Dancing in the Kingdom- Table of Contents
Dancing In the Kingdom – Part 1 – Shadows of the Kingdom – Chapter 7– Settlement
God’s fullness, his followers’ emptiness
[Bible references: Numbers 33:55-56; Deuteronomy 7:1-5; 12:2-3, 29-32; 6:17; Joshua 3:3; 4; 6; 10:1-15; 23-24; Isaiah 65:6-7]
God’s provision though was going to require their involvement. It would start with the way they crossed the Jordan River where the people carrying the ark needed to get their feet wet in the river before it would stop flowing. And since this time, the river would now be the boundary of their new land, the people were instructed to set up a monument of twelve stones to be a reminder God’s provision. The next miracle which came soon after was the crumbling of the walls of Jericho which occurred after seven days of marching around the city. That miracle would be followed by others as the people of Israel continued to capture the cities.
According to the message that Yahweh shared with Abraham, the entry of Israel into the Promised Land meant that the sin of the Amorites had now reached its full measure. As with the time of Noah, that full measure would now end in the destruction of the inhabitants of the land, this time by the people of Israel. The danger to Israel would be, that if the current inhabitants of the land with their idolatries and atrocities, which included sacrificing their children to be burned alive, were allowed to live among the people of Israel, the people of Israel would be tempted to also turn from God.
So, beginning at Jericho, the people of Israel to instructed to “totally destroy” (Hebrew cherem)[1] the inhabitants of the city. This instruction would be repeated other times as well. The problem that would appear is that Israel did not always follow these instructions with the consequent result that Israel would continuously get drawn into the idolatries of the current inhabitants.
Before Joshua died, he challenged the people to serve Yahweh and the people responded that they would choose to serve Yahweh. Joshua replied that they could not serve Yahweh, the God who is so holy. Nevertheless, the people responded that they would serve Yahweh. Joshua then said that they were “witnesses against themselves.” They would be. In the end, they did not follow God’s commands to defeat the tribes in the Promised Land. They did not “completely destroy” the cities as they were told. Israel therefore allowed themselves to be subject to continual temptation to sin by turning from worshipping God and towards worshipping idols, participating in the same atrocities that God found so reprehensible.
[1] Lyon, William L. “Between History and Theology: The Problem of H9 Erem in Modern Evangelical Biblical Scholarship” Florida State University, dissertation Spring 2003
Reflect
Our culture has traditions like New Years’ Resolutions where we promise to make changes in our lives, yet 85% of resolutions fail.[1] What make us unsuccessful so often?
[1] Tabaka, Marla. “Most People Fail to Achieve Their New Year’s Resolution. For Success, Choose a Word of the Year Instead” Inc.com www.inc.com/marla-tabaka/why-set-yourself-up-for-failure-ditch-new-years-resolution-do-this-instead.html
Observe
Read Deuteronomy 7:1-5. Why do you think that the Israelites did not follow God’s instructions about destroying their enemies?
Dancing In The Kingdom 