Thought from today’s Bible reading from Judges 10-12.
Following their regular pattern, the Israelites fell away and “did evil in the sight of the Lord” (Judges 10:6). To punish them, God “sold them into the hands of the Philistines and into the hands of the sons of Ammon. They afflicted and crushed the sons of Israel that year” (Judges 10:7-8). Then, as they typically did, the sons of Israel cried to God for help.
“Then the sons of Israel cried out to the Lord, saying, ‘We have sinned against You, for indeed, we have forsaken our God and served the Baals.’ The Lord said to the sons of Israel, ‘Did I not deliver you from the Egyptians, the Amorites, the sons of Ammon, and the Philistines? Also when the Sidonians, the Amalekites and the Maonites oppressed you, you cried out to Me, and I delivered you from their hands. Yet you have forsaken Me and served other gods; therefore I will no longer deliver you. Go and cry out to the gods which you have chosen; let them deliver you in the time of your distress’” (Judges 10:10-14).
Time and time again, God proved His love for the sons of Israel in delivering them despite their disobedience. But they thought of God’s grace as a reason to tolerate sin, just as many do today (Romans 6:1-2).
God reminded them that no other so-called god could save them. False gods are desirable for many because they approve whatever one wants them to approve. They allow one to feel good in whatever life he chooses to live. But when trouble comes, they cannot help. Only God can.
What the Israelites needed to understand – and what we need to understand – is that God will not be merciful forever. While He is showing mercy, He is also “storing up wrath” for those who do not obey Him (Romans 2:4-5). And one day we will have to stand before Him in judgment (2 Corinthians 5:10).
The day of salvation is today (2 Corinthians 6:2). When that last day comes, it will be too late. Do not use God’s mercy as an excuse to sin. Use God’s mercy as an opportunity to continue to grow in faith and obedience.
Tomorrow’s reading: Judges 13-15
[I’m using the Chronological reading plan on the Bible Gateway website if you’d like to follow along, too.]
Daily Notes & Observations contains all 365 articles from this series and is available in paperback from Gospel Armory.
