THE PREVIEW OF THE JUDGES: (1:1- 3:6) The cycle of sin. THE PERIOD OF THE JUDGES: (3:7- 16:31) The downward spiral. THE PICTURE OF THE JUDGES: (17:1- 21:25) Spiritual anarchy.
The cycle of sin can quickly take hold of our interests, and before long, we don't realize what it is doing to God's people, let alone the people of the world all around us. A sophisticated college student spoke to a missionary and asked, "What do you do when you can't take superstition, violence, and immorality any longer?"
The reply came: "Simply get on a plane and go back to the mission field." Today, we face organized crime, youth crime, and homosexuality. Biblical morality is mocked; one rock star states, "I believe in nothing." Three young men from eastern Canada traveled west to where their rock star idol lived and ended their lives just as he did. Now, it seems we face a tidal wave rather than a flood of moral, spiritual, and ethical chaos. We have become a society without standards. (Judges 21:25)
It seemed like everything was going well. Victories were gained as enemies fell before God's people, who, by God's mighty power, learned firsthand that when our God is for us, who can be against us? But then they turned away from God. At first, the departure didn't seem significant. The challenge of conquest kept them moving forward and prevented them from doing things their own way. Their objectives were clear, and they pressed on to claim the promised land. The “falling away” didn't happen initially, but later, they felt the pull of attraction to what God had told them to destroy, and they gradually turned away from Him.
In God, they were conquerors, and so are we. Our faith and hope are in God, but facts do not lie. When we are drawn to the ideas of men and start to feel we are independent, sin takes advantage of us, and soon we become like them. When that happens, we have already turned away from God. If we believe we are safe and have full control of our lives, the world and its systems target our souls. Temptation is always before us, but the risk of yielding to temptation has a deadly attraction. Instead of loyalty and steadfastness, we have taken the first step of turning away from God. It happened to them and can happen to us when we turn to what is wrong instead of "In God We Trust." To protect ourselves from the harmful consequences of sin, we need divine power and guidance to stay close to God.