Judges 21:25 – Lessons Learned Part I
25 In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes.
As we wrap up the book of Judges and Ruth, we will look back at some of the highlights from the last several weeks. Today, we’re going to reflect on the above verse and how, if everyone does what is right for them, total wickedness can ensue.
The above verse captures the whole time of the period when the judges ruled Israel. There was no real central unifying force (the Judges were heroes (mostly), not kings) and there was no idea of absolute morality. Everyone did what was right for them and didn’t care what God’s Word had to say. That seems a lot like the world we live in today. Our world basically lives by the idea of ‘what’s good for you is good for you and what’s good for me is good for me’ philosophy. For us Christians, we should reject that kind of thinking when it comes to right and wrong. We need to remember that there is a right and there is a wrong. And, since there is a ‘right’, we should strive to live a life that is right in God’s eyes. We do that by working to grow closer to Him every day. We stay faithful to reading God’s Word and praying to him as much as we can. The alternative is what we see in the book of Judges: a corrupt, bankrupt, and wicked society.
Life Step: Think about it…
In what areas do you need to live God’s way rather than the world’s?
In what ways can you be more faithful to live God’s way?
Study the Scriptures with Ben Jennings 
We should learn from the Israelites that we need to not only know the difference between right and wrong, but we need to do right. If we just do whatever we want and have no rules, or no one telling us to do right, bad things are bound to happen! Learn from others mistakes. One way that I need to live God’s way, rather than the world’s is how I think. The world is centered around “me”. What keeps me happy, what I want, it’s all about me, etc.. But that’s not God’s way. God’s way is thinking of others before yourself. And this can be hard sometimes, especially when God says one thing and the world says something completely different! But God knows everything, so He knows what’s best, and His ways are way better than the world’s!