Compare & Contrast | Sunday, February 4, 2024

Now after the death of Joshua it came to pass that the children of Israel asked of the Lord, saying, "Who shall go up first for us against the Canaanites?" ... And the Lord said, "Judah shall go up. Indeed I have delivered the land into his hand." (Judges 1:1–4)

Judges opens like a movie sequel—replaying Israel's victory before tracing the slow compromises that lead a faithful people into defeat.

Judges as a Sequel

Almost every one of us has movies and characters from childhood we watched over and over. I grew up in the 80s and 90s, back when we had VHS tapes and—if you were really cool—a rewinder. A couple of trilogies stick with me: the epic tale of Marty McFly in Back to the Future, and the great, well-acted story of Daniel LaRusso in The Karate Kid.

Here's the connection. In The Karate Kid, Daniel wins his great victory at the tournament. The next movie opens with a call back to that exact scene—the previous victory. Part three does the same thing, replaying the victory from the end of part two. It keeps reminding you of the triumph that came before.

The Book of Judges does precisely this. Judges is the sequel—part two of the Book of Joshua. In Joshua, Israel had an awesome victory entering the promised land, and one great man of God, Caleb, gave his daughter to a man named Othniel—a story we studied back in Joshua 15. Judges 1 opens with a call back to that very situation, reminding us of Israel's high point before the new story begins.

After the Death of Joshua

"After the death of Joshua" sets the timing. Joshua had led Israel into the land after Moses, and under his leadership they were victorious. They didn't fully take the land—Joshua told them near the end of his life that much land remained to be possessed—but they had their stronghold. As God said through Moses in Deuteronomy 7, "little by little" they would take possession.

So Joshua is dead, and the heads of the twelve tribes gather and ask, "Who shall go up first for us against the Canaanites?" The Lord said, "Judah." This is important. From this point on, the tribe of Judah becomes the leadership tribe—prophesied hundreds of years earlier in Genesis 49. The Messiah, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, would come through this line. From their base in the promised land, God would bring redemption to the whole world, just as He promised Abraham in Genesis 12.

Notice their first order of business: they go to God in prayer. They sought the Lord, and God answered, "Judah; indeed I have delivered the land into his hand."

Improbable Victory by the Hand of God

When Israel first prepared to enter the land, they were the underdogs. They had no well-trained army, little weaponry, and no battle experience for decades—they had been wandering and living in tents. The Canaanites had been in the land for centuries, with fortresses, cities, strong armies, and chariots. It was improbable that this group of nomadic tent dwellers could overtake them. The whole story of Israel taking Canaan is the story of God enabling His people to do what they could never do in their own strength.

The Lord delivered the Canaanites and Perizzites into their hands; they killed ten thousand men at Bezek. They captured Adoni-Bezek—"Adoni" means lord—and cut off his thumbs and big toes. Why? Adoni-Bezek himself confessed: "Seventy kings with their thumbs and big toes cut off used to gather scraps under my table; as I have done, so God has repaid me." A conquering king, when he defeated an enemy, would cut off their thumbs and big toes so they could never hold a sword or run in battle again. He had done it to seventy rulers; now it came to his own door.

Caleb and Othniel

Judah fought against Jerusalem and took it, then went down against the Canaanites in the mountains, the south, and the lowland, including Hebron—formerly Kirjath Arba. Then we meet Caleb again, that great man of God.

We were introduced to Caleb in Numbers 13. Moses sent twelve spies, one from each tribe, to search out the promised land. They returned after forty days reporting it was a good land flowing with milk and honey—but ten of them said there were giants and strongholds and no way to overtake them. They were right about the situation but wrong because they underestimated God. Joshua and Caleb, the two faithful spies, said, "God has given them into our hands; let us go up." But the people listened to the majority report, were discouraged, would not trust God, and wandered in the wilderness for thirty-eight years. That entire generation died in the wilderness. Only Joshua and Caleb entered.

