What happens if there is an Achan in the church? Who will suffer for it? In the time of Joshua there was an Achan in the church and the whole nation lost the blessing and protection of God.
Paul writes, “for as the body is one, and have many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. For by one spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. For the body is not one member, but many. ” 1 Corinthians 12:12–14
Because the church is one body then we have a close relationship with one another. Paul writes further, “that there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another. And whether one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it.” 1 Corinthians 12:25–26
If one member commits sin it becomes sin for everyone. This happened in the time of Joshua.
“And the Lord said unto Joshua, Get thee up; wherefore liest thou thus upon thy face? Israel hath sinned, and they have also transgressed my covenant which I commanded them: for they have even taken of the accursed thing, and have also stolen, and dissembled also, and they have put it even among their own stuff. Therefore the children of Israel could not stand before their enemies, but turned their backs before their enemies, because they were accursed: neither will I be with you any more, except ye destroy the accursed from among you.” Joshua 7:10–12
Even the secret, unknown sin brought the curse of God upon all the people. How careful we must be that this will not happen in our churches. Because we do not see the secret sins, we must ask God to purify His church.
Sister White writes, “Where is the spirituality of the church? Where are men and women full of faith and the Holy Spirit? My prayer is: purify Thy church, O God… God is sifting His people. He will have a clean and holy church. We cannot read the heart of man. But the Lord has provided means to keep the church pure. . . We all have reason to thank God that a way has been opened to save the church, for the wrath of God must have come upon it if these corrupt pretenders had remained with us.” –Testimonies for the Church, vol. 1, p. 99
We must thank God that He has promised to help to keep the church pure. But visible, known sins we must deal with, or they would become our sins. Jesus said, “Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established. And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican. Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” Matthew 18:15–18
If someone has to be disfellowshipped from the church, heaven also takes his name out of their books. Therefore it is important to be a member in the church of God. There are faithful Christians in the fallen churches, but they have to come out or they will be guilty of their sins.
“And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, My people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.” Revelation 18:4
Jesus said, “And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear My voice: and there shall be one fold, and one Shepherd.” John 10:16
Every sinner is not an Achan, because Achan had no more chance of repentance nor for forgiveness. Weak members need encouragement and much love to be shown to them in order to bring them back to faithfulness. We need divine wisdom to see the difference between Achans and sinners that can be saved as the prodigal son.
Satan tries to bring Achans into the church. He knows the damage that they can do to the church of God. And an important question we need to ask of ourselves, “Am I an Achan, am I bringing the displeasure of God upon the church?”
Achan could have been forgiven if he had confessed his sin before, and asked for forgiveness, but he left his confession too late. We need to ask God to reveal to us our weak points and sins that we need to confess.
David prayed, “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” Psalm 139:23–24
God sent his prophet Nathan to rebuke David of his sin. And he will reveal to us our sins if we sincerely seek purity of heart. He does not only reveal our sins to us, but gives us power to overcome them.
Sister White writes, “We profess to be governed by the same principles, to be influenced by the same spirit. But instead of giving all for Christ many have taken the golden wedge and a goodly Babylonish garment and hid them in the camp. If the presence of one Achan was sufficient to weaken the whole camp of Israel, can we be surprised at the little success which attends our efforts when every church and almost every family has its Achan? Let us individually go to work to stimulate others by our example of disinterested benevolence. The work might have gone forward with far greater power had all done what they could to supply the treasury with means.” –Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 157
“If when Achan yielded to temptation he had been asked if he wished to bring defeat and death into the camp of Israel, he would have answered: ‘No, no! is thy servant a dog that he should do this great wickedness?’ But he lingered over the temptation to gratify his own covetousness; and when the opportunity was presented, he went further than he had purposed in his heart. It is exactly in this way that individual members of the church are imperceptibly led on to grieve the Spirit of God, to defraud their neighbours, and to bring the frown of God upon the church. No man lives to himself. Shame, defeat, and death were brought upon Israel by one man’s sin. That protection which had covered their heads in the time of battle was withdrawn. Various sins that are cherished and practiced by professed Christians bring the frown of God upon the church. In the day when the Ledger of Heaven shall be opened, the Judge will not in words express to man his guilt, but will cast one penetrating, convicting glance, and every deed, every transaction of life, will be vividly impressed upon the memory of the wrongdoer. The person will not, as in Joshua’s day, need to be hunted out from tribe to family, but his own lips will confess his shame, his selfishness, covetousness, dishonesty, dissembling, and fraud. His sins, hidden from the knowledge of man, will then be proclaimed, as it were, upon the housetop.
“The influence most to be feared by the church is not that of open opposers, infidels, and blasphemers, but of inconsistent professors of Christ. These are the ones who keep back the blessing of the God of Israel and bring weakness upon the church, a reproach that is not easily wiped away.” –Testimonies for the Church, vol. 4, p. 492–493
Achan’s sin could have been forgiven if he had confessed it earlier. Our sins will be forgiven if we confess them before they come to the judgment. We need to pray for the Achans in the churches and in the families that their consciences will lead them to repentance and to true conversion. Amen.
Timo Martin