jotham's parable

Judges 9:7-21

"When this was all told to Jotham, he climbed to the top of Mount Gerizim, raised his voice, and shouted:

Listen to me, leaders of Shechem.
And let God listen to you!
The trees set out one day
to anoint a king for themselves.
They said to Olive Tree,
“Rule over us.”
But Olive Tree told them,
“Am I no longer good for making oil
That gives glory to gods and men,
and to be demoted to waving over trees?”
The trees then said to Fig Tree,
“You come and rule over us.”
But Fig Tree said to them,
“Am I no longer good for making sweets,
My mouthwatering sweet fruits,
and to be demoted to waving over trees?”
The trees then said to Vine,
“You come and rule over us.”
But Vine said to them,
“Am I no longer good for making wine,
Wine that cheers gods and men,
and to be demoted to waving over trees?”
All the trees then said to Tumbleweed,
“You come and reign over us.”
But Tumbleweed said to the trees:
“If you’re serious about making me your king,
Come and find shelter in my shade.
But if not, let fire shoot from Tumbleweed
and burn down the cedars of Lebanon!”

“Now listen: Do you think you did a right and honorable thing when you made Abimelech king? Do you think you treated Jerub-Baal and his family well, did for him what he deserved? My father fought for you, risked his own life, and rescued you from Midian’s tyranny, and you have, just now, betrayed him. You massacred his sons—seventy men on a single stone! You made Abimelech, the son by his maidservant, king over Shechem’s leaders because he’s your relative. If you think that this is an honest day’s work, this way you have treated Jerub-Baal today, then enjoy Abimelech and let him enjoy you. But if not, let fire break from Abimelech and burn up the leaders of Shechem and Beth Millo. And let fire break from the leaders of Shechem and Beth Millo and burn up Abimelech.”

Jotham was the lone survivor of Abimelech's destruction. It makes me curious as to how he escaped. How was he the only one that was able to get away? One of those interesting things in God's word that we get to be intrigued by.

But what he did, was so bold.

He climbed to the top of a mountain and screamed out over the entire population (that was in support of the man that annihilated his family), "Hey, people - look what you did!" He stood up for what he believed in, for the truth. He was trying to use the parable to get the people to understand that their priorities were not aligned up with what was right in the eyes of the Lord.

This has had me thinking about all that has been going on around us in our country lately - state flag controversy, acceptance of marriage between man/man and woman/woman, transgender approval in society, and our local and state election campaigns.

Are we as brave and bold as Jotham was to stand up for what we believe and what we know is true? I don't feel like I have to post my opinions or concerns all over facebook to do that. I have had many conversations with people asking what my thoughts are, and that is where I have to choose how I am going to respond that reflects what my heart agrees with. Even when those are hard conversations, awkward encounters, and difficult times to use grace and patience. Don't compromise your values for the sake of pleasing the world.

I have heard so many times that saying, "It's not what you say, it's what you do, that reflects who you are." However, in Jotham's case, it was both.

Maybe that is why the Lord gave him a way to escape. Maybe he was the only 1 of 70, that would be bold enough to stand for the truth.

Be like Jotham. Be the 1.