SUMMARY: As in the days of the Judges, far too many Christians and Christian churches have set aside any controlling moral authority, so they do whatever seems right in their own eyes. In reality, this is nothing more than spiritual anarchy. Make sure you are not in that camp, and make sure you do what you can to encourage your church not to set up camp there either..

God Speaks—I Obey // Focus: Judges 17:1-3

There was a man named Micah, who lived in the hill country of Ephraim. One day he said to his mother, “I heard you place a curse on the person who stole 1,100 pieces of silver from you. Well, I have the money. I was the one who took it.” His mother replied, “The Lord bless you for admitting it,” He returned the money to her, and she said, “I now dedicate these silver coins to the Lord. In honor of my son, I will have an image carved and an idol cast.” … In those days Israel had no king; all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.

If we were to hold a vote on the weirdest stories in the Bible, this one would be in my top ten—maybe even in my top five. You read this story and it leaves you scratching your head. A man named Micah has admitted to his mother that he stole money from her, she praises the Lord for his “honesty” in returning the loot, then turns around and celebrates by commissioning a family idol, declaring that it is in honor of her wonderful son and of the Lord.

What…wait…what? She somehow twists stealing into honoring God by carving an image and casting an idol! What in the name of sanity is going on here? Simple explanation: This is spiritual anarchy, plain and simple. Anarchy is defined as “a state of disorder due to absence or non-recognition of authority.” That is exactly what Judges 17: 6 describes:

In those days Israel had no king, so everyone did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.

Israel had no controlling moral authority—or at least they chose not to follow a controlling moral authority, since they did have the law of God that should have been their constant guide. But over time, they moved God to the margins and devolved into spiritual anarchy. As a result, a lot of really weird stuff happened in a nation that God had called to be his own holy people. Israel began to look like the pagan nations to whom they had called them to witness as a living testimony of a loving but holy God. They begin to do unacceptable things that were outright repulsive to God, then justify their sinful behavior as acceptable and pleasing to the Holy One of Israel.

“Like the Israelites in the time of the judges, too many Christians today have set aside any controlling moral authority and do whatever seems right in their own eyes. Don’t be one of them!”

Twisted, right? Yet is it all that different than what we see today among people who claim to follow God? When the rate of divorce is as high among so-called Christians as it is in secular society, you have spiritual anarchy. When you have so-called Christians celebrating lifestyles and philosophies that are clearly opposed to what they are called to in God’s Word, you have spiritual anarchy. When you have so-called Christians whose way of living is clearly rooted in this present world and not in the kingdom to come—“believers” who are addicted to money, pleasure, and power—there you find they have drifted into spiritual anarchy. Where you find spiritual communities who make their worship about what they prefer, who employ entertainment techniques to attract new members, who move the Holy Spirit to the edge of their services in order to employ more relevant styles, who focus more on a cool café in the lobby rather than the call to seek God at the altar, there you find an inexorable rush toward spiritual anarchy.

In our day, Christians have set aside any controlling moral authority, so they do whatever seems right in their own eyes.

So now that I have gotten that rant out of my system, answer me this: Is this not the state of Christianity among far too many believers and far too many churches in America today?

If you think so, then make sure you are not in that camp, and make sure you do what you can to encourage your church not to drift into spiritual anarchy.

SUMMARY: Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “passion, though a bad regulator, is a powerful spring.” The story of Samson and Delilah is a powerful reminder that we must be driven by our principles rather than our passions. We would do well to get clear about what we value most—our non-negotiables in life—then allow our passions to fuel our principles.

God Speaks—I Obey // Focus: Judges 16:4-6

Some time later, Samson fell in love with a woman named Delilah, who lived in the valley of Sorek. The rulers of the Philistines went to her and said, “Entice Samson to tell you what makes him so strong and how he can be overpowered and tied up securely. Then each of us will give you 1,100 pieces of silver.” So Delilah said to Samson, “Please tell me what makes you so strong and what it would take to tie you up securely.”

What is it that drives you? What motivates you at the deepest core to do what you do? What are the driving convictions of your life? Figure that out, and you will have figured out you, that is, who you are, what you are, how you live, and where you are headed.

Unfortunately for Samson, one of Israel’s most famous but most flawed judges (the judges were more military deliverers than paragons of moral purity), it was passion that drove him more than principle. Especially his passion for women, which we also saw in Judges 14, and now again in this famous “love” story in Judges 16 as Samson takes up with a new wife, Delilah. As you read this account with the added benefit of historical hindsight, you wonder why in the world would Samson put up with Delilah’s traitorous antics even once, let alone four times. Why couldn’t he see what we so clearly see?

Easy answer: Samson was driven by passion more than principle. So are a lot of people—perhaps even you. Sometimes I am, too. Now, to be sure, God created us with the capacity to be passionate. Without it, we wouldn’t be human. Without it, we could never express righteous indignation. Without it, we could never experience compassion. Without it, we might be perfect, but let’s not forget that God rarely chose the perfect; he mostly chose the passionate to accomplish his purposes, imperfect people like King David and the Apostle Peter.

Yet while passion is a God-given capacity, it must be kept in its rightful place. Like any other capacity, it is never to be out of control; it is never to be the master of our thoughts, feelings, and actions. Only the Holy Spirit is to control what we think, how we feel, and what we do.

“For a God-honoring life, we must make principle the driver of our car and assign passion to push it!” ~Dr. Ray Noah

So what is the right purpose of our passion? Ralph Waldo Emerson offered this insightful thought: “passion, though a bad regulator, is a powerful spring.” He was saying that our passion is never to govern our lives; our principles are supposed to do that. Our passion is to fuel our principles. Passion will be what elevates what we believe at the deepest core to the level of driving conviction over the long haul of our lives.

I believe the main takeaway from Samson’s life is that we would be wise to think through and then codify what I would call our driving missional convictions. These would be our non-negotiable values, like living for the glory of God alone, ruthless trust in God’s sovereignty, obedience to God’s Word, submission to God’s will, wholehearted love for God—as well as our neighbor—and full-throttled commitment to the Missio Dei—the mission of God. I could go on and on, but for practical purposes, we would benefit most from settling on five to ten missional convictions, then allowing those convictions to drive everything in our lives at all times and in every way—our thoughts, feelings, and actions.

In fact, if you want to avoid the Delilah effect, that is, an approach to life that puts passion in the driver’s seat, then I would suggest that you spend some time thinking through your life convictions—like ASAP. Then discuss them with the people in your life whose help you will need to live them out. Finally, codify them and literally place them where you will see them early and often to remind you of what you want your life to be about.

Do that … then get passionate about them!

“ Rest in reason; move in passion. — KHALIL GIBRAN

SUMMARY: What is described in the Bible doesn’t diminish behavior that is sinful and flawed; it only explains it. It requires a little bit of wisdom to know the difference, but once you understand, then you will begin to see in matters great and small, God is in charge, and God is in control. Aren’t you thankful for that? You will also understand that your actions are either blessable or punishable. Stay ever aware of that!

God Speaks—I Obey // Focus: Judges 15:13-15

The Philistines bound Samson with two new ropes and led him up from the rock. As he approached Lehi, the Philistines came toward him shouting. The Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon him. The ropes on his arms became like charred flax, and the bindings dropped from his hands. Finding a fresh jawbone of a donkey, he grabbed it and struck down a thousand men.

The first senior pastor I worked with out of college used to say, “There is a lot more to God that we don’t understand than we do understand.” He was right. Not that we shouldn’t pursue the knowledge of God—we should. There is no greater or more worthwhile effort than knowing God. And God graciously grants us wisdom, understanding, and knowledge, according to Proverbs 2:3-6 and James 1:5.

“If you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding, and if you look for it as silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God. For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth comes knowledge and understanding…. If you lack wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault.”

But keep in mind in your honorable pursuit that there will be things about God and the record we have in scripture of his dealings with man that do not always make sense—at least in our minds. In those cases, we just need to chalk it up to the fact that God was at work in ways that are much higher than ours. There is a large part of God that will remain in the realm of mystery, and even though we are curious about it, we need a Deity whom we don’t fully understand, and therefore cannot control. Paul states in this way in his eloquent doxology from Romans 11:33-36,

Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God!
How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!
“Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?”
“Who has ever given to God, that God should repay them?”
For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.

I would put Judges 15 in that category. In several instances, God uses a deeply flawed judge—which by the way, the judges of Israel were not so much moral leaders as they were national deliverers—to bring judgment upon the godless Philistines and relief to the suffering Israelites. As you read this chapter,

I would simply suggest you remember that the sovereign God can use anybody he chooses to bring out his larger purposes. God can use a deeply flawed prophet, preacher, or president for his glory—and he does early and often. In this case, he used a deeply flawed Samson to deliver his people.

Now, keep in mind as you read this passage, and others like it, that what is described in the Bible doesn’t excuse sinful and flawed behavior; it only explains it. It requires a little bit of wisdom to know the difference. So, once you understand that, then you will begin to see in matters great and small, God is in charge, and God is in control. Aren’t you thankful for that?

And if you understand that, then you will also understand that every action has consequences. Our behavior, significant and insignificant, is either bless-able or punishable. So, stay constantly alert to that!

SUMMARY: “God uses flawed people to accomplish his work!” How many times have you heard that or seen examples of it in scripture? Samson is the poster-child of a flawed hero, an impulsive man who famously loved the ladies a little too much, which ultimately cost him his life. But the Bible’s explanation of flawed character is not an excuse for it, neither for Samson nor for you. Thank God that he uses cracked pots, but that does not mean we shouldn’t give diligent effort in partnering with him to transform the vessel.

God Speaks—I Obey // Focus: Judges 14:2/h3>

One day when Samson was in Timnah, one of the Philistine women caught his eye. When he returned home, he told his father and mother, “A young Philistine woman in Timnah caught my eye. I want to marry her. Get her for me.”

All of us have made really bad choices in life at one time or another. If you haven’t, just wait a few hours; you will. And usually, the core culprit in bad decisions is impulsiveness. Who among us hasn’t surrendered to an impulse purchase? That is usually what is behind buyer’s remorse. What person has never spoken out in anger or foolishness before we thought about the consequences of our words? That is why most good parents teach their children to think twice before they speak. Is there any person on the planet who has never acted on a whim? I doubt it.

Samson is arguably the poster boy for impulsive choices—he liked the ladies and exercised neither a whole lot of good judgment nor self-control in the woman he chose to be with. In this case, it was a girl who became his wife. In chapter 16, it is a prostitute. Later in the same chapter, a woman named Delilah becomes his second wife. In the case of Delilah, the marriage looked good on the outside, but over time, it caused great pain for Samson and his family and ultimately cost this famous judge of Israel his life. In Judges 14, this unnamed girl captured his affections—a Philistine beauty whose character went no deeper than her flawless skin.

Samson’s choice of women has been the plot for several Hollywood movies over the years, but in the real story of this marriage, however, the romance part of it ends quickly, and the marriage not too long after that, when the girl’s father marries her off to the best man at Samson’s wedding. Mr. and Mrs. Samson—bad choice, bad marriage, bad outcome.

Now obviously, as you look at the whole of Samson’s story, God accomplished a great work through this impulsive man’s life. God redeemed his bad choices for a good outcome (at least for Israel; Samson died in the process). We are told in Judges 14:4 that when his parents questioned his choice of a wife, “His father and mother didn’t realize the Lord was at work in this, creating an opportunity to work against the Philistines, who ruled over Israel at that time.” It is true, as John Newton said, “We serve a gracious Master who knows how to overrule even our mistakes to His glory and our own advantage.”

That is the big picture of the story of Samson’s life—God uses flawed people to accomplish his purposes. And the micro story here in Judges 14 is equally instructive. So let’s dissect Samson’s decision so that we might see how easily we fall into the same kind of impulsive living—and most importantly, learn from Samson that it is best to avoid impulsive choices. Here are three aspects of Samson’s poor decision-making:

First, visuals took precedence over values. The opening words of the text tell us that when Samson gazed upon this lovely woman, it was love (or lust) at first sight: “A young Philistine woman in Timnah caught my eye.” What we see can be deceptive; perhaps it is always deceptive. A good rule of thumb is “don’t believe everything you see.” Of course, I am not just speaking of what you can verify factually, but you must learn to see what is congruent with the values of your faith and avoid what is incongruent with your most deeply held values.

Second, desire outweighed wisdom. Samson’s “wanter” took the baton from his “see-er”, while any kind of thought process took a backseat to both. After he “saw” Timnah, he said to his dad, “I want to marry her.” I see; I want. There is no indication that Samson gave any consideration to what the consequences of marrying a Philistine girl might be. Delayed gratification was not in the picture here; self-control was not exercised. He saw her, he wanted her, therefore, he had to have her.

Third, action dominated reason. I saw her, I want her, now go get her for me: “But Samson told his father, ‘Get her for me! She looks good to me.’” (Judges 14:4) Unfortunately, Samson’s father Manoah didn’t put the brakes on his son’s wishes in the way a father should; we see no fatherly insistence that a reasonable process be followed. So Samson got what he wanted—he got Timnah, and with her, he got a boatload of trouble. The outcome of his flawed decision reminds me of what James talked about,

Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death. (James 1:14-15)

Again, God used Samson’s mistakes for his own glory. And he will use yours and mine, too. But wouldn’t you rather God use your good decisions for his glory and your good? I sure would. And maybe one of the reasons we have this compelling story of Samson and Timnah is to alert us to slow it down when we are in the middle of a strong desire to get what we think we want.

Think early; think often—that is why God gave us a brain and then commands us to think: “‘Come, let us reason together, says the Lord.’” (Isaiah 1:18) And if that weren’t enough, he placed the Holy Spirit within us to give us in-the-moment counsel!

Think, listen, then do—or not!

“ The unexamined life is not worth living. —SOCRATES

God Speaks—I Obey // Focus: Judges 13:12-14

So Manoah asked him, “When your words come true, what kind of rules should govern the boy’s life and work?” The angel of the Lord replied, “Be sure your wife follows the instructions I gave her. She must not eat grapes or raisins, drink wine or any other alcoholic drink, or eat any forbidden food.”

It may not be as dramatic as the visit Manoah and his wife received from the angel of the Lord. A mighty divine messenger probably won’t appear to you and freak you out. It is not likely that he will consume with fire the thanksgiving sacrifice you set before him. But your child is as every bit important to God as Samson was.

God would use Samson as one of the greatest deliverers of Israel the nation was to ever know. The stories of his battles with the Philistines are epic. His life was the grand story that both movies and books have retold over the ages. So to be sure, this family, and this baby that the angel of the Lord showed up in such an unforgettable way to announce, was going to become an altogether unique script in the religious history of Israel.

Yet I say again, the child that God gives you is no less important to God. That would be true of your grandchildren, too. It is also true of the children in your church, or your neighborhood, or in the classroom you manage. God has an indescribable love for them; he has plans for them that are beyond exciting; he has designed and built them with the seeds of greatness. Unlimited potential resides within their DNA.

Now it is up to you as a parent, grandparent, or mentor to figure out how to water those seeds of greatness in that child. That is a huge and sobering challenge, and you would do well to ask the Lord how he wants you to go about your task, as Manoah and his wife did in Judges 13:12. They asked the angel, “Give us the guidelines for growing this child into a great man!”

God has guidelines for you to follow, too. They are found primarily in his word. The whole of the Bible is an amazing guide for understanding the law of the Lord. Especially helpful is the book of Proverbs, which will show you day by day the way to inculcate wisdom, knowledge, and understanding into your child’s heart and mind. Another source of help is the Holy Spirit. Asking him daily in prayer to show you your child’s glidepath is a privilege you have because of your relationship with God. Just ask him, submit to him, expect his help, and God the Holy Spirit will walk with you as you train up your child in the way he or she should go. And then there is the body of Christ—men, women, grandparents, pastors, class leaders, and the parenting resources they offer are an incredibly helpful resource of parental richness that you would do well to tap into.

This is the most important role you occupy: mentoring the child the Lord has placed under your influence. Lean into God, ask him for guidance, then submit to his wisdom, and you will bring up a child with whom God will be well pleased.

And never, ever forget, even when they try to prove it wrong, your child was designed and built by God himself with the seeds of greatness implanted within their genetic code.

SUMMARY: Too many leaders today are proficient at rising to a position of power, and they might even have the systems in place to keep them there, but they have not moved the ball down the field during their time in leadership. They occupy places of importance but have no track record of impact. They are “all hat and no cattle,” as they say in Texas. Having a position of importance isn’t the end game; it’s the means to the goal. Leaving a footprint of service, blessing, and accomplishment is the best evidence of noteworthy leadership.

God Speaks—I Obey // Focus: Judges 12:11

After Ibzan died, Elon from the tribe of Zebulun judged Israel for ten years. When he died, he was buried at Aijalon in Zebulun.

Elon judged Israel for ten years, then he died. End of story! And you will find his administration not that unusual in the book of Judges. There were plenty of other leaders who occupied positions of import but had no track record of impact. They were “all hat and no cattle, ” as they say in Texas.

I don’t want to be a leader like that, and you don’t want to sit under the leadership of a man or woman like that, be it a pastor or a president. Too many leaders in our day are proficient at rising to a place of power and authority, and they might even have the systems set up around them to keep them there, but they have not moved the ball down the field during their time of leadership.

Now, to be certain, there is nothing wrong with having a position of importance, nor with desiring that. Those positions can provide much larger opportunities for impact. But a position of importance is not the end game; it is the means to the goal. Leaving a huge footprint of effective service, blessing, and mission accomplished is the best evidence of noteworthy leadership.

So what does it take to have both importance and impact? Let me offer some thoughts:

First, while you can position yourself to be important, I believe letting God promote you to places of power and authority is the better way to go. Of course, you need to show yourself winsome, committed, visionary, and skillful, but it is the sovereign hand of God that is the greatest PR machine in the universe. Let God promote you.

Second, get a vision—and not just a vision for your own fame or success. How will the people you lead be better off because of your leadership? How will your organization—family, church, business, community—creatively and compellingly make a difference by collaboratively marshaling your corporate energies to do what you do? Just how do you expect to change the world?

Third, make sure you have the character to match your charisma. Charisma will attract followers; character will keep you in leadership.

Fourth, serve the people you lead. They best lead who also serve—a philosophy that is not talked about all that much in our culture, but was clearly modeled by the greatest leader of all time, Jesus Christ. Leaders of impact are truly servants of the public.

Fifth, through your influence, make it your chief aim to make Jesus famous. I am not speaking only of what we would term spiritual “leaders.” In whatever you do—at home, in the marketplace, in the academe, in the halls of government—you are on duty for Christ. As the Apostle Paul says, “In whatever you do, do it with all your might, as serving the Lord, not men; it is the Lord Christ you are serving.” (Colossians 3:23-24)

If you desire to lead, you desire a good thing. But check your motives, make sure your goals are worthy, submit yourself to God, get filled with his Spirit, then get out there to serve the people and to make Jesus famous.

“ Example is not the main thing in influencing others. It is the only thing. —ALBERT SCHWEITZER

SUMMARY: Newsflash: Your spiritual leader is flawed. Gifted, yes, but also flawed. So don’t confuse the gift with the package. Lift them to God in prayer today. He or she is probably wrestling with a personal flaw. Instead of idolizing them, intercede for them. That would be the best way to return the favor for their spiritual oversight in your life.

God Speaks—I Obey // Focus: Judges 11:29-31

At that time the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jephthah, and he went throughout the land of Gilead and Manasseh, including Mizpah in Gilead, and from there he led an army against the Ammonites. And Jephthah made a vow to the Lord. He said, “If you give me victory over the Ammonites, I will give to the Lord whatever comes out of my house to meet me when I return in triumph. I will sacrifice it as a burnt offering.”

From a historical perspective, Israel may have been scraping the bottom of the barrel when Jephthah was chosen to lead them. God had an altogether higher purpose in using this unlikely man as a judge, deliverer, and leader of the nation, but Jephthah was a piece of work. He was an outcast in his family, literally and figuratively. Born from a union between his father and a prostitute (Judges 11:1), his brothers from another mother flat-out rejected his legitimacy to their father’s inheritance. And they were not shy in telling him why he would do well to get the heck out of Dodge (Judges 11:2).

As a result, Jephthah removed himself from his father’s “real” family—there is some indication that it wasn’t just a good idea that he leave, it was good for his health, as in, they would have killed him. He lived in exile, and while there, developed quite a reputation as a fighter and leader of a band of marauders who made their living taking what they wanted, perhaps even exhorting money in exchange for protection from the locals (Judges 11:3).

Now the Israelites had once again fallen under the dominion of a foreign nation—this time, the Ammonites—and no one else in Israel stepped to the plate as a leader. So the elders turned to someone they despised but whose fighting skills they reasoned would serve them well now that they needed a deliverer. They came with hat in hand to Jephthah to ask him to lead (Judges 11:4-6). Jephthah agreed, but only after extracting an admission that they had been jerks to him all his life and that they would make him ruler over them should he win the battle against the Ammonites (Judges 11:7-11). They didn’t have much of a choice, so they agreed to his conditions.

