April 17, 2000

Lessons for April 30


EXPLORE THE BIBLE SERIES:
Sometimes what's best are trials and tribulations
___ Judges 2:11-22a
___By Ellis Orozco
___Calvary Baptist Church, McAllen
___Every Sunday the same man would respond to the pastor's invitation. He walked down the aisle and cried at the altar. His prayer was always the same. "Lord, take the cobwebs out of my life." One Sunday, after several months of the same prayer, the man came to the altar and cried out again the familiar prayer, "Lord take the cobwebs out of my life." This time the frustrated pastor chimed in, "Lord, kill the spider!"
___God doesn't want us to have cobwebs in our lives. He wants to kill the spiders that keep us repeatedly forsaking him.
___ God's anger (Judges 2:11-13). After the death of Joshua, a new generation of Israelites came into power.
___This new generation did not know the horrors of war and did not remember the miraculous power of God.
___Someone once said that Christianity is always one generation away from extinction. Christianity will survive to the very end. However, the principle in that statement is true. Any nation that forgets its past is doomed to failure.
___The children of Israel forgot the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. After everything God had done for Israel, the ultimate insult was for them to forget him. God's anger is always a righteous anger. God was angry because he had reason to be angry.
___ God's action (Judges 2:14-15a). God's anger is followed by God's action. God does not bring the consequences of their sin upon the children of Israel. In essence, he simply removes his protection from them momentarily and allows the natural consequences of rebellion to take effect. God "handed them over" to their own devices. God uses "tough love" to teach his children valuable lessons.
___The end result of God's action was that the children of Israel "were in great distress" (Judges 2:15). It is in that state of "great distress" that we are ready to fall to our knees and acknowledge God.
___ God's promises (Judges 2:15b). Israel had been forewarned about the consequences of forsaking God. God never allows us to fall into a situation he did not warn us about. We tend to remember all the things God promises to do for us if we obey him.
___But God also makes promises about what will happen to us if we disobey him.
___God keeps those promises as well.
___ God's mercy (Judges 2:16-19). God's mercy never fails and it never ends. Even after his children forget him, he still provides a way out. He sends strong leadership to guide them out of their iniquity. When the leaders die, the people of Israel go back to their evil ways, and God, in his infinite wisdom and mercy, provides more leaders. God never gave up on Israel and he never gives up on us.
___ God's testing (Judges 2:20-22a). God leaves Israel's enemies intact so they can be a place of testing.
___Even in his desire to test Israel, God's motives are to strengthen them (Judges 3:2) and drive them back into his arms.
___When we repeatedly forsake God, he repeatedly does what is best for us. Sometimes that means trials and tribulation. But it is always meant to bring us closer to him and the love he has for us.

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