So now, at eighty-five years old, Caleb fights for his inheritance. He says, "Whoever attacks Kirjath Sepher and takes it, to him I will give my daughter Achsah as wife." Othniel, the son of Caleb's younger brother Kenaz, takes it—and Othniel's name means "lion of God." Caleb gives him Achsah, who asks her father for a blessing, and he grants her the upper and lower springs. This is a high point, told in Joshua 15 and retold here to set the stage—just like the victory at the opening of part two of The Karate Kid.

"The Lord Was with Judah"

Judah went on, taking Gaza, Ashkelon, and Ekron—three of the five chief cities of the Philistines, who will return later in our study. And the text says, "So the Lord was with Judah."

As Judges opens we are reminded of a high point, a victory, and it sets the stage for everything to come. I can think of no better way to direct the sequel to Joshua than this. Highlight those words in verse 1: they "asked of the Lord." This reminds us that Israel's conquest of Canaan—the possession God promised Abraham hundreds of years earlier—was all by the hand of God. Not their own ingenuity, power, plan, or strength.

The Book of Joshua is a story of obedience and faith leading to victory and blessing. There were a few low points where they failed to trust or seek the Lord, but for the most part it is the story of Israel faithfully pursuing God and experiencing His blessing. When Joshua opens, God tells him to be "strong and very courageous"—not to wield the sword, but to observe and do all the law, turning neither to the right nor the left. "Then you will make your way prosperous, and you will have good success" (Joshua 1).

The Deuteronomic Equation

Point one: I've talked many times about the deuteronomic principle—the deuteronomic equation. What Deuteronomy teaches and Joshua illustrates is this: faith plus obedience equals victory times blessing. You don't need to raise your hand—I think we all want victory multiplied by blessing in our lives.

This is the simple rule of sowing and reaping. As Paul wrote in Galatians, if you sow to the Spirit—planting in your life what God's word reveals—you will reap life; but if you sow to the flesh, you will reap destruction. Deuteronomy 28 promises blessing upon blessing for obedience, but it also speaks plainly of cursing and punishment for those who disobey, rebel, or turn away.

Point two: the deuteronomic equation portrayed in Judges is disobedience plus compromise plus rebellion equals defeat times cursing. It is an "if-then" conditional equation, the law of sowing and reaping, seen throughout Scripture and observable in reality. But how could Israel, beginning at such a high point, fall into this place of defeat?

Begin with Prayer

The first thing to notice is how Israel began: after Joshua's death, "the children of Israel asked of the Lord." They gathered as a nation, probably at Shiloh or Gilgal where the tabernacle was, and asked God what He wanted them to do. They sought the Lord.

If you want victory in your life, apply this truth. The best first step in any endeavor is to go to God in prayer. This isn't only an Old Testament principle. James writes: "Come now, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city...and make a profit,' whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor... Instead you ought to say, 'If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.' But now you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil" (James 4).

I can look back and see a direct correlation between my prayerfulness—or lack of it—and the victory or difficulty I experienced. How will we know God's will? Solomon wrote it 3,000 years ago: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths" (Proverbs 3:5–6). Israel did exactly this, and God directed their path.

Point three: the path to faithful obedience begins with a faithful and prayerful pursuit of God. Last week I gave five things we can do to move our culture toward blessing—renew our minds through Scripture, be salt and light, create Christ-centered countercultural communities, engage the lost generation, and engage the culture persuasively with the gospel. But the pre-step to all five is to seek God in prayer.

Far too often prayer isn't the first thing we do—it's the twenty-first. I've found myself running into a brick wall over and over, trying everything in my own strength, only to finally say, "Maybe I should pray," and the obstacle dissolves as God breaks down strongholds. Prayer is a mighty weapon. We know that theologically, but have we actually practiced it?

Small Compromises

Now look at how that contrasts with the rest of the chapter. "The Lord was with Judah; and they drove out the mountaineers, but they could not drive out the inhabitants of the lowland, because they had chariots of iron." Those chariots become a real snare later on. Benjamin "did not drive out the Jebusites." Manasseh did not drive them out, "for the Canaanites were determined to remain in the land." Ephraim did not, nor Zebulun, nor Asher, nor Naphtali—they dwelt among the Canaanites and put them under tribute. The Amorites forced the children of Dan into the mountains.

