Archive for the ‘Judges-BibleTrekToday’ Category

“In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit.” Judges 21:25

As we have read through this book of Judges, I am impressed with how much this book describes our contemporary culture and the world view of secular humanism that is so prevalent.  When people have no king or supreme authority in their life, they end up being the authority themselves.  The result is catastrophic!  Society becomes full of sin, immorality, and rebellion.  That’s all that is in the human heart apart from God’s grace!  Let’s think about these records from history we have just read.

First, without strong leadership to keep the people focused on the Lord and His Word, people always drift into evil and rebellion.  Our land has lacked leadership morally.  Men have forsaken their job of training children and mentoring younger men. Women have had to take leadership and responsibility for providing for families because men are not stepping up and the children have suffered from lack of parenting.   The home is broken down and idolatry has replaced the family altar and accountable relationships in the family.  Each person is seeking self-fulfillment in ways that are harmful to godly relationships.  Our land has drifted into sexual immorality and personal spirituality that more often than not does not have a biblical base.  In Scripture, idolatry and immorality always go together! The parents end up letting the children choose what they want, thinking that this is best.  How can a sinner choose what is best when they have no “king” but self?

In the time of Judges, the ministry of the priesthood was also corrupt.  Ministers were often hirelings.  It is often true today that the same thing is true of ministry people. (John 10:11-13)  Many are in ministry just as a job.  They have positions and go through the motions, but are not really caring for the people.  They tickle ears and tell their people what they know that they want to hear.  (2nd Timothy 4:3-4)  There is also a group that have a love for money and use God’s people to line their own pockets.  We must be discerning of the same idolatry and religious scams in our world today!

God’s remedy for these conditions in religion has always been the same.  He listens for His people to cry out to Him in prayer!  When they do, He begins to act.  (Psalm 50:14-15)  He raises up a person who will walk with Him by faith and live and preach the Word of God.    When these people preach the uncompromising Word of God in the power of the Holy Spirit, then healing, restoration, and deliverance takes place.  (see Judges 4:1-11 for an example)  How God longs to be our King and lead us into doing what is right and a blessing for us and those we love!  Allow Him to touch your heart today!  God bless you and your family!  Pastor John

Scripture Reading for March 14: Judges 17-21

Religion is man’s attempt to do something that makes him feel good about himself and his own relationship with God.  The problem is that there is nothing we can do to improve our relationship with God.  We are sinners.  God is holy and has set up a very narrow way of man coming to Him.  In the time of the judges, the nation of Israel had slipped away from the Word of God and each person was doing what was right in his own eyes.  (Judges 17:6; 21:25)  The nation had forgotten God and gotten lost in a self-directed religion of idolatry.

Judges 17 records the story of a man, Micah, from the tribe of Ephraim who had stolen money from his own mother.  He heard a curse pronounced by his mother and confessed his crime.  The mother forgave him and then took some of the silver he returned and has an idol made for her son!  Micah buil a tshrine, made an ephod, and installed one of his sons as a priest.  (Judges 17:1-6) This violated everything that God had established for His people in Israel.  Only the Levites could be priests and there were to be no idols.  God’s people were to go to the place God set to worship, not to any place they chose!  (Deuteronomy 12:1-9)

The next turn of events comes as a Levite stops in.  Micah hired him to be his “father and priest”. (Judges 17:10)  This was more in line with what God desired, but still far from obedience!  Everything seemed good until some spies from the tribe of Dan stopped by Micah’s house.  They inquired of the Lord through Micah’s Levite.  He gave them what they wanted to hear.  They soon returned and made this Levite a better deal.  Why not be a priest for a whole tribe, rather than a household?  The Levite accepted happily because the price was right!  Climbing the corporate ladder is not new!

What do we get from this bizarre story that can help us in our walk with Jesus today?  First, we must be aware that we can easily slip away from a true relationship with the Lord.  Micah and his mother were descendants of Ephraim, on of the sons of Joseph.  They had a rich heritage of faith and knew of the miraculous working of God.  They should have!  Life in the promised land can easily distract us from passing on the faith and teaching about God.  Prosperity can blind and distract us!

Second, notice how big a part money played in this story:  stolen money, money to buy an idol, money given to appease this rebellious son, money to hire the Levite, and more money to hire him away from Micah’s family!  Money seems to be the answer to every problem!  Priests here are for sale and God’s blessing can be bought!  What a lie from the Devil himself!  When you have no King, you end up in contemporary religion!  Watch out today!