Now here is where the story gets even weirder: as Jephthah leads Israel to war, we are told that the Spirit of the Lord comes upon him (Judges 11:29), but in the very next two verses, we see that the first thing he does is to make one of the most foolish vows you can imagine:

Meanwhile, Jephthah had vowed to the Lord that if God would help Israel conquer the Ammonites, then when he returned home in peace, the first person coming out of his house to meet him would be sacrificed as a burnt offering to the Lord! (Judges 11:30-31, LB)

Alternative meanings have been assigned to this rash vow to sanitize it for our modern minds. Precisely because of the juxtaposition of these two verses with the antecedent verse, that is, how could someone filled with the Holy Spirit make such an evil vow, commentators have suggested that Jephthah’s declaration really meant that he would force his daughter (the first thing coming out of his house) to become the living sacrifice of a young woman living in perpetual virginity. But the simplest way to read the verse is to understand that he meant to literally offer a human sacrifice if the Lord gave him victory.

Pretty messed up, wouldn’t you say? So the question is legitimate: how could someone filled with the Holy Spirit make such an evil declaration? And perhaps we wonder that in our own context when we see leaders who have been uniquely gifted by God turn around and say weird things or do dumb stuff. How could an amazingly gifted communicator or a miracle-working faith healer or mesmerizing worship leader misappropriate money, or have an illicit affair or promote a false teaching?

I think the easiest explanation for that is simply that we should never confuse the gift with the package. In other words, God’s gift is always placed within flawed human packages—and even if the person so gifted never goes off the rails, they are still sin-broken people. The fact is, God uses broken people to accomplish his purposes, and that is a grace to his people. If he used only the perfect, he would use no one.

Of course, that does not excuse bad behavior; it just explains it. So, the bottom line is that as you view the gifted spiritual leaders in your life, celebrate the gift that God has placed upon their ministry, but don’t idolize the person. Like you, they, too, are human. Furthermore, don’t limit God from empowering you with his Holy Spirit by thinking you are too flawed and unqualified. Remember, as someone has said, God doesn’t choose the qualified, he qualifies the chosen.

Thank God for his gifts. They are a grace to us.

“ If God only used perfect people, nothing would get done. God will use anybody if you’re available. —RICK WARREN

SUMMARY: Make no mistake: God still fights on behalf of his people. In a realm that you usually can’t see, there is a battle, and God is at war to bring about complete and utter victory for his kingdom. And while in the seen realm we may not see that victory, let’s be perfectly clear about this: The outcome is predetermined and the victory has already been won! If you don’t believe that, then as they say, fast-forward to the end of the book, and you will see it: we win!

God Speaks—I Obey // Focus: Joshua 10:9-13

Joshua traveled all night from Gilgal and took the Amorite armies by surprise. The Lord threw them into a panic, and the Israelites slaughtered great numbers of them at Gibeon. Then the Israelites chased the enemy along the road to Beth-horon, killing them all along the way to Azekah and Makkedah. As the Amorites retreated down the road from Beth-horon, the Lord destroyed them with a terrible hailstorm from heaven that continued until they reached Azekah. The hail killed more of the enemy than the Israelites killed with the sword. On the day the Lord gave the Israelites victory over the Amorites, Joshua prayed to the Lord in front of all the people of Israel: “Let the sun stand still over Gibeon, and the moon over the valley of Aijalon.” So the sun stood still and the moon stayed in place until the nation of Israel had defeated its enemies.

Obviously, it doesn’t always work this way, but when it does, boy howdy! The situation was different back then, and it called for God to step in on Israel’s behalf in a way that left no doubt in the minds of friend and foe alike that Yahweh was on the side of his people. Like the ten plagues and the parting of the Red Sea, clearly God was fighting for Israel. And it wasn’t a fair fight. It never is when God gets involved.

Israel was taking possession of their Promised Land in fulfillment of the centuries-old covenantal promise that God made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. That meant the Canaanites, a particularly brutal, sinful, godless amalgam of city-states, had to be dispossessed from that land. So city-by-city, Joshua was on a winning streak where Israel didn’t barely eek out victories; these were blowouts. And in this case, not only was the Israelite army crushing the Amorites, but God stepped in and, through a hailstorm of epic proportions, laid waste to the enemy. We are told that more died by the hail than by the sword.

Then, if that weren’t enough, Joshua put his foot on the gas to completely destroy whoever was left. The day was coming to a close, the sun would soon set before the job got done, so he even called out to the sun and moon for them to freeze in place. Imagine that: a man making demands of the solar system just so he could finish his work before nightfall. And it happened! Seriously, the only time before or since the sun literally stood still and the moon didn’t budge until Israel had pitched a complete game—a shutout, and a no-hitter at that.

Don’t you wish that were your testimony with every problem you face? I do! But most times, that is not what is called for. Typically, God has other methods for accomplishing his will. We are not literally going into a physical land to dispossess nations, so what Joshua did would be completely inappropriate for God’s people today. We are to take possession of spiritual lands by capturing people by persuading them through the gospel and bringing them under the loving reign of Jesus Christ. Obviously, it is a bit different today than in Joshua’s day.

However, make no mistake: God still fights on behalf of his people. In a realm that you usually can’t see, there is a battle, and God is at war to bring about complete and utter victory for his kingdom. And while that victory may not be seen like you and I would want it to be, let’s be perfectly clear about this: The outcome is predetermined and the victory has already been won! If you don’t believe that, then as they say, fast-forward to the end of the book and you will see it: We win!

Take heart today, my friend. In whatever battle you face, you have a God who fights for his people. Surely the Lord fights for you in the unseen realm—sometimes in a way that even leaks into the visible realm—just like he fought for Joshua:

Surely the Lord fought for Israel that day! (Joshua 10:14)

In an earlier battle, once again Joshua led Israel to a stunning victory over the evil and defiant Amalekites. When the battle was over, we are told that Moses built an altar there and named it “Yahweh-Nissi (which means ‘the Lord is my banner’). He said, ‘They have raised their fist against the Lord’s throne, so now the Lord will be at war with them.’” (Exodus 17:15-16)

Yahweh Nissi—the Lord is just as much your banner as he was Israel’s!

“ There is no neutral ground in the universe: every square inch, every split second is claimed by God and counterclaimed by Satan. — C.S. LEWIS

SUMMARY: Predictably, what we see and sense today at the highest as well as the lowest levels of culture is what happens when, as Alexander Solzhenitsyn lamented, “Men have forgotten God; that’s why all this has happened.” As believers, we must let the moral decay of our nation turn our stomachs, but then we must let it turn our hearts to God in intercession for a sweeping spiritual awakening.

God Speaks—I Obey // Focus: 9:56-57

Admittedly, this is a weird story, and it’s even weirder that it was included in the Bible. Like a few others we have come across as we read the Old Testament devotionally, this is a head-scratcher. But at the end of the day, this story of Abimelech’s brief but brutal rule as a judge of Israel and his abrupt, gruesome death is a reminder of what happens in a person, and in a society, when God has been left out of the picture.

Abimelech was one of Gideon’s sons—one of seventy or so. And it just so happens that he was the one son from Gideon’s union with a concubine who lived in a different town, Shechem. So, there was probably no love lost with his many siblings; he was likely looked down upon by his brothers his entire life. There is a good chance Abimelech had a chip on his shoulder (that unfortunately ended with a millstone on his head—literally. See Judges 9:50-55).

So, Abimelech decided to do away with his seventy brothers, which he did in the most grisly fashion (Judges 9:5) by beheading them at one time. He killed all but one, Gideon’s youngest son, Jotham, who escaped and hid, and then resurfaced with an incendiary prophecy (Judges 9:7-21). This prophecy was a kind of “pox on both your houses” statement that ultimately came to pass. The prophecy was that in selecting Abimelech to be their king, the citizens of Shechem would end up paying for it with their lives, and Abimelech would likewise come to a brutal end for the murder of his brothers. That is the rest of the story of Judges 9.

Now take away the raw brutality of this story, sanitize it a bit, and what you have is the story of leadership in our current culture. Far too common is the way leaders attain power and the way the citizens surrender power to them. Lying, cheating, doing whatever it takes to make their opponent look bad, saying one thing to get elected, then leading another, coming off as a servant of the people but living like a king once in power, seems to be just the way it is in our political world. Often in elections, we feel like we have no choice but to hold our noses to cast our ballots. But we get the leaders we deserve.

Why? Simple answer: men have forgotten God. The writer of Judges prophetically summed up our twenty-first century world in the last verse in this book when he wrote, “There was no controlling moral authority to govern peoples’ lives, so everyone did what was right in their own eyes.” (Judges 21:25) Unfortunately, in our day, as was the case in the day of the Judges, “what was right”, without the presence of the “Controlling Moral Authority”, without fail produces moral, cultural, economic, and global chaos.

Predictably, what we see and sense today at the highest as well as the lowest levels of culture is what happens when, as Alexander Solzhenitsyn lamented, “Men have forgotten God; that’s why all this has happened.” In his famous Templeton Address, “Men Have Forgotten God,” Solzhenitsyn said

The failings of human consciousness, deprived of its divine dimension, have been a determining factor in all the major crimes of this century…Yet we have grown used to this kind of world; we even feel at home in it.

May we never get used to it! May we never feel at home in this present world the way it is now. As believers, we have the urgent calling to humble ourselves before God, acknowledge our sin, repent, and turn to him for the healing of our land. As disgusted as you may feel reading Judges 9, let the moral decay of America turn your stomach, then turn your heart to God in intercession for a spiritual awakening once again in our land.

Who knows, God may give us a revival as he did throughout the book of Judges, as his people cried out to him.

“ A revival is nothing else than a new beginning of obedience to God. —CHARLES FINNEY

SUMMARY: The story of Gideon’s dramatic rise and precipitous fall in Judges 6-8 is a classic reminder that it is not just a strong start that counts; it is finishing well that is the essential thing in our journey with God.

God Speaks—I Obey // Focus: Judges 8:27

Gideon made a sacred ephod from the gold and put it in Ophrah, his hometown. But soon all the Israelites prostituted themselves by worshiping it, and it became a trap for Gideon and his family.[/

Conflicted. That is what Gideon was, as we see in Judges 8. Gideon was a conflicted man, increasingly at odds with his own beliefs and his calling. But he is not alone, because most leaders are. And so are most people, whether they are believers or not. You see, people live with a persistent sin nature that rises, early and often, to tempt them with attitudes and actions that are incongruent with their deeply held values.

Conflicted, that is what we are, hopelessly and helplessly! And without our conscious and daily submission to our Savior, Jesus Christ, and the continual indwelling and empowering of the Holy Spirit, we don’t stand a chance.

Consider Gideon. In the previous chapters, we find that he was at once humble (Judges 6:15), obedient (Judges 7:8), and dependent on God (Judges 7:15); yet, as we see from this story in chapter 8, he was also prideful, self-reliant, and disobedient.

Gideon went out to fight Midian in the power of the Lord and routed a far superior army in a stunning victory, but he came back a ruthless man (Judges 8:13-21), arrogantly refusing to be Israel’s king yet living like one anyway (Judges 8:22-24, 29-31), and disobedient in making a golden ephod that would lead Israel to worship it as an idol (Judges 8:27). The text says the golden ephod he made, representing his power, his success, and his status among the Israelites, became a trap for Gideon and his family (Judges 8:27).

What a quick and disappointing turnaround. His impossible victory over Midian was one for the ages. Gideon’s band of three hundred fighting men is still talked about to this day, used as an example of what God can do with a just few who are fully submitted to him. Yet within days of this victory, his base nature was taking over, and it led him to make decisions that set the stage for Israel to not only drift from God under Gideon’s watch by worshiping the golden ephod, but to plunge headlong into national idolatry after he died:

As soon as Gideon died, the Israelites prostituted themselves by worshiping the images of Baal, making Baal-berith their god. They forgot the Lord their God, who had rescued them from all their enemies surrounding them. Nor did they show any loyalty to the family of Gideon, despite all the good he had done for Israel. (Judges 8:33-35)

As we seek to make sense of this jaw-dropping spiritual reversal, Gideon’s story reminds us that the same sin nature that wreaked havoc in his life will mess us up just as quickly if we are not careful. Here are a few sobering lessons coming to us from Gideon’s story that we would do well to keep in mind:

First, charisma will only take you so far; it will be character that keeps you there. Obviously, Gideon had the ability to inspire others to follow him into an impossible battle, but his core values were not such that he could resist the temptations that came his way after the victory. Arguably, the true test of character is success.

Second, character issues that are left unchecked will resurface at some point in our lives, sooner or later. The only way to effectively deal with our sin is to allow the Lord to obliterate it. If it is not destroyed, it will come back to bite us. Whatever goes underground will resurface at some point.

Third, a victory today does not guarantee a victory tomorrow. We cannot rest on the laurels of past accomplishment; submission to God must be a daily victory.

Fourth, pride is an ever-present enemy of God’s plan to use us mightily for him. Pride is at the core of sin, continually causing issues of godship in our relationship with God.

Fifth, constant attention to sin is required to run our race strong and finish well. Over and again, the Bible calls us to stay alert, to be on guard, to be ever watchful for the Enemy’s work in our lives. Satan never gives up: we can serve up a devastating defeat by our obedience to God one day, and he will be right back at us the next, tempting us to stray from God.

The story of Gideon in Judges 6-8 is a classic reminder that it is not just a strong start that counts; it is finishing well that is the essential thing in our journey with God. May it be said of us, “they started strong and finished well.”

“ It is not the mountain we conquer, but ourselves.. — SIR EDMUND HILLARY

SUMMARY: Faith is putting our full confidence in the things we hope for; it means being certain of things we cannot see. (Hebrews 11:1-2) That makes faith ruthless trust in the care and competence of our Heavenly Father, that at the end of the day, he does all things well. Faith is unshakeable hope that God loves us and will work everything out for our good and his glory. Faith is not looking at the unmovable mountain in our way, but it is looking to the Mountain Mover on our side. The acrostic F.A.I.T.H. is absolutely accurate: Forsaking All, I Trust Him. That is why God allows us to be in situations where the genuineness of our faith can be proven, and where his own genuine goodness can be experienced. Do you want to be a person of great faith? Then let go and let God!

God Speaks—I Obey // Focus: Judges 7:2-7

Gideon and his army got up early and went as far as the spring of Harod. The armies of Midian were camped north of them in the valley near the hill of Moreh. The Lord said to Gideon, “You have too many warriors with you. If I let all of you fight the Midianites, the Israelites will boast to me that they saved themselves by their own strength. Therefore, tell the people, ‘Whoever is timid or afraid may leave this mountain[a] and go home.’” So 22,000 of them went home, leaving only 10,000 who were willing to fight. But the Lord told Gideon, “There are still too many! Bring them down to the spring, and I will test them to determine who will go with you and who will not.” When Gideon took his warriors down to the water, the Lord told him, “Divide the men into two groups. In one group, put all those who cup water in their hands and lap it up with their tongues like dogs. In the other group, put all those who kneel and drink with their mouths in the stream.” Only 300 of the men drank from their hands. All the others got down on their knees and drank with their mouths from the stream. The Lord told Gideon, “With these 300 men I will rescue you and give you victory over the Midianites. Send all the others home.”

We want the odds to be in our favor. To mix metaphors, when push comes to shove, we are certainly not opposed to the decks being stacked in our favor. That is just human nature—fallen human nature, that is. But that is not the way of God, which means that is not the way of faith.

The thing is, we are created to glorify our Creator, to worship him, and fully enjoy him forever. Life is not about us, it is all about him, and how we can live to bring him maximum fame through our daily lives—in our everyday, walking around, eating, sleeping, talking, going about our business lives. Our job is to make God famous. And in doing that, we experience the deepest, longest-lasting satisfaction possible during the few decades we have been allotted in this one and only life.

But that means we must walk the way of faith. Faith is putting our full confidence in the things we hope for, it means being certain of things we cannot see. (Hebrews 11:1-2) Faith is ruthless trust in the care and competence of our Heavenly Father. Faith is unshakeable hope that God loves us and will work everything out for our good and his glory. Faith is not looking at the immovable mountain in our way; it is looking to the Mountain Mover on our side. Faith is Forsaking All, I Trust Him.

That is why God allows us to be in situations where the genuineness of our faith can be proven. You see, it doesn’t take much faith if we don’t really need God to step in. If there is not the possibility, at least on the human, visible level, that we can crash and burn if God doesn’t show up, then we are most likely not stepping out far enough where we have reached the rare air of risky faith. If we can do it without God, most likely we will take the credit for our success.

Remember, however, we were created to glorify him in everything we do. Remember that our one assignment is to make God famous. Remember that he designed us to be most satisfied in him when he is most glorified in us. That is precisely why he allows the decks to be stacked against us. It is then that he can supply us with supernatural power and all kinds of divine aid to rout our toughest enemies, overcome our most overwhelming odds, and win our most stunning victories.

That is precisely why God told Gideon to pare his fighting force down from thousands to just 300—against a Midianite army that was far superior in numbers, experience, and fighting talent. In God’s own words, “If I let all of you fight the Midianites, the Israelites will boast to me that they saved themselves by their own strength.” God doesn’t share his glory—and that is a good thing. He allows us to share in his glory, but that comes only by deflecting all the glory that we might receive in our effort back to him. When we do that, his glory is reflected onto us in a way that we could never produce on our own.

Now, like me, you may not be totally comfortable with this whole business of the decked stack against you. But the record of scripture, the testimony of the faithful, and from my own experience, that is the way of faith. And frankly, I am glad it is. Get used to it!

So, if you’ve got horrible odds, not to worry: You are on the edge of a holy opportunity.

SUMMARY: When God is with a person, then even the weakest, most reluctant, and least qualified is a mighty man or woman of valor. It is not a person’s gifts, talents, skills, temperament, and popularity that tip the scales as to whether they will be successful or not, though these personal qualities are not unimportant/ It is God’s presence that determines the outcome of success in their life. If God is for us, who can be against us!

God Speaks—I Obey // Focus: Judges 6:11-14

The angel of the Lord came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, where his son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress to keep it from the Midianites. When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior. Gideon replied, “Pardon me, but if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us. Where are all his wonders that our ancestors told us about when they said, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned us and given us into the hands of Midian. The Lord turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?

When will we ever learn that God doesn’t see things the way we do when he chooses people for his service? No one would have looked at a barren married couple in their nineties as logical candidates to be the parents of many nations. God saw something in Abram and Sarai that we couldn’t see. No one would have looked at the stuttering fugitive, wanted for murder, now on the lam in the Sinai wilderness, as Israel’s deliverer. But God saw something in Moses that we couldn’t see. No one would have looked at a young, ruddy shepherd boy, the runt among his strapping brothers, and predicted that he would be a giant slayer, a mighty king, and a man after God’s own heart. But God saw something in David that we couldn’t see.

Long before we see potential in a person, God does.

Such was the case with Gideon in Judges 6. When God found this man who would become one of the greatest judges in Israel’s history, he was hiding in fear in a winepress (Judges 6:11), blaming God for Israel’s subjugation at the hand of Midian when it was clearly Israel’s fault (Judges 6:13), and mired in the quicksand poor self-esteem, arguing with God as to why he was the wrong choice to deliver Israel (Judges 6:15).

Not a great job interview! Yet God saw past Gideon’s obvious weaknesses and addressed him, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior!” You see, when God is with you—and that is key—then even the weakest, most reluctant, least qualified, is a mighty man or woman of valor. It is not our gifts, talents, skills, temperament, or résumé of past success that tip the scales on whether we will be successful, though these personal qualities are not unimportant. It is God’s presence that determines the outcome of success in our lives. If God is for us, who can be against us!

When God calls us, our résumés change before we accomplish one single thing. We immediately achieve conqueror status—in advance. When God is with us, then we can simply go in the strength we have (Judges 6:14) and do what the Almighty has foreordained. To go in our strength is to simply put our gifts, talents, skills, and temperament on the line for God, then let God do the rest. We might see ourselves, or others, as Gideon saw himself: The least qualified in the least qualified family. God sees that too—more than we do. But God also sees something else. He sees that he will be with us, and he sees that he will go before us, and he sees that he has already accomplished what he has predetermined.

That is why God chose Abram and Sarai, Moses, David—and all the other heroes that occupy the Great Hall of Faith of Hebrews 11; none of which we would have chosen. But God chose them, and that sealed the deal; that guaranteed their success; that put them into the realm of mighty men and women of valor long before they or anyone saw them in that grand light.

Do you ever wonder how God views you? Wonder no longer! He sees not what you aren’t, but what you are: A person he has chosen and blessed with his presence to do great and impossible things for him. So go with what you’ve got. The Lord is with you!

“ God doesn’t call the qualified, He qualifies the called. — VARIOUSLY ATTRIBUTED

SUMMARY: The realm of spiritual warfare where the Christian resides is no theological “Switzerland.” Moral issues demand that we take a stand as Kingdom ambassadors. We cannot keep our distance from this conflict; we cannot stay neutral in it. We must engage, even when the odds are overwhelming. To step forward in faith into the fray is to be on the right side of history — what we can rightly call “His story” — and time will prove it.