Israel would not drive out the inhabitants, and eventually said, "They're too hard to expel; we'll just put them to work for us." But that's not what God called them to do. I'm reminded of Paul's words in Galatians 5: "You ran well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth?"

Point four: the long path to destruction and exile begins with minor degrees of compromise. It's just a little sin. Just this small town over here. Just an occasional failure. I mostly have it under control; I can quit anytime; no one else knows. But Paul says, "A little leaven leavens the whole lump." Leaven pictures sin—just a little, allowed to remain, brings great destruction.

How did Israel end up in defeat and cursing? One small compromise after another. How did the church in America lose its position of influence? One small compromise after another. It wasn't always the big, major failure—it's the little degrees that stack up and become a snare.

Repent and Do the First Works

How do we return? Jesus wrote to the church at Ephesus in Revelation 2—a strong church with a great testimony that started having little compromises, one leading to another, until they had left their first love. Jesus said, "Repent and do the first works"—turn back and do the beginning things—"or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand."

The whole church in America needs that exhortation: repent and do the first works. But we also need to take it individually, praying David's prayer in Psalm 139: "Search me, O God, and know my heart...and see if there is any wicked way in me." This is the process of sanctification, growing in Christlikeness, and it requires us to regularly come before the Lord.

Let me tell you, that's a hard prayer to pray. At every point where things weren't going the way I thought they should—"I'm a child of God, I serve God, I'm a pastor; this should be easier"—when I finally ask, "God, is there something wrong in my heart?" I cannot think of a single time He hasn't answered. And I cannot think of a single time I really liked His answer.

The Marks of Knowing God

My prayer for myself and for you is that we grow in Christlikeness and bear the fruit of the Spirit: "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control" (Galatians 5). All things we see in abundance in Southern California, right? No—we don't see a lot of that. But it ought to be seen in the church, in me.

These are the identifiable marks of a person who knows God, not merely knows about God. Peter says, "Add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ."

For a long time in American Protestant Christianity, the marks people look for are the gifts of the Spirit—tongues, prophecy, a word of knowledge. Those are good and valuable, and God still uses them. But the greatest mark is love. "Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a sounding brass... and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing." People can manifest spiritual gifts and be very far from God. If you're not walking in step with God, it will be clear—impatient, lacking self-control, faith, goodness, kindness, love, and joy.

A Snare That Arouses God's Anger

Israel's path began with failing to seek the Lord, then refusing to obey His command to subdue the land fully. They allowed their enemies to remain and tried to make them work for them. So in Judges 2:1, "the Angel of the Lord came up from Gilgal to Bochim and said... 'You shall make no covenant with the inhabitants of this land; you shall tear down their altars. But you have not obeyed My voice. Why have you done this? Therefore...they shall be thorns in your side, and their gods shall be a snare to you.'"

And so it happened: "Then the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and served the Baals... they followed other gods... and they provoked the Lord to anger" (Judges 2:11).

Point five: any sin that is allowed to remain will inevitably become a snare. Not only does it become a trap, it arouses the anger of God—and take careful note, it is unwise to anger God. "The anger of the Lord was hot against Israel. So He delivered them into the hands of plunderers... and they were greatly distressed."

Predicted, Promised, Expected, Avoidable

Note the words "as the Lord had said" (Judges 2:15). God told them this exactly in Exodus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Israel's calamity was predicted. It was promised—"if you serve their gods, it will surely be a snare to you" (Exodus 23:33). Therefore it was expected. And here is the hard one: it was avoidable. They didn't have to experience this.

We should be thankful all these things were written down so we could learn from them. Isn't it better to learn from someone else's mistakes than to repeat them yourself? Yet how often do we have to learn the hard way? "All these things were written for our instruction... Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall." Predicted, promised, expected, and avoidable.

Is God Vengeful?

One final observation. The hand of the Lord was against Israel, His anger aroused. Over the years I've had more than a few conversations with people who have "deconstructed"—left the faith—and tell me, "I can't serve a god who's angry and vengeful and punishes people."

