Read: Judges 11:1-12:5; John 1:1-28; Psalm 101:1-8; Proverbs 14:13-14
Gilead needed a war commander and they knew who it needed to be. They had driven their step brother, Jephthah, out of town and now they had to humble themselves and go get him. They convinced him to come back and help by bribing him with being their leader when it was over. He finally agreed.
Even though he was the son of a prostitute, he knew what God had done for Israel. He knew their history. When the Ammonites stated why they were fighting for their land, Jephthah knew the truth and told them that God had given them their land and He would decide who got to keep it.
When the Ammonites refused to hear that, the Spirit of God came upon him and gave him the victory. Jephthah made a foolish vow before he went to battle that whatever came out of his door first when he got back, he would offer as a burnt offering. He must have had cattle and animals that roamed freely in and out of his door. He never dreamed his one and only daughter would come out first. But, when she did, he kept his promise. She was granted two months to mourn the fact that she would never marry and then she gave herself to be sacrificed. This is hard for us to fathom but this was the time of the judges where everyone did what was right in their own eyes. Human sacrifices were the norm in the religion of those around them so they had gotten immune to the inhumanity of it.
We cringe at this, but it is the same as abortion in our day or neglect or abuse. At least this girl died thinking she was dying for a cause.
The Ephraimites complained to Jephthah that they weren’t included in the battle and wanted to kill him. Jephthah had to fight his own brothers to defend his honor. Jephthah led Israel 6 years.
Ibiza was judge for 7 years followed by Elon who judged 10. He was followed by Abdon who ruled for 8 years.
John begins just like Genesis and speaks of the beginning of time also. He tells us that Jesus was with God when he created the world and that Jesus is the Word that became flesh and dwelt among men. John was the voice that prepared the world for Jesus coming. He never claimed to be the Messiah or even Elijah or the Prophet although he came in the spirit of Elijah and was definitely the last of the Old Testament prophets. Jesus was all three.
Lord, today, may we walk in your Spirit preparing hearts to receive you.
Monday, April 30, 2018
Sunday, April 29, 2018
Sun.’s Devo - Live With Expectation
Read: Judges 9:22-10:28; Luke 24:13-53; Psalm 100:1-; Proverbs 14:11-12
God is justice and will repay evil in his time. Abimelech had usurped the power to lead from Gideon’s sons and killed all of them so God was ready to avenge their blood. The people were serving other gods and had forsaken the Lord also so God forsook them. Abimelech was killed as he was killing all the people. The whole city of Shechem was destroyed. Years later, Jesus would sit with a women at a well in Shechem and she would be shown living water.
The people went through two more judges: Tola, Jair who delivered them. But, they kept turning from the Lord and serving the gods of the land until God was tired of rescuing them. When they cried out to him again to save them from the 18 years of oppressive rule of the Ammonites God sent them to cry to the gods they kept turning back to. Maybe they could save them.
They got serious and got rid of all their idols and launched an attack against the Ammonites. The leaders of the people said that whoever would lead the attack would be their leader after it was over.
In Luke, Jesus comes back to encourage his disciples and followers. Just when these two men felt so depressed and disillusioned because their Messiah had died, Jesus came and opened the scriptures to them to show them that God’s Word was being fulfilled just as it was written. When they realized it was Jesus they had spent the day with, they ran back to Jerusalem to tell the disciples. They put some steps on their Fit Bit that day!
That is just how the Holy Spirit is for us today, at our weakest moments when we feel like giving up, God sends us encouragement. We must keep going and keep fulfilling our mission on earth.
Jesus told them to go to Jerusalem and wait because he was going to clothe them with power from heaven. Then Jesus blessed them and went back to heaven. They returned to Jerusalem praising God and waited with expectation.
That is the position we need to always be in - expectation. God is about to do some powerful things. I got a call from a dear friend yesterday whose husband has been suffering with chronic pain and took pain killers four times a day just to make it through the day. He was prayed for and totally healed! No more pain! We are going to hear about more and more miracles because God is once again visiting his people.
I am having so many encounters with angels in dreams because God is meshing heaven with earth. So lets live with expectation - this is the day that the Lord has made!
