“14. And the men took of their victuals, and asked not counsel at the mouth of the LORD. 15. And Joshua made peace with them, and made a league with them, to let them live: and the princes of the congregation sware unto them.”
What a bad decision for Israel. God has given them great victory over Jericho and AI. The inhabitants of Gibeon are now in fear of what Israel will do to them. Gibeon knows that God is giving them all their land. Joshua 9:24 “And they answered Joshua, and said, Because it was certainly told thy servants, how that the LORD thy God commanded his servant Moses to give you all the land, and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land from before you, therefore we were sore afraid of our lives because of you, and have done this thing.” The Gibeonites disguised themselves as people from a far land and convinced Joshua and the princes of Israel to make them servants. God wanted the promise land to be for Israel, not mixed and intermingled with people of wicked nations that were involved in idolatry.
Sometimes as believers we think decisions ahead are good decisions, but just like Joshua, we fail to seek the Lord on the matter. God always has an answer for us, but we must read the Word of God to make decisions in our life whether big or small. As we approach the new year why not start Bible reading part of your daily life. If you have intention to start better habits on the 1st you probably wont continue if you dont make an effort today. What decisions lye ahead? What big decisions or small decisions do you have to make? Are you looking for a new church? Has God given you direction to leave your current one? If you base these decisions on emotions and feelings be sure that the future will cause disappointment. Has God spoken to you about it? What about the out of state hunting trip next year? What about the new truck, job change, new house, or the man or woman you are about to marry? Have you been seeking counsel at the mouth of the Lord? If you haven’t, your making a big mistake. Prayer is very important in making decisions, but you must pick up your Bible so you can find peace from God that your decision is right. There are one of three things that God will say; Yes, that means He will direct you in your decision; No, that means dont do it; or Wait/Stand Still, a lot of Christians don’t do well with this answer, wait or stand still means to wait and do nothing until God makes things clear to you! You might even pray and not get any answer. What do you do in this situation? I Thessalonians 5:17 “Pray without ceasing.” This means to continue praying until God gives you an answer. God loves you. He always wants the best for you, but He cant help you on your journey if you don’t seek His counsel. Here is how most believers pray; “Lord, please let me buy a new house” or “Lord, Can I go elk hunting next year”, The next day or the next week the individual goes to the bank or books the hunting guide without even picking up their Bible to see what God has to say about it. You can’t just pray and then go do what you want. That’s not how it works! You must seek counsel from God. It might be that next year there are some unknown things that come up. Like a job loss or a death in the family that would keep you from the trip. God wants us to depend on Him in everything that we do. Please seek counsel from the Lord! It is the only way to keep out of trouble. Have you spent time in God’s Word today? Why not start now!
Memory Verse Week 12/27/20
Joshua 9:14
“And the men took of their victuals, and asked not counsel at the mouth of the LORD.”
