Written by: Jonathan Dunning - Leader of Meadowhead Christian Fellowship, Sheffield
Judges 5 v 24-27
“May Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite, be blessed above all women who
live in tents.
Sisera asked for water, but Jael gave him milk.
In a bowl fit for a ruler, she brought him cream.
Jael reached out and took the tent peg.
Her right hand reached for the workman’s hammer.
She hit Sisera! She smashed his head!
She crushed and pierced the side of his head!
At Jael’s feet he sank.
He fell, and he lay there.
At her feet he sank. He fell.
Where Sisera sank, there he fell, dead!
Notes
What’s the point of such a graphic passage of poetry like this even though
it is a riveting read! It revels in the gory details of the assassination of
the enemy army commander, Sisera, who had taken refuge in a nomad’s tent;
a story that you can read in full in Judges chapter 4. He had trusted Jael’s
promise of safety, and anticipated the traditional hospitality offered to a
guest, but he had been double-crossed by this woman who had murder in mind.
She had provided rest and refreshment but after he was lulled into a false
sense of security and fell asleep she smashed his head in! Jael, as a tent-dweller,
obviously knew how to handle a hammer and tent peg. This song praises Jael
as, “blessed above all women”. It might surprise you to reflect
on another time this phrase is used in Scripture, when Mary, Jesus’ mother,
is greeted by the angel!
What Jael did appears barbaric today, but it was an act of courage and determination inspired by God. Sisera is very clearly the enemy of God’s people who must be destroyed. We may not like the idea of warfare, but there is still a direct call on Christians today to confront and defeat evil where we can. Our methods and weapons are very different from those used by Jael. St Paul reminds us that our spiritual warfare is not against people and is not fought with swords or guns, but with actions and prayers in the power of the Holy Spirit. The poetic language here is a celebration of the destruction of evil, and glories in the triumph of God and the deliverance of his people.
Thought
What spiritual battle am I facing today? With what weapons am I fighting this?
What strategies does God want to give me to fight in the right way?
Prayer
Father please give me the faith and determination to fight for you today. Help
me to make a stand for truth, justice and peace through my words and actions,
in the power of your Holy Spirit. Amen
Judges 5 v 28-31
“Sisera’s mother looked out through the window.
She looked through the curtains and cried out,
‘Why is Sisera’s chariot so late in coming?
Why are sounds of his chariots’ horses delayed?’
The wisest of her servant ladies answer her, and Sisera’s mother says
to herself,
‘Surely they are robbing the people they defeated!
Surely they are dividing those things among themselves!
Each soldier is given a girl or two.
Maybe Sisera is taking pieces of dyed cloth.
Maybe they are even taking pieces of dyed, embroidered cloth for the necks
of the victors!’
“Let all your enemies die this way, LORD!
But let all the people who love you be as strong as the rising sun!”
Then there was peace in the land for forty years.
Notes
The Song of Deborah concludes by mocking the false hope and gods of Israel’s
enemies, whilst trumpeting the truth of God’s judgment. Sisera’s
mother is waiting for her son’s return, refusing to believe anything
awful could have happened to him. Surrounded by her servants she clings onto
the proud and confident expectation that Sisera’s 900 chariots could
never have been defeated, and refuses to contemplate defeat. The suggestions
given for his delayed homecoming are purely attributed to his success and the
subsequent spoils of the war; the raping and pillaging, and the adornment with
the beautiful embroidered cloths of the Israelite women. This is not real though.
The irony is that Sisera is probably covered in a cloth, dyed with his own
blood. How the proud are brought down! When we are in denial on an issue, like
Sisera’s mother, it is a place where the truth does not operate. Facing
the truth on any issue, however painful, opens the door to grace and healing
in our lives.
Thus God has intervened. The song concludes with the thought that those who oppose God will perish, but those who love him will rise and shine! Each new day is a new opportunity for God’s people. The victory being celebrated with this song was so great and conclusive that for 40 years the land enjoyed peace. A generation grew up who knew no war.
Thought
Are you in denial over an issue in your life? Bring it to God today.
Prayer
Father, I thank you for the promise of fresh strength each new day. I pray
that I would not deny you by choosing to believe the wrong things about situations
in my life. Help me to remember not to put my trust in human wisdom or power,
but to trust you in all areas of my life. Amen
Notes
So again history repeats itself! An interval of 40 years’ peaceful prosperity
was long enough for another generation to grow up, neglect God, and “do
what the Lord said was wrong”. This seems another way of saying the people
ignored God and chose to do their own thing. It’s amazing how this so
easily happens, and it is still a temptation to us all. When all is going well
in our lives, we tend not to need God and our relationship with him can suffer.
