Devotional writing from Judges from The Message

December 1, 2005

Judges 1:  When Israel became stronger they put the Canaanites to forced labor, but they never got rid of them.

What's the deal anyway?   The book of Joshua paints a picture of wonderful victory, but the first page of the next book tells us that their enemies were never completely driven out.  Clearly, the army of Joshua had unprecedented success.  They were the underdogs in this new land.  The people of Canaan were a fierce and evil people.  They had superior weapons and fortified cities.  There were warrior-giants in the land.  Yet the people of Israel, desert nomads, crossed the Jordan won major victory after victory to become the dominant force in the land.  It may not have been the complete victory that is suggested in Joshua, but it is a pretty impressive, God-powered victory.  The book of Judges tells the story of the result of their failure to press to complete victory.  It is far from a favorite book of the Bible, but it is a book in which the grace of God shines forth against the black background of so much spiritual failure.

December 5, 2005

Judges 2: Eventually that entire generation died…another generation grew up that didn't know anything of God….

This is a pitiful situation.  How foolish!  Here are parents who ate manna, had ever-wear shoes, crossed through the Jordan on dry ground, saw the walls of Jericho fall, and won an amazing dominance in Canaan.  Somehow, those same parents failed to instill the knowledge of God in their children.  What is wrong with these people?  Moses had warned them that it would be easy to enjoy their success and forget God.  Now, a generation has passed and Moses' worst nightmare has come true.  Apparently, it is easier to fail to pass faith from one generation to the next than we might think.  My experience with God might be fully vivid to me, but can mean almost nothing to my children.  I can assume nothing, take nothing for granted.  If those I love are to know God I must be absolutely intentional in instilling that knowledge in their lives.  God help us to reach our children.

December 6, 2005

Judges 2: That's why God let those nations remain.

The Book of Judges is the story of God's patiently developing a people into a people he can call his very own.  There is a cycle of failure, repentance, grace, and deliverance that is repeated again and again.  When they come up short in driving out all the heathen people of the land, God decides to leave that pagan culture there and to use it in developing the Israelite people into the people he wants them to be.  Those nations of people became the "alternative choice" for the Israelites.  I see a parallel in my own culture.  The Church should have become the dominant force in society, but has often miserably failed.  Because of that there is a thriving alternative secular culture in the land, one that is humanist and has no place for God  (or at least wants God to stay in "his place").  It is a market-driven, materialistic society.  Like the people of the Book of Judges, I must decide "who I will serve."

December 7, 2005

Judges 3: But the People of Israel made themselves at home among the Canaanites.

It is their first test and they fail it.  Having failed to remove the pagan people from the land, their test is to live near them but not become one of them.  They messed up.  Before long, their young people are getting married to those of Canaan and the perverted worship practiced in Canaan is being accepted by them.  Simply put, they feel right at home with these heathen.  In his anger, God turns his back on them and everything falls apart.  How "at home" am I in my society?  Jesus loved sinners.  He ate with them and genuinely liked them.  But he never became one of them. On one hand there is the example of the Israelites who felt so at home with the Canaanites that they adopted their ways.  On the other hand we have Jesus who loved people and fellowshipped with them, but in doing so, invited them to be the ones who changed.  God help me to love the lost without making myself "at home" with them in the manner of these Israelites.

December 8, 2005

Judges 4: God will use a woman's hand to take care of Sisera.

It comes as a surprise that we find ourselves into the "dark ages" of Israel before we find a genuine woman hero in the Bible.  I guess it could be argued that Moses' sister Miriam qualifies, and maybe she does, but Deborah really shines here.  Sisera is the commander of an occupying army that is dominating the Israelites.  Deborah is the recognized leader of the Israelites.  She calls for Barak, another known Israelite leader, and tells him that it has become clear to her that God is going to deliver them from Sisera and his army.  Barak is afraid to proceed without Deborah at his side, and it is then that Deborah tells him that God will use a woman's hand to take care of Sisera, and she, not him, will get the credit.  It all plays out as she said, and, not only does Deborah go down in history as the one who leads the way to freedom, a woman named Jael finishes Sisera off.  Long before the promise of "daughters prophesying" is fulfilled in Acts 2, we find God using women as leaders in his work.  Thank God for women who are willing to be used of God to accomplish his purposes.

December 10, 2005

Judges: 6: If God is with us, why has all this happened to us?

The startling honesty of Gideon arrests my attention today.  Even as this man has an extraordinary encounter with the Lord he is brutally straightforward with the Almighty.  Now, the answer to his question has already been given.  God didn't leave the people, they left him: they "went back to doing evil."  God isn't going to stay where he was unwelcome, and left to their own devices they were quickly dominated by Midian.  Still, God didn't forget them.  When the time is right, God appears to Gideon and names this unlikely person a "mighty warrior."  More on Gideon's leadership later on, but, again, my attention is drawn to his honesty before God.  If God is so good, if he is on our side, if he is our deliverer then why are things so bad?   There is power in asking hard questions to God.  In this case Gideon need only look into the pagan practices he and his fellow Israelites had incorporated into their lives for his answer.  God's grace is clearly evidenced by, first, the fact that they haven't been wiped off the face of the earth, and second, the fact that God is right there carrying on a conversation with him.  The truth is, though, that God isn't offended by our asking hard and honest questions.  We aren't supposed to move into that house of questions to live there, but we almost have to pass through that neighborhood to ever arrive at a meaningful faith.

