Year 1, Day 263: Judges 12

Random Chapter

Judges 12 is a fairly difficult chapter about which to make some sense.  The story isn’t difficult to read, but the question that comes hard is, “What does this teach us?”  What can we learn about a man who goes out and fights a tribe of people who come against him because he didn’t call for their help?

Shame

Well, for starters we can learn the importance of shame in a culture.  Shame is something that the modern world is having a harder time understanding because our relationships have less and less importance to our ability to survive.  In ancient days, you would do anything to avoid being shamed because a shamed person would lose their connections.  If they lost their connections, they would likewise lose their ability to support themselves, obtain food and water, and call for help when protection was needed.  If they were shamed, they were likely facing abandonment or even death.

Our culture doesn’t have this perspective.  If someone shames us, we just make new friends.  Stores – especially stores like Wal-mart that have no need of relationship with their customers – will still sell goods to anyone that can afford them whether or not they are “good people.”  In the modern world we can live just fine whether we are shamed or not. 

Don’t get me wrong.  The level or quality of our life might change depending upon public shame.  Bbut we will still be able to live.  Shame just doesn’t carry the same public implications as it used to, and because of that we struggle making anything from this story about Jephthah and the Ephraimites.

Shame and Public Image

With this perspective, we can gain something from this story.  Jephthah goes out to fight the Ammonites, and according to Jephthah he called to Ephraim to help him and they did not come.  Of course, the Ephraimites say that Jephthah never called for their help.  Either way, the Ephraimites didn’t go out to fight.  If they weren’t invited, then their complaint is legitimate and they might feel shame from the other tribes for not going with Jephthah. If they had been invited and didn’t go, then their shame is legitimate.  Either way, this story is about the way the other people are going to view the Ephraimites.  This story is about the Ephraimites’ concern over their image.

This is something that we can learn from.  Regardless of what we think about the concept of communal shame, the truth is that human beings do care about what other people think of them.  While shame may not affect our ability to survive any more, it does still affect who we are and how we relate to others.  When we are in positions of power, we need to be diplomatic about this concept.  It is a sensitive topic to most people and we should respect that.

As an example, let’s look back to Gideon’s story in Judges 8.  There the Ephraimites come to Gideon with a feeling of shame.  Gideon resolves the shame by humbling himself and elevating the Ephraimites.  In that instance, the problem is resolved without conflict.  In Judges 12, however, Jephthah takes a different approach.  Jephthah argues with the Ephraimites and reinforces their shame rather than resolving it.  Because Jephthah reinforces the shame, the Ephraimites now are in a position to feel the need to prove their honor and a fight breaks out.  42,000 people die because of the inability for Jephthah to handle the concept of public shame with any kind of grace. 

And no, I’m not putting the entire fault on Jephthah.  But the difference between Jephthah and Gideon is worth bringing to light.  Leaders need to be careful how they use shame – if they use shame.  It is a powerful tool and needs to be wielded with carefulness.

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Year 1, Day 272: Judges 11

Arg!  Why does it happen that Judges 11 comes on a day I’m running behind and am looking for a nice easy “blog entry to write.”  Oh well, the Lord works in mysterious ways, maybe this is God’s way of telling me that I should’ve done my blog first today like I normally do.

Jephthah, a Troubled Soul

So, on to Judges 11.  Jephthah.  What a wonderfully horrible story, no? But there are some neat things that we can pick out of this.  First and foremost, Notice that Jephthah was an outcast.  He was the son of Gilead, but not a son of Gilead’s wife.  He was born of a sexual union between Gilead and a woman to whom Gilead was not married. 

Again we see God using outcasts to save His people.  What was it I said a few days ago – or perhaps a week ago?  God loves to use the unexpected and the outcast.  God loves to use the ones that we assume aren’t a part of God’s solution.  God loves to break down our human expectations and give us a savior, whether it is a literal savior from sin as in Jesus Christ or a savior of a much smaller “life issue” in the people around us.  God loves to do this in a way that is different than we would ever expect it.

Anyone care to guess why?  No, seriously, take a moment and guess.  Think about it for a second.  Why would God constantly go outside our human tradition and our human expectation to bring us salvation?

Now let me tell you why – or at least one reason why.  God loves to give us opportunities to humble ourselves.  We often get so arrogant about our positions and our traditions and how we put the focus on the wrong thing.  God like to come and give us opportunities to declare that maybe we were wrong, hasty, prideful, and not really looking at the world through God’s eyes. 

So it is with the people who reject Jephthah and then find themselves crawling back to him and becoming a subject underneath him.  They judged him through their humanity.  Then they needed him and had to come crawling back to him.  Notice that Jephthah accepts their humbleness – repentance, even!

Jephthah’s Character

The next thing we can learn from Jephthah is that he is an intellectual man.  Jephthah knows his history.  Jephthah knows the account of the exodus.  Jephthah is also a skilled diplomat.  Jephthah reminds the opposing king that the reason they are in a land dispute is because the opposing king’s ancestors didn’t let Jephthah’s ancestors pass through peacefully.  Jephthah reminds the king of the Ammonites that if his people would have let the Hebrews go about their business in peace then there would have never been war between them in the first place.  Furthermore, Jephthah adds that since there was war, and the Hebrew people won, why shouldn’t they lay a claim to the spoils that the God of the Hebrew people desired them to have?

It all makes a great amount of sense, when you think about it.  Because Jephthah knows his history, he can apply it well.  So it should be with us.  Ever see a person try to be religious in a conversation when they really don’t know God’s Word intimately?  They look foolish and uneducated.  They stake claim on shaky ground because they don’t really know the depth or breadth of God’s Word.  But the person who has a great grasp of the Word of God can use it like the double-edged sword that it is!  Jephthah shows us the value of knowing God’s Word, knowing our religious heritage, and being able to speak about it meaningfully!

Jephthah’s Folly

As much as Jephthah shows us how good he is as an academic, he also shows us that humanity – especially the intellectuals – often lack common sense.  Can I get an “Amen?”  Who makes an oath saying that he will slaughter whatever comes out of his house?  Seriously.  There are only so many answers to that oath, and most of them aren’t things you really want to end up slaughtering.

There is a point here beyond the senseless death of Jephthah’s daughter.  Let’s not miss it.  Take seriously what you say to the Lord.  Only vow to the Lord what you mean, because surely the Lord takes it seriously as well!  Only make vows that you are willing to fulfill!

