In life, addressing visible symptoms while ignoring the root cause only guarantees repeated failure. Doing the same ineffective actions while expecting change is equally futile. This principle applies spiritually: until sin is confronted and removed—both personally and corporately within the Church—victory in certain areas will remain out of reach.
Scripture affirms this truth repeatedly. When Israel’s collective sin provoked God’s judgment, national repentance was required before restoration came. And during the conquest of Canaan, one man’s hidden disobedience brought defeat upon the entire nation. Only when his sin was exposed and removed did God grant victory. We will examine both cases.
Case 1: The Zeal of Phinehas
God commanded Israel not to intermarry with surrounding nations—not because of ethnic prejudice, but to guard His people from spiritual compromise (Exodus 34:15–16; Deuteronomy 7:3–4). These surrounding nations worshiped false gods, and marriage alliances would inevitably lead Israel into idolatry. God’s concern was not racial but relational: protecting covenant faithfulness by preventing His people from becoming unequally yoked.
“You shall not intermarry with them, giving your daughters to their sons or taking their daughters for your sons, for they would turn away your sons from following me, to serve other gods. Then the anger of the Lord would be kindled against you, and he would destroy you quickly” (Deuteronomy 7:3).
God calls believers today to the same standard of covenant faithfulness to not be unequally yoked with unbelievers for light cannot have fellowship wih darkness (2 Corinthians 6:14). This command to Christians is not about isolation, but about alignment—avoid binding partnerships that compromise devotion to Christ.
Israel did not consistently uphold this command. Numbers 25:1-13 records their direct violation, as the people engaged in sexual immorality with Moabite women and participated in pagan worship—exactly what God had forbidden.
“While Israel lived in Shittim, the people began to whore with the daughters of Moab. These invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods. So Israel yoked himself to Baal of Peor. And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel. And the LORD said to Moses, “Take all the chiefs of the people and hang them in the sun before the LORD, that the fierce anger of the LORD may turn away from Israel.” And Moses said to the judges of Israel, “Each of you kill those of his men who have yoked themselves to Baal of Peor”” (Numbers 25:1–5).
Although the passage does not specify which individuals were involved, God held the entire nation accountable and began judgment with the leaders. God instructed Moses to take all the chiefs of the people and kill them. This reveals a sobering truth: in covenant communities, the sins of a few can bring consequences upon the whole, especially when leaders fail to confront sin.
While the entire congregation wept before the Tent of Meeting, grieving under God’s judgment, one Israelite brazenly brought a Midianite woman into his family in full view of Moses and the assembly.
“And behold, one of the people of Israel came and brought a Midianite woman to his family, in the sight of Moses and in the sight of the whole congregation of the people of Israel, while they were weeping in the entrance of the tent of meeting” (Numbers 25:6).
This man’s act not only displayed personal rebellion but also open contempt for God’s holiness at a moment of national repentance. But when another man saw the rebellion, he acted decisively.
“When Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose and left the congregation and took a spear in his hand and went after the man of Israel into the chamber and pierced both of them, the man of Israel and the woman through her belly. Thus the plague on the people of Israel was stopped. Nevertheless, those who died by the plague were twenty-four thousand”(Numbers 25:7-9).
The plague that had already claimed 24,000 lives ceased only after Phinehas confronted and removed the sin from among the people. His zealous action turned away God’s wrath and restored order.
The Church today likewise needs men and women zealous for righteousness—people who discern when things are out of alignment with God’s Word and take decisive, biblical action. Phinehas did not remain passive after witnessing the man’s open rebellion. Many have remained passive while sin spreads unchecked in the church. Yet Scripture commands believers to judge those inside the Church and purge sin from among us (1 Corinthians 5:12–13; Ephesians 5:11). We must purge the sin of compromise from among us. Because of compromise, the church has accepted, tolerated and included the things Christ taught against.
To purge sin, we need weapons. Phinehas took a spear. What weapons should belivers take to confront sin? We only take weapons God provides. Since we do not wage war according to the flesh, our weapons must have divine power to destroy strongholds, arguments, and opinions that raise against the righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 10:4-5). The sword of the Spirit, which is the God’s Word and prayer, our lifeline and spiritual covering (Ephesians 6:17-18) are the weapons we use.
We must stay mindful not to use fleshly weapons. Do not confront personal sin with emotions and self-pity. These only mask sin and paralyze instead of restore. Do not confront others’ sin with gossip, malice, and slander—these tools destroy rather than heal. Genuine restoration begins only when sin is confronted biblically.
After Phinehas dealt with the sin in the assemby, God said,
“Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, has turned back my wrath from the people of Israel, in that he was jealous with my jealousy among them, so that I did not consume the people of Israel in my jealousy. Therefore say, ‘Behold, I give to him my covenant of peace, and it shall be to him and to his descendants after him the covenant of a perpetual priesthood, because he was jealous for his God and made atonement for the people of Israel’” (Numbers 25:11-13).
If you desire to act like Phinehas—zealous for the Lord in confronting corporate sin—you must first live rightly yourself. Jesus teaches, “First remove the log from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye” (Matthew 7:5). Personal integrity is a prerequisite for spiritual boldness (James 4:8-10).
Imagine that Phinehas had concealed the same sin and had hidden a foreign woman in his own tent, he would have lacked both moral authority and courage to condemn the other man’s sin. He would not have received God’s commendation. Many Christains cannot confront sin in others because they themselves live in unrepented sin. And even if they speak, God—who sees the heart—will not honor hypocrisy. God honors those who confront sin with a broken and contrite heart (Psalm 51:7; 1 John 1:8-9).
Case 2: The Sin of Achan
God, through Moses, had commanded Israel saying, “But in the cities of these peoples that the LORD your God is giving you for an inheritance, you shall save alive nothing that breathes, but you shall devote them to complete destruction, the Hittites and the Amorites, the Canaanites and the Perizzites, the Hivites and the Jebusites, as the LORD your God has commanded, that they may not teach you to do according to all their abominable practices that they have done for their gods, and so you sin against the LORD your God” (Deuteronomy 20:16–18).
After Moses’ death, God appointed Joshua to lead Israel into the Promised Land. He assured Joshua of His continued presence and good success (Joshua 1:7-9). Joshua led Israel across the Jordan River and they secured a decisive victory at Jericho, marking a powerful beginning to their conquest of the Promised Land. The nation was having good success under God’s direction.
However, beneath the surface, there was hidden disobedience within the camp—an issue that would soon threaten their progress. Scripture says: “But the people of Israel broke faith in regard to the devoted things, for Achan the son of Carmi, son of Zabdi, son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of the devoted things. And the anger of the LORD burned against the people of Israel “(Joshua 7:1).
A single act of disobedience by Achan—taking items that had been devoted to destruction—provoked God’s wrath against the entire nation. Yet unaware of this sin, Israel advanced against Ai a smaller and weaker opponent with confidence—but suffered a humiliating defeat.
“Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is near Beth-aven, east of Bethel, and said to them, “Go up and spy out the land.” And the men went up and spied out Ai. And they returned to Joshua and said to him, “Do not have all the people go up, but let about two or three thousand men go up and attack Ai. Do not make the whole people toil up there, for they are few.” So about three thousand men went up there from the people. And they fled before the men of Ai, and the men of Ai killed about thirty-six of their men and chased them before the gate as far as Shebarim and struck them at the descent. And the hearts of the people melted and became as water” (Joshua 7:2-5).
This loss revealed a critical truth: victory is not determined by human strength or strategy, but by God’s presence. Israel had ignorantly proceeded to battle without God.
“Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell to the earth on his face before the ark of the LORD until the evening, he and the elders of Israel. And they put dust on their heads. And Joshua said, “Alas, O Lord GOD, why have you brought this people over the Jordan at all, to give us into the hands of the Amorites, to destroy us? Would that we had been content to dwell beyond the Jordan! O Lord, what can I say, when Israel has turned their backs before their enemies! For the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the land will hear of it and will surround us and cut off our name from the earth. And what will you do for your great name?” (Joshua 7:6-9).
