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All right, amen Joshua chapter 9 the title of the sermon this morning is the games of the Gibeonites Games of the Gibeonites what I mean by that is you read just read the chapter and you can see the game that these guys Are playing right? They're trying to get in trying to avoid destruction, right? But the way to go about it is obviously crappy. It's not a good way to do business with people So we're gonna be talking about that this morning Keep your place ever go to Romans chapter 15 Romans chapter number 15 And this is another one of those sermons about developing discernment developing discernment, you know, for example If you have discernment, you know, especially with you know within the church That means you're gonna be better able to discern who's on the Lord side who needs help who's you know? Who's on board basically, right? This is one of the things that I think is very important today because there are a lot of people that would like to play Games with you play games with us now You know, we need to learn how to tell when people are playing us Right. I mean think about it. Think about your own life. Think about how much pain How much time and how much suffering you could get back in your life if you had better discernment, right now think Forward how much more pain how much more suffering? Can you avoid by having the discernment to know when somebody is playing? When someone's not being honest I'm being crafty when they're trying to take advantage, right? You can save yourself a lot of time and trouble And so that's what we're going to be talking about this morning But this verse jumped out at me the other day Romans 15 look at verse number four It says for whatsoever things were written a four time were written for our learning that we through Patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope now go back to Joshua chapter 9 So I like that verse there because it just cements the fact For us that these things are written not so we can get complacent Not so that we could just read and be like, oh, that's a good bedtime story Right. These things are written for our learning We need to learn from the things were written before and what is the what does that verse say? It's gonna do for us It's gonna develop patience and comfort. Well, how does it do that? Because it takes time to learn these things Because you have to apply them in your everyday life and when you do that you also develop patience But it also gives you comfort because you might be sitting here this morning saying, you know I'm really not the best at discern people always take advantage of me. I feel like people always getting one over on Well, you know what? You can find comfort and the things that are written if you just listen to what I have to say this morning you can change that and you Can have that hope that we just read about in Romans chapter 15 verse 4. So let's move forward here So again, this sermon is to develop you so that you can tell when somebody is trying to play and look It's not just the lost that'll try to play it save people as well All right, we all go through different things. People are in different stages in their life and people like to play games Let's let's face it. We've all had this happen to us, right? But we want to be above that we want to be able to discern when someone's trying to play us for a full Alright, so we're gonna start this thing off here. Look at verse number one Joshua 9 verse 1 It says and it came to pass when all the kings which were on this side Jordan in the hills and in the valleys and in the coast of the great sea over against Lebanon They hid tight and the Amorite and the Canaanite and the parasite and the high bite and Jebusite heard Thereof, so you hear okay Israel is just steamrolling people right? They know something's wrong. They know they're next They've heard the Word of God go throughout the world and then look at verse 2 they that Says that they gathered themselves together to fight with Joshua I'm sorry with yes with Joshua and Israel with one accord and that the way the way I see that today is that's what these People will do they'll come into a church like this and they'll try to fight with me personally But they'll also try to fight with you. They'll try to separate the two Right, they'll come after me through the emails through the phone calls through the text messages through the death threats And then they'll go to each one of your Facebook pages, right? We've already had this right brother just a prime example, right? If you don't know what I'm talking about, I'll explain it to you after the service Hey, but that's what these people will often do the world of times, you know, they'll try to get me They'll try to put me against you you against me and they'll just try to divide right? It's the oldest trick in the book divide and conquer That is one of the games that the world plays now keep your place there and go to Exodus chapter 23 because I want to explain to you what's going on here and Why these guys are? gearing up for war Exodus chapter 23 look at verse 23 it says this for mine angel shall go before thee and bring me in unto the Amorites and The Hittites and the parasites and the Canaanites and the high-rise and the Jebusites and I will cut them off This word had gone out. They've already began the conquest there You know the story God has promised Israel a land of their own and they're in the process of taking What is rightfully theirs these nations here wicked they're filled with all sorts of unrighteous people deeds. I mean sodomites pedophiles Just just witchcraft all sorts of abominations. God's had enough and he says, you know what? I've got this people They're gonna serve me and we're taking your land. They hear this and they're like, oh, no, you're not We're gonna stand up. We're gonna fight you. We're not gonna go down without a fight. Look at verse 24 Because God tells them this he says thou shalt not bow down to their gods Nor serve them nor do after their works, but thou shalt