A father complained all the way home about the church
service. "The sermon was too long, the music was too loud, and the lights
were too dim." His eight-year old son, who had seen what his father placed
in the offering plate said, "Dad, it didn't seem like a bad show for a
dollar."
Sometimes
what we say might expose how little we are really thinking! In this next
section of Judges we see how the words of the Ephraimites got them into a war
and betrayed them in the end. I covered this in my Devo about the tongue, so I
want to focus elsewhere, but let’s just remember two items:
Judges Chapter 12:1-15 Then the men of Ephraim were summoned, and
they crossed to Zaphon and said to Jephthah, “Why did you cross over to fight
against the sons of Ammon without calling us to go with you? We will burn your
house down on you.” Jephthah said to them, “I and my people were at great
strife with the sons of Ammon; when I called you, you did not deliver me from
their hand. “When I saw that you would not deliver me, I took my life in my
hands and crossed over against the sons of Ammon, and the Lord gave them into my hand. Why then have you
come up to me this day to fight against me?” Then Jephthah gathered all the men
of Gilead and fought Ephraim; and the men of Gilead defeated Ephraim, because
they said, “You are fugitives of Ephraim, O Gileadites, in the midst of Ephraim
and in the midst of Manasseh.” The Gileadites captured the fords of the Jordan
opposite Ephraim. And it happened when any of the fugitives of Ephraim said,
“Let me cross over,” the men of Gilead would say to him, “Are you an
Ephraimite?” If he said, “No,” then they would say to him, “Say now,
‘Shibboleth.’ ” But he said, “Sibboleth,” for he could not pronounce it
correctly. Then they seized him and slew him at the fords of the Jordan. Thus
there fell at that time 42,000 of Ephraim. Jephthah judged Israel six years.
Then Jephthah the Gileadite died and was buried in one of the cities of Gilead. Now Ibzan of Bethlehem judged Israel after
him. He had thirty sons, and thirty daughters whom he gave in marriage outside
the family, and he brought in thirty daughters from outside for his sons. And
he judged Israel seven years. Then Ibzan died and was buried in Bethlehem. Now
Elon the Zebulunite judged Israel after him; and he judged Israel ten years.
Then Elon the Zebulunite died and was buried at Aijalon in the land of Zebulun.
Now Abdon the son of Hillel the Pirathonite judged Israel after him. He had
forty sons and thirty grandsons who rode on seventy donkeys; and he judged
Israel eight years. Then Abdon the son of Hillel the Pirathonite died and was
buried at Pirathon in the land of Ephraim, in the hill country of the
Amalekites.
First:
Ephriam was sloppy with their words and it began a war:
“Then Jephthah gathered all the men of
Gilead and fought Ephraim; and the men of Gilead defeated Ephraim, because they said, “You are fugitives of Ephraim, O
Gileadites, in the midst of Ephraim and in the midst of Manasseh.”
“And it happened when any of the fugitives
of Ephraim said, “Let me cross over,” the men of Gilead would say to him, “Are
you an Ephraimite?” If he said, “No,” then they would say to him, “Say now,
‘Shibboleth.’ ” But he said, “Sibboleth,” for he could not pronounce it
correctly. Then they seized him and slew him at the fords of the Jordan.
Thus there fell at that time 42,000 of Ephraim.
There
are several other great lessons here also.
· Lack of confrontation promotes
sinful behavior!
It is
important that we confront those that are trying to manipulate circumstances
for their own agenda. Jephthah confronts the men of Ephraim concerning their
hypocrisy. Sadly, Ephraim is too prideful and this brings more judgment, but it
is important to try. Saul was confronted and it did make him rethink several
times.
1 Samuel 19:4–6 Then Jonathan spoke well of
David to Saul his father and said to him, “Do not let the king sin against his
servant David, since he has not sinned against you, and since his deeds have
been very beneficial to you. “For he took his life in his hand and struck the
Philistine, and the Lord brought about a great deliverance for all Israel; you saw it and
rejoiced. Why then will you sin against innocent blood by putting David to
death without a cause?” Saul listened to the voice of Jonathan, and Saul vowed,
“As the Lord lives, he shall not be put to death.”
Sadly,
Saul also went back to pride. However, the confrontation by his son made him
that much more accountable, and the Lord dealt with it, which freed David not
to have to deal with him.
