“But you have not obeyed Me; what is this that you have done?” Judges 2:2

Just a Little Change

Obeyed – Victory, victory, victory.  When the book of Judges opens, Israel’s army seems unstoppable.  But something accompanies the triumph that sets the stage for terrible consequences.  The Angel of the Lord appears before Israel and asks this haunting question:  “What have you done?”  We learn immediately that even though God granted victory to the people, they didn’t do everything He asked.  They didn’t take care of every detail.  They let just a few things slide.  And the result is devastating.  Their lives will now be forever tainted by the presence of opposing forces, people living among them who will constantly be a thorn and a hindrance.  Disobedience meant the sacrifice of real peace.  The text tells us that when the people heard this, they wept (Judges 2:4).  But it was too late.

We need to take this little story to heart.  Obedience is not 98%.  When God says, “Do this for me”, we don’t have the right to slightly modify the request.  The first lesson here is about apparent success.  God still upheld His promise.  In spite of their disobedience, God still empowered their victories.  On the surface, things looked just fine.  You see, even if we don’t follow through completely, God is still faithful.  But the results do not always tell the real story.  To rely only on the results is a mistake.  The real test is much deeper:  did we obey?

Underneath the victories was another agenda.  Israel let a few things slip by.  After all, they were wining.  Why worry about a few small details?  God is for us, isn’t He?  Just look how well things are going?  It was just easier not to take care of every little thing along the way.  So, they skimped on full compliance.

“What have you done?”  It’s a terrible question to hear from the Lord.  He keeps His promise and fully expects us to keep ours.  He honors His agreement.  Then He finds that we haven’t honored our part.  Does He take back His promise?  No.  But something changes.  The consequences of disobedience alter the environment forever.  The world we live in is supposed to be something God had in mind, but our little indiscretions make a big long-term difference.  In spite of victories, we can still go away weeping.

Obedience is never too difficult.  What is too difficult is the consequence of not giving full obedience.  Obey today and don’t go into tomorrow weeping.