(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.
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