Joshua 6:18 (NIV) But keep away from the devoted
things, so that you will not bring about your own destruction by taking any of
them. Otherwise you will make the camp of Israel liable to destruction and
bring trouble on it.
I have been reading in the Book of
Joshua in recent days. There is a portion of this book that is devoted to the
victory over Jericho. It was a mighty demonstration of God fighting for the
Israelites and keeping His promises to give them triumph over the peoples of
Canaan. This victory gave them confidence, assurance of God’s presence, and was
a reminder of His guidance and aid. You could say they were “on a high” after
it. But have you ever felt a letdown after a high? That happened to me after
Easter. Easter Sunday is a day I usually “ramp up” to with services during the
week and a lot of preparation and anticipation. The day itself was full of
celebration in worship and with friends as we remembered that Jesus is risen.
Then Monday came and I experienced an emotional letdown. This is not uncommon.
Some of it is a physical response and some is an emotional one. You may have
this experience in your life in certain ways. Sometimes there are “highs” that
are followed by “lows”. It’s part of the rhythm of many a life. I am always
thankful that my “lows” have never gotten too low or lasted very long. I know
for some it can be much harder.
The Israelites experienced a “low”
shortly after the great victory God gave over Jericho. And it was over a very
small matter. The next city to conquer was tiny compared to Jericho. So
Israel’s leaders, in a bit of over-confidence, send out a small contingent of
soldiers. The numbers really don’t matter when it comes to the Lord - if He is
fighting your battles for you. But the Lord wasn’t fighting this battle for
them, and the men of the small city – Ai – routed the soldiers of Israel. It
wasn’t even the over-confidence that was the problem. But it was something
small in men’s eyes. In men’s eyes the “little things” are often of no
consequence. But in God’s eyes, the little things always matter. In this
situation a man named Achan had decided to help himself to some of the spoils
of the victory over Jericho – a nice robe, some coins, and a small piece of
gold. These weren’t very significant in the larger scheme of things. “Certainly
they would not be missed,” Achan must have thought. He had hidden them in his
tent. And then Israel lost the battle against Ai. God held the entire nation
responsible for one man’s sin. The actions of one man kept God’s blessing from
His people. In a way that is a scary thought, because each of us is “just” one
person. Are the “little things” in our lives ever in the way of God’s blessing
of ourselves and others, like a small stone stuck in a hose blocking the flow
of water? I know I would not want that to be the case because of me. In this
way, this story is an encouragement to me to pursue holiness. Ultimately, I
abide in the righteousness of Christ, so I am thankful that His blood covers my
sin and keeps me from being a stumbling block. Yet my choices and decisions do matter. God calls me to holiness. And
holiness becomes real and deep in the little things.
Achan was discovered and ended up
being judged by the Lord because of the “little things”. Temptations to small
bits of dishonesty… to small acts of thievery… to brief views of things that
don’t please the Lord… to tiny morsels of selfishness – these are among the
many “little things” we face in our lives. We discount their importance because
they are little. We fool ourselves into thinking they do not matter. It is
always good to remember that there are no little things with God. We know that
based on the Bible’s descriptions of God’s blessing on and valuing of so-called
“insignificant” people and His judgment of people for what we view as minor
matters. But in God’s eyes there are no minor matters or minor people. The
by-word of the Christian ministry called Ligonier Ministries is a reminder that
we live coram deo – “before the face
of God”. We live moment by moment in the presence of, and in the full knowledge
of God. We forget this often, and it is often to our detriment and grief.
Another of R.C. Sproul’s mottos is “Right now counts forever”. If these things
are so, then there are no small matters, no little things. May be glorified in
the little things of our lives.
1 Samuel 16:7 (NIV) But the LORD
said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have
rejected him. The LORD does not
look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart."
1 Corinthians
1:26-29 (NIV) 26 Brothers, think of what you were
when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many
were influential; not many were of noble birth. 27 But
God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak
things of the world to shame the strong. 28 He chose
the lowly things of this world and the despised things--and the things that are
not--to nullify the things that are, 29 so that no one
may boast before him.
Proverbs 15:3 (NIV) The eyes of the LORD are everywhere, keeping watch on the wicked and the
good.
Matthew 17:19-20 (NIV) 19 Then the disciples came to Jesus in private
and asked, "Why couldn't we drive it out?" 20 He
replied, "Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you
have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from
here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.
PRAYER: Father, give me a heart and mind to pay
attention to the small stuff in life, that it may all come under the Lordship
and reign of Jesus, your Son. Remind me that there are no little people, and
that nothing in life that is from you or for you is little. Thank you. In Jesus’
name, AMEN.”
Jesus
Christ is Lord!
Scott
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