Is God calling you to be a superhero? Today in the book of Judges, we will meet two women, both of whom might be called superheroes. What do their stories possibly have to do with us? How might God be calling us to be superheroes?
And in our New Testament reading, great multitudes were following Jesus. What an evangelistic opportunity! But instead of encouraging them, he wanted to know if they had counted the cost of following Him and whether they were prepared to love Him so much that their love for father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, even love for themselves would seem like hate in comparison. So, is Christianity really that simple … just pray a prayer and ask Jesus into your heart?
Today’s Readings:
Judges 3 & 4
Psalm 48.9-14
Proverbs 14.18-19
Luke 14.25-35
Housewives, Superheroes & Easy Believism
Judges 3 & 4:
A Woman Will Be the Superhero
The book of Judges has some very interesting stories, to say the least!
One of the more surprising, especially if you haven’t read it before, is the one we’ll read today! God used a “housewife,” a “tentwife” in this case, to destroy Israel’s and God’s enemy with a hammer and a tent peg. Let’s look at the story in Judges 4:
¹ When Ehud was dead, the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the Lord. 2 So the Lord sold them into the hand of Jabin king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor. The commander of his army was Sisera, who dwelt in Harosheth Hagoyim. 3 And the children of Israel cried out to the Lord; for Jabin had nine hundred chariots of iron, and for twenty years he had harshly oppressed the children of Israel.
A Prophetess named Deborah was judging Israel at this time. She had assured the people that God would give them victory over Sisera and Jabin’s army. But when Israel’s commander, Barak, refused to go to battle without Deborah, she told him, God would still deliver them, but he would get no glory for the victory. Instead, a woman would be the superhero of the story.
She wasn’t talking about herself but Jael. In my book, Deborah was one of the superheroes in the story. After all, she was willing to go to war with Barak and the army, yet willing to give all the credit to another woman.
A Tentwife Superhero
Verse 15:
15 And the Lord routed Sisera and all his chariots and all his army with the edge of the sword before Barak; and Sisera alighted from his chariot and fled away on foot. 16 But Barak pursued the chariots and the army as far as Harosheth Hagoyim, and all the army of Sisera fell by the edge of the sword; not a man was left.
17 However, Sisera had fled away on foot to the tent of Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite; for there was peace between Jabin king of Hazor and the house of Heber the Kenite. 18 And Jael went out to meet Sisera, and said to him, “Turn aside, my lord, turn aside to me; do not fear.” And when he had turned aside with her into the tent, she covered him with a blanket.
19 Then he said to her, “Please give me a little water to drink, for I am thirsty.” So she opened a jug of milk, gave him a drink, and covered him. 20 And he said to her, “Stand at the door of the tent, and if any man comes and inquires of you, and says, ‘Is there any man here?’ you shall say, ‘No.’”
Don’t you wonder what Jael was thinking about now? Did she already have a plan? Did she see herself as one of the superheroes in this story?
Superheroes and Simple Courage
21 Then Jael, Heber’s wife, took a tent peg and took a hammer in her hand, and went softly to him and drove the peg into his temple, and it went down into the ground; for he was fast asleep and weary. So he died. 22 And then, as Barak pursued Sisera, Jael came out to meet him, and said to him, “Come, I will show you the man whom you seek.” And when he went into her tent, there lay Sisera, dead with the peg in his temple.
Think about the courage it took to kill him. What if he had awakened while she was getting a good grip on the hammer? What if she had missed and just wounded him? Can you imagine the fear she might have felt? But God gave her the grace she needed to be a superhero as she stepped out in faith.
What can we learn from Jael’s story or any passage of Scripture, especially when it seems so removed from our life experiences?
Asking Questions
You might try asking some questions as you read and study. Questions like: What does this passage say? What did it say to the original hearers? Is there a promise here I can claim, a command I should obey, a principle I need to put to work in my life, or an example I should follow?
So, what does this passage say? What was it God asked Jael to do? In what ways does He ask any of us to be superheroes?
He asked her to use her talents, abilities, and the tools she had at hand to do something miraculous and courageous. She obeyed God and He did what only He could do. In other words, God asked her to let Him be the real Superhero.
God isn’t asking us to “kill” anyone literally. In fact, Jesus changed the rules of engagement, He told us to pray for our enemies and to do good to those who spitefully use us. And in Romans, He told us to overcome evil with good (Rom. 12.21).
But Jael used her gifts, abilities, and resources to accomplish God’s purpose. She risked everything for the cause. So, what about you and me? Like Jael and Deborah, He isn’t really asking us to be superheroes. He’s asking us to trust Him to work through us.
Allow God to Be the Superhero
Are you using what God has given you, your spiritual gifts, your talents and abilities, and the resources you have to further the kingdom? That might mean homeschooling several rambunctious children. It might mean sharing the gospel with a neighbor or co-worker even though your knees are knocking or you’re afraid she’ll reject you. It might mean having coffee with another wife or mother (husband or dad if you’re a man) once a week and going through a book together.
