April 29- Don't Let Me Be Killed By A Woman!

April 29, 2011

Scripture Readings:
Judges 9:22-10:18; Luke 24:13-53;
Psalm 100: 1-5; Proverbs 14: 11-12

Women belong in the house...and the Senate.  
~Anonymous

Judges 9:22-10:18

Women fighter pilots were first introduced into the United States military in 1994.  Kara Hultgreen was the first female to fly an F-14 Tomcat off of the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier.  Although she was killed in a crash at sea during a routine mission, her commission as a fighter pilot led the way for women to make significant contributions in military conflicts for the United States of America.  In today's story a woman manages to kill the wicked Abimilech.

As we begin today, the town of Shechem is growing displeased with having Abimilech as their king.  The Bible states that God is stirring up the trouble against him as punishment for Abimilech having killed Gideon's other sons who were his half brothers. The people set up a failed ambush and Abimilech is mad. He defeats the people in the town and then commits genocide when he burns a thousand innocent men and women in the temple of Baal. He goes to a city called Thebez and captures it. This town also has a strong tower that people run to during the conflict. As Abimilech prepares to attack the tower, a brave woman drops a millstone off the tower and onto Abimilech's head, killing him.  You go, girl!

Israel has a series of judges and periods of peace, but ultimately, they again do evil in the eyes of the Lord and begin to be oppressed by the Ammonites. They cry out to the Lord to rescue them. He is reluctant, but is grieved by their misery. God's grief and compassion lead Him to help them.

Do you realize that even when your problems are a result of your own stupidity and sin, your suffering grieves God?  We worship a God who is loving and long suffering with us.

Luke 24:13-53

Have you ever been listening to a sermon and all of sudden your body gets warm and you almost feel like you are tingling?  I once went to a Billy Graham Crusade. The evening was great. I had been to several other crusades so nothing was really surprising. But before Billy got up to speak, the crowd was led in the singing of hymns.  As we began to sing How Great Thou Art,  a group of about 100 deaf people were positioned near the front of the stage. As the crowd in the auditorium sang in unison, these 100 people signed the words to that awesome hymn with the greatest enthusiasm I have ever seen. The Holy Spirit fell upon us. My body temperature rose as my eyes filled with tears and the glory of God was felt. My two children were with me.  My daughter turned to me and asked, "What just happened?"  I replied, "You just experienced God's Spirit coming upon a group of people." It was a weird experience. We left believing that we had gotten a glimpse of what the joy of being in God's presence and worshiping Him in the new heaven and new earth will be like. I believe this is how these men on the Road to Emmaus must have felt.

It is a simple story. Two fellows on the road are joined by another journeyman, who is Jesus, but is not recognized yet. This is by God's design. He asks about what they have been discussing.  They explain that there was a man named Jesus who was a prophet recently killed, but everyone thought he was the Messiah who would rescue Israel. Instead, he was crucified by the leaders. They tell Jesus that some women are now saying that this Jesus is alive again. 

Jesus rebukes them for not knowing their Scriptures. He tells them that the writings of Moses and the prophets clearly indicate that the Messiah must suffer and die before entering his glory. Jesus explains all of the Old Testament Scriptures that point to him as Messiah. Wow. It is no surprise that they wanted to eat dinner with this fellow and keep talking.  Upon breaking bread after blessing the food, Jesus hands them the bread and they immediately recognize him. Then he disappears. Their reaction is, "Didn't our hearts feel warmly strange as he walked with us on the road and explained Scripture to us?"  That is the Spirit of God, folks!

As they explain this to the disciples, Jesus appears in their midst. He shows them his pierced hands and feet. He has them touch him, so that they realize that he is not dead, not a ghost, but alive in a new kind of body. For further proof, he eats broiled fish and they watch him do it. He teaches this group about how his suffering, death, and resurrection were all predicted in the writings of Moses, the prophets, and the Psalms.  He tells them that the predictions in the Old Testament all HAD TO COME TRUE. 

It was now their job to go and be witnesses to this truth.  Jesus promises that God will send the Holy Spirit to indwell believers to accomplish all that God wants accomplished on earth. Needless to say, they all praise God.

Have you felt the warmth of Jesus' teachings in your life?  Has God's Spirit ever burned within your heart? Are you taking the time this year as you read through the Bible to see Jesus in the Old Testament?

Psalm 100:1-5

What a great psalm to read after reading about Christ's resurrection and then his earnest explanation of the Scriptures to his beloved followers.

Proverbs 14:11-12

Sometimes there is a way that seems right to a person, but the way ends in death.  The Israelites during the times of the Judges were a perfect example of this.

What did you see today?

Blessings,

Jubilee Gal

Kathy Fullerton
© 2011