Here God chooses to grab the attention of his people again by raising up another
adversary, this time Midian, whose name means “strife”. The Midianites’ secret
weapon seemed to be camels!
The enemy tactics consisted of 7 years of annual border raids, robbing the Israelites of harvests and livestock, leading to poverty and famine. The fear of the Midianites led to the people fleeing to the mountains and caves, leaving all they had worked for behind. These desperate circumstances led to the Israelites crying out to God for help. They needed him now they had nowhere else to turn and nothing else left.
The lesson for us is not to wait until hardships come before turning to God for help. Our Father in heaven desires a day by day relationship with us, not based primarily on our needs being met, but on our desire to love him with all we are, and be loved by all he is.
Thought
Do I only have time for God when I’m in trouble?
Prayer idea
Today, instead of coming to God with a “shopping list” of requests,
just spend time being present with Father God, loving and being loved by him.
Judges 6 v 7-10
When the Israelites cried out to the LORD against the Midianites, the LORD
sent a prophet to them. He said, “This is what the LORD, the God of
Israel, says: I brought you out of Egypt, the land of slavery. I saved you
from the Egyptians and from all those who were against you. I forced the
Canaanites out of their land and gave it to you. Then I said to you, ‘I
am the LORD your God. Live in the land of the Amorites, but do not worship
their gods.’ But you did not obey me.”
Notes
God’s first response to his people’s cry for help is to send them
a prophet, as his spokesman, before he sends them a deliverer. The prophet
reminds them of how they have messed up and explains the reason for the current
crisis in the nation. He lets them understand what is really going on. He explains
the “signs of the times” from God’s perspective. It is not
that God has deserted his people, but that they have chosen to desert God!
They had forgotten the implications and commands of the covenant God had made
with Moses when he had brought the enslaved people out of Egypt. He had given
them freedom and a promised land, and in return God had wanted his people’s
loyalty and obedience. As they turn their back on him, so they have returned
to oppression. Sin has its consequences. The hope behind the prophecy is that
the Lord God who delivered his people from the tyranny of Egypt can also deliver
them from the Midianites. He has the power!
How often we need reminding of who God is. How easy it is to forget him and
what he’s done. So many things crowd into our lives, so many voices and
experiences that God can easily be neglected. The Bible is full of passages
where the people are again reminded of what God has done for them in their
history. God is constantly calling us back to renewed loyalty and relationship,
and each day offers a fresh start for us to renew our love covenant with him.
Thought
Take time to reflect on what God has done in your life in the past and then
thank him for the times when you have been aware of him at work!
Prayer
Lord, I choose to remember you today. Thank you for all you have done in my
life in the past. Help me to trust you with my future. Amen
Judges 6 v 11-13
The angel of the LORD came and sat down under the oak tree at Ophrah that
belonged to Joash, one of the Abiezrite people. Gideon, Joash’s son, was separating
some wheat from the chaff in a winepress to keep the wheat from the Midianites.
The angel of the LORD appeared to Gideon and said, “The LORD is with
you, mighty warrior!”
Then Gideon said, “Sir, if the LORD is with us, why are we having so
much trouble? Where are the miracles our ancestors told us he did when the
LORD brought them out of Egypt? But now he has left us and has handed us over
to the Midianites.”
Notes
I am told that Ophrah means “dust” and Joash means “despair”.
It sums up where Gideon and the Israelites are when the angel of the Lord turns
up, in the dust of despair. Israel had sunk to her lowest condition since they
arrived in the Promised Land.
Gideon’s beginnings at the time of his calling are not promising. He is in the humiliating position of hiding in a winepress trying to thresh wheat. This was a hopeless task as there would be little space to thresh effectively and no breeze to winnow the grain. It may indicate the smallness of the harvest, but more than anything it showed the fear the people lived in. Gideon is intimidated by the times he lived in, and had withdrawn from the world around him. The odds were stacked against him and he had no stomach for the fight. The greeting of the angel of the Lord seems humorous in the extreme. Gideon is acting like anything but a “mighty warrior” in his weakness, but the key is in the promise that “The Lord is with you”. God makes all the difference. Throughout scripture, God has chosen the weak, the untrained and the inadequate to fulfil his purposes. This is to underline that fruitfulness in his kingdom is not based on our abilities but on his grace and power.
Gideon continues to respond as a victim, not as a warrior. His complaint echoed the views of his generation. The Lord has forsaken us; he is the God of history not of the present. If he is real why doesn’t he just turn up and do something? The Lord is about to demonstrate to Gideon that he truly is a present help in time of trouble.
