Thursday, April 5, 2012

Scripture Judges 2:11-19
—Judges 2:17



Commenting that something is like a broken record may seem like a quaint figure of speech to folks today who get their music from CDs or downloads, not on vinyl. But there is no better way to describe the book of Judges; it plays like a broken record. The people turn away from God and worship idols. God's anger is kindled, and the people fall to other geopolitical powers. In their oppression and misery, they cry out to God, who raises up a judge to deliver them. The judge delivers, the people rejoice, and for a little while things are OK. Until once again, the people turn away from God and start worshiping the idols.

The book of Judges gives us glimpses of communities in flux. We see what happens when communities follow good leaders who are called by God. We also see what happens when communities follow leaders into error. We see what happens when communities are organized and disorganized. We see what happens when communities worship false gods, or try to take matters into their own hands. We see what happens when communities benefit from God's protection and deliverance, and what happens when they forget who they are; whose they are, and how they got to where they are. In all of these changes, we see the same old cycle, playing repeatedly like a broken record.
After the death of Joshua, and through the time of Samuel, elders led the tribes of Israel. In difficult times, judges were raised up by the Lord. The judges were usually military leaders who deal with one or a few tribes. A few judges, such as Deborah and Gideon, had broader leadership roles that also provided for some periods of unity among the tribes.

Like Joshua, the book of Judges covers the conquest of 'the land of Canaan, but a different picture emerges. In Joshua, the conquest is quick, decisive, and complete. The conquest as presented in the book of Judges matches more accurately the archaeological evidence that tells a story of a much more gradual move into the land, gained in small battles with some wins and some losses.

This passage from Judges reminds us of Moses' ongoing conversation with God about the people whom he has been called to lead out of Egypt, Perhaps Moses expected a hero's welcome from the Israelites, but when Pharaoh increased their burden, the people turned against Moses, and Moses turned to God, saying, "O LORD, why have you mistreated this people?" (Ex. 5:22}. Each time, when the going got tough in the wilderness, the people turned and blamed Moses, and Moses would turn to the Lord, asking, "What shall I do with this people?" (Ex. 17:4). Moses calls them stiff-necked, and addresses them as rebels. How can anyone be expected to lead a group like that?

Now, a couple of generations after Moses, the Israelites ' still have difficulties following the leader. God raises judges to deliver the people, but the people don't want to follow the judges. They might change their behavior for a little while, but before long, they were up to their old behavior. They want to go their own way, to pursue their lusts and desires. It is interesting that the people are so resistant to submitting to the leadership that God provides, and yet they are quick to give submission—gladly—to idols of their own choosing. It isn't a simple matter of rebellion against authority; the people submit to the authority of false gods, even as they shake off the yoke of the one who has delivered them repeatedly. As the Israelites fight submission to God's will through the direction of the leaders that God had raised up, the result is that they end up under a much worse oppression—foreign rule.

We may not make idols out of wood or worship the Baals and Astartes, but many things in our world call us to devotion. The people of Israel were reminded repeatedly that the God of their ancestors had brought them out of Egypt. They lived with the call, "Love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might." Like the people of Israel, we do not do this well because we allow these words to become background noise to the other demands on our life. The desires that lead us away from a grateful relationship with God are like a slippery slope. The more out of practice in worshiping God we are, the easier it is for us to neglect God's claims on our lives.

The people of Israel repeated the pattern above like a broken record, and they didn't seem to learn their lessons. What kind of patterns do we see in the church, or in our own lives, where we fail to learn our lessons and keep repeating the same mistakes?
What are the false gods that we lust after today? How does our desire to pursue those things result in our own oppression or submission to external powers?
Is submission to God's will restrictive or freeing?

Almighty God, we confess that we are often stiff-necked and rebellious. We are difficult to lead, and we have not always followed the leaders who you have called to serve. Help us to submit to your will and, through submission to you, unite us in community so that we may follow your call, to discipleship and ministry and be the body of Christ that you have gathered us to be. Amen.

