David Bahn – Reflections

Click here for an audio version of this blog post.

These devotions are part of the Follow the Word Bible reading program at St. John Lutheran Church in Cypress, Texas. This year we are reading through the Scriptures together, listening for how God speaks through his Word day by day. I hope you will join me on this journey.

Today’s readings are Joshua 24, Judges 1-2, Psalm 97.

Joshua 24:14-18

“Now therefore fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. ¹⁵ And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

¹⁶ Then the people answered, “Far be it from us that we should forsake the Lord to serve other gods, ¹⁷ for it is the Lord our God who brought us and our fathers up from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, and who did those great signs in our sight and preserved us in all the way that we went, and among all the peoples through whom we passed. ¹⁸ And the Lord drove out before us all the peoples, the Amorites who lived in the land. Therefore we also will serve the Lord, for he is our God.”

Judges 2:16-23

Then the Lord raised up judges, who saved them out of the hand of those who plundered them. ¹⁷ Yet they did not listen to their judges, for they whored after other gods and bowed down to them. They soon turned aside from the way in which their fathers had walked, who had obeyed the commandments of the Lord, and they did not do so. ¹⁸ Whenever the Lord raised up judges for them, the Lord was with the judge, and he saved them from the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge. For the Lord was moved to pity by their groaning because of those who afflicted and oppressed them. ¹⁹ But whenever the judge died, they turned back and were more corrupt than their fathers, going after other gods, serving them and bowing down to them. They did not drop any of their practices or their stubborn ways. ²⁰ So the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he said, “Because this people have transgressed my covenant that I commanded their fathers and have not obeyed my voice, ²¹ I will no longer drive out before them any of the nations that Joshua left when he died, ²² in order to test Israel by them, whether they will take care to walk in the way of the Lord as their fathers did, or not.” ²³ So the Lord left those nations, not driving them out quickly, and he did not give them into the hand of Joshua.

The saga of God’s people will continue like this until the end of time. We receive God’s grace, recognize his great deliverance (think Easter), promise to follow him at all times and in every way. Then after only a little while we discover some distraction or another. The challenge of remaining faithful becomes more difficult. The enticement of other ways to happiness and success turns us away from his ways. We wander from the paths of righteousness. Trouble ensues.

We like to make the distinction between discipline and punishment. We like to say that God disciplines his people, but he does not punish them. We read Hebrews 12:11, “For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.” But we don’t like the idea of punishment. We would rather say, “God does not punish his children for their sins – Christ has borne that punishment. But he does discipline them in love, often through the consequences of sin and the hardships of life, in order to call them to repentance and strengthen their faith.

In the Old Testament – as in this passage from Judges – God’s dealings with his people could be described as punishment because they involved real temporal judgment under the covenant. Yet even then, for those who believed, these were not acts of final condemnation but of covenant discipline. With the coming of Christ, we now see clearly that all punishment for sin has been borne by him, and what remains for believers is the loving discipline of a Father.

But…sigh… How is it possible that we – just like the people of Joshua’s day – can be so hot and cold? One day we’re worshiping God in fervor and glorious celebration. The next day we’re falling off the path (that’s the meaning of trespassing, by the way).

Whether it’s the consequences of sin or the hardships of life in a fallen world, the attacks of Satan which God may allow (all within his boundaries!) or the visitation of fleshly thorns: God’s intent is always to bring us back to him. His desire always is to forgive, bless, nurture, guide, and save.

Rather than saying – almost bragging, “we will do everything you have commanded,” we should rejoice that Jesus says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven,” (Matthew 5:3) and live in daily repentance and faith in Christ’s kingdom of grace, truth, love, and life.

One final note: It will be very helpful to watch the Bible Project video summary of the book of Judges. We’re in for some disturbing, brutal, and sad tales in these 21 chapters. All this, remember, is prelude to the ultimate deliverance of God by his Own Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. We must keep this in mind always!

Click on the graphic to watch the video.