Joshua cried out to the LORD in distress over Israel’s humiliating defeat not realizing that the root issue lay within the congregation and not outside. Ai was not strong, Israel had sinned. Likewise, many believers today pray fervently for others to change, for families and communities to be transformed, and for national revivals. They pray that God would address the moral decay, injustice, and brokenness in society. Yet, like Joshua, they may be overlooking the fact that the root cause is “in here.” Revival must begin not “out there” but in here. Before God transforms a family, a community or a nation, He often calls His people to repent first.
God’s response to Joshua was direct: “Get up! Why have you fallen on your face? Israel has sinned; they have transgressed my covenant that I commanded them; they have taken some of the devoted things; they have stolen and lied and put them among their own belongings. Therefore the people of Israel cannot stand before their enemies. They turn their backs before their enemies, because they have become devoted for destruction. I will be with you no more, unless you destroy the devoted things from among you” (Joshua 7:10 -12).
Two significant truths emerge from the passage.
First, though Achan alone sinned, God held the entire nation of Israel accountable. Covenant communities share responsibility for the faithfulness of their members because the people are bound together in responsibility and purpose. Believers in Christ are described as members of one body—a new covenant community of God’s people (Romans 12:4–5). Therefore, one member’s failure affects the health of the whole body (1 Corinthians 12:26-27).
Second, Israel could not stand before their enemies because sin remained unaddressed. This reveals another sobering truth: some battles in our lives remain unwinnable until sin is confronted. Until the internal issue was exposed and removed, God’s favor would not return to Israel. God commanded Joshua to stop lamenting and act.
“Get up! Consecrate the people and say, ‘Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow; for thus says the LORD, God of Israel, “There are devoted things in your midst, O Israel. You cannot stand before your enemies until you take away the devoted things from among you.” In the morning therefore you shall be brought near by your tribes. And the tribe that the LORD takes by lot shall come near by clans. And the clan that the LORD takes shall come near by households. And the household that the LORD takes shall come near man by man. 15 And he who is taken with the devoted things shall be burned with fire, he and all that he has, because he has transgressed the covenant of the LORD, and because he has done an outrageous thing in Israel’” (Joshua 7:13-15).
At this point, Achan had the first opportunity to confess his sin privately to Joshua before the following day. He didn’t take it.
“So Joshua rose early in the morning and brought Israel near tribe by tribe, and the tribe of Judah was taken. And he brought near the clans of Judah, and the clan of the Zerahites was taken. And he brought near the clan of the Zerahites man by man, and Zabdi was taken. And he brought near his household man by man, and Achan the son of Carmi, son of Zabdi, son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, was taken” (Joshua 7:16-18).
Although God already knew Achan was the guilty party, He instructed Joshua to follow a step-by-step process. Why did God not tell Joshua that Achan did it? This deliberate approach may have been an extended invitation for Achan to repent. He had multiple opportunities to confess as the lot narrowed from tribe to clan to household, yet he remained silent. Perhaps he hoped that his transgression would remain hidden or that some others might have also taken some of the devoted things.
What might have changed if Achan had humbled himself and repented before being publicly identified? Scripture leaves that question open, but the process reminds us: God’s judgment is often preceded by opportunities for repentance. We see this clearly in Nineveh. When Jonah proclaimed God’s judgment against the city, the people responded immediately with repentance—and God relented (Jonah 3:4–10). Opportunities to repent always precede God’s judgment.
Until we deal with sin, we cannot walk in sustained victory or reflect Christ faithfully to the world.
Rather than confess, Achan likely hoped the lot would fall elsewhere. His unwillingness to acknowledge his sin suggests a heart hardened by fear of exposure with no reverence for the LORD. It is a dangerous thing when Christians conceal sin rather than repent of it. Scripture tell us that, “whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy” (Proverbs 28:13).
Do we truly fear the LORD enough to repent before our sin is exposed? When our wrongdoing is brought to light—by the conviction of the Holy Spirit—is our reverence for God deep enough to lead us to immediate repentance, or do we rationalize and excuse our actions instead of repenting?
Genuine repentance is not driven by fear of earthly consequences but by a holy fear of God and a recognition of sin’s seriousness as Romans 6:23 warns, “the wages of sin is death.” Repentance must be rooted in reverence, not reputation.
