May 5, Day 125 – Not Off To A Good Start

Judges 1-2:5; Proverbs 11:9-18; John 4:1-26

"October 5th, 1990 Flowers" © by Terri L. Stricker - Original Watercolor on Paper

Now we come to the book of Judges, and today we want to look at chapters 1:1-2:5.  The book of Judges takes its name from the twelve different judges that we will meet here, and interestingly, the book of Judges is everything that the book of Joshua is not.  Notice the differences:  in Joshua we saw the victories of the Israelites in the land; in Judges, we see the defeat of the Israelites in the land.  Where we saw freedom in the book of Joshua, here we see bondage.  In Joshua, faith prevailed; in Judges, unbelief is prevalent.  Whereas, Joshua portrays joy and strength among the people, here in Judges we note much sorrow and weakness.  In Joshua, everything seemed to be coming together for the Israelites, but here in Judges, everything seems to be coming apart.  In fact, the book of Judges illustrates a repeated cycle of disobedience, distress, and disaster, followed – thankfully – by a judge’s deliverance.  In chapter 1, the first thing we notice is that Joshua has died; the leader of the people is no longer available to persuade, encourage, and motivate the people forward. Israel still needs to drive out the remaining Canaanites, so the LORD assigns responsibility to the tribe of Judah to lead that effort (verse 2).  The tribe of Judah was supposed to set the example.  However, we see that the first thing Judah does is to ask the Simeonites to go with them.  Although Judah experienced some successes, its victories were incomplete.  They attacked Jerusalem, the Canaanites in the hill country, and moved into Debir (verse 6-18).  The text relates that, “The LORD was with the men of Judah … but they were unable to drive the people from the plains because they had iron chariots” (verses 19-20).  At least eight tribes are cited here for their failure.  We see as well that “Manasseh did not drive out the people of Beth Shan … nor did Ephraim drive out the Canaanites from Gezer … also … Naphtali and Dan” had similar results (verses 27-36).  After Joshua’s death, the Israelites are not off to a good start.  In chapter 2, “the Angel of the LORD appeared and said, ‘You have disobeyed me.  I will not drive them out before you …’” (verses 2-3).  This statement illustrates a crucial principle that we need to understand and learn:  God will not assume the responsibilities to complete the tasks that He assigns to us.  Put another way – He will not do what He tells us to do.  As we look further into this book, we will see that things will not improve.

The last time we read Proverbs 11, we saw that it contains numerous references to the fruit of the Spirit.  Here in Proverbs 11:9-18, we find a personal guide into wisdom about the use of our tongues and our words.  The ability to hold our tongues reveals understanding – a virtue on the hierarchy of truth.  In verse 10, we see joy, and in verses 12-13, we notice self-control.  Verse 14 pinpoints the path of our own nation today – we have nationally rejected the divine guidance that comes exclusively from studying the Word of God.  In verse 17, we see that kindness benefits both those who give and receive it, and in verse 18, we learn that “righteousness reaps a sure reward.”  We are free to choose whatever path we like – good or evil – but we are not free to choose the consequences of our choice.  It is strange that so many people choose to live on the wicked path when the awful results of that choice are identified so accurately and in advance.

John 4:1-26 reveals that our faith transcends nationality, culture, gender, religion, time, space, etc., and it makes provision for any and all who will simply apply it and accept God’s forgiveness.  I praise God that He loves everyone, and I am forever awestruck that He loves and accepts me!  Here, we read the fascinating story of the Samaritan woman at the well.  Of all the different belief systems in the world, only Christianity is inclusive of everyone. Although people try to say that Christians are very exclusive, actually the opposite is true.  Of course, Christianity excludes beliefs that are unbiblical because the true path to God is narrow – it comes only through Christ.  However, without discrimination, Christianity is open to every person who trusts in the Person and work of Jesus Christ.  Jesus never says, “Just believe what you want and that’s fine.”  Instead, He demonstrates what genuine love is by giving us the truth of God’s Word and offering us the forgiveness of sins – free to all who will receive it.  Salvation is by faith in Christ alone.