JOSH. 7:13
"Up, sanctify the people, and say, Sanctify yourselves against to morrow: for thus saith the LORD God of Israel, There is an accursed thing in the
midst of thee, O Israel: thou canst not stand before thine enemies, until ye take away the accursed thing from among you. "
Read notes at Josh. 3:5. (click on verse) Then return here.
God says you cannot stand before your enemies until and unless you are sanctified and any accursed thing be removed from you. You must first realize who your enemies are-and who they are not. The collection agency calling every day and sending you notices every week is not your enemy. The cop who pulled you over for speeding is not your enemy. Here are some common enemies we all share:
A. satan and his devils
B. sin-of which there are 3 categories as stated in 1 Jn. 2:16
1. The lust of the flesh
2. The lust of the eyes
3. The pride of life
C. disease/infirmity
D. any person who is under the power or influence of at least one of the 3 aforementioned.
It is the direct goal of satan and his devils to get you to think, act, or talk in a way in which God would not have us do so. Their desire is for us to
be out of God's will. Their desire is to hurt or try to punish God through our disobedience.
The lust of the flesh is an enemy. The carnal desires are difficult to combat.
There is a reason Jesus said in Mk. 9:47 "And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire: " Many times before the flesh can lust, the eye sees it first and is the first to lust. Once the eye has examined a thing, it is then brought to the flesh to enjoy.
Next to blasphemy, perhaps pride is the worse sin-if it be possible. Pride is the biggest reason for not making Jesus Lord and savior of your life.
When pride is removed, it lowers you and raises Him. This is difficult for many.
Disease is an enemy and ought not be in our body. It is foreign and does not belong. Disease is not always a product of sin, but can be a result of things we do or don't do to our bodies. Smoking, drinking past sobriety(Gal. 5:21; others), overeating(gluttony Num. 11:32-34; others) can all bring disease upon us. At least 2 of the 3 are called sin in the Bible. Smoking MAY not send you to hell, but it'll make you smell like you've been there! It does however, defile the temple, which is a sin(1 Cor. 3:17; others). Not eating enough of the right foods, not taking care of a wound to avoid infection, can bring sickness as well. There are also heriditary conditions.
A person who is under the influence, control, or power of anything listed in A, B, or C can quickly become an enemy. They are usually spiteful, hateful, sneaky, jealous, mean, and just not very good people. Very often, they are able to hide their true selves for a while. In fact, the Bible tells us that even satan can appear as an angel of light(2 Cor. 11:14).
The verse before us says we must sanctify ourselves and put away(get rid of, destroy) anything in us that does not belong. We cannot defeat satan if we have lust or pride in our hearts. We can pray all we want to, but if we continue to hold on to an accursed thing, we will not stand and defeat our
enemies-whatever or whomever they are. We must search ourselves. We must ask the Holy Spirit for guidance as to what needs to be removed. He will gladly tell us what is there that shouldn't be. We cannot defeat obesity or drunkeness if we have a lusting or desire for those things. We are the reason that we cannot stand and defeat any enemy. We cannot expect God to defeat our enemies for us while continue to willfully do what we should not. See also study of Jer. 18:2-4. (click on verse)
"Up, sanctify the people, and say, Sanctify yourselves against to morrow: for thus saith the LORD God of Israel, There is an accursed thing in the
midst of thee, O Israel: thou canst not stand before thine enemies, until ye take away the accursed thing from among you. "
Read notes at Josh. 3:5. (click on verse) Then return here.
God says you cannot stand before your enemies until and unless you are sanctified and any accursed thing be removed from you. You must first realize who your enemies are-and who they are not. The collection agency calling every day and sending you notices every week is not your enemy. The cop who pulled you over for speeding is not your enemy. Here are some common enemies we all share:
A. satan and his devils
B. sin-of which there are 3 categories as stated in 1 Jn. 2:16
1. The lust of the flesh
2. The lust of the eyes
3. The pride of life
C. disease/infirmity
D. any person who is under the power or influence of at least one of the 3 aforementioned.
It is the direct goal of satan and his devils to get you to think, act, or talk in a way in which God would not have us do so. Their desire is for us to
be out of God's will. Their desire is to hurt or try to punish God through our disobedience.
The lust of the flesh is an enemy. The carnal desires are difficult to combat.
There is a reason Jesus said in Mk. 9:47 "And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire: " Many times before the flesh can lust, the eye sees it first and is the first to lust. Once the eye has examined a thing, it is then brought to the flesh to enjoy.
Next to blasphemy, perhaps pride is the worse sin-if it be possible. Pride is the biggest reason for not making Jesus Lord and savior of your life.
When pride is removed, it lowers you and raises Him. This is difficult for many.
Disease is an enemy and ought not be in our body. It is foreign and does not belong. Disease is not always a product of sin, but can be a result of things we do or don't do to our bodies. Smoking, drinking past sobriety(Gal. 5:21; others), overeating(gluttony Num. 11:32-34; others) can all bring disease upon us. At least 2 of the 3 are called sin in the Bible. Smoking MAY not send you to hell, but it'll make you smell like you've been there! It does however, defile the temple, which is a sin(1 Cor. 3:17; others). Not eating enough of the right foods, not taking care of a wound to avoid infection, can bring sickness as well. There are also heriditary conditions.
A person who is under the influence, control, or power of anything listed in A, B, or C can quickly become an enemy. They are usually spiteful, hateful, sneaky, jealous, mean, and just not very good people. Very often, they are able to hide their true selves for a while. In fact, the Bible tells us that even satan can appear as an angel of light(2 Cor. 11:14).
The verse before us says we must sanctify ourselves and put away(get rid of, destroy) anything in us that does not belong. We cannot defeat satan if we have lust or pride in our hearts. We can pray all we want to, but if we continue to hold on to an accursed thing, we will not stand and defeat our
enemies-whatever or whomever they are. We must search ourselves. We must ask the Holy Spirit for guidance as to what needs to be removed. He will gladly tell us what is there that shouldn't be. We cannot defeat obesity or drunkeness if we have a lusting or desire for those things. We are the reason that we cannot stand and defeat any enemy. We cannot expect God to defeat our enemies for us while continue to willfully do what we should not. See also study of Jer. 18:2-4. (click on verse)
