Read:Joshua 6:26-27

When God speaks do you hear…really hear?

The verses we read today show us what happens when you stop listening to the Word of the Lord. As the king, Ahab was supposed to know exactly what God had said in the first few books of the Bible. But King Ahab wasn’t reading these books. He probably didn’t even know where his Bible was. Instead of hearing God’s Word, he was worshiping idols.

So what happened? Was Ahab able to just ignore God’s Word? Oh no, God will never let his Word be ignored. The Lord had said that if someone tried to rebuild Jericho, their oldest child would die when they started building the city and their youngest would die when they finished building it.

Why was it so important that Jericho wasn’t rebuilt? Jericho, as the first city going into the Promised Land, had to be destroyed before the people could enter. God himself had made those walls of Jericho come tumbling down into a pile of stones. He was the one who opened the way so that the people could enter the Promised Land. So God wanted the people to keep that pile of stones to remind them of his love and grace in letting them enter the land. God wanted them to remember to serve him alone.

But King Ahab wasn’t serving the Lord anymore. And so God reminded them that his Word can never be ignored. If the Lord says something will happen, it will happen. So when Ahab allows Hiel to rebuild Jericho, Hiel’s oldest and youngest children died just like the Lord had said it would happen.

And so today we must keep reading God’s Word as well. In there he tells us what will happen if we stop serving him. He tells us of eternal punishment in hell. But the Bible also tells us of God’s promises of forgiveness of sins and eternal life. And those promises are just as true as his punishments. What the Lord says, will happen. As his forgiven children you will receive forgiveness of sins and eternal life.

Reflection with your child:

Why is it important to read the Bible every day?

Source: Sermon by Rev. R. Vermeulen