relationships (Judges 10:17-11:40) Truly Trusting

(Judges 10:17-18)   Then the sons of Ammon were summoned, and they camped in Gilead. And the sons of Israel gathered together and camped in Mizpah. 18 And the people, the leaders of Gilead, said to one another, “Who is the man who will begin to fight against the sons of Ammon? He shall become head over all the inhabitants of Gilead.”

Judges 11:1-40) Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a valiant warrior, but he was the son of a prostitute. And Gilead had fathered Jephthah. 2 Gilead’s wife bore him sons; and when his wife’s sons grew up, they drove Jephthah out and said to him, “You shall not have an inheritance in our father’s house, for you are the son of another woman.” 3 So Jephthah fled from his brothers and lived in the land of Tob; and worthless men gathered around Jephthah, and they went wherever he did.

4 Now it came about, after a while, that the sons of Ammon fought against Israel. 5 When the sons of Ammon fought against Israel, the elders of Gilead went to get Jephthah from the land of Tob; 6 and they said to Jephthah, “Come and be our leader, that we may fight against the sons of Ammon.” 7 But Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, “Did you not hate me and drive me from my father’s house? So why have you come to me now when you are in trouble?” 8 The elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “For this reason we have now returned to you, that you may go with us and fight the sons of Ammon, and become our head over all the inhabitants of Gilead.” 9 So Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, “If you bring me back to fight against the sons of Ammon and the Lord gives them up to me, will I become your head?” 10 And the elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “The Lord is witness between us; be assured we will do as you have said.” 11 Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and leader over them; and Jephthah spoke all his words before the Lord at Mizpah.

12 So Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the sons of Ammon, saying, “What conflict do you and I have, that you have come to me to fight against my land?” 13 And the king of the sons of Ammon said to the messengers of Jephthah, “It is because Israel took my land when they came up from Egypt, from the Arnon as far as the Jabbok and the Jordan; so return them peaceably now.” 14 But Jephthah sent messengers once again to the king of the sons of Ammon, 15 and they said to him, “This is what Jephthah says: ‘Israel did not take the land of Moab nor the land of the sons of Ammon. 16 For when they came up from Egypt, and Israel went through the wilderness to the Red Sea, and came to Kadesh, 17 then Israel sent messengers to the king of Edom, saying, “Please let us pass through your land”; but the king of Edom would not listen. And they also sent messengers to the king of Moab, but he would not consent. So Israel remained at Kadesh. 18 Then they went through the wilderness and around the land of Edom and the land of Moab, and came to the east side of the land of Moab, and they camped beyond the Arnon; but they did not enter the territory of Moab, for the Arnon was the border of Moab. 19 And Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites, the king of Heshbon; and Israel said to him, “Please let us pass through your land to our place.” 20 But Sihon did not trust Israel to pass through his territory; so Sihon gathered all his people and camped in Jahaz, and fought with Israel. 21 And the Lord, the God of Israel, handed Sihon and all his people over to Israel, and they defeated them; so Israel took possession of all the land of the Amorites, the inhabitants of that country. 22 So they possessed all the territory of the Amorites, from the Arnon as far as the Jabbok, and from the wilderness as far as the Jordan. 23 And now the Lord, the God of Israel, has driven out the Amorites from His people Israel; so should you possess it? 24 Do you not possess what Chemosh your god gives you to possess? So whatever the Lord our God has dispossessed before us, we will possess it. 25 Now then, are you any better than Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab? Did he ever contend with Israel, or did he ever fight against them? 26 While Israel was living in Heshbon and its villages, and in Aroer and its villages, and in all the cities that are on the banks of the Arnon, three hundred years, why did you not recover them within that time? 27 So I have not sinned against you, but you are doing me wrong by making war against me. May the Lord, the Judge, judge today between the sons of Israel and the sons of Ammon.’” 28 But the king of the sons of Ammon disregarded the message which Jephthah sent him.

29 Now the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jephthah, and he passed through Gilead and Manasseh; then he passed through Mizpah of Gilead, and from Mizpah of Gilead he went on to the sons of Ammon. 30 And Jephthah made a vow to the Lord and said, “If You will indeed hand over to me the sons of Ammon, 31 then whatever comes out the doors of my house to meet me when I return safely from the sons of Ammon, it shall be the Lord’s, and I will offer it up as a burnt offering.” 32 So Jephthah crossed over to the sons of Ammon to fight against them; and the Lord handed them over to him. 33 He inflicted a very great defeat on them from Aroer to the entrance of Minnith, twenty cities, and as far as Abel-keramim. So the sons of Ammon were subdued before the sons of Israel.

