Renegade Religion

In the last message, we concluded the tragic story of Samson. He was the last “judge” accounted for in the book of Judges. Thus ends the cycle we have witnessed of Israel’s disbelief, leading to God raising up a rescuer, leading to God delivering His people. From these stories, we have seen Israel from a bird’s-eye view. In the final five chapters, we see Israel’s condition before God from the ground up through the spiritual neglect of one family, one clan, and finally the entire nation. The depth of their spiritual sickness is portrayed by how casually they treat God’s commands and replace them with a homemade religion designed to suit their own needs. Our temptations are not much different. We too need to avoid the error of finding only the answers we want, as we learn to embrace a God bigger and more resourceful than we could ever have imagined.