God is justice and will repay evil in his time. Abimelech had usurped the power to lead from Gideon’s sons and killed all of them so God was ready to avenge their blood. The people were serving other gods and had forsaken the Lord also so God forsook them. Abimelech was killed as he was killing all the people. The whole city of Shechem was destroyed. Years later, Jesus would sit with a women at a well in Shechem and she would be shown living water.
The people went through two more judges: Tola, Jair who delivered them. But, they kept turning from the Lord and serving the gods of the land until God was tired of rescuing them. When they cried out to him again to save them from the 18 years of oppressive rule of the Ammonites God sent them to cry to the gods they kept turning back to. Maybe they could save them.
They got serious and got rid of all their idols and launched an attack against the Ammonites. The leaders of the people said that whoever would lead the attack would be their leader after it was over.
In Luke, Jesus comes back to encourage his disciples and followers. Just when these two men felt so depressed and disillusioned because their Messiah had died, Jesus came and opened the scriptures to them to show them that God’s Word was being fulfilled just as it was written. When they realized it was Jesus they had spent the day with, they ran back to Jerusalem to tell the disciples. They put some steps on their Fit Bit that day!
That is just how the Holy Spirit is for us today, at our weakest moments when we feel like giving up, God sends us encouragement. We must keep going and keep fulfilling our mission on earth.
Jesus told them to go to Jerusalem and wait because he was going to clothe them with power from heaven. Then Jesus blessed them and went back to heaven. They returned to Jerusalem praising God and waited with expectation.
That is the position we need to always be in - expectation. God is about to do some powerful things. I got a call from a dear friend yesterday whose husband has been suffering with chronic pain and took pain killers four times a day just to make it through the day. He was prayed for and totally healed! No more pain! We are going to hear about more and more miracles because God is once again visiting his people.
I am having so many encounters with angels in dreams because God is meshing heaven with earth. So lets live with expectation - this is the day that the Lord has made!
Saturday, April 28, 2018
Sat.'s Devo - Shechem
Read: Judges 8:9-21; Luke 23:44-24:12; Psalm 99:1-9; Proverbs 14:9-10
Gideon captured the two Midianite kings, Zebah and Zalmunna and asked them about the men they had killed at Tabor. They described them as children of a king. Gideon then knew that they had killed his brothers so to avenge their blood, he had to kill them. He told his son to slay them and his son was young and couldn’t do it so Gideon did it himself.
After this, the people wanted to make Gideon their king but Gideon said that God must be their king. Good answer. He asked them each for an earring and made an ephod which is what the priest would wear. His effort to set up a form of religion turned into idol worship because they worshiped the office of priesthood rather than the calling.
Gideon had 70 sons with his wives and one son named Abimelech from a concubine from Shechem. As soon as Gideon died, the nation returned to worshipping Baal. The nation forgot all God had done for them through Gideon. Gideon, obviously didn’t teach any of his sons to fear God and hate Baal because they didn’t oppose the sin. Abimelech went to his hometown of Shechem and tried to raise support to be the king since his father was Gideon. The people of Shechem rallied behind their hometown boy and helped him kill all 70 of his brothers. One of the youngest sons escaped named Jotham. The men of Shechem crowned Abimelech king. When Jotham found out, he went and stood on top of Mt. Gerizim and told the people a parable about four different trees that were asked to be the king. The last tree was the bramble tree or the thorn tree. He was referring this tree to represent Abimelech. He explained that this bramble tree, Abimelech, devoured all the cedars of Lebanon. The cedars of Lebanon were prized above all trees and they represented his brothers. His father had risked his life to save them and this was how they were repaying him and his posterity.
In Luke, Jesus was on the cross and the sun refused to shine for three hours (the sixth hour to the ninth). When the light came back on, the veil in the temple was torn from the top down. The Roman centurion saw all this happen and was convinced that Jesus was a righteous man. The people knew it too.
Joseph of Arimathea or Ramah, who had not agreed with what they did to Jesus, took him down, wrapped him in a cloth and placed him in his own tomb - in a rock.
If you remember, Joseph of the Old Testament refused to let his bones stay in Egypt but had them brought to Shechem and buried (Joshua 24:32). Shechem became a city of refuge. Joseph of the New Testament had his graved emptied when Jesus died and rose from it. Both of Joseph’s tombs were emptied and the bodies taken to their promised land. Arimathea, or Ramah was also a city of refuge.