34 But Jephthah came to his house at Mizpah, and behold, his daughter was coming out to meet him with tambourines and with dancing. And she was his one and only child; besides her he had no son or daughter. 35 So when he saw her, he tore his clothes and said, “Oh, my daughter! You have brought me disaster, and you are among those who trouble me; for I have given my word to the Lord, and I cannot take it back.” 36 So she said to him, “My father, you have given your word to the Lord; do to me just as you have said, since the Lord has brought you vengeance on your enemies, the sons of Ammon.” 37 And she said to her father, “Let this thing be done for me; allow me two months, so that I may go to the mountains and weep because of my virginity, I and my friends.” 38 Then he said, “Go.” So he let her go for two months; and she left with her friends, and wept on the mountains because of her virginity. 39 And at the end of two months she returned to her father, who did to her what he had vowed; and she had no relations with a man. And it became a custom in Israel, 40 that the daughters of Israel went annually to commemorate the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite for four days in the year.

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

We can see and be very confident that God is fair to everyone, both believers and unbelievers.  Israel would only get land when other nations attacked them, unprovoked.  And not caring how they had lost their land, the sons of Ammon just decided they were going to fight to get it back.  It is unwise to take God's power for granted and allow pride to think one can take on the Lord.

Also very unwise on Jephthah's part, was to rashly make that vow to the Lord.  Was this grand gesture because of pride?  A way to show off, after first being an outcast, but now being the great warrior and leader of Israel?  Or did Jephthah think this would help secure Israel's victory in battle, assuming God needed some sort of payment or "fair exchange"?  Maybe Jephthah didn't understand God's promises and lovingkindness, but certainly he had taken God's power for granted.

Jephthah had previously secured his leadership position by negotiating a deal with the Israelites.  So it is very typical that people make unnecessary "deals" with God.  God never asked for such a sacrifice from Jephthah.  Even when God asked Abraham to sacrifice his only son, the Lord stepped in and provided a ram for the offering as a substitute.  That had been a test to see if Abraham trusted the Lord.   

While Jephthah had vowed to offer a BURNT offering to the Lord, I'm sure he assumed his pet dog would be the first to rush out!  But God never requested anything like that.  And from the last few verses, we can assume that God allowed or told Jephthah that his daughter would not become a burnt offering.  Rather, she remained a virgin and probably dedicated her life to serving God.  This would have "satisfied" the conditions of the vow, since Jephthah had given his daughter to Him.

How much do we really trust the Lord?  Since it is about having a personal relationship, it helps us to know God and His attributes.  We can get to know Him better by reading and studying His word, as well as by experiencing Him work in our lives as He answers our prayers.  And here is where our true trust is demonstrated!  When we ask God for something, do we think we have to bargain with Him, or do we think we know better, or do we just want things done our way, or do we get impatient and try to take over only to create a bigger mess of things?  Do we take His power for granted?

Truly trusting the Lord is to understand that when He tells us something, there is a really good reason for it.  When we don't get something right away, there is a really good reason for that.  He does care, and He is more than able!  

(Romans 8:28)  And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.

relationships (Judges 10:1-16) Who Do We Serve?

(Judges 10:1-16)   Now after Abimelech died, Tola the son of Puah, the son of Dodo, a man of Issachar, rose up to save Israel; and he lived in Shamir in the hill country of Ephraim. 2 He judged Israel for twenty-three years. Then he died and was buried in Shamir.

3 After him, Jair the Gileadite rose up and judged Israel for twenty-two years. 4 And he had thirty sons who rode on thirty donkeys, and they had thirty cities in the land of Gilead that are called Havvoth-jair to this day. 5 And Jair died and was buried in Kamon.

6 Then the sons of Israel again did evil in the sight of the Lord, and they served the Baals and the Ashtaroth, the gods of Aram, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the sons of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines; so they abandoned the Lord and did not serve Him. 7 And the anger of the Lord burned against Israel, and He sold them into the hands of the Philistines, and into the hands of the sons of Ammon. 8 And they afflicted and oppressed the sons of Israel that year; for eighteen years they oppressed all the sons of Israel who were beyond the Jordan, in Gilead in the land of the Amorites. 9 And the sons of Ammon crossed the Jordan to fight also against Judah, Benjamin, and the house of Ephraim, so that Israel was in great difficulty.

10 Then the sons of Israel cried out to the Lord, saying, “We have sinned against You, for indeed, we have abandoned our God and served the Baals.” 11 And the Lord said to the sons of Israel, “Did I not save you from the Egyptians, the Amorites, the sons of Ammon, and the Philistines? 12 And when the Sidonians, the Amalekites, and the Maonites oppressed you, you cried out to Me, and I saved you from their hands. 13 Yet you abandoned Me and served other gods; therefore I will no longer save you. 14 Go and cry out to the gods which you have chosen; let them save you in the time of your distress.” 15 Then the sons of Israel said to the Lord, “We have sinned, do to us whatever seems good to You; only please save us this day.” 16 So they removed the foreign gods from among them and served the Lord; and He could no longer endure the misery of Israel.

