"Then Barak said to her, 'If you will go with me, then I will go; but if you will not go with me, I will not go.'” Judg 3:8
The context of this admittedly obscure passage of scripture is that a man by the name of Barak was told by God to take ten thousand men to a pre appointed place where He would deliver the enemy of Israel into his hand. This information was delivered by Deborah, a prophetess and judge of Israel. God was setting him up for success.
Beloved, it is easy to say that we believe in God. In fact, if you ask most people in this country whether they believe in the one true God, the answer would be a resounding yes. Unfortunately, that is where it usually stops. Believing in God is easy because it is conceptual. It requires no effort whatsoever to believe in an idea, a perceived fact or even an individual. Believing God, however, is an entirely different matter. Believing God means not only accepting as true His existence but conducting your life in accordance with this fact. It means accepting that if He can create the universe then He can most certainly take on flesh, walk on water, still storms, feed five thousand with a few fish and pieces of bread, call the dead to life, forgive our sins and save our very souls. It means having confidence that He can and will do what He says and it means conducting our lives in a manner reflective of that.
It is recorded in scripture, "You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder. But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless?" James 2:19. Essentially, believing in God is something even the devil can claim but do we believe Him enough to do what he says?
It is clear that Barak believed in God. He was of the house of Israel and he gave credence to the words of the one who God placed in a leadership position over them. It is just as clear that Barak did not believe God would deliver the enemy into his hand, opting instead to allow Deborah to have the preeminence in the situation. She, on the other hand, believed God would do what he said: "She said, 'I will surely go with you; nevertheless, the honor shall not be yours on the journey that you are about to take, for the Lord will sell Sisera into the hands of a woman.' Then Deborah arose and went with Barak to Kedesh" Judg 3:9. The enemy was in fact delivered into the hands of a woman. Believe God.
Committed,
Lee
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