Scripture reading for March 13: Judges 13-16

The story of Samson is a mix of the supernatural power and anointing of God and the lowest of our carnal nature.  Samson was born by supernatural intervention to a couple who was childless.  His parents carefully listened to the instructions of an angel and raised this boy as a Nazarite, one set apart by God.  (Numbers 6:1-21) God’s Spirit began to stir Samson early in his life.  God was going to use him to deliver the Israelites from 40 years of bondage to the Philistines.  This bondage was a result of idolatry and evil in God’s sight. (Judges 13:1)

As Samson grew, he was attracted to a Philistine woman in the town of Timnah.  He asked his parents to get her for him.  The Bible states that this was from the Lord, although his parents did not understand and sought to direct him to get a bride from his own people. (Judges 14:3-4)   This is difficult to understand.  God specifically warns us not to intermarry with those outside the faith. (2nd Corinthians 6:14) In this instance, God used Samson’s carnal tendencies to accomplish His purposes in attacking the enemies of his people.  It is not meant to be a pattern at all!

Samson’s marriage to this woman never happened.  She was given to one of his friends in the bridal company!  This seemed to fill Samson with the desire for revenge.  His anger and impulsiveness moved him to get even.  God used this too, but how much better to follow the Lord by prayer and listening to His instructions!  Samson impulsively ate honey out of a lion’s carcass, a violation of the Nazerite vow.  He was attracted to prostitutes and carnal women.  These proved to be his downfall!  How often men of God are distracted by their flesh!  How the mighty have fallen!

At the end of his life, Samson was in captivity, both of his eyes gouged out.  There, he was mocked at a gathering of Philistine officials.  The first recorded prayer where Samson asks for God’s help is recorded here.  (Judges 16:28)  God faithfully answers the cry of this man who could have been such a mighty force to deliver.  He was once again given supernatural strength and God used him to destroy more of the Philistines in his death than in his life!

What can we learn today?  God chooses to use us in spite of our sinfulness and carnal nature but there are consequences.  What we sow we will reap.  God is never mocked! (Galatians 6:7)  We, however, can be deceived!   We must guard against the carnal nature.  It has the potential to blind us and take us to our death!  How much better to walk in the Spirit and humbly follow Jesus each day!  God bless you in doing that today!

Samson’s only recorded prayer: “O Sovereign Lord, remember me.  O God, please strengthen me just once more, and let me with one blow get revenge on the Philistines for my two eyes.” (Judges 16:28)

Scripture reading for March 12: Judges 9-12

All authority come from God and the Bible declares that God places people in authority. (Psalm 75:6-7)  When God places someone in authority, His anointing and counsel guide that person.  The person must stay under God’s anointing and follow His directions closely.  As we have observed the various leaders so far in Scripture, we see how God has placed them where He wanted them and used them as they followed Him.

For example, Gideon was a man placed by God in a position of leadership.  Gideon interacted with God to be certain of what to do and how to do it.  He certainly was not perfect and made some glaring mistakes, but brought peace to the land for a period of time.  He had 71 sons and a large family.  When Gideon passed away, a leadership crisis arose.  The Israelites went back to idol worship and one of Gideon’s sons sought to take over.

Abimelech arose to take over his father’s place.  Abimelech was the son of a slave girl.  He had 70 brothers who were produced through his father by other mothers.  He went to his mother’s town and relatives and proposed to take over leadership.  They paid him some money from an idol temple and he hired mercenary soldiers. They then killed 69 of his seventy brothers.  Jotham, the youngest, was the only one who escaped.  Jotham spoke a word of prophesy from Mt. Gerazim at Abimelech’s coronation ceremony then quickly escaped.  He basically pronounced a judgment on Abimelech’s leadership and those who followed. (Judges 9:7-21)

The Scriptures state that God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the citizens of Shechem.  God did this to avenge the shedding of innocent blood of the seventy brothers.  Abimelech and the citizens of Schechem had conspired to commit that murder and now they would become enemies themselves!  (Judges 9:22-24)  This evil spirit would destroy them both and was God’s judgment on a self-appointed leader and those who joined with him in rebellion!

What can we learn from this today?  God does place people in leadership for our good, protection, and blessing.  When a leader follows the Lord, the people and leader are blessed.  When someone tries to place themselves in leadership by his own power, craftiness, or manipulation, then both the leader and those who scheme with him come under God’s judgment!  We must be vigilant today in our country.  Politics and media are always at work trying to manipulate people.  Politicians use religion and try to destroy their rivals.  In the workplace, people scheme and plot to get advantage.  In the church at times, people seek to appoint themselves.  Beware–there are still evil spirits–and they bring God’s judgment on those who appoint themselves!

Shechem’s punishment: “So all the men cut branches and followed Abimelech.  They piled them against the stronghold and set it on fire over the people inside.  So all the people in the tower of Shechem, about a thousand men and women, also died.” (Judges 9:49)

Abimelech’s punishment: “Abimelech went to the tower and stormed it.  But as he approached the entrance to the tower to set it on fire, a woman dropped an upper milstone on his head and cracked his skull. Abimelech had his armor-bearer kill him so he did not die at the hands of a woman.

