February 25

God reminded His people over and over about the blessings they would receive from Him when they obeyed Him and the curses they would receive from Him when they disobeyed Him. “If you keep my laws and are careful to obey my commands, I will send the seasonal rains (Lev. 25:3).....I will give you peace in the land, and you will be able to sleep without fear” (vs.6).....All your enemies will fall beneath the blows of your weapons” (vs.8)......I will live among you, and I will not despise you. I will walk among you.....”(vss.11&12). “I have lifted the yoke of slavery from your neck so you can walk free with your heads held high” (vs.13). Slavery changes our whole disposition; whether it is slavery to a human master or slavery to sin. Our appearance and our countenance takes on the look of defeat.
The period of the Judges pictures the cycle that took place when the Israelites wavered between obeying God and disobeying God. When they disobeyed God, He would eventually let their enemies rule over them. They were fearful of their enemies until such time that they repented of their disobedience and turned to God for help. God would raise a judge or a military ruler who would lead the Israelites to victory over their enemies and restore their dignity to them again. This cycle repeated itself over and over during this time of their history.
History can be a great teacher if we watch and learn. Paul tells us in Romans 15:4, “these things were written in the Scriptures long ago to teach us. They give us hope and encouragement as we wait patiently for God’s promises.” But, history will only prove helpful if we learn from it. For some reason, we are prone to repeat the mistakes of our past and the mistakes of our ancestors. Each of us must choose for ourselves whether we will listen to God and obey Him, or stubbornly disobey Him. But, in that decision we also choose for ourselves the consequences of obedience or disobedience. Those consequences are spelled out for us over and over in Scripture. Joshua had it right when he said, “if you are unwilling to serve the Lord, then choose today whom you will serve.....But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15). What choice will you make?