Who are you giving yourself to?

There is a  repeated theme throughout the book of Judges.

It says in Judges 3:7-8,

The Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD; they forgot the LORD their God and served the Baals and the Asherahs.

The anger of the LORD burned against Israel so that he sold them into the hands of Cushan-Rishathaim king of Aram Naharaim．

Then again in verse 12,

Once again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD, and because they did this evil the LORD gave Eglon king of Moab power over Israel.

And yet again in chapter 4, verses 1-2

After Ehud died, the Israelites once again did evil in the eyes of the LORD. So the LORD sold them into the hands of Jabin, a king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor.

Again and again, as you go through the book of Judges, you see these words repeated over and over.

The Israelites would start worshiping false gods, and God would give them into the hands of the very nations that worshiped these “gods.”

As a result, the Israelites would suffer greatly until they finally cried out to God for help, and he would rescue them by sending them judges to deliver them.

But it brings out a very important point.  We become enslaved by the things we offer ourselves to.  If we offer ourselves to sin, we become slaves to sin.  But if we offer ourselves to God, we become slaves to God.

As I mentioned in an earlier blog, “You’re gonna have to serve somebody.”

The apostle Paul puts it this way,

Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey–whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? (Romans 6:16)

Some people think that when they live apart from God, they’re free.  They can do whatever they want.

But what they don’t realize is that they soon become enslaved to something else.  They become enslaved to their lusts, to their greed, or to whatever else they’ve offered themselves to.

And as Paul points out, these things lead to shame and death (Romans 6:20-21).

Time and again, people wonder why their lives are falling apart.  They wonder why their marriages don’t work.  They wonder why their finances are a mess.  They wonder why they can’t stop their bad habits that are destroying their lives.

The reason?  They’re slaves to what they offered themselves to.  What they thought was freedom is really a slavery that is destroying their lives.

And so Paul writes,

Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to impurity and to ever‑increasing wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness. (Romans 6:19)

How about you?  Who or what are you giving yourself to?

Nobody is truly free.  You can serve your lusts or desires, become slaves to them and have your life fall apart.

Or you can serve God and find true life.

What will you do?