utterly Overthrow them and quite break down their images. So what is the commandment here? They are to overthrow these people completely destroy them. They're not supposed to make a league with them They're not supposed to make friends with them. They are supposed to conquer them total destruction. This is ordained by God It's not very pleasant but it's the way it has to be look at verse 25 and you shall serve the Lord your God and he shall bless thy Bread and thy water and I and he says that I will take sickness away from the midst of thee go back to Joshua We'll continue on here. And so you're gonna see this theme as we read this chapter Okay, if you do this then this will happen and that's important. We're gonna come back to that concept here in a little while Look at verse 3 It says and when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done unto Jericho and to AI they did work wildly and went and made as if they had been Ambassadors and took old sacks upon their asses and wine bottles old and rent and bound up So you have two different I guess approaches going on here, right? You've got all these nations They're like look we could be God we could be Jacob and we can beat Israel we can smoke Right, they think they can win this war they think they can win this battle the Gibeonites You got to give them some kind of a credit here because they're smarter They're like no we heard what they did to Jericho. We heard what they did to AI We're probably not gonna win so we don't want to go with them Right. They're like we don't want to go with them. So we have to come up with another way We have to come up with another plan of action here. Let's keep reading verse 5 and Old shoes and clouded upon their feet and old garments upon them and all the bread of their provision was dry and Moldy, right? So they're put what are they doing here? They're putting on a good act, right? They're making great preparations to make it seem like they're these ambassadors from a far country They're trying to there's a working craft That's what Wiley means right who remembers the Roadrunner cartoon right Wiley coyote right and all the scheming and all the The tricks that he did to Roadrunner, okay, that's what these people are doing Look, there's nothing new under the Sun the writers of that cartoon and probably read this They probably grew up in church and you know heard of these tactics and oh Right, but that's really what these guys are doing. They're just about a bunch of cartoon characters, you know It's just funny how What's sad is how this actually works You know Look at six and they went on to they went to Joshua onto the camp of Gilgal and said unto him and to the men Of Israel we become from a far country now therefore make ye a league with us Isn't that interesting? Make ye a league with us Now you you know that list we just read next is 23. It doesn't say the Gibeonites, right? I'm gonna show you something. You don't have to turn there. Just listen to this This is why they're concerned because you might think well, what's the big deal with the Gibeonites? And they weren't on the list. Well, actually they are just as the second Samuel 21 2 says this this is many many many years down the road It says and the king called the Gibeonites This is David's talking about King David says 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 The children of Israel and Judah now turn to Joshua chapter 10 real quick Joshua chapter 10 So these people are also that they're like it's almost like they're a mix So you're gonna see high bites in involved in here and the Bible says in second Samuel that they're the remnant of the Amorites Right, so they're right in the middle of all these nations And so they understood that and they realize we're going down to we have to do something about this Otherwise, we're gonna get destroyed. We're gonna get wiped off the face of the earth now Here's what's interesting about Gibeon look at verse 2 Joshua 10 verse 2. So this is where Adonai Bezak But the king of Jerusalem before the Israelites conquered them he says in verse 2 He says this says that they feared greatly right because he's hearing about all the stuff He's he's already heard that the Gibeonites made a league with Israel and he's like great now they're gonna come for us They're gonna take my city They're gonna take my land and my property and he said that they feared greatly because Gibeon was a great city Remember we talked about that last week. What does it mean when somebody says that they're great in the Bible, right? It's not that Tony the Tiger slogan, right? It means they were large They were a large nation So they were a great city as one of the royal cities and because it was greater than AI and all the men there Up were mighty. So this was a very large city and all the men in there were very strong They were very physically strong probably had reputation for going to battle and winning Now you got to go go back to Joshua 9. You got to ask yourself this question Why didn't Gibeon just decide to join the nation of Israel because we've talked about this before Right Israel wasn't just made up of people just born in the land. Right? Remember the first Hebrew was a Gentile Okay, everybody seems to forget that You know, Israel was told by God not to abort the stranger because they were strangers in Egypt, right? So the Gibeonites they could have said, you know what? Let's just forsake all this and just join up They could have done that and they would have been grafted into those tribes. Could they have been free? It's no because you would have to be the son of Aaron now that lineage to be a priest but nonetheless it could have gone on and done great things for God and just became Israel They knew they were doomed Right, and that's the dilemma here. They knew they didn't want to join up with all the other nations They were gearing up for war because they were smart enough to realize they were going to get smoked So why didn't they do either one of those things and I think you can see the answer It's because they wanted