Based on Judges 6:1-10 (New King James Version)
“Then the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord. So the Lord delivered them into the hand of Midian for seven years, and the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel. Because of the Midianites, the children of Israel made for themselves the dens, the caves, and the strongholds which are in the mountains. So it was, whenever Israel had sown, Midianites would come up; also Amalekites and the people of the East would come up against them. Then they would encamp against them and destroy the produce of the earth as far as Gaza, and leave no sustenance for Israel, neither sheep nor ox nor donkey. For they would come up with their livestock and their tents, coming in as numerous as locusts; both they and their camels were without number; and they would enter the land to destroy it. So Israel was greatly impoverished because of the Midianites, and the children of Israel cried out to the Lord. And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried out to the Lord because of the Midianites, that the Lord sent a prophet to the children of Israel, who said to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God of Israel: ‘I brought you up from Egypt and brought you out of the house of bondage; and I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians and out of the hand of all who oppressed you, and drove them out before you and gave you their land. Also I said to you, ‘I am the Lord your God; do not fear the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell.’ But you have not obeyed My voice.’ ”
Disobeying God is the worse evil a person could ever do. There is nothing worse that can have such dire consequences than this. It’s one of the easiest things to do, but for different reasons, most people do not obey God. And then many ask, “Why are the things in this world in such bad shape?” Does God allow for so much evil because He likes death, pain, anguish, or confusion? No. It is not God’s will for all of this to be happening. These are all consequences of sin. Lack of obeying God is truly what is most destructive to man.
The people of Israel suffered many times because of disobedience, for not attending or taking into consideration God’s voice and commandment. After this episode, per se, of the disobedience we just read of, there was an event even far worse where God allowed for the nation to be destroyed, and most survivors to be taken captive. God sent prophet after prophet to warn the people of the evil that would come, but they never listened. And they disobeyed so much that they finally surpassed God’s patience. And this is what the Scriptures say that happened consequently: “We have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God, to walk in His laws, which He set before us by His servants the prophets. Yes, all Israel has transgressed Your law, and has departed so as not to obey Your voice; therefore the curse and the oath written in the Law of Moses the servant of God have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against Him. And He has confirmed His words, which He spoke against us and against our judges who judged us, by bringing upon us a great disaster; for under the whole heaven such has never been done as what has been done to Jerusalem.” Daniel 9:10-12. And what is written in the Law? “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. You shall have no other gods before Me. You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.” Exodus 20:2-6.
Now, we need to ask: “What causes disobedience?” One of the main reasons that provokes disobedience against God is fear, something as simple as that. As we read at the beginning, the people of Israel did what was wrong before the eyes of the Lord because they feared the gods of the Amorites. What is the wrong they did? The people quite simply, to appease the Amorites, they worshipped their gods and committed like that the sin of idolatry, and all because of fear. How many times do people disobey God and all because they fear something or someone more than God? But the Word of God teaches us that we need to fear and love only One above all things: God. If a person fears or loves more someone else, they are committing the sin of idolatry. This is what the Word says: “He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.” Matthew 10:37-38. Fear (as in being afraid) does not come from God, but rather, it is instilled by the devil. The devil is the one that tries for people to be afraid, and with the main reason being to precisely cause disobedience against God. He is the one that tells you: “If you please God, you will lose your family and loved ones,” or, “your children are not going to love you anymore,” or, “you are going to lose your job or ruin your career,” or “you are going to make a certain person your enemy,” or “people are not going to like you,” etc., etc. These are all examples of what the devil tells you to tempt you to disobey God. What did the devil probably tell Israel when they lived in the land of the Amorites? “If you don’t worship the idols of the Amorites, the Amorites will destroy you.” Does any of this sound familiar? The devil is always talking, and he tries to incite (because he cannot force anyone, because we all have free will) disobedience.
And well, this is what the Word says regarding fear: “Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.” 1 John 4:17-18. “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” 2 Timothy 1:7. In the Lord, there is simply no place for fear or cowardness. But unfortunately, we live in a world full of cowards, and this is the reward for the cowardly: “But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.” Revelation 21:8. The only ones that will please God are those that obey God, and God is the only One worthwhile obeying. There is no eternal life in anyone else. We owe everything to Him. We owe Him our existence, our breathing, and the beating of our hearts, and of course, the way of salvation He has created through His great love, through the death and resurrection of His only begotten Son, Jesus. We don’t owe nothing or no one as much as we owe God. Therefore, disobedience is an injustice and an insult to the God we owe everything to. There is no one greater or better than God. If you choose to fear more something or someone else, then you will only attain the reward that person or thing can give you. Can the devil give you eternal life? But, if you fear and love God, you will attain what only He can give. It is written: “He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.” John 14:21. So then, what will you choose to do with your fear? Lord bless! John