Le trappole del diavolo (Serie): Achan

Le trappole del diavolo (Serie): Achan

Le trappole del diavolo: ACHAN
A Series Taken from Dr. Charles Stanley

“Achan”

(Joshua 6 & 7:1–12)

Why is the love of money the root of all kinds of evil?

 

1 Timoteo 6:10 states, “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”

Joshua 6:18-19, God warned the Children of Israel, “And you, by all means abstain from the accursed things, lest you become accursed when you take of the accused things, and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it. But all the silver and gold, and vessels of bronze and iron, are consecrated to the Lord; they shall come into the treasury of the Lord.”

After Israel had won a huge victory in battle over Jericho where the Lord caused the walls to come crashing down, Joshua went to take the city of Ai. God commanded the children of Israel to refrain from taking anything that belonged to the people in Jericho. All the gold and silver would be brought into the storehouse for the Lord. If anyone were to disobey God’s command, they would be accursed. Unfortunately, there was an Israelite who did not heed the Lord’s warning as a result of his disobedience the battle was lost and 36 men died. Devastated, the children of Israel could not understand what went wrong. Joshua and the leaders of Israel cried out to the Lord, rent their clothes and put ashes on their heads. God responded by telling Joshua, “Get UP! There is sin in the camp, and that’s why you lost the battle. Someone has taken the accursed things from Jericho.” Joshua was given the responsibility to seek out the person responsible for sinning against God and for betraying the people of Israel.

Israel’s situation paints a vivid picture of how destructive sin can be. Many people are often affected by just one act of sin. Joshua discovered that it was Achan who had touched the accursed items by bringing them back into his tent and burying them. Because he allowed the sin of greed to control his actions, Achan’s whole family was punished for his actions. What a powerful example of the deadly effects of sin on an entire family and group of people. Sadly, Achan’s family suffered the consequences of his greed, which is the case for many families today. When a person in a family falls into grievous sin, all the members of the family are harmed by the effects of it. Because of God’s awareness of the destructiveness of sin, He protects us by giving us laws to guide us, not to punish us.

Why didn’t Achan trust God to provide for his family?

Why don’t we trust God to provide for all of our needs?

Why do people steal and take things that don’t belong to them?

Is it out of fear that I will not have enough, doubting that God will provide for me?

We may say to ourselves, “I cannot trust God to provide. Così, I must take matters into my own hands and steal and cheat and lie to get what I need. No one will find out.”

Let’s apply 1 Timoteo 6:10 to our society today.

Why does the love (obsession) of money open us up to all kinds of evil?

What is our motivation for the money?

Is it to provide for our families and to help others, or is it for personal gain?

Some people want to acquire large sums of money so that they can have greater power, control, and influence. We see this very same situation occurring today in several professions where the accumulation of wealth leads to pride, arrogance, power, influence and lawlessness. They become deceived and consumed with the notion that they are somehow better than you and me. I pray they repent and turn from their sins and receive the gift of salvation, which was purchased for them with the precious blood of Christ. If such people die without having repented of their sins, then they will stand before Christ and will be judged, according to what they have done, romani 2:6. They will be cast into hell where the fire is not quenched and there is wailing and gnashing of teeth. Separated from God for eternity, they will be tormented with the memories of all the evil they have committed in their lifetime. God will be much harsher with them than we could ever imagine. Let’s pray for those who believe they are superior to others and have no fear of God, that they come to faith in Christ.

Will you pray with me that the God of heaven and His Mighty Warrior Angels will dismantle this evil world system, which is opposite of God? They strive to divide, steal, kill, cheat and lie to get what they want all because they have chosen to follow Satan, the prince of this world.

Stay in community and be accountable to one another so you do not fall into temptation and a snare.

 

Sei amato,
Toni

Leggi di più sui post del blog di Toni qui!

Dalla vergogna alla vittoria (Parte 4): L'abuso si è intensificato nella mia età adulta

Rhonda’s Story

Life carried on, I graduated high school and went to college. After I graduated, I met a man that I thought I was so in love with. He made me feel special, wanted, loved and beautiful. He seemed to be everything I had been looking for in a man. We got engaged after a short courtship and a year later we got married. Very shortly after that his demeanor changed. He started acting jealous, trying to control what I wore and getting in between my relationships with friends and family.