Lord, your Word never fails to bring life!
Gideon captured the two Midianite kings, Zebah and Zalmunna and asked them about the men they had killed at Tabor. They described them as children of a king. Gideon then knew that they had killed his brothers so to avenge their blood, he had to kill them. He told his son to slay them and his son was young and couldn’t do it so Gideon did it himself.
After this, the people wanted to make Gideon their king but Gideon said that God must be their king. Good answer. He asked them each for an earring and made an ephod which is what the priest would wear. His effort to set up a form of religion turned into idol worship because they worshiped the office of priesthood rather than the calling.
Gideon had 70 sons with his wives and one son named Abimelech from a concubine from Shechem. As soon as Gideon died, the nation returned to worshipping Baal. The nation forgot all God had done for them through Gideon. Gideon, obviously didn’t teach any of his sons to fear God and hate Baal because they didn’t oppose the sin. Abimelech went to his hometown of Shechem and tried to raise support to be the king since his father was Gideon. The people of Shechem rallied behind their hometown boy and helped him kill all 70 of his brothers. One of the youngest sons escaped named Jotham. The men of Shechem crowned Abimelech king. When Jotham found out, he went and stood on top of Mt. Gerizim and told the people a parable about four different trees that were asked to be the king. The last tree was the bramble tree or the thorn tree. He was referring this tree to represent Abimelech. He explained that this bramble tree, Abimelech, devoured all the cedars of Lebanon. The cedars of Lebanon were prized above all trees and they represented his brothers. His father had risked his life to save them and this was how they were repaying him and his posterity.
In Luke, Jesus was on the cross and the sun refused to shine for three hours (the sixth hour to the ninth). When the light came back on, the veil in the temple was torn from the top down. The Roman centurion saw all this happen and was convinced that Jesus was a righteous man. The people knew it too.
Joseph of Arimathea or Ramah, who had not agreed with what they did to Jesus, took him down, wrapped him in a cloth and placed him in his own tomb - in a rock.
If you remember, Joseph of the Old Testament refused to let his bones stay in Egypt but had them brought to Shechem and buried (Joshua 24:32). Shechem became a city of refuge. Joseph of the New Testament had his graved emptied when Jesus died and rose from it. Both of Joseph’s tombs were emptied and the bodies taken to their promised land. Arimathea, or Ramah was also a city of refuge.
Lord, your Word never fails to bring life!
Friday, April 27, 2018
Fri.’s Devo - By My Spirit
Read: Judges 7:1-8:17; Luke 23:13-43; Psalms 97:1-98:9; Proverbs 14:7-8
The story of Gideon is a story of the underdog rising up and doing an impossible feat with a small amount of support. His encouragement came from the Lord. God wouldn’t let him take a large army and whittled it down to 300 just so they wouldn’t boast they had won by their own strength.
Every time Gideon got weak and afraid, God would send him another confirmation that He was with him and would give him the victory. God even used the dream of the enemy to encourage him but he ran upon most of his opposition from his own people. The leaders of Ephraim were upset that they weren’t included from the very beginning, and the town of Succoth and Peniel wouldn’t feed his troops because they didn’t believe he was credible. Gideon proved his credibility and came back and punished them for not helping him.
I can’t help but relate this to ministry today. We measure ministries by their numbers and their reputation in the world. If a new person with a calling rises up and he doesn’t have credentials yet, we tend to not listen to what he has to say. Gideon proved that it is not by power or might but by God’s spirit that anything worthwhile is done.
In Luke, Jesus has come back to Pilate and Pilate tries to have him released saying he has done nothing wrong. The lamb has been pronounced spotless.
The people won’t hear anything about releasing Jesus and trade him for Barabbas. Jesus becomes the scapegoat and Barabbas goes free. Jesus died sinless for our sins that we might be clean and forgiven.
Jesus forgave them for what they did because they didn’t have eyes to see who he was. He also forgave the thief on the cross because his eyes were opened.
Lord, may we have your heart of forgiveness and your eyes to see and understand. Remind us that what happens on this earth is not the real picture. The reality is in heaven.