December 12, 2005

Judges 6: Let me say one more thing. I want to try another time with the fleece.

Here we are reading about Gideon and his fleece of wool.  Actually, Gideon asked for, and received, three signs from God.  First, the angel of the Lord caused a fire to miraculously appear and consume his offering.  Second, his fleece of wool got wet from the dew while everything else stayed dry.  Third, the situation was reversed and the fleece stayed dry while everything else got wet from the dew.  This is interesting reading, but it isn't how I am supposed to deal with God.  I am to be a man of faith, trusting in God and learning to hear his voice.  I am not supposed to be a sign-seeker and "deal-maker."  The star of this story is not Gideon, a near heathen who keeps getting signs from God confirming what God has plainly already told him to do.  The Star is God, who is patient even with Gideon's desire to have God keep "proving" his own words.  I am thankful for a patient God who puts up with my shallowness, even as he works to produce in me a more mature relationship with himself.  Generally speaking, I need to just do whatever it is God has made clear to me without "putting out a fleece."  If there is more, God is well able to communicate that to me too.

December 13, 2005

Judges 7: You have too large an army with you.

God has such a sense of humor.  Gideon has been rounding up an army to take on the mighty Midian army, and he has done a pretty good job of it.  Now they are on their way into battle, but first, God has some trimming to do.  First, those who are afraid are invited to leave. Two thirds of the army decides this is a good time to go home. Then, as they get a drink of water, the few who show "battle sense" are kept while everyone else goes home.  Gideon was reluctant enough to take on this fight.  He must be beside himself as the Lord keeps whittling down his army. He was now left with just 300 fighters.  Of course, God has a purpose in all this.  Even as we smile at the picture of God narrowing down Gideon's army, we see that the Lord is doing something very intentional here. If Gideon's large force wins a victory they will take all the credit for it.  The Lord wants not only to bring deliverance to them, but to restore them to himself as well.  I believe the proper preparation for those things I attempt is wise and reasonable, but I also know that the ultimate Source in my life is, not my plans, but my Lord.  Sometimes, he has to whittle my approach down a bit too.  And, as he does it, I think he is smiling to himself.

December 14, 2005

Judges 10: They just walked off and left God, quit worshiping him.

It's been over 60 years since Gideon has died.  Two other leaders stepped in to judge Israel after Gideon's day.  Now, once again, the wheels have fallen off.  The word picture is graphic.  "They just walked off."  This was definitely one of those, "If God seems far away, who moved?" scenarios.  The people weren't kidnapped and carried away from God.  They didn't accidentally wander off.  Instead, we get a picture of them pulling the plug, deciding that they are no longer going to worship the One who has been so faithful to them.  Beyond that, God didn't chase after them.  When they come to him in their distress, he replies, "I'm not saving you anymore. Go ahead! Cry out for help to the gods you've chosen."   When they repent, the Lord stands ready to reconnect with them.  God always honors our free will.  He won't force us to serve him, and he will allow us to face the full consequences of our choices.  However, he remains ever gracious.  Not only willing to forgive, but actually providing us the grace to respond to him in the first place.

December 15, 2005

Judges 10: After him (Tola), Jair the Gileadite stepped into leadership. He judged Israel for twenty-two years.

I am thinking today about the "one paragraph" judges of the book of Judges.  I have already read about Deborah and Gideon.  Jepthah and Samson are just a few pages away.  Scattered throughout the pages of Judges are references to national leaders whose story is summed up in one paragraph.  Usually the most prominent feature is now long these leaders ruled, maybe 22 years on the average.  While it would be thrilling to watch Gideon's 300 defeat the Midianites and Amaliekiets, I think I would rather have lived under the rule of Tola or Jair.  These folks quietly went about living their lives under the authority of the Lord God and leading their people in faithful worship of him.  Today, I thank God for people like that and am reminded that without spectacular spiritual failure we don't need to have as many stories of miraculous divine rescues to tell.

December 17, 2005

Judges 11: I'll give to God whatever comes out of the door of my house.

Jepthah made a stupid vow.  As he lead Israel into battle against the Ammonites he promised God that, if he was victorious, he would make an offering of the first thing to come out of the door of his house when he returned home.  That turned out to be his own daughter.  Apparently, he kept his vow and offered her as a sacrifice.  This is wrong on so many levels that it is hard to know where to start.  For one thing, God doesn't work that way.  God does what is right because he is righteous.  We don't make deals with him to get him to do what we want.  Beyond that, God doesn't want human sacrifices.  In their history, only one time was such a demand given and that was with Abraham and Isaac.  Even in the dark ages of Judges every citizen of Israel knew the story -- and they all knew that God stopped Abraham before one drop of Isaac's blood was shed.  Finally (although there is more) just because we say something stupid to God doesn't mean he wants us to do it.  "God, if you make me well I will be a preacher" might just get a response from God saying, "I am the One who calls preachers, not you!"  I am to live in a genuine relationship with God, not one in which I am constantly trying to bargain with or manipulate him into getting what I want. 

