JUDGES MOMENT – (22MAR19) Jephthah, a mighty warrior, was
the reject of his family. He was the son of a prominent man, but his mother was
a prostitute. Gilead, his father, was married and they had sons who did not
want Jephthah to receive any of their inheritance, so he fled from them into
another land where a gang of scoundrels followed him. Later, the ones who
rejected him ended up needing him to lead them against their enemies and God gave
him the victory. Sometimes, the people who are supposed to love you be the ones
who reject you. Even though Jephthah’s mother was a prostitute, he was still his
father’s son and yet, his brothers did not receive him. Jephthah’s acceptance
came from those who were not related to him and oftentimes, this is the case
for many people. Those who are not related to you are sometimes the ones who
treat you with the most love, dignity, respect, and honor. The Bible says that there
is a friend who sticks closer than a brother (Proverbs 18:24). Just because
Jephthah had relatives did not make them family. He found out that family was
how people treat you and not necessarily by blood relation. The people that
rejected him later came for his help not because of love, but because of their
need. Jephthah went to their rescue and God gave him the victory. You may have
been the reject, black sheep, or scapegoat of your family. You may have longed
for acceptance and validation, but never fully received it and yet, God has
never left you nor forsaken you. The Bible says, “Though my father and mother forsake me, the LORD will receive me” (Psalm 27:10). God will give you the victory to
overcome the rejection and turn you into a mighty warrior just as He did with
Jephthah. All you have to do is rely totally on Him. Something to ponder…
QUESTION OF THE DAY – (22MAR19) Jephthah was about to go to
battle against the Ammonites, so he made a vow to the Lord. He vowed that upon
getting the victory, he would give the Lord a burnt sacrifice of the first thing
that came out of his door upon returning home. God gave him the victory, but
Jephthah’s one and only child, his daughter who had never married, came out of
the door celebrating his victory. Have you ever made a vow to the Lord and
found it hard to keep? Did you weigh out the cost before making such a vow?
Have you made vows to others, but either broke them, or had a hard time keeping
them? We must be careful when we make vows to God or promises to others. God
would prefer us not to make a vow than to make one to Him and not keep it. God
would have given Jephthah the victory without him making such a vow, but in his
zeal, he made a vow without weighing the cost. His daughter was his only child
which meant that he would not have anyone to carry on his family line. Yet he
kept his vow. Always make sure to count the cost before making a vow to God or
a promise to anyone else. Situations change where we may be released from a
promise to someone, but God expects us to honor what we say to Him. Something
to ponder…
JUDGES MOMENT – (22MAR19) The Ephraimites wanted to stir up
trouble against Jephthah because they felt that he should have used them in
battle. Jephthah told them that he asked for their help, but no one came, so he
did not wait on them because the Lord was with him and had given him the
victory. They, however, did not receive this and Jephthah and the Gileadites
had to fight against the Ephraimites and strike them down. Sometimes, people are
only interested in something after the hard work has already been invested and
then they are the Johnny-come-lately wanting to get the credit. You will often
find this with those who have narcissistic traits and want the power without
doing the hard work that it took to get there. Let’s look at some of the
narcissistic traits that the Ephraimites displayed regarding their approach to
Jephthah. 1.) They thought that just because they were used by God in times
pasts that He could not use anyone other than them, so they had seemingly developed
a heart of pride and desired power. 2.) They were not able to congratulate him
on a job well-done because their egos were bent on their own fame and glory, so
they sought to devalue his success. 3.) They ignored the fact that GOD was the
one who had given him the victory, so they refused to submit authority to His
chosen vessel. 4.) They refused to accept responsibility for their failure to respond
and projected their procrastination onto him. 5.) They attempted to gaslight
Jephthah into thinking that he was the one with the problem instead of
acknowledging their failure to act. 6.) They tried to run a smear campaign
against his character rather than give credit to him for being a mighty
warrior. 7.) They experienced narcissistic rage against Jephthah because he did
not wait for them to respond to him, but went ahead with the Lord’s backing
instead. 8.) It was easier for the Ephraimites to make Jephthah their scapegoat
than to admit their flaws. There are many lessons to learn from this story, but
one major theme to remember is to not come up against someone if God has chosen
and delivered a victory into their hands. God does not wait on us to act, but will
choose the one who will act when called. Something to ponder…
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