Fights & Quarrels
No matter how close you are to God you can always draw closer. Draw near to Him, commit your ways to Him, and He will establish your steps on the path to eternal life.
“Abimelek son of Jerub-Baal went to his mother’s brothers in Shechem and said to them and to all his mother’s clan, “Ask all the citizens of Shechem, ‘Which is better for you: to have all seventy of Jerub-Baal’s sons rule over you, or just one man?’ Remember, I am your flesh and blood. They gave him seventy shekels of silver from the temple of Baal-Berith, and Abimelek used it to hire reckless scoundrels, who became his followers. He went to his father’s home in Ophrah and on one stone murdered his seventy brothers, the sons of Jerub-Baal. When Jotham was told about this, he climbed up on the top of Mount Gerizim and shouted to them, “Listen to me, citizens of Shechem, so that God may listen to you. “Have you acted honorably and in good faith by making Abimelek king? Have you been fair to Jerub-Baal and his family? Have you treated him as he deserves? Remember that my father fought for you and risked his life to rescue you from the hand of Midian. But today you have revolted against my father’s family...have you acted honorably and in good faith toward Jerub-Baal and his family today?...So Gaal led out the citizens of Shechem and fought Abimelek. When Abimelek heard that they had assembled there, he and all his men went up Mount Zalmon. He took an ax and cut off some branches, which he lifted to his shoulders. He ordered the men with him, “Quick! Do what you have seen me do!” So all the men cut branches and followed Abimelek. They piled them against the stronghold and set it on fire with the people still inside. So all the people in the tower of Shechem, about a thousand men and women, also died. Abimelek went to the tower and attacked it. But as he approached the entrance to the tower to set it on fire, a woman dropped an upper millstone on his head and cracked his skull. Hurriedly he called to his armor-bearer, “Draw your sword and kill me, so that they can’t say, ‘A woman killed him.’ ” So his servant ran him through, and he died.”
Judges 9:1-2, 4-7, 16-23, 26, 29, 39, 47-49, 52-54
Gideon, also called Jerub-Baal because he smashed the altars to Baal, served the people faithfully. He prospered and had many sons. Not long after his death, one of his sons decided to wipe out all the other heirs so he could be in charge. He is successful for a short time, but eventually all the evil he did caught up with him. It always does because God does not let the wicked go unpunished. What's crazy about the story is not that someone was seduced by evil. Evil happens every day. The surprising moment comes when the community that was supposed to be serving the Lord not only allowed it to happen but anointed him to be in charge. Where have you remained silent when perhaps you could have stood up? The hero of the story is an unnamed, courageous woman who drops a stone and stops Abimelek in his tracks. What would have happened if she did not step up? Most likely more evil and bloodshed.
Jesus said in Matthew 26 that if you live by the sword then you will die by the sword. While you might not be physically fighting in a battle with an iron sword, are you experiencing conflict in your life? If you close your eyes, can you picture anyone who you do not like or who you have offense against? Is there anyone you have offended? Jesus said if you know of anyone who has anything against you that we should go and make it right before going off to worship. We might have some work to do in our hearts to find freedom from offense so that we can be more full of the Holy Spirit.
“Hasten, O God, to save me; come quickly, Lord, to help me. May those who want to take my life be put to shame and confusion; may all who desire my ruin be turned back in disgrace. But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; may those who long for your saving help always say, “The Lord is great!” But as for me, I am poor and needy; come quickly to me, O God. You are my help and my deliverer; Lord, do not delay.”
Psalms 70:1-2, 4-5
Can you hear the urgency in David's cry for help? He says hasten, come quickly twice and adds do not delay. David's prayer is the same one we pray quite often. Help me Jesus and hurry! God's timing can be tough for us to handle. One of the most difficult questions to answer is why God allows suffering especially to those who are serving him. Gideon served God and his kids were nearly wiped out.
We live in a fallen world where evil occurs all the time. God wants to help us know that there is hope and to see how He is always shaping us through all that we experience. David has a deep insight he shares with us. He says may all who seek you rejoice and be glad proclaiming that God is great. David does not say may all who seek you when things are going well say God is great, rather David is talking about how even when we go through hard times, we have the opportunity to praise God.