Thought
With God’s help we can do so much more than we ever believe possible
of ourselves.
Prayer
Lord, help me to believe in who you say I am, not what I think I am. Amen
Judges 6 v 14-18
The LORD turned to Gideon and said, “Go with your strength and save
Israel from the Midianites. I am the one who is sending you.”
But Gideon answered, “Lord, how can I save Israel? My family group is
the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least important member of my family.”
The LORD answered him, “I will be with you. It will seem as if the Midianites
you are fighting are only one man.”
Then Gideon said to the LORD, “If you are pleased with me, give me proof
that it is really you talking with me. Please wait here until I come back to
you. Let me bring my offering and set it in front of you.”
And the LORD said, “I will wait until you return.”
Notes
Gideon’s response to his mighty commission tells us a lot about the man,
but also probably tells us a lot about ourselves as well. How would you respond
to God, if he appeared to you and gave you the task he gave Gideon?
Would your response be, “I’ll get right on with it; you chose wisely in me Lord, I’m the prefect candidate”? Or are you more likely to react like Gideon, who said, “You don’t mean me do you? Don’t you know my background? Aren’t you aware of my circumstances? Can’t you see how weak and pathetic I am?”
Gideon’s perspective was distorted; he only saw himself through his own eyes. Eyes that only had one view of the world, a world where God’s people were defeated and dejected and feeling deserted, resorting to hiding in caves. It is like Gideon saw his world through a pair of glasses that were blurred, tinted and scratched by his experiences of life.
Wouldn’t it be great if, when you became a Christian, God gave you a new set of lenses to wear that would let you see everything the way God sees it? Life would take on new meaning and everything would be much clearer! However faith isn’t that simple.
The truth behind this story is that we put much less value on our lives than God does. We have a limited view of who we are or what we can achieve for him. Gideon thought he was useless and inadequate; God thought he was a mighty warrior. Who was right in the end? The Lord of course!
Thought
God’s strength is perfected in our weakness.
Prayer
Lord, teach me to see the world through your eyes, not mine. Help me to see
people I deal with through your eyes, not mine. Teach me to see myself through
your eyes, not mine, because how you see things is the truth that sets people
free. Amen
Judges 6 v 19-23
So Gideon went in and cooked a young goat, and with twenty quarts of flour,
made bread without yeast. Then he put the meat into a basket and the broth
into a pot. He brought them out and gave them to the angel under the oak
tree.
The angel of God said to Gideon, “Put the meat and the bread without
yeast on that rock over there. Then pour the broth on them.” And Gideon
did as he was told. The angel of the LORD touched the meat and the bread with
the end of the stick that was in his hand. Then fire jumped up from the rock
and completely burned up the meat and the bread! And the angel of the LORD
disappeared! Then Gideon understood he had been talking to the angel of the
LORD. So Gideon cried out, “Lord GOD! I have seen the angel of the LORD
face to face!”
But the LORD said to Gideon, “Calm down! Don’t be afraid! You will
not die!”
Notes
It says something of the tremendous patience of God with us that the angel
of the Lord is willing to wait for the several hours it would take for Gideon
to prepare this meal as an offering. God is always gracious enough to give
us time to embrace his truth in our lives. For Gideon this meal was a big
sacrifice at a time of famine. There was cost in his offering.
In the midst of this miraculous encounter Gideon “understood” God was with him at the oak tree; and now it did not matter who he was or what he had to offer in himself, God was with him. God is saying to Gideon look what I can do; there’s no need to feel afraid of the challenge. However the fear of God also came upon naturally timid Gideon because he had seen God and lived! The comforting truth is that the Lord takes time to reassure him at this time of panic. God chooses to work with, as well as in spite of our characters and frailties. Gideon is not going to complete his mission as a dead man! God wanted Gideon to live for him. It is interesting to note how often in the Bible such revelations of God are accompanied by the words, “Do not be afraid”. Are you afraid of something God is asking you to do for him?
Be assured today that God will always help us to complete the tasks that he has set before us, and help us overcome our anxieties and feelings of inadequacy in agreeing to undertake them.
Thought
Philippians 4 v 13: I can do all things through Christ, because he gives me
strength.
Prayer
Lord, help me to know that you are always with me. Thank you for being patient
with me, and not giving up on me. Help me to trust you to work in and through
me to get the job done that you have asked me to do. Amen
The views expressed by the writers of our daily e-mails are not necessarily those of Church Army or word-on-the-web but of the individual writers.
word-on-the-web uses the Scripture text taken from the Youth Bible, New Century Version (Anglicised Edition) copyright 1993 by Word Publishing Milton Keynes