At the risk of getting the “modern and enlightened folks” on my bad side, I am actually going to stand up for Jephthah and how he honors his vow.  Yes, it is a horrible end of the story.  Yes, it is a horribly tragic end to the life of Jephthah’s daughter.  But let’s also put it in a little perspective, shall we?

His daughter receives high praise for accepting the lot that has fallen to her.  She has an incredibly mature perspective.  She knows that to honor the vow will bring glory to God – as weird as that is to say.  By honoring the vow, she affirms that her life is nothing compared to the greatness of God.  Is that not what we as Christians assert?  Is that not what Christ Himself asserted on the cross?

Have you not heard me quote Galatians 2:20 enough to know that “I am crucified and it is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me.”  My life is nothing compared to giving glory and honor to God.  Jephthah’s daughter – as tragically as her life ends – embodies that very truth.  There is no doubt that although she died young, God honored her loyalty to her God.  As tragic as this story may be – and as foolish as Jephthah’s vow may have been, Jephthah’s daughter becomes a precursor to Jesus in demonstrating what a life submitted to God looks like.

I can only imagine the guilt that Jephthah lived with for the rest of his life.  But he honored God by honoring his vow.  It was a stupid vow.  It was a tragic vow.  But it was a commitment he made before God.

Please don’t hear me trying to excuse his vow.  It was silly, childish, and demonstrating a horrible lack of common sense.  For all the brilliance he displayed in his diplomacy and military conquest over the Ammonites he displays a horrible lack of common sense when he makes a vow.  I’m not excusing that.  But in the end, God is honored – even in the midst of great tragedy. 

I’ll probably get crucified for taking this stance, but in my understanding honoring God is worth more than my life.  So I stand by my support of Jephthah’s decision and Jephthah’s daughter’s willingness to be sacrificed.  It started with a foolish vow.  But I believe in the end God honored the act.

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Year 1, Day 271: Judges 10

The Cry Falls on Deaf Ears

Having just read Judges 10 – I love this chapter!  This chapter seems very near and dear to my heart.  Of course, we have the two quick mentions of Tola and Jair – of which I have little to offer except that it is neat that God chooses judges who seem to come from anywhere and everywhere.  There doesn’t seem to be a favorite tribe God picks – He really does seem to pick according to the faithfulness in the hearts of the people.  And that’s a very good thing, but in my mind it isn’t the coolest thing in this chapter.

The really cool part of this chapter is found in Judges 10:6-18.  Mind you, I’m a bit of a “prophet” so when I get excited it’s often something that is very “cut-to-the-bone” true.  Look at what this chapter says.  The Hebrew people worship Ba’al and Ashtaroth – the gods of the Canaanites.  They worship the gods of Syria, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the Ammonites, and the gods of the Philistines.  They worship every god around them and forfeit the worship of the one true God among them!

No, that isn’t the cool part.  The cool part is what happens next.  They cry out to the Lord.  They plead with the Lord to save them.  And God looks at them and says to them, “Did I not already save you from all these other people and you still forsake me?  Go plead with the gods you’ve chosen, I’m tired of your faithlessness.”

I warned you that the cool part wasn’t really all that good. In fact, this is a horrible message at first glance.  God is essentially telling His people to go away because He is tired of them.  He is saying that He is not interested in their fake repentance, their shallow pleading, and their easily swayed hearts.

The Deaf Ears Aren’t Actually Deaf

What is really cool about this passage is that we know God doesn’t actually forsake them.  They’ve got many more occurrences of rebellion ahead of them!  But it shows here that God is not at all interested in fake repentance.  In fact, it tells us specifically that God is capable of determining the difference between false repentance and honest repentance.  That’s something that should scare us a little bit.  Not one of us can fool God.  He knows whether we really mean it or not when we promise to repent and change our ways.  That’s cool – in a scary prophetic kind of way.

God saved them only when they actually did put away their gods.  He saved them only when they actually did start following His ways.  He saved them only when they made good on their promises.  God came and provided a judge to deliver them only when they truly repented.  They had to walk the walk, not just talk the talk.

Cool, v. 2.0

Now, here’s the really cool part.  Again, be warned – this is going to hurt.  The same is true for us!  If you really want God to save you, you had better start walking the walk!  If you really want God to save you, you had better put away your “gods.”  If you really want God to save you, you had better start following His ways.  If you want God to save you – be His disciple!  You had better stop making excuses for the sinfulness within you and start rejecting the life of the sinner!  {The same is true for me, just for the record.}

I think I love this chapter because it is blunt.  There is a great quote by Brennan Manning that I love to use in conversations like this:

“The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians: who acknowledge Jesus with their lips, walk out the door, and deny Him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.”

This is by far my greatest frustration as a Christian – and my greatest frustration about myself!  I loathe myself when I should act like a Christian and yet I act like the worldly person instead.  I loathe myself when I know what I should be doing and instead I choose something that is not what I should be doing.  I loathe myself when I waste an evening instead of getting closer to God and the spiritual people around me.  I loathe myself when I pursue all kinds of other gods and don’t follow God’s ways.  I loathe myself when I acknowledge Jesus Christ with my lips and I totally deny Him by my lifestyle. 

And I loathe myself in those times because I know that God loathes me at those times, too.  He doesn’t abandon me, mind you.  But He does loathe me at those times.

That is what this chapter is all about, and that is why this chapter is so beautiful in my eyes.  God doesn’t want false repentance.  God doesn’t want lip service.  God doesn’t want us to profess how great He is and then do what we really want to do with our lives.  God wants something different, something honest, and something pure.  God wants something that most of the world finds too hard to give to Him.

God wants us to remove ourselves from the center of our life and to put Him in it.  Anything less is false worship, false repentance, and false faith.

For more information of God’s desire for true repentance and not lip service, read passages like Hosea 6:6, Psalm 51:15-17, and Joel 2:12-13.

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Year 1, Day 270: Judges 9

Judges 9 is an interesting little diversion from the typical passages of the judges.  Here we don’t have a story of God raising up someone holy to fight for his people.  Here we have a story of corruption, deceit and death that people bring upon themselves because of their pride, arrogance, and self-mongerism.