Unfortunately
many times believers show their insensitivity or even arrogance by the way they
wait for an engraved invitation for assistance.
Then the men of Ephraim were summoned…and
said to Jephthah, “Why did you cross over to fight against the sons of Ammon
without calling us to go with you?... Jephthah said to them, “I and my people
were at great strife with the sons of Ammon; when I called you, you did not deliver me from their hand.
When we
see our brethren in trouble we should not wait to be invited to help, we should
offer. If we were unaware or not paying attention we should not become offended.
If on the other hand, we are the one in trouble, when help is offered we should
accept it.
Interestingly,
I have found that the Christian army not only shoots its own wounded, but also
the Christian army is only one where the wounded refuse the medication!
When I saw that you wouldn't help, I took
my life in my hands and crossed over to fight the Ammonites, and the LORD gave me the victory over them. Now why have you come up today to fight
me?"
When we
come to the reality that the battles we have are not ours to fight alone, but
that our Lord desires to fight for us and alongside us, our entire view of all
warfare will change.
Now you
will challenge the circumstance based on what God commands and His priorities.
When we do that we can be assured we will finish, because God always completes
the race. Remember, it is always harder to complete than to start.
Luke 14:28–30 “For which one of you, when he wants
to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if he
has enough to complete it? “Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not
able to finish, all who observe it begin to ridicule him, saying, ‘This man began to build and
was not able to finish.’
One
writer said this about this passage: "Jesus said to quit before you start,
unless you plan to finish."
When
you have God join you in the battle several things happen:
Ephesians 6:12 For our struggle is not against flesh and
blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of
this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly
realms.
Colossians 1:13 For he has rescued us from the dominion of
darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves,
Ephesians 2:1-2 As for you, you were dead in your
transgressions and sins,(2) in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and
of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those
who are disobedient.
1 Corinthians 9:7-9 Who serves as a soldier at his own expense?
Who plants a vineyard and does not eat of its grapes? Who tends a flock and
does not drink of the milk?(8) Do I say this merely from a human point of view? Doesn't the Law say the
same thing?(9) For it is written in the Law of Moses: "Do not muzzle an ox while
it is treading out the grain." Is it about oxen that God is concerned?
2 Timothy 2:5 Similarly, if anyone competes as an athlete,
he does not receive the victor's crown unless he competes according to the
rules.
1 Corinthians 9:25 Everyone who competes in the games goes
into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do
it to get a crown that will last forever.
1 Corinthians 2:11 For who among men knows the thoughts of a
man except the mans spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the
thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.
Colossians 1:9 For this reason, since the day we heard
about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with
the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding.
Isaiah 55:8-9 "For my thoughts are not your
thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the
LORD. "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways
higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.
3. It will
change your approach.
Too
many times we try to approach the battle thinking that we can just make reality
go away, but in the end the reality will catch us.
David
Seamands shares a story that illustrates that.
"Perhaps you have heard about the man who was
traveling on a dinner flight. When he opened his prepackaged meal, right on top
of the salad he saw an enormous roach. When he got home, he wrote an
indignant letter to the president of that airline. A few days later,
a special delivery letter came from the president. He said he was sorry
and wrote this: “This was very unusual, but don't worry. I want to assure you
that particular airplane has been fumigated. In fact, all the seats and
upholstery have been stripped out. We have taken disciplinary action
against the stewardess who served you that meal, and she may even be
fired. It is highly probable that this particular aircraft will be
taken out of service. I can assure you that it will never happen
again. And I trust that you will continue to fly with us.” Well,
the man was terrifically impressed by such a letter until he noticed
something. Quite by accident, the letter he had written had stuck to the
back of the president's letter. When he looked at his own letter he
saw a note at the bottom that said, 'Reply with the regular roach letter.'
When we
invite God to join us, our approach changes from how we would handle things, to
how God would resolve it and what He wants to accomplish through it. We fight
for God’s rights, not ours! God has the right to be glorified in everything we
do.
Meditation Questions: Are you willing to lovingly confront
wrong when you see it? Do you look
for those that need help, or do you always wait for an invitation? When you go to
battle, do you go alone? If the Lord is with you, what part does He play? What
is your number one end goal when you do battle? To win? To protect yourself? To
bring God glory?
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