June 21, 2023

How do you make decisions?

Joshua 9

James Rosales
Wednesday's Devo

June 21, 2023

Wednesday's Devo

June 21, 2023

Wednesday's Devo

June 21, 2023

Wednesday's Devo

June 21, 2023

Big Idea

God's definition of success is faithfulness.

Key Verse | Joshua 9:14-15

So the men took some of their provisions, but did not ask counsel from the LORD. And Joshua made peace with them and made a covenant with them, to let them live, and the leaders of the congregation swore to them.

Joshua 9

The Gibeonite Deception

1 As soon as all the kings who were beyond the Jordan in the hill country and in the lowland all along the coast of the Great Sea toward Lebanon, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, heard of this, 2 they gathered together as one to fight against Joshua and Israel.

3 But when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and to Ai, 4 they on their part acted with cunning and went and made ready provisions and took worn-out sacks for their donkeys, and wineskins, worn-out and torn and mended, 5 with worn-out, patched sandals on their feet, and worn-out clothes. And all their provisions were dry and crumbly. 6 And they went to Joshua in the camp at Gilgal and said to him and to the men of Israel, “We have come from a distant country, so now make a covenant with us.” 7 But the men of Israel said to the Hivites, “Perhaps you live among us; then how can we make a covenant with you?” 8 They said to Joshua, “We are your servants.” And Joshua said to them, “Who are you? And where do you come from?” 9 They said to him, “From a very distant country your servants have come, because of the name of the LORD your God. For we have heard a report of him, and all that he did in Egypt, 10 and all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon the king of Heshbon, and to Og king of Bashan, who lived in Ashtaroth. 11 So our elders and all the inhabitants of our country said to us, ‘Take provisions in your hand for the journey and go to meet them and say to them, “We are your servants. Come now, make a covenant with us.”’ 12 Here is our bread. It was still warm when we took it from our houses as our food for the journey on the day we set out to come to you, but now, behold, it is dry and crumbly. 13 These wineskins were new when we filled them, and behold, they have burst. And these garments and sandals of ours are worn out from the very long journey.” 14 So the men took some of their provisions, but did not ask counsel from the LORD. 15 And Joshua made peace with them and made a covenant with them, to let them live, and the leaders of the congregation swore to them.

16 At the end of three days after they had made a covenant with them, they heard that they were their neighbors and that they lived among them. 17 And the people of Israel set out and reached their cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, Chephirah, Beeroth, and Kiriath-jearim. 18 But the people of Israel did not attack them, because the leaders of the congregation had sworn to them by the LORD, the God of Israel. Then all the congregation murmured against the leaders. 19 But all the leaders said to all the congregation, “We have sworn to them by the LORD, the God of Israel, and now we may not touch them. 20 This we will do to them: let them live, lest wrath be upon us, because of the oath that we swore to them.” 21 And the leaders said to them, “Let them live.” So they became cutters of wood and drawers of water for all the congregation, just as the leaders had said of them.

22 Joshua summoned them, and he said to them, “Why did you deceive us, saying, ‘We are very far from you,’ when you dwell among us? 23 Now therefore you are cursed, and some of you shall never be anything but servants, cutters of wood and drawers of water for the house of my God.” 24 They answered Joshua, “Because it was told to your servants for a certainty that the LORD your God had commanded his servant Moses to give you all the land and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land from before you—so we feared greatly for our lives because of you and did this thing. 25 And now, behold, we are in your hand. Whatever seems good and right in your sight to do to us, do it.” 26 So he did this to them and delivered them out of the hand of the people of Israel, and they did not kill them. 27 But Joshua made them that day cutters of wood and drawers of water for the congregation and for the altar of the LORD, to this day, in the place that he should choose.

S2:118 Joshua 9

Listen Now

Dive Deeper | Joshua 9

When I was little, my parents would take me to the Dollar Store and let me get one toy. I found a big brown paper bag with "For Men" written on it. My parents knew what it was, but I wanted it so they let me learn the hard way. On the ride home, I was so excited to open my mystery bag for men even though I was only ten years old. We got home, and I opened the bag to find nothing but razors and socks. Imagine my disappointment when I expected a toy. Sometimes, we do the same thing with decisions in our lives. The men of Israel in this passage were faced with a choice, yet did not consult the Lord. Once the dust settled, they found they were deceived and made the wrong choice based on their limited point of view.