Books like The Excellent Wife: A Biblical Perspective by Martha Peace, Parenting: 14 Gospel Principles That Can Radically Change Your Family by Paul Tripp, or Idols of the Heart: Learning to Long for God Alone by Elyse Fitzpatrick can have an impact on someone’s life, marriage, and family for eternity. You can each read a chapter a week and discuss it when you get together. And I promise you will grow and be blessed in the process.
Are you willing to put it all on the line, to risk everything for the cause of Christ? Sharing the gospel, asking someone to read a book or a book of the Bible together, or taking our kids out of school to homeschool them can be scary. It can feel like God is asking us to be superheroes. But it’s important to remember that God will give us the grace to do whatever He calls us to do as we trust Him and allow Him to be the Superhero.
A Note about Homeschooling:
If God tugs on your heart in any way about homeschooling, I want to encourage you to prayerfully consider it, especially if your children are in public or any kind of secular school. The more I read and hear about what is going on in the educational system on every level, the more alarmed I am that we are turning our children over to the world to educate every bit of faith and truth out of them. It runs so much deeper than leaving religion, especially Christianity out. There is an ungodly agenda that is systematically being taught about homosexuality, every kind of sexual immorality, and other worldly philosophies.
If you don’t know where to start, find a homeschooling association in your area where you can talk to other parents. Find out about all the resources that are available these days. There are many homeschooling bloggers, as well. Some of them are included in my linkup list, but there are many others.
Today’s Other Readings:
Psalm 48.9-14:
Our Guide Even to Death
Think about the questions I mentioned above as you look at Psalm 48.14.
For this is God, Our God forever and ever; He will be our guide even to death.
What does this passage say? Is there a promise here I can claim, a command I should obey, a principle I need to put to work in my life, or an example I should follow?
So, is there a promise here we can claim? Is there ever! If God is our God, He is our God forever. He will be our guide even to death, through death, and beyond death! When that time comes in our lives, we don’t have to be afraid. He will take us through it and beyond.
Proverbs 14.18-19:
Evil Will Bow Before Good
I love verse 19:
The evil will bow before the good, and the wicked at the gates of the righteous.
While we are to overcome evil with good and leave judgment in God’s hands (Rom. 12.19-21), He will one day deal with evil and evil people.
Luke 14.25-35:
What God Requires
Here in Luke 14, great multitudes were following Jesus. What an evangelistic opportunity! But instead of encouraging them to pray a prayer and accept Him into their hearts, he wanted to know if they had counted the cost of following Him and whether they were prepared to love Him so much that their love for father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, even love for themselves would seem like hate in comparison.
We often want to offer people a Jesus who requires nothing of them, what some have called easy believism. “Just invite Him into your heart.” “Pray in faith and He’ll give you the desires of your heart.” We seldom talk to people about “counting the cost” and being serious about their commitment to Him.
The gospel is simple and there is nothing we can do to save ourselves. It’s not about “being good enough” or “getting our ducks in a row.” Our part is to receive Him in faith. But receiving Him as Lord means we need to bow our knee to His Kingship, not out of fear, but because He is God. And because He deserves our love and respect. That love should be a love that makes every other kind of love pale in comparison.
Sadly, many churches today fail to help people see their own sin and their desperate need for a Savior. They fail to help them see that the call is to “repent (turn from living your own way) and believe the gospel,” “to follow Him,” and “to do all that I have commanded” (Matt. 28.20).
It can result in false professions of faith and, therefore, a false sense of security (Matt. 7.17-23). And that makes easy believism very dangerous.
What About You?
How might God be asking you and me to trust Him rather than trying to be superheroes ourselves? How has He asked you to step out in faith in the past? And how does that encourage you today?
Coming Up:
In the coming days, we’ll talk about how to respond to our prodigals, polygamy and our acceptable sins, how to forgive when you’re not feeling it, and how spoiled children can become selfish adults.
I hope you’ll sign up so you don’t miss any of them.
If you would like to receive a FREE downloadable and printable Bible study through the book of Mark, you can click here for more information.
Blessings as you grow in Christ,
Donna ♥
Note about this post:
I began blogging through the Bible in 2012 and have done so every year since then. These posts are the product of many edits and additions throughout those years. Some days I make major changes, other days fewer.
A while ago, I read Jen Wilkin’s book None Like Him about the attributes of God. One is His incomprehensibility. In it, she says, “God is incomprehensible. This does not mean that he is unknowable, but that he is unable to be fully known.”
I have found that to be true each year as I’ve gone back through the Bible. Sometimes I find myself feeling as if a passage just appeared there for the first time. I’m reminded that no matter how many times we read through the Bible, we have only scratched the surface. I hope you feel the same.
Indeed these are the mere edges of His ways,
And how small a whisper we hear of Him!
But the thunder of His power who can understand?” (Job 26.14)
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