Sin Is Like Cancer It Must Be Cut Out Before The Entire Body Is Destroyed

Joshua 7:25 And Joshua said, "Why have you troubled us? The LORD will trouble you this day." So all Israel stoned him with stones; and they burned them with fire after they had stoned them with stones.

I find myself in a motel room again (no this is not a re-run). The documentary of the lives of four terminally ill cancer patients I watched on TV is still on my mind. I am having a very hard time forgetting it. Perhaps there is a lesson to be learned from the program which God is wanting me to learn.

The story of Achan is one of most memorable to me. It reminds me of how lust and greed have a way of weaving a web of destruction in life. In the Battle of Jericho, God commands the Israelite Army to destroy the city and to take all its spoils as an offering to Him. Achan, covets a few of the spoils, takes them, and hides them under his tent. God gets angry that someone violated his covenant of provision. This covenant He made with Joshua stated that if Joshua followed God without turning to the left or the right then Joshua would be successful in all he did. In the following battle of Ai, the Israelite Army is defeated and disgraced. God reveals to Joshua that there is sin in the camp. Achan admits his sin, he and his family along with all their belongings are destroyed.

SIN IS LIKE CANCER in that it seeks to consume the body it inhabits. Sin is much worse than cancer though. Cancer will only destroy the body it inhabits. Sin, however, seeks to destroy the entire Body of Christ. The only treatment for cancer is to cut it out of the body. The same is true for sin, it must be cut out of the body. Both cancer and sin must totally be cut out of the body or they will continue to grow in their desire to kill and destroy. This is why God has Achan’s entire family and belongings destroyed. The Israelite people, led by Joshua, are in the process of taking the land in which God has promised them. This process requires for them to be totally committed to God if they want to His provisionary covenant to protect them. Any turning to the left, right, or even looking back can not be tolerated. What would have happened if God just let Achan get away with his sin? My guess is that eventually everyone would have realized that they too could be like Achan and would of chosen to fulfill the desires of their own flesh rather than being obedient to God. Truth would have become a relative term and God would not be seen as a being who keeps his Word.

We, like the Israelites are in a process of taking the land. Our land we seek to inhabit is the Kingdom of God. The prize that lies ahead for those who remain faithful is salvation and all of its promised inheritances. Obedience to God is essential to obtain the prize. If we turn to the left or the right, or even look back we begin to walk outside the covering of God’s provisionary umbrella of protection. It is at this point we are open to the schemes of Satan. We must treat temptation the same way we treat cancer. It must not be tolerated by us.

We, like the Israelite people have an intercessor who is not unfamiliar with our temptations. They had Joshua. We have Jesus. Jesus, being man, understands temptation. Jesus, being God, was able to withstand it. We, being only human, fall into it. Praise God for our Lord Jesus Christ. For when we fall into temptation and sin, we have an advocate whose blood will cover our sin and bring the umbrella of provision back over us. All we have to do is admit our sin, seek forgiveness, and repent. Praise God we have the blood of Jesus. The Israelite people did not have it yet. They had to physically remove the sin from them by killing it. We can remove it by spiritually by seeking Jesus and physically following his commands.

Teach me your ways, O Lord my God, And I will walk in your truth.

Give to me a totally, undivided heart, And I will walk in your way.

Purify my heart, cleanse me Lord I pray

Remove from me, all, that is

Standing in the way, of your Love.

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