it their way. They didn't want to lose their sovereignty and here's point number one this morning They wanted God on their side, but they didn't want to be on God's side You see they wanted God on their side, but they didn't want to be on God's side. They wanted it their way These people are like a Burger King slogan, you know, you can have it your way they didn't want to lose their customs They didn't want to lose their nation their flag and all the things that you know made them Patriots to their own nation And so they said well we realize that you know The high bites and the Jebusites these guys are gonna get smoked. These guys are gonna obviously get destroyed, but we don't want to Be part of Israel and lose our heritage and lose all of our culture So what we'll do is we'll just be fenced riders, we'll just come up We'll just we'll just craft up a way. We'll just scheme up a way to play Joshua to trick him and To supporting us into backing us up and you know what? That's a game that a lot of people like to play today They like to come into churches like this for the wrong reasons now Obviously the people that are unsaved they come in for the wrong reasons. They come in to do damage Okay, but then there will be saved people to come into churches like this because they have an ulterior motive They act like they're on board. They act like they're part of the preaching They act like they want to learn and grow but really they have some kind of other agenda, right? Whatever it may be You know, there's a whole host of things. Maybe they want money. Maybe they want food Maybe they just want to feel a part of something. The problem with that is that when things get real When the battle gets hot you realize oh, wait a minute. It's not worth it anymore because I'm in this thing for the wrong reasons You See that Gibeon, you know, they came to Joshua not because they wanted to serve the Lord God It's because they didn't want to get destroyed so they came to him for selfish reasons And this isn't this just like the world today Oh God help me Right. We knock on somebody's door. Oh, I know God's loving me. I know he supports me. He supports everybody Of course, he loves me, right? He's got my back. You know, I'm always in church Isn't that what they say? Yeah, you see they painted a picture of God that supports them in in their will That's not how life goes. That's not how we're supposed to be Why did God tell Moses? Hey, if you do this, then you won't have sickness, then you'll have food Then you'll have blessing then you'll get the victory because that's life. Right? God is a God of order He says you do this first and then you will receive this And so the first thing that I want you to realize is when somebody is trying to play you often times They are trying to play both sides, right? They want the world. They want their friendships out there They want their families, but then they'll say I don't want you to destroy me. I don't want you to mock me I don't want you to make me feel in you know, it's efficient I don't want you to make me feel like I'm not saved So I'm gonna play you too and people do this at the door all the time Right you hey, are you hundred percent sure you're on the way to heaven? Oh, yeah. Yeah. Oh, yeah Yeah, I love God. I got baptized. I follow the commandments right and you're like, well actually the Bible says, you know In Ephesians 2 8 9, you know that it's a gift. You don't have to work you ate him. Oh, yeah I know. I know I believe that too You know why they say that? It's because they realize you have more knowledge than them and that they are wrong Yeah, and they don't want to seem wrong. And so what they're gonna do is they're gonna play you now Now they're gonna be like, oh I agree with that. Yeah, that's exactly what I meant. Yeah. Yeah Right. They're gonna pull out that moldy bread. Yeah, they're old shoes. Look at my Bible. Look at all the highlights I don't people do this to you, right? Look at all these look People always do this Oh wait there and I'll go back to their house and they'll come out with their Bible and they'll be like look look Look, of course, I'm saved. I got the Bible here. I got highlights. I've got bookmarks. I Got a church bulletin from like five years ago. I mean I got church bulletins. Yeah Yeah. Oh, look at my tattoo Look at my tattoo I'm on your side But inside they're screaming. Please don't expose me for not being saved I'm embarrassed that I've gone to church for 30 years and I can't explain the gospel I'm embarrassed that I can't tell you. I don't know how to get to heaven Yesterday when someone in Pastor Thompson, he asked this guy he's like Hey, look, if I were your friend I were to come up to you and say what do I have to do to go to? Heaven, what would you tell me because this guy was doing this thing for the same thing. I go to church You know, I'm on the board. I'm on the board of directors. I'm on this. Oh, you know, I'm a big wig Um, you know all this stuff is that what look if I was your friend I didn't know how to be saved. What would you tell me how to do to go to heaven? I was like look, you know, I've got a Bible, you know, look I go to church, you know He's wearing like a shirt from his church, you know, it's just just being a giving night He's trying to try to play it. So you realize that Pastor Thompson wanted real facts, right? How do you know that you're safe? You told me you're safe. How do you know? Yeah guys like, you know what man? I just I don't have time to talk with this, but maybe I'll come visit you sometime, right? So he's trying to make a league now That's what these people do when somebody has to it when they have two agendas. It's always gonna come out a little bit You know, we read the chapter right you can kind of tell where we're going next These guys kind of get the sense like wait a minute you come from a far country But you don't really look quite look like it. You don't sound like it right and isn't that like so wanting to You know, oh I go to tree city church and I know I'm safe. Well, that's funny because