Jesus At 2am - A Humorous, Intelligent Look At The Bible, Church History & The Life Of Faith

Today we turn our attention to understanding the book of Judges, where Israel, newly settled in the Promised Land, faces a different kind of battle—no longer combat with swords and spears, but with the temptation to adopt the culture of those around her. Surrounded by Canaanite customs and religion, God’s chosen people begin to lose sight of who they are, as they attempt to trade faithfulness for what feels like security. For Israel, YHWH may have delivered them from captivity in Egypt; but that was a long time ago. And life in Canaan presents new challenges, challenges for which, perhaps, the gods of the Canaanites are better suited…? What’s so wrong with a dash of pagan worship here or idolatry there, if it brings the rain or secures the harvest? The short answer: If you're YHWH's priestly people, a lot! And as we’ll see, this temptation to replace faith in YHWH with obedience to the deities of the larger culture is hardly limited to the ancient past. We, too, are inclined to hedge our bets – to put our tru