Backstory on Abimelech

To set the story straight, let’s do a little history.  Abimelech is the son of Gideon, but he is a son to one of Gideon’s concubines – a Canaanite woman.  This Canaanite woman comes from Shechem – a city that worships Ba’al-berith, which interestingly means “Ba’al of the Covenent.”  So let me put it all together.  Through Gideon’s ephod the people begin worshipping something other than God.  When Gideon died, the focus of this worship was placed upon Ba’al-berith.  This empowers Abimelech to persuade the Canaanites in a revolt against the “purebred Hebrew” sons of Gideon. 

Jotham and His Curse

Abimelech kills all the other sons of Gideon save Jotham, who pronounces a curse upon Abimelech.  Now here’s an interesting point.  Jothan pronounces the curse and then flees for his life.  Oh, how Abimelech and his supporters must have laughed at Jotham’s curse.  Immediately nothing happens to Abimelech and no doubt everyone assumes that Jotham was insane.  They likely also assume that the God that Jotham pronounced is impotent because nothing immediately happens from the curse.  But the truth is that Abimelech’s true character had not yet been fully revealed and the time for the fulfillment of the curse was therefore not at hand.

Here’s what I learn from this passage.  We live in a world that wants immediate results.  We want a church that turns on its head and becomes immediately spiritual when in reality that kind of spirituality takes time to truly implement.  We want a God who performs great signs in our life on cue without ourselves taking the time to contemplate how God does perform miracles in our life by slowly changing who we are and by slowly reshaping our thoughts, dreams, and our understanding of our calling.  We live in a world that lacks patience and it is our undoing again and again!  God is not always a God of immediate results!  In fact, I find that God is seldom a God of immediate results in the things that truly matter.  But that does not mean God is not at work.

Abimelech’s Reign

In fact, Abimelech rules for 3 years.  During those 3 years, there is not only hostility between Abimelech and the Hebrew people but a rift also grows between Abimelech and the people who asserted his ability to rule – the people of Shechem!  The evil spirit that God sends among Abimelech should not be seen as an evil spirit that controlled Abimelech but as a natural outcropping or enhancement of Abimelech’s true character.  Now we see who Abimelech really is.  He is a man of conflict. He is a man who cannot be trusted.  He is a man who always seems to find himself in the middle of some kind of sinister plot.  Whether he is the master or the subject of the plot is always in question!

This is true about worldly people.  People who are self-centered will continue to be self-centered.  Liars will continue to be liars.  Thieves will continue to be thieves.  I can go on and on with other examples here, but this is what we can learn from Abimelech.

Here we have a greedy king who gives no reason to be trusted.  He gains power by killing his own family.  He kills people mercilessly.  He sows salt into the ground so that nature will not be able to do what God has created it to do (grow crops and sustain life).  Abimelech is only interested in what serves him in the moment.

Abimelech’s Death and more Self-Centeredness

Even in his death his self-centered perspective comes out.  When it is clear that he is going to die from being struck by a millstone, Abimelech calls for his armor-bearer to run him through so that it would be said that he died a man’s death rather than being killed by a woman.  Ambimelech’s self-mongerism does him in.  In the process he puts forth a wake of destruction that takes down his family, Shechem, and much more.

Sometimes it is sad to watch people self-destruct because they are too interested in their own agendas.  I can only imagine how God feels watching the whole world do it time and time again!

However, we need not leave on a sour note.  We can also surmise that the opposite is true.  People who learn humbleness from God will be able to be humble.  People who are God’s disciples will do what disciples are expected to do.  Through the power of God, those who come to God and humble themselves can indeed change and become a new creation.  This is precisely why the prophets and Jesus all say that you judge a person not on who they appear to be but by the results of their actions and the truth of their words.

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Year 1, Day 269: Judges 8

Judges 8 is a chapter with a lot of gore, quick moving action, and difficult-to-keep-straight-names.  But that’s okay.  We’ll make something good come out of a difficult chapter to read!

Accusation

Chapter 8 opens with the people of Ephraim coming and accusing him of not inviting them to the battle until after it was already joined.  Which – from a human perspective - it is true.  However, they could not know that God only planned on using 300 men to illustrate His power to Gideon.  Furthermore, we do see in the end of chapter 7 that once the battle had been joined then the Ephraimites were invited to the battle and it was them who actually took control back from the Midianites over most of the land.  They played a very significant role in the battle; they just weren’t in on phase 1. 

From a human perspective they had a right to feel wronged.  If we consider this from an angle of pride, they have a point.  But from God’s perspective they precisely played the role God desired them to play.

So look at what Gideon does.  Gideon doesn’t argue that they are wrong – because he knows in one manner of speaking they were right.  Gideon doesn’t put them in their place by mounting a high theological horse and telling them that he knew God’s plan better than they did.  Gideon simply humbles himself and reminds them that regardless of the part played, the Ephraimites did the lion’s share of the work and therefore had no reason to feel shamed for not being invited at the beginning.  Gideon solves the conflict by humbling himself and lifting up the other person.  So often the best way out of tension brought about by pride is to lower oneself and lift up the other person.

Pursuit of the Midianite Kings

Then Gideon turns to the pursuit of the Midianite princes.  He does capture them along the way, making enemies in Succoth and Penuel.  There are some that argue that Gideon is wrong in returning retribution upon those who do not join the fight (Succoth and Penuel).  Since we know that God can fight for Himself – and God does say, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay” – there is a point to this line of thinking.  Clearly Gideon was able to accomplish God’s will without aid from Succoth and Penuel.

On the other hand, Gideon is God’s appointed judge over the land.  Gideon’s primary job is to find unfaithful behavior, root it out, chasten it, and bring it back to an understanding of humility and servitude towards God.  Clearly the people of Succoth and Penuel are unwilling to be a part of God’s effort when invited.  Therefore, in my estimation, they are dutifully judged.  I don’t personally see any need to think that Gideon overstepped his bounds in this chapter – well, at least, not regarding Succoth and Penuel.

Gideon’s Fault

However, we do see that Gideon has one major fault: pride.  Gideon captures the Midianite princes and executes them.  Then the people come towards him and ask for Gideon to rule over them.  On the surface it appears that Gideon does the right thing.  Gideon refuses to rule over them and says that God is their ruling authority!  This appears to be a great statement of faith.

But appearances are often deceiving.

Let’s temper Gideon’s statement with the evidence that we actually see before us in the rest of the chapter.  In ancient Middle-eastern culture it was proper etiquette to refuse an offer such as leadership when it was offered the first time.  It was simply etiquette to refuse the first offer!  Everyone knew that etiquette said the offer would be accepted once the people who were asking had truly demonstrated their sincerity about the request.  This was usually done when the people making the request would then offer up some kind of tribute.