How many times have we made a decision only to find out it was the wrong one? "The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to advice." (Proverbs 12:15) 

One thing we can learn from the Israelites is that it's easy for us to ensnare ourselves, but seeking the Lord in all decisions makes that much harder. The Lord cares for us in ways we sometimes won't and can't understand. He desires for us to seek His face even when the pressures of our lives pull us away from His presence. We have an open line of communication to speak with Him because of His Son's death on the cross. Jesus' death not only washed us clean of our sins, but also opened up a line of communication with God. Because of Jesus, we are now free to consult God about every decision, situation, hardship, and celebration in our lives. If I had consulted my parents on the decision to choose the For-Men bag, I most likely would not have suffered the disappointment I did. God loves, desires, and cares for you. He desires to hear from you.

This month's memory verse

58 Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

– 1 Corinthians 15:58

Discussion Questions

1. Can you think of a time when you were faced with a decision and didn't consult the Lord? What was the outcome? What did you learn?

2. Do you have anyone in your life whom you can biblically consult in addition to the Lord? Do you have a mentor? Do you have a community group or a close group of friends who will speak truth into your decision?

3. What would it look like for you to consult the Lord? What would it look like if you slowed down in making your decisions and took time to seek the Lord first?

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HS

Hugh Stephenson

Good morning James! Love your truth about deception being when I come from a limited point of view. Also that waiting on the Lord as an act of obedience reduces the chances of a bad decision. Blake Holmes has a GREAT guide to decision making. It has blessed us and others immensely. And given us confirmation or redirection. https://www.watermark.org/blog/decision-making-principles Q1. This is a HAHA question. I often laugh out loud at these because they convict me so completely. Pre-salvation, I ought to reverse it and list the ones I have consulted the Lord. Post-salvation, quite another story. #slowlearner A young friend had a severely sprained right ankle that was heavily wrapped. It was impossible to drive. So they drove with their left foot. Bad decision. Meaning to push the brake they stepped on the gas. Hit a wall and the car was totaled. And it wasn’t their car. Lots of remorse. I’m confident that more time considering their options would have resulted in a different result. Q2. I’m blessed with a great CG. We work to process all decisions of any significance as a group. They have saved me from some pretty bad ideas. Q3. Slowing down is NOT in my sinful nature. I like this saying, -“We live in a microwave society but serve a crockpot God”. Waiting is actually one of the unrecognized gifts that He has given us.”
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Hugh Stephenson

Sidecar- The ESV has the subtitle to this chapter as, “The Gibeonite Deception.” I laughed as it almost sounded like a Jason Bourne sequel. How many bad decisions have I made in haste, consulting no one, and in fear, greed, or pride? While there has been a substantial personal costs to these I was able recover and learn; albeit slowly and only through repetitive stupidity. Not so for the financial costs. In aggregate it is substantial. Bit by bit I realized that the equivalent of repeatedly slamming the car door on my hand was a bad move. The notes point out that this was not a “vow”. Those had an escape hatch. This was a covenant. Binding regardless. I was stunned to learn that it was specifically prohibited, (Exodus 23:32, 34:12, Numbers 33:55, Deuteronomy 7:1-2). God wants this to be so clear that He makes sure the author inserted Joshua 9:14. The longer term issue is that they have let the Gibeonites inside the walls; indeed inside the tabernacle. This decision came back to haunt King Saul in a tragic way. We’ll read more about him in a few weeks. Good resume. Poor execution.
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Hugh Stephenson

Some insights and wisdom from the notes: “The Israelites had failed at Ai because they had confidence in their own strength. They failed here because they had confidence is their own wisdom.” "Let us, in like manner, submit to our Lord Jesus, and refer our lives to him. If he appoint us to bear his cross, and draw in his yoke, and serve at his altar, this shall be afterwards neither shame nor grief to us." "So there really are exact parallels between Rahab the individual and the Gibeonites the corporate unit. Rahab (plus her family) was the only individual saved out of Jericho. The Gibeonites were the only people saved out of the land. Rahab believed, left Jericho and came among the people of God. The Gibeonites were the only people in the land who turned to God, and they flowed on through all the years of Jewish history." “If God's people make covenants with unbelievers, we may end up disobeying God, as the Israelites did (cf. 2 Corinthians 6:14-18). We need to seek the will of God before we make these commitments, and we should look for it in prayer (James 1:5; 4:2-3, 15) and in Scripture (2 Timothy 3:16-17; cf. Numbers 27:21).” “We should also consult other godly people who understand God's ways, who can help us avoid overlooking important scriptural revelations that are pertinent (Proverbs 11:14). If we do make an unwise commitment, we should make the best of the situation, if breaking the covenant would be contrary to God's will (e.g., marriage to an unbeliever, et al.).”
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Michael Sisson

