Hello Friends!
This was a Bible Study that I sent out to our email group of ladies. If you would like to get them delivered to your email just let me know!
With much love,
Mrs. Joseph Wood
Have you ever noticed that God doesn’t fit in our “boxes”? We can de-fine who a Biblical woman is, how she acts and what her role is in the home, church and community. We can agree that as women we are to submit to our husbands and that men are to lead…. And then we read the life of Deborah and say, “Okay Lord what is it that I need to learn from her life and apply to my own?” I love these box breaking mo-ments! They challenge me to examine the Scriptures, my limited under-standing, and His unlimited abilities! Let’s take a look at the life of Deborah and learn together.
Judges 4:4 Now Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel at that time.
1. Deborah had an intimate relationship with God!
Deborah heard the word of the Lord and then gave His message to the people for instruction. The people came to ask her to pray and give them wisdom on what needed to be done to reconcile before God there-fore being delivered out of the hand of Jabin. They recognized the special relationship she had with God. She was, in fact, the only judge that was a prophet, except for Samuel.
2. Deborah was a woman of order!
From this one passage we see that Deborah's life was a life of order! She was first a child of God, then a wife and then a judge of Israel. So many times we can get our priorities out of sorts. We must always be able to define our lives with God first, our family second and our role in the community after that. Never should our “ministry” outside the home take from our homes or our personal walk with God!
3. Deborah brought respect to her husband
The Hebrew word for wife that is used in this Scrip-ture can also mean woman. Some suggest that Deborah was not married and that Lappidoth was a place she was from. However, as I examine the Scriptures I find that genealogy, connection with others is important to God. If she was in fact single, I would have expected her father to have been mentioned. Of course, I am not a theologian or scholar. These are just my thoughts as I examine the Word for myself. I believe that Deborah’s husband was known be-cause of her role in the community. Just as Proverbs gives mention of the virtuous woman doing: Proverbs 31:23 In fact, only here, in this passage, is his name mentioned.
4. Deborah operated within her gifts.
Deborah was a Spiritual leader, but not a mili-tary leader. She was there to give Israel the instructions of the Lord, but knew to give those instructions to a military leader and not try to do it herself. So often we step out of our blessing boundaries. We need to carefully operate within the gifts He has bestowed up on and let others operate within theirs.
5. A personal relationship with God is not only visible to the world, but brings comfort and confidence to all those around. Barak was willing to do as Deborah had instructed However, he found himself lacking courage and faith in God. Deborah corrected Barak for his lack of faith; yet, still went with him to bring the comfort needed. According to the Matthew Henry commentary, Deborah was so called the “honey bee” because her life represented sweetness to her friends. Yet, her life also left a sting to those that were not living as they should. God used Deborah to bring comfort to the humble and those that sought reconciliation with him.
May our lives also exemplify an intimate relationship with God, a life of order and a life of comfort to those that seek reconciliation with Christ.
Bible Reading
Proverbs 31: 23 Her husband is known in the gates, when he sitteth among the elders of the land.
Psalms 119:133 Order my steps in thy word; and let not any iniquity have dominion over me.
1 Cor. 14:40 Let all things be done decently and in order
Proverbs 8: 14 Counsel is mind, and sound wisdom: I am understanding; I have strength.
Proverbs 8:17 I love them that love me; and those that seek me early shall find me.
Isaiah 40:1 Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God
Questions to Ponder
Is my life in order so that I can serve the Lord most effectively?
Do I have a personal relationship with God that is visible to the world?
Is my relationship with God first, then my relationship with my hus-band and then my relationship with others?
Do I seek God early each day or is He last on my list?
Do I bring my husband honor?
Do I operate within the gifts that God has given me or do I try to stop out of those boundaries?
Do I encourage and help others operate within their gifts and the call God has for them?
Do I strive to bring comfort to the people of God by
No comments:
Post a Comment