Category: Judges

The Consequences of Disobedience

 

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Everyone faces the consequences of their sin every day.

Maybe you disobeyed your parents and got grounded. Maybe your mom or dad got pulled over for speeding. No matter how big or small the sin, there are always consequences.

In today’s passage from Judges 16:4-22, we will see the horrible consequences Samson faced when he disobeyed God’s law and did what he wanted instead.

When we look at Chapter 16, verse 4 shows Samson’s horrible mistake right away. He committed adultery with a woman he wasn’t married to, which God commands against in Exodus 20:14, where He says, “You shall not commit adultery.” 

To make matters worse, this woman, whose name is Delilah, is a Philistine, not an Israelite. God told Israel not to marry women from other nations to protect them from being drawn into those women’s false idol worship. Solomon made this same mistake years later, in 1 Kings 11:2, which says, “They were from nations about which the LORD had told the Israelites, “You must not intermarry with them, because they will surely turn your hearts after their gods.” Nevertheless, Solomon held fast to them in love.”

Clearly, Samson is already breaking two big commands from God. However, things get worse.

The Philistines wanted to capture Samson because of all the times he had attacked them, but they first had to find out the secret to his superhuman strength, which was his long hair. He had never cut his hair as part of a vow to God.

They convinced Samson’s new lover, Delilah, to find out Samson’s secret for them. When Delilah tries to find out the secret in Verses 6-14, Samson lies to her 3 times, further adding to his sin.

Samson should have ran far away from Delilah the first time she tried to get him to spill the beans, but instead, he continued living in sin with her for many days, lying the whole time.

In the end, in Verses 15-21, he finally tells Delilah the reason for his enormous strength, and Delilah has his head shaved in his sleep. This is further disobedience against God, since Samson had vowed never to cut his hair. The consequences come quickly when the Philistines capture Samson and brutally gouge his eyes out, putting him in prison for the rest of his life.

Samson ended up losing his freedom and sight, all because of his disobedience to God.

So what can we learn from this extreme example?

The truth is that every single sin we commit has consequences, whether we know it or not. We will never, ever get away with a single sin.

Sometimes it might seem like we have gotten away with doing something wrong.

Maybe no one found out that you snuck out of the house one night, or no one saw you steal candy from the grocery store. The truth is, though, that God sees every single sin, even if no one on earth has, and He will bring those secret sins into the light, judging every single one. (Ecclesiastes 12:14, Romans 2:16)

You can escape man, but no one can ever escape God, no matter where you go.

Everyone has sin, whether it’s secret or not, so what do we do to fix this judgement that God says He’s going to bring on them?

The answer is in Jesus Christ.

If you have given your life to Christ, know that your sins are forgiven. Now live your life for God, doing your best through His power to get rid of sin in your life and asking forgiveness when you don’t. And most importantly, tell others this good news that has changed your life so much. Jesus tells us in the Great Commission to “go and make disciples of all nations.

That is a command for every Christian, so we all need to be working our hardest to tell everyone we know about Jesus, who has saved us from the consequences of our sin.

Finally, if you do not know Jesus, know that He came to take God’s judgement for your sin upon Himself on the cross when He died. All you have to do is confess and turn away from your sins and trust in Jesus for your salvation, choosing to live your life for Him from now on.

If you do this, you will have new life in Christ and be saved from the wrath.

If you have never given your life to God, do that today!

It is so important. You don’t have to be like Samson, stuck in your sin and facing horrible consequences. Just turn to Jesus today.

Johnathan

Let’s talk in the comments below:

  1. What is a time where you have disobeyed God and suffered the consequences?
  2. Who can you share the good news of the Gospel with today?
  3. Have you accepted Christ as your savior?

Good Morning Guys Resources {Judges 16-21}

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Welcome back to the Good Morning Guys Study through Judges!