The story of Gideon is a story of the underdog rising up and doing an impossible feat with a small amount of support. His encouragement came from the Lord. God wouldn’t let him take a large army and whittled it down to 300 just so they wouldn’t boast they had won by their own strength.
Every time Gideon got weak and afraid, God would send him another confirmation that He was with him and would give him the victory. God even used the dream of the enemy to encourage him but he ran upon most of his opposition from his own people. The leaders of Ephraim were upset that they weren’t included from the very beginning, and the town of Succoth and Peniel wouldn’t feed his troops because they didn’t believe he was credible. Gideon proved his credibility and came back and punished them for not helping him.
I can’t help but relate this to ministry today. We measure ministries by their numbers and their reputation in the world. If a new person with a calling rises up and he doesn’t have credentials yet, we tend to not listen to what he has to say. Gideon proved that it is not by power or might but by God’s spirit that anything worthwhile is done.
In Luke, Jesus has come back to Pilate and Pilate tries to have him released saying he has done nothing wrong. The lamb has been pronounced spotless.
The people won’t hear anything about releasing Jesus and trade him for Barabbas. Jesus becomes the scapegoat and Barabbas goes free. Jesus died sinless for our sins that we might be clean and forgiven.
Jesus forgave them for what they did because they didn’t have eyes to see who he was. He also forgave the thief on the cross because his eyes were opened.
Lord, may we have your heart of forgiveness and your eyes to see and understand. Remind us that what happens on this earth is not the real picture. The reality is in heaven.
Thursday, April 26, 2018
Thurs.’s Devo - Confirmation
Read: Judges 6:1-40; Luke 22:54-23:12; Psalms 95:1-96:13; Proverbs 14:5-6
Israel went into sin…again and God gave them over to the Midianites for 7 years. Israel cried out to the Lord and he sent his angel to Gideon which means “warrior”. Gideon didn’t feel too much like a warrior at the time. He was threshing wheat in a winepress to hide from the Midianites. You need to thresh wheat on a hill where lots of wind can blow away the chaff; not in a winepress which is below ground level. The angel told Gideon to go and save Israel from the hand of the Midanites. Gideon complained that he was the youngest in his family and his family was poor. That is just the kind of people God loves to use. God gave him this promise - He would be with Gideon and Gideon would win. That is all we really need because if God is for us, who can be against us.
Gideon asked God for confirmation and God gladly gave it to him. When Gideon knew for sure that God had called him to defeat the Midianites he did some cleaning house first. God told him to tear down his father’s altar to Baal and to cut down the Ashram pole beside it. He was to build an altar to the Lord and present a sacrifice on it. Gideon took ten of his father’s servants and did it at night.
The next day, the people of the town came for Gideon because they figured out that he had destroyed their altar. They were afraid that Baal would come for revenge. Gideon’s father told them to leave his son alone because Baal could avenge himself. They were satisfied with his answer.
Gideon now became the warrior he always was and rallied the troops to fight the Midianites. He asked for more confirmation to make sure he was on the right track. God gladly gave it to him.
God’s language is signs and wonders and he loves to give us confirmation. All we have to do is ask.
In Luke, Peter entered into the sifting process that Jesus warned him about. It looked like Peter failed but we know he turned back and repented.
In the meantime, Jesus was tortured and mocked and finally brought before Pilate who asked him if he was the king of the Jews. Jesus answered him affirmatively and Pilate was warmed by his humility. He found no fault in him even after hearing the lies they claim Jesus did. When Pilate heard that Jesus was from Galilee, he sent him to Herod to get him off his hands. Herod was pleased to meet Jesus because he had heard all about him and wanted to see one of his miracles. Jesus wouldn’t answer any of his questions so Herod was insulted and joined in the mocking. He put a robe on Jesus as a joke and sent him back to Pilate.
Lord, help us to know when to be quiet and when to fight. Give us confirmation about our next step.
