We're commissioned by the king. There is a task.
There is a cause.
Yet, there are millions that are sitting on the sidelines.
There are times in life when we stand back and look at the way that we're responding to the command of the Lord of Hosts. It's easy for our service to fall into a pattern of be-grudging duty. Conviction rarely turns into commitment. We make resolutions, pledges, and commitments, but somehow they are rarely translated into actions. Though rationalizations and excuses set us in quicksand, until finally we're paralyzed into inactivity; we become completely lethargic.
Yet, there is a song that is being written about our generation, much like the song that Deborah sang in Judges 5. The Song of Uprising was sung about the victorious Lord of Hosts (Judges 5:1-5) in a time of oppression and desperation (Judges 5:6-12).
The Leaders led and the people volunteered.
As Deborah sings the song, she paints a picture of what happened in Judges 4 during the battle. Though no weapons were found in Israel and their enemy had 900 iron chariots, Barak was able to rally 10,000 men to action. Yet, not everyone responded to the call of battle.
Within the text, Judges 5:13-18, Deborah calls out the tribes of Israel that responded to the call and those that were reluctant. Though this text was written long ago, it is living and active to our present situation today.
As the song of our generation is being written and sung, which tribe will you be more like:
Issachar--running into the battle at Barak's heels not a step behind leader (Judges 5:15) and Zebulun--risking lives, despising their lives to the point of being willing to die for the cause.
OR
the Reluctant
Reuben--the tribe who wouldn't act
Gilead--the disconnected
Dan--the immature
Asher--the materialistic
We ended the evening by focusing on two things:
1. 2 Corinthians 5:14-15
2. The lyrics to the song "One thing" by Charlie Hall:
All of life comes down to just one thing and that's
to know you, oh Jesus, and make you known
EAT IT: NEXT STEPS
We're learning how to feed ourselves, rather than eating the pre-digested material from others. As a result, we're going to take a baby step this week before we get together next week. There is a key step, which is vital and then there are some go deeper steps. In opening up your mouth and getting out your fork to feed yourself, it's always best to begin by asking the Lord to reveal truth to you through His Spirit.
KEY STEP: During the week, read through Judges 6-8 in one setting in order to get a big picture of our next Judge.
GO DEEPER: After reading Judges 6-8, go back to Judges 6. Every time you come a reference of God, mark it. After marking it, stop and think, "What does the text say about God?"