Re: Jos 9:6 Jos 9:6 (NASB) They went to Joshua to the camp at Gilgal and said to him and to the men of Israel, “We have come from a far country; now therefore, >>>make a covenant with us.”<<< G-d had expressly forbidden making covenants with the indigenous peoples (Ex 23:23,32; 34:12; Nu 33:55; Dt 7:2; and Jos 9:7), though at this point the Israelites were deceived into believing the Gibeonites were from “a far country.” Re: Jos 9:7 Jos 9:7 (NASB) The men of Israel said to the >>>Hivites,<<< “Perhaps you are living within our land; how then shall we make a covenant with you?” The Gibeonites were part of the Hivites, though they concealed this from the Israelites. Re: Jos 9:14-15 Jos 9:14-15 (NASB) So the men of Israel took some of their provisions, and >>>did not ask for the counsel of the LORD.<<< Joshua made peace with them and made a covenant with them, to let them live; and >>>the leaders of the congregation swore an oath to them.<<< G-d had previously stated He intended to wipe out the Hivites (including the Gibeonites), and He forbade making covenants with the indigenous inhabitants of the Promised Land. (Ex 23:23,32; 34:12; Nu 33:55; Dt 7:2; and Jos 9:7) However, once Israel had made a covenant, G-d expected them to honor it and bear the consequences. Consequently, when King Saul would later violate Israel’s covenant with the Gibeonites (Jos 9:19), King David would have to execute judgment upon Saul’s descendants. (2Sa 21:2)
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Sue Bohlin

Great devo, James, thank you! I just love it when the Holy Spirit had His writers explicitly spell out God's commentary on what they record, as we see in verse 14 ("but did not ask counsel from Yahweh"). Dr. Constable points out that Joshua had been trained in how to use the Urim and Thummim for discerning God's leading, but I guess he forgot. As we so often do, right? We just forget to check with the Lord in how to think and respond to things as they come. We need to discipline ourselves to get in the habit of always, always checking with the Lord. On EVERYTHING. I also learned from Dr. C that "The Gibeonites never led the Israelites into idolatry, as far as the text records, but their presence in the tabernacle displeased the Lord (Ezek. 44:7)." Ezekiel 44:7 says, "When you bring foreigners, those uncircumcised in heart and in flesh, into my sanctuary, you desecrate it—even my house—when you offer my food, the fat and the blood. You have broken my covenant by all your abominable practices." Anytime we encounter the word "abominable," we discover not just what God thinks but what He FEELS about something disgusting to Him. Something important to note. I want to stay far, far away from something that God feels is disgusting.
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Michael Scaman

Positively, the Gibeonites saw what God was doing and acted urgently in faith. Negatively, there were several bad decisions about the Gibeonites. on Israel's side. They didn't actively consult God at the time, making a bad deal. Saul later went back on their promises and killed many of the Gibeonites causing a famine in the land centuries later. So not sticking with the deal was bad acting unfaithfully. David also unfaithful regarding Urriah even though a Hittite. Foreigners joined to Israel for both good and bad. In the days of David, the ark went from unbelieving Gath which was cursed until it was returned and 'believing Gath' the home of Obed Edom the Gittite (that sounds odd the servant of Edom a person from Gath? abd God super bless him ) (Gittite and Gath both meaning garden and he was either a person of Gath who became a believer somehow)
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Amy Lowther

1.. Yes, as a child I did experience this. The outcomes included me falling “just short” of goals I was trying to achieve. Since then I have achieved goals without falling “just short” and have learned how important it is to go to the Lord as I strive to achieve goals. 2. Yes, there are people in the world who know the Bible and do a good job of presenting its key ideas. Yes, there are mentors for me in the world I respect because they get their job done and they help others unselfishly while getting their job done. Yes, friends can be very truthful and help improve character. This is why friends are valuable. 3. I consult the Lord by praying to God, reading the Bible, attending church, and recalling learned information. When I seek the Lord first to make decisions, my chances of success and my chances of getting what I want in life are higher than when I don’t consult the Lord.