The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing,
majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of
him and what came to my mind and heart in Judges 3:1,4,
"These are the nations the Lord left to test all those Israelites who
had not experienced any of the wars in Canaan... They were left to
test the Israelites to see whether they would obey the Lord's
commands, which he had given their forefathers through Moses."
Talk is cheap. In discussing the wickedness of man Paul observed,
"Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools..." Romans 1:22.
Lots of folks claim lots of things and just because they lay claim to
something, it doesn't make it necessarily so. When it comes to the
things of God, it best be sincere, genuine and authentic - the "real
deal". Although we read of the power of confession in Romans 10:9-10,
"If you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your
heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is
with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with
your mouth that you confess and are saved.", be assured the integrity
of that confession will be tested.
The nature of that test lies in the concept that our actions prove our
words, display whether we really have faith. James said, "Show me your
faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do." James
2:18. James isn't saying what he does earns salvation. What he is
saying is the veracity of one's faith is proved in one's actions.
Peter put it this way, "In this [the inheritance of the saints] you
greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to
suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your
faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined
by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and
honor when Jesus Christ is revealed." 1 Peter 1:6-7.
Obeying the Lord's commands does not have as its fulfillment the
proving of our capacity for obedience but something far beyond.
Obeying the Lord's commands is a matter of proving, manifesting
genuine faith. Here is where I part company with some schools of
theology. Whether we are talking about Adam and Eve, the patriarchal
age, Israel's history following the law given through Moses, the time
of Jesus' first visit to mankind or the church age, it is all about
faith. It has always been about faith. As Paul points out, "For in the
gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is
by faith from first to last, just as it is written: 'The righteous
will live by faith.'" By faith from first to last!
Our relationship with God is predicated upon faith and faith will be
tested during opportunities for obedience to God's will. Here is the
reason God left certain nations to "test" Israel. The test was to see
if Israel would obey the Lord's commands and thereby prove or manifest
where their hearts lay. The history of the book of Judges is
represented by the people God raised up as judges or leaders in Israel
and the important contribution they played in communicating the place
of faith in our relationship to God.
The writer of Hebrews points to patriarchs, to the judges of Israel
and the prophets, all the men and women of renown is Israel's history
as those who manifested faith, "Now faith is being sure of what we
hope for and certain of what we do not see. This is what the ancients
were commended for." Hebrews 11:1-2. In 11:32 we read, "And what more
shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson,
Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets..." specifying those during
the time of the book of Judges when God was looking for faith in his
people. "the world was not worthy of them." Here are some ways these
had their faith tested, "... through faith conquered kingdoms,
administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the
mouths of lions, quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge
of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became
powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. Women received back
their dead, raised to life again. Others were tortured and refused to
be released, so that they might gain a better resurrection. Some faced
jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison.
They were stoned; they were sawed in two; they were put to death by
the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute,
persecuted and mistreated..." 11:33-37.
When it comes to those difficulties in life as a believer I need to be
mindful that the Lord is proving or testing my faith as well as
developing needed qualities in my life, "Consider it pure joy, my
brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know
that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance
must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not
lacking anything." James 1:2-4. And, Lord knows, I have qualities that
are in sore need of developing...
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share
what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to
hear from you!
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment