08/26/2008
Judges 3:7 - 11 (HCSB) 7The Israelites did what was evil in the LORD’s sight; they forgot the LORD their God and worshiped the Baals and the Asherahs. 8The LORD’s anger burned against Israel, and He sold them to Cushan-rishathaim king of Aram of the Two Rivers, and the Israelites served him eight years.
9The Israelites cried out to the LORD. So the LORD raised up Othniel son of Kenaz, Caleb’s youngest brother as a deliverer to save the Israelites. 10The Spirit of the LORD was on him, and he judged Israel. Othniel went out to battle, and the LORD handed over Cushan-rishathaim king of Aram to him, so that Othniel overpowered him. 11Then the land was peaceful 40 years, and Othniel son of Kenaz died.
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I served in the United States Air Force for a little over 4 years. While in the military, I was surrounded by people who used very foul language – it was the culture of the military. Although I was raised a Christian and initially found this very offensive, after a time, I found myself using some of the very same words that I had once found offensive. It became a struggle for me to keep my language true to my convictions.
Joshua had died, Israel had lived in relative peace for a number of years, but they failed to completely drive out all the inhabitants of the land. Therefore, they became influenced by the alien religious practices and began to adopt pagan practices into their lives. The word “Baals” – in this setting – refers to idols set up to pagan gods and “Asherahs” are poles that were erected that had various carvings on them. They are roughly equivalent to the Native-American Totem-Pole. The Asherahs were shrines to the feminine-aspect of fertility. In some pagan religions, this was the female cohort of god.
In punishment for this compromise, God allowed a foreign king to overpower Israel. Israel cried out to God and He restored them, placing a judge over them. This was the beginning of the time of the Judges. Note that Israel did not have a king, that is, no human king. God Himself was their king. Israel was a true Theocracy.
Israel was just like us. When we let our guard down, we pick up little habits of those around us and begin to compromise our standards. Just the same as my speech habits were influenced by the language around me, we unconsciously will begin to mimic things around us. This is why it is so important for us to find like-minded Christians to spend time with.
It is simply human nature to modify our behavior by those with whom we spend time. We warn our kids not to hang out with the “wrong crowd,” yet we allow ourselves to be found in the company of adults with unhealthy or improper morals. You will change your behavior to be more like the people you spend time with.
So, we are left with a decision: Who do you want your life to be like? Are you spending time with that one?
If we want to be more like God, then we should spend more time with Him, in His word, rather than with those who do not know Him. And if we want to keep our lives pure, then we must associate with people with similar spiritual convictions.
Jeff Justus
Cleff Publishing
www.cleffpublishing.com
©2008 Cleff Publishing, all rights reserved.
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