

The her here is reunited Judah and Israel. Remember, the Israelites split into a northern ten tribes, and then the southern tribe of Judah are mostly Benjamin. Chapter 1, verse 11, says this is going to be a reunited Judah and Israel. This is an end-time prophecy. This hasn't happened yet. The northern ten tribes in Judah have not yet reunited. I will allure her, bring her into the wilderness, and speak to her. I will give her her vineyards from there.

And the valley of Akor has a door of hope. So this valley of trouble, when Christ returns, will no longer be a valley of trouble, but a valley of hope. "'You shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, as in the day when she came up from the land of Egypt.' The Israelites will be singing in the valley of trouble, not in pain any longer." Verse 16, "...and shall be in that day," when it says in that day, it means in the end time.

"'And that day,' says the Lord, that you will call me my husband." Remember, God divorced ancient Israel for their sins. In the future, the Lord says, "'You'll call me again, my husband, and me master.'" Verse 19, "'I will betroth you to me forever.' Yes, I will betroth you to me in righteousness and justice, in loving kindness and mercy." Verse 20, "'I will betroth you to me in faithfulness, and you shall know the Lord.'" So this is about the bride of Christ, a reunited Israel and of Christ, and the valley of a core will be called the Door of Hope.

So this whole story, from the early days of the battle of Israel against Ai, to the punishment of Achan and the family for their disobedience, to the end time great tribulation, to the restoration of the valley of a core when the Israelis once again restored as the bride of Christ. We learn many lessons from this one chapter in the book of Joshua. It's the story of disobedience at first. Sin being found out, then punishment, death, but then final restoration. It's actually a happy ending, the story of Achan.

That valley of trouble where he was buried with his family burned has a happy ending eventually. It talks about a reunited Israel, the bride of Christ, and of course, as we know, the millennial rule of Jesus Christ. So let's summarize the lesson. Is there anything figuratively buried in the dirt under your tent or under my tent? What's under the spiritual floorboards in your home? Are you hiding anything from God? Because sudden destruction comes upon the world at the end, when a trumpet sounds and Jesus returns, and that alarm must not catch us by surprise. We, we are told, Paul says, Brethren, you are not in darkness, that they should overtake you as a thief.

Now we're in the light, but we are following God. We all want the spiritual health of the United Church of God to be at its best. We all want God to bless us in the work He has said before us, to preach the gospel of His kingdom and care for the flock that He's given to us. And we all want a most healthy Church of God community as a whole, no matter where Jesus flock. And each of us must do our part to ensure the health of the whole body of Christ. Each of us must not have anything hidden from God in our tent, lest any accursed thing, shall we say, affect the whole body of Christ in some way.

So may God bless this Church. May we all pray Thy kingdom come. May we all pray for the time when the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God.