“For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of SELF-DISCIPLINE.” (2 Ti 1:7).
The third chapter of the book of Judges records an interesting story. Israel was enslaved to Eglon, the Moabite king. Now, not a lot is recorded about Eglon and his people, except that they teamed up with the Ammonites and the Amalakites, that they attacked Israel and took “The Plain of Palms”, and that Israel was enslaved to them for 14 years. But we are given a tiny glimpse of the characters of these Moabites in vs. 17 and 27: The king was described as “a very fat man” (Judg. 3:17), and the entire army was described as being “Well-fed” and “robust” (vs. 27, Message)! In sum, the Moabites ate too much! They were intemperate about their food! In essence, Israel was being held captive by overindulgence personified!
Just like Israel, we, also, are being held captive. Not physically perhaps, but the captor is the same! Obesity is becoming one of the number one medical problems in North America. Compulsive spending is becoming more and more prevalent, which has resulted in a rampage of credit card abuse and bankruptcy. Alcoholism and drug abuse affect every home. Illicit relationships have become the norm, and this has resulted in majority of marriages ending up in divorce. Why all these problems? Because, just like Israel of old, we are being held in bondage by overindulgence! And if we allow this to continue to enslave us, the results will be an escalading number of obesity-related deaths, broken-up homes, and homes and livelihoods lost! It all looks pretty hopeless, no solution in sight!
“The Israelites cried out to the LORD, and he gave them a deliverer-Ehud . . .” (Jdg 3:15)
First step: To cry out to the Lord! Throughout the ages, the only solution to captivity is the Lord! In Israel’s day, God sent a deliverer, Ehud. Ehud went as a gift-bearing ambassador to Eglon. He pretended he had a special message for the king, and when he and the king were alone, he took a dagger and: “. . . Plunged it into the king’s belly. Even the handle sank in after the blade, which came out his back. Ehud did not pull the sword out, and the fat closed in over it.” (Jdg 3:21-22)
Not a pretty picture, is it? But let’s take a closer look at what Ehud did. He took a SWORD, and he plunged it right into the “belly” of that overindulging king! He didn’t even take it back out. He couldn’t, for the signs of overindulgence swallowed it up! But there inside, the sword did its work. When the servants found the king sometime later, “. . . They saw their lord fallen to the floor, dead.” (Jdg 3:25)
God has also given us a deliverer: Jesus Christ! By the power of His blood, we can also plunge a “sword”—God’s Word (Heb 4:12)—into the midst of overindulgence! We must read God’s Word and meditate upon it so that the Words can fester and grow inside of us, until, just like Eglon, the overindulgence is completely overcome!
Remember, “God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of SELF-DISCIPLINE.” (2 Ti 1:7). All we have to do is use our Sword, the infallible Word of God to claim victory over sins of intemperance and overindulgence. Then, we too, can escape from our bonds of slavery!
In His love,
Lyn
Lyn Chaffart, moderator, The Nugget, Scriptural Nuggets, www.scripturalnuggets.org , Answers2Prayer Ministries, www.Answers2Prayer.org