The Meaning Of Life

https://biblehub.com/nkjv/judges/12.htm

Some things you just cannot comprehend. I’m sure there is some theologian that can explain it, but then it would be the interpretation of man, which may not be correct.

The Bible doesn’t say exactly why Ephraim was upset with Jephthah for not calling on them to help fight the Ammonites. But what is even more shocking, is why they would be so angry that they would fight about it. The people of Ephraim threatened to burn the houses of Gilead!

To me, that would be like on of my cousins having difficulty, and they didn’t call me to help them. I might be dissapointed that they didn’t call me in their time of need, but I wouldn’t be angry enough that I wanted to burn their house down! I can only assume, and that is exactly what it is, an assumption, that perhaps the children of Israel were so focused on unity, than any appearance of trying to be independent was an insult to them. Remember when Reuben, Gad, and the half tribe of Mannesah wanted the land east of the Jordan, and Moses told them they could have it providing they helped their cousins invade and conquer the promised land.

One the fight was over and those tribes on the east side of the Jordan returned home, they built an altar to God, and the other tribes were insulted, thinking they were building an altar to a false god or even worse, were trying to be independent of the other tribes. In fact, they just need a place to worship closer to home.

So now Ephraim is mad at Gilead for not calling for their assistance, and Jephthah says that he called for their help and received no answer from them, so he had to fight the battle on his own. Apparently that answer wasn’t sufficient, so they went to war, and Jephthah was successful.

Today, nations fight against nations, brother fight against brother (the Civil War), and people fight against people, when in fact we are all children of God…we are all cousins, all brothers and sisters. And it was apparently the same in those ancient days. And all I can say is that I must be pretty simple, because while we can blame differences of opinion, differences in political stances, and differences in religious ideologies, it all points to one being, Satan.

Satan was to divide us against each other, his modus operandi is to divide and conquer, and he works through religious leaders, politicians, the news media, and many other ways to cause strife between us and draw us away from God.

He started causing strife between Adam and Eve, between Adam and Eve and God, then on to Cain and Abel, and he has been extremely busy ever since.

Do you want to be strong? Do you want to be considered superior, a leader, a winner? Then resist Satan. Fight against his temptations. Show him you cannot be drawn away from your creator. There is a slogan now found on tee shirts and coffee mugs and many other products that reads, “Not today, Satan”. It’s not just a slogan, it should be a priority in our lives. Whenever you become angry over something, just realize it is Satan causing you to feel this way, recognize what he is doing to you, and say, “Not Today, Satan”, then turn and do the right thing.

After Jephthah, scripture mentions the next three judges very briefly, their rule must have been pretty boring. Their names were Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon, and together, they only judged Israel for 25 years.

And next, we’ll read about Samson, one of the more familiar Biblical characters in the Bible. But we will also learn that Samson was not without sin himself.

God bless you all, and Happy Sabbath tomorrow.