Israel went into sin…again and God gave them over to the Midianites for 7 years. Israel cried out to the Lord and he sent his angel to Gideon which means “warrior”. Gideon didn’t feel too much like a warrior at the time. He was threshing wheat in a winepress to hide from the Midianites. You need to thresh wheat on a hill where lots of wind can blow away the chaff; not in a winepress which is below ground level. The angel told Gideon to go and save Israel from the hand of the Midanites. Gideon complained that he was the youngest in his family and his family was poor. That is just the kind of people God loves to use. God gave him this promise - He would be with Gideon and Gideon would win. That is all we really need because if God is for us, who can be against us.
Gideon asked God for confirmation and God gladly gave it to him. When Gideon knew for sure that God had called him to defeat the Midianites he did some cleaning house first. God told him to tear down his father’s altar to Baal and to cut down the Ashram pole beside it. He was to build an altar to the Lord and present a sacrifice on it. Gideon took ten of his father’s servants and did it at night.
The next day, the people of the town came for Gideon because they figured out that he had destroyed their altar. They were afraid that Baal would come for revenge. Gideon’s father told them to leave his son alone because Baal could avenge himself. They were satisfied with his answer.
Gideon now became the warrior he always was and rallied the troops to fight the Midianites. He asked for more confirmation to make sure he was on the right track. God gladly gave it to him.
God’s language is signs and wonders and he loves to give us confirmation. All we have to do is ask.
In Luke, Peter entered into the sifting process that Jesus warned him about. It looked like Peter failed but we know he turned back and repented.
In the meantime, Jesus was tortured and mocked and finally brought before Pilate who asked him if he was the king of the Jews. Jesus answered him affirmatively and Pilate was warmed by his humility. He found no fault in him even after hearing the lies they claim Jesus did. When Pilate heard that Jesus was from Galilee, he sent him to Herod to get him off his hands. Herod was pleased to meet Jesus because he had heard all about him and wanted to see one of his miracles. Jesus wouldn’t answer any of his questions so Herod was insulted and joined in the mocking. He put a robe on Jesus as a joke and sent him back to Pilate.
Lord, help us to know when to be quiet and when to fight. Give us confirmation about our next step.
Wednesday, April 25, 2018
Wed.’s Devo - Exposing Darkness
Read: Judges 4:1-5:31; Luke 22:35-53; Psalm 94:1-23; Proverbs 14:3-4
Once again, Israel rebelled and God gave them over to Jabin, king of Canaan. They cruelly oppressed Israel for 20 years. God raised up a prophetess named Deborah to deliver them. She told Barak to lead Israel to victory but he wouldn’t go without her so she told him that since he was afraid, he would not get the victory.
Sure enough, since he hid behind a woman, a woman got the victory. Jael killed Sisera, the commander of Barak’s army with a tent peg. She became the hero and the land had peace for 40 years.
In Luke, Jesus had led his disciples to the Mount of Olives where he spent his last night with them in prayer. While Jesus prayed so fervently that he sweat drops of blood, his disciples nodded off to sleep. When Judas walked up and kissed him, Jesus confronted him with his real reason - which was to betray him. He also confronted the chief priests and elders about how were wrongly arresting him. He asked them why they didn’t do it in the daylight and then answered his own question with, “But this is your hour - when darkness reigns.” He was letting them know that he knew their source and it wasn’t God.
I love how Jesus is not afraid to confront deception. He loves the truth.
Lord, help us to stand up for the truth and not be afraid to confront the darkness and expose it. Help us to be children of the light.
Once again, Israel rebelled and God gave them over to Jabin, king of Canaan. They cruelly oppressed Israel for 20 years. God raised up a prophetess named Deborah to deliver them. She told Barak to lead Israel to victory but he wouldn’t go without her so she told him that since he was afraid, he would not get the victory.
Sure enough, since he hid behind a woman, a woman got the victory. Jael killed Sisera, the commander of Barak’s army with a tent peg. She became the hero and the land had peace for 40 years.
In Luke, Jesus had led his disciples to the Mount of Olives where he spent his last night with them in prayer. While Jesus prayed so fervently that he sweat drops of blood, his disciples nodded off to sleep. When Judas walked up and kissed him, Jesus confronted him with his real reason - which was to betray him. He also confronted the chief priests and elders about how were wrongly arresting him. He asked them why they didn’t do it in the daylight and then answered his own question with, “But this is your hour - when darkness reigns.” He was letting them know that he knew their source and it wasn’t God.