December 19, 2005

Judges 14: A young lion came at him, roaring.  The Spirit of God came on him powerfully and he ripped it open barehanded.

Samson is the "strong man" of the Bible.  When artists depict him, they always draw him as a muscle man.  Frankly, I doubt it.  Remember that his enemies try to discover the secret of his strength -- had he been built like a super hero they wouldn't have done that.  I think he was of average build and that the only physical characteristic that made him stand out in a crowd was hair; hair, and lots of it: long, flowing hair on his head and on his face.  This guy had never had a razor used on him.  His nickname could have been "Harry!"  The key to his strength was tied into his faithfulness to God.  And, in his case, the symbol of his faithfulness was uncut hair.  Really, I don't even see evidence that Samson was always strong.  It was when the "Spirit of God came on him" that he was strong.  The rest of the time, he was just an ordinary, hairy guy.  Thinking devotionally here, I am reminded that it is when the Spirit of God moves in my life that I move into the extraordinary realm of possibilities.

December 20, 2005

Judges 16: Delilah said to Samson, "Tell me, dear, the secret of your great strength."

Samson was a one-man army.  Other Israelite liberators had inspired others to follow and rallied armies to action.  Samson did it all by himself.  It was just Samson and God.  Well, really it was just God.  Samson's unshaved head was the symbol of his dedication to God.  Cutting his hair would break his relationship with God.  No God in his life meant no one-man army strength in his body.  When Samson stupidly told Delilah his story he broke that relationship with God.  Soon, the wheels came off and all was lost.  Someone might say, "Without his hair, Samson was just an ordinary man."  Actually, it is, "Without his God, Samson was just an ordinary man."  Jesus talked about that in John 15:5  "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing."  It's true of Samson and the disciples and, yes, of me too.

December 21, 2005

Judges 16: But his hair, though cut off, began to grow again.

Samson, through his lack of self-control and lack of common sense had ruined everything.  His undisciplined behavior with women and specifically, his inability recognize Delilah for the traitor she was had cost him everything: his pride, his strength, and his eyesight.  The phrase "his hair began to grow again" is powerfully symbolic of what was happening in Samson's heart.  As he did the work of an animal, grinding out grain, somehow, through his darkness, he began to see God.  However, a quick caution is needed here.  This isn't a Samson story -- it is a God story.  We aren't to focus on Samson's strength or his stupidity, but on the marvelous grace of God.  Samson had been raised up to be a deliverer of his people and even in his miserable state God was still willing to work in his life.  "His hair began to grow again" is a hopeful word in a terrible situation.  This is a picture of our God of Second Chances at work.  Samson's end was not the glorious story that could have been told.  In the exercise of his free will Samson had sabotaged his own life.  However, even when everything was totally messed up, God was at work salvaging even this destroyed life.  That's the kind of God I serve.

December 22, 2005

Judges 17: Stay here with me. Be my father and priest.

Things go from bad to worse as I progress through the book of Judges.  The lofty mountain encounter with God through his servant Moses is forgotten.  Joshua's declaration of faithfulness to God is forgotten too.  It seems that the light of promise at the Red Sea and Jordan River is nearly extinguished.  Judges is a downhill book.  There are occasional heroes, but they become fewer and fewer.  The heroes we do find become more and more flawed.  Here is the story of Micah and his hired Levite priest.  In this spiritual night, there is a hunger for God, but it is so broken and disfigured that we hardly recognize it.  Using God to get wealthy or for the purpose of fortune telling is the order of the day.  The tribes that were so united under Joshua and Moses are now fragmented politically and greatly influenced by the pagans of the land.  The tug of war over who gets the priest is a pitiful reminder of the result of spiritual emptiness.  In spite of the uniqueness of this story, I think it is being lived out in my own culture.  People who think they are beyond needing God grasp at anything that promises to satisfy their empty-ness.  Our message is the one the world so desperately needs today.

December 24, 2005

Judges 20: How did this outrageous evil happen?

The final story in the book of Judges is about as dark and evil as it can get.  It concerns a man who takes a concubine, so right off there is immorality.  The story continues with deviant sexual behavior, rape, and murder.  The result is a civil war in which the tribe of Benjamin is practically wiped out.  One question asked during the story should ring in our ears: "How did this outrageous evil happen?"  How did the descendants of Abraham, this miraculously freed nation of slaves, these recipients of the Ten Commandments, these people chosen to be God's very own come to this?  The answer is "self and sin." Faith was not passed on to their children.  Their heroes became more and more flawed.  God was forgotten and their society began to unwind.  The writer of Judges concludes in the famous epitaph of the book: "At that time there was no king in Israel.  People did whatever they felt like doing."  That, my friends, is a recipe for disaster.  I had better not read this with a detached sense of superiority.  I live in a society in which "doing whatever one feels like doing" is simply how life is lived.  We want a convenient God who does our bidding, but leaves us alone the rest of the time.  When Israel tried that the result was disaster.  Do we really think we can get away with it?