God Speaks—I Obey // Focus: Judges 5:15-18, 24-25

The princes of Issachar were with Deborah; yes, Issachar was with Barak, sent under his command into the valley. In the districts of Reuben there was much searching of heart. Why did you stay among the sheep pens to hear the whistling for the flocks? In the districts of Reuben there was much searching of heart. Gilead stayed beyond the Jordan. And Dan, why did he linger by the ships? Asher remained on the coast and stayed in his coves. The people of Zebulun risked their very lives; so did Naphtali on the terraced fields….Most blessed of women be Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite, most blessed of tent-dwelling women.

In Judges 5, the prophetess Deborah composed a tune to commemorate the Israelites’ victory, led by General Barak, over the Canaanites and their leader, General Sisera. The memorable and brutal battle described in Judges 4 ended with the gruesome death of Sisera. Deborah used the occasion to memorialize the details of Israel’s victory in this song—a song she not only composed but also sang for all to hear.

The tune, however, was not just a celebration; it was a diatribe as well. Not only did she celebrate the brave hearts of several of Israel’s tribes, Issachar, Ephraim, Benjamin, and Zebulun, along with the courageous lady named Jael, who assassinated Sisera, but she also castigates the indecision of other tribes, Reuben, Dan, and Asher. These latter tribes apparently sat out the conflict because it didn’t directly concern them.

Rueben was conflicted about joining the fight, apparently not so sure there would be a good outcome, given how badly Israel was outmanned and outgunned: “In Reuben there was much searching of heart.” (Judges 5:15-16). The others, the tribes of Ephraim, Benjamin, and Zebulun, were either sitting in the safety of being far from the conflict or too busy with their own concerns to jump into the fray.

Despite the lack of participation from these four tribes, Israel conquered the Canaanites. It was an amazing victory for Israel when General Barak put the larger, better-equipped army led by General Sisera to flight. But when the time came for courage, for the reasons mentioned above, the four stayed home. In so doing, they earned the ire of this steely prophetess, Deborah. She interpreted their reluctance as disloyalty to the nation, which was tantamount to a lack of faith, disobedience, and disloyalty to God. So, she called them out publicly for seeing themselves as separate entities rather than as a part of the nation, a problem Moses had previously warned about, and a problem that became reality in future chapters throughout Judges.

So, what does this story have to do with you? Simply this: there is always conflict in the believer’s life. At times, the conflict is in the unseen realm, while at other times it spills over into the real world in your personal, family, social, professional, and church life. In the raging battle, there is always a right and wrong side, a side that represents good and one that represents evil. And wherever conflict invades your world, there are always three positions you can take—one right, two wrong.

The two wrong sides are like what we see immortalized in Deborah’s song. One side, represented by Reuben, is to stay neutral in the fray when the choice is clear. The Rueben mentality is conflicted, not sure what to do, worried about the cost, wanting to play it safe, but not feeling so good about sitting it out. But safe it is not, it is wrong, for in the fight of faith, there is no neutral spiritual Switzerland. Moral issues demand that we take a stand.

The second wrong side takes a definite stance to sit it out. The sit-it-out crowd is too busy, too far removed (they don’t have a dog in this fight, or so they think), and to jump into the fray would take too much effort for too little reward. But in the fight of faith, where the choice is clear, staying off the field will only get you into history books for the wrong reason. Spiritual infamy is not what you want when you are needed in the conquest.

There is only one right side, and that is to step forward in faith to fight for right. When sin threatens, encroaches, or seeks to enslave, even when it seems the odds are against you or against those who need your help, Deborah’s eternal call is to jump into the fray. Her words to Barak are the Word of the Lord to you:

This is the day the Lord has given your enemy into your hands—for the Lord is marching ahead of you. (Judges 4:14)

Where is the battle of faith calling you to take a stand today? If there is an identifiable conflict, jump into the fray. God is already there, and you are not only guaranteed a win but also an eternal song to commemorate your conquest.

“ When you fear God, you fear nothing else, but if you do not fear God, you fear everything else. — OSWALD CHAMBERS

SUMMARY: What would you attempt for God if you knew that he was already where your steps of faith would lead you? How energetically would you press forward if you knew he was waiting there for you to arrive? What level of confidence would you have knowing that God had gone ahead of you and secured your victory even before the battle began? The truth is, when God calls you to step out, he has not only promised to be with you, but he has also promised to go before you. And while you may not see around the bend of faith, God is already there with your victory in hand.

God Speaks—I Obey // Focus: Judges 4:14-15

Then Deborah said to Barak, “Get ready! This is the day the Lord will give you victory over Sisera, for the Lord is marching ahead of you.” So Barak led his 10,000 warriors down the slopes of Mount Tabor into battle. When Barak attacked, the Lord threw Sisera and all his chariots and warriors into a panic.

What would you attempt for God if you knew the Lord was marching ahead of you? What grand thing would you pursue if you knew that he was already where your steps of faith would lead you, waiting for you to arrive? What level of confidence would you have knowing that God had gone ahead of you and secured your victory even before the battle began?

When God calls you to a step of faith, you are guaranteed his presence and his power, which means that you are invincible in the journey. Moreover, he has not only promised to be with you, but he has also promised to go before you, and while you may not see around the bend of faith, God is already there, waiting for you to take the victory lap for a success that he achieved for you. How cool is that!

That is exactly what the prophetess Deborah is telling the reluctant general of the Israelite army, Barak. He is shivering in his boots, knowing that his army is outmanned and outgunned by the Canaanite army of General Sisera. We are told in Judges 4:3, “Sisera, who had 900 iron chariots, ruthlessly oppressed the Israelites for twenty years.” 900 iron chariots to Israel’s none…no wonder, on a human level, Barak was not too excited about leading Israel into battle.

But this battle would not be fought only on a human level. No battle is. In the spiritual realm, God had already heard the cries of the Israelites and had determined to deliver them from their oppressors under the guidance of Deborah the Judge and Barak the General. Considering that, the fight was over before it even started. Barak couldn’t see that, but Deborah could. That is why she told him, “Now get out there and fight, for God is already ahead of you and has guaranteed the victory. C’mon, go take your victory lap.” And that is exactly what Barak did, and a great deliverance for Israel was accomplished.

Perhaps you are a little uncertain about what’s next for you. Maybe you’re not too confident about your future. Maybe the circumstances you face are overwhelming, from a human perspective. You are outnumbered and outgunned. But where God is asking you to step out in faith, those odds do not matter one iota. God is on your side; he is not only with you, but also before you. He is already where he has called you to go, waiting for you to walk into a victory that he has secured for you. That means you cannot lose. So, take heart!

Therefore, because of God’s exemplary record of faithful goodness in leading his people to victory, do not be afraid to trust an unknown tomorrow to a known God. Get ready! This is the day God will give you victory, for he is marching ahead of you. That is God’s promise to you!

In a verse similar to this one, King David said to his son Solomon as he gave him the daunting task of building a temple in Jerusalem to the God of Israel,

Be strong and courageous and get to work. Don’t be frightened by the size of the task, for the Lord God is with you; he will not forsake you. He will see to it that everything is finished correctly. (1 Chronicles 28:20, LB)

Whatever is before you, if God is calling you to step out, then do it with confidence; God is already out there where you have been called to go. And he has guaranteed victory if you go with him!

“ “Faith sees the invisible, believes the unbelievable, and receives the impossible.” — CORRIE TEN BOOM

SUMMARY: Wouldn’t it make your life simpler and easier if God just stepped in and vaporized your every spiritual enemy? Why doesn’t He?
Among other reasons known only to God, one important reason is that He is testing you, and he is teaching you so that He might increase your trust in Him. He allows you to be in strenuous situations to test and temper your faith, and through those moments, He forces you to learn the art of spiritual warfare. You see, the battle you are in is not flesh and blood; it is from the unseen realm, and it masquerades as people and circumstances in the seen world. And your most effective weapons in every battle are your ruthless trust in God and unquestionable obedience to His commands. So, if you’re in a battle right now, take heart. You will be victorious … if you trust and obey. Furthermore, God is doing you a favor by getting you ready for greater things!

God Speaks—I Obey // Focus: Judges 3:1-2,4

These are the nations the Lord left to test all those Israelites who had not experienced any of the wars in Canaan (he did this only to teach warfare to the descendants of the Israelites who had not had previous battle experience)….These enemy nations were left to test the Israelites to see whether they would obey the Lord’s commands, which he had given their ancestors through Moses.

Do you ever wish God would just annihilate sin in your life? Wouldn’t it be nice if he removed everything that troubles your soul? How wonderful it would be if the Christian’s voyage from salvation to eternity were nothing but smooth sailing!

Yes, that would be nice. But God doesn’t work that way. He could have given Abraham and Sarah, whom he called the parents of many nations, an heir long before they were in their nineties and well past the years of bearing a son. He didn’t have to leave Joseph languishing in a prison cell for 15 years, training him to be a faithful leader in small matters and under great duress, when a weekend stay would have sufficed. The Lord didn’t have to teach Moses how to shepherd Israel over a forty-year illustrious career by first burying him in ignominy and isolation during a forty-year stint as a goat herder on the backside of the Sinai desert. And God didn’t have to take the Israelites on a forty-year meandering journey through that same desert when two years would have gotten them from Egypt to Canaan and more than sufficed to mold them into a nation.

The thing is, God takes his time in preparing his people. He does it apart from our sense of time because God is God. And God knows more than we do. And God can do what he wants. And God knows that it takes us a long time to learn. So, he uses the sharpest edge tool, discomfort, to test us and to train us for glorious purposes.

After Joshua died and the Israelites settled in Canaan, there were still more than a few enemy nations in the land. Moses had commanded that Israel wipe them out because they would ultimately lead God’s people astray by enticing them to tolerate, then accept, then actually worship their gods. Israel had failed to remove these nations, and sure enough, Israel began to intermarry with some of them and live alongside others as if it were no big deal. But it was a big deal indeed, because what Moses predicted was exactly what happened: Israel began to embrace the unspeakable pagan practices of these Canaanite nations. So God punished them.

Punishment came in the form of subjugation—the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Hivites, and Jebusites defeated Israel and put onerous demands and taxation upon them. Finally, in desperation, Israel cried out to God, who in turn raised up judges to deliver his people. This is the story of Judges: Judge after judge is raised up to lead Israel into repentance, unite and inspire them, then lead them into battle and throw off the oppressive yoke of their masters. This vicious cycle of subjugation, desperation, repentance, and deliverance took place over a period of 400 years.

But there was something else going on during this time. God was testing the loyalty of his people by leaving these pagan nations that Israel had failed to remove; he wanted to show them how easy and quickly they would surrender to the enticement of the false gods, which they did! And he not only tested them, but he had to teach them how to battle their way back to holiness and freedom by throwing off the yoke of their oppressors. They had to suffer the consequences of the pain that always followed enjoying the pleasures of sin for a season; they had to relearn the power of holiness; and they had to learn the literal fighting skills it would take to decimate these enemy nations.

Why doesn’t God completely vaporize your every spiritual enemy? Same reasons! He is testing you and teaching you. He allows you to be in strenuous situations to test and temper your faith, and then in those moments, he forces you to learn the art of spiritual warfare, of which the chief weapons are ruthless trust and unquestionable obedience. The argument could be made that you wouldn’t really need the testing and teaching if you were sinlessly perfect, but you are not. So God does you a favor by testing you and teaching you.

So, until you are sinlessly perfect—which means you will have died and are firmly in heaven—then praise God that in the meantime, he is getting you battle-ready!

SUMMARY: God has no grandchildren. Each generation is responsible to seek God for itself. And it is the parents’ responsibility to drill that into their children. They may reject their parents’ faith, but not because the parents didn’t do their best to inculcate their kids with the knowledge of God. If the parents fail to do this, or if the kids refuse to accept this, the outcome will be predictable: Prosperity … Rebellion … Consequence … Repentance … Restoration … Prosperity … Rebellion  Consequence. Repentance. It is the vicious cycle of rebellion and restoration. It would be a lot simpler and far better if we stayed in the restoration zone.

God Speaks—I Obey // Focus: Judges 2:10-14,16

After Joshua’s generation died, another generation grew up who did not acknowledge the Lord or remember the mighty things He had done for Israel. Then the Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight and served the images of Baal. They abandoned the God of their ancestors who had brought them out of Egypt. They went after other gods, worshiping the gods of the people around them. And they angered the Lord. They abandoned Him to serve Baal and the images of Ashtoreth. This made the Lord burn with anger against Israel, so He handed them over to raiders who stole their possessions. He turned them over to their enemies all around, and they were no longer able to resist them.

Prosperity. Rebellion. Consequence. Repentance. Restoration. Prosperity. Rebellion. Consequence. Repentance. Restoration, Prosperity. Rebellion…

That is the sad cycle of Judges. So be warned: you will get a lot of that as you read this book. In many ways, it is a frustrating, if not depressing, history, but such is the dark reality of life in rebellion against God. Yet within this collection of stories that take place over the 400 years between Joshua’s death and the arrival of Samuel the prophet, you will also find sun breaks of God’s grace, inspiring stories of heroic men and woman who stepped in to lead Israel to revival, and invaluable life application for those who are serious about obeying their covenant of love with God.

This second chapter is both a preview and an overview of the book of Judges. The verse above captures the problem: when Joshua and his generation died, the baton was somehow dropped to the next generation, and for whatever reason, they “knew neither the Lord nor what he had done.”

Therein lies the problem that has perpetually haunted God’s people. The next generation somehow misses out on knowing God. Interesting, and sad, isn’t it! Their parents knew God, enjoyed his favor, experienced his presence, and walked in obedience before him. But their kids missed out. What the parents knew and loved didn’t transfer to the children. For the next generation, “the God of my fathers” never became “my Lord and my God!”

Why? Who knows for sure, but just as we have seen within our own families, there are different reasons. Perhaps the parents were so busy with God stuff that they didn’t include their kids. Maybe the parents assumed their faith would simply transfer, sort of by osmosis, to their children. It could be that the next generation grew up with a sense of entitlement—that they deserved God’s presence and his favor. It might be that the kids vicariously lived out their parents’ spirituality. Or it is possible that these children grew up around the holy, and it just became so common that their sense of God became jaded. There are many possibilities, but whatever the reason, the God of their fathers never became their God.

The deal is, God has no grandchildren. Each generation is responsible to seek God for itself. And it is the responsibility of the parents to drill that into their kids, early and often. At the end of the day, they may reject their parents’ faith, but not because the parents didn’t do their best to inculcate their kids with the knowledge of God.

If the parents fail to do this, or if their kids refuse to accept this, the outcome will be predictable: Prosperity. Rebellion. Consequence. Repentance. Restoration. Prosperity. Rebellion. Consequence. Repentance. It is the vicious cycle of rebellion and restoration. It would just be a lot simpler and far better if we would just stay in the restoration zone.

What is the key to avoiding the Judges syndrome: Know God and remember what he has done. That is not a passive thing, but an active laying hold of the things of the Lord. It takes consistent, dogged intentionality, but it is well worth the effort.

SUMMARY: We must remember that when it comes to sin, we are in a battle. It is an all-out war that we can and must win (and with God’s help, we will, since he is fighting for us!), but it is a war in which there can be no truce. It is total victory or utter defeat. Sin is your enemy, not your neighbor. Treat it ruthlessly!

God Speaks—I Obey // Focus: Judges 1:21

The tribe of Benjamin, however, failed to drive out the Jebusites, who were living in Jerusalem. So to this day the Jebusites live in Jerusalem among the people of Benjamin.

The tribe of Benjamin failed to drive out the Canaanites. So did the tribes of Judah (Judges 1:19), Manasseh (Judges 1:27), Ephraim (Judges 1:29), Zebulun (Judges 1:30) Asher (Judges 1:31), Naphtali (Judges 1:33) and while we are not explicitly told the tribe of Dan failed, apparently, they permitted their enemies to stay around the edge of their territory (Judges 1:24-26).

So basically, Israel failed to do what God commanded them to do when failure was not one of the options he gave his people.

And it came back to bite them! You see, pagan enemies always make bad neighbors. When Israel allowed the godless Canaanites to live in their midst, or even close in close proximity, over the 400 years time span that the book of Judges covered, early and often God’s people predictably fell victim to a variety of sinful influences these godless cultures embraced—sexual immorality, idol worship, child sacrifice, and if even worse, if that is possible. Let me say it again, because God said it over and over to his people:

Pagan enemies make bad neighbors!

Obviously, we are not commanded to literally drive non-believers out of our neighborhoods, our community groups, or our various governmental expressions—local, state, or federal (although the right to vote allows us to make those kinds of changes through legal means). That would be rather poor form these days, and, in reality, against the law. Instead, we are to witness to them of the grace of our Lord Jesus, model for them the redemptive love of God, and win over their hearts and minds to his kingdom.

Yet the spiritual application from Judges 1 is quite clear: Just as God commanded Israel to drive the pagan enemies out of the land that he had promised as their homeland, we have been called to deal just as ruthlessly with spiritual enemies in our homeland—our hearts and homes. Failure to do so will result in these worldly influences harassing us until the day we die. They will be a constant source of irritation at the very least, and at worst, perhaps even trainwreck our relationship with the people we love and with God. Moreover, when we allow godless influences into our homes, especially through the unfiltered and unchallenged consumption of media, we are exposing the vulnerable minds of our children and ourselves to these destructive pagan influences.

We must remember that when it comes to sin, we are in a battle. It is an all-out war that we can and must win (and with God’s help, we will, for he is fighting for us!), but it is a war in which there can be no truce. It is total victory or utter defeat.

That is not just because I say so; it is due to the nature of the conflict. The reason Jesus came, died, and rose again was to defeat the Enemy:

The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work….Jesus shared in our humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil.” (1 John 3:8, Hebrews 2:14)

On the other hand, while Jesus’ purpose was to kill that which would steal, kill, and destroy us, the devil is committed to our utter defeat. He is not looking just to gain territory; he is not hoping that we coexist; he will not be satisfied with establishing a demilitarized zone with us; he wants to destroy us. He hates God, and everything of God, which includes you and me:

Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. (1 Peter 5:8)

That is the nature of the conflict. C.S. Lewis rightly described it thus: “There is no neutral ground in the universe: every square inch, every split second is claimed by God and counterclaimed by Satan.” And your life is ground zero in this cosmic conflict. So take note, stay alert, be armed, and get ruthless with sin. And be encouraged, because you were made to win:

But you belong to God, my dear children. You have already won a victory over those people, because the Spirit who lives in you is greater than the spirit who lives in the world.” (1 John 4:4)

So just remember, spiritually speaking, pagan enemies make bad neighbors.

SYNOPSIS: What would you attempt for God if you knew that he was already where your steps of faith would lead you. How energetically would you press forward if you knew he was waiting there for you to arrive? What level of confidence would you have knowing that God had gone ahead of you and secured your victory even before the battle began? The truth is, when God calls you to step out, he has not only promised to be with you, he has promised to actually go before you, and while you may not see around the bend of faith, God is already there with your victory in hand.

Moments With God // Focus: Judges 4:14-15

Then Deborah said to Barak, “Get ready! This is the day the Lord will give you victory over Sisera, for the Lord is marching ahead of you.” So Barak led his 10,000 warriors down the slopes of Mount Tabor into battle. When Barak attacked, the Lord threw Sisera and all his chariots and warriors into a panic.

What would you attempt for God if you knew the Lord was marching ahead of you? What grand thing would you pursue if you knew that he was already where your steps of faith would lead you, waiting for you to arrive? What level of confidence would you have knowing that God had gone ahead of you and secured your victory even before the battle began?

When God calls you to a step of faith, you are guaranteed his presence and his power, which means that you are invincible in the journey. Moreover, he has not only promised to be with you, but he has also promised to actually go before you, and while you may not see around the bend of faith, God is already there, waiting for you to take the victory lap for a victory that he won for you. How cool is that!

That is exactly what the prophetess Deborah is telling the reluctant general of the Israelite army, Barak. He is shivering in his boots knowing that his army is outmanned and outgunned by the Canaanite army of General Sisera. We are told in Judges 4:3, “Sisera, who had 900 iron chariots, ruthlessly oppressed the Israelites for twenty years.” 900 iron chariots to Israel’s none…no wonder, on a human level, Barak was not too excited about leading Israel into battle.

But this battle was not going to be fought only on a human level. No battle is. In the spiritual realm, God had already heard the cries of the Israelites and had determined to deliver them from their oppressors under the guidance of Deborah the Judge and Barak the General. In light of that, the fight was over before it even started. Barak couldn’t see that, but Deborah could. That is why she told him, “now get out there and fight, for God is already ahead of you and how guaranteed the victory. C’mon, go take your victory lap.” And that is exactly what Barak did, and a great deliverance for Israel was accomplished.

Perhaps you are a little uncertain about what’s next for you. Maybe you’re not too confident about your future. Maybe the circumstance you face is overwhelming, from a human perspective. You are outnumbered and outgunned. But where God is asking you to step out in faith, those odds do not matter one iota. God is on your side; he is with you, he is actually before you. He is already where he has called you to go, waiting for you to walk into a victory that he has secured for you. You cannot lose. So take heart.

Therefore, because of God’s exemplary record of faithful goodness in leading his people to victory, do not be afraid to trust an unknown tomorrow to a known God. So get ready! This is the day God will give you victory, for he is marching ahead of you. That is God’s promise to you!

In a verse similar to this, King David said to his son Solomon as he gave him the daunting task of building a temple in Jerusalem to the God of Israel,

Be strong and courageous and get to work. Don’t be frightened by the size of the task, for the Lord God is with you; he will not forsake you. He will see to it that everything is finished correctly. (1 Chron 28:20, LB)

Whatever is before you, if God is calling you to step out, then do it with confidence. God is already out there where you have been called to go. And he has guaranteed victory if you will go with him!

“ Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God. —CORRIE TEN BOOM

SYNOPSIS: In living out the law of agape love, we become like God—something that truly honors and pleases the heart of our Father. That’s what Jesus said: “You will truly be acting as children of the Most High, for he is kind to those who are unthankful and wicked.” (Luke 6:35, NLT) That’s a pretty compelling reason for choosing to express unconquerable, benevolent, kind, invincible, reconciling agape love—especially toward people who least deserve it. It is who God is, it is what God does, it is when we are most like God, and it is what his Son asked us to do.

Moments With God // Matthew 26:16

From that time on, Judas began looking for an opportunity to betray Jesus.

From that time on, Judas began looking for an opportunity to betray Jesus.

Sorry to be the one to break the news to you, but everybody gets a Judas in life. At one point or another, you will bear the pain of someone you trusted thrusting a knife in your back. It is simply, and sadly, the awful reality of living in a broken world alongside fallen human beings.

Among the sixty conspirators who assassinated the Roman leader on March 15, 44 BC was Marcus Junius Brutus. Caesar not only trusted Brutus, he favored him as a son. According to Roman historians, Caesar first resisted his assassins, but when he saw Brutus among them with his dagger drawn, he gave up. He pulled the top part of his robe over his face, and uttered those heartrending words immortalized by Shakespeare, “Et tu Brutus” … “You, too, my child?”

Julius Caesar was not the only one to know such treachery. The passionate Scottish patriot William Wallace experienced it when Earl Robert de Bruce betrayed him. Not even the brightest theological mind who ever lived—the Apostle Paul—or the most perfect human being ever—Jesus Christ—was spared. No one gets a pass on betrayal.

So here’s the thing: Are you willing to consider the possibility that God has a far deeper work to do in you that can only come through the betrayer’s knife? Charles Spurgeon said,

I bear willing witness that I owe more to the fire, the hammer and the file than to anything else in the Lord’s workshop. I sometimes question whether I have ever learned anything except through the rod. When my schoolroom is darkened, I see the most.

The truth is, the fire, the hammer and the file of a betrayal may result in some of God’s finest craftsmanship—if you keep your heart soft and your eye on him. If you are going through the pain of a betrayer’s wound right now, remember, you are walking where great people have walked before. Their greatness came because they didn’t allow betrayal to ruin them; they learned how to turn their pain into greater usefulness for the Lord.

Jesus responded to Judas’ money-making treachery with obedient submission to God—and transformed the world. Perhaps God wants to use your pain to form you, and to transform your world.

To what enemy do you need to extend unconquerable, benevolent, invincible, reconciling kindness? Go do it! It’s what your Father would do—and you’ve got his DNA.

“ Only a friend can betray a friend, a stranger has nothing to gain Only a friend comes close enough to ever cause so much pain. —MICHAEL CARD

SYNOPSIS: What the Bible describes does not mean it excuses. Sometimes scripture is simply painting a sad picture for us of what happens when God is marginalized in our thoughts, feelings and actions. Bad behavior is never justified; rather, it is pictured for us as a warning sign of what life will be like when we put our needs, wants and interests ahead of God’s purposes and plans.

The Journey// Focus: Judges 21:4-5, 25

Early the next morning the people built an altar and presented their burnt offerings and peace offerings on it. Then they said, “Who among the tribes of Israel did not join us at Mizpah when we held our assembly in the presence of the Lord?” At that time they had taken a solemn oath in the Lord’s presence, vowing that anyone who refused to come would be put to death….In those days Israel had no king; all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.

Let me get this straight: Israel has just basically wiped out one of their own tribes (Judges 20); they then vow to never allow their daughters to marry any of the remnant of that tribe, Benjamin (Judges 21:1); they feel really bad about it (Judges 21:2-3,6); they call a sacred assembly to offer sacrifices before the Lord (Judges 4); and then they make another vow to kill anyone who doesn’t show up to this worship service (Judges 21:5). Now there’s a great way to increase church attendance!

What a mess! Then they discover that the people from Jabesh-gilead had not attended church that day, so they ordered their execution: “So the assembly sent 12,000 of their best warriors to Jabesh-gilead with orders to kill everyone there, including women and children.” (Judges 21:10) But wait, someone then comes up with the idea that if they spare the unmarried woman of that city, they can then force them to become the wives of the left-over Benjamite men, making it possible for that tribe to repopulate so Isreal won’t lose one of its tribes after all, and technically, they will not have violated their vow not to let their daughters marry anyone from Benjamin. Wait, what? .

Problem was, there were only 400 of these girls from Jabesh-gilead, and there were gobs of guys from Benjamin needing wives. So someone comes up with the idea that sanctions kidnapping brides from Bethel for the rest of the Benjamite men who didn’t get a bride from Jabesh-gilead as the Bethel girls are leaving one of their annual festivals. (Judges 21:19-22) Wait, what?

Then everyone went home and lived happily ever after—not! Why not? Because as the last verse of Judges observes, “In those days Israel had no king; all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.” (Judges 21:25) They had no controlling moral authority to keep them between the lines of civility with their neighbor and righteousness before God, so they kept on coming up with social solutions—assuming they were being guided by God—that only made their national mess bigger and bigger.

Now as you read this chapter, and plenty of other chapters like it in the Old Testament, you, too, can assume that since it was recorded, and you find no condemnation of what is recorded, that God must have approved of what they are doing. But notice in Israel’s crazy plan to get brides for Benjamin that there is no use of the phrase, “the Lord commanded.”

God didn’t tell the nation to annihilate their fellow tribe. God didn’t order them to make a rash vow. God didn’t instruct them to kill off the city of Jabesh-gilead for not showing up to church. God didn’t show them how to devise a dumb plan to kidnap child-brides for the Benjamites. God wasn’t talking in this chapter. They had pushed God to the margins, then blamed him for whatever they did next.

So what does this have to do with how you read the Old Testament? Simply this, what the Bible describes does not mean it excuses. The writer is simply painting a sad picture for us of what happens when God is marginalized. Moreover, rather than justifying unrighteous behavior, these kinds of stories are to stand as warning signs to us when we put our needs, wants and interests ahead of God’s purposes and plans.

Without God at the center and circumference of our thoughts, feelings and actions, life will ultimately stink! With him at the core of everything we do, we have his eternal promise to bless us with success, prosperity and his smile. (Joshua 1:8)

Never forget: when you obey God blesses! When you don’t—well, just re-read Judges.

Moral outrage that is not based in any kind of higher, propositional and immutable moral truth might be real, but it is wrong. It is selective, inconsistent and hypocritical—and ultimately dangerous. That is why God calls us to live by his unchanging truth.

The Journey// Focus: Judges 20:5-7

The Levite, the husband of the woman who had been murdered, said, “My concubine and I came to spend the night in Gibeah, a town that belongs to the people of Benjamin. That night some of the leading citizens of Gibeah surrounded the house, planning to kill me, and they raped my concubine until she was dead. So I cut her body into twelve pieces and sent the pieces throughout the territory assigned to Israel, for these men have committed a terrible and shameful crime. Now then, all of you—the entire community of Israel—must decide here and now what should be done about this!”

If you have been following this story from Judges 19, you have to question the outrage of this Levite. It seems a bit manufactured. After all, he is the one who pushed his wife out the door and into the waiting arms of the sexual perverts of Gibeah, who brutalized her throughout the night until she died. He cowardly offered her up to save his own skin, showing no concern for her safety, much less her dignity as a precious human being. Then the next morning when he walked out the door and saw her lying there, he callously told her to get up and get moving. If you dare, read the story in Judges 19:25-29—but be warned, it will turn your stomach.

But wait, there’s more. The Levite then takes the dead body of his wife, a concubine, and cuts her into twelve pieces, sending a part to each of the twelve tribes of Israel in order to manufacture national outrage over what has been done to him. At this point, it is no surprise to us that he had considered her nothing more than property—if that. To him, she was nothing more than trash.

Why the selective outrage? Isn’t this the height of hypocrisy? Of course it is. And it is the predictable result of people following a philosophy of moral relativism. When people have no controlling moral authority to keep them between the rails of decency and civility, they will do what seems right in their own eyes—which will habitually be so wrong. Ultimately they will be anything but decent and civil. In one moment, they will do things and allow things that are beyond the pail without batting an eye. Then in the next moment, they will blow a gasket in anger at what someone has done to them. Even though they feign tolerance of what somebody else thinks is right, they become insanely intolerant when that person’s thinking becomes action that personally affects them.

The anger is selective; the wrath is manufactured. Make no mistake: it is real, but it is wrong. It is wrong in the sense that the moral outrage is not rooted in any kind of higher propositional and immutable moral truth. If truth is relative, then to be consistent, nothing can be consistently wrong. It might be wrong at this moment, but not in the next. At the end of the day, moral relativism is absurd. That is why this man’s outrage—and that of the nation—was hypocritically and fundamentally flawed. It was selective, inconsistent, and disengaged from God’s unchanging law. In a very real sense, it was worthless. And most likely, the guilt of the perverts of Gibeah that he was proclaiming was really the guilt he felt about his own immoral behavior.

That is what happens when a society thinks they can do better than God. Isn’t that what we see in our society today? We don’t mind aborting babies in the name of choice but will riot in the streets over genetically modified wheat. Crazy, huh. Not that GMO’s are right, but taking life in the name of freedom to choose what happens to your own body is akin to what Jesus described as “straining at a gnat but swallowing a camel.” (Matthew 23:24)

Ok, enough of using our relativistic culture as a punching bag—although it deserves it. What about us? Do we do the same? Do we cluck our tongues in disgust at sex trafficking but consume porn in private? Do we gripe about the breakdown of society but tolerate divorce in the church? Do we decry world hunger yet ignore the needs of the poor in our own community?

I could go on and on, but the simple answer to all of the above examples is, “yes we do!” The point I want to make is this: whenever you begin to get upset at something, check yourself for personal consistency. Is your outrage selective? Is your disgust hypocritical?

Probably! That doesn’t make you an irredeemable human being. It just reveals that you are a sinner in desperate need of God’s grace. And it means that God is calling you by the power of the Holy Spirit to walk in a manner worthy of your calling as a redeemed child of God—consistently submitted to him.

The world is now famous for manufactured outrage. Don’t be of that tribe!

“ There is nothing more foolish, nothing more given to outrage than a useless mob. —HERODOTUS

SYNOPSIS: Let’s not let them forget God! As moral relativism increasingly influences our culture, people will do what seems right in their own eyes, but it will always be so wrong. Perhaps we can be the voice of reason by fiercely committing to and vocally defending the Bible, the only source of what is truely right, even as our culture wishes the Word of God would go away. It won’t, thank God!

The Journey // Focus: Judges 19:1

Now in those days Israel had no king…

I know, this is the same exact sentence that begins Judges 18. It is not a mistake. It is the third time in three chapters that the writer uses the same sentence to describe the moral condition of Israel during this time. And each time, the sentence is followed by a story that disturbs our sensibilities. In this case, what follows is arguably the most revolting story in the Bible. I won’t even retell it—you can read it for yourself—but it is brutal and disgusting. But pity poor me, trying to come up with an edifying devotional from it.

To unpack that phrase in more detail—in those days Israel had no king—and would refer you back to the devotional I presented for the previous chapter. Just to summarize, we are being given a picture of what life was like in Israel when they had abandoned any controlling moral authority that kept them between the lines of social civility and moral uprightness. Things got increasingly ugly.

The writer of Judges has prophetically summed up our twenty-first century world in this statement that he has used three times at this point. Then, in the very last line of his book, he adds to it: “There was no controlling moral authority to govern peoples’ lives, so everyone did what was right in their own eyes.” (Judges 21:25)

“What was right in their own eyes” reflected a philosophy of moral relativism, which is simply put, public and private life without the presence of a “controlling moral authority”. Unfortunately, both in the day of the Judges and in our day, without fail moral relativism produces personal, cultural, economic and global chaos. Alexander Solzhenitsyn presciently described it in his now famous Templeton Address, “Men Have Forgotten God”. He lamented, “Men have forgotten God; that’s why all this has happened.”

“The failings of human consciousness, deprived of its divine dimension, have been a determining factor in all the major crimes of this century…Yet we have grown used to this kind of world; we even feel at home in it.”

He was describing the atrocities that took place in Eastern Europe. He might as well have been describing Judges. And sadly, he is describing what will a happen in an American culture that, like the aforementioned cultures, embraced relativism as their philosophy of life. When we have no controlling moral authority—a God who decides what truth is, who determines how man should live and who holds him accountable for it—each of us will begin to do what seems right in our own eyes.

We will do what we think is right, but it will be so wrong!

All that to offer this reminder: you and I can perhaps be agents of change by simply and fiercely committing to a source of truth that is unchanging, the Word of God, and unapologetically calling our culture to God’s standard, even as it has forgotten God.

The prophetic drift of this fallen world is inexorably toward forgetting the Almighty Creator and Ruler of us all. Let’s not let the world forget God without a fight.

SYNOPSIS: Our culture increasingly rejects transcendent authority. That’s why people do whatever seems right in their own eyes. Even Christians have unthinkingly drifted into life without a controlling moral authority. They are more focused on what they prefer, insisting on their rights, and seeking what is best for them rather than discerning and doing God’s will! But “doing what seems right in your own eyes” never results in a good outcome. It might sound philosophically enlightened, but in the end, it is disastrous. Whenever there is no “king in Israel”—no transcendent authority—personal piety will decline, social chaos will rise, and spiritual anarchy will result. Now we could rage against the cultural forces that reject God in America, and insist that we get back to the Bible as the governing standard for our society, but perhaps the best cure for the loss of personal piety, social chaos, and spiritual anarchy in America would be for you and me to make sure that God’s Word is king in our lives.

The Journey // Focus: Judges 17:1-3

There was a man named Micah, who lived in the hill country of Ephraim. One day he said to his mother, “I heard you place a curse on the person who stole 1,100 pieces of silver from you. Well, I have the money. I was the one who took it.” His mother replied, “The Lord bless you for admitting it,” He returned the money to her, and she said, “I now dedicate these silver coins to the Lord. In honor of my son, I will have an image carved and an idol cast.” … In those days Israel had no king; all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.

If we were to hold a vote on the weirdest stories in the Bible, this one would be in my top ten—maybe even in my top five. You read this story and it leaves you scratching your head. A man named Micah has admitted to his mother that he stole money from her, she praises the Lord for his “honesty” in returning the loot, then turns around and celebrates by commissioning a family idol and declaring that it is in honor of her wonderful son and of the Lord.

What…wait…what? She somehow twists stealing into honoring God by carving an image and casting an idol! What in the name of sanity is going on here? Simple explanation: this is spiritual anarchy, plain and simple. Anarchy is defined as “a state of disorder due to non-recognition of authority.” That is exactly what Judges 17: 6 describes:

In those days Israel had no king, so everyone did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.

Israel had no controlling moral authority—or at least they chose not to follow a controlling moral authority. They had the law of God, which should have been their constant guide, but over time, they moved God to the margins, ignored his word, and devolved into spiritual anarchy. As a result, a lot of really weird stuff happened in a nation that God had called to be his own holy people; stuff that the people actually justified as acceptable and pleasing to God.

Twisted, right? Yet is it all that different than what we see today among people who claim to follow God? When the rate of divorce is as high among so-called Christians as it is in the secular society, you have spiritual anarchy. When you have so-called Christians celebrating lifestyles and philosophies that are clearly opposed to what they are called to in God’s Word, you have spiritual anarchy. When you have so-called Christians whose way of living is clearly rooted in this present world and not in the kingdom to come—“believers” who are addicted to money, pleasure, and power—there you have spiritual anarchy. Where you find spiritual communities who make their worship about what they prefer, who employ entertainment techniques to attract new members, who move the Holy Spirit to the edge of their services in order to employ more relevant styles, who focus more on a cool café in the lobby rather than the call to seek God at the altar, there you find an inexorable rush toward spiritual anarchy—a state of disorder due to non-recognition of authority.

In our day, too many,  believers and unbelievers alike, have set aside any controlling moral authority, so they do whatever seems right in their own eyes. The problem with that kind of personal and societal philosophy is that it never results in a good outcome. It might sound like it’s a fair and enlightened way to do life—as long as it doesn’t hurt anybody else—but it always hurts somebody else. Whenever there is no “king in Israel”—no controlling moral authority—personal piety will decline and social chaos will rise, which is exactly what we’re witnessing in our society today.

It would be easy for me at this point to rage against any number of cultural forces that are presently at work in America, and insist that we get back to the Bible as the standard by which our society must be governed. And of course, I would be right and you would agree, but perhaps the best cure for the social chaos and loss of piety in America would be for you and me to make sure that God’s Word is king in our lives on a personal basis.

SYNOPSIS: “Passion, though a bad regulator, is a powerful spring,” said Ralph Waldo Emerson. Passion is never to govern our lives; principles are supposed to do that. Our passion is to fuel our principles, but our principles are to be in the driver’s seat of our lives. The story of Samson and Delilah is a powerful reminder of what happens when that gets reversed. So get clear about your core convictions—then passionately pursue them!

The Journey// Focus: Judges 16:4-6

Some time later Samson fell in love with a woman named Delilah, who lived in the valley of Sorek. The rulers of the Philistines went to her and said, “Entice Samson to tell you what makes him so strong and how he can be overpowered and tied up securely. Then each of us will give you 1,100 pieces of silver.” So Delilah said to Samson, “Please tell me what makes you so strong and what it would take to tie you up securely.”

What is it that drives you? What motivates you at the deepest core to do what you do? What are the driving convictions of your life? Figure that out and you will have figured out you—who you are, what you are, how you live and where you are headed.

Unfortunately for Samson, one of Israel’s most famous but most flawed judges (the judges were more military deliverers than paragons of moral purity), it was passion that drove him more than principle. Especially his passion for woman, which we also saw in Judges 14, and now again in this famous “love” story in Judges 16 as Samson takes up with a new wife, Delilah. As you read this account with the added benefit of historical hindsight, you wonder why in the world would Samson put up with Delilah’s traitorous antics even once, let alone four times. Why couldn’t he see what we so clearly see?

Easy answer: Samson was driven by passion more than principle. So are a lot of people—perhaps even you. Sometimes I am, too. Now to be sure, God created us with the capacity to be passionate. Without it, we wouldn’t be human. Without it we could never express righteous indignation. Without it, we could never experience compassion. Without it, we might be perfect, but let’s not forget that God rarely chose the perfect, he mostly chose the passionate to accomplish his purposes; imperfect people like King David and the Apostle Peter.

Yet while passion is a God-given capacity, it must be kept in its rightful place. Like any other capacity, it is never to be out of control, it is never to be the master of our thoughts, feelings, and actions. Only the Holy Spirit is to control what we think, how we feel, and what we do.

So what is the right purpose of our passion? Ralph Waldo Emerson offered this insightful thought: “passion, though a bad regulator, is a powerful spring.” By that, our passion is never to govern our lives, our principles are supposed to do that. Our passion is to fuel our principles. Passion will be what elevates what we believe at the deepest core to the level of driving convictions over the long haul of our lives.

Passion, though a bad regulator, is a powerful spring. (Ralph Waldo Emerson)

I believe one of the main takeaways from Samson’s life is that we would be wise to think through and then codify what I would call our driving missional convictions. These would be our non-negotiable values, like living for the glory of God alone, ruthless trust in God’s sovereignty, obedience to God’s Word, submission to God’s will, wholehearted love for God—and neighbor, and full-throttled commitment to the Missio Dei—the mission of God. I could go on and on, but for practical purposes, we would benefit most from settling on five to ten missional convictions, then allowing those convictions to drive everything in our lives at all times and in every way—our thoughts, feelings, and actions.

In fact, if you want to avoid the Delilah effect, that is, an approach to life that puts passion in the driver’s seat, then I would suggest that you spend some time thinking through your life convictions—like ASAP. Then discuss them with the people in your life whose help you will need to live them out. Finally, codify them and literally place them where you will see them early and often to remind you of what you want your life to be about.

Do that, and then get passionate about them!

“ Rest in reason; move in passion. —KHALIL GIBRAN

There are things about God’s dealings with humankind in scripture that don’t always make sense. In those cases, we just need to chalk it up to the fact that God was at work in much higher ways than ours. The truth is, a large part of God remains in the realm of mystery, and even though we are curious about it, a Deity whom we don’t fully understand, and therefore cannot control, is really what we want – and need! However, here’s what we can know and trust about Him: in matters great and small, God is in charge, and God is in control. Aren’t you thankful for that?

The Journey// Focus: Judges 15:13-15

The Philistines bound Samson with two new ropes and led him up from the rock. As he approached Lehi, the Philistines came toward him shouting. The Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon him. The ropes on his arms became like charred flax, and the bindings dropped from his hands. Finding a fresh jawbone of a donkey, he grabbed it and struck down a thousand men.

The first senior pastor I worked with out of college used to say, “there is a lot more to God that we don’t understand than we do understand.” He was right. Not that we shouldn’t pursue the knowledge of God—we should. There is no greater or more worthwhile effort than knowing God. And God graciously grants us wisdom, understanding and knowledge, according to Proverbs 2:6 and James 1:5.

But keep in mind in your honorable pursuit that there will be things about God and the record we have in scripture of his dealings with men that do not always make sense—at least in our mind. In those cases, we just need to chalk it up to the fact that God was at work in ways that are much higher than ours. There is a large part of God that will remain in the realm of mystery, and even though we are curious about it, I think we do want a Deity whom we don’t fully understand, and therefore cannot control. Paul states this in his eloquent doxology from Romans 11:33-36,

Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God!
How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!
“Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?”
“Who has ever given to God, that God should repay them?”
For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.

I would put Judges 15 in that category. In several instances, God uses a deeply flawed judge—which by the way, the judges of Israel were not so much moral leaders as they were national deliverers—to bring judgment upon the godless Philistines and relief to the suffering Israelites. As you read this chapter, I would simply suggest that you remember that the sovereign God can use anybody he choses to bring out his larger purposes. God can use a deeply flawed prophet, preacher or president for his glory—and he does early and often.

Now keep in mind as you read this passage, and others like it, that what is described in the Bible doesn’t excuse sinful and flawed behavior, it only explains it. It requires a little bit of wisdom to know the difference. So once you understand that, then you will begin to see in matters great and small, God is in charge, and God is in control.

Aren’t you thankful for that?

SYNOPSIS: “God uses flawed people to accomplish his work!” How many times have you heard that or seen examples of it in scripture? Samson is the poster-child of a flawed hero, an impulsive man who famously loved the ladies a little too much—which ultimately cost him his life. But the Bible’s explanation of flawed character is not an excuse for it—neither for Samson nor for you. Thank God that he uses cracked pots, but that doesn’t give you a pass on exerting diligent effort to do your part as he works to transform the pot into a vessel of honor.

The Journey // Focus: Judges 14:1-2

One day when Samson was in Timnah, one of the Philistine women caught his eye. When he returned home, he told his father and mother, “A young Philistine woman in Timnah caught my eye. I want to marry her. Get her for me.”

All of us have made really bad choices in life at one time or another. If you haven’t, just wait a few hours; you will. And usually, the core culprit to bad decisions is impulsiveness. Who of us hasn’t surrendered to an impulse purchase? That is usually what is behind buyer’s remorse. What person has never spoken out in anger or foolishness before we thought about the consequences of our words? That is why most good parents teach their children to think twice before they speak. Is there any person on the planet who has never acted on a whim? I doubt it.

Samson is arguably the poster boy for impulsive choices—he liked the ladies and exercised neither a whole lot of good judgment or self-control in the woman he chose to be with. In this case, it was a girl who became his wife. In chapter 16 it is a prostitute. Later in that same chapter, it is a woman named Delilah who became his second wife. In the case of Delilah, it was a marriage that looked good on the outside, but down the road it caused great pain for Samson and his family, and ultimately caused this famous judge of Israel his life. In Judges 14, this unnamed girl captured his affections—a Philistine beauty whose character went no deeper than her flawless skin.

Samson’s choice of women has been the plot for several Hollywood movies over the years, but in the real story of this marriage, however, the romance part of it ends quickly, and the marriage not too long after that when the girl’s father marries her off to the best man at Samson’s wedding. Mr. and Mrs. Samson—bad choice, bad marriage, bad outcome.

Now obviously, as you look at the whole of Samson’s story, God accomplished a great work through this impulsive man’s life. God redeemed his bad choices for a good outcome (at least for Israel; Samson died in the process). We are told in Judges 14:4 that when his parents questioned his choice of a wife, “His father and mother didn’t realize the Lord was at work in this, creating an opportunity to work against the Philistines, who ruled over Israel at that time.” It is true, as John Newton said, “We serve a gracious Master who knows how to overrule even our mistakes to His glory and our own advantage.”

That is the big picture of the story of Samson’s life—God uses flawed people to accomplish his purposes. And the micro story here in Judges 14 is equally instructive. So let’s dissect Samson’s decision so that we might see how easily we fall into the same kind of impulsive living—and most importantly, learn from Samson that it is best to avoid impulsive choices. Here are three aspects of the Samson’s poor decision making:

First, visual took precedence over values. The opening words of the text tell us that when Samson gazed upon this lovely woman, it was love (or lust) at first sight: “A young Philistine woman in Timnah caught my eye.” What we see can be deceptive; perhaps it is always deceptive. A good rule of thumb is “don’t believe everything you see.” Of course, I am not just speaking of what you can verify factually, but you must learn to see what is congruent with the values of your faith and avoid what is incongruent with your most deeply held values.

Second, desire outweighed wisdom. Samson’s “wanter” took the baton from his “see-er”, while any kind of thought process took a backseat to both. After he “saw” Timnah, he said to his dad, “I want to marry her.” I see; I want. There is no indication that Samson gave any consideration to what the consequences of marrying a Philistine girl might be. Delayed gratification was not in the picture here; self-control was not exercised. He saw her, he wanted her, so therefore, he had to have her.

Third, action dominated reason. I saw her, I want her, now go get her for me: “But Samson told his father, ‘Get her for me! She looks good to me.’” (Judges 14:4) Unfortunately, Samson’s father Manoah didn’t put the brakes on his son’s wishes in the way a father should; we see no fatherly insistence that a reasonable process be followed. So Samson got what he wanted—he got Timnah and with her, he got a boatload of trouble. The outcome of his flawed decision reminds me of what James talked about,

Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death. (James 1:14-15)

Again, God used Samson’s mistakes for his own glory. And he will use yours and mine, too. But wouldn’t you rather God use your good decisions for his glory and your good. I sure would. And maybe one of the reasons we have this compelling story of Samson and Timnah is to alert us to slow it down when we are in the middle of a strong desire to get what we think we want.

Think early; think often—that is why God gave us a brain and then commands us to think: “‘Come, let us reason together, says the Lord.’” (Isaiah 1:18) And if that weren’t enough, he placed the Holy Spirit within us to give us in the moment counsel!

Think, listen, then do—or not!

“ The unexamined life is not worth living. —SOCRATES

SYNOPSIS: As a parent, teacher, or coach, this is the most important role you occupy: mentoring the child the Lord has placed under your influence. So, lean into God, ask him for guidance, then submit to his wisdom and you will bring up a child with whom God will be well pleased. Expect his help, and God the Holy Spirit will walk with you as you train up the child in the way they should go. And never, ever forget, even when they do the things that run counter to God’s design for their life, that child was designed and built by God himself with the seeds of greatness implanted within their genetic code.

The Journey // Focus: Judges 13:12-14

So Manoah asked him, “When your words come true, what kind of rules should govern the boy’s life and work?” The angel of the Lord replied, “Be sure your wife follows the instructions I gave her. She must not eat grapes or raisins, drink wine or any other alcoholic drink, or eat any forbidden food.”

It may not be as dramatic as the visit Manoah and his wife received from the angel of the Lord. A mighty divine messenger probably won’t appear to you and freak you out. It is not likely that he will consume with fire the thanksgiving sacrifice you set before him. But your child is every bit as important to God as Samson was.

God would use Samson as one of the greatest deliverers of Israel the nation was to ever know. The stories of his battles with the Philistines are epic. His life was the stuff many movies and a few books have retold over the ages. So to be sure, this family, and this baby that the angel of the Lord showed up in such an unforgettable way to announce, was going to become an altogether unique script in the religious history of Israel.

Yet I say again, the child that God gives you is no less important to God. That would be true of your grandchildren, too. It is also true of the children in your church, or your neighborhood, or in the classroom you manage. God has an indescribable love for them; he has plans for them that are beyond exciting; he has designed and built them with the seeds of greatness. Unlimited potential resides within their DNA.

Now it is up to you as a parent, grandparent or mentor, to figure out how to water those seeds of greatness in that child. That is a huge and sobering challenge, and you would do well to ask the Lord how he wants you to go about your task, as Manoah and his wife did in Judges 13:12. They asked the angel, “give us the guidelines for growing this child into a great man!”

God has guidelines for you to follow, too. They are found primarily in his word. The whole of the Bible is an amazing guide for understanding the law of the Lord. Especially helpful is the book of Proverbs, which will show you day by day the way to inculcate wisdom, knowledge and understanding into your child’s heart and mind. Another source of help is the Holy Spirit. Asking him daily in prayer to reveal your child’s glide path is a privilege you have because of your relationship with God. Just ask him, submit to him, expect his help, and God the Holy Spirit will walk with you as you train up your child in the way he or she should go. And then there is the body of Christ—men, woman, grandparents, pastors, class leaders and the parenting resources they offer are an incredibly helpful resource of parental richness that you would do well to tap into.

This is the most important role you occupy: mentoring that child the Lord has placed under your influence. Lean into God, ask him for guidance, then submit to his wisdom and you will bring up a child with whom God will be well pleased.

And never, ever forget, even when they try to prove it wrong, your child was designed and built by God himself with the seeds of greatness implanted within their genetic code.

SYNOPSIS: Too many leaders today are proficient at rising to a place of power, and they might even have the systems set up around them to keep them there, but they have not moved the proverbial ball down the field during their time of leadership. They occupy positions of import but have no track record of impact. They are “all hat and no cattle” as they say in Texas. Do you desire to be a great leader in the arena of life to which God has assigned you? Then check your motives, make sure your goals are worthy, submit yourself to God, get filled with his Spirit, go all out to serve your people, and above all else, make Jesus famous. Do that, and you will have both the hat and the cattle!

The Journey // Focus: Judges 12:11

After Ibzan died, Elon from the tribe of Zebulun judged Israel for ten years. When he died, he was buried at Aijalon in Zebulun.

Elon judged Israel for ten years, then he died. End of story! And you will find his administration not that unusual in the book of Judges. There were plenty of other leaders who occupied positions of import but had no track record of impact. They were “all hat and no cattle” as they say in Texas.

I don’t want to be a leader like that, and you don’t want to sit under the leadership of a man or woman like that, be it a pastor or a president. Too many leaders in our day are proficient at rising to a place of power and authority, and they might even have the systems set up around them to keep them there, but they have not moved the ball down the field during their time of leadership.

Now to be certain, there is nothing wrong with having a position of importance, nor of desiring that. Those positions can provide much larger opportunities for impact. But a position of importance is not the end game; it is the means to the goal. Leaving a huge footprint of effective service, blessing and mission accomplished is the best evidence of noteworthy leadership.

So what does it take to have both importance and impact? Let me offer some thoughts:

First, while you can position yourself to be important, I believe letting God promote you to places of power and authority is the better way to go. Of course, you need to show yourself winsome, committed, visionary and skillful, but it is the sovereign hand of God that is the greatest PR machine in the universe. Let God promote you.

Second, get a vision—and not just vision for your own fame or success. How will the people you lead be better off because of your leadership? How will your organization—family, church, business, community—creatively and compelling make a difference by collaboratively marshaling your cooperate energies to do what you do? Just how do you expect to change the world?

Third, make sure you have character to match your charisma. Charisma will attract followers; character will keep you in leadership.

Fourth, serve the people you lead. They best lead who serve—a philosophy that is not talked about all that much in our culture, but was clearly modeled by the greatest leader of all time, Jesus Christ. Leaders of impact are truly servants of the public.

Fifth, through your influence, make it your chief aim to make Jesus famous. I am not speaking only of what we would term “spiritual leaders,” pastor types. In whatever you do—at home, in the marketplace, in the academe, in the halls of government—you are on duty for Christ. As the Apostle Paul would says, “In whatever you do, do it with all your might, as serving the Lord, not men; it is the Lord Christ you are serving.” (Colossians 3:23-24)

If you desire to lead, you desire a good thing. But check your motives, make sure your goals are worthy, submit yourself to God, get filled with his Spirit, then get out there and serve the people and make Jesus famous.

Do that, and you will have both the hat and the cattle!

“ You can gauge the size of a ship that has passed out of sight by the huge wake that it leaves behind. —PHILLIP YANCEY

SYNOPSIS: Your spiritual leader is flawed! Gifted, yes, but also flawed. So don’t confuse the gift with the package. They may be a brilliant communicator or a miracle-working faith healer or mesmerizing worship leader yet still be capable of misappropriating money or having an affair or promoting false teaching as much as any other leader who has fallen into one or all of those moral failures. So lift your leader to God in prayer today. They’re likely wrestling with a personal flaw or a powerful temptation. Instead of idolizing them – or being critical of them – intercede for them. That’s the best way to return the favor for their spiritual oversight in your life.

The Journey// Focus: Judges 11:29-31

At that time the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jephthah, and he went throughout the land of Gilead and Manasseh, including Mizpah in Gilead, and from there he led an army against the Ammonites. And Jephthah made a vow to the Lord. He said, “If you give me victory over the Ammonites, I will give to the Lord whatever comes out of my house to meet me when I return in triumph. I will sacrifice it as a burnt offering.”

From a historical perspective, Israel may have been scraping the bottom of the barrel when Jephthah was chosen to lead them. God had an altogether higher purpose in using this unlikely man as a judge, deliverer and leader of the nation, but Jephthah was a piece of work. He was an outcast in his family, literally and figuratively. Born from a union between his father and a prostitute (Judges 11:1), his brothers from another mother flat-out rejected his legitimacy to their father’s inheritance. And they were not shy in telling him why he would do well to get the heck out of Dodge (Judges 11:2).

As a result, Jephthah removed himself from his father’s “real” family—there is some indication that it wasn’t just a good idea that he leave, it was good for his health, as in, they would have killed him. He lived in exile, and while there, developed both quite a reputation as a fighter and a band of marauders who made their living taking what they wanted, perhaps even exhorting money in exchange for protection from the locals (Judges 11:3).

Now the Israelites had once again fallen under the dominion of a foreign nation—this time, the Ammonites—and no one else in Israel stepped up to the plate as a leader. So the elders turned to someone they despised but whose fighting skills they reasoned would serve them well now that they needed a deliverer. They came with hat in hand to Jephthah to ask
him to lead (Judges 11:4-6). Jephthah agreed, but only after extracting an admission that they had been jerks to him all his life and that they would make him ruler over them should he win the battle against the Ammonites (Judges 11:7-11). They didn’t have much of a choice, so they agreed to his conditions.

Now here is where the story gets even weirder: as Jephthah leads Israel to war, we are told that the Spirit of the Lord comes upon him (Judges 11:29), but in the very next two verses we see that the first thing he does is to make one of the most foolish vows you can imagine:

Meanwhile Jephthah had vowed to the Lord that if God would help Israel conquer the Ammonites, then when he returned home in peace, the first person coming out of his house to meet him would be sacrificed as a burnt offering to the Lord! (Judges 11:30-31, LB)

Alternative meanings have been assigned to this rash vow to sanitize it for our modern minds. Precisely because of the juxtaposition of these two verses with the antecedent verse, that is, how could someone filled with the Holy Spirit make such an evil vow, commentators have suggested that Jephthah’s declaration really meant that he would force his daughter (the first thing coming out of his house) to become the living sacrifice of a young woman living in perpetual virginity. But the simplest way to read the verse is to understand that he meant to literally offer a human sacrifice if the Lord gave him victory.

Pretty messed up, wouldn’t you say? So the question is legitimate: how could someone filled with the Holy Spirit make such an evil declaration? And perhaps we wonder that in our own context when we see leaders who have been uniquely gifted by God turn around and say weird things or do dumb stuff. How could an amazingly gifted communicator or a miracle-working faith healer or mesmerizing worship leader misappropriate money or have an illicit affair or promote false teaching?

I think the easiest explanation for that is simply that we should never confuse the gift with the package. In other words, God’s gift is always placed within flawed human packages—and even if the person so gifted never goes off the rails, they are still sin-broken people. The fact is, God uses broken people to accomplish his purposes, and that is a grace to his people. If he used only the perfect, he would use no one.

Of course, that does not excuse bad behavior; it just explains it. So the bottom line is that as you view the gifted spiritual leaders in your life, celebrate the gift that God has placed upon their ministry but don’t idolize the person. Like you, they too are human. Furthermore, don’t limit God from empowering you with his Holy Spirit by thinking you are too flawed and unqualified. Remember, as someone has said, God doesn’t choose the qualified, he qualifies the chosen.

Thank God for his gifts. They are a grace to us.

“ If God only used perfect people, nothing would get done. God will use anybody if you’re available. —RICK WARREN

SYNOPSIS: Who is going to be God in your life? That’s a pertinent question for you today because you’re going to worship someone or something. Wherever you place your unmitigated dependence and spend your full-throttled energy or to whomever you give your singular devotion has become your god. Of course, we don’t worship literal images made of wood, stone, silver, or gold like the ancient Israelites did, but we are just as susceptible to the seduction of less visible but highly sophisticated idols like money, sex, and power, that is, earthly security, momentary pleasure, and misused control? Take it from the ancient Israelites—there is only one God who is worthy of your unalloyed zeal. They learned that the hard way so you don’t have to.

The Journey// Focus: Judges 10:15-16

But the Israelites pleaded with the Lord and said, “We have sinned. Punish us as you see fit, only rescue us today from our enemies.” Then the Israelites put aside their foreign gods and served the Lord. And he was grieved by their misery.

Same song, twenty-ninth verse: Israel abandons the worship of God only to chase after the local deities of the Canaanites. So God lifts his hand of blessing from them and allows them to have what they want—a visible, controllable, good luck charm god. But as before, the same sad results ensue: Israel is left defenseless against cruel enemies, their agrarian economy collapses, their families suffer undue hardship and their lives are miserable under the rule of foreign gods and foreign nations. Then, predictably, they come to themselves, cry out to God, repent, and God sends a rescuer—judge after judge who rises up to bail them out. That is the story repeated over and over in Judges.

Of course, we have the advantage of looking back at this four-hundred-year period of on-again, off-again religion and viewing it only as a relatively short snapshot of history. It wasn’t. There were long patterns of obedience and blessing on Israel’s part—ten, twenty, thirty years of faithfulness to God. But then Israel would cycle into spiritual lassitude and moral drift until finally, they were into full-on backsliding. And the oppressive consequences would follow—ten, twenty, thirty years of domination by godless and ruthless enemies.

So why didn’t the children of Israel learn their lesson after the first beating? Why did they drift into idol worship over and over again? What was their infatuation with other gods? Again, we look back upon their history without understanding the long periods of time that the nation cycled through, and in so doing we fail to realize that we are prone to the same kind of drift and wrong dependencies as they were—we are just a little more sophisticated with our worship of idols. The Quest Study Bible offers some reasons for their infatuation with local idols, and as you ponder these that follow, see if you can identify your own tendencies to drift from utter dependence and ruthless obedience to God:

1. Idols were physical objects that could be seen (Lev 26:1). Israel’s God, on the other hand, was unseen.
2. Idols could be carried, controlled, and confined. Israel’s God, however, was an awesome and mysterious God who could not be manipulated by his people. He “moved” whenever and wherever he wanted.
3. Foreign gods were thought to have power over crops, a prime concern of the Israelites. The people were superstitious and didn’t want to risk their harvests by offending the pagan gods.
4. Some foreign gods were believed to give fertility to the womb. The worship of these gods involved religious prostitution (1Ki 14:24) and other sexually immoral practices, which appealed to the sensual desires of the Israelites. The Israelites may have concluded that it was better to indulge in these pleasurable activities than to displease the gods of fertility.
5. Idol worship was a cultural norm. The Israelites often found it easier to join in local customs than to go against them.

Who is going to be God in your life? That is a pertinent question for you today because you are going to worship someone or something. Your god is whatever you are putting your full-throttled dependence upon and giving your singular devotion to. Of course, we don’t worship literal images made of wood, stone, silver, or gold like the ancient Israelites did, but wouldn’t you agree that we are just as susceptible to the seduction of less visible but highly sophisticated idols like money, sex, and power, that is, earthly security, momentary pleasure and misused control?

If you are placing importance, expending energy, and make a personal investment in things that drown out your full-throttled devotion and singular devotion to God, you have made them into an idol. But here’s the deal: at the end of the day, those things will have amounted to nothing. In fact, they will have done real harm to the blessings that God would have poured out in your life had you waited upon him in devotion and dependence.

If reading through this is convicting you at all, I would suggest you quickly get on your knees and cry out to God in sincere repentance, as the Israelites did. Put aside your wrong dependencies and misplaced devotions and worship God only. Perhaps he will be grieved by your misery and reach out to you in love.

No, not perhaps—he really will reach out to you in love.

SYNOPSIS: Predictably, what we see and sense today at both the highest and the lowest levels of culture is what happens when, as Alexander Solzhenitsyn lamented, “Men have forgotten God; that’s why all this has happened.” May we never get used to spreading cancer of sin! May we never feel at home in this present world the way it is now. As believers, we must let the moral decay of the culture turn our stomachs, but then turn our hearts to God in urgent and humble intercession for a great spiritual awakening in in our land.