There is a beautiful song title Raise a Hallelujah that is good for all people to hear. It was a song written when a child in a church got deathly ill and the worship team had nothing to do but pray like David for an answered prayer. Miraculously, the child was healed and today this song serves as an anthem of praise for those who are seeking answers during suffering. Can you hold fast with the same heart? Can you raise a hallelujah when all hell is breaking loose or you are barely holding on to hope?
"To humans belong the plans of the heart, but from the Lord comes the proper answer of the tongue. All a person’s ways seem pure to them, but motives are weighed by the Lord. Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans. The Lord works out everything to its proper end— even the wicked for a day of disaster. The Lord detests all the proud of heart. Be sure of this: They will not go unpunished. Better a little with righteousness than much gain with injustice. In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps. How much better to get wisdom than gold, to get insight rather than silver! Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death.”
Proverbs 16:1-5, 8-9, 16, 18, 25
Solomon invites us to reframe our perspective. He calls us to take a step back and see the bigger picture. He says that you all love to plan and plan, but asks us to consider who really controls the outcomes. Is it you? He says that doing things right rather than doing them fast will produce a better outcome for you.
Solomon does not say there is anything wrong with planning. Vision casting is critical to an effective life. Solomon is calling out how and why we plan. He says that pride goes before the fall. He is saying do not hurry on the wrong path for without God's guidance you will end up going the wrong way. He is telling us to reflect on why we do what we do. He says commit your plans to God with humility seeking His wisdom and you will see that all things work out for their proper end.
There are two word that we might need to explore in this passage and those are establish and commit. What does it mean to you to have the Lord establish your plans and steps. The Hebrew word is deep. It means to make firm, set in place. It gives the idea of something lasting that endures in contrast to things in life that can shift or be uncertain. To commit literally means to roll. It is the idea of rolling the pressure of the outcome and plans from yourself to God. It is the contrast of living by the flesh or living by the Spirit. Where have you been doing most of the planning but would benefit from God's wisdom and guidance? God always starts by asking us to examine our hearts.
“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times. Therefore Israel will be abandoned until the time when she who is in labor bears a son, and the rest of his brothers return to join the Israelites. He will stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God. And they will live securely, for then his greatness will reach to the ends of the earth."
Micah 5:2-4, 10-15
There are passages that contain promises that should impact our planning. This passage is one of them. Long before Jesus ever came, the prophet Micah said that there would be a ruler who came from Bethlehem who would shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord. He would make those who followed Him live seurely and His greatness would reach to the ends of the earth. Sound like anyone?
What would happen if we stepped back and saw that we are part of a much bigger triumphal procession? What if we didn't plan our lives around what we wanted to get, but looked at how we could give our lives to a greater cause? Would not the ways in which we are led astray go away? Living for God and loving Him with all of our hearts is the way that leads to life in the Kingdom of God. We have a Shepherd and He is the One who should be leading us, telling us where to go and how to get there, and establishing our steps.
“What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures. You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? That is why Scripture says: “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.” Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up. Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.”
James 4:1-10, 13-15
If you step back and think about all the times you have had conflict in your life, there are likely root causes of that conflict. James says that it is our own selfish desires, our allegiance to worldly ways, pride, listening to the enemy, the way we think, and sin. Have you ever thought about conflict in these kinds of terms? Jesus said take out the log in your eye before you tell someone to take out the splinter. It is a lot easier to see how others allow the worldly ways to influence their lives than to see it in ourselves.
James is a pretty direct communicator. He does not use soft or empathetic language. He speaks the truth and tells us to turn to Jesus. He says resist the devil and he will flee. Do you realize you have authority and can tell the devil to flee? When you feel the urge to get the last word or tell someone how wrong they are or make sure to elevate yourself at the expense of others, who do you think is encouraging you to do those things? It is the enemy and it is because you have not told him to flee.
Jesus said I have come to give you life and life abundantly. Jesus does not want you to live a life of conflict. He wants you to live a life where you pick up your cross and become a reflection of Christ to others. How do you do this? James says draw near to God and He will draw near to you. He says wash your hands, purify your hearts, control your mind, and humble yourself before the Lord. He is describing all the steps you can to commit your ways to the Lord so that He will establish your steps making you secure in Christ. So the question is what do you want? Do you want a life of peace, purpose, power, and God's presence? If so, take a step of faith today. Commit your plans to God and create space to let the Spirit lead you. Tell the devil to flee and declare that Jesus is Lord of your life. Draw near to Him and He will draw near to you.