Lost: is Sin that Bad
(8 downloads)Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Joshua 7:11-26
Crime and punishment: Some sentences fit the crime. Others… well… you decide for yourself. In Palestine an offender and his family were stoned to death for stealing a coat, and a few thousand dollars worth of Gold and Silver. It seems like quite a high price to pay for such a petty theft. What’s so bad about sin anyway? If no one got hurt… what’s the big deal about sin? That’s the question we’re going to answer today. And the answer is this… Sin is a lot worse than we think it is.
Private consequences - God sees all & we know it / 11-15
Sin isn’t all about other people. It’s about God
“Against you, and you only have I sinned.” Psalm 51:4
Sin is also about us… because sin is a matter of the heart
“The heart is deceitful… I the Lord search the heart” Jer 17:9-10
The problem is explained in verse 11 – They have…
1. sinned - missing of the mark
2. transgressed - deliberate departure from the path
3. taken Dedicated things - stealing from God!
4. stolen - removed by stealth
5. deceived - pretended to obey
6. hid it - he covered it up
The profile of a sinner in verse 21
His name was Achan, and it’s meaning is “trouble”
I Saw – “spoils” He redefined what he saw!
I Coveted - his passions controlled him
I Took - a taker fails to trust God to meet his needs
I hid – the irony / they do not enjoy the pleasures they steal
Public consequences – Every one will hear of it / 16-23
Why the long ceremony? 16-23
#1 to make an impression about the seriousness of sin.
#2 to leave time for repentance
The Confession
confession comes only when he’s caught
The seven marks of godly sorrow and repentance from 2 Cor 7:11
1) Quick to right the wrong.
2) Eager to clear the air with an apology.
3) Angry at your own sin.
4) Humbled with the Fear of God.
5) Wanting what is right
6) Zealous to correct what's wrong.
7) Ready to make restitution or payment.
Personal consequences – We will pay for it / 24-25
Achan got to keep a few bucks in exchange for his life
The law prohibited the family from being punished Deut 24:16
Achan’s family most certainly assisted him in the crime
Future consequences – It will not be forgotten / 26
The wages of sin is death – Romans 6:23
We have all sinned and transgressed the law of God. We can all look forward to a pile of stones with our name carved on it. Yet, no defeat is permanent and no mistake is beyond remedy. Even the “Valley of Trouble” can become a “door of hope!” The cross was the instrument of execution and death in the past and now is the symbol hope and joy, You may deserve the rocks, but Christ wants to make your life pure gold.