FAMINE IN THE LAND

FAMINE IN THE LAND

When Joshua entered the Promised Land, he was soon met by some men clothed in deceit, (read about it in Joshua ch. 9) who said they had come from a very distant place. They lied, but Joshua didn't ask of the Lord, and made a league with them.

Within a few days, he was called upon to defend them against five other kings who were mad at them for having made peace with Joshua and Israel. God managed to turn the bad situation which Joshua had created by his mistake, into a victory for Israel.

God intends for us to keep our word-- even when it is costly. Psalms 15:1 LORD, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? who shall dwell in thy holy hill? Psalms 15:4 In whose eyes a vile person is contemned; but he honoureth them that fear the LORD. [He that] sweareth to [his own] hurt, and changeth not.

We learn, that over 400 years later, when Saul was king of Is-rael, Saul broke the National word of Israel to the Gibeonites, and slew some of them. Then, later, Saul died.

After David had been reigning about 35 years, II Samuel 21:1 Then there was a famine in the days of David three years, year after year; and David inquired of the LORD. And the LORD answered, [It is] for Saul, and for [his] bloody house, because he slew the Gibeonites. And the king called the Gibeonites, and said unto them; (now the Gibeonites [were] not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; and the children of Israel had sworn unto them: and Saul sought to slay them in his zeal to the children of Israel and Judah.)

Think of it-- nearly 40 years had gone by since Saul's murderous breach of National honor. But God DOES NOT FORGET. Time DOES NOT HEAL a breaching of our word.

Bro. Clinton Brown used to preach that even if we missed God when we said we would do a thing, if it had not been God's Will at the time, it suddenly BECOMES GOD'S WILL for our life when we give our word that we will do it. God EXPECTS us to keep our word.

I have often wondered just how much of our National and personal distress has been caused by the breaking of our word of honor, which we have given at some time.

Our great nation is not yet 400 years old, and many different "administrations" have come and gone since that beginning. Have some of the reversals of policy by some of those administrations been contributing factors to the mess we find ourselves in today?

I wonder. What about my own life? Are some of my problems the product of my own makings?