Don’t we see Gideon taking a tribute for his efforts after the battle is done?  When Gideon refuses to be king, He isn’t making a faith statement about God.  Gideon is actually testing the sincerity of their offer. 

Need proof that what I am saying is true?  Look into the Bible.  What does Judges 8:27 tell us that Gideon does with their tribute?  Gideon creates and ephod.  Now we are getting somewhere.

Remember in the exodus story that an ephod was made for Aaron.  Ephods are garments that are given to the chief priests of a deity.  The fact that Gideon makes a golden ephod for himself is telling us about the growth of Gideon’s ego.  In addition, notice that the Hebrew people are said to “whore after it” as well as the fact that it becomes a snare for Gideon and his family!  This is a huge indication that Gideon is thinking of himself a little more highly than he ought to think and not putting as much emphasis on God’s rule over them as he should.  Gideon’s words are one thing.  His actions show an entirely different side to Gideon.

Furthermore, let’s look more deeply at Gideon’s claim about not wanting to rule over them.  We know that Judges 8:23 tells us that Gideon refuses to rule over them.  But we also know that Gideon has a son named Abimelech after his fame and his harem has grown substantially.  Abimelech literally means “My Father is King.”  This seems to point us to the fact that Gideon’s refusal was not as genuine or adamant as it first appears.  Gideon was testing the Hebrew people to get a tribute knowing full well that he was going to accept rule over the Hebrew people once they provided a good enough tribute.

Focusing Back Upon God’s Hand

In the end, God did use a human like Gideon to free the Hebrew people from the Midianites.  Along the way, God took a fledgling in the faith and turned him into a strong man of God.  As is true with most of the heroes in the Bible, Gideon was not without his faults. 

Gideon didn’t always do what he should have done.  Gideon was not perfect.  In the end, his actions actually enable – or at least encourage – the Hebrew people to fall back into the worship of something that is not God. 

This is the danger of leadership.  The wiles of the world will use any method to get to a person.  Unless we are very careful at every turn, they will get to a person and lead them down the path of sin, self-mongerism, and falling away from the identity that God has called us to be in the world.  Not even God’s chosen judges – or His priests or His kings for that matter – are immune to the corruptive influences of this world.

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Year 1, Day 268: Judges 7

God’s Might vs. Human Might

God is about to do an amazing thing with Gideon.  But before we get to that amazing thing, let’s look at what happens.  The support for Gideon whittles down into virtually nothing.  The first thing God does is get rid of 22,000 (out of 32,000) troops.  68.75% of Gideon’s support abandoned him with permission just because they were afraid.  Having removed the fearful, God then takes over and removes more based on His own decision making process.  9,700 more people leave.  For those of you keeping track, that is another 97% (Cumulative 99%) who leave.

Imagine how Gideon felt knowing that he was a fledgling in the faith and God had called him to be a judge.  Imagine how he felt knowing that God had called him to be the person of faith among the Hebrew people who brings his people back into a relationship with God and frees them from the hand of Midian.  Now imagine thinking that you are going to do it with 32,000 people and the night before the big battle you find out that you are actually going to do it with 300.  Imagine how Gideon must have felt.  Imagine how deflated he couldn’t have helped to be at this moment.  Imagine how confused he surely got.  Imagine how lost he must have felt.  Imagine how vulnerable and exposed he surely felt.

Then came the dream.  God knew Gideon needed bolstering in order to make the transition from human might to depending upon godly might.  So Gideon hears about a dream telling of his triumph over Midian!  God sends that as a sign for him to remain faithful.

Gideon’s Response to God’s Provision

Gideon falls down and worships at that moment because now is the time of his faith!  Notice that he worshipped before he returned to the camp of Israel – meaning that he chose worship over his safety at that point!  God was going to do a great thing through him.  Here is the point where Gideon stops looking around him while seeing through eyes of doubt and instead he begins to look around him while seeing with the eyes of God.  Here is the point where his faith takes on new and deeper meaning.  Here is the point where he is no longer one who is afraid and acting boldly outside the cover of darkness but one who worships God even in the midst of the enemy!

Battle Tactics and Strategy

Of course, we know that Gideon’s tactics were not about actually fighting this initial battle.  The tactics Gideon sets out were relying upon God to use the moment of surprise to confuse and oppress the Midianite armies.  The pitchers would hide the torches as well as make a great noise when broken.  So from the perspective of the camp of the Midianites, suddenly they would see a force appearing as if through magic.  This force would appear close and undetected.  They would make a great noise, throwing the Midianite camp into confusion.  Being that it was in the middle of the night and most of the camp would be waking up from sleep, the natural instinct would be to flee and regroup in order to escape the imminent surprise threat.  Gideon knew that it would be up to God at this point.

God would throw them into confusion.  God would let this massive army flee from 300 men.  God would prove His ability to fight for Himself.  God would demonstrate His power not only to the Midianites but to the rebellious Hebrews as well.  And He did just that.

Power in These Verses

For me, though, I think the power of this passage is way back in the beginning.  God is able to work through less than 1% of the original force Gideon has available.  God is able to bring about incredible change through the fraction of a percent who are truly faithful.  The fearful go home until it is safe and the battle is assured; God is able to work through whoever happens to remain in their faith.

All Gideon has to do is let God work, and be willing to help along the way.  It isn’t about Gideon, his power, his charisma, or his leadership ability.  God’s character is more important than all of those things.  What is important in this chapter is that he is willing to learn and walk along the path.

God’s Motivation

That being said, though, we do need to look at God’s motivation.  He does demonstrate His power greatly through the faith of Gideon and the loyal few around him.  But why does not need to do such a miraculous event?  So Israel could not boast.  God needs to work in this manner because God knows that if He doesn’t then Israel is going to simply say, “we did it under our own power because we are such good fighting men.”

Want to see evidence of this?  What is it that the people shout when they break their pitchers and startle the Midianites?  They shout, “For God and for Gideon.”  Look at those words.  Does Gideon really need to be a part of that?  Is Gideon really the focus here?  No, God knows the heart of the people – even the non-fearful ones.  God knows that these people want something tangible to believe in.  Yes, they acknowledge God.  But they also want something more.  They also want that human leadership they can touch, hear, and see.  Isn’t it sad that even here in a story where God’s hand is so mightily prevalent we see humanity creeping into view!