If you’re new, feel free to jump right in and follow along. Everything you need for this week is below, including this week’s Bible Reading Plan, Reflection Questions, and Verses of the Day.  Don’t forget to check back on Friday for my weekly blog post.

Here’s This Week’s Bible Reading Plan

Monday – Judges 16

Tuesday – Judges 17

Wednesday – Judges 18

Thursday – Judges 19

Friday – Judges 20-21

The Reflection Questions for the Week

{These questions are included inside the journal .  If you do not have the journal, I encourage you to reflect on these questions and answer them in your notebook.}

Monday-Chapter 16:

Samson’s choice to follow his own human nature allowed him to be captured by his enemies.

Name a time when you ignored God’s instructions and you failed.

Tuesday-Chapter 17:

During these times, everyone did what was right in their own eyes.

What problems arise when we all do what we feel is right instead of seeking out God’s counsel first?

Wednesday-Chapter 18:

The priest was easily convinced to help those who robbed Micah with the promise of a promotion.

Have you ever been placed in a situation where you had to choose between personal desires and God’s desires?

Thursday-Chapter 19:

The Levite and the man of the house protected themselves over the protection of the women in the home. They selfishly did what was right in their own eyes.

Selfishness hurts those around us, especially those in our own home. Do you struggle with selfishness in your home?

Friday-Chapter 20:

God waited until Israel was willing to confront their own sin before delivering the victory to them against the tribe of Benjamin.

Is there something God is attempting to get you to confront so that He can bless you?

Chapter 21:

The tribe of Benjamin was allowed to rebuild after they had been dealt with.

Name a time that you had to rebuild certain areas of your own life to get back on track with God.

The Verses of the Day

Monday: O Lord God, please remember me and please strengthen me-Judges 16:28

Tuesday: In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes-Judges 17:6

Wednesday: Go in peace. The journey on which you go is under the eye of the Lord-Judges 18:6

Thursday: Peace be to you-Judges 19:20

Friday: Purge evil-Judges 20:13

In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes-Judges 21:25

 

Don’t forget to join me out on Instagram every morning at GuysInTheWord.

I’ll see you back here this Friday as we wrap-up our week of Bible Study.

Johnathan

You Can’t Live Life Alone

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Have you tried to do anything without God’s help before?

Many times we try to do things our own way, and by our own strength. We forget to ask God for His help and guidance when life gets rough.

This is because we don’t actually trust God when He says that He “causes all things to work together for good to those who love God.” (Romans 8:28, NASB)

We forget that He is in control, so we try to control the situation ourselves. However, we should look to the example of Samson in this week’s passage to see how we should respond when things get rough in our lives.

This week we will be specifically looking at Judges 15:18-19.

These verses tell the story of Samson after he had just finished defeating the enemy Philistines with the jawbone of a donkey. At the beginning of Chapter 15, Samson had tried to visit his wife, who was a Philistine, only to discover that her dad had given her to another man to marry! Understandably, Samson was very angry, so he got revenge on the Philistines by burning up all their crops. The Philistines tried to come and kill Samson, but Samson fought and killed 1,000 of them with the jawbone of a donkey, defeating their army. It was a great victory for Samson and Israel, given to them by God.

After the battle, in our story today, Samson is in the wilderness where the battle had just taken place. He was understandably very tired and thirsty, but since he was in the desert, there was nothing at all to drink!

Samson was sure he was going to die of thirst out in the desert, but He knew he could rely on God to save him.

Samson cried out to God in Verse 18 and said, “You have granted this great salvation by the hand of your servant, and shall I now die of thirst and fall into the hands of the Philistines?”

He gave God glory for the victory, and then asked Him to rescue him from his certain death in the wilderness. In verse 19, God came through for Samson by splitting the ground open and causing water to gush out! Samson was miraculously saved.

We can learn so much from this story of Samson’s deadly problem and God’s miraculous provision.

When life is good, we tend to forget about God. When we forget about God, we don’t seek His council when trying to make decisions, and instead try to make everything work for ourselves.