On that point I want to say: a distant God who does not judge is an impersonal and unloving God. That is the god of the deist—far off, uninterested, uninvolved, apathetic, impotent, who cannot and does not save. But a personal God who loves cannot not punish. The writer of Hebrews understood this: "My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord... For whom the Lord loves He chastens... If you are without chastening... then you are illegitimate and not sons" (Hebrews 12). If you experience the Lord's chastening, it's because God loves you.

Active and Passive Judgment

There are at least two kinds of punishment from God. One is active punishment—Sodom and Gomorrah destroyed, the flood, the plagues of Egypt. The prophets called this "the day of the Lord"—any time God intervenes in the realm of man for judgment. The Bible pictures one great and terrible day of the Lord still to come, but historically these active judgments are relatively infrequent and short. It is a day of the Lord, not a century of the Lord. Thank God.

But there is another kind—passive judgment—where God steps back and allows you to reap the consequences of your sinful actions. I think it is observably true that the United States is experiencing not God's direct, active punishment, but His passive judgment, where He says, "I'm going to let you do it on your own," and we see the result.

What do you say to someone in that place? God said through Isaiah, "Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; nor His ear heavy, that it cannot hear. But your iniquities have separated you from your God." I don't think God can affirmatively answer the prayer "God bless America" at this moment—and that's not only true for America; many places have rejected God and invited His passive judgment.

Return to the Lord

What ought we do? Joel says, "Now, therefore...turn to Me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning. So rend your heart, and not your garments; return to the Lord your God, for He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness... Who knows if He will turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind Him?"

Scripture is very clear: faith plus obedience results in victory and blessing; disobedience, compromise, and rebellion bring defeat and cursing. The path to faithfulness is to return to God in faithful, prayerful pursuit. And when you do, the most awesome thing happens: "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." That cleansing is a pruning work, removing the dead branches so we bear fruit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, goodness, self-control.

What does "confess" mean? It comes from a Greek compound—homo (same) and logeo (to say)—to say the same thing as God. It's not coming with excuses: "I didn't have self-control because that person is such a jerk." Confession is coming and saying, "Regardless of what that person did, I sinned; my anger was sin. God, would You pardon and forgive me?" He is faithful and just to do that.

"Only Fear the Lord"

Twenty-five years ago this month—the last week of January 1999—my friend and mentor Pastor Tony asked me to teach the junior high ministry. I really wanted to say no, so I gave a "Christian no": "I'll pray about it." Many of us say that when asked to serve, then sit on our hands. But I respected Tony, so I actually went home and prayed, hoping God would give me a reason to get out of it.

God spoke to me—and that's rare; maybe five times in my life can I say the Lord spoke to me, almost always through His word. I was reading 1 Samuel 12:23: "Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you; but I will teach you the good and the right way. Only fear the Lord, and serve Him in truth with all your heart; for consider what great things He has done for you. But if you still do wickedly, you shall be swept away, both you and your king."

So God said: teach and preach My word, pray for people, and tell them—only fear the Lord and serve Him in sincerity and truth, for consider what great things He has done for you; and if you don't, you'll be swept away. It's not always the message we want to preach, but that passage says, "Far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to do it." So I'll keep doing it until He says I'm done—and He hasn't yet, though I've asked Him a couple of times.

There is no hope for us—individually, as a church, or as a nation—without a return to God in repentance and faith. God help us.

Closing Prayer

God, we do need Your grace. We need Your Holy Spirit to enable and empower us to be lights in a dark world and salt to a distasteful culture. First, give us the desire, because You work in us to desire and to do Your good pleasure. Maybe we don't even yet have the desire because we're fearful or anxious—God, would You stir in us a desire to shine brightly, not our own light, but reflecting Your light, the light of Your grace and truth, to the people of this world.

God, I don't think there's a single person here, or within ten miles of this building, who wants to see cursing and destruction. We would love to see blessing and victory. Would You lead us in the path toward those things—direct our steps, work in our hearts, renew our minds by Your word, and transform our lives so that we bear fruit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control. Make those things abound in my life and in the lives of my brothers and sisters here. We ask this today in Jesus' name. Amen.