From Fleece to Faith

Judges 6-7, “From Fleece to Faith”
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Introduction:
Judges has a tendency to be an aggravating book – Israel keeps falling over & over & over again. And their sin gets worse & worse. But at the same time, it’s a grace-filled book. So many times with Israel’s failings, God is right there & ready to deliver upon their repentance & turning back to Him. We’ve seen it with Othniel (Caleb’s son-in-law) – with Ehud (vs. Eglon) – with Shamgar (ox goad) & with Deborah & Barak (vs. Sisera). Now we’ll see it with Gideon…

Judges 6 (NKJV)
1 Then the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD. So the LORD delivered them into the hand of Midian for seven years, 2 and the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel. Because of the Midianites, the children of Israel made for themselves the dens, the caves, and the strongholds which are in the mountains. 3 So it was, whenever Israel had sown, Midianites would come up; also Amalekites and the people of the East would come up against them. 4 Then they would encamp against them and destroy the produce of the earth as far as Gaza, and leave no sustenance for Israel, neither sheep nor ox nor donkey. 5 For they would come up with their livestock and their tents, coming in as numerous as locusts; both they and their camels were without number; and they would enter the land to destroy it. 6 So Israel was greatly impoverished because of the Midianites, and the children of Israel cried out to the LORD.

A. The cycle of apostasy & sin again…

B. Are there consequences to sin? Yes! In Israel’s case, 7 years worth of consequences…

C. Keep in mind this wasn’t just an inconvenient time for Israel; this was impoverishment to them…
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7 And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried out to the LORD because of the Midianites, 8 that the LORD sent a prophet to the children of Israel, who said to them, “Thus says the LORD God of Israel: ‘I brought you up from Egypt and brought you out of the house of bondage; 9 and I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians and out of the hand of all who oppressed you, and drove them out before you and gave you their land. 10 Also I said to you, “I am the LORD your God; do not fear the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell.” But you have not obeyed My voice.’ ”

A. “And it came to pass…” This seems to me a very sad assessment. Exactly how much time needed to pass in their servitude to the Midianites before they came to their senses & cried out to God? …

B. God reminded them of His past provision…

C. God reminds them of their present position… (I am the Lord your God…)

D. God reminds them of their disobedience…
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11 Now the Angel of the LORD came and sat under the terebinth tree which was in Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, while his son Gideon threshed wheat in the winepress, in order to hide it from the Midianites. 12 And the Angel of the LORD appeared to him, and said to him, “The LORD is with you, you mighty man of valor!”

A. Seems to be a bit of humor here. There’s Gideon, threshing wheat in secret trying to hide & afraid of the Midianites – and the Angel of the Lord comes up & calls him a warrior…

B. Not just humor; it’s the truth! Only Gideon doesn’t know it yet.
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13 Gideon said to Him, “O my lord, if the LORD is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying, ‘Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the LORD has forsaken us and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites.” 14 Then the LORD turned to him and said, “Go in this might of yours, and you shall save Israel from the hand of the Midianites. Have I not sent you?” 15 So he said to Him, “O my Lord, how can I save Israel? Indeed my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house.” 16 And the LORD said to him, “Surely I will be with you, and you shall defeat the Midianites as one man.”

A. Gideon doesn’t seem to recognize