Mop Ups & Flare Ups | Sunday, September 24, 2023

The lot fell to the children of Joseph from the Jordan by Jericho... And they did not drive out the Canaanites who dwelt in Gezer; but the Canaanites dwell among the Ephraimites to this day, and have become forced laborers. (Joshua 16:1, 10)

Israel failed to put out the smoldering hot spots in the land—and the same hidden sin that imperiled them threatens us today.

A Lesson from the Fire Line

I took a couple of my kids and a friend to the air show down at Miramar yesterday. They had to postpone part of it because a fire broke out right near Interstate 15 at the end of the runway. What was funny was hearing people around me say, "Oh, it's just part of the show—they brought in helicopters to drop water, it's a demonstration." No, that's not a thing. The fire department doesn't start a fire as a demonstration when the winds are up and it's dry.

For about 15 years—as long as I've been pastoring this church—I've also served as a chaplain with the Escondido Fire Department. Like a lot of little boys, I wanted to be a firefighter; it didn't happen, but God has been gracious, because I get to ride along without doing the hard work. When I first started, I was such an outsider, because every industry has its own language. They'd talk about the IC, the Charlie side of a building, offensive and defensive structures, accountability, knocking things down—and I had no clue. Over time I picked it up.

What "Mop Up" Teaches Us

One thing you learn watching a fire scene is that everything that looks chaotic is actually choreographed. They have a plan. And after a fire is contained and the flames are out, it looks like they're done—but the crew stays a long time to do what's called mop up. That mop up is essential. If you've seen a mountainside after it has burned, you can't see anything during the day, but as soon as the sun goes down you see hot spots glowing everywhere. In mop up, crews turn those over and put them out, because if you don't, the winds kick up the next day and you have another fire.

It's believed that the horrible fire last month in Lahaina, Hawaii, was a flare-up of a fire crews had gone to earlier that day. About nine hours later it kicked back up. They had so many fires to respond to that they didn't have time to do a full mop up. So mop up is crucial—you have to put out those small hot spots before another fire comes up. If you don't, you're likely to get burned. And that's exactly what we see in our text this morning.

Possessing the Possession

In the first half of Joshua, Israel moved into the land God had promised Abraham some 500 years earlier—almost like a wildfire going through, routing their enemies and taking ground. Now in the last half of the book, the land is divided among the twelve tribes by lot. Picture casting dice or flipping a coin to determine who receives each section of land.

The last couple of weeks we looked at Judah's portion in chapters 14 and 15, which included cities still in our news today—Jerusalem, Bethlehem, and Hebron. Now in chapter 16 we come to two more tribes. Joseph's tribe was divided into two—Ephraim and Manasseh—which is why you never read of "the tribe of Joseph" but of Ephraim and Manasseh. They receive cities like Jericho, important in Jesus' day (remember Zacchaeus, that wee little man), Shiloh, where the Tabernacle and Ark would sit for about 300 years, and Bethel.

Bethel was deeply significant. When Abraham was first called by God in Genesis and followed Him by faith into Canaan, the first place he camped he named Bethel, "the house of God." Genesis 12 says he pitched his tent with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east and built an altar to the Lord. So the people of Ephraim take possession of the very ground where their great-great-grandfather Abraham first planted his tent.

A Land Given by God

In Genesis 13 the Lord told Abraham, "Lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are"—he was standing near Bethel—"to the north, east, south, and west; all this land I have given to you and to your descendants forever." God owns all things; He owned the land and granted it to Abraham and his descendants. By faith they received it as their possession.

But when they came to take possession, they didn't find an empty land. They found it occupied by Hittites, Jebusites, and Canaanites—people who did not own that land. God said they were to go in and dispossess those people. Moses commanded this repeatedly in Deuteronomy: "Go in and possess the land" (1:8); "the Lord your God is giving you this land to possess" (3:18); "you shall cross over the Jordan and possess this good land" (4:22). Interestingly, the Hebrew word translated "possess" is the very same word translated "drive out." For Israel there was no possessing without driving out the inhabitants.

Why So Severe?

Many people today get uptight about Israel coming in and dispossessing the Canaanites—why so harsh? But think about it: if it is your property, given to you by right and title by God, and someone else is squatting on it, you want it back. That is what's happening here. God commands them to take back His land and give it to His people, because He has a plan for His people in that place that would affect all peoples everywhere. As He told Abraham in Genesis 12, "Through you all the nations of the earth shall be blessed"—through Abraham's descendants the Messiah would come.

But why must they utterly destroy the inhabitants? Deuteronomy 20:16–18 says, "Of the cities of these peoples... you shall let nothing remain alive... lest they teach you to do according to their abominations which they have done for their gods, and you sin against the Lord your God." These peoples were wholly given over to wicked immorality and pagan sin. God had given them hundreds of years to repent, and they only grew worse until "the iniquity of the Amorites was full."