Unfortunately, this thought only helps us set up what we’ll discover tomorrow in the end of Gideon’s story.

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Year 1, Day 267: Judges 6

Calling Out to the Lord

As I began to read Judges 6, I noticed that there is a pattern here.  Okay, I confess.  I always knew about this pattern, but today something got me thinking about this pattern: The Hebrew people call out to the Lord.

See, I think this is important enough to not overlook any more.  Here’s the cycle of relationship between God and His people:

·         Times are good when they have a strong spiritual leader (Moses, Joshua, judge, etc)

·         People get comfortable and begin to backslide when the leader fades off the scene

·         People backslide enough that their backsliding erodes their culture

·         People become oppressed because their backsliding makes them vulnerable

·         People are oppressed enough to cry out to God

·         God sends a leader, prophet, judge, etc among them to bring them back.

·         Go back to the top of the list and repeat

Now, the reason I think this is important is because it shows a cycle that is followed time and time again.  So often we focus on the judge and the leadership they provided.  Within the blog I have often focused on the sinfulness of the Hebrew people and how it came out of their backsliding humanity.  But I have not yet focused on their desire to call upon the Lord.  In every instance so far the people have not received help until after their oppression becomes so great that they call upon the Lord for help.

This is important.  Have you ever tried to help somebody before they were desperate enough to need it?  You end up getting taken advantage of.  Have you ever tried to help someone before they asked for it?  Typically you end up just getting in the way and you end up muddying the water and straining the relationship.  The step of falling to the point of needing to ask for help is crucial to the repentance process!  God waits for the Hebrew people to make such a horrible bed for themselves that they have no recourse except to cry out for help.  Then God helps them.

God Can Rescue

This is neat on to levels.  First, it shows the patience and wisdom of God.  God knows that early intervention will only allow the Hebrew people to take greater advantage of Him.  Second, it shows the power of God.  Not situation is “too deep” that God can’t rescue those who call upon His name.  God got His people out of Egypt and He got them out of Babylon.  God got His people out of all the trials of the period of the judges.  God brought His people through the Persians, the Greeks, and the Romans.  In recent modern history God has brought his people through the European oppression (primarily at the hand of the Germans of the mid-twentieth century).  It may get bleak, but God’s power is stronger than the bleakest point that humanity can generate.

But we must not forget that we are responsible for genuinely calling out to God.  God doesn’t send us aid until we are ready to rely upon it and not manipulate it to our own advantage.

Gideon

Enter Gideon.  I love Gideon.  To me Gideon is the Peter of the Hebrew Scriptures.  He is visited by a messenger from the Lord and Gideon asks a simple question that we all have asked from time to time: “If God is with us, why are we in such a horrible place?”  Aren’t we all guilty of asking that question at some point?

Notice that Gideon receives no direct answer.  God’s reply is, “Go and destroy Midian.  Do I not send you?”  And then God makes Gideon do something powerful.  It’s easy to miss it, but it is powerful.  God asks Gideon to go into his family and make a statement for God.  Gideon destroys his family’s altars to Ba’al and Asherah.  Imagine the heat Gideon received for that act – even if he did it under the cover of darkness!

Gideon’s Effect on the Family

Yet, Gideon’s act is proven in Joash, his father.  Although Judges 6:25 clearly identifies the altar and poles as belonging to Joash, when the villagers seek out Gideon it is Joash who stand up to the villagers!  Gideon’s faithfulness and willingness to follow God – even if under the cover of night because he was afraid – has brought Joash to a place of understanding.  He makes a stand and tells the people that if Ba’al is so concerned about this altar, then let Ba’al deal with Gideon. 

Do you know the profound wisdom in that?  Even our own God does not need us to defend Him.  What does Deuteronomy 32:35 say?  “Vengeance is mine, and recompense.”  The Lord can take care of Himself.  God can defend Himself, He doesn’t need us to defend His truth and His ways.

Gideon: Foreshadowing the Apostle Peter

As if being visited by a messenger of God as well as experiencing his own father’s coming around to wisdom wasn’t enough, we also have the wonderful story of the fleece in Judges 6.  Again, Gideon has this Peter-esque moment of faith.  Gideon needs to test God a little.  Thanks be to God that He tolerates Gideon (and us!). 

Notice that God is willing to give Gideon what he needs to accomplish God’s will.  God doesn’t judge Gideon or curse Gideon.  This demonstrates to us that Gideon isn’t asking God for proof because he is doubting or lacking faith.  What Gideon lacks is self-confidence.  He just wants to be sure that he is making the correct decision.

When we are sincere and humble ourselves, God is willing to take us where we are and work with us.  God does not expect those who are “learning in faith” to display a “faith like the prophets.”  That’s what growth is all about.  But rest assured, by the end of the next chapter we’ll see Gideon grow into that faith!

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Year 1, Day 266: Judges 5

Poetry

Judges 5 is a song, and I will confess that poetry is not my strength with respect to putting forth understanding.  I’m not saying poetry is bad or that it is wrong – I’m just saying that it is harder for me to understand poetry, that’s all.  So if I miss something that someone who really likes poetry discovers, please share!

The Underpinnings of the Hebrew Rebellion

As I did my research on this passage I did come across an interesting comment that I think warrants some discussion.  Judges 5:6-8 gives us a general understanding of the social condition of the country.  The highways were unsafe.  People stopped living in villages.  New gods were chosen and war was brought to the land.  Why would the highways be unsafe?  Why would villages be unsafe?  Why does war come to a country?

In the ancient world, people stopped living in their villages (where they could grow their own food and livestock) and moved to the shelter of the city only when there was a danger.  Sometimes the danger was external, such as an invading army, while sometimes the danger was internal, such as an increase in thievery and bandits.  When we consider the comment that the highways were no longer safe, it makes the reader lean to the side of internal trouble from bandits and thieves rather than an external threat such as a king from another region marching with his forces into the area.

Why do I spend all this time unfolding this thought?  This is important because we need to understand how society works.  The list of troubles is actually given in reverse historical order.  The highways were abandoned, people stopped living in cities, new gods were chosen.  This is a common tactic in writing, I should know because I use this approach to writing frequently.  We hear that the highways were abandoned and we are led to ask why.  Well the reason the highways were abandoned is because the villages and places of safety had dried up because people were moving into the fortified cities.  There were long stretches of road that became unprotected, allowing bandits and thieves to take over where citizens used to be.