“Then Joshua said to Achan, “My son, give glory to the LORD God of Israel and give praise to him. And tell me now what you have done; do not hide it from me.” And Achan answered Joshua, “Truly I have sinned against the LORD God of Israel, and this is what I did: when I saw among the spoil a beautiful cloak from Shinar, and 200 shekels of silver, and a bar of gold weighing 50 shekels, then I coveted them and took them. And see, they are hidden in the earth inside my tent, with the silver underneath”“(Joshua 7:19-21).
Achan eventually confessed to stealing devoted items and hiding them. He had dug a physical hole in his tent to conceal his sin just like many today attempt to bury hidden their sins within the recesses of their hearts. But Scripture tells: “nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account” (Hebrews 4:13).
God who knew what lay beneath Achan’s tent knows what lies buried in every person’s heart. Therefore, rather than concealing our sin, we should address it by bringing it into the light of God’s mercy—approaching His throne of grace with humility and repentance.
“So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran to the tent; and behold, it was hidden in his tent with the silver underneath. And they took them out of the tent and brought them to Joshua and to all the people of Israel. And they laid them down before the LORD. And Joshua and all Israel with him took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver and the cloak and the bar of gold, and his sons and daughters and his oxen and donkeys and sheep and his tent and all that he had. And they brought them up to the Valley of Achor. And Joshua said, “Why did you bring trouble on us? The LORD brings trouble on you today.” And all Israel stoned him with stones. They burned them with fire and stoned them with stones. And they raised over him a great heap of stones that remains to this day. Then the LORD turned from his burning anger. Therefore, to this day the name of that place is called the Valley of Achor (Joshua 7:22-26).
The consequences of Achan’s sin extended beyond himself—his entire family and even his livestock were destroyed alongside him. This underscores the far-reaching impact of sin to those around us. Sometimes, the consequences of our unrepented sin affects those close to us. It was only after Israel fully removed the offender and destroyed the stolen devoted items that God’s righteous anger was turned away and His favour returned.
“And the LORD said to Joshua, “Do not fear and do not be dismayed. Take all the fighting men with you, and arise, go up to Ai. See, I have given into your hand the king of Ai, and his people, his city, and his land. And you shall do to Ai and its king as you did to Jericho and its king. Only its spoil and its livestock you shall take as plunder for yourselves. Lay an ambush against the city, behind it”” (Joshua 8:1).
Victory after addressing sin
And as God had assured them of victory after repentance, Israel conquered Ai.
“When Israel had finished killing all the inhabitants of Ai in the open wilderness where they pursued them, and all of them to the very last had fallen by the edge of the sword, all Israel returned to Ai and struck it down with the edge of the sword “(Joshua 8:24).
There are spiritual battles we cannot win until personal and corporate sin is acknowledged and addressed. Before believers can expect to influence their families, communities and nations or engage in spiritual warfare effectively, they must first pursue purity through repentance in their own lives and within the Church. As Peter tells Christians, holiness should begin “at the house of God” (1 Peter. 4:17). Until we confront sin through repentance, we cannot walk in sustained victory or reflect Christ faithfully to the world.
In conclusion, consider the following:
Personal examination
Are there sins you’ve hidden, justified, minimized, or ignored in your heart? Have you become desensitized to behaviors that once brought you conviction? Like David, may you humbly pray: “Search me, O God, and know my heart…if there be any grievous way in me…lead me in the way everlasting!” (Psalm 139:23-24).
Corporate accountability
Are there areas in the Church where sin is tolerated, overlooked, or left unaddressed? God holds His people collectively responsible for unrepented disobedience within the body.
Misaligned expectations
Are you asking God to transform your family, community and nation while refusing to confront sin within? Like Joshua, you may be weeping over defeat while God is pointing at your internal compromise.
There is path to renewal
Do you believe God stands ready to restore when you repent? Scripture says, “whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy” (Proverbs 23:13).
Genuine victory begins only when sin is exposed, confessed, and removed. Until then, we cannot walk in sustained victory or reflect Christ faithfully to the world.
Amen.
