How an ‘INDIVIDUAL’s SIN’ affects a whole CONGREGATION?
March 6 Bible
Reading: Joshua Chapters 7-9
How an ‘INDIVIDUAL’s SIN’ affects a whole CONGREGATION?
But the children of Israel committed a
trespass regarding the accursed things, for Achan the son of Carmi, the son of
Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took of the accursed things; so
the anger of the Lord burned against the children of Israel. So the Lord said
to Joshua: "Get up! Why do you lie thus on your face? Israel has sinned,
and they have also transgressed My covenant which I commanded them." (Josh
7:1, 10-11)
If Rahab the
Amorite prostitute found mercy and grace from God in the midst of judgment
(6:25), the story of Achan is a reminder of the holiness of God which we can
never take for granted (24:19; Num. 17:11–13). This is the first instance of
disobedience in the Promised Land, and this incident and its lesson for Israel
are recalled at a later time (22:18–20). Although the offense was committed by
one man, we see that the entire country of Israel is involved and affected adversely
(v. 11; 22:18).
We know that
Joshua had specifically told the Israelites not to take anything from Jericho
for it was cursed: "And you, by all
means abstain from the accursed things, lest you become accursed when you take
of the accursed things, and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble
it" (Josh 6:18). However, a man named Achan took some of the plunder
that belonged to the Lord (6:19) and kept it for himself (7:1). This set in
motion a series of disasters that affected not only him but also the whole
community. Achan alone had defied the ban, but his disobedience is seen as that
of the whole nation because of God’s principle of corporate solidarity. No person sins alone!
God had not
forsaken Israel; the people had forsaken God. Achan’s trespass, which was a treacherous violation, compromised the
holiness of the entire nation of Israel. As a covenant nation, Israel
functioned under the twin mandates of corporate
solidarity (Deut. 6:18) and individual
responsibility (Deut. 24:16). Accordingly, Israel had committed a trespass (v. 11) in Achan’s sin. The
incident was serious because such transgression compromised the holiness of God
(Deut. 9:26–29).
Let us
understand that we never sin alone, and
sin ultimately brings defeat in our lives and in the lives of those around us.
God sees His people as one just as the sin of Achan was the sin of the whole
nation and caused the death of 36 innocent soldiers. Likewise, our individual
sin affects the holiness of our entire congregation since together we are the
corporate body of Christ (see 1 Cor. 12:12–27).
Our Lord
Jesus Christ has promised that where two or three are gathered together in His
name, He is there in the midst of them (Matt 18:20). However, individual sin
will seriously deter Jesus from working among and through His people! Let us be
careful that we are never the stumbling block (like Achan) that prevents the
people of God to rise up in victory as a corporate body of Christ.