For example, the Canaanites worshiped a god named Molech. Archaeological findings today show they offered their infant children on the outstretched arms of an iron idol, burning them in the fires of Molech—you can see the remains of small children in jars offered there. God said: do not follow their pattern, because I want my people holy and consecrated, so I can bring about my plan of redemption for the whole world. Israel had to knock down all the hot spots, do the mop up, so there would be no future flare-ups.

How Did They Do?

Point one: God intended for His people to knock down the hot spots in their mop up of the land. So how did they do? Look at Joshua 15:63: "As for the Jebusites, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the children of Judah could not drive them out; but the Jebusites dwell with the children of Judah at Jerusalem to this day." The great tribe of Judah—the tribe of the Messiah, the Lion of the tribe of Judah—left Jerusalem held by idol-worshiping Jebusites.

Then chapter 16, verse 10: "And they did not drive out the Canaanites who dwell in Gezer... but the Canaanites dwell among the Ephraimites to this day, and have become forced laborers." And 17:12: "Yet the children of Manasseh could not drive out the inhabitants of those cities, but the Canaanites were determined to dwell in the land." God had called His people to take full possession and forcibly remove all the inhabitants, but they did not.

God's Purpose in the Conquest

Why was God so determined? First, He was bringing judgment on those peoples. This wasn't merely Israel occupying land that wasn't theirs—it was their land, and in giving it to them God was punishing the Canaanites for their paganism, their worship of Baal, Ashtaroth, and Molech. "The iniquity of the Amorites" was complete (Genesis 15:16). We may struggle with that in 2023, when the very idea that God might punish people is looked down upon. But the Bible makes clear: God will punish sin.

You may object to the way God chose to punish. Many of us don't like how God chooses to do things—we think we could do it better. Consider Habakkuk. He prayed, "God, I do not like the sin I see in my nation, in my capital." God answered, "I'm going to judge them—but you won't like how. I'm going to use the Babylonians." Immediately Habakkuk backtracked: "Whoa, hold on—they're worse than us!" It would be like praying for God to deal with the sin in our nation, and God saying, "I'm going to use the Chinese to destroy your nation." We call out for God to act, then take issue with how He acts.

God used a flood in Genesis 6–9, fire from heaven on Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 19, and eventually judged even Israel at the hands of the Assyrians and Babylonians. The expulsion of the Canaanites was the punishment of God. And second, as I've said, God had a redemptive purpose for that land, and His people needed to be in it without being led into the abominations of those they failed to remove.

When the Hot Spots Flare Up

Point two: God's people failed to fully possess their possession. They failed to knock down the hot spots in their mop up. What would the result be? Turn one book to the left, to Judges 2. The people served the Lord all the days of Joshua and the elders who outlived him. But verse 10: "When all that generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation arose after them who did not know the Lord nor the work which He had done for Israel."

Then verse 11: "The children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and served the Baals... they followed other gods from among the gods of the people who were all around them... and they provoked the Lord to anger." So the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel; He delivered them into the hands of plunderers, and they could no longer stand before their enemies. "The hand of the Lord was against them for calamity, as the Lord had said and sworn to them."

When had God said this? Deuteronomy 28. "If you will walk in My ways... then you will be blessed"—blessing after blessing: when you go out, when you come in, your kneading bowl, your storehouses. "But if you depart from My ways... then all these curses will come upon you," until you are expelled from the land and your enemies possess you. Numbers 33:55 warned, "If you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land... those whom you let remain shall be irritants in your eyes and thorns in your side, and they shall harass you." Israel forsook the Lord, the hot spots flared up as they so frequently do, and the children of Israel got burned.

A Principle for Us

Point three: unattended and hidden hot spots imperil the people of God. This simple principle is illustrated perfectly in Joshua 14–17 and Judges 2. And it is true not only for Israel 3,400 years ago, but for us today. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 10 that all these things were written for our instruction and admonition, "so that he who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall."

Hebrews says, "Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; but exhort one another daily... lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin." And, "Let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith."

We need to grasp what the Bible says: sin is not bad merely because God forbids it. Sin is forbidden because it will kill you—it's like poison; it will destroy your life. It is pleasurable for a season, but ultimately it binds and blinds you and brings you under its power until you are a slave. Therefore it must be purged, ripped from our lives, because the sinful hot spots, if not knocked down, will flare up and burn you.

Sin That Burns Others

The frightening reality is that it is not entirely personal—it will burn others around you. Remember Achan in Joshua 7. The goods of Jericho were to be offered to God, but Achan stole and hid them in his tent, thinking no one would know. His hidden sin caused defeat for the entire nation. Your hidden sin affects others.

