The Fable of the Man, the Son, and the Donkey

The message begins with a fable about a man and his son traveling with a donkey, trying to please everyone they meet. In their attempt to accommodate every opinion, they ultimately lose the donkey. The moral is simple yet profound: trying to please everyone leads to pleasing no one—including yourself.

This story illustrates a common modern struggle: navigating the countless, often conflicting, voices that seek to influence our choices. Amid these loud external pressures, our internal compass—our own convictions and values—can grow faint. This tension sets the stage for a deeper exploration of how to remain grounded amid cultural confusion.

Christianity vs. Liberalism: A Tension

One central tension today lies between Christianity and contemporary culture. The term “liberalism” is used here not in a political sense, but to describe a worldview that prioritizes the self over divine authority. Liberalism exalts personal rights, autonomy from authority, and an ethos of tolerance—values that, while beneficial in some contexts (like freedom of worship), can lead to individuals becoming their own ultimate authority.

This stands in stark contrast to Christianity, where God’s word is the final authority. The issue is not with liberal values themselves, but with the shift in allegiance—from God’s truth to individual opinion.

The Story of the Israelites in Judges 2

A parallel is drawn with the Israelites in Judges 2. God commanded them to drive out the Canaanites—not merely to claim land, but as an act of divine judgment on widespread wickedness. The Israelites were given a choice: to serve God or follow other gods.

Despite God’s clear commands and powerful interventions, the Israelites failed to fully obey. Instead, they compromised, adopting the customs and gods of the Canaanites. God’s piercing question, “What is this you have done?” reflects His sorrow over their disobedience and disregard for covenantal faithfulness.

Their response—tears without true repentance—was followed by a return to evil. They worshiped Baal and Ashtaroth, exchanging faithfulness for worldly comforts. This rebellion provoked God’s anger, and He allowed them to be plundered by their enemies.

Absolute vs. Relative Truth

At the heart of this disobedience was a shift from absolute truth to relative truth. God’s word, which is absolute and unchanging, was treated as situational and flexible. This relativism is not only ancient but increasingly common today—even within the church.

Surveys show a troubling trend: a significant percentage of professing Christians now embrace relativistic views of Scripture and the exclusivity of Christ. This illustrates the danger of elevating personal experience and cultural consensus over God’s revealed truth.

The Missing Piece: Spiritual Community

As the Israelites descended into chaos, the refrain became familiar: “Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.” One key factor in this decline was the absence of genuine spiritual community. God never intended His people to walk alone. Believers are called into a shared life of faith, service, and mutual accountability.

Participation in church—serving, gathering, encouraging one another—may seem ordinary, but these acts reinforce who God is and what He has done. They only carry lasting meaning when rooted in a faith that is certain, tested, and anchored in God’s truth.

Even in their unfaithfulness, God’s grace persisted. He raised up judges to rescue His people again and again. This grace shows God’s persistent desire to bring His people back to Himself. He always offers a choice—and that choice is part of His unrelenting grace.

Lessons from History and Application to Today

History reveals repeated cycles where God raises up individuals to call people back to His word. Yet humanity tends to drift toward self-centeredness, prioritizing comfort and cultural acceptance over faithfulness. The challenges in the Book of Judges are not relics of the past—they are deeply relevant today.

The church today often lives as if it were in peacetime, forgetting we are in a spiritual battle for hearts and minds. We are called to stand for truth, teach the hope of redemption, and walk with others through their struggles—with clarity and compassion, offering more light than heat.

The Key to a Spiritual Life: Choosing God

The spiritual life hinges on continually choosing God—especially when distractions and alternatives abound. This requires deliberate choices to prioritize Scripture, pursue community, and walk in obedience.

Spiritual growth doesn’t happen in isolation. It is cultivated through shared discipleship, where believers hold each other accountable and point each other back to God’s truth. This kind of mutual relationship—with God at the center—grounds faith and fuels transformation.

The call is clear: place God as King, choose Christ above self, and remind each other daily of God’s greatness. Sin isolates, but God restores. The task of every believer is to stand for truth, lead others toward Christ, and embrace the power of God’s word within the context of spiritual community.

Reflection

1. Reflect and share on the choice you made to love and worship God in your life. Do you remember how that choice was given to you and what changes happened in your life? *

2. Do you believe that God’s Word is absolute truth? Do you live a life that reflects your choice? 

3. What do you, your family and friends do to know God and to remember what God has done for you? 

4. A life of a Christian is a life in Spiritual Community; community and discipleship go hand-in-hand. How can we have shared experiences in God that binds us together, that firms us and test us to be more like Christ.