Jan 2 Judges 11:29-36

THE BATTLE WITH A DECISION

Key Verse: For I have given my word to the Lord and I cannot go back on it. Vs.35

The setting of the Bible passage today is that of a time when Israel was a free state, governed by no one and everyone did what was right in his own eyes. As a consequence, it is right to deduce that she was weak and vulnerable to her enemies. But God in His infinite mercies always rose up men who served as judges for His people. The judge under the spotlight of our study today is Jephthah, the Gileadite. We see in the verses preceding our text that the people of Israel were under the threat of the king of Ammon, a mighty kingdom at that time. And in terms of military strength, the Israelites were powerless and hopeless in view of the impending battle. But there was a man in the midst of the Israelites who knew the strength of the God whom they served. We must realize why it was that, in the midst all of those people, only one recognized the power of the Almighty; the Bible says the Spirit of the Lord came upon Him. Today, we all, as Christians are also in a battle warring against the Devil and his cohorts and just like the Israelites, on our own, we cannot match his trickery and cunning. However, if we choose like Jephthah to call unto the Almighty God, then, our victory is certain. But how did Jephthah cry to the Lord? He made a decision, a vow, to offer something to the Lord. Following God to the point of victory will cost us a price and until we make the decision to pay that price, we wont get there! Sometimes, the price may seem too high but remember that the highest price had been paid by Jesus Christ. Let us take a look and follow the example of Jephthahs reaction in the key verse. Once we make the decision, no turning back ! When we take our stand with God, every circumstance in our life bows just like the judges daughter did.
Prayer: Oh God, my Father, I choose to pay the sacrifice till my account is full.