While I was in Warrington, PA where I knocked doors during a campaign, I met a blind man with whom I arranged a Bible study. Because he showed an interest in the Bible but had not read it, I began at the beginning of the Bible. This stimulated his interest in the Bible, which led him to ask if any audio cassette tapes of the Bible were available.

 The preacher's wife had a set of tapes, so I asked her if she would loan the book of Gensis for a blind man to hear. Because she had started listening to Genesis, she wanted to hold it, and give me the book of Judges. This was a mistake, but I did not realize letting the blind man hear it would be a problem.

 After he listened to Judges, he said, “People of today don't live like that.” As a result, he did not want to learn any more about the Bible. He was turned off by the wickedness of the people of Israel.

Like the Leaders, Like the People

Read the whole book Judges to take a look at the way the people of Israel lived during the days of the Judges and compare it with people of today. They did well as long as they had good leaders but when they no longer had them, they began doing unheard things that are repulsive to right thinking people.They did well as long as their leaders were righteous, but that changed when they had no one to lead them.

Men of God like Moses, who was followed by Joshua, had led Israel out of Egypt through the wilderness to the holy land where they followed God for a little while. “So the people served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and the days of the elders who outlived Joshua” (Judges 2:7). “...When that generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation arose after them who did no know the Lord nor the works which He had done for Israel (Judges 2:11). “...and they forsook the Lord God of their fathers, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt” (Judges 2:12). “Wherever they went out, the hand of the Lord was against them for calamity (Judges 2:15).

As long as Israel had godly leaders, they did well, but they strayed from God when they had no good men to follow.

Right in Own Eyes

When Israel lacked leadership, they did as they pleased., “In those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did that which was right in his own eyes” (Judges 17:6; 21:25).

 As Israel was getting ready to enter the promised land, after they had wandered in the wilderness 40 years, Moses admonished them: You shall not at all do as we are doing here today—every man doing whatever is right in his own eyes (Deut. 12:8).
 Isaiah later pronounced woes on the people of Judah who had reversed moral principles instead of following the right way.

 Woe to those who call evil good and good evil;
 Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness;
 Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter. (Isa. 5:20).

The people wanted to live the way they wanted to live and did not want to turn from their evil ways. They enjoyed being told what they wanted to hear, that their sinful excesses were all right. The following that Jeremiah wrote to Judah reminds us of 2 Timothy 4:4.

 The prophets prophesy falsely,
 And the priests rule by their own power,
 And my people love to have it so.
 But what will they do in the end. (Jer. 5:31).

 Because of this kind of  perverted teaching, Israel and even Judah were living by their own rules and following their own fleshly passions. And besides this, they had begun to live like the people about them, according to all their evil ways 2 Kings 17:8). To say the least, God was not pleased with them, so He sent prophets in order to persuade them to follow the right way, but they would not.

 Yet the Lord testified against Israel and against Judah, by all the prophets, every seer; saying,  “Turn from your evil ways and keep My commandment and statutes...” Nevertheless they would  not hear hear, but stiffened their necks... (2 Kings 17:13a, 14a).

Our Society Different?

 We have become like sinful Judah and Israel. This can be seen the weekly news reports of the many and various crimes that appall us and disgust us.

 An example is one that was reported Sept. 20, 2014. A man in Bell Florida in a rampage shot and killed his six grandsons, his adult daughter, and then himself.

This is not new and different than what is written in the book of Judges and can be expected.  Paul wrote, “But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come. For men will be...without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God. ...But evil men and imposters will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived (2 Tim. 3:1, 2a, 3b, 13).

 From Paul's description of the last times, if we are not in them, they way things are going it certainly looks like it.

What Can We Do?

There is little we can do, and yet there is much we can do.  We can:
Seek God in order to walk closer to Him (Heb. 11:6; Micah 6:8).

Live so that others will see our light (Matt. 5:16).

Be careful to use our money wisely (Matt. 6:19, 20).

Support those who are seeking the lost (1 Cor. 9:14; Gal. 6:6).

Think of ways we can do our part, and carry our load and the load of others (Gal. 6:2, 5).

Reach and teach others (2 Tim. 2:2).

Encourage one another to love and good works (Heb. 10:24).

Walk as Jesus walked (1 John 2:6).

Be prepared, for we do not know when the Lord will come (Matt. 24:42).

You thought of it! PRAY, PRAY, PRAY (Col. 4:3; 1 Thess. 5:23).
 
 

©Copyright Owen D.Olbricht 2014. All rights reserved. May be reprinted if credit is given to the author.