So then we ask why the villagers moved into the cities.  The answer lies in the assertion of the presence of new gods.  These new gods would bring about a new morality and ethic in the community – likely a morality and ethic that is far more “me” centered and far less “other” centered.

In many ways this goes back to the point I made in Judges 3 while speaking about Eglon.  When the Hebrew people allowed the Canaanites to dwell among them, the hearts of the Hebrew people were pulled away from God into the religion of the Canaanites.  But when Eglon enslaved the Hebrew people his heart was not swayed to the worship of the God of the Hebrew people!  What we see going on here is that the religion of the Canaanites was “easier” to follow. 

Why would it be easier to follow?  Well, it was easier to follow because it was more in line with “human nature.”  People follow new religions when those religions are more in line with what a person wants to feel, wants to do, and wants to be.  The Canaanite religion was far more self-centered while God asked the Hebrews to take the focus off of their own needs and desires while putting the focus upon God and the other person instead.

So let’s put everything we’ve learned together.  After Ehud restored the Hebrew people to faith and Shamgar had some minor role in delivering the Hebrew people from the Philistines (Judges 3), there were 80 years of faithfulness and peace with God.  But the people slowly started falling away from God.  They chose new gods.  With those new gods came a more “me focused” ethic.  A new morality descended upon the culture.  People stopped caring about their neighbors and started caring more about themselves.  This leads to the increase in stealing, fighting, and other crimes of self-centered passion.  The more people stole and fought, the more unsafe the countryside becomes.  The more unsafe the countryside became, the more people dwell in the cities for protection.  The more people dwelled in the cities, the more unsafe the roads are between the cities.  But where does it all begin?

Self-mongerism.

Self-Mongerism

Judges 5:6-8 tells us all we need to know about the decline of human civilization.  Self-mongerism is prevalent in who we are as people; but self-mongerism always destroys the community.  When we choose new gods that promote selfish passion, the community falls apart.

Do I really need to talk about how this applies to today’s culture in America?  I doubt it.  America is all about “me.”  Me, me, me.  I, I, I.  The more we think along those lines, the more we show that we aren’t interested in following God.  The more we aren’t following God, the more we choose to follow the ways of other gods.  Judges 5:6-8 seem to be reminding us of an old cliché: “You made your bed, now lie in it.”  When we create a culture that allows its constituents to be as self-centered as they want to be, we should not be surprised when the fabric of our culture comes undone and things like family and community disappear.

A Neat Note on the Battle

I do want to mention an interesting historical footnote that often gets overlooked in this chapter.  It is found in Judges 5:4 and is likely a clue as to how the Hebrew people were able to defeat a superior force.  This verse tells us that the heavens opened and fropped water.

Chariots need hard and flat ground to run effectively.  Chariots sweep in with tremendous speed as bowmen and swordsmen strike with force and then move away from the battle to protect themselves from any kind of counterattack.  When it rains, hard ground becomes soft ground.  As chariots drive across soft ground, it becomes muddy ground.  As the ground gets chewed up in mud, the chariots sink and become easy targets for infantry.

How did God provide for those soldiers who came to free the Hebrew people from the bondage of Sisera?  God may not have slain the enemies directly, but He did send rain so that the strength of the enemy would turn into a significant liability.  God has an amazing ability to do just that.  We think ourselves so strong and invulnerable.  He comes along and shows just how weak and short-sighted we can be at times.  We really are best when we turn to Him and rely upon Him.

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Year 1, Day 265: Judges 4

Consistency of God’s Word

I think Judges 4:4-5 might be one of the most misunderstood (or at least forgotten) passages in the history of Bible scholarship.  Okay, I might be using a little hyperbole there to get my point across.  But that doesn’t mean the point isn’t still a good one!

Let’s look at what we know about Deborah.  Judges 4:4 tells us that she was a prophetess.*  What is a prophetess but a female prophet!  What is a prophet but someone who brings God’s Word to the people around them!  So we know that Deborah was accepted as one who brought God’s Word to her contemporaries.  We also know that she was a judge.  What is a judge but a person who God raises up to lead people back into a spiritual relationship with God – usually by the means of doing battle against sinful oppression!  Let’s face it.  By calling Deborah a prophetess and a judge, the Bible is telling us without a doubt that Deborah is a spiritual leader of the people of God.

You might ask how it is that this passage talks about consistency of God.  Well, all throughout the Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament God is “doing a new thing.”  That’s a description for going against the ways of the world.  God doesn’t value manmade laws (neither does He deny legitimate ones that do not interfere with the worship of Him, either).  In fact, whenever God sees human tradition getting in the way of people realizing His will, God is actually quick work through the obstacle to illustrate the people’s blindness to them.

Think about several stories from God’s Word:

• Why does God choose Abel over Cain, Jacob over Esau, Judah over the rest of the tribes, or David over his brothers?  You can’t convince me that God couldn’t have worked through Cain, Esau, Reuben, or Eliab if He had wanted.  We’re all fallen people.  It is not us that makes God great, it is God who makes us great!  You see, everyone expected Cain, Esau, and Reuben, and Eliab to be the chosen one because of their birth order.  God intentionally works by choosing His representatives through a different means than the world chooses theirs.  God looks at the hearts, not the expectation of the world.
• Why does God chose wise men from the east to understand the prophecies about the birth of His Messiah while the prophets in Jerusalem from His own people couldn’t figure out the signs?  You cannot tell me that the wise men from the east were any more intelligent than the religious leaders under King Herod.  God chooses them to demonstrate His power.  The Jewish world expected the Hebrew religious leaders to know the Messiah when He came!  God worked a different way.
• Why does God choose a simple teenage girl and a lowly carpenter to be the parents of Jesus?  The Jewish world expected the Messiah to be royalty.  God chose a different path.
• Why does Jesus most often meet with women when dealing outside of the Jewish nation (See the Samaritan woman at the well in John 4 and the Canaanite woman of Matthew 15:21-28)?  Most Jews wouldn’t go near a Gentile, much less a female one!  Again, God chose a different path.
• Why does Jesus appoint Mary Magdalene to be the bearer of His resurrection to the disciples?  Perhaps the most significant message ever told to Jesus’ own disciples was told to them by a person who because of her gender wouldn’t even be allowed to give testimony in court!  Especially when the disciple that Jesus loved and Peter went to the tomb and Jesus didn’t appear to them!  God clearly chose a different way than the world would expect.
• Why does God choose a Pharisee who is persecuting His own efforts to become potentially His greatest evangelist to ever be born of two human parents?  In Paul, God chose someone way different than His own church would have ever guessed.  And the truth is, most of the Jewish Christians struggled to accept Paul and what God was doing through him his whole life.

