20/12/2015
Every time you turn on the news, you see evidence of the physical battles that seem to be mushrooming out of nowhere. But the world is engaged in an even larger battle than these physical ones, the battle between good and evil. Persecution of Christians is at an all-time high. So is poverty and human trafficing and drugs. Despite modern medicine, new and horrible diseases appear and ravage the planet. The core family continues to breakdown with divorce and single-parent homes becoming the norm.
This all reminds me of the story of Deborah. Just like Jabin, the king of Canaan who oppressed God's people for twenty years (See Judges 4:1-3), we are being oppressed by the spirits of darkness: "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places." (Eph 6:12)
For Israel, God raised up Deborah and Barak (Judges 4:4-9), and He has raised us up a Deliverer as well, Jesus Christ: "Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you." (Luke 10:19)
Despite the fact that God raised up a deliverer for Israel, the people were still required to go out and fight: "Barak summoned Zebulon and Naphtali to come to Kedesh. Ten thousand men followed him, and Deborah went up with him." (Judges 4:10). In the same way, we are required to stand up and fight along side our Deliverer, against the sin in ourselves (Romans 6), and also to wage war against the evil one (Ephesians 6:10-18).
After the account of Jabin's defeat, we read a very interesting song known as "The Song of Deborah". As you read through this song, you realize that although many went out and fought against Jabin, many stayed at home to mind their own affairs. These were reprimanded for their actions: "Why did you sit among the sheepfolds, To hear the pipings for the flocks? The divisions of Reuben have great searchings of heart. Gilead stayed beyond the Jordan, And why did Dan remain on ships? Asher continued at the seashore, And stayed by his inlets." (Judges 5:16-17)
Who cares that they didn't fight? After all, the battle was still won in favor of Israel!
Let's look at what the Lord did to those who did not follow the call: "'Curse Meroz,' said the angel of the LORD, 'Curse its inhabitants bitterly, Because they did not come to the help of the LORD...against the mighty.'" (Judges 5:23)
Who is Meroz?
Good question. This is the only place in scripture where this place is mentioned. After it was cursed by God, it did not survive long enough to make it into any further history books.
Pure supposition? Perhaps. But the point is, those who did not answer the call to join in the battle were reprimanded.
What about us? We are at war, and we are called to join the fight. Have we done so? Or are we, like Dan, Asher and Reuben, putting our emphasis into the accumulation of our own wealth and happiness? Can it be said of us, as it was of Meroz, that we did not come to help the Lord against the mighty warriors? Have we called down the reprimand of God upon ourselves?
So many say they are not receiving the abundant life Jesus promised. Could it be that this is because we have not embraced His cause? That we have not wholeheartedly joined in the battle?
Remember: "You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier." (2 Tim. 2: 3,4)
Think about it!
