Wednesday, April 20, 2016

Joshua 7:25b-26a:  "And all Israel stoned him with stones, and burned them with fire ... So the LORD turned from the fierceness of his anger." Achan's sin resulted in his death and the death of his children. From Genesis to Revelation, we see God's paradigm of sin and punishment. Cain, David, Eli & his sons, Ananias & Sapphira; example after example. "As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten," Jesus warns. All this is written so that we will not sin because we fear God. It's terrible that so often Christians gloss over this truth, even to the point of redefining words (we've all heard or read that "fear" of God just means "respect"). When I consider how God punishes and scourges his disobedient children, I don't merely respect or reverence Him. I am afraid of the pain of punishment; in other words, I fear Him. So should you. - Daniel Holser