The New Testament likens sin to yeast. You put a little yeast in the dough and it causes the dough to rise—a little leaven leavens the whole lump. Leaven pictures sin: just a little will spread and destroy. So Paul says in 1 Corinthians 5, "Purge out the old leaven." Hidden sin affects not only you, but your family, your church, your community, and your nation.

I don't need you to raise your hand, because I know the answer: how many of you don't like what you see in our nation regarding sin and immorality? Most of us. But an election is an indication of the temperature of the entire culture—it shows where we actually are. When good is called evil and evil is called good at the legislative level, recognize that it goes back to us being okay with sin retained at the personal level. Peter says judgment must begin at the house of God. So maybe this week we sit down alone and pray as David did, "Search me, O God, and see if there is any wicked way in me." He will answer that prayer. Righteousness exalts a nation, and sin is a reproach to any people.

No Such Thing as Secret Sin

Point four: we cannot delay in dealing with the hidden hot spots of secret sin. And let me tell you, there is no such thing as secret sin. Numbers 32:23, "Be sure your sin will find you out." Hebrews 4, "There is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account."

Some of you here are skeptical that there is a God. You're welcome here, and I'm glad you're here. But how different would everyone's life be if they lived as though it were true—that there is a God who sees all, knows all, and before whom we will one day give an account, even of the things no one else knew about?

If you do not deal decisively with hidden sin, those hot spots will ultimately conquer and rule over you. Go back to Cain, who harbored anger and hate toward Abel until he murdered him. God warned him, "Sin lies at the door; it desires to rule over you." Jesus said in John 8:34, "Whoever commits sin is a slave of sin." Paul wrote in Romans 6:16, "To whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one's slaves whom you obey." You become the servant of whatever you allow to dominate you.

Dealing Decisively with Sin

How do we deal decisively with sin? First, recognize there is One who saves us from our sins. The gospel teaches that Jesus came to rescue us from sin's punishment, sin's power, and sin's presence. He saves us from the punishment of sin through justification—He died in my place and said, "It is finished," bearing the wrath I deserved. He saves us from the power of sin through sanctification, His ongoing work freeing us from sin's mastery. And He has promised to save us from the presence of sin when we enter His presence in His new creation, where there will be no more sin. I'm looking forward to that.

Second, we follow Paul's exhortation to "purge out the old leaven." How? It begins with one simple word: confession. "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9). The Greek word for confess, homologeō, means "to say the same thing as," to agree. So often we justify our sin—"it's not that bad," "it wasn't my fault." But true confession is coming before God and saying the same thing about our sin that He says about it, agreeing that against Him only have we sinned. Only He can forgive sin—and He not only pardons us, He cleanses us from all unrighteousness.

We may also need to cultivate authentic, accountable relationships. James 5:16: "Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much."

Walking in the Spirit

Third, turn to Galatians 5. Paul says, "Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish." Everyone here has experienced this dichotomy. Your flesh says, "I really want that chocolate cake," and your spirit says, "I should not"—and they war against each other. As Paul cries in Romans 7, "The good that I will to do, I do not do... O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?"

Paul lists the works of the flesh—adultery, fornication, idolatry, hatred, jealousies, selfish ambitions, envy, drunkenness, and the like—of which "those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God." But the fruit of the Spirit is "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ's have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires."

Paul says in Romans 13, "It is high time to awake out of sleep... let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light... put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh." And in Ephesians 4, "Put off the old man... and put on the new man which was created according to God in righteousness and true holiness." We put off the old man as the Spirit enables us, put on the new man, and walk by faith in His enabling power.

God Enables Us

Point five, and I'll close: God enables us by His Spirit to uproot sin and to walk in a manner pleasing to Him. My favorite verses, Philippians 2:12–13: "Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling"—put off the old man—"for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure" by His Holy Spirit—put on the new man.

Our culture needs to see the people of God walking by the power of the Spirit in rightness before a holy God, because righteousness exalts a nation and sin is a reproach to any people. We need God to work in us to walk in rightness before Him, to take full possession of the inheritance He has for us in Christ.

Closing Prayer

Father God, I pray that You would do work by Your grace and by Your Spirit in us. Holy Spirit, cause Your Word to go deep into our hearts, Your Word which is like a seed, to spring up and yield an abundance of fruit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, goodness, self-control. God, work these things into our lives. Help us to be bright shining lights of Your grace at work and Your power working in and through us in the day in which we live. Help us to take full possession of the inheritance we have in You, to put out all these hot spots, purge out the old sin, and walk in the newness of the Spirit. We ask this in Jesus' name, and all those that agreed said, Amen.