I don’t remember the first time he beat me; I just remember it didn’t stop after that. Every day he would get upset about something and beat me. He was a tall man and would grab me by my throat hold me off the ground until I passed out while punching me in the head. In the beginning, I would run into the bathroom and lock the door and hide in the shower. But he kicked the door open, and beat me in the shower. He then removed the bathroom door so I couldn’t hide in there again.

I remember running out of the of the house one freezing winter night in just my clothes and socks. It was so cold outside but I didn’t care! I ran and ran until I found a building to hide behind. I sat behind an Arby’s restaurant shaking and crying, thinking about what to do, who to call. Since I had cut off all ties with friends and family, there was no one. As I sat there shaking and crying, I realized I had no place to go so I got up and walked back to the house. He beat me and raped me that night, telling me it was my fault and that I made him do it.

The beatings and rapes continued until one night I stood chopping carrots in the kitchen getting dinner ready and he walked in. He was in a bad mood. I knew what was coming as his voice started escalating. I remember thinking what kind of life is this? I wanted to get married, be loved, have kids and a beautiful home. But here I was. I remember thinking, I would rather spend the rest of my life in jail for murder than live like this. It was like I had left my body and I was watching in slow motion; I took the knife I had in my hand raised my arm and spun around. I screamed at him ready to stab him and something stopped me, I came back to reality thinking I had just stabbed him, but something stopped me. I saw fear in his eyes for the first time. He never touched me again and it wasn’t long after that I left for good.

Parte 5 Clicca qui.

 

La mia vita sarebbe cambiata per sempre (Parte 4): Tormentato da vergogna e senso di colpa

La storia di aprile

Poi ho incontrato l'amore della mia vita. Questo è quello che ho pensato 15 Anni. E per età 16, Ero incinta. Mi chiedevo in cosa mi fossi cacciato; cosa avrei fatto? Pensavo che l'unica opzione fosse abortire. Al tempo, i miei genitori avevano accolto una madre single che aveva finanziato il mio aborto. Pensava che andasse bene perché l'aveva fatto diverse volte lei stessa. Non l'ho detto ai miei genitori. Ma recentemente ha detto loro. Quindi eccomi qui, distrutta dal rapimento e dallo stupro e ora con un bambino che stava per essere abortito. Ho abortito e ho pianto per giorni. Non perché mi sono appena tolto una vita, ma perché soffrivo. Avevo già sofferto così tanto, e questa era solo un'altra cosa da nascondere. Ho indossato la mia faccina sorridente e ho cercato di nascondermi ma nel profondo gridavo aiuto ma non sapevo a chi rivolgermi. Il senso di colpa era così pesante sul mio cuore.

Un anno dopo ho iniziato a frequentare un altro ragazzo che era vergine ma non lo ero più. Non mi importava di aver rubato la sua verginità. È come se gli avessi strappato la sua innocenza a suo piacimento. La vergogna e il senso di colpa mi stavano consumando. Ho continuato a costruire sulla mia colpa e vergogna. Mi chiedevo se tutto questo sarebbe mai finito! Ho passato molte notti a fare festa e anche se c'era molto alcol, Non ho quasi mai bevuto; l'unica droga che ho provato e che non mi è piaciuta è stata la marijuana.

Ho iniziato a guidare nei bar e a fare la modella di lingerie, portando a casa un sacco di soldi. Era tutta una questione di soldi. Non mi importava che stavo vendendo il mio corpo. La modellazione della lingerie porta allo stripping. Mi sono trovato in un posto molto vulnerabile. Mi stavo spogliando nei club, guadagnando il doppio rispetto alla modellazione di lingerie. Pensavo di vivere la vita, ma c'era il senso di colpa e la vergogna sempre crescenti che mi perseguitavano. Non ho mai avuto rapporti sessuali con nessun uomo negli strip club. Non mi sono mai drogato o bevuto quando ero lì. Desideravo che qualcuno mi prestasse attenzione. Non conoscevo altro modo. Guardavo le donne vendersi per pagare la scuola ai propri figli e all'epoca non ci pensavo più di tanto; è triste per me ora, cosa stavano facendo e probabilmente i loro figli lo sapevano. Questo era l'unico modo per guadagnare migliaia di dollari. Il senso di colpa e la vergogna erano sempre con me. Dio mi stava chiamando ma io non stavo ascoltando. Andavo in discoteca e partecipavo a concorsi di bikini e vincevo e pensavo fosse fantastico. Ma stavo solo vendendo la mia anima per essere accettata.

PARTE 5 Clicca qui.