Judges 1 - 3

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As we begin the exciting book of Judges, it will read like a novel! It's gorged full of adventure, spiritual challenges, and mighty men of valor. It contains some great insights into living the life God would have us all live! Here's a few "Power For Life Today Points" out of today's text:

1) God will "test us" with the challenges of life! Reading Judges chapter 1 begins as a delight as the tribe of Judah continues its march to conquer new territories...doing exactly what God told them to do! But, by the middle of the chapter things take a horrible turn for the worse! Half the tribes of Israel - specifically Manasseh, Ephraim, Zebulun, Asher, Naphtali, and Dan - could not drive out the remaining Canaanites!

Now...why is that? Didn't God say He would help them finish off the inhabitants of the land? Yes, He did! But, God had a purpose in mind for this struggle they were having. He needed to know just how much Israel loved Him and how faithful they would be towards Him. Therefore, He allowed this to happen for two very important reasons:

- To test Israel - (2:22) - "I did this to test Israel - to see whether or not they would follow the ways of the Lord as their ancestors did."
- To teach them warfare - (3:2) - "He did this to teach warfare to generations of Israelites who had no experience in battle."

This was a new generation! They were only kids when their dads were fighting for the land. However, one sad indictment about this particular generation is found in 2:10 -"After that generation died, another generation grew up who did not acknowledge the Lord or remember the mighty things he had done for Israel."

God was very angry with them for their disobedience! And, in spite of the fact that He made it difficult for them to drive them out, He did what was necessary to get them back on track:

- (2:1) God sent His Son, Jesus, to them to scold them! He is "the angel of the Lord."
- (2:14-15) God fought AGAINST them!
- (2:16 - 3:31) God sent JUDGES to save them from their own ruin!

Unfortunately, Israel didn't respond well at all! It sadly says in 2:17 - "Yet Israel did not listen to the judges but prostituted themselves by worshipping other gods. How quickly they turned away from the path of their ancestors..."

2) Godly parenting makes a HUGE difference! The generation "who walked in obedience to the Lord's commands" (2:17) had failed in one area - passing on the knowledge of God and love for the Lord! It sadly says in 2;10, "another generation grew up who did not acknowledge the Lord or remember the mighty things he had done..." This huge mistake caused several things to eventually happen to their own children:

- To do "evil" in God's sight! (2:11)
- To "go "after other gods." (2:12)
- To "abandon" the Lord competely! (2:13)
- To make God "angry" (2:14)
- Turned God against them! (2:15)
- They became stressed out! (2:15)
- They became overly oppressed! (2:18)
- They suffered greatly! (2:18)

What parent would want these things to happen to their children? None of us! However, the truth is, without God our children just can't have the life God intended them to have. No one can for that matter!

One good example of Godly parenting is in Caleb's family! It's obvious that Caleb is a Godly man! He's the only one (besides Joshua) that God allowed to survive the 40 years of desert wanderings and inherit land within the Promised Land. God allowed this because he was a Godly man! In fact, it must have flowed over to his nephew Othniel, because Othniel is found twice in our text today doing some mighty things as he trusts God. The first is in chapter 1, where he bodly conquered the city of Debir. Next, he's seen in chapter 3 as one of Israel's leaders! In 3:10 it says, "The Spirit of the Lord came upon him, and he became Israel's judge."

What a difference Godly parents make! Wow! Let's choose to be Godly parents and SAVE OUR CHILDREN from failing God, and thus the challenges of life!

3) God doesn't take us out of the battle, He helps us fight it! God never promised things would be rosy for believers! God did not deliver the Israelites from battle, He delivered them from death in battle! Big difference! If you'll notice in 3:2, God needed the new generation to learn warfare! They needed to run up against a life and death situation a time or two! God is in the business of growing His children, not shielding them from life's complicated problems. He allows problems to happen. He does this so that we might be able to trust Him and see His wonderful love and power to help us through those tough times and get the victory on the other side!

Even Jesus warned His disciples of coming problems...and even death! Don't be a naive Christian. Problems will arise in your life - tough problems. But, God wants you to go to Him concerning these problems, and allow Him to help you fight the battle to victory!

4) One man plus God equals UNLIMITED POSSIBILITIES! As we finish out chapter 4, look at the last verse. It speaks of a man called "Shamgar." He killed 600 Philistines with an ox goad! When a person trusts God there are no limits to what can happen!

May the Lord give you a wonderful day as you experience His presence and work!