Judges 16-18
One thing God asked of Samson, to not cut his hair. (Well, probably to stay away from the fruit of the vine, as well, but whatever). God stayed with him in spite of all of his lascivious behavior until Samson failed with this one thing. It was one thing in the Garden of Eden as well. It seems one thing is all we need to get it wrong. Oh, and note to self – if somebody is trying so hard to draw me away from God, it would pay to remove myself from their influence!
The book of Judges gets pretty disturbing from here, and it repeated says, “In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Jud 17:6). This whole book simply tells stories without really condemning or condoning the actions of the characters in those stories. But anyone with eyes can see that the things people are doing are self-driven and not in line at all with the laws of God that we recently drudged through. None of it strikes me as an image of a God-fearing people. I suppose the book is given to us to show us what happens when men decide to “do what is right in their own eyes.”
Luke 15:11-32
Jesus tell the well-known parable of The Prodigal Son. It is worth noting that He tells this story on the heels of the Lost Sheep and Lost Coin stories. And its message is the same – Heaven rejoices when the lost are found. But this time He strikes a little deeper at the heart of the religious leaders, who believe themselves righteous, pointing out their hypocrisy. It is good to remain in the Father’s care, but better still to have the Father’s heart.