Judges 11:29
"Then the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jephthah."
The whole story of Jephthah is a very difficult one. Here is a man born of a sinful union outside of marriage. He is a man who is described as a leader of thugs and thieves. Here is a man who refused to come to the aide of his family unless they made him ruler. Tragically, he even kills his daughter in tribute to a God-provided victory over the Ammonites.
I'm confused. This is just not the way it should be according to my understanding of God's ways. God couldn't use a man like this!
Most have it in mind God blesses the obedient and curses the disobedient, with Jephthah falling squarely into this latter category. But that's not what we see here. "The Spirit of the Lord came upon Jephthah." God chose to use a scoundrel of the highest order to accomplish his will. It wasn't a holy man God used, but one whom we'd never let in our homes!
Still, I see several implications from this account for today. First, God still uses scoundrels to accomplish his will, even when judging the church. We're in no position to look at the instrument arrayed against us and make a judgment as to whether this vessel is used of God or not. We can't tell by looking at the character of the vessel in opposition to us whether it is of God or not.
After the terrorists attacks of September 2001, some preachers were criticized for declaring this tragedy was from God. While I can't say for sure, we're wrong if judge an act by simply looking at the character of the players and deciding God couldn't have had a hand in it. They might just look like Jephthah, but still be the one touched of the Spirit!
Also, we need to understand that even a touch of the Spirit won't prevent us from exercising our will to sin. Even when under control of the Spirit, we may be like Jephthah, pursuing sinful passions. While I'm thankful God moves forward his kingdom even when I choose sin, I'm embarrassed of my own weaknesses, even as a vessel of God's choosing.
Finally, it should be evident we need to be careful of what we promise to dedicate to God. He does expects us to keep our word in our promises. If Jephthah was committed enough to keep a promise to sin, surely we should be holy enough to keep our promises of obedience.
LORD JESUS
May your Spirit lead me as your instrument of serve. Keep me from presumptuous sin. Steer me according to your will. And protect me from evil. Amen.
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