Maybe we want to date someone, or we want to get a job, or we want to buy a car. Whatever it is, when we don’t trust God in those decisions, it always inevitably leads to failure.

Instead, we must learn to trust God in the good times by looking to Him in His word and through prayer for advice when we are making these decisions. Only then will we be truly successful because only then will we be following God’s will.

When we are in a difficult situation, we often lose sight of God as well. Instead of turning to Him to help us, we try and figure things out ourselves.

The problem is, we aren’t able to bear our burdens by ourselves. God didn’t make us that way. God made us to rely on Him when we are struggling. This is what gives God the most glory.

When we are going through rough times, God wants us to cry out to Him in prayer like Samson did, so He can come to our rescue. This gives God glory because we acknowledge our weakness and God is glorified as strong in saving and helping us.

You can not live life without God, whether in good times or bad. Always look to God when making decisions, and thank Him for your many blessings, because none of us deserve the many blessings we have been given by God. And when life gets rough, follow Samson’s example and cry out to God for help. He will never abandon you.

Let’s talk in the comments below:

  1. What is something you are trying to do your own way instead of trusting God?
  2. How has God helped you make it through a difficult time in your life?

Good Morning Guys Resources {Judges 11-15}

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Welcome back to the Good Morning Guys Study through Judges!

If you’re new, feel free to jump right in and follow along. Everything you need for this week is below, including this week’s Bible Reading Plan, Reflection Questions, and Verses of the Day.  Don’t forget to check back on Friday for my weekly blog post.

Here’s This Week’s Bible Reading Plan

Monday – Judges 11

Tuesday – Judges 12

Wednesday – Judges 13

Thursday – Judges 14

Friday – Judges 15

The Reflection Questions for the Week

{These questions are included inside the journal .  If you do not have the journal, I encourage you to reflect on these questions and answer them in your notebook.}

Chapter 11:

Jephthah remained confident in God’s promises knowing that God would prevail.

Name a time when you faced a situation that you had to remind yourself that God’s promises would be fulfilled no matter what.

Chapter 12:

God and God alone can save us, not man.

Name a time that God has stepped in and rescued you from a horrible situation.

Chapter 13:

Monoah sought out God’s instructions. God was faithful in revealing their duties.

When was the last time you sought direction from God?

Chapter 14:

The Spirit of the Lord came upon Samson twice in this chapter. This shows the involvement of God in Samson’s life.

How have you seen God’s involvement in your life?

Chapter 15:

Even though Samson was strong, he knew he had to call on God to help him.

Have you ever been in a situation where you were determined to fix the situation yourself, only to be reminded by God, that we must rely on Him and not ourselves?

The Verses of the Day

Monday:

All that the Lord our God has given us, we will possess-Judges 11:24

Tuesday:

The Lord gave them into my hand.Judges 12:3

Wednesday:

And the woman bore a son and called his name Samson. And the young man grew, and the Lord blessed him.-Judges 13:24

Thursday:

Then the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon him.-Judges 14:6

Friday:

And he called upon the Lord and said, “You have granted this great salvation by the hand of your servant.”-Judges 15:18

 

Don’t forget to join me out on Instagram every morning at GuysInTheWord.

I’ll see you back here this Friday as we wrap-up our week of Bible Study.

Johnathan

How God Works Through Our Weakness

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Have you ever had to do something that you thought was too big and too hard for you to do all by yourself?

Maybe you had to lift something really heavy or do something really hard in a sport you play. We’ve all had those experiences, but I’m pretty sure none of us has ever had to save a whole nation from an evil oppressor.

That’s exactly what Gideon was told to do by the Lord in Judges 6:11-16

Israel was being oppressed by an evil nation called Midian. God had actually caused Israel to be oppressed in Judges 6:1-10 because Israel was disobeying Him and worshipping false gods.

