Then all the people of Israel, the whole army, went up and came to Bethel and wept. They sat there before the Lord and fasted that day until evening, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the Lord.” (Judges 20:26, ESV).
The last episode of the book of Judges is one of the Bible's most gruesome passages. The moral compass of Israel was completely broken. They were so far removed from living like God's covenant people. But it was the final episode of Judges which, like a smelling salt, woke them up to their error.
The tale is terrible, hard to retell. The basic plot is filled with sin at every turn. I even tried restating the story in my own words, but they seem too gruesome to write. I don't want the story to live on my blog. Suffice it to say, the basest forms of defilement and abuse towards others occurred at the hands of Gibeonites from the tribe of Benjamin. It is a disturbing story.
When the rest of Israel was notified of the sin in Gibeah, they snapped to attention. Finally, they realized sin was in the camp. They had mindlessly walked along in godlessness, but enough was enough. They saw the sin and decided to purge it from their midst.
So Israel gathered in battle against the Benjamite people of Gibeah. They attacked Gibeah once and lost. They attacked Gibeah a second time and lost. It was after this second defeat they fasted and prayed and gave offerings to the Lord. Then, they attacked again and won.
I think this is a pattern in Scripture. During the first and second battles, Israel was grieved at the sin of Benjamin. During the third battle, they finally recognized their sin. This inward mourning was a key to their victory.
You see, as long as they attacked Benjamin with an attitude of superiority, God could not bless them. As long as they were merely offended at the sins of others, God would not strengthen them with His Spirit. They needed to come to a place where they were grieved at their sin.
This is extremely applicable today. Many believers are merely aghast and offended when the world acts like the world. A feeling of superiority spreads within them like cancer. They think and say: I would never. How could they?
God cannot dispense His power to believers like these. Instead, God is looking for disciples who are willing to look within.
Jesus said: "Blessed are those who mourn for they will be comforted." (Matthew 5:4). He was looking for those who'd see sin without and within, allowing their hearts to grieve over all of it.
But the hyper-critical spirit of superiority will zap your spiritual strength. Instead, pray and fast, humbling yourself before God. When you see error, know you have error also. When you see rebellion, know your heart is capable of the same. Humbly cry out to God and ask Him to aid you in the fight.
When children are first learning to swim, they like to stay close to the edge of the pool. Only after confidence and ability comes in do they move out into the deep. Let this be a picture of our connection to Christ's grace and mercy. We always need it. We never mature beyond it. We must always stay close to the edge of the pool, close to His mercy and grace.