we know that they preached probation, right? Yeah, I don't preach that much You know that and so when you hear them tell you hey, I'm of you. I'm just an ambassador from my church That sends off red flags in your mind, right? Yep, man, she's like wait a second I know for a fact you didn't get saved at that church, right? Not unless there was a somebody who was saved in the pew that got you which does happen I mean, that's how Katie got saved and we were at a church It was called Calvary Church and there was a lady in there and she she knew the gospel and you know She explained it to him. That's how we got saved. I'm not saying it can't happen. But every week Every week. Oh, look you see we're just do you see what what can happen when you understand this, right? Right people that are trying to play you they often have two motives and that is they just want to both ways That's what they give you nights one They don't want to lose their sovereignty But they don't want to join The Jebusites and the high fights all these guys because they know like these guys are gonna get smoked Everyone's got smoke. Nobody can be got like they've heard of God. They have a big they have a knowledge, right? They've heard what they did in Egypt, right? But they don't want to submit and it's very clear they could they should have just said, you know what? Hey, we're we would just want to be your people and they were commanded to let them in And that's the same thing today When somebody says hey, I want to I want him I want to be part of the body of Christ I want to be saved they come in God's not respect her persons What I wanted they wanted God on their side But they didn't want to be on God's side and the dangerous thing about that is that's a double-minded person You know, I've turned there for James 1 8 says a double-minded man is unstable in all his ways, right? And then James 4 verse 8 says draw nigh unto God and he will draw nigh to you cleanse your hearts He sinners and purify your heart. She don't mind it. This doesn't just apply to lost people We as believers can be double-minded as well. We can want things both ways ourselves, right? But that's not honest We don't want to be a Gibeonite. Yeah, right. We should always be transparent Should always be like hey, this is what I want. This is what I want to do. We don't want to be playing both sides Right, we don't go to other churches and pretend to be liberals Right, this is not it's not it's although I want to make a documentary You know, that's a different subject that there's always an exception You know that let's move on here look at verse number seven It says and the men of Israel said unto the high by its paradventure Ye dwell among us and how shall we make a league with you? So here's here's another tip for you Here's another tip for you what the mics on I think the battery might have died How's that better Okay, look at verse seven again It says in the men of Israel said unto the high by its paradventure Ye dwell among us and how shall we make a league with you? You know, God gave you your senses and your gut for a reason I don't really understand this until I became a pastor But sometimes I get a feeling that something's wrong with somebody and so far that feeling has never been wrong But you know what it doesn't just stop here I'm not the only one that has that you have that as well You know, have you ever had a feeling about somebody, you know, something's just not right and then all of a sudden you realize Oh, I was right That's your brain trying to tell you something that's what's going on here. They're like paradventure, which means perhaps So what they're saying is they're like, hey, how do we know you don't really just live around here and trying to get a free meal Trying to get a free pass Paradventure you live how should we make a league with you now? What should the answer been? We don't make leagues with anyone you either get on or get out That's what they should have said you either join us or we kill you That's it If you think about it, that's the message that we bring at the door You either get saved or you go to hell Now I don't quite put it like that all the time once in a while when somebody's really irate, you know You get what I'm saying? Look at verse 8 and they said up to Joshua. We are thy Servants and look this is what people do when they want to play. I'm on your side. I'm on your team, right? But what did they do? They came up right away and wanted something and that's what people do They'll call me sometimes be like hey, I'm a Christian I came to know the Lord, you know, like 15 years ago and they want to give me this big sob story And then they're like, you know what but I'm just kind of down on my luck, right? They try to work that in right though. I got this moldy bread I've got these shoes falling apart here my Bibles and shambles because I just read it so much You know and then all of a sudden they try to hit me with that league. Hey, can you just write me a check? Hey, can you just give me something? Right. That's when that's when you should know somebody's trying to play you Right, they come at you with a sob story, right? They're trying to get you to drop your guard and They said unto Joshua we are thy Servants and Joshua said unto them who are ye and from whence come ye so does the right thing here? It's like who are you? Where did you come from? What do you want verse 9 and they said unto him from a very far Country thy servants are come because of the name of the Lord thy God For we have heard the fame of him and all that he did in Egypt. So they have heard the truth. They know they're next But they don't specifically say that Joshua look what did Joshua ask Who are you and from whence come you So here's the thing that you guys got to remember when you ask somebody questions Don't forget that you ask them those questions Because people often come at you with just a just a barrage of just information To overwhelm you to forget that you even ask those questions Remember when you ask a question get the answer I know this