Day 99: Failure for the Israelites and Us

Acts 10:1-33; Joshua 7-8; Job 24

The verses about the sheet and animals are--weird. Peter is told to eat them, which he argues about, then tells Cornelius that no one is unfit. Obviously, the point is that no one is unfit to hear the gospel, and no one should be denied the opportunity to follow Christ because of who they are or what they have done. But I think there could be more to it than that. Peter wrestles with the notion that God presents to him. And what he initially thinks it means is not the conclusion that he ultimately comes to. The same is true in my study of scripture. In this reading of it I get one meaning, while then next time I read it, the more time I think about it, or after listening to someone else, I may come to a different conclusion. I think that this notion demonstrates the concept of the "living" word. It is alive, active, applicable. This is also why churches differ in their interpretations of the bible and why they have different beliefs and practices. What is important is the pursuit of Jesus and the truth. Like when I'm with my family or at bible study, we have awesome discussions about all sorts of biblical concepts. It was so powerful to discuss what we have learned, challenge each other in good ways, and then pray about what was talked about.

Then in the story, you have the meeting of these two people, Peter and Cornelius, who have no idea why they are brought together, but they follow God's command and here they are. Sometimes people are placed in our lives for a reason. We may not know why, but God moves people where he thinks they will be most effective.

The Israelites lose a battle! They are ruined! Life is worthless! The 40 years are wasted and God has given up on them! They will...wait a sec. That's a little dramatic. I don't want to call myself or others "drama-kings/queens," but don't we sometimes respond to life circumstances a little too dramatically? Are things always as dire as we perceive them to be? Um, sometimes, but probably not. The Israelites prove that we won't always be successful in the manner we expect. But God isn't about our success, he is about our growth. God needed them to remove sin in their lives before they could move forward. Was it the fault of those 36 who died? No, and unfortunately, sin has consequences. Sometimes really big consequences. That is why it is so important that we are honest with ourselves and seek to eliminate sin so as to not harm others with it. That could mean a lot of different things to a lot of different people, but it is something that we all need to do. Sometimes that cleansing of sin is hard.

It sort of makes me sick to my stomach to read about Achan and his family being stoned to death. These Israelites hurled rocks at the bodies of this man and HIS FAMILY because they stole stuff and disobeyed The Lord. I could spend my time dwelling on how terrible it is that this man and this family lost their lives, but the real truth behind this story is the power and anger of The Lord. For "just" stealing stuff, this family lost their lives. There is nothing more important in life is to obey God. He is the one we should fear, not opponents, the future, or choices. That is a hard reality.

I wonder if God keeps giving Joshua the auditory assurance that he does in these verses. It is almost in the tone that a father gives to a young child: "it's ok, it's alright. I'm right here, you don't have to be scared." If Joshua grows more mature in his leadership skills and faith, God may withdraw is very powerful voice because Joshua is more in tune with the will of God and doesn't need the voice of God as much. Just a thought.