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Sunday 26 May 2002 - "You affect everyone - part 2"

(Summary of sermon by Erlo Stegen)

Josh 7:13; Hebr 12:15 & 16

13 Up, sanctify the people, and say, Sanctify yourselves against to morrow: for thus saith the LORD God of Israel, There is an accursed thing in the midst of thee, O Israel: thou canst not stand before thine enemies, until ye take away the accursed thing from among you.

Today is a continuation of last Sunday's sermon about the affect that one person can have on a whole community. We've heard how that the sin of a single man brought God's curse on the whole nation. After Israel lost against Ai, Joshua and the elders of Israel spent the whole day on their faces before the ark of God, covered with ashes. As the sun set, God spoke to Joshua to get up and sanctify the people, because of the sin that was in their midst.

To sanctify means to be cleansed, washed and undergo purification. In Hebr 12:15 & 16 we read:

15 Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled;

16 Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright.

We too need to watch carefully that none fall short of the grace of God, lest there be a root of bitterness that defile many. This root of bitterness is something poisonous that's spread around by an evil person. It could be:

• own sin
• false teachings
• bad influence

that spread from such an evil person and defile the whole church.

The name Achan means "trouble". This name was given to him by his parents. Parents are known by looking at their children, whether they are living in the fear of God or not. How could Achan's parents give him such a name? It is as if they themselves were not close to God. They were not serious about their faith. Achan disobeyed God's clear instructions. Parents must teach their children to obey, for if they do not obey you, neither will they obey God. You must only speak once to them, and they should obey.

A young man one day came to me and told me that he had AIDS. When he was asked whether he did not hear or listen to the services each Sunday, where I warned him about AIDS, his reply was that his attention was always captured by the girls, as soon as he left the meetings. Today he is in the grave. God's Word should capture our attention and be always before us.

Esau sold his birthright for a plate of food. Judas sold Jesus for 30 pieces of silver, which was the going rate for a slave at that time. God would have been known as the God of Abraham, Isaac & Esau, but Esau despised it for one morsel of food, and today it is recorded in the Bible that God hated Esau.

Each child of God has such a first-born birthright or inheritance. God knew you, called you, and sent you for a very specific mission. God's mission for your life is unique. No one else can tread the path God has called you to tread. All your talents, gifts, suffering, trials, etc. are unique.

One marvels how some receive a calling from God, and after 10 - 15 years forsake it. Are they the offspring of Esau? A small incidence might occur, and they forsake everything God has called them to, just as Esau forsook his birthright for one morsel. He was only concerned about his immediate appetite. Afterwards he sought the blessing, but was rejected for ever, for he found no place for repentance. He still only cried for himself, and wanted to kill his brother. This culture of immediate gratification destroys many young people. They do not want to wait God's time, but desire immediate gratification.

Achan's sin started with disobedience to God. God clearly instructed them to be holy and set apart for Him alone. His Word should be inscribed in their hearts, but he was only concerned about the temporal things.

A girl might receive a love-letter from a boy, and then is prepared to sell her body and purity, and likewise some boys. They might even have a rich inheritance of godly parents, but they despise all that, and run after their own lusts.

The fornication we read of in Hebrews is not just sexual fornication, but friendship with the world. God's Word says that friendship with the world is enmity with God.

We see that Esau's rejection was permanent. Even when you find forgiveness for your sin, there are still many scars that remain permanently, e.g. a baby out of wedlock that could grow up to be a gangster. If you get AIDS, you will still die, even though you get forgiveness from your sin.

Prevention is better than cure, and obedience than sacrifice.

Some, after they have sinned, allow themselves to be deceived that they cannot be forgiven, but Jesus says in Mt 7:7 & 8:

7 ¶ Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:

8 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

Achan's sins were:

• He did not listen to God
• He stole from God
• He hid his sin until God revealed it.

Have you made complete restitution to those from whom you stole? How will you see God, while you remain a thief? Make haste to make restitution. Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. Do you put all manner of filth into it from the internet?

Achan and his family knew that God has called for an assembly the following day to remove the sin, and yet they hid the sin until God pointed it out. Only then did they acknowledge their sin, and God commanded them to be stoned to death. Today the Bible commands us to shun people who hide their sin and do not part from it.

Do you also pretend that all is well until God reveals your sin? Examine yourself if there is not an accursed thing in your life. Maybe you've spoken to some friends privately. Remember that we will be called to account before God for every idle word we've spoken. If we will not be able to stand before our enemies because of these things, how will we stand before God, whose eyes are like flames of fire, seeing everything? If you are not prepared to part from sin, you will be like a grain of wheat, where the kernel does not want to part from the husk, and so the whole grain of wheat ends up in the fire.

Earth and heaven will see how you who remain to sit on sin enter heaven. How will you enter without being purified and cleansed? How can you receive a blessing, while you sit on a curse?