The people of Israel had to hide out in caves and forts, and the Midianites kept stealing their animals and crops.

Israel got so fed up that they finally cried out to the One True God to save them. That’s where our story today about Gideon picks up.

In Chapter 6 Verses 11 and 12, we see an angel approach Gideon while he’s working and telling him that God is with him, and calling him a “mighty man of valor.”

Can you imagine an angel randomly coming up to you and calling you a warrior?

To make things even crazier, he tells Gideon that he’s the man God wants to defeat the Midianite oppressors of Israel.

At this point, anyone would be pretty worried about having to lead a war to save a nation. Gideon asks the angel how he’s supposed to do this when he’s the weakest man in the weakest family of his tribe.

The angel simply tells him that God will be with him.

Looking ahead to Chapter 7 Verse 19, we see that in the end God helped Gideon defeat the Midianites just like the angel says here.

So what can we learn from this crazy story of God using a weak, insignificant person to save a nation?

Chances are most of us can identify with Gideon. We’re just normal guys living normal lives. We’re not important or strong.

But just like Gideon, God can use us despite our weaknesses.

The Bible is filled with stories of weak, insignificant people being used by God. Just look at the twelve apostles! They started out as lowly fisherman and tax collectors, and God used them to establish His church!

So how does God want to use you for Him today?

Here are some ways God wants to use you for His kingdom even when you think you’re insignificant and unimportant.

 

    1. Serve Others.
      God wants you to consider others as more important than yourself. By loving others and giving to them without thinking about yourself, God uses you to make Himself known! Jesus says in Matthew 20:16, “The last will be first, and the first will be last.” Living sacrificially is how you are truly great in God’s eyes.
    2. Pray.

      Prayer is how we communicate with God as Christians. When we pray, we are made more and more like God. We get closer to Him, and He strengthens us to be able to do what He commands us to through His Holy Spirit. In this way God works through your weaknesses by giving you His strength instead of your own.

    3. Tell Others About Him.
      As Christians it is our duty to tell others about Christ. Whether we only influence one person to accept Christ or we bring thousands to Christ, each soul is infinitely important to God. If you tell others about Christ, you are bringing glory to God and God is using you to further His kingdom, even if you feel like your efforts are weak and insignificant.

Don’t Try To Do Things By Yourself!  

When Christians try to live for God, stay away from sin, and tell others about Him by themselves, they aren’t relying on God’s strength that is available to every Christian through the Holy Spirit.

God is most glorified when we rely on Him.

Paul sums this up perfectly in 1 Corinthians 12:10, when he says, “For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

Paul isn’t saying that somehow weaknesses actually make him strong, he’s saying that when he’s at his weakest, God is strongest in him, because it’s not by his strength that he’s living for God, but by God’s strength.

So today if you’re feeling too weak or unimportant to do anything great for God, remember that it’s when we are at our weakest that God uses us the most.

Johnathan

Let’s talk in the comments below:

  1. What situations are you facing in your life that make you weak?
  2. How can you rely on God to help you in those situations?

Good Morning Guys Resources {Judges 6-10}

judges-6-10-resources-for-guys

Welcome back to the Good Morning Guys Study through Judges! I’m so glad you’re here and have completed a whole week.

If you’re new, feel free to jump right in and follow along. Everything you need for this week is below, including this week’s Bible Reading Plan, Reflection Questions, and Verses of the Day.  Don’t forget to check back on Friday for my weekly blog post.

Here’s This Week’s Bible Reading Plan

Monday – Chapter 6

Tuesday – Chapter 7

Wednesday – Chapter 8

Thursday – Chapter 9

Friday – Chapter 10

The Reflection Questions for the Week

{These questions are included inside the journal .  If you do not have the journal, I encourage you to reflect on these questions and answer them in your notebook.}

Chapter 6:

Gideon asked God to show him a sign that God was truly wanting him to go into battle for His people.