I can go on and on.  My point is that God loves to do new things by going contrary to what the world would expect.  God is consistent in His ability to go outside the expected and do something new.  Deborah is a beautiful example of this principle at work.  If we did not pause to learn this lesson we would miss one of the greatest lessons this passage can teach us: accept the unexpected if God is present!  Pay more attention to the working of the hand of God than to the person through whom God has chosen to work.

Discovering God’s Hand at Work

So we need to ask the most important question when it comes to listening to someone in our life.  Was God present in Deborah?  Absolutely!  God is present in Deborah.  God doesn’t care about her gender.  God doesn’t pass over her because she isn’t a man.  God raises her up, appoints her as both prophetess and judge, and uses her!  The Canaanites are routed.  Deborah’s prophecy about a woman killing Sisera comes true.  God is clearly with her, and that is the only thing that matters!

So often we pause to ask all the wrong questions when looking for spiritual leadership.  We get so wrapped up in gender.  Or we ask about credentials.  We ask about pedigree.  We ask about references.  We ask about the pros and cons of choosing a particular leader.  But how often do we ask whether or not God is actually at work in the person?  Even as Christians we are so prone to ask all but the most important question.  So often we don’t stop and ask, “How is God at work in this person?”  That’s the lesson Deborah can teach us.  God delights in pointing out how blind we as human beings can become when we assert out tradition over His ways.

Jael the Kenite

Oh, for the record, much of the same could be said about Jael the wife of Heber.  God raised up 10,000 Israelites to go with Barak and Deborah to fight against Sisera and his 900 iron chariots – and probably a few thousand foot soldiers, who would attend and fight beside the chariots.  Surely someone out of those 10,000 people could have killed the opposing king.  But no.  God chooses a woman – a Kenite, even!  Who are the Kenites?  Remember Jethro, Moses father-in-law?  He was a priest of the Kenites.  The Kenites were a tribe of Canaanites who had respect for God.

I find it interesting that when it comes to killing Sisera that God finds a female Canaanite to do the job in the same story when Deborah is called to rise up and rally the people.  Certainly one of those Hebrew soldiers would have been the world’s expectation.  If there had been a betting pool, I doubt anyone would have put money on the “unknown Canaanite girl from a random tribe that worships our God.”  But that is absolutely who God picks put the nail in Sisera’s coffin – or head, as the case may be.

Want to know where God is at work?  Look for His hand at work, not the credentials of the people around you.  Look for God in the people around you, not at the people around you.  God can do amazing things through people we wouldn’t expect.  That’s the underlying message of this chapter – and much of the whole Bible if you think about it.

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*There are people out there that will tell you that the term prophet and prophetess are two different terms.  That’s silly, and it is evidence of a person not understanding how ancient languages work.  The difference between a prophet and a prophetess is the same as the difference between actor and actress, waiter and waitress, or steward and stewardess.  It’s the same root word and job description!

Year 1, Day 264: Judges 3

God Rallies the Canaanites

Isn’t it interesting that Judges 3 is specific about how God used the very Canaanites that the Hebrew people were not willing to drive out?  God used them to expose the true character of the Hebrew people!  God used them to put “other gods” before His people and examine His people in whom they would really worship.  For the record, their hearts were not pure and they strayed to the other gods quite frequently.

As I say almost daily, we are no different.  The influences I do not drive out of my life become a testimony to God about my character.  When I spend time playing that video game instead of reading God’s Word, when I spend time watching TV instead of spiritually relating to my wife, or when I spend time engrossed in my anger instead of seeking to forgive – all of these are evidence to God that my heart is not purely focused on His ways.  That’s what I love about reading God’s Word.  True conviction about one’s life is found in the study of God’s Word.

But rest assured.  Just as God used the Canaanites to test His people, God will also use the things that I am tempted by to examine my true nature.  Thanks be to God that He is forgiving when I am repentant!

Othniel

Next, Othniel comes on the scene.  I find it interesting that the time described in this section regarding the Hebrew bondage is not ever mentioned among the other times the Hebrew people went into bondage.  Sure, it was only 8 years.  But they served the king of Mesopotamia like they earlier served the Pharaoh in Egypt and later the king in Babylon.  God’s people are oppressed because they got themselves into trouble and they cry out.  Then God hears them and sends a deliverer.  It should be right up there with the other captivity stories!

But my focus with Othniel is actually on a bit of hypothesis.  The Bible makes it sound so easy, as if Othniel shows up on the scene and of course the Mesopotamian king just backs off.  But I highly doubt that’s really what happened.  Othniel had to do some grunt work.  He had to organize the people.  He had to revolt.  He probably had to fight a few battles and more than a few skirmishes.  I’m willing to bet it was hard work.

How often do we think this way about what God has called us to do in life?  As a pastor, I find myself struggling against my congregation quite frequently – not struggling because they are wrong or because I don’t like them, rather because I love them and I want them to be more spiritual for God!  But it is a struggle!

I think it is good to remind ourselves from time to time that Moses struggled against the Pharaoh (external struggle) and the Hebrew people (internal struggle).  Joshua struggled against the Canaanites as well as the sin of the Hebrew people.  No doubt Othniel had his own external and internal struggles.  Why should it be any different for us?  So those of you struggling between the “reality of the church around you” and the “vision of what it could become” – know that the struggle is an inherent part of the process!

Ehud

With Ehud we see a similar story. The Hebrew people follow their hearts and end up in captivity under the Moabites.  God sends a delivered in Ehud.  Through the judge the people are saved.  The story sounds much the same as Othniel’s story – with the exception that here we have an account of the king’s death, graphic as it may be.

However, what I’d like to spend the rest of my time doing is talking about Eglon.  Eglon was used by God to bring the Hebrew people under captivity.  Eglon was used by God to teach the Hebrew people about faithfulness.  However, Eglon was not God’s servant!  There is a difference between serving God and being used by God.  One must not think that just because God uses someone that they are inherently God’s servant at all!

Eglon brings the Hebrew people under captivity, but he has no desire to worship the God of the Hebrew people.  This I find ironic because when the Hebrew people allowed the Canaanites to exist as their servants, their hearts were swayed to foreign gods; but when Eglon has the Hebrews as slaves his heart is not swayed at all!  Why is it that when the people of God rule over the people of the world that few people convert but when the people of God are under foreign power they fall astray quickly?

