-- Monday, 8/30/10 -- SPIRITUAL ANARCHY -- Judges 17:6
J.R. & Bonnie Ricks
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SPIRITUAL ANARCHY -- Judges 17:6 NIV
In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit.
When I read those words, they gave me an uncomfortably familiar sensation. It's so very similar to the prevailing attitude today in the United States. Even though we have a President… even though we have a government… even though we have a Constitution… the attitude today is, "do your own thing"… "Look out for number one." "Assert yourself." "I can do whatever I want as long as I don't hurt anybody else."
It goes back to the old saying, "If God had intended to be lenient, He would have given us the Ten Suggestions." God has given us standards to live by, but you and I can't even live up to the ten simplest ones. Do you know anyone who can get through one twenty-four hour period without breaking at least one of the Ten Commandments? Remember, our “black and white” understanding of the Ten Commandments falls far short of what God meant when He gave them to Moses. Jesus outlines some of them in His Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5 NIV.
For instance, most people would say that they have never committed adultery… ever. But, look at what Jesus says in Matthew 5:27-28, “You have heard that it was said, 'Do not commit adultery.' But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” That puts a whole different light on the subject, doesn’t it? It’s the same with the other nine Commandments.
In fact, do you know anyone who can get through one week without breaking the FIRST of the Ten Commandments? I don’t. I don’t know one soul who has not – at one time or another – let someone or something come between him and God. I know a few who – outwardly – come close. But if the truth were known, even those who appear the most holy are not sinless… they fall short of the glory of God just as miserably as the rest of us. They’re just not as obvious about it to those around them.
Right now, we are living in the midst of spiritual anarchy. In these days, America may have a President, but as a nation, we have no King. The country as a whole is filled with the prevailing attitude of every person doing whatever he wants to. Just like in the days of Micah. And America isn’t the only country with this problem. We’re just one of many.
No matter where we live, you and I can protect ourselves from being caught up in this anarchy, but we can only do it by staying in the Word of God. That is our source of truth, our source of guidance, our source of dialogue with Jesus. We must commit to not only knowing what the Word says, but to following what it says. We must commit to keeping the Word of God as our standard… the goal we are striving for… the end we want to reach. If we concentrate on doing that, we keep our eyes on Jesus, and we’re protected from the prevailing attitudes of the day.
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