Name a time, when you have questioned God. What was His response to you?

Chapter 7:

God can make great things happen even out of the smallest of things. He does this to remind us that He is with us.

How does this bring encouragement to you today and the situations you are facing?

Chapter 8:

Even after all God had done, the people still longed for a leader. Gideon refused, reminding them that God alone was their ruler.

In what ways do you find it hard to let God be the ruler of your life?

Chapter 9:

Abimelech rose up over God’s people using power and influence. Yet, in the end, God caused him to fail. This reminds us that God is always in control.

How does this bring you comfort today?

Chapter 10:

Once again, Israel was overtaken because they had turned their backs on God and instead chose to worship false gods.

Has God ever revealed to you, that you were placing other gods before Him?

The Verses of the Day

Monday: 

Judges 6:23: Peace be to you. Do not fear.

Tuesday:

Judges 7:15: As soon as Gideon heard the telling of the dream and its interpretation, he worshiped.

 

Wednesday:

Judges 8:23: Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, and my son will not rule over you; the Lord will rule over you.”

Thursday:

Judges 9:10: Come and reign over us.

Friday:

Judges 10:10: The people of Israel cried out to the Lord, saying, “We have sinned against you, because we have forsaken our God and have served the Baals.”

 

Don’t forget to join me out on Instagram every morning at GuysInTheWord.

I’ll see you back here this Friday as we wrap-up our week of Bible Study.

Johnathan

It’s Time to Begin! {Intro & Resources for Judges 1-5}

judges-1-5-resources-for-guys

 

Welcome!

Today we begin our study in the book of Judges.  If you don’t have your optional Journal yet, I want to encourage you to pull out a notebook and use it to write out your thoughts and reflections on this week’s study.

Inside the journal it teaches you how to use the SOAK method to study the Bible.  This is how the method works:

  • S – The S stands for Scripture – Read the chapter for the day.   Then choose 1-2 verses and write them out word for word. (There is no right or wrong choice – just let the Holy Spirit guide you.)
  • O – The O stands for Observation – Look at the verse or verses you wrote out. Write 1 or 2 observations. What stands out to you? What do you learn about the character of God from these verses? Is there a promise, command or teaching?
  • A – The A stands for Application – Personalize the verses. What is God saying to you?   How can you apply them to your life?   Are there any changes you need to make or an action to take?
  • K – The K stands for Kneeling in Prayer – Pause, kneel and pray. Confess any sin God has revealed to you today. Praise God for His word. Pray the passage over your own life or someone you love. Ask God to help you live out your applications.

The goal is to SOAK God’s word into your heart everyday and let it transform your life, renew your mind and create a deeper intimacy with God.

Let’s take a look at the book of the Bible we are about to study.

The Book of Judges Overview

Judges is a book about 12 judges who helped deliver the nation of Israel from one of the darkest and most oppressed times in their history. These judges were far from perfect but God used them in mighty ways.

As Joshua ends, we see the nation taking a stand for God. As we enter Judges; however, we see that the claim that Joshua made at the end of his book has come true. The people are following after other gods and there is a rapid decline – both as a nation and individually. The book of Judges focuses on sin and consequences. Sin grows when it is left unattended.

This book sounds a lot like today. Many choose to do what is right in their own eyes and follow after the ways of the world. But we can be like the 12 judges – who, though they were flawed and imperfect, decided to depend on God and be obedient to Him. Most of all, we can see that just like the judges – God’s mercy has come to our rescue over and over again.

Key Verse: Judges 17:6

“In those days, there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.”

Outline:

  1. The failure of Israel (Judges 1:1-3:6) – The nation of Israel had compromised God’s commands to drive out the inhabitants of the land.
  2. The Judges (3:7-16:31) – We see the nation of Israel sinning over and over again because of the compromise that they had made. Sin always has consequences.
  3. The Moral Failure of Israel (17:1-21:25) – Despite the efforts of Israel’s judges, the people would not turn their whole hearts back to God. They did what was right in their own eyes. The result was a decline of the nation – spiritually, morally, and politically.