this may sound basic, but you would look you would be surprised at how often we forget to do this And think about your experiences out stolen when you ask somebody a question They just start just pounding you with different information. You'll forget you ask the question if you're not careful Right, so he asks two questions. Does he get those two answers though? See, I'm real big on this because this is important. This is how you avoid people steamrolling you in conversations You ask questions and you get that information or we got a problem every time we got a problem Because now you're hiding something and now I'm starting to get upset So he says and they said unto him from a very far country. No, no that that's not okay That's not right. I Asked who are you and where did you come from? I asked you what church do you go to and How did you get saved? I? Didn't ask to see your Bible. I Didn't ask to see your bedroom. I didn't ask to see your kitchen. I didn't ask about your cat behind your microwave. I Asked how did you get saved and I want to know the answer. I Asked you why did you come to this church? Who are you? What are your intentions? Why did you say that? Why are you down playing the Bible? Why are you railing? Tell me right now. Oh My life is it? No, I don't care. Oh, but I've got a long history. I don't care I asked you a question and you better answer me and you're gonna answer me. Oh got a problem You see this that's how you play this game This is warfare right here, this is serious business when you ask a question you need to make sure that you get the answers So they say oh from a very far country Thy servants are come because of the name of the Lord thy God for we have heard the fame of him and all they did In Egypt, so they'll do this. They'll circumvent the question and then bring it back to something that you know, right? They know you're about the things of God and people will do this at the door They'll they'll bring up Bible Church things that they think that you understand well They know you understand but they'll just try to sidestep it and just deflect the conversation to what maybe they feel comfortable with But you got to remember they don't and they didn't answer the question. So they're trying to hide something Verse 10 and all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites Because they have Amorites among them according to second Samuel that were beyond Jordan To Sihon king of Heshbon and to all king abation which was at Ashtoreth wherefore our elders and all the inhabitants of our country Spake to us saying take victuals with you for the journey and go to meet them and say it to them We are your servants therefore now make ye league with us So again, they have to add all of this fluff and all of this filler to get back to what they want They want that contract they want that league And I'll tell you they could probably tell by the actions of Israel That they're not interested in leagues because they heard look God didn't make a league with Pharaoh Okay, God steamrolled Egypt. He steamrolled Pharaoh He released plagues and all kinds of just painful torments on those guys. He drowned their army in the sea Okay There hasn't been any league but they're gonna try it Anyways, like hey just make a league with us and we've had people come in here before they want to be here for whatever reason They want something from some of you They want something from some of you we get on to them a little bit and all of a sudden it's like oh But we just want to be your servants. We just we just want to be here. We just love this That's a hard spot to be in because it's like I know you're up to something I just don't know what And now I've got to figure out what hurts what makes you squirm so I can get you out of here. All right Look at verse 11 wherefore. Oh, we just read that. Let's skip here verse 12 this our bread We took hot for our provision out of our houses on the day We came forth to go unto you but now behold it is dry and it is moldy So again, they're going back to the props that they make and that's what people will do to you when they're trying to play you For a fool they'll keep bringing you back to what they want you to see not what you want to see Joshua wanted to see The country and he wanted to see who they were but these guys are like look at the mold. Look at the moldy bread Look man, it was hot out of the oven We baked it on Sabbath mode for you And now it's all molded look look look be careful when people are like, hey look over there Look over there When you didn't inquire over there, you didn't even ask over there Because they're trying to pull the wool over your eyes first 13 and these bottles of wine Which we filled were new behold they be rent and these our Garments and our shoes have become old by reason of a very long journey Remember these things are written a four time for our learning Imagine the amount of discernment you're gonna get just by reading and understanding this and thinking about this think about these tactics later And then think about a situation in your own life somebody played you And it's gonna click and you're gonna be like, okay, and you're not gonna be that simple anymore Remember we don't want to be a simple people because the simple believeth every word. That's what the Bible says Oh, you want to make a league with us? Oh, of course. Yeah. Yeah, come on in The problem is in Exodus 23 23. God said no Said you destroy them And say you make a league with them. Here's point number two beware of the fine print Beware of the fine print You say what are you talking about the Bible doesn't have fine print I got like 20 font right here But here's the thing When you go to somebody's door, what do they always say? They talk about the big things Oh Church Bible Commandments Church Bible Commandments Church Bible Commandments God Church Bible Commandments God sometimes Jesus, right? That's what they'll say They'll throw these things in these concepts at you because we're all familiar with them, but they're avoiding the question. Who are