Judges 11-13

March 17

Judges 11-13

Though Israel continued to do evil in the eyes of the Lord, God continued to extend His grace. He brought discipline, but the discipline only went to a certain point before God would step in and save Israel. He always kept a remnant, a core group to continue to nation of Israel. There was fighting between Israel and the Philistines and there was fighting within Israel, but in the midst of all the upheaval, God showed up.

God approached a barren couple, Manoah and his wife who is not named. God appeared in a theophany, the appearance of God to a person. Often in the Old Testaments refer to God as “the angel of the Lord.” In this case when Manoah asked the angel of the Lord if he was the one who had talked to his wife and told her she would have a child, the angel answered; “I AM.” When the angel ascended in the flames of the offering into heaven, Manoah and his wife realized who it was and feared they would die because they had seen the Lord. God did not kill them and they had a son names Samson, who became Israel’s next judge and deliverer.

Why does God continue to reach out to Israel? Why does He put up with their rebellion? Why does He send someone to conquer them, and then provide someone to deliver them? It seems like a futile exercise. The cycle continues no matter what God does. But God does not give up on Israel. God does not give up on us.

God’s desire is for us to follow Him with all our hearts, souls, minds, and strength. His desire is for us to walk in obedience to Him because we love Him. John wrote; "My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One." (1 John 2:1, NIV)  The goal is not to sin, not to rebel against God, not to disobey God, but if we do and we turn from our sin, He forgives us our sin and purifies us from all unrighteousness. (See 1 John 1:9).

Israel’s rollercoaster ride with God is a reminder that God is a God of grace. That is not a license to sin, but a reminder of how much God loves us. No matter where we have been or what we have done, God will forgive us if we will turn from our sin and turn to Him. Max Lucado wrote; “God loves us just the way we are, but He loves us too much to leave us that way.” God is a God of grace who wants to give us new hearts and new minds and new lives and new opportunities if we will allow Him.