The 3 disciplines

By Charl Human

Joshua 9:1-5

Rom.16:17-20

1Tim.4;1-2

Eph.6;12

Jude 1

Ps.23:5

Joshua and the Israelites encountered Jericho, Ai, and the Gibeonites in the Promised Land.  Warriors in God’s army have three spiritual enemies:  the world, the flesh, and the deceiver.

Jesus followers have three disciplines:  worship, prayer, and Bible study.  The book of Joshua shows us how worship overcomes Jericho - the World, and prayer overcomes the city of Ai - the flesh. 

This week we will learn about Joshua’s third enemy - the deceiving Gibeonites.  The discipline of Bible study is our weapon against the deceitful lies of our enemy - satan.  

The Word of God is our weapon against the counterfeit doctrines of the deceiver.

We are more than warriors when we sit at the table of God’s Word in the presence of our enemies.

Challenge:

Memorize Psalm 23:5

How important is Bible study to you?

Overcoming the flesh through prayer

By Charl Human 

Joshua 8:18-29

2 Kings13:15-19

Jer.17:1-14

James 5:16

1john 1:5-10

James 1:14-15

Rom.8:13

We overcome the world by faith, we overcome the flesh by dealing with the sin in our lives. We confess our sin through communication with God. We do this through prayer. 

“Prayer is a strong wall and fortress of the church; it is a goodly Christian weapon.” - Martin Luther

This is an ongoing process. Joshua did not let up until Ai was utterly destroyed. Neither should we let up until that final day when God ultimately destroys the sin in our lives. Today, we will learn from Elisha what happens when we quit early.

As the Holy Spirit purifies our flesh by identifying our sin, we must specifically confess and turn from it immediately.

Sin creates wounds. Wounds must be exposed and cleansed so they can be healed.

Our enemy deceives us into hiding our wounds, but if we say we have no sin, then we are liars, and the truth is not in us. Even worse, hidden sin festers and grows into death.  

There is no shame in going to the doctor for a broken arm. We should not be ashamed to go to God with our sinful wounds.

Confession to others exposes sin, confession to God purifies us.

We Confess. God Purifies.

Challenge:

Memorize Romans 8:13

What sin has the Holy Spirit identified in your life?

Have you confessed it to God and turned from it?

Defeating the flesh Part 2

By Charl Human

“I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.” - Exodus 17:14 NASB 

Deut 25;17-19

1 Sam.15

Esther 3:1-6

1 Peter 2:11-12

Heb.4:8

Rom.8:13

The Amalekites remained a thorn in Israel’s side. Over 300 years after the Promised Land conquest, God told Saul to utterly wipe out Agag and the rest of the Amalekites. Saul failed to do so. Over 500 years later, Haman the Agagite, a descendant of Agag an Amalekite, plotted to destroy the remnant of Israel.  

Sinful flesh plays the long game.

Unlike Jericho, God tells His people to go out and fight Amalek. He promises that He will one day wipe out even the memory of Amalek. God promises His people permanent rest from Amalek, rest from the flesh. It hasn’t happened yet.

Challenge:

Memorize Romans 8:13

What does rest from the flesh look like in your life?

How do we defeat the flesh?

By Charl Human

Joshua 8:1-17

Zechariah 4:6

Prov.25:4

1Cor.3:10-16

Rom.8:13

We follow God’s method set out in Joshua Chapter 7:

Pray

Confess

Destroy

We pray that the Holy Spirit reveals our hidden sin to us.

We give God the glory, and confess our sin.

By the Spirit, we put our sinful deeds to death.

We are like a precious metal buried deep in the earth. God draws us out of the darkness and into the light. God baptizes us in the crucible of the Holy Spirit to reveal and draw out our hidden sin. We confess our dross and leave it behind in a continuous purification process.

Similarly, Joshua drew out the hidden warriors of Ai so that the city could be captured and defeated.

Challenge:

Memorize Romans 8:13

Describe a time when God drew out your impurity and you confessed it.

Why do we loose to the flesh?

By Charl Human

Morning everyone very thought provoking piece!!!

Joshua 7:11-26

Acts 5:1-11

Rom.8:9-17

Ps.19

Do you wonder why you keep losing to the flesh? Why you can’t live a “good Christian” life?

Joshua had no idea why Israel lost to Ai. Did God abandon them? No! God told Joshua to deal with Israel’s hidden sin.

Pet sins are hidden idols that cause us to lose the spiritual battles we should be winning. 

Achan describes the method of sin as old as the Garden of Eden:

He saw

He coveted

He took

A similar event took place in the early church when Ananias and Sapphira sought to hide their greed from the Holy Spirit, who quickly revealed and dealt with it.

We can not live the Christian life. We must let the Holy Spirit live it through us.

Hidden sin, like Achan’s treasure, causes us to lose because God won’t fight through us if we are holding on to the very thing He wants to destroy. We must pray for the Holy Spirit to reveal it so we can confess it to God and destroy it.

“For if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” - Romans 8:13

Challenge:

Memorize Romans 8:13

What deeds need to be put to death in your life? 

Warring against our flesh

By Charl Human

Joshua 7:3-10

Rom.7:14-25

Mathew 26:41

Rom.8:13

Ps.60

We learn God’s strength at Jericho. At Ai, we discover our weakness.

Israel, excited by their victory over Jericho, thought they could easily defeat Ai. They overestimated themselves, underestimated their enemy, and they assumed God was with them. When Israel was defeated, Joshua tore his clothes and cried out to God.

How often do we charge into spiritual battle, high from a recent victory, only to be defeated by an enemy we thought we could handle?  

How did we, who have victory over the World, lose to something as weak as the flesh?

We overestimate ourselves 

We underestimate our enemy

We assume God is with us

We use the wrong tactics

We are blind to our inner weakness

This leads to ignorance and unrepentance of hidden sin.

We think we win because we are good warriors. We forget that God wins every battle. Scripture tells us that the flesh is weak. 

Here is how Paul put it:

For I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my flesh. For I want to do the good, but I cannot do it. - Romans 7:18 NET

God expects His warriors to fight against the flesh, but it’s a battle we can not win on our own.  

Paul continues:

Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? -Romans 7:24 NET

We cannot live the Christian life. God never asks us to. God wants to live it through us.

Challenge:

Memorize Romans 8:13

How does Paul’s struggle in Romans 7 play out in your life?

The battle against the flesh

By Charl Human

Ex.17:8-16

1 Cor.10:1-13

Rom.8:13

Ps.54

The battle at Ai demonstrates God's method for defeating the flesh. The flesh doesn't stay defeated. It keeps coming back until God ultimately destroys it. Israel had an enemy like that – the Amalekites. They represent the flesh in the Old Testament.

God rescued His people from slavery, baptized them into the Law, and gave them food and water in the wilderness. Then Amalek attacked.   Joshua overcame while Moses prayed for him.

Joshua's first battle wasn't against Jericho - the world. It was against Amalek – the flesh.  

Challenge:

Memorize Romans 8:13

Describe a time when someone else’s prayer helped you overcome.

Find an accountability partner that will lift you up in prayer while you are on the battlefield.