you? What country did you come from? Who are you and what do you want? But they avoid these things I see I bring this up We need to be aware of the fine print the things that are maybe under the bigger details Right. We we understand salvation in this church. We realize it's a free gift and then once you're saved you are always saved Right, but now you need to start learning that fine print the stuff that nobody really talks about, you know The rest of the Bible the things that were written a for time you need to start looking at all these things You see Exodus 23 23. It's kind of like an example of a fine print because it's in the middle of a chapter You know amongst a whole bunch of other Commandments, you know It's not talked about as much as the Ten Commandments Oh as long as I follow the Ten Commandments, which I've made up in my mind. I'm good to go Right, but they forget the fine print which was hey kill these people. That means you don't make a league with them You don't make bread for them. You don't pat them on the back You don't you know You don't be friends with them you kill them and you take the land because they're wicked and they're evil and a little leaven Leaveneth the whole lump Why do you think our church has been so successful after we've kicked out all of these losers? Because a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump these people just came in here and it's church Bible new IFB Right, but they ignored the fine print Serve God with all your heart all your mind all your soul for example You know and turn to first Kings chapter 9 Why do you think companies Just advertise in this way. They'll they'll throw out their product what it can do for you how long the warranty is, right? but in the fine print They'll say if and then it's like a paragraph like this long, you know, and nobody ever reads the fine print Right Nobody ever reads that stuff and what's in at the end of the day what's gonna bite you what's in that fine print? What they don't tell you is this is a binding contract and we're gonna extract this amount of money from your bank account on This day and you have to call somebody in China five times a day for 30 days in order to cancel it That's they don't tell you you see what I'm saying? And that's like the Gibby Nights here, you know They're just putting up that what this big picture like. Hey, look at this. Look at all this Look at all this moldy bread. Look at all the stuff that we brought for you But You know underneath they've got this little contract like hey We just want to make a league with you and it's gonna be binding cuz we're gonna snare you and you get the point I want to show you this here first Kings chapter 9. This is regarding King Solomon look at verse 1 it says and it came to pass when Solomon had finished the building of the house of the Lord in the King's house and all Solomon's desire Which he was pleased to do that the Lord appeared to Solomon the second time as he had appeared unto him at Gibeon Kind of interesting verse 3 and the Lord said unto him I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication that thou hast made before me. I have a hollow die. I've hollowed this house Which thou hast built to put my name there forever in mine eyes and Mine heart shall be there perpetually now I want you to pay attention to this here in verse 4 and if Thou will walk before me as David thy father walked in integrity of heart and in Uprightness to do according to all that I have commanded thee and will keep my statutes and my judgments now Here's verse 5 then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel forever as I promised to David thy father saying there shall Not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel and it goes back to this concept you can have Your family on the throne I will dwell in this house forever if You serve me if your children serve me if you do this that becomes fine print to a lot of us See a lot of people just hear the first part of what God said I will be there forever I will dwell in this house forever and then they just oh they just focus on that and then everything else that God says all of a sudden becomes like the fine print and We don't think about that and we don't read that and we don't meditate on that and we don't apply that to our lives And then we forget and then we marry a bunch of wives and they ensnare us to worship other gods Then we lose the kingdom right that's what happened to Solomon If and then look at verse 6 But if ye shall at all turn from following me ye or your children and will not keep my commandments and my statutes Which I have said before you but go and serve other gods and worship them Then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them and this house Which I have hollowed for my name Will I cast out of my sight in Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among all people so which one happened The lie, yeah exactly the last one Solomon said oh, I like all these other ladies Right, they're really good. I'm not committing adultery because I'm gonna marry him all He gets a bunch of wives they turn his heart Towards their gods because he forgot the fine print. He just looked at the picture It's what the world will do. We respond to imagery. We respond to things that people paint to our eyes and Then we forget about the league that they're trying to make with us We forget about that fine print. That's why it's important to hear the same thing over and over again That's why Paul that's what the Bible says. Hey, there is a safety or there's safety in a multitude of counselors You've got 66 books in this Bible. That's a multitude of counselors You got a bunch of people in this church to read and study the Bible, you know, that's a multitude of counselors If they got to have some pastor friends, that's a multitude of counselors All right We need to stick together and realize that there's a game out there that people are trying to play with this and it's to pluck You out of serving God see because the world would come to you and say hey, you know