Archive for the ‘Judges-BibleTrekToday’ Category

Scripture reading for March 15th: Judges 17-21

True preachers called by God are sent by Him to care for and feed the Word of God to His people.  God takes care of these preachers and meets their needs through the people they minister to.  It is not wrong for a minister of the Gospel to receive financial help from those they serve.  But for a minister to hire himself out to a family for pay is perverse.  God is the only King and Lord we are to serve!

Our reading today tells the story of a man named Micah from the territory of Ephraim.  This man stole some silver from his mother and then decided to return it to her.  His mother consecrated it to the Lord!  Sounds like a godly mother who was doing a good thing, right?  Wrong!  The mother was consecrating it to be used to make an idol for her son to place in a shrine in his home!  (Judges 17:1-4)  Micah then appointed one of his sons as a priest and thought everything was wonderful!  They did all this because it was right in their own eyes and they didn’t recognized God as King!

The next thing to happen was the visit of a Levite from Bethlehem looking for a place to stay.   When Micah talked with him, he offered him wages and a job of being his personal priest.  The whole idea behind this job was that now that Micah had a Levite for his priest, surely God would be happy and bless him!  (Judges 17: 9-13)  Micah missed the whole point of a relationship with God and personal responsibility to obey God.

This ancient story hits close to home in today’s world.  Many times people mistakenly think that if they know the right preacher and have him or her for a friend that God will be pleased and help them.  Sometimes people feel that tithing to a certain ministry is a way to gain God’s favor.  They reason that giving money is like paying dues to the country club. You pay for the services of the minister and church building whenever you need them!  This is a lie of Satan and far from what God is pleased with. Righteous people live by their faith.  Preachers are not for hire!

Dear Friends in Christ,

Greetings on this day of rest and reflection!  I hope you are attending the church of your choice and fully giving yourself in worship and service to our God and Savior Jesus Christ!  We come together to lift up His name and celebrate His love for us and sacrifice  for our freedom.

Jesus loved us and demonstrated that love by giving Himself for us totally on the cross of Calvary.  His act of obedience to the Father stands out as supreme love.  We can only worship at such a display of selfless giving for those whose acts of rebellion put Him on the cross.  We respond to His love as we worship and gather together to listen to His word.

The Israelites of Judges show us our selfish and carnal nature.  We are so like them as we selfishly go our own way and mix with the cultures around us.  We easily worship other gods, mainly ourselves!  We can be filled with the Holy Spirit on Sunday and and filled with lust and revenge like Sampson on Monday!  We can see miraculous deliverance one day and forget God the next!  We end up doubting God’s love for us and looking for love in all the wrong places!

God really just wants our hearts!  He desires that we respond to His love and live a life of love each day.  Faith works through love!  It is not the law or a set of rules that we must follow to earn God’s love or keep to prove our love for Him.  We love Him because He first loved us!  We love Him and others and that is the fulfillment of His law!  Love does no wrong to a neighbor!  Love never fails!  It is so simple and yet so profound!

Allow your day to bring to mind ways to love God.  Practice His presence in all your activities this day.  Rest in His love for you!  Be refreshed in your souls by His amazing love!  Loving You as Christ,  Pastor John

Scripture reading for March 13th: Judges 13-16

Sampson is an interesting figure in the history of God’s people.  He was born with such potential to be great!  An angel visited a sterile and childless elderly married woman and told her she would conceive a son.  He was to be raised a Nazarite from the womb because he would begin to deliver Israel from the Philistines. (Judges 13:2-5)  Manoah, the husband, prayed for this angel to return and his prayers were answered.  They were given further instructions as to how to raise this son and named him Sampson.

This son was born and the Spirit of the Lord began to stir Sampson at an early age.  He was, however, attracted to Philistine women and asked for one for his wife.  This was against the desires of the godly parents who knew God’s word.  God, however, used this to further His purposes.  (Judges 14:1-4)  Sampson had a temper as well, and this came out during a family gathering with his new wife’s family.  They coerced his wife to get an answer to Sampson’s riddle.  When she gave them the answer, in anger he killed thirty men and took their clothes to pay his vow! (Judges 14:19-20)  Leaving his wife, he returned to his parents’ house.

Later Sampson went back to get his wife, and found that they had given her to his best man at the wedding.  This infuriated him and he took 300 foxes, tied their tails together, tied torches to their tails and let them loose in the grain fields.  This caused more anger to flare and Sampson took revenge again with a jawbone of a donkey, killing more than a thousand Philistines. (Judges 15:15)

It seems that Sampson’s life was filled with anger, revenge, and lust for foreign women.  Sampson was anointed by God with great strength, but his lack of self-control caused him to become ineffective.  He went to Gaza to see a prostitute and they nearly caught him.  (Judges 16:1-3)  He fell in love with another Philistine woman named Delilah.  Delilah ended up betraying Sampson for money.  Sampson was taken captive and his eyes gouged out.  (Judges 16:20-21)  Sampson’s final act was one of faith, when he prayed for strength to get revenge.  God answered his prayer!

We must be careful with our lives.  Carnal Christians can be taken captive by the enemy too.  Check out your life and heart today!

