A Devotional Thought From Judges
And also all that
generation were gathered unto their fathers: and there arose another generation
after them, which knew not the LORD, nor yet the works which he had done for
Israel. Judges 2:10
“The times they are a-changin’.”
The author of Judges would agree with Bob Dylan’s classic protest song. At this
point in Israel’s history with the tribes inhabiting most of the promised land,
he notes that all the generation who entered in with Joshua had died. That’s
the way of history. People die, whole generations pass away. This is what
Israel was experiencing, and the tremendous change the nation faced was that
the rising generation, the new generation, would be a generation that did not
have a faith relation to God. The author says it this way, There arose another generation after them which knew not the LORD.
This is the worst thing that can happen to any nation whose founding was
directly related to faith in God. America take note, our founders in the
Declaration of Indepence declared; “And for the support of this Declaration,
with a firm Reliance on the Protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge
to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.” From the
beginning it was with reliance on the God of the Bible.
As the generations pass away,
historians can relate the movements of history in any given country to how many
of its people continue to know, and obey, and express their faith in the living
God. The book of Judges tells a story of a declining nation, sliding down into the
mire of moral depravity. In Israel at the time of the judges we see the
approval, or the acceptance, or at least the appearance of things like: adultery,
aggressive homosexuality, false religion, use of prostitutes, and conspiracy.
This happens because , as the author of judges writes it, In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was
right in his own eyes (21:25). The immoral society resulting from such
behavior is not a safe one. In peace or in war it is no longer safe
How does a generation grow up in a land that is
ostensibly religious, and not know the LORD? While there are many factors the
bottom line is that those who named the name of the LORD forgot, or ignored, or
moved away from the foundation of God’s revelation, His word. They lost touch
with what God was saying to them about daily life. That’s how it happened in
ancient Israel. And today, instead of basing faith and action on an
authoritative word from God, the Bible, the liberal church accepted literary
criticism thus rendering, for many, the Bible into little more than a book of
religious stories, interesting, but in no way a document requiring belief and
obedience. The evangelical church is trying to hold the line and help people to
understand that God has spoken and for the best of life for individuals,
communities, societies, nations, and the world, obedience to God’s word is the
proper lifestyle. Obedience to the principles of God’s holy word would
transform the world for good. When people and communities, and nations do what
is right in their own eyes rejecting God’s revelation it also transforms the
world, for evil. With each individual who makes the choice for the living God
of the Bible his family, and her nation, and their world, the world does
becomes a little better.
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