Sanctify the People

From the Pastor: Dr. M. J. Seymour, Sr.

It is written: “Up, sanctify the people, and say, Sanctify yourselves against to morrow: for thus saith the LORD God of Israel, There is an accursed thing in the midst of thee, O Israel: thou canst not stand before thine enemies, until ye take away the accursed thing from among you.” (Joshua 7:13)

Sin in the camp brings defeat for the whole. The entire nation of Israel suffered defeat at the hands of the enemy because one person sinned against the commands of God. Achan reasoned in his mind “no one will ever know.” He believed his sins were just his sins and had nothing to do with any one else. In truth Achan gave no thought to the fact that his sin would have an effect on his family, friends, and all of Israel. Yet, “his sin” brought defeat in the face of the enemy.

Because Achan found no place of confession and repentance, the ultimate end of his sin was the stoning death of his family and himself, also the destruction of all that he had. The sin of Achan brought annihilation to all that Achan cherished. Sin takes no prisoners; it utterly destroys. You cannot flirt with sin and walk away untarnished.

Thanks to the blood of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, we enjoy the forgiveness of our sins in confession and repentance. Nevertheless, even after salvation, sin can enter into the camp, and sin in the camp brings defeat to the whole. This means defeat for the sinning one, his family, and the church where he is a member. Some will say, “I just won’t go and they won’t be hurt.” It is a nice idea but it doesn’t work that way. It will still bring defeat in the face of the enemy for the whole. Like it or not, sin is like cancer; you can deny it, but it will still eat away at the whole unless it is totally removed.

Now, here is God’s remedy to cure sin in the camp: “Up, sanctify the people,” and “take away the accursed thing from you.” In other words, “Stand up against the sin by purifying the whole and by removing the sin out of the midst of you.” There must be a concentrated effort by the whole to bring a cleansing and extraction of all sins out of the person, the family, and the church. God will not grant a healing of sin if there is no surgery to remove the sin. God has only one remedy; if you will have none of it, then you will have no healing. Up, sanctify the people and enjoy the sweet victory!!!