ACHAN'S ERROR

Jesus in Luke 12:15 warns
"And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth."

When one is called to finance the Kingdom of God with a mandate to plunder the treasuries of the secret places of darkness, the number one thing that the devil will bring into your life is covetousness. An inordinate desire to possess and keep for yourself the wealth and possessions put in your hand by the Lord. In truth, you are a steward and the wealth God puts in your hand is to be used for other purposes. He is not unjust, he will ensure that you have all you need and more besides, but if he puts something in your hand for someone else, you will need to give it to the necessary party.

In Joshua 7 we read the story of Achan which is in truth the sin of covetousness. Everything they found in Jericho was to be offered to the Lord in total destruction, regardless of how good, beautiful or valuable it was. In verse 20 - 21 Achan gives his explanation:

“It is true! I have sinned against the Lord, the God of Israel. This is what I have done: When I saw in the plunder a beautiful robe from Babylonia, two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold weighing fifty shekels, I coveted them and took them…”
God had not allocated them to him as meat and by taking them for himself he exposed Israel to the enemy. Of note is God’s extremely angry reaction in all this. Vs 10 – 15

• Covetousness is sin and a violation of our covenant with God.

• Covetousness results in lies and theft.

• Covetousness leads to alienation from God and his protection.

• You will not be able to stand before the enemy but will run from the enemy in disgrace and shame.

• Covetousness makes you liable for destruction. You become a candidate for destruction.

If you have been involved in the sin of covetousness you must do the following:

• Repent and consecrate yourself before the Lord.

• Ask him to show you the thing that you have coveted and that has brought destruction.

• Remove the accursed thing from among you and do the needful, either give it to the rightful party or destroy it as the Spirit of the Lord leads.

Achan, after he was found with the accursed things was destroyed by fire. As long as the accursed thing remains with you, you will surely be destroyed along with it.
After the destruction of Achan and the accursed thing the Lord went on to encourage Joshua for battle and led him to a mighty victory where he had been easily beaten before. This is your portion as well. Pray this prayer with me.

Dear Lord Jesus, I approach the throne of grace with fear and trembling for I too like Achan have taken the accursed thing and it is surely in my midst. I stand before you an open book O’ God for nothing can be hidden from you. Forgive me Lord. Forgive me and cleanse me with the Blood of your son Jesus Christ. Let this sin not be counted against me oh Lord that I may escape destruction by the blood of the Lamb Jesus. Master, show me where I have sinned against you in covetousness and show me how to make it right. Remove the accursed thing from my midst oh Lord. Do it, that I may live O God to glorify and honor you all the days of my life. I am yours my Lord. I thank you for hearing my simple prayer and I know that you will begin to show me where I have sinned in covetousness. I promise to take action as you will require me to. I thank you and honor you oh Lord. Lead me to victory in you like you did Joshua and let your name be a praise in my life forever. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.

Examples of covetousness: Saul (1 Samuel 15:9, 19); Judas (Matthew 26:14, 15); Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1-11); Balaam (2 Peter 2:15 with Jude 1:11).