I love how Jesus is not afraid to confront deception. He loves the truth.
Lord, help us to stand up for the truth and not be afraid to confront the darkness and expose it. Help us to be children of the light.
Tuesday, April 24, 2018
Tues.’s Devo - The Kingdom of God
Read: Judges 2:10-3:31; Luke 22:14-34; Psalms 92:1-93:5; Proverbs 14:1-2
Sadly, the next generation grew up with no personal experience with the Lord and they rebelled. There is no way to have a walk with the Lord without experiencing him personally.
Israel got off track. They associated with the people of the land and even intermarried and worshipped their gods. True to God’s Word, their enemies’ gods were a snare to them and thorns in their sides and they turned them away from God. God raised up judges to deliver the people out of their trouble when they turned to him. God sent Cushan-Rishathaim to rule over them for 8 years. His name means “blackness of double wickedness”. When Israel cried out to the Lord, he sent Othniel to save them. Othniel means “the seasonal Word of the Lord”. Their season lasted for 40 years.
They went into sin again and the Lord gave them over to Eglon for 18 years. When Israel cried out to the Lord, he raise up Ehud, a left-handed man. His name means “undivided”. To be left-handed means that you operate in the spirit. We are mostly a right-handed society so we naturally do things better with our right hand. Right has to do with the natural. Ehud took a two-edged sword and killed Eglon. That is how we kill our enemies when we walk in the spirit. We kill them with the Word of God.
Ehud brought 80 years of peace to Israel.
Notice how the years of captivity went from 8 to18 and the years of peace went from 40 to 80.
In Luke, Jesus explained that the kingdom of God would come at his death. The kingdom of God was in heaven and it was coming also to earth. The disciples got excited and discussed among themselves which one of them would be the greatest in this kingdom. They weren’t quite getting the picture. Jesus explained that his kingdom was different than the kingdoms of the world. The greatest in God’s kingdom is like the youngest (the least likely) and the leader is the one who serves. Jesus was the greatest example of being the servant. He demonstrated the kingdom.
Jesus knew that Peter was about to enter one of his greatest temptations so Jesus told him he had prayed for him. When the time came, he would remember what Jesus said and it would help him get back on track. He would be able to use his experience to help others down the road.
Lord, help us to walk in the Kingdom today, wielding the Sword of the Spirit.
Sadly, the next generation grew up with no personal experience with the Lord and they rebelled. There is no way to have a walk with the Lord without experiencing him personally.
Israel got off track. They associated with the people of the land and even intermarried and worshipped their gods. True to God’s Word, their enemies’ gods were a snare to them and thorns in their sides and they turned them away from God. God raised up judges to deliver the people out of their trouble when they turned to him. God sent Cushan-Rishathaim to rule over them for 8 years. His name means “blackness of double wickedness”. When Israel cried out to the Lord, he sent Othniel to save them. Othniel means “the seasonal Word of the Lord”. Their season lasted for 40 years.
They went into sin again and the Lord gave them over to Eglon for 18 years. When Israel cried out to the Lord, he raise up Ehud, a left-handed man. His name means “undivided”. To be left-handed means that you operate in the spirit. We are mostly a right-handed society so we naturally do things better with our right hand. Right has to do with the natural. Ehud took a two-edged sword and killed Eglon. That is how we kill our enemies when we walk in the spirit. We kill them with the Word of God.
Ehud brought 80 years of peace to Israel.
Notice how the years of captivity went from 8 to18 and the years of peace went from 40 to 80.
In Luke, Jesus explained that the kingdom of God would come at his death. The kingdom of God was in heaven and it was coming also to earth. The disciples got excited and discussed among themselves which one of them would be the greatest in this kingdom. They weren’t quite getting the picture. Jesus explained that his kingdom was different than the kingdoms of the world. The greatest in God’s kingdom is like the youngest (the least likely) and the leader is the one who serves. Jesus was the greatest example of being the servant. He demonstrated the kingdom.
Jesus knew that Peter was about to enter one of his greatest temptations so Jesus told him he had prayed for him. When the time came, he would remember what Jesus said and it would help him get back on track. He would be able to use his experience to help others down the road.
Lord, help us to walk in the Kingdom today, wielding the Sword of the Spirit.
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