Blogging through the Bible: we need a king really bad

The last two days in Judges have been gruesome and disturbing. We’ve seen a son robbing his own mother, gross idolatry, the slaughter of innocents and the unjust destruction of a peaceable city, betrayal, gang rape, and murder. Just in three chapters.

What’s the point? Why record all this?

The point is found in Judges 17.6: ‘In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.’ Again in 18.1: ‘In those days there was no king in Israel.’ Again in 19.1: ‘In those days, when there was no king in Israel…’

Gordon Fee and Douglas Stuart sum it up well. ‘Israel needs God’s appointed king.’

Oh, how true this is for us today. We need a king really bad. We need King Jesus to rule our lives, and to direct us. Israel was waiting for King David, but the Bible tells us that King David himself was expecting one of his sons to be an even greater king (Psalm 110). And we need King Jesus.

The reason we need King Jesus in our lives is that we self destruct without him.

When left to ourselvese, we make foolish decisions that destroy us. As a sinner, I see it happen all the time in my own life. When I ignore Jesus and his commands, I hurt myself and my family.

As a pastor, I see it happen all the time in my church. When people live according to their own judgment and do what is right in their own eyes, they will self destruct. Guaranteed. This is why Proverbs 1.7, one of the most important verses in the Bible, says that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. Without a feeling acknowledgement of the wisdom and the strength and authority of God and his Messiah, we will live ignorant, self destructive lives. I watch this play out all the time. The most important thing we can do for people is to point them to King Jesus.

Jesus, be the sovereign king of my own life today. And please extend your loving rule to others through my words, thoughts, and actions.

Posted by Stephen Witmer on May 26, 07:53 AM