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

I have been praying and meditating on how these concepts tie together: slavery, serving, trusting and relationships.  Born with a sinful nature, we are all slaves to sin which only leads to judgement and eternal death.  As slaves, one has to serve their master.  There isn't any choice, whether we realize it or not.  But because Jesus died on the cross to pay for all sin and rose again to have victory over death, He is the only one who can save us.  

Jesus has already paid the price, all we have to do is accept His free gift of salvation - which sets us free from all sin.  In His grace, we obtained eternal life which we cannot lose, no matter what we do or don't do.  We have been bought with a price, which Jesus has paid in full, and then sealed us with His Holy Spirit!  Even if a believer wanted to undo their salvation - we couldn't afford the price of freedom in the first place - how would we afford to undo what has been done?  We don't have that kind of currency.  Jesus promises us that we are His and He will never let us go!!!  It is done!  He's all-powerful!!!

Jesus also cares about us - deeply!  Christianity isn't a religion.  It is a personal relationship with the Lord.  But remember, we were created to serve and love, so as believers, our choice is: do we joyfully, thankfully serve our Lord and Savior who wants the very best for us and wants to bless us here on earth, and wants to reward our faithfulness generously in heaven?  Or, do we find some other god or gods to serve and hope that our lives will find extra satisfaction through that, thinking that maybe the Lord isn't enough, so we have to find supplements?

We see from the verses above, the idols that the Israelites were serving were not going to save them.  Funny how people will do what they think best until things go awry and THEN they run to God.  But why would God help anyone if their heart is still thinking, "No, but as soon as I get my way in this, I'm going back to what I was doing, because I want my way over there as well."  In our minds we want and we think there is going to be a good payoff.  

Where we really deceive ourselves is that we think we are serving ourselves when we stray away from what God wants for our lives.  Let's take an obvious "idol"... if we seek after riches, we are serving someone else, trusting that they will pay us handsomely for our work.  Although this is something we do have to do in life, earn money, it comes down to our hearts... are we putting our hope and trust in wealth, and not so much in God?  Is our value found in money, or is it established in God's unboundless love?

Now let's take a less obvious one, which is not a necessity in life: "recreational" drugs.  Once addicted, a person will do whatever they have to in order to get their next fix, but the payoff is very temporary.  We can understand how this is slavery, and very sad.  It can cost a person everything in life, not just money, not just friends and family, but one's physical, emotional and psychological welfare.

Regarding relationships, there are several ways we can worship other gods.  Like when we put anyone ahead of God.  If we believe that having the best BFF, or getting married is going to solve all our life's issues, or make us complete, or make us feel balanced, or... we will eventually have a rude awakening.  People are not perfect!  No matter how nice they are, they will let us down.  If we are just leaning on each other, when one of us falls, one will drag the other down with them.  But God will not.  When both are leaning on God, when one falls, the other can help lift and guide.  Most importantly, God will give us strength and lift us up.

Another idol that people serve within relationships is "feelings".  Some people serve and are driven by feelings.  Like if one has grown up in a dysfunctional family, the tendency is to find people that feel familiar, because it is comforting.  Or they feel that there is "chemistry" and "excitement", but really, it is fear and intimidation.  Think about it.  Feelings are fickle.  They come and they go.  And they can be very deceptive.

When we meet someone and feel all tingly - whatever the attraction is - one becomes nervous, hoping not to say or do something stupid to send them running, or wondering if they will like us back... At this point, we have to ask ourselves, are we serving our feelings?  Is this person a true believer, and would they really make a good spouse?  I recommend that we use our mind to wisely find a spouse to love, which is a choice of the will, and THEN enjoy with our heart.  All the while, depending on God's wisdom and guidance!

Another idol that people serve within relationships is "drama".  Yes, some people serve and are addicted to drama.  I've seen people who love to be the victim, because then someone else can swoop in and save them.  I've also seen people who love to be contentious.  They argue over everything just so they can be "right".  This would be an idol... being self-righteous.  If I'm right, that means everyone who disagrees with me is wrong.  In this way, I can constantly prove to myself that I can feel "perfect", super smart and superior.  But, are we god?  Hardly.  Not even close!

No matter what we go through in life, by worship and serving the Lord Jesus, He will equip us and guide us.  He will fulfill and complete us.  He will protect and provide for us.  In Him, we will experience His unsurpassing peace, hope and joy.  He is our all in all.