Major Themes:

Compromise: Whenever a judge died, the people faced a decline and they compromised their standards. Society has rewarded compromise. We need to not compromise what we know is right from the standard of God’s Word.

Apostasy: We can expect decay when we value anything more highly than God. In Judges, idol worship and man-made religion led to a complete abandoning of their walk with God. We can have idols and man-made religion as well today by focusing on anything more than we do on our relationship with God.

Repentance: The decline, decay and defeat of the nation of Israel caused them to call out to God for help. When they repented, God delivered them. Idolatry gains a stronghold in our hearts and lives when we place anything above God. We need to watch for modern idolatry in our hearts and minds.

 

Here’s This Week’s Bible Reading Plan

Monday – Judges 1

Tuesday – Judges 2

Wednesday – Judges 3

Thursday – Judges 4

Friday – Judges 5

The Reflection Questions for the Week

{These questions are included inside the journal .  If you do not have the journal, I encourage you to reflect on these questions and answer them in your notebook.}

Chapter 1:

Manasseh, Ephraim, Zebulan, Asher and Naphtali failed to drive the inhabitants off their land as they were commanded.

Name a time when you only partially did what God laid on your heart. How did that situation turn out?

Chapter 2:

Israel turned their backs on God and began to seek out new gods.

Is there something in your own life that you seem to seek out more than God?

Chapter 3:

Israel was tested to see if they would obey God’s commandments. Each time they failed the test.

Have you been tested in your Christian walk lately? In what ways?

Chapter 4:

Barak didn’t want to move forward with the plan God had already laid out for him without Deborah.

Name a time when you have been too afraid or unwilling to do what God has asked of you because you didn’t want to do it alone?

Chapter 5:

Deborah and Barak’s song tells us the people offered themselves willingly.

Do you offer yourself up willingly for God or do you struggle with giving over complete control?

The Verses of the Day

Monday:

Judges 1:2: The Lord said, “Judah shall go up; behold, I have given the land into his hand.”

Tuesday:

Judges 2:10: And there arose another generation after them who did not know the Lord or the work that he had done for Israel.

Wednesday:

Judges 3:7And the people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord.

Thursday: 

Judges 4:14:  And Deborah said to Barak, “Up! For this is the day in which the Lord has given Sisera into your hand. Does not the Lord go out before you?”

Friday:

Judges 5:31:  So may all your enemies perish, O Lord! But your friends be like the sun as he rises in his might.

Don’t forget to join me out on Instagram every morning at GuysInTheWord.

Please share in the comments:

Are you joining us?  Tell a little about yourself.  What is your name, where are you from and anything else you would like to share.

If you have any questions – ask below. 

I’ll see you back here this Friday as we wrap-up our week of Bible Study.

Johnathan

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Introducing the Book of Judges

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Welcome!

Good Morning Guys is an on-line Bible Study geared at guys ages 10  and up.

We are reading through the Bible – one chapter a day – 5 days a week.  Every Monday, we’ll kick off the week with free resources and accountability here on the blog and on Fridays, I’ll be here to wrap-up our week in the Word, with a devotional.

We’ll be starting in the book of Judges Monday, October 17th.

The {optional} Good Morning Guys Judges Journal
is available now exclusively on Amazon.

judges-guys-spine

I’ll be back here next Monday with free resources to get you started in your Bible Study.

Until then, I encourage you to subscribe in the sidebar so you don’t miss a post and follow me out on Instagram at GuysInTheWord.

I hope you’ll join us as we grow in Christ!

Johnathan

Let’s Talk:

Are you studying the book of Judges with us?

Introduce yourself in the comment section – share your age, where you are from and a little about yourself.

If you haven’t read my introduction yet – you can learn more about me here.

This post contains an affiliate link.

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