Could not stand

"Therefore the children of Israel could not stand before their enemies, but turned their backs before their enemies, because they were accursed: neither will I be with you any more, except ye destroy the accursed from among you" (Joshua 7:12 KJV). There is no victory for those who have a hidden sin in their life. Hidden sin takes one further away from God and builds up a wall between them and their Savior. The only way Joshua and Israel were going to be victorious in the Promised Land was if they conquered the enemy. In order to conquer the enemy, they had to destroy it and not let it live again. The enemy of our souls is the flesh, the sin nature inside of us. It is the sin nature that draws us away from the presence of God. The Israelites had to learn how to conquer their own sin nature, just like everyone of us. We have desires and some of them are not so pure or honest, and we too must learn, through the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, how to conquer them. The Lord commanded Joshua to go into the land of Canaan and possess it, but in doing so he would have to fight against the enemy with sword and bow. We read the many victories Joshua had with the children of Israel. We read how the enemy was defeated because the children of God trusted in God and believed in God's strength, not their own strength. As a leader, Joshua heard the commands of the Lord and he put his heart towards them. The goal of this man of God was learning and obeying these commands. He was out to please God, not himself. Victory came when Israel obeyed God's commands, and it will also come to us when we too follow our Lord's example. To obey is greater than sacrifice. God bless you. Amen