No Rule

No rule.  The theme towards the end of Judges is the repeated phrase, “there was not king in Israel; everyone did whatever seemed right to him” (Judges 21:25).  One of the most horrific accounts is embedded between that repeated phrase, when a man’s concubine was abused and murdered by men from the tribe of Benjamen (Judges 19).  The man cuts up this woman into 12 pieces and delivers those pieces throughout the territory of Israel (v.29).  There are so many unimaginable sinful things that happen in this account.  It truly depicts a people who were so focused on sin, that they could not seemingly make rational decisions.  This is what sin does.  It affects the mind.  There was a Pastor’s bootcamp today in Charleston that I was able to attend.  One of the sessions discussed the impact sin has on the brain, and on the body, in general.  Please do not think that sin is harmless.  It truly affects the mind, and repeated sin could lead to greater and greater sinful acts.  When we are left to ourselves, with no rule and no ruler, the society can be completely unnoticeable and, ultimately, destructive.