The Journey// Focus: Judges 9:56-57

In this way, God punished Abimelech for the evil he had done against his father by murdering his seventy brothers. God also punished the men of Shechem for all their evil. So the curse of Jotham son of Gideon was fulfilled.

Admittedly, this is a weird story, and it’s even weirder that it was included in the Bible. Like a few others we have come across as we read the Old Testament devotionally, this is a head-scratcher. But at the end of the day, this story of Abimelech’s brief but brutal rule as a judge of Israel and his abrupt, gruesome death is a reminder of what happens in a person, and in a society, when God has been left out of the picture.

Abimelech was one of Gideon’s sons—one of seventy or so. And it just so happens that he was the one son from Gideon’s union with a concubine who lived in a different town, Shechem. So there was probably no love lost with his many siblings; he was probably looked down upon by his brothers his whole life. There is a good chance Abimelech had a chip on his shoulder (that unfortunately ended with a millstone on his head—literally. See Judges 9:50-55).

So Abimelech decided to do away with his seventy brothers—which he did in the most grisly fashion (Judges 9:5): likely beheaded at one time. He killed all but one, Gideon’s youngest son, Jotham, who escaped and hid, and then resurfaced with an incendiary prophecy (Judges 9:7-21). This prophecy was a kind of “pox on both your houses” statement that ultimately came to pass. The prophecy was that in selecting Abimelech to be their king, the citizens of Shechem would end up paying for it with their lives and that Abimelch would likewise come to a brutal end for the murder of his brothers. That is the rest of the story of Judges 9.

Now take away the raw brutality of this story, sanitize it a bit, and what you have is the story of leadership in our culture these days. Far too common is the way leaders attain power and the way the citizens surrender power to them. Lying, cheating, doing whatever it takes to make their opponent look bad, saying one thing to get elected then leading another, coming off as a servant of the people but living like a king once in power seems to be just the way it is in our political world. Often in elections, we feel like we have no choice but to hold our nose to cast our ballots. But we get the leaders we deserve.

Why? Simple answer: men have forgotten God. The writer of Judges prophetically summed up our twenty-first century world in the last verse in this book when he wrote, “There was no controlling moral authority to govern peoples’ lives, so everyone did what was right in their own eyes.” (Judges 21:25) Unfortunately, in our day, as was the case in the day of the Judges, “what was right”, without the presence of the “Controlling Moral Authority”, without fail produces moral, cultural, economic and global chaos.

Predictably, what we see and sense today at the highest as well as the lowest levels of culture is what happens when, as Alexander Solzhenitsyn lamented, “Men have forgotten God; that’s why all this has happened.” In his famous Templeton Address, “Men Have Forgotten God”, Solzhenitsyn said

“The failings of human consciousness, deprived of its divine dimension, have been a determining factor in all the major crimes of this century…Yet we have grown used to this kind of world; we even feel at home in it.”

May we never get used to it! May we never feel at home in this present world the way it is now. As believers, we have the urgent calling to humble ourselves before God, acknowledge our sin, repent and turn to him for the healing of our land. As disgusted as you may feel reading Judges 9, let the moral decay of America turn your stomach, then turn your heart to God in intercession for a spiritual awakening once again in our land.

Who knows, God may give us a revival like he did throughout the book of Judges as his people cried out to him. Thankfully, God has made a way for that, even in our day:

If the people who are called by my name will humbly pray to me and repent and turn away from the evil they have been doing, then I will hear them in heaven, forgive their sins, and make their land prosperous again. (2 Chronicles, 7:14)

“ A revival is nothing else than a new beginning of obedience to God. —CHARLES FINNEY

SYNOPSIS: The story of Gideon’s dramatic rise and precipitous fall in Judges 6-8 is a classic reminder that it is not just a strong start that counts, it is finishing well that is the essential thing in our journey with God. So stay alert to sin. As the Puritan preacher, John Owen put it, “Be killing sin or it will be killing you.”

The Journey// Focus: Judges 8:27

Gideon made a sacred ephod from the gold and put it in Ophrah, his hometown. But soon all the Israelites prostituted themselves by worshiping it, and it became a trap for Gideon and his family.

Conflicted. That is what Gideon was, as we see in Judge 8. Gideon was a conflicted man, at odds with his own beliefs and his calling. But he is not alone, because most leaders are. And so are most people, whether they are believers or not. You see, people live with a persistent sin nature that early and often rises up to tempt them with attitudes and actions that are incongruent with their most deeply held values. Conflicted, that is what we are, hopelessly and helplessly—without daily submission to our Savior, Jesus Christ.

Consider Gideon for a moment. In the previous chapters, we find that he was at once humble (Judges 6:15), obedient (Judges 7:8), and dependent on God (Judges 7:15), yet as we see in this chapter, he was prideful, self-sufficient and disobedient.

Gideon went out to fight Midian in the power of the Lord and routed a far superior army in a stunning victory, but he came back a ruthless man (Judges 8:13-21), arrogantly refusing to be Israel’s king yet living like one anyway (Judges 8:22-24, 29-31), and disobedient in making a golden ephod that would lead Israel to worship it as an idol (Judges 8:27). The text say the golden ephod he made, representing his power, his success and his status among the Israelites, became a trap for Gideon and his family (Judges 8:27).

What a quick and disappointing turn around. His impossible victory over Midian was one for the ages. Gideon’s band of three hundred fighting men is being talked about to this day, used as an example of what God can do with a just few who are fully submitted to him. Yet within days of this victory, his base nature was taking over, and it led him to make decisions that set the stage for Israel to not only drift from God under Gideon’s watch by worshiping the golden ephod, but to plunge headlong into national idolatry after he died:

As soon as Gideon died, the Israelites prostituted themselves by worshiping the images of Baal, making Baal-berith their god. They forgot the Lord their God, who had rescued them from all their enemies surrounding them. Nor did they show any loyalty to the family of Gideon, despite all the good he had done for Israel. (Judges 8:33-35)

As we seek to make sense of this jaw-dropping spiritual reversal, Gideon’s story reminds us that the same sin nature that wreaked havoc in his life will mess us up just as quickly if we are not careful. Here are a few sobering lessons coming to us from Gideon’s story that we would do well to keep in mind:

1. Charisma will only take you so far; it will be character that keeps you there. Obviously, Gideon had the ability to inspire others to follow him into an impossible battle, but his core values were not such that he could resist the temptations that came his way after the victory. Arguably, the true test of character is success.’
2. Character issues that are left unchecked will resurface at some point in our lives, sooner or later. The only way to effectively deal with our sin is to allow the Lord to obliterate it completely. It if is not destroyed, it will come back to damage us. Whatever goes underground will resurface at some point.
3. A victory today does not guarantee a victory tomorrow. We cannot rest on our laurels of past accomplishment; submission to God must be a daily victory. That is why Jesus said true discipleship involves taking up your cross daily to follow him. (Luke 9:23)
4. Pride is an ever-present enemy of God’s plan to use us mightily for him. Pride is at the core of sin, continually causing issues of godship in our relationship with God. Remember, there is room for only one God on the throne of your life—and it is not you.
5. Constant attention to sin is required to run our race strong and finish well. Over and again the Bible calls us to stay alert, to be on guard, and to be ever watchful for the Enemy’s work in our life. Satan never gives up: we can serve him up a devastating defeat by our obedience to God one day, and he will be right back at us the next, tempting us to stray from God.

The story of Gideon in Judges 6-8 is a classic reminder that it is not just a strong start that counts, it is finishing well that is the essential thing in our journey with God. May it be said of us, “they started strong and finished well.”

“ Be killing sin or it will be killing you. —JOHN OWEN

SYNOPSIS: Faith is not looking at the unmovable mountain in our way, it is looking to the Mountain Mover on our side. Faith is putting our full confidence in the things we hope for and being certain of things we can’t see (Hebrews 11:1-2). Faith is ruthless trust in the care and competence of our Heavenly Father. Faith is unshakeable hope that God loves us and will work everything out for our good and his glory. Faith means Forsaking All, I Trust Him. That is why God allows us to be in situations where the genuineness of our faith can be proven. So if you’re up against horrible odds right now, not to worry, the development of your faith is on the edge of a holy opportunity.

The Journey // Focus: Judges 7:2-4,7

The Lord said to Gideon, “You have too many warriors with you. If I let all of you fight the Midianites, the Israelites will boast to me that they saved themselves by their own strength. Therefore, tell the people, ‘Whoever is timid or afraid may leave this mountain and go home.’” So 22,000 of them went home, leaving only 10,000 who were willing to fight. But the Lord told Gideon, “There are still too many! Bring them down to the spring, and I will test them to determine who will go with you and who will not” The Lord told Gideon, “With these 300 men I will rescue you and give you victory over the Midianites. Send all the others home.”

We want the odds to be in our favor. To mix metaphors, when push comes to shove, we are certainly not opposed to the decks being stacked in our favor. That is just human nature—fallen nature, that is. But that is not the way of God, which means that is not the way of faith.

The thing is, we are created to glorify our Creator, to worship him and fully enjoy him forever. Life is not about us, it is all about him, and how we can so live as to bring him maximum fame through our daily lives—in our everyday, walking around, eating, sleeping, talking, going about our business lives. Our job is to make God famous. And in doing that, we experience the deepest, longest lasting satisfaction possible during the few decades we have been allotted in this one and only life.

But that means we have to walk the way of faith. Faith is putting our full confidence in the things we hope for; it means being certain of things we cannot see. (Hebrews 11:1-2) Faith is ruthless trust in the care and competence of our Heavenly Father. Faith is unshakeable hope that God loves us and will work everything out for our good and his glory. Faith is not looking at the unmovable mountain in our way, it is looking to the Mountain Mover on our side. Faith is Forsaking All, I Trust Him. That is why God allows us to be in situations where the genuineness of our faith can be proven.

You see, it doesn’t take much faith if we don’t really need God to step in. If there is not the possibility, at least on the human, visible level, that we can crash and burn if God doesn’t show up, then we are most likely not stepping out far enough where we have reached the rare air of risky faith. If we can do it without God, most likely we will take the credit for our success.

Remember, however, we were created to glorify him in everything we do. Remember that our one assignment is to make God famous. Remember that he designed us to be most satisfied in him when he is most glorified in us. That is precisely why he allows the decks to be stacked against us. It is then that he can supply us with supernatural power and all kinds of divine aid to rout our toughest enemies, overcome our most overwhelming odds, and win our most stunning victories.

That is precisely why God told Gideon to pare his fighting force down from thousands to just 300—against a Midianite army that was far superior in numbers, experience and fighting talent. In God’s own words, “If I let all of you fight the Midianites, the Israelites will boast to me that they saved themselves by their own strength.” God doesn’t share his glory—and that is a good thing. He allows us to share in his glory, but that comes only by deflecting all the glory that we might receive in our effort back to him. When we do that, his glory is reflected onto us in a way that we could never produce on own.

Now like me, you may not be totally comfortable with this whole business of the decked stack against you. But the record of scripture, the testimony of the faithful, and from my own experience, that is the way of faith. And frankly, I am glad it is. So get used to it!

So if you’ve got horrible odds, not to worry, you are on the edge of a holy opportunity.

“ There is no testimony without a test. —RICK WARREN

SYNOPSIS: When will we ever learn that God doesn’t see what we see when he chooses people for his service? If God is with a person, then even the weakest, most reluctant, least qualified is a mighty man or woman of valor. It is not a person’s gifts, talents, skills and temperament that tip the scales as to whether they will be successful or not—though these personal qualities are not unimportant—it is God’s presence that determines the outcome of success in a person’s life. As the Apostle Paul reminds us in Romans 8, “If God is for us, who can be against us?”

The Journey // Focus: Judges 6:11-14

The angel of the Lord came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, where his son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress to keep it from the Midianites. When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior. Gideon replied, “Pardon me, but if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us. Where are all his wonders that our ancestors told us about when they said, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned us and given us into the hands of Midian. The Lord turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?”

When we will ever learn that God doesn’t see what we see when he chooses people for his service? No one would have looked at a barren married couple in their nineties as logical candidates to be the parents of many nations. God saw something we couldn’t in Abram and Sarai. No one would have looked at stuttering fugitive, wanted for murder, now on the lam in the Sanai wilderness as Israel’s deliverer. But God saw something that we couldn’t see in Moses. No one would have looked at a young, ruddy shepherd boy, the runt among his strapping brothers, and predicted that he would be a giant slayer, a mighty king and a man after God’s own heart. But God saw something that we couldn’t see in David. Long before we see potential in a person, God does.

Such was the case with Gideon in Judges 6. When God found this man who would become one of the greatest judges in Israel’s history, he was hiding in fear in a winepress (Judges 6:11), blaming God for Israel’s subjugation at the hand of Midian when it was clearly Israel’s fault (Judges 6:13), arguing with God as to why he was the wrong choice to deliver Israel, mired in the quicksand poor self esteem (Judges 6:15).

Not a great job interview! Yet God saw past Gideon’s obvious weakness and addressed him, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior!” You see, when God is with you—and that is key—then even the weakest, most reluctant, least qualified, is a mighty man or woman of valor. It is not our gifts, talents, skills and temperament that tip the scales as to whether we will be successful or not—though these personal qualities are not unimportant—it is God’s presence that determines the outcome of success in our life. If God is for us, who can be against us!

When God calls us, we have entered conqueror status. When God is with us, then we must simply go in the strength we have (Judges 6:14) and do what he has foreordained. To go in our strength is to simply put our gifts, talents, skills and temperament on the line for God and let God do the rest. We might see ourselves, or others, as Gideon saw himself: the least qualified in the least qualified family. God sees that too—more than we do. But God sees something else. He sees that he will be with us, and he sees that he will go before us, and he sees that he has already accomplished what he has predetermined.

That is why God chose Abram and Sarai, Moses, David—and all of the other heroes that occupy the Great Hall of Faith in Hebrews 11; none of which we would have chosen. But God chose them, and that sealed the deal; that guaranteed their success; that put them into the realm of mighty man or woman of valor long before they or anyone saw them in that grand light.

Do you ever wonder how God views you? Wonder no longer! He sees not what you aren’t, but what you are: a person he has chosen and blessed with his presence to do great and impossible things for him. So go with what you’ve got. The Lord is with you!

SYNOPSIS: The realm of spiritual warfare where the Christian resides is no theological Switzerland. Moral issues demand that we take a stand as Kingdom ambassadors. We cannot keep our distance from this conflict; we cannot stay neutral in it. We must engage, even when the odds seem overwhelming. To step forward in faith into the fray is to be on the right side of history—and time will prove it.

The Journey// Focus: Judges 5:15-18, 24-25

The princes of Issachar were with Deborah; yes, Issachar was with Barak, sent under his command into the valley. In the districts of Reuben there was much searching of heart. Why did you stay among the sheep pens to hear the whistling for the flocks? In the districts of Reuben there was much searching of heart. Gilead stayed beyond the Jordan. And Dan, why did he linger by the ships? Asher remained on the coast and stayed in his coves. The people of Zebulun risked their very lives; so did Naphtali on the terraced fields….Most blessed of women was Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite, most blessed of tent-dwelling women.

When they write a song about you, it is either going to be a really good thing or a really bad thing. Whichever the case, it will be remembered for a long time. And if you think you are not going to get a song, think again—everybody gets a faith-song.

In Judges 5, the prophetess Deborah wrote a song on the occasion of the Israelites’ victory, led by General Barrak, over the Canaanites and their leader, General Sisera. The very memorable and brutal battle took place in Judges 4, and ended with the gruesome death of Sisera, which Deborah memorializes in this song—a song she not only composed, but sang for all to hear.

The tune, however, was not just a celebration; it was a bit of a diatribe, too. Not only did she celebrate the brave hearts of several of Israel’s tribe: Issachar, Ephraim, Benjamin and Zublun, along with a courageous lady named Jael, but she also castigates the indecision of other tribes: Rueben, Dan and Asher. These latter tribes apparently sat out the conflict because it didn’t really concern them directly.

Rueben was conflicted about joining the fight, apparently not so sure there would be a good outcome, given how badly Israel was outmanned and outgunned: “In Reuben there was much searching of heart.” (Judges 5:15-16). The others, the tribes of Ephraim, Benjamin and Zebulun, were either sitting in the safety of being far from the conflict or too busy with their own thing to jump into the fray.

Despite their lack of participation, Israel conquered the Canaanites. It was an amazing victory for Israel when General Barak put the larger, better equipped army led by General Sisera to flight, no thanks to these aforementioned peaceniks. When the time came for courage, for the reasons mentioned above, they stayed home, but in so doing, earned the ire of this steely prophetess, Deborah. She interpreted their reluctance as disloyalty to the nation, which was tantamount to a lack of faith, disobedience and disloyalty to God. Deborah called them out quite publically for seeing themselves as separate entities rather than as a part of the nation as a whole, a problem Moses had previously warned about, and a problem that actually became reality in future chapters throughout Judges.

So what does this story have to do with you? Simply this: there is always a conflict in the believer’s life—whether you want it or not; whether you want to acknowledge it or not. At times the conflict is in the unseen realm, while at other times it spills over into the real world in your personal, family, social, professional and church life. In the battle that rages, there is always a right and wrong side, a side that represents good and one that represents evil. And wherever conflict invades your world, there are always three positions you can take—one right, two wrong.

The two wrong sides are similar to what we see immortalized in Deborah’s song. One side, represented by Reuben, is to stay neutral in the fray when the choice is clear. The Rueben mentality is conflicted, not sure what to do, worried about the cost, wanting to play it safe, but not feeling so good about sitting it out. But safe it is not—it is wrong, for in the fight of faith, there is no spiritual Switzerland. Moral issues demand that we take a stand.

The second wrong side takes a definite stance to sit it out. They are too busy, too far removed (they don’t have a dog in this fight, or so they think), and to jump in would take too much effort with little reward. But in the fight of faith where the choice is clear, staying off the field will only get you into history books, and for the wrong reason. Spiritual infamy is not what you want when you were needed in the conquest.

There is only one right side—to step forward in faith and fight for right. When sin threatens, encroaches or seeks to enslave, even when it seems the odds are against you or against those who need your help, Deborah’s eternal call is to jump into the fray. Her words to Barak are the Word of the Lord to you: This is the day the Lord has given your enemy into your hands—for the Lord is marching ahead of you.” (Judges 4:14)

Where is the battle of faith calling you to take a stand today? If there is an identifiable conflict, jump into the fray. God is already there and you are not only guaranteed a win, but also a song to commemorate your conquest.

“ When you fear God, you fear nothing else, but if you do not fear God, you fear everything else. —OSWALD CHAMBERS

SYNOPSIS: What would you attempt for God if you knew that he was already where your steps of faith would lead you? How energetically would you press forward if you knew he was waiting there for you to arrive? What level of confidence would you have knowing that God had gone ahead of you and secured your victory even before the battle began? The truth is, when God calls you to step out, he has not only promised to be with you, he has promised to actually go before you, and while you may not see around the bend of faith, God is already there with your victory in hand.

The Journey// Focus: Judges 4:14-15

Then Deborah said to Barak, “Get ready! This is the day the Lord will give you victory over Sisera, for the Lord is marching ahead of you.” So Barak led his 10,000 warriors down the slopes of Mount Tabor into battle. When Barak attacked, the Lord threw Sisera and all his chariots and warriors into a panic.

What would you attempt for God if you knew the Lord was marching ahead of you? What grand thing would you pursue if you knew that he was already where your steps of faith would lead you, waiting for you to arrive? What level of confidence would you have knowing that God had gone ahead of you and secured your victory even before the battle began?

When God calls you to a step of faith, you are guaranteed his presence and his power, which means that you are invincible in the journey. Moreover, he has not only promised to be with you, he has promised to actually go before you, and while you may not see around the bend of faith, God is already there, waiting for you to take the victory lap for a victory that he won for you. How cool is that!

That is exactly what the prophetess Deborah is telling the reluctant general of the Israelite army, Barak. He is shivering in his boots knowing that his army is outmanned and outgunned by the Canaanite army of General Sisera. We are told in Judges 4:3, “Sisera, who had 900 iron chariots, ruthlessly oppressed the Israelites for twenty years.” 900 iron chariots to Israel’s none…no wonder, on a human level, Barak was not too excited about leading Israel into battle.

But this battle was not going to be fought only on a human level. No battle is. In the spiritual realm, God had already heard the cries of the Israelites and had determined to deliver them from their oppressors under the guidance of Deborah the Judge and Barak the General. In light of that, the fight was over before it even started. Barak couldn’t see that, but Deborah could. That is why she told him, “now get out there and fight, for God is already ahead of you and has guaranteed the victory. C’mon, go take your victory lap.” And that is exactly what Barak did, and a great deliverance for Israel was accomplished.

Perhaps you are a little uncertain about what’s next for you. Maybe you’re not too confident about your future. Maybe the circumstance you face are overwhelming, from a human perspective. You are outnumbered and outgunned. But where God is asking you to step out in faith, those odds do not matter one iota. God is on your side; he is with you, he is actually before you. He is already where he has called you to go, waiting for you to walk into a victory that he has secured for you. You cannot loose. So take heart.

