Mon.’s Devo - Accountability

Read: Joshua 7:16-9:2; Luke 16:1-18; Psalm 82:1-8; Proverbs 13:2-3 Yesterday we read where the Israelites were defeated by the small city of Ai. God revealed that there was sin in their camp and someone had stolen of the spoils of Jericho that they were told to totally destroy. Today, we read where God exposes who was guilty. God pinpointed it to Achan. He had coveted and stolen a beautiful cloak from Shinar, 200 shekels of silver and a bar of gold. His selfish desires had cost the lives of 36 men and the humiliation of their nation. His sentence was to be stoned with stones and burned with fire till he died at the hands of his own people. *** Once this was taken care of, it was time to go take Ai. Joshua had chosen 3,000 men the last time. This time he chose 30,000. Joshua took most of the men to attack from the north. Then he took about 5,000 to wait in ambush from the west. The king Ai brought his army to fight Joshua’s army in the north. When they were drawn away from the city, God told Joshua to stretch out his javelin toward the city and the 5,000 attacked the unguarded city. They quickly took it and set it on fire. When their army looked back and saw their city on fire they lost hope and scattered. Israel captured them and none escaped. Twelve thousand were killed and took their king captive. *** God had told them they could take the spoil from Ai so they plundered the city and took the goods and the livestock. They hung the king on a tree and when he had died, they buried him under a heap of stones in the gate of the city. *** Joshua built an altar to the Lord on Mt. Ebal and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings on it to the Lord. He had the law of Moses written on the stones. The ark was brought into the valley with half of the people standing on Mt. Gerazim and half of them standing on Mt. Ebal. Joshua read all the commandments of the law to the people just as Moses had done in that very place. *** After this, all the kings left in the land - the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and the Jebusites, teamed together to fight against Joshua and Israel. *** In Luke, Jesus told a story gives a story much like we just read in Joshua. This man was a rich man’s accountant. He found that his accountant had been embezzling his money. When the accountant realized he had been found out, he wanted to make some friends real quickly so they would give him a place to stay in his unemployment. He went to one of them men who owed his boss 100 measures of oil. He told him to tear up his debt and make it only 50 measures of oil. Then he went to another debtor of his master and had his debt reduced also. *** When the master found out what he had done, he commended him for his shrewdness. This evil man was planning for his future so he would have someone to take him in when he lost his job. He told the righteous that they could take a lesson from this and use their life on earth to prepare for their eternal life. How faithful we are in the way we live on earth will determine how we will live in the live hereafter. *** When the Pharisees heard this story they made fun of Jesus. He told them they were the ones who justified their sins before man, but God knew their hearts and he wasn’t falling for their lies. *** Jesus then threw in the law about adultery and divorcement. He was referring to spiritual adultery and divorcement. They were the ones who had divorced the law and were breaking it in secret. *** Lord, reveal to us our faults so that we bring ourselves to accountability and repent. May we live our lives with eternity in mind.