Tag: Did not Remember the Lord their God

89. No sooner had Gideon died……

Judges 8:33   No sooner had Gideon died than the Israelites again prostituted themselves to the Baals. They set up Baal-Berith as their god and did not remember the Lord their God, who had rescued them from the hands of all their enemies on every side. They also failed to show any loyalty to the family of Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) in spite of all the good things he had done for them.  Abimelek son of Jerub-Baal went to his mother’s brothers in Shechem and said to them and to all his mother’s clan, “Ask all the citizens of Shechem, ‘Which is better for you: to have all seventy of Jerub-Baal’s sons rule over you, or just one man?’ Remember, I am your flesh and blood.”  When the brothers repeated all this to the citizens of Shechem, they were inclined to follow Abimelek, for they said, “He is related to us.” They gave him seventy shekels of silver from the temple of Baal-Berith, and Abimelek used it to hire reckless scoundrels, who became his followers. He went to his father’s home in Ophrah and on one stone murdered his seventy brothers, the sons of Jerub-Baal.

There were forty years of peace from the time God used Gideon to defeat the Midianites and Gideon’s death.  The people followed Gideons lead in worship and service to God.  But, look, no sooner had Gideon died than the Israelites stopped worshiping and serving God after forty years of doing it.  You have to wonder what kind of commitment the people had toward honoring and worshiping God.  Did they just gradually lose sight of God and try to start down other paths but were held onto the path by the leadership of Gideon?   Do you ever wonder if we are any different and our commitment to God is one built on convenience to how it fits into our lives?  When we are very busy with life our commitment is almost non-existent.  If this lax commitment is during the formative years of our children it is no wonder they can so easily have no foundation to stand on and have no want or need for God.

We do well to make our commitment firm and our foundation known to our family and friends so that we are influencing them toward a relationship with Jesus Christ rather than them influencing us toward worldly wants and desires.

Seems Right

“During Gideon’s lifetime, the land had peace forty years”

Judges 8:33
No sooner had Gideon died than the Israelites again prostituted themselves to the Baals. They set up Baal- Berith as their god and did not remember the Lord their God, who had rescued them from the hands of all their enemies on every side. They also failed to show any loyalty to the family of Jerub- Baal (that is, Gideon) in spite of all the good things he had done for them.
Abimelek son of Gideon went to his mother’s brothers in Shechem and said to them and to all his mother’s clan, “Ask all the citizens of Shechem, ‘Which is better for you:to have all seventy of Jerub- Baal’s sons rule over you, or just one man? ’ Remember, I am your flesh and blood.”
When the brothers repeated all this to the citizens of Shechem, they were inclined to follow Abimelek, for they said, “He is related to us.” They gave him seventy shekels of silver from the temple of Baal- Berith, and Abimelek used it to hire reckless scoundrels, who became his followers. He went to his father’s home in Ophrah and on one stone murdered his seventy brothers, the sons of Gideon.

Proverbs 12:15
The way of fools seems right to them,
but the wise listen to advice.

Proverbs 14:12
There is a way that seems right to a man,
but its end is the way to death.
Even in laughter the heart may ache,
and the end of joy may be grief.
The backslider in heart will be filled with the fruit of his ways,
and a good man will be filled with the fruit of his ways.
The simple believes everything,
but the prudent gives thought to his steps

A good lesson to learn from today.  Following God will give purpose and peace to you life.  I can only imagine what transpired to cause such a quick falling away from following God.  Gideon dies and soon after people forget God and start following idols.  What is in the heart of man that it so easily can disregard God.  For 40 years they had peace.  Can it be that in peace we lose sight of our need for God?  In peace do we no longer seek Him?  Is our heart prone to distance ourselves away from God in times of peace?  Is it possible that those who have a very shallow desire and love for God are just one moment of peace away from disregarding Him from their lives?  Paul instructed us to guard our heart and mind in and through our knowledge of Jesus Christ.  He instructed us to put on the full amour of God for this purpose.  Peter said it very well too “Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation. “Being lukewarm in our walk with God is not going to end well.  It is so easy to say “tomorrow I will set my desire for Him and live for Him – but in reality tomorrow never comes.  Today is the day, not tomorrow, next week, or when you find time. Scriptures throughout the bible are there to teach us.  We should understand from history how easy it is to follow others and let that determine our expectation of what it means to follow God.  Read God’s word and let it speak to your heart on what His expectations are for you.  Our purpose this side of eternity is to honor and glorify Him –  How can this happen if are not fully committed?  How can this happen if we do not spend time in His word?