Therefore, because of God’s exemplary record of faithful goodness in leading his people to victory, do not be afraid to trust an unknown tomorrow to a known God. So get ready! This is the day God will give you victory, for the he is marching ahead of you. That is God’s promise to you!

In a verse similar to this, King David said to his son Solomon as he gave him the daunting task of building a temple in Jerusalem to the God of Israel,

Be strong and courageous and get to work. Don’t be frightened by the size of the task, for the Lord God is with you; he will not forsake you. He will see to it that everything is finished correctly. (1 Chronicles 28:20, LB)

Whatever is before you, if God is calling you to step out, then do it with confidence; God is already out there where you have been called to go. And he has guaranteed victory if you will go with him!

“ Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God. —CORRIE TEN BOOM

SYNOPSIS: Why doesn’t God completely vaporize your every spiritual enemy? He is testing you and he is teaching you. He allows you to be in strenuous situations to test and temper your faith, and then in those moments, he forces you to learn the art of spiritual warfare. The argument could be made that you wouldn’t really need the testing and teaching if you were sinlessly perfect, but you are not. So God does you a favor by getting you battle ready through testing and teaching.

The Journey// Focus: Judges 3:1-2,4

These are the nations the Lord left to test all those Israelites who had not experienced any of the wars in Canaan (he did this only to teach warfare to the descendants of the Israelites who had no previous battle experience)….These enemy nations were left to test the Israelites to see whether they would obey the Lord’s commands, which he had given their ancestors through Moses.

Do you ever wish God would just annihilate sin in your life? Wouldn’t it be nice it he removed everything that troubles your soul? How wonderful it would be if the Christian’s voyage from salvation to eternity was nothing but smooth sailing!

Yes, that would be nice. But God’s doesn’t’ work that way. He could have given Abraham and Sarah, whom he called the parents of many nations, an heir long before they were in their nineties and well past the years of bearing a son. He didn’t have to leave Joseph languishing in a prison cell for fifteen years training him in how to be a faithful leader in small matters and under great duress when a weekend stay would have sufficed. The Lord didn’t have to teach Moses how to shepherd Israel over a forty year illustrious career by first burying him in ignominy and isolation during a forty year stint as a goat herder on the backside of the Sinai desert. And God didn’t have to take the Israelites on a forty-year meandering journey through that same desert when two years would have gotten them from Egypt to Canaan and more than sufficed to mold them into a nation.

The thing is, God takes his time in preparing his people. He does it apart from our sense of time because God is God. And God knows more than we do. And God can do what he wants. And God knows that it takes us a long time to learn. So he uses the sharpest edged tool, discomfort, to test us and to train us for glorious purposes.

After Joshua died and the Israelites settled into Canaan, there were more than a few enemy nations still left in the land. Moses had commanded that Israel wipe them out because they would ultimately lead God’s people astray by enticing them to tolerate, then accept, then actually worship their gods. Israel had failed to remove these nations, and sure enough, Israel began to intermarry with some of them and live alongside others as if it was no big deal. But it was a big deal indeed, because what Moses predicted was exactly what happened: Israel began to embrace the unspeakable pagan practices of these Canaanite nations. So God punished them.

Punishment came in the form of subjugation—the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Hivites and Jebusites defeated Israel and put onerous demands and taxation upon them. Finally, in desperation, Israel cried out to God, who in turn raised up judges to deliver his people. This is the story of Judges: judge after judge is raised up to lead Israel into repentance, unite and inspire them, then lead them into battle and throw off the oppressive yoke of their masters. This vicious cycle of subjugation, desperation, repentance and deliverance took place over a period of 400 years.

But there was something else going on during this time. God was testing the loyalty of his people by leaving these pagan nations that Israel had failed to remove; he wanted to show them how easy and quickly they would surrender to the enticement of false gods. Which they did! And he not only tested them, but he had to teach them how to battle their way back to holiness and freedom by throwing off the yoke of their oppressors. They had to suffer the consequences of the pain that always came after enjoying the pleasures of sin for a season; they had to relearn the power of holiness; and they had to learn literal fighting skills that it would take to decimate these enemy nations.

Why doesn’t God completely vaporize your every spiritual enemy? Same reasons! He is testing you and he is teaching you. He allows you to be in strenuous situations to test and temper your faith, and then in those moments, he forces you to learn the art of spiritual warfare. The argument could be made that you wouldn’t really need the testing and teaching if you were sinlessly perfect, but you are not. So God does you a favor by testing you and teaching you.

So until you are sinlessly perfect—which means you will have died and are firmly in heaven—then praise God that in the meantime he is getting you battle ready!

SYNOPSIS: The Israelites, under Joshua, knew God, enjoyed his favor, experienced his presence, and walked in obedience before him—but in the book of Judges, their children missed out. What the parents knew and loved didn’t transfer to the kids. For the next generation, “the God of my father” never became “my Lord and my God!” Knowing about God never became knowing God. Here’s the deal: God has no grandchildren. Each generation is responsible to seek God for itself. However, it is the responsibility of the parents to drill that into their children, early and often, leading them to the door of faith. But children have to walk through the door for themselves. At the end of the day, they may reject their parents’ faith, but not because the parents didn’t do their best to inculcate their kids with the knowledge of God. Parents, by all means, lead your children to the door of decision.

The Journey// Focus: Judges 2:10-14,16

After that whole generation had been gathered to their ancestors, another generation grew up who knew neither the Lord nor what he had done for Israel. Then the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord and served the Baals. They forsook the Lord, the God of their ancestors, who had brought them out of Egypt. They followed and worshiped various gods of the peoples around them. They aroused the Lord’s anger because they forsook him and served Baal and the Ashtoreths. In his anger against Israel the Lord gave them into the hands of raiders who plundered them.…Then the Lord raised up judges, who saved them out of the hands of these raiders.

Prosperity, rebellion, consequence, repentance, restoration….prosperity, rebellion, consequence, repentance, restoration…

That is the sad cycle of Judges. So be warned: you will get a lot of that as you read this book. In many ways, it is a frustrating, if not depressing history, but such is the dark reality of life in rebellion against God. Yet within this collection of stories that take place over the 400 years between Joshua’s death and the arrival of Samuel the prophet, you will also find sun breaks of God’s grace, inspiring stories of heroic men and woman who stepped in to lead Israel to revival, and invaluable life application for those who are serious about obeying their covenant of love with God.

This second chapter is both a preview and an overview of the book of Judges. The verse above captures the problem: when Joshua and his generation died, somehow the baton was dropped with the next generation that grew up, and for whatever reason, “knew neither the Lord nor what he had done.”

Therein lies the problem that has perpetually haunted God’s people. The next generation somehow misses out on knowing God. Interesting, and sad, isn’t it, how that happens! Their parents knew God, enjoyed his favor, experienced his presence, and walked in obedience before him—but their kids missed out. What the parents knew and loved didn’t transfer to the children. For the next generation, “the God of my fathers” never became “my Lord and my God!” Knowing about God never became knowing God.

Why? Who knows for sure, but just as we have seen within our own families, there are different reasons. Perhaps the parents were so busy with God stuff that they didn’t include their kids. Maybe the parents assumed their faith would simply transfer, sort of by osmosis, to their children. It could be that the next generation grew up with a sense of entitlement—believing the presence of God and his favor was owed them. It might be that the kids vicariously experienced spiritual life through their parents’ spirituality. Or it is possible that these children hung out around the holy, and it just became so common that their sense of God became jaded. There are a lot of possibilities, but whatever the reason, the God of their fathers never became their God. Somehow, the baton was dropped.

The deal is, God has no grandchildren. Each generation is responsible to seek God for itself. And it is the responsibility of the parents to drill that into their kids, early and often. The parent is to bring the child to the doorway of faith, but the child has to step through to personal faith. At the end of the day, they may reject their parents’ faith, but not because the parents didn’t do their best to inculcate their kids with the knowledge of God.

If the parents fail to do this, or if the kids refuse to accept this, the outcome is predictable: Prosperity. rebellion, consequence, repentance, restoration….prosperity, rebellion, consequence, repentance, restoration… It is the vicious cycle of rebellion and restoration. It would just be a lot simpler and far better if we would just stay in the restoration zone.

What is the key to avoiding this Judges’ syndrome: Know God and remember what he has done. That is not a passive thing, but an active laying hold of the things of the Lord. It takes consistent, dogged intentionality, but it is well worth the effort.

SYNOPSIS: We must remember that when it comes to sin, we are in a battle. It is an all-out war that we can and must win (and with God’s help, we will since he is fighting for us!), but it is a war in which there can be no truce. It is total victory or utter defeat. Sin is your enemy, not your neighbor. Treat it ruthlessly!

The Journey// Focus: Judges 1:21

The tribe of Benjamin, however, failed to drive out the Jebusites, who were living in Jerusalem. So to this day the Jebusites live in Jerusalem among the people of Benjamin.

The tribe of Benjamin failed to drive out the Canaanites. So did the tribes of Judah (Judges 1:19), Manasseh (Judges 1:27), Ephraim (Judges 1:29), Zebulun (Judges 1:30) Asher (Judges 1:31), Naphtali (Judges 1:33) and while we are not explicitly told the tribe of Dan failed, apparently they permitted their enemies to stay around the edge of their territory (Judges 1:24-26).

So basically, Israel failed to do what God commanded them to do when failure was not one of the options he gave his people.

And it came back to bite them! You see, pagan enemies always make bad neighbors. When Israel allowed the godless Canaanites to live in their midst, or even close in close proximity, they predictably fell victim to a variety of sinful influences these godless cultures embraced—sexual immorality, idol worship, child sacrifice. Let me say it again, because God said it over and over to his people:

Pagan enemies make bad neighbors!

Obviously, we are not commanded to literally drive non-believers out of our neighborhoods. That would be rather poor form these days, and actually against the law. Instead, we are to witness to them of the grace of our Lord Jesus, model for them the redemptive love of God and win over their hearts and minds to his kingdom. Yet the spiritual application from Judges 1 is quite clear: Just as God commanded Israel to drive the pagan enemies out of the land that he had promised as their homeland, we have been called to deal just as ruthlessly with spiritual enemies in our homeland—our hearts and homes. Failure do so will result in these worldly influences harassing us until the day we die. They will be a constant source of irritation at the very least, and at worst, perhaps even train-wreck our relationship with God. Moreover, when we allow godless influences into our homes, especially through the unfiltered and unchallenged inflow of media, we are exposing the vulnerable minds of our children to these destructive pagan influences.

We must remember that when it comes to sin, we are in a battle. It is an all-out war that we can and must win (and with God’s help, we will, for he is fighting for us!), but it is a war in which there can be no truce. It is total victory or utter defeat.

That is not just because I say so, it is due to the nature of the conflict. The reason Jesus came, died and rose again was to defeat the Enemy:

The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work…. Jesus shared in our humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil.” (1 John 3:8, Hebrews 2:14)

On the other hand, while Jesus’ purpose was to kill that which will steal, kill and destroy us, the devil is committed to our utter defeat. He is not looking just to gain territory, he is not hoping that we coexist, he will not be satisfied with an established demilitarized zone with us, he wants to destroy us. He hates God, and everything of God, which includes you and me:

Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. (1 Peter 5:8)

That is the nature of the conflict. C.S. Lewis rightly described it thus: “There is no neutral ground in the universe: every square inch, every split second is claimed by God and counterclaimed by Satan.” And your life is ground zero in this cosmic conflict. So take note, stay alert, be armed, and get ruthless with sin. And be encouraged, because you were made to win:

But you belong to God, my dear children. You have already won a victory over those people, because the Spirit who lives in you is greater than the spirit who lives in the world.” (1 John 4:4)

So just remember, spiritually speaking, pagan enemies make bad neighbors.

SYNOPSIS: What would you attempt for God as you look ahead to 2021 if you knew that he was already where your steps of faith will lead? How energetically would you press forward if you knew he was waiting for you to arrive? What level of confidence would you have knowing that God had gone ahead of you and secured your victory even before the battle began? The truth is, when God calls you to step out, he has not only promised to be with you, he has promised to actually go before you. And while you may not see around the bend of faith, God is already there with your victory in hand.

A New Year Promise // Judges 4:14-15

Then Deborah said to Barak, “Get ready! This is the day the Lord will give you victory over Sisera, for the Lord is marching ahead of you.” So Barak led his 10,000 warriors down the slopes of Mount Tabor into battle. When Barak attacked, the Lord threw Sisera and all his chariots and warriors into a panic.

What would you attempt for God in 2021 if you knew he was marching ahead of you? What grand thing would you pursue if you knew that he was already where your steps of faith would lead, waiting for you to arrive? What level of confidence would you have knowing that God had gone ahead of you and secured your victory even before the battle began?

When God calls you to a step of faith, you are guaranteed his presence and his power, which means that you are invincible in the journey. Moreover, he has not only promised to be with you, he has promised to actually go before you, and while you may not see around the bend of faith, God is already there, waiting for you to take the victory lap for a victory that he won for you. How cool is that!

That is exactly what the prophetess Deborah is telling the reluctant general of the Israelite army, Barak. He is shivering in his boots knowing that his army is outmanned and outgunned by the Canaanite army of General Sisera. We are told in Judges 4:3, “Sisera, who had 900 iron chariots, ruthlessly oppressed the Israelites for twenty years.” 900 iron chariots to Israel’s none…no wonder, on a human level, Barak was not too excited about leading Israel into battle.

But this battle was not going to be fought only on a human level. No battle is. In the spiritual realm, God had already heard the cries of the Israelites and had determined to deliver them from their oppressors under the guidance of Deborah the Judge and Barak the General. In light of that, the fight was over before it even started. Barak couldn’t see that, but Deborah could. That is why she told him, “now get out there and fight, for God is already ahead of you and how guaranteed the victory. C’mon, go take your victory lap.” And that is exactly what Barak did, and a great deliverance for Israel was accomplished.

Perhaps you are a little uncertain about what’s next for you. Maybe you’re not too confident about your future. Maybe the circumstance you face are overwhelming, from a human perspective. You are outnumbered and outgunned. But where God is asking you to step out in faith, those odds do not matter one iota. God is on your side; he is with you, he is actually before you. He is already where he has called you to go, waiting for you to walk into a victory that he has secured for you. You cannot loose. So take heart.

Therefore, because of God’s exemplary record of faithful goodness in leading his people to victory, do not be afraid to trust an unknown tomorrow to a known God. So get ready! This is the day God will give you victory, for he is marching ahead of you. That is God’s promise to you!

In a verse similar to this, King David said to his son Solomon as he gave him the daunting task of building a temple in Jerusalem to the God of Israel,

Be strong and courageous and get to work. Don’t be frightened by the size of the task, for the Lord God is with you; he will not forsake you. He will see to it that everything is finished correctly. (1 Chronicles 28:20, LB)

Whatever is before you, if God is calling you to step out, then do it with confidence; God is already out there where you have been called to go. And he has guaranteed victory if you will go with him!

“ Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God. —CORRIE TEN BOOM

Haven’t you found that sin always leads to suffering, but repentance always leads to God’s restoring grace? Wouldn’t it be so much easier to skip the sin and suffering part and simply live in the restoration of a repentant lifestyle? Francis Schaeffer said, “No price is too high to have a free conscience before God.” He was right, no price is too high. So with God’s help, today, let’s refuse sin and choose obedience to his loving ways.

Enduring Truth // Focus: Judges 2:10-16

After that whole generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation grew up, who knew neither the LORD nor what he had done for Israel…They followed and worshiped various gods of the peoples around them. They provoked the LORD to anger because they forsook him…In his anger against Israel the LORD handed them over to raiders who plundered them…. They were in great distress…Then the LORD raised up judges, who saved them out of the hands of these raiders.”

Judges—the seventh book of the Old Testament—stands in stark contrast to the book of Joshua, which tells the story of a courageous leader and a faithful nation conquering their Promised Land through their trust in, dependence on and obedience to God. Sadly, what you see in Judges is what happens when a nation, void of godly leadership, disobeys and strays from the call of God. And it ain’t a pretty picture!

In Judges we find several distinct cycles of sin to salvation and salvation to sin, repeated over and over again from the time of Joshua’s departure to the arrival of the great judge and prophet, Samuel. As you read story after story, you will feel like someone has pushed the repeat button as God’s people keep following this pattern:

• Disobedience: Israel wanders from obedience and falls into idolatry, corruption and other patterns of waywardness.
• Discipline: After a period of time where God gives Israel a long leash, he begins to discipline them through the cruel domination and subjugation of other nations. Under the yoke of oppression, Israel finally begins to cry out to God in repentance.
• Deliverance: God raises up military champions who lead Israel to victory over their enemies. These military leaders then rule or judge Israel during their lifetimes, restoring the nation to pure worship and obedience to God.

Unfortunately, the people of God are slow learners, continually trading in obedience to God and the freedom and prosperity it brings for “that which is right in their own eyes” (Judges 21:25) So God punishes his people by letting them fall again into the hands of oppressing nations. And once again, Israel cries out to God in repentance, so he raises up a military champion to deliver them. Yet they fall into sin again, and so on the sad cycle repeats itself. As you read Judges, you get this same song, second verse deal happening all the way through the book.

Theologically, however, this otherwise depressing account show a couple of very important truths:

One, sin always leads to suffering. That message was seen before Judges, and you will run into it again all the way forward to Revelation. We need to remember that sin always has devastating consequences. But on the other hand…

Two, repentance always leads to restoration. Even though we might be faithless and disobedient, God is covenantly faithful—always—lovingly and longingly ready to restore the truly repentant. Every time Israel humbly and authentically repents, God patiently forgives and graciously restores.

I suppose the story of Judges is really the story of your life—and mine. Don’t we, too, fall into that same cycle of disobedience, discipline and deliverance? Haven’t you found, like Israel, that sin always leads to suffering, but in repentance, you always meet a restoring God? And wouldn’t it be so much easier to learn from Israel’s story and break that crazy cycle by wisely skipping the sin and suffering part and simply living in the restoration of a repentant lifestyle?

I think that’s why we have Judges. That’s what God wants us to know.

“ No price is too high to have a free conscience before God. —FRANCIS SCHAEFFER

What would you attempt for God if you knew that he was already where your steps of faith would lead? How energetically would you press forward if you knew he was waiting there for you to arrive? What level of confidence would you have knowing that God had gone ahead of you and secured your victory even before the battle began? The truth is, when God calls you to step out, he has not only promised to be with you, he has promised to actually go before you, and while you may not see around the bend of faith, God is already there with your victory in hand.

Enduring Truth // Focus: Judges 4:14-15

Then Deborah said to Barak, “Get ready! This is the day the Lord will give you victory over Sisera, for the Lord is marching ahead of you.” So Barak led his 10,000 warriors down the slopes of Mount Tabor into battle. When Barak attacked, the Lord threw Sisera and all his chariots and warriors into a panic.

What would you attempt for God if you knew he was marching ahead of you? What grand thing would you pursue if you knew that he was already where your steps of faith would lead, waiting for you to arrive? What level of confidence would you have knowing that God had gone ahead of you and secured your victory even before the battle began?

When God calls you to a step of faith, you are guaranteed his presence and his power, which means that you are invincible in the journey. Moreover, he has not only promised to be with you, he has promised to actually go before you, and while you may not see around the bend of faith, God is already there, waiting for you to take the victory lap for a victory that he won for you. How cool is that!

That is exactly what the prophetess Deborah is telling the reluctant general of the Israelite army, Barak. He is shivering in his boots knowing that his army is outmanned and outgunned by the Canaanite army of General Sisera. We are told in Judges 4:3, “Sisera, who had 900 iron chariots, ruthlessly oppressed the Israelites for twenty years.” 900 iron chariots to Israel’s none…no wonder, on a human level, Barak was not too excited about leading Israel into battle.

But this battle was not going to be fought only on a human level. No battle is. In the spiritual realm, God had already heard the cries of the Israelites and had determined to deliver them from their oppressors under the guidance of Deborah the Judge and Barak the General. In light of that, the fight was over before it even started. Barak couldn’t see that, but Deborah could. That is why she told him, “now get out there and fight, for God is already ahead of you and how guaranteed the victory. C’mon, go take your victory lap.” And that is exactly what Barak did, and a great deliverance for Israel was accomplished.

Perhaps you are a little uncertain about what’s next for you. Maybe you’re not too confident about your future. Maybe the circumstance you face are overwhelming, from a human perspective. You are outnumbered and outgunned. But where God is asking you to step out in faith, those odds do not matter one iota. God is on your side; he is with you, he is actually before you. He is already where he has called you to go, waiting for you to walk into a victory that he has secured for you. You cannot loose. So take heart.

Therefore, because of God’s exemplary record of faithful goodness in leading his people to victory, do not be afraid to trust an unknown tomorrow to a known God. So get ready! This is the day God will give you victory, for the he is marching ahead of you. That is God’s promise to you!

In a verse similar to this, King David said to his son Solomon as he gave him the daunting task of building a temple in Jerusalem to the God of Israel,

Be strong and courageous and get to work. Don’t be frightened by the size of the task, for the Lord God is with you; he will not forsake you. He will see to it that everything is finished correctly. (1 Chronicles 28:20, LB)

Whatever is before you, if God is calling you to step out, then do it with confidence; God is already out there where you have been called to go. And he has guaranteed victory if you will go with him!

“ Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God. —CORRIE TEN BOOM

Reflect:
Judges 13:1-16:31

“Samson went down to Timnah and saw there a young Philistine woman. When he returned, he said to his father and mother, ‘I have seen a Philistine woman in Timnah; now get her for me as my wife.’” ~Judges 14:1-2

Samson was a tremendous warrior, a man mightily used of God. He was severely flawed, like all men and women of God, yet the Lord was able to work through his weak flesh to accomplish huge things for Israel. And even though Samson’s ministry—and life—ended in a blaze of glory, it was his weakness that brought both his impact and his life to a premature end. Think of how much more Samson could have accomplished for the glory of God and the good of Israel had he submitted his rebellious flesh to God’s control!

Samson had a glaring weakness—likely the same one that you wrestle with. For sure, it’s a weakness that I battle. What is it? It is the lust of the eyes—and it is a more deadly serious weakness than I think most of us care to admit. The Apostle John didn’t mince any words in describing this “I See—Now Give Me” weakness and contrasting it with those who operate on a far higher plane:

“Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.” (I John 2:15-17)

In the case of Samson, he “saw” an attractive woman, he wanted her, so against his better judgment and the advice of people who cared about the future God had for him, he caved to his weakness to satisfy his selfish flesh—he “got” her. And in his surrender to personal weakness, he short-circuited one of the most brilliant ministries of all time.

So just what are the lessons here for you and me? Among other things, be careful what you ask for—God might just allow you to get it. Likewise, do not confuse what God permits with what God will bless. God may allow the things you lust for, but those things might very well be what shuts you off from his continued favor. Psalm 106:14-15 should serve as a cautionary tale:

“The Israelites lusted exceedingly in the wilderness, and tested God in the desert. And He gave them their request, but sent leanness into their soul.”

If you are wrestling with desire for something you have seen—a person, a purchase, a position—rather than saying “I see—now give me”, try exerting the will that God has given you and pray, “Father, what do you want? Now give me that!”

“Great achievement is usually born of great sacrifice, and is never the result of selfishness.” ~Napoleon Hill

Reflect and Apply: Offer this sincere prayer to God today—and perhaps every day: “Dear God, destroy in me the things that could destroy me!”

Reflect:
Judges 6:1-7:25

“When the angel of the LORD appeared to Gideon, he said, ‘The LORD is with you, mighty warrior.’ ‘But sir,’ Gideon replied, ‘if the LORD is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our fathers told us about when they said, “Did not the LORD bring us up out of Egypt?” But now the LORD has abandoned us and put us into the hand of Midian.’ The LORD turned to him and said, ‘Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?’” ~Judges 6:12-14

If you are at all like me (perish the thought), you periodically struggle with feelings of inadequacy. Perhaps you get discouraged when you compare your life, your marriage, your kids, your job, your house, or your wealth with another’s. Pastors, including me, are famous for doing this—a lot; we’re pretty skilled at comparing our ministry with some other high profile ministry that seems to be thriving while we feel like we are barely surviving.

For you, maybe the task or the challenge at hand is nothing less than intimidating in light of your inability, lack of resources, dearth of support and the overwhelming odds involved in accomplishing what you need to do. Perhaps at the moment, you feel like you are up the proverbial creek without a paddle.

If you have ever felt that way, you are not alone. That’s exactly how Gideon felt when the angel of the Lord found him hiding in a winepress and called him to lead Israel to victory over the Midianites, a much larger, better equipped, far superior opponent. Notice this interaction between Gideon and the Lord’s messenger:

“The angel of the LORD appeared to him and said, ‘Mighty hero, the LORD is with you!’” (Judges 6:12, NLT)

Remember, this so-called hero is hiding in fear in the bottom of a winepress. You’ve got to love the humor of God here—Gideon is anything but a hero or a mighty warrior. In reality, he is a fraidy cat. But God’s reality is different than ours. The truth is, God saw Giedon, and he sees us, not as we are, but as what we are capable of doing in him.

“Sir,” Gideon replied, “if the LORD is with us, why has all this happened to us? And where are all the miracles our ancestors told us about? Didn’t they say, ‘The LORD brought us up out of Egypt’? But now the LORD has abandoned us and handed us over to the Midianites.” (Judges 6:13, NLT)

Do you sense any comparison to past victories, any feelings of inadequacy, any intimidation here? Absolutely! Gideon is quite busy looking over his shoulder at what once was, instead of looking forward into what God had ordained.

“Then the LORD turned to him and said, ‘Go with the strength you have and rescue Israel from the Midianites. I am sending you!’” (Judges 6:14, NLT)

What a powerful truth! We don’t need to go in anyone else’s strength, nor do we need the miracles or victories of the past. God has knowingly chosen us in our current limitedness and has already given us the strength to accomplish what he has called us to do—right now!

Perhaps you are so busy looking over your shoulder at what once was that you fail to look forward into what God has willed. Even if you do cast an eye toward what is ahead, all you may see are overwhelming challenges that cannot be overcome because of your personal inadequacies. But God’s reality is different than yours. He sees you not as you were, not even as you are, but as what you are capable of in him. Surrender your current reality to God—in defiance of your limitedness, he has given you the strength to accomplish what he has ordained for you—right now!

If you are discouraged in any way by what you are facing, let me encourage you in the same way God encouraged Gideon (and encourages me every time he finds me hiding in my winepress):

Go in the strength you already have and accomplish what God has called you to do. God will enable you to experience victory as you step out in obedience to him!

Yes, God is with you, mighty man, mighty woman of valor. Go in the strength you have!

“Courage is not simply one of the virtues, but the form of every virtue at the testing point.” ~C.S. Lewis

Reflect and Apply: Feeling a little inadequate today? Reflect on the following statement: “True courage is not the absence of fear—but the willingness to proceed in spite of it.”

Reflect:
Judges 4:1-5:31

“Then Deborah said to Barak, ‘Go! This is the day the LORD has given Sisera into your hands. Has not the LORD gone ahead of you?’” ~Judges 4:14

The inclusion of Deborah’s story in Judges raises all kinds of interesting discussion points about the role of women as spiritual leaders. As tempted as I am to weigh in on this, I won’t at this point, except to say that the very fact the Holy Spirit saw fit to include the account of Deborah’s heroic leadership over Israel ought to open our hearts to the legitimacy of God’s call upon uniquely gifted women in the church today. But I am not going to talk about that…

Easy to miss in her dramatic story is this one little line Deborah delivers to Barak, a very nervous and reluctant man God had chosen to be military leader over Israel at this time. Her words are fraught with all kinds of encouraging spiritual implications for believers today:

“Get ready! This is the day the LORD will give you victory over Sisera, for the LORD is marching ahead of you.” (NLT)

Don’t overlook that line: “The Lord is marching ahead of you.” If that be the case for Barak, and by extension, for you and me, then why would Christians ever need to be worried, anxious, fearful or reluctant to step out on God’s behalf? If that be the case, no wonder Scripture commands us not to fear, but to always be courageous more than any other command.

You see, when God calls a Christian to step out in faith and obedience, in reality, the Lord himself has already gone before them and is there waiting where the step of faith will take them. Yes, he goes before them (Isaiah 52:12), prepares the way for them (Exodus 23:20), he gives them safety and protection on the journey (Deuteronomy 23:14), he guarantees their success (Joshua 1:7-8) and he ensures they end the journey of faith with an outstanding testimony (Deuteronomy 26:19).

“The Lord is marching ahead of you.” When God calls you to a step of faith, in reality, he has already gone before you and is waiting where the step of faith will take you. Yes, he goes before you (“the Lord is going before you, and the God of Israel is your rear guard.” Isa. 52:12), he prepares the way for you (“I am going to send an angel before you to protect you on the way and bring you to the place I have prepared.” Ex. 23:20), he gives you safety and protection on the journey (“For the Lord your God walks throughout your camp to protect you and deliver your enemies to you.” Deut. 23:14), he guarantees your success (“if you are careful to obey each of his laws, then you will be successful in everything you do.” Jos. 1:7) and he ensures the journey of faith will leave you with an outstanding testimony (“If you do, he will make you greater than any other nation, allowing you to receive praise, honor, and renown.” Deut. 26:19). So wherever God calls, step out, you are only walking where he already is.

That is the winning strategy the prophetess Deborah gave to Barak, and there is a reason it was included in the Holy Scriptures. It was not just for a reluctant nervous leader then, it is for God’s people today. God has given you the same winning strategy: Where God calls, step out, for he has already gone before you—and he is waiting for you at the finish line.

“A man with God is always in the majority.” ~John Knox

Reflect and Apply: Where are you being called to take a step of faith? If you are at all nervous about what is before you, go back and reflect on these verses: Isaiah 52:12, Exodus 23:20, Deuteronomy 23:14, Joshua 1:7-8, Deuteronomy 26:19 and Hebrews 13:5

Reflect:
Judges 2:6-23, 3:1-6

“After that whole generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation grew up, who knew neither the LORD nor what he had done for Israel…They followed and worshiped various gods of the peoples around them. They provoked the LORD to anger because they forsook him…In his anger against Israel the LORD handed them over to raiders who plundered them…. They were in great distress…Then the LORD raised up judges, who saved them out of the hands of these raiders.” ~Judges 2:10-16

Judges—the seventh book of the Old Testament—stands in stark contrast to the book of Joshua, which tells the story of a courageous leader and a faithful nation conquering their Promised Land through their trust in, dependence on and obedience to God. Sadly, what you see in Judges is what happens when a nation, void of godly leadership, disobeys and strays from the call of God. And it ain’t a pretty picture!

In Judges we find several distinct cycles of sin to salvation and salvation to sin, repeated over and over again from the time of Joshua’s departure to the arrival of the great judge and prophet, Samuel. As you read story after story, you will feel like someone has pushed the repeat button as God’s people keep following this pattern:

Disobedience: Israel wanders from obedience and falls into idolatry, corruption and other patterns of waywardness.

Discipline: After a period of time where God gives Israel a long leash, he begins to discipline them through the cruel domination and subjugation of other nations. Under the yoke of oppression, Israel finally begins to cry out to God in repentance.

Deliverance: God raises up military champions who lead Isael to victory over their enemies. These military leaders then rule or judge Israel during their lifetimes, restoring the nation to pure worship and obedience to God.

Unfortunately, the people of God are slow learners, continually trading in obedience to God and the freedom and prosperity it brings for “that which is right in their own eyes.” (Judges 21:25) So God punishes his people by letting them fall again into the hands of oppressing nations. And once again, Israel cries out to God in repentance, so he raises up a military champion to deliver them. Yet they fall into sin again, and so on the sad cycle repeats itself. As you read Judges, you get this same song, second verse deal happening all the way through the book.

Theologically, however, this otherwise depressing account show a couple of very important truths:

One, sin always leads to suffering. That message was seen before Judges, and you will run into it again all the way forward to Revelation. We need to remember that sin always has devastating consequences. But on the other hand…

Two, repentance always leads to restoration. Even though we might be faithless and disobedient, God is covenantly faithful—always—lovingly and longingly ready to restore the truly repentant. Every time Israel humbly and authentically repents, God patiently forgives and graciously restores.

I suppose the story of Judges is really the story of your life—and mine. Don’t we, too, fall into that same cycle of disobedience, discipline and deliverance? Haven’t you found, like Israel, that sin always leads to suffering, but in repentance, you always meet a restoring God? And wouldn’t it be so much easier to learn from Israel’s story and break that crazy cycle by wisely skipping the sin and suffering part and simply living in the restoration of a repentant lifestyle?

I think that’s why we have Judges. That’s what God wants us to know.

“No price is too high to have a free conscience before God.” ~Francis Schaeffer

Reflect and Apply: Take an honest look at your life: Are you in the crazy sin-cycle of disobedience-discipline-deliverance? Wouldn’t it be so much easier, and wiser, to simply life in the restoration of a repentant lifestyle?

No Controlling Moral Authority
Judges 21:25

Go Deep: That line pretty well sums up the sad story of the book of Judges.  Several times in the last few chapters the author gives us several variations of this statement: “In those days, Israel had no king; all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.” (Judges 17:6, 18:1, 19:21 and 21:25)  Even though the Lord raised up godly judges during this period to rescue Israel, overall, there was no controlling moral authority in the land.  The result: personal piety tanked and social chaos became the status quo.

“Everybody did what was right in their own eyes.”  Sound familiar?  That’s one of the popular mantras in our culture right now, albeit in a variety of different expressions: “If it doesn’t hurt anyone, then what’s to stop you?”  “That may be true for you, but not for me.”  “Keep your laws off my body!”  But these types of “enlightened” cultural declarations have led to the legalization of abortion, marijuana, and pornography, the normalization of homosexuality, increased sexual promiscuity and marital unfaithfulness, the widespread acceptance of divorce, the tolerance of filth over the airwaves, and a whole host of other “rights” that are rotting the moral foundation of our society.

“All the people did whatever seemed right in their own.” The problem with that kind of personal and societal philosophy is that it never results in a good outcome.  It might sound like it’s a fair and enlightened way to do life—as long as it doesn’t hurt anybody else—but it always hurts somebody else.  Whenever there is no “king in Israel”—no controlling moral authority—personal piety will decline and social chaos will rise, which is exactly what we’re witnessing in our society today.

It would be easy for me at this point to rant and rave against any number of cultural forces that are presently at work in America, and insist that we get back to the Bible as the standard by which our society must be governed.  And of course, I would be right…and you would agree.   But perhaps the best cure for the social chaos and loss of piety in America would be for you and me to make sure that God’s Word is king in our lives on a personal basis.

What if Christian by Christian we truly made the Scriptures our controlling moral authority?  I am not talking about just giving lip service to the authority of Scripture; I’m talking about it being what we mediate on day and night (Psalm 1:2), what we are careful to obey in exacting detail (Joshua 1:8), and teach and model to our children and our children’s children (Deuteronomy 4:9).

Can you imagine what would happen in America if everyone who called themselves a believer would live under the authority of the King’s Word?  I think the supply line for most of the impiety and chaos in our culture would get choked off, and America would become a Christian nation once again.

Have you read, absorbed and determined to obey God’s Word yet this today? What are you waiting for, brother?  Crack open that Bible and get after it!

Just Saying… A.W. Tozer offers these challenging words to us, “The Word of God well understood and religiously obeyed is the shortest route to spiritual perfection. And we must not select a few favorite passages to the exclusion of others. Nothing less than a whole Bible can make a whole Christian.”  And nothing less than a wholehearted commitment to the whole Bible can make a Christian nation wholly Christian again!

Flawed Leaders

When her son was born, she named him Samson. And the Lord blessed him
as he grew up. And the Spirit of the Lord began to stir him.
Judges 13:24-25 (NLT)

Go Deep: Samson’s story in Judges 13-16 is a real head-scratcher. Obviously he was an amazingly talented but incredibly flawed leader.  He was as strong as an ox but highly impulsive. He had been set apart for God’s purpose yet throughout his life continued to be firmly attached to fleshly desires. And most obvious of all, Samson had a weakness for women—not the first (or last, unfortunately) spiritual leader to have that particular weakness. Definitely this leader had feet of clay.

How can God choose to use such flawed leaders?  Why does God seem to bless men and women who are not only not perfect, they are glaringly weak?  Doesn’t he realize that when he promotes people to such visible positions of influence who are bound to fail, they give the rest of us, and our cause, a bad name before a watching world when they fall?

Well I hate to disappoint you here, but I can’t really answer those questions.  God has his reasons, and sometimes he doesn’t share his insights with us.  I do know this: If God chose only perfect people for leadership positions, we’d have no leaders.  All leaders are flawed to some degree.

Now don’t get me wrong, I am not excusing weaknesses, only explaining them. I get frustrated by flawed leaders who have failed , too, but what I have learned over the years by watching many great but flawed leaders is simply this: I must not confuse the gift with the package.

God places his incredible gifts within deeply flawed packages—that has always been and always will be. And in regard to your spiritual leader, it is likely that they are an extremely talented and charismatic person who has the call of God on their life.  But don’t forget, like you, they are flawed.

So celebrate the gift, but don’t worship the package.  Pray for them, build accountability systems around them, do what you can to help them to stay dedicated to God’s purpose for their life and leadership role, and pray for them.

Did I mention pray for them?

Just Saying… John Stott wrote, “The authority by which the Christian leader leads is not power but love, not force but example, not coercion but reasoned persuasion. Leaders have power, but power is safe only in the hands of those who humble themselves to serve.”  So true!

Love That Outweighs Wrath

Then the Israelites put aside their foreign gods and served the Lord.
And he was grieved by their misery.
Judges 10:16 (NLT)

Go Deep: When you read the book of Judges, you quickly discover a pattern—a sad one.  It’s not limited to Judges—it’s the same cycle in the history of God’s people from creation to the present day.  In a nutshell, it is concisely illustrated in Judges 6:6-10, and it goes something like this:

God calls a people unto himself and blesses their obedience to his ways; God’s people wander from their calling and pursue gratification outside of God’s law; God sends warning after warning of the disastrous consequences of disobedience; God’s people continue in their rebellion; disaster strikes; the people repent; God relents and restores.

It would be so much easier if we would just stay under the umbrella of God’s blessing through our loving obedience, wouldn’t it?  And yet we don’t.  As the old hymn points out, we’re “prone to wander from the God we love”.  And how it grieves his heart when we do.  It grieves him that we would spurn his love—and the blessings that flow to us for our loving obedience—to swallow the sweet poison of the world’s enticements.  It grieves him that we would ignore the plentiful warnings, both throughout Scripture as well as through the convicting voice of the Holy Spirit in our hearts, to plunge knowingly into that which invites Divine judgment—the direct judgment of his punitive anger and the more familiar judgment of the consequences of going our own way.

God is a just God, and sin brings his justice.  But God’s redemptive love is more powerful than his righteous wrath!  That is not to lessen or negate the consequences of sin—the law of sowing and reaping is a universal law—but what we observe in the history of God’s dealing with his people is that his compassion outweighs his indignation…when there is repentance. Notice the interaction between God and his people in this section of Judges 10:

God:  “You have forsaken me and served other gods, so I will no longer save you. Go and cry out to the gods you have chosen. Let them save you when you are in trouble!” (Judges 10:13-14)

Israel:  “We have sinned. Do with us whatever you think best, but please rescue us now.” Then they got rid of the foreign gods among them and served the LORD. (Judges 10:15-16a)

God: And the Lord could bear Israel’s misery no longer. (Judges 10:16b)

Again I say, how about we skip the rebellion and it’s consequences by staying under the umbrella of blessing by loving and obeying the God who loves us.

Just Saying… Dutch Anabaptist reformer Menno Simons wrote in a letter, “Wherever there is a pulverized and penitent heart, there grace also is, and wherever there is a voluntary confession not gained by pressure, there love covereth a multitude of sins.”

The Power of a Proper Baton Pass

After that whole generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation
grew up, who knew neither the LORD nor what he had done for Israel.
Judges 2:10

Go Deep: Is there anything sadder, or scarier, than the failure of a parent or a pastor or a leader to properly pass the baton of vision, purpose and calling to the next generation.  The book of Judges is the classic case study of how a once great and godly nation quickly lost its way after the death of Joshua, and never really found it, not consistently at least, for the 400 years between the departure of Joshua and the arrival of Israel’s greatest prophet, Samuel.

Who was to blame for Israel’s demise?  Judges doesn’t really assign blame to any particular person.  And to be certain, each generation has to make its own decision to wholeheartedly follow the Lord.   Scripture makes this abundantly clear in Joshua 24:15 (NLT),

“But if you refuse to serve the Lord, then choose today whom you will serve. Would you prefer the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates? Or will it be the gods of the Amorites in whose land you now live? But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord.”

“But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord!”  Joshua didn’t have the ultimate power to determine how his descendents would live, but he was going do everything in his power to make sure they had a compelling vision of what God had already planted in their hearts—a lifetime of love for and service to God.

That is job number one for a Christian parent, isn’t it! It is not to ensure their child will have nice things, make all the latest techno-gadgets available to them, get them into all the cool activities available to kids these days, make sure they’re in the best school, buy them a hot little car when they come of age, or even leave them a nice nest egg for an inheritance.  Those are all secondary, at best.  The best gift dad and mom can give their child is an active and intelligent faith in God.  When a generation of parents neglects to pass the baton of faith to their children, you get what happened in Israel.  It’s describe in the very last verse of Judges, which I’ll paraphrase:

“Israel had no moral compass, so everyone did what was right in their own eyes.” (Judges 21:25)

I don’t want that to be true of my family, or my church, or even of my nation.  You don’t either.  So let’s recommit to Joshua’s bold pledge today: “As for me and my family, we will serve the Lord.”  And if nothing else, let’s make sure there is a smooth and solid baton pass of active, intelligent faith to the next generation.

In my case, I’d just as soon skip Judges and pass the baton directly from Joshua to Samuel!

Just Saying… Dr. Larry Crabb writes, “A vision we give to others of who and what they could become has power when it echoes what the spirit has already spoken into their souls.”  Parents, make sure you give your child a compelling vision of what God has already embedded in their DNA!