07/05/2022 - THE BEGINNING OF DELIVERANCE

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Then she sent and called for Barak the son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali, and said to him, “Has not the Lord God of Israel commanded, ‘Go and deploy troops at Mount Tabor; take with you ten thousand men of the sons of Naphtali and of the sons of Zebulun…? Judges 4.6

Every servant of God must be consecrated to the Lord in the mission he has received from Him. There can never be any mistake in what he will announce to the people. We do not know how long Deborah felt that she should call Barak in order to get him to start the fight. When she did, he did not deny that the Lord had told him so. Being a divine work, both the leader of a small congregation and the national leader of the work have to be sure of what they will speak to the people who will listen to them.

To be prepared is not only to be without sin, but also to have knowledge of what you must minister or do. God is perfect, so must His servant be (Matthew 5:48). None of those who serve the Lord can give the devil any chance. In some ministries, it seems that what happened in the Northern Kingdom under Jeroboam also occurs. In Samaria, with some kind of gift, many were made priests, but the Lord forbids consecrating neophytes to the ministry! (1 Timothy 3:6,7).

Deborah showed firmness in speaking with Barak, showing that the mission received from the hand of the Most High could not wait. For sure, he would suffer eternal harm if he did not fulfill it. In the gallery of the heroes of faith found in Hebrews, we see Barak mentioned as such (Hebrews 11:32). The Word of God leaves no doubt when dealing with someone; however, if the person delays in heeding the divine command – it is good to be reminded of this fact.

The worker must never waver in what he must accomplish. Just as there is no wavering in the Lord, there can be no wavering in us (James 1:6,7). Whoever gives himself to the Most High must do what He commands; otherwise he will fall into the sin of omission. The Almighty will require from our hand the blood of those who were not warned of the danger they were in. After all, that´s why He has called us (Ezekiel 3.17-19). A servant must never disobey his master!

Deborah would have been discredited if God had not spoken to her. There was no way she could have deceived the people. Besides being a judge, she was a prophetess, so she had to give the warning to those whom the Eternal had commanded her to give. In the same way, never fail to give the divine message to those He places before you, for that is your calling. We must be the Lord’s fellow workers (1 Corinthians 3:9).

The Almighty would never tell us anything false. Soon, the judge would have to show that she had also been chosen to occupy such a position over the chosen people, giving details that would not be changed. God’s gifts are irrevocable (Romans 11:29), so we need to be busy in His work; after all, we have been set apart for such a task. In eternity, we will be rewarded – according to what we have done for the Kingdom of Heaven!

Both Deborah and Barak felt that that was the time to fight against Jabin and Sisera, the captain of the army. What a privilege, to risk their lives to fulfill God’s plan! To Him be the glory!

In Christ, with love,

R. R. Soares