I understand you go to church and they know that you're on fire. You're mighty you're doing these things for God and like hey You know, I got this thing over here, too, and it's not that bad In fact, it fits right in with what you're doing and they're gonna try to sell you on it Right, but underneath they're gonna try to hook you with that contract Don't tell you that once you start to covet after this thing, which is worldly. It's gonna turn your heart away from the things of God See the Gibeonites. They already rehearsed what they were gonna do, right? They were crafty. These people aren't stupid They were what they worked wily the Bible says come up with a plan. Let's get Israel to focus on this in Hope that they aren't paying attention to the fine print. Let's hope they don't really understand the Bible Let's hope they don't remember all of Exodus 23 23, right? That way we can win and that's what's gonna happen to you when you stop reading the Bible You stop focusing on that fine print. The world is gonna get you and you're gonna get played like a fool beware of the fine print Go back to Joshua and look at verse number 14 and so again the way that we Overcome this is to pay attention to the fine print because God says all throughout the Bible If you do this, then this will happen and that's a promise. Hey if you go and preach hard People are either gonna get right and the scum is gonna get out That's what happens Every single time look at verse 14 and the men took of their victuals and asked not Counsel at the mouth of the Lord now. Why do you think that's in there? Why do you think that that verse is in there? What should they have done should have asked counsel of God? You see that This here gets us in so much trouble When we just have what we think is a grand opportunity And we just jump on it without going to God first without praying about it without going to the Bible and saying hey Is this something that's right? We're commanded to prove all things in The key I'll just tell you this right now if you get one thing get this the key to understanding if you're being played Is to ask yourself. Have you proved this thing? We're commanded as God's people to prove all things and a whole fast that which is true Verse 15 and Joshua made peace with them and a and made a league with them to let them live and the princes of the congregation swear to them and It came to pass at the end of three days after they had made a league with them that they heard that they were their neighbors and that they dwelt among them The Bible uses neighbors in different contexts, right? Sometimes it's neighbor like this like they're like they're coming into the promised land, right? They're conquering They're taking over people and the Gibeonites are their neighbors and they're supposed to steamroll other verses the Bible say You know love thy neighbor and obviously that's talking about it's talking about both For example, it's talking about they're not supposed to love the Gibeonites because they hate God right just like today people say well You're supposed to love your neighbor. So you're supposed to love the homosexual No, they're not supposed to be my neighbor. Leviticus 2013 is very clear about that. I don't have to love them Okay, I just have to bring that up because people will often throw these things out there try to paint this picture Well, you know, you're supposed to love your neighbor and The Gibeonites were their neighbors and that's why they made the league with them. They were just supposed to ask God first They weren't supposed to kill him That's not what the Bible says The Bible says they weren't supposed to make any kind of league with them who weren't supposed to serve their gods and that they were The remnant of the Ammonites or the Amorites, right? So they were supposed to smoke them They were in the midst of those nations. That was their land. They were supposed to overcome them and take them So just understand that So verse 16 one more time and it came to pass at the end of three days after they had made a league with them That they heard that they were their neighbors and they dwelt among them So here's point number three don't commit or align yourself with people until you have proved them Okay, don't commit yourself or align yourself with people until you have proved them Because you know what's gonna happen three days later reality is gonna come slap you right upside your head and you're gonna realize uh-oh, I just made a mistake and And then all of a sudden hindsight's 20 20, oh wait, we forgot to pray. Oh wait, we forgot about the Bible Oh, wait, we forgot about this. Now. You're snared. Now. You're in bondage. Look. I'm just trying to help you There's a reason why people play games with us. It's to put us in bondage It's to snare us it's to take advantage of us Several years ago is on a temporary duty assignment in San Diego, right? I went to this mixed martial arts gym It's called the arena gym and go in there and I'm like, oh, this is cool So, so how do you sign up and the girls like oh, it's the X amount She sounds like 75 bucks or something like that. I was like that's cheaper in Japan All right. Well cool. So yeah, $75. I was like, well, I only have orders here for six months. So Is that cool? Can I like do three months at a time or just pay month by month or how does that work? And she's like, oh you just have to pay for a full year, but don't worry about it you just you just tell us to cancel it and then we'll cancel it for you like Okay, no problem Right. I heard all the guys kicking the bags and you know, this gym is huge You know, like two rings and octagon here everything that a guy that loves mixed martial arts could want, you know There's UFC guys there. I'm like, I don't care. I have to have this right. I'm like, I'll be out of here in six months It's not gonna be a problem. She said it wasn't gonna be a problem. You know what happened? I didn't read the fine print And I mean it was hell to cancel that thing after six months when my orders were up and I had to go back home I