Scripture reading for March 12th: Judges 9-12

“Likewise, whatever the Lord our God has given us, we will possess.” ( Judges 11:24)

A spirit of faith is a wonderful gift.  It comes from choosing to believe and obey God.  Jephthah, one of Israel’s judges spoke these words.  Jephthah was an interesting man who was born from the union of his father and a prostitute before his father married and settled down.  Jephthah was later rejected by his stepmother and fled his family when threatened by his stepbrothers.  He was ridiculed and made fun of because of his shady background.  Jephthah learned to fight and became a mighty warrior.

The Ammonites rose up and began to make war against Israel and the elders of Gilead approached Jephthah to come back home and help them fight.  They promised him headship over the Gilead tribe if he would help them.  They swore before the Lord that they would do just that.  (Judges 11:10-11)  Jephthah began negotiations with the Ammonites, seeking to persuade them to back off.  They refused to listen. (Judges 11:28)   Jephthah knew that God had given the land to Israel and he would not let it go.  (Judges 11:21-23)  What God had given them to possess, they would possess!

The Spirit of the Lord came upon Jephthah and he moved to attack these brash Ammonites.  As he advanced, he made  a vow to the Lord to give to Him whatever came out of the door of  his house when he returned from the battle.  (Judges 11:31)  God gave him an overwhelming victory and they possessed the land that was theirs and defeated their enemies.

The bad news was that as Jephthah arrived at home, his beautiful virgin daughter danced out of the door of his house to meet him!  She was an only child and was deeply loved by her father and mother.  Jephthah remembered his vow and evidently kept it although it hurt him deeply.  (Judges 11:35-39)

There are several lessons that we can get from this interesting story.  First, our background should not keep us from walking in faith.  We are not victims, but victors through faith in God!  Second, be careful what vows you make.  Sometimes our words can be careless and vows are serious issues.  We must let our “yes” be “yes” and our “no” be “no”. (James 5:12)    When God has called us to fight, He will give us the victory.  We don’t have to bargain with Him to get Him to act on our behalf!  God is for us!

Scripture reading for March 11th: Judges 6-8

God loves to use underdogs to accomplish great victories.  He likes to win when the odds are stacked up totally against His people.  One of the reasons for that is stated in the Book of Judges.  God told Gideon that he had too many men to go out and fight the Midianites.  If he won the victory, the army would begin to take credit for it themselves and swell with pride.  (Judges 7:2)  This pride would become their downfall.

Gideon, himself, was also a weak man.  In his own estimation, he was the least of the least of his tribe.  (Judges 6:15)  He was cowering in fear of the Midianites as he threshed out some wheat to feed his family when approached by the Angel of the Lord.  This angelic visitor greeted him with “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.”   God is a God of encouragement and He is able to see our true potential when we walk by faith!

After a series of reductions of Gideon’s forces, Gideon ended up with three hundred men who had lapped water like a dog.  ( Judges 7:6-7)  God promised that with these three hundred men he would deliver Midian into Gideon’s hands. Gideon divided these three hundred men into three companies and gave them trumpets, jars, and torches to place in the clay jars.  He led them himself, and told them to do exactly as he was going to do.  They were to encircle the Midianite camp and at the signal from Gideon they were to break the jars, wave the torches and shout: “For the Lord and for Gideon!”  This shout was an act of faith that would bring victory to this small company! (Judges 7:18)

We know the story and the happy ending.  As they shouted, the Midianites became confused and began killing each other.  The power of God brought victory to Gideon and his small band of shouting warriors with fire in their pots!  This story helps us to learn some simple lessons.  God can use very weak and simple people.  Numbers are not the most important thing in life, victory comes through God and obedience to His directions.  Our weapons that are most powerful are our tongues when employed in obedient faith and the light of God’s presence shining forth from us.  Take time today to ask God to use you!

Scripture reading for March 10th: Judges 1-5

My wife and I have always prayed for our children and grandchildren.  We want them to experience a personal walk with the Lord and avoid the snares of Satan.  Though our prayers are powerful, each child must still choose on his own to obey the Lord.  Sometimes, children  enter a cycle of disobedience where consequences, rather than parent or God,  become their teacher.  Many times, parents are too quick to bail their children out of consequences before the lessons are learned.  Take a look at our heavenly Father’s parenting techniques in the book of Judges!

Through Joshua, the people had renewed the covenant commitment to fully follow God.  (Joshua 24:15), but after the death of Joshua the people fell away. (Judges 2:8-11)  This falling away was due to the failure of the next generation to learn faith and a failure of Joshua’s generation to live out faith.  If we become engrossed in the culture around us, instead of in God and His word, failure always results.  The Israelites did evil in God’s eyes by forsaking Him and turning toward the gods of the culture.  As a result, they reaped the consequences of enemies plundering them and inability to withstand attacks on their land and families.  (Judges 2:14-15)   God allowed consequences to become their teacher!

The remedy for sin and rebellion is repentance.  When the people of God recognized their sins, they would cry out to God for help.  God was merciful and would raise up a judge to deliver them from their enemies.  They would then have peace again under the wise leadership of a godly judge.  When he or she passed from the scene, the cycle would repeat itself in the next generation!  (Judges 2:16-19)

Today’s culture is no different and Christians must stick close to God, worshiping  regularly.  We need the power of the Holy Spirit living in us to stay victorious over Satan’s attacks.  When we begin to mix with our culture and neglect the things of God, consequences of disobedience come upon us and we suffer.  Our “Joshua” is alive, praying for us, and His body, the Church, is there to help us and give us victory!  By staying close to God, we can live continuously in victory!

“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.