Scripture reading for March 11: Judges 6-8

Poor self-image and discouraging self-talk are common symptoms of a life out of touch with the Lord.  It is so easy to focus on our lack and the way we are made.  We always seem to magnify our weaknesses, see only the flaws, and are quick to blame them on someone else.  Sometimes, we simply rehearse them over and over to ourselves and stew in the negativity.  Gideon was just such a man during the days of the Judges.  The God we serve loves to use the weak and flawed and make them into mighty warriors, even in spite of themselves!

For seven years the Israelites had been under attack by the Midianites.  They cried out to God for help and He sent them a prophet.  The prophet told them about God’s mighty power in delivering them from Egypt and His warning not to worship the gods of the Amorites.  This was their problem.  They had not listened to the Lord!

God then sent his Angel to Gideon.  We find Gideon hiding in a wine press, threshing grain.  The Angel’s first words to Gideon: “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior!”  (Judges 6:12)  Gideon’s first response is not one of faith.  He was not sure why the Midianites were attacking them.  He believed that the Lord had abandoned them.  This messenger then sent Gideon on a mission to deliver Israel–in the strength he had.  (Judges 6:14)  Gideon again protests that his clan is the weakest in Manasseh and that he is the weakest of all!  What a self-image problem!  Or could it be that he is seeing accurately through his natural eyes?

The angel had told him to use the strength he had–little or great!  God would be with him and that would make all the difference in the world.  God sees each person as special and has a job that they can do.  He specializes in taking weak people and infusing them with His strength.  When they choose to believe His Word, nothing shall be impossible to them!  (1st Corinthians 1:25-29)

As Gideon prepared to deliver Israel, he gathered an army together.  God reduced it from 32,000 to 300!  He took away their weapons and gave them torches and pitchers!  He told them to break the pitchers and wave the torches and shout!  Gideon’s faith was strengthened by supernatural signs that he asked for.  God met him where he was.  God sent him into the enemy camp to hear a prophetic dream about his victory.  He obeyed and in the strength he had, delivered Israel from the Midianites!  (Judges 7:13-20)

If you are struggling today with a poor self-image or have been engaging in negative self-talk, let this greeting from the Word of God touch your heart today!  With God on your side, there are more for you than against you!  Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world!  “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior!”

Scripture Reading for March 10: Judges 1-5

When I was younger, we heated our home on the farm with wood.  When it was extremely cold, we had a small bin of coal to help with the heat through the long winter nights in Iowa.  One of the jobs right before bed was to go down and stoke the fire.  More wood would be added and ashes removed so a good flow of air would cause the fire to heat up and blaze.  A scoop of coal would be tossed in too.  A short time later the damper was shut so all the coals and logs would glow with a steady fire all night.  If no one stoked the fire, it would often go out and the house would quickly cool down to nearly outside temperature.

Good and godly leaders stoke the fires with the wood of prayer and pour on the coals of God’s Word to keep zeal burning through the long night.  But when the leader is gone and the  fire is not being stoked with fresh wood and coal, complacency sets in with our walk with the Lord. This happened in the time after  the death of Joshua.  Joshua left some elders who stoked the fire for a time.  They passed from the nation as well.  The next generation arose without a personal experience of God’s mighty miracles and deliverance.  This generation began to drift into idolatry and the bondage of sin.  Isn’t it funny, drift is always away from the Lord!

The cycle is recorded in Judges.  After the death of Joshua and the elders, the nation drifted into sin and idolatry.  God got angry and sold them into slavery to an oppressing nation.  The people cried out to the Lord and he heard them and raised up another leader who would deliver them.  Then there would be a time of peace during the life of that leader (Judge).  After the leader’s death, the cycle would begin again.  (Judges 2:10-19)  This is repeated seven times in the Book of Judges!

I see this kind of cycle also present in our culture today.  A godly leader teaches and preaches and lives out God’s Word and a revival springs up in a home or church or city.  (That leader can be a father or mother, pastor or Sunday School teacher, or a janitor who loves the Lord.) The fires of the Spirit are stoked with prayer and faithful, anointed preaching of the whole counsel of God.  A generation is set on fire and the wind of the Spirit  brings salvations, healing, and deliverance.  The land enjoys peace until another generation arises who did not experience God moving.  They fall into bondage as they drift away from the Lord.  God looks for another godly leader who will pray and preach to stoke the fire again!  Will you stoke the fires of the Spirit today by praying and reading God’s holy Word?  God will anoint you afresh with the Holy Spirit and Fire from on high!  (Matthew 3:11)