lost a little bit of money because it took like two months after the six months to Finally get a hold of somebody and I had to fax him because I can't just show people my orders You know, I have a government job. There's sensitive information even on stuff like that So now I'm having to go and get these letters made these special letters made to send to these people Having to send them utility bills to prove that I'm not lying and what a mess. What a nightmare You know, I only lost like a couple hundred bucks, but still, you know, it could have been a lot worse And I'm sure we've all been in this situation before where we didn't read the fine print and we lost and that's the point When you don't read the fine print when you don't pay attention to detail you lose you get played That's what we're trying to avoid That is what we're trying to avoid and this is why we preach Hey don't cosign for people that you don't know now if you've got enough dough, you know You really have proved somebody. I don't care. That's your business. It's not mine. It's not wise but that's your business And you guys probably some of you know the story You know the story of the guy who wanted a bozo in here to cosign a car for him I preach a sermon about it didn't even know this was going on And it comes up to me I'm so good you please dad because then this so-and-so was trying to get me to sign a cosign form so you get a car Couple months later we see him in a minivan. No wonder how you got that Oh, but it was garbage so You don't have a job. How'd you get a minivan? Pay attention to the fine print Look at verse 17 the children of Israel journeyed and came into their cities on the third day now their cities were Gibeon and Jephira and Beoroth and Kirjath Jearim verse 18 and the children of Israel smote them not why? Because the princes of the congregation had sworn unto them by the Lord God of Israel and all the Congregation murmured against the princes. It's always a good idea to run things by your boss by the supervisor as a Christian we need to run things by God and look we all get in situations where we don't do this and Sometimes it bites us okay So they can't kill these guys now They don't realize they're like oh we were supposed to destroy you But we just made a covenant with you, and we can't verse 20 this we will do to them We will even let them live lest wrath be upon us because of the oath which we swear unto them And the princess said unto them let them live But let them be hewers of wood and drawers of water unto all the congregation as the princes had promised them So you see where where this is gonna. Take you where this takes us it puts us in a hard spot Now they have to live with these thorns in their sides Forever and the reason why you're even reading about them again in 2nd Samuel 21 is because Saul and his misguided zeal decided to kill the Gibeonites or a lot of them and it wasn't right what he did and So now David's having to clean up for him, but you know what David's also having to clean up for Joshua Think about that the decisions that you make today When somebody plays you today, they could be playing your children or even your grandchildren down the road Verse 22 and Joshua called for them and spake unto them saying wherefore have you beguiled us saying we are very far from you When we dwell among us and again hindsight man is 20 20 Verse 23 now therefore you are cursed and there shall none of you be freed from being bondmen in hewers of wood and drawers of water from the house of my God And I'll also just mention this and you'll read about the Gibeonites actually helping rebuild the temple You know later on down the road it winds up working out But it's like they had to go through this long Berkey filter process. You know to get to that level In verse 24 and the answer Joshua said because it was Certainly told thy servants how that the Lord thy God commanded his servant Moses to give you all the land and to destroy all the inhabitants Of the land from before you therefore we were sore afraid of our lives because of you and have done this thing so now the Gibeonites tell the truth in Full detail hey we heard what you did to all these other nations We knew we were gonna get destroyed so we decided to hoodwink you instead of join you Know the old saying if you can't beat him join them That's what they should have done in the beginning But they didn't want to they're too prideful because they have a lot of mighty men they had a lot of power they had a lot Of royalties right they had a lot of clout. They don't want to give that up Sometimes we just need to give up on our own pride and our own selfish desires and actually join God in what he wants us to do And so I'm gonna leave you with this Romans 15 for one more time for whatsoever things were written before time We're written for our learning that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope Say I'm not the best at realizing when someone's trying to play me. That's okay You can rest in comfort that through studying the things that are written here that will develop And that will turn into patience and salvation not the eternal salvation But you know that the temporary salvation right saving yourself from being played like a fool being played like a Mario Brother game Or a double dragon or something like that Right prove all things hold fast to that which is good that means we need to prove all things that people tell us We need to prove all things that people put in front of us Because the only result of not doing that is always bondage every single time these guys snared Israel Think of we look they would have avoided all this trouble If they would have just kept focusing on the Bible and Bible preaching hey Exodus 2323 who are you? Where did you come from? Oh, you don't want to answer me prepare to die That's it. It's black and white. Let's bow our heads and have a word of prayer Thank you so much Lord for this church. Just pray bless the rest of our day Lord keep us safe and Bring us back all safely tonight in Jesus name. I pray amen