Day 91, Chronological Bible Study
Timeline. Map. Go to today’s Bible reading (use your browser arrow to return): Judges 1:1–3:6 Deterioration—How to Prevent It When our houses are new, the brick or other siding looks beautiful. A new house or a carefully maintained home is usually a statement of success. Unless continually kept up, however, the exterior and roof deteriorate, and it looks awful. The interior may be worse. This is similar to the house or nation of Israel. In just five years, under Joshua’s leadership, the Israelites conquered thirty-one well-fortified kingdoms in Canaan. They inherited a bountiful land, a place of milk and honey. However, after Joshua died, their society deteriorated. What should they have done or not done? What should we do or not do? Do not neglect responsibilities Today we begin the book of Judges. The Judges’ period spans 400 years, from Joshua’s death until King Saul’s reign (see more… for the chronology of the book of Judges). Joshua tried to keep his nation from degenerating by having the Israelites commit to completely following the LORD. The influence of Joshua, however, lasted for only one generation. What happened to cause this deterioration? The tribes, the priests, and the parents all failed in their responsibilities (Judges 1:21, 1:27- 2:3; 2:10). The Israelites failed to drive out the evil Canaanites from their land. The priests failed to instruct the people about Moses’s Law and how to live in obedience to God. The parents failed to teach their children about the LORD. Their children did not know the LORD or what he had done for them. What about us? Is our society failing? Are our churches, Christian organizations, or families failing? Sadly, yes. Why? We can see the reasons when we honestly answer these questions: Do we resist evil behavior or tolerate it? Do our church ministers and teachers teach the Bible faithfully, including the gospel, and apply it to our present situations? Is a personal relationship with God through Jesus emphasized? Are Bible reading and prayer encouraged? Do we faithfully instruct our children in the ways of the LORD? Do we set a good example that they can follow, or are we hypocrites? We must set the proper example and show diligence in our leadership if we are to succeed. It is not someone else’s responsibility—it is ours. Completely obeying the LORD leads to life, peace, and his favor. Stopping the Downward Spiral Judges 2:11-19 provide a summary of the book. This Scripture describes the downward spiral of the Israelites: sin—>servitude—>supplication—>salvation —>sin—>servitude—>supplication—>salvation, etc ., etc. Israel serves and worships idols of the kingdoms they are supposed to dispossess. Idols are fashioned images of imagined gods. When the Israelites worship them, it makes the LORD angry, so he allows other nations to oppress and defeat them. Israel then cries out to God in their misery. In God’s grace and mercy, he sends judges to lead the people morally and militarily. For a while, they have victory and peace, and then they grow complacent. After each judge dies, the Israelites fall into even worse sin than their predecessors. As a result of their sins, their inherited territory shrinks as other nations conquer them. Have any of us gotten into a hopeless cycle of sin? Do we constantly get ourselves into trouble, and someone has to bail us out? There is hope and help in Jesus! To stop the cycle of sin, we must be genuinely sorry and confess our sins. Then if we do not have a relationship with the LORD, we must seek him, and he will save us (more). If we Christians keep messing up, we, too, need to be genuinely sorry and confess our sins. Then we need to renew our commitments. We must completely obey God and not let the world influence us toward wrong behavior and idolatry. Learn what God is trying to teach us Because of Israel’s moral compromises and idolatry, God no longer drives out the inhabitants of Canaan. He does this for two reasons: First, he wants to teach them warfare. A whole generation is growing up not knowing what it is to struggle to secure their inheritance. The Israelites are soft and spoiled, not strong physically or spiritually. Second, God allows the inhabitants to be a thorn in their sides. He wants to test his people to see whether they will obey his commands, which he had given their forefathers through Moses (Judges 3:1-2,4). To prevent deterioration, each generation must struggle, see their lost condition, and seek the LORD for deliverance. Complete obedience leads to life and peace. We must not get soft. We must arm ourselves and always be ready since we are in a spiritual warfare (Ephesians 6:10-18). We must lead disciplined lives to please our LORD. Focus verse Ephesians 5:17(NIV) “Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord's will is.” Discussion What happened to cause the deterioration in Israel? How can we stop a similar deterioration in our nation, church, family, or other organization? How can we stop the cycle of sin so the LORD will keep blessing us? Why is it good for each generation to struggle?
Write a private prayer response to today’s Bible study: Enter your prayer here: Please send your comments to mtbiblestudies@gmail.com Looking Ahead: An undisciplined life leads to chaos. How can we Cure Chaos? Find out in our Next Lesson. Previous Lesson  |  Next Lesson Back to top of page Return to Chronological Bible Studies main page Go to Scriptures main page Go to Topics main page Go to Home page re-edited 4-1-21

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