The reason is simple: to follow God means to deny oneself whereas to follow manmade gods means to indulge even more in oneself.  Why would Eglon be swayed to worship a God who is going to ask Eglon to be less self-centered?  No, Eglon is going to desire the worship of the Moabite gods who will encourage Eglon to continue to do what makes sense to him, what feels good, and what feels right.

Because of this, Eglon is used by God without becoming God’s servant.  And this explains to us why people will find it much easier to fall out of worship of God than to fall into worship of God.  Worshipping God means denying oneself as the center of one’s life.  Worshipping manmade gods means indulging in one’s self.

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Year 1, Day 263: Judges 2

Subjugation v. Eradication

Chapter two begins with a sad statement.  It begins with the reality of what I said yesterday: subjugation is not the same as eradication.  When a person goes about eradication they are saying “You can become like me or become nothing.”  When that same person is going about subjugation they are saying “You can be how you are, just don’t interfere with me.”

Do you see the difference?  Quite literally, there is no room for a covenant in the process of eradication and there is room for plenty of unholy covenanting is the process of subjugation.  Verse 2 is very telling in Judges 2.  “You shall make no covenants with the inhabitants of the land.” 

Now, pay attention here.  God isn’t saying the inhabitants aren’t welcome to convert to Judaism.  Of course any who truly converted would be welcomed and embraced!  But when the Hebrew people allow the “strongest” of the Canaanites to continue to exist in the land, they are essentially making a covenant with them by allowing them to live against God’s wishes!  The Hebrew people are saying to them, “We’ll stop fighting against you so long as you meet these ‘non-conversion’ expectations.”  That is a covenant!

Am I Any Different?

Again, we are no different.  God wants our heart, mind, and soul.  God doesn’t want just the part that is easy to conquer.  God doesn’t want us to outwardly appear as though we have converted yet secretly and inwardly there are dark places within us that we allow to exist because they are too hard to root out!  That’s not what God wants!  God want all of us. 

Quite literally, God wants us to approach our own body, soul, and mind with a “convert or perish” mentality.  That’s why Galatians 2:19-20 is so important spiritually.  Depending on how your Bible numbers the verses, Paul says in either verse 19 or verse 20: “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

Please note that I have taken this story about Hebrew people killing Canaanites and made it apply to each of us killing the Canaanite within us.  I think that is an important spiritual component.  Until someone receives a direct charge from God – as did Moses and Joshua – I think we should be primarily concerned with our own spirituality than with ‘killing the Canaanites’ outside of ourselves – as God directed the Hebrew people to do.  The focus should first and foremost be internally directed until God says otherwise.  Who am I to judge another person’s sinfulness while there is plenty of sin to root out within me!  This goes back to the old “log in the eye” saying that Jesus gives to us in Matthew 7:1-5.

Consequence of Compromise

And what is the consequence of compromise with the Canaanites?  Judges 2:3 tells us that they shall become a thorn in the side and their ‘gods’ shall ensnare the Hebrew people.  The entire rest of the Old Testament is devoted to telling us exactly how this plays out over the following 500 or so years.

Is it any different with us?  When we compromise within ourselves and let our humanity reign over our spirituality, is it not always a thorn in our side?  When we let our humanity rear its ugly head and quit being spiritual around other people do we not ensnare them, too?

Effect of Leadership Upon a Generation

Then Joshua dies and another sad statement is made.  After Joshua and his generation die, a new generation arises who don’t know the Lord.  Do you know why this is so sad?  Because it is true.  You can absolutely have a family where the parents absolutely love the Lord with their whole heart yet whose kids grow up and choose self-mongerism over following God.  This happens quite frequently, actually.  The sad truth about humanity is that it is far easier for a generation to fall out-of-faith than it is for a generation to fall into faith!  I’m not saying revivals don’t happen – certainly they do!  But it is far easier to slide into human self-mongering than to slide the other way.

What is sad about this line of thinking is that it casts a true light upon the motivation of the earlier time.  When Joshua dies and the people fall away, what does that tell us about their motivation for obedience when Joshua was alive?  Were they doing it because they really wanted to be obedient or because their leader made them act a certain way?  Can we not say the same thing about children when they become adults?  When a child becomes an adult and falls out of faith, what does that say about the motivation for any spirituality within them while the child was under the parent?

We can usually tell a good bit about ourselves by how we act when we are actually in charge.  When I am my own spiritual leader and enforcer, how do I act?  Do I remain faithful in walking with my Lord or do I slip back into the world and ignore my God?  Am I really following God because my faith is true within me or because I have people above me enforcing that faith within me?

The Time of the Judges

The end of the chapter brings us into the time of the judges.  What I find sad is that the Bible is clear that the people followed the judge because the judge provided good leadership, but they weren’t in it to follow God.  Judges 2:17-19 say as much.  These verses only serve to reinforce what I just said about the peoples’ action after Joshua died.

Is that not true today in the church?  How many times has a pastor come into a church and brought with them a sense of life and hopefulness only to have the people follow the energy the pastor brings and not actually follow the Lord?  People will follow a new pastor because of the energy they bring; but many if not most of those people are not really following the Lord but rather following the energy the pastor brings.  They aren’t changing their life and turning to the Lord.  They aren’t growing closer to God.  They’re just enjoying the newness that the pastor has brought to the church.  They aren’t in love with God, they are in love with getting to know someone new.

Soon the energy fades and conflict arises.  The people who had been following just for the energy find themselves unchanged and back in their old ways of lethargy, argumentative behavior, complaining, struggling over power and control, or whatever other kind of behavior.  These are all signs that the people aren’t really interested in following the judge ( or in modern contexts, pastor) that God has put into their midst.  They are really just interested in riding the energy while it lasts and while it is fun only to get back to who they really are inside once the energy fades.

If that’s what happened among the Hebrew people, why should we be any different?  Has humanity changed since then?  Have we evolved into a different being?  No, certainly humanity still suffers from the same problems.  It should not surprise us that the same problems that existed among the unspiritual back then still exist among the unspiritual now.  It is truth.  The only way to avoid falling into the trap of humanity is to actually change – and the only way to actually change is to become spiritual beings instead of fleshly beings.  But that is a very rare thing indeed.  But it is my prayer for me and you today.

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