Now the angel of the LORD went up from Gilgal to Bochim. And he said, “I brought you up from Egypt and brought you into the land that I swore to give to your fathers. I said, ‘I will never break my covenant with you, and you shall make no covenant with the inhabitants of this land; you shall break down their altars.’ But you have not obeyed my voice. What is this you have done? So now I say, I will not drive them out before you, but they shall become thorns in your sides, and their gods shall be a snare to you.” As soon as the angel of the LORD spoke these words to all the people of Israel, the people lifted up their voices and wept. (Judges 2:1–4 ESV)

 

The command was simple. Go into the Promised Land. Destroy ALL of the people groups within the Promised Land. Then you will have subdued the Promised Land, and you will have peace and prosperity. Pretty simple, isn’t it?

 

Yet the Israelites did not obey. They did not destroy all the Canaanite peoples. Some they left alive out of fear (because they had big, menacing iron chariots that struck fear in the hearts of God’s people). Others they left out of shear laziness. Oh sure, they destroyed some cities here and there, but they did not destroy them all. So the Lord said that the people they left alive would constantly be a thorn in their side, causing them trouble and causing them to stumble and fall in many ways.

 

Incomplete obedience is still disobedience. There is no such thing as partial obedience. It is an all or nothing proposition. When we “partially obey” there are consequences. There will be things in our lives that will haunt us and be thorns in our side maybe for life, all because we would not fully follow the Lord’s commands. Where is it in life that you are only “partially obeying” God? What will it take for you to fully/truly obey? Deal with it now, or have a thorn in your side the rest of your days.