God, Who Wants to Give a Life of a Different Order

This passage deals with the people of Israel in the time of the judges who, after entering the land of Canaan, abandoned their covenant with God, lived mixed in with foreign gods, and disobeyed again and again. The angel of the Lord goes up from Gilgal to Bochim, rebukes them for their failure, and warns that the salvation from Egypt and the protection in the wilderness he had shown them before will not continue. God makes it clear that when they settle for the visible gains and comforts of the world and live by their own standards, he will no longer give them protection and blessing of a different order.

The sermon points out that although Israel suffered, wept and offered sacrifices, their hearts were not sincere and it stopped at mere formality. True humility and repentance are not just feeling guilty or shedding tears; they mean submitting one's life completely to God and living to share the gospel. Through the examples of Peter and Judas Iscariot, it shows that even the same act of betrayal can have results as far apart as heaven and earth, depending on what is at the heart. God longs for the days when Israel obeyed the Word and showed bold faith as Joshua did, and he feels deep disappointment and pain at their self-serving faith that uses him.

Even though God patiently speaks to us again and again, wanting to give us a life of a different order, we must look back on whether we still cling to what we can see and use God. We ask ourselves whether our repentance comes from despair over our own comfort, or from a sincere desire to please God.