Judges CBR Tweets
#HarborCBR Does life feel like an endless cycle of ups and downs? Judges has the answer if you can make it to the end!
Jud1-Ominous seeds in Joshua(15:63;16:10;17:12) take center stage here. God gave great promises. Israel didn't walk in them fully. #HarborCBR
Jud1,2-What promises from God are you not walking in fully? Life's ups & downs can stem from this. Judges has the answer (at the end)! #HarborCBR
Jud2-Israel, what happened? As you received God's gifts, you cheated on Him. Even after he rescued you, you weren't faithful. Are we? #HarborCBR
Jud3-God now uses Israel's sin to bring them back. The situation they've created tests them to see if they will turn back to God. #HarborCBR
Jud3,2-A cycle begins that repeats 12 times (that # is significant): sin, oppression, cry, deliverer, salvation, rest. We can relate. #HarborCBR
Jud4-God rescues Israel thru Deborah & Barak, a humanly impossible victory (iron chariots were tanks back then). That's what God does. #HarborCBR
Jud5-Jael is exalted for her contribution to Israel's victory. This is the woman crushing the head of the serpent (see Genesis 3:15). #HarborCBR
Jud5,2-v2That the leaders took the lead, that the people offered themselves willingly, bless the LORD! Willing service is eternal life!#HarborCBR
Jud6-Gideon: "God, how can I do this?" God: "Gideon, I will be with you." 'nuff said. #HarborCBR
Jud7-God does the impossible. Gideon's impossible victory: 300 with trumpet, jar, and torch defeat an entire army. Let us go in faith! #HarborCBR
Jud8-Israel isn't much of a family. Gideon is shrewd, then later takes vengeance. v23 sounds great, but Gideon's finish is a fail. #HarborCBR
Jud9-Leadership fail! Gideon's failure breeds failure in his children. Evil leaders are brought to justice, but the nation suffers. #HarborCBR
Jud9,2-By now, I think there needs to be a better solution than the judges, right? They die, or they end up as bad as the people. #HarborCBR
Jud9,3-You have to love v13--"Wine cheers God and men." No wonder wine was an integral part of the sacrificial system! #HarborCBR
Jud10-Now we see why Israel fails! Cry for help to God WHILE worshiping other gods? Where do we cling to sin while calling for help? #HarborCBR
Jud10,2-Real relationship w/God in v13-14: You left me, served other gods. I'll save you no more. Cry out to the gods you've chosen. #HarborCBR
Jud11-Jephthah's vow is rash. Israel's leadership is at a new low. Atrocious leadership makes us thankful for Jesus, our perfect king. #HarborCBR
Jud12-Depressing end part one of Judges: Civil war in God's family led by a judge. Can it get any lower? Will Sampson be the answer? #HarborCBR
Jud12,2-Midway summary: w/God all things are possible. Eternal life is serving Him. Unfaithfulness to God oppression & emptiness. #HarborCBR
Jud13-12th& final judge is God's gracious gift to undeserving sinners. The story echoes Isaac(Gen 18) and anticipates Jesus(Luk 1). #HarborCBR
Jud14-Samson's start: impressive, but concerning. No concern for purity or his Nazarite vow, but used by God against the Philistines. #HarborCBR
Jud15-Samson is bound for the second time, but freed by God to conquer his enemies and save Israel. #Jawbone #HarborCBR http://t.co/5yAaSCi2Lb
Jud15,2-As Samson was bound & given to his enemies TO OVERCOME THEM, so Jesus was bound by death TO OVERCOME death and sin for us. #HarborCBR
Jud16-Samson fails as many do: power = you can have whatever you want. Lust & pride = my gifts serve me. Are we guilty at all of this? #HarborCBR
Jud16,2-Every failed judge, failed leader in the Bible, failed leader today makes me thankful for Jesus--who never failed. #Integrity #HarborCBR
Jud16,3-Even sinful, failed Samson leaves a good legacy. How? He cries out to God and sacrifices his life. God can use the humble. #HarborCBR
Jud17-Now we see how far the people are from God: devoting money to God to build idols! A priest who joins the idolatry for $$! #HarborCBR
Jud17,2-verse 6 sums this book's answer: "In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes." #HarborCBR
Jud18-More downward spiral. The people and the spiritual leadership are far from God, superstitious, and immoral. What can save them? #HarborCBR
Jud19-More atrocious lows. The "good" are as bad as the evil. v1 is the 3rd time a solution is hinted at: they need a king. #HarborCBR
Jud19,2-Scholars say Judges was written to promote the need of a king from Judah(David), not Benjamin(Saul). Ancient political tract! #HarborCBR
Jud19,3-From our vantage point, the "King Solution" doesn't work until King Jesus, who was everything the judges (and people) weren't. #HarborCBR
Jud20-Israel confronts its sin. The guilty get defensive. Civil war erupts. God judges everyone. Personal conflicts follow this path. #HarborCBR
Jud21-Ends in disaster! Israel's "good" includes ambush, rape, kidnapping, loopholes. The Bible doesn't hide the sins of God's people. #HarborCBR
Jud21,2-Solution to this mess? Judges ends saying Israel needs a good king to follow. Jesus is the king who did right in God's eyes. #HarborCBR
Jud21,3-Life's ups&downs call us to turn whole-heartedly to God & follow King Jesus, who died for us so we can trust His leadership. #HarborCBR