WIPE OUT THOSE CANAANITES

MEMORISE: 'And have no fellowship with the unfruitful Works of darkness, but rather reprove them.' (Eph 5:11)
READ: Numbers 33:50-56

God led the children of Israel out of Egypt after more than 400 years of bondage. When they were reroute the Promised Land, God, through Moses, gave them clear instructions about his plans for the. According to our text, God told them to drive out all the inhabitants of the land and to destroy all their symbols of idolatry. Verse 55 says: 'But if ye will not drive out the in habitants of the land from before you; then it shall come to pass, that those which ye let remain of them shall be pricks in your eyes, and thorns in your sides, and shall vex you in the land wherein ye dwell.'

Later, by the time the Israelites had begun to divide the land, many of them refused to fulfill that command. They thought it was all right to let the other nations dwell among them. Judah retained the Jobsites (Josh 15:63). Ephraim and Manasseh retained the Canaanites. In order to satisfy their conscience, they used them as slaves (Josh 16:10).

Before the Israelites knew what was going on, they were admiring the ungodly lifestyle of their servants. After a while they started having sexual relations with them. Little by little idolatry, rebellion against God and other sins took root, and before long there was complete moral depravity. The other nations soon became a perpetual source of trouble. In the end, God had to fulfill his promise in Numbers 33:56. The nation of Israel was eventually driven out of their homes for the same reasons than the earlier inhabitants.

Have you received Jesus? Praise God! To avoid returning to sin, you must wipe out all the 'Canaanites' in your life, as well as their images and altars. You cannot stay with crowds who are involved in immorality, fraud and robbery. You should destroy things, which remind you of your old lifestyle, such as pornographic material and objects relating to the occult. If you retain them, they will eventually destroy you.

ACTION POINT
Make a decision to uproot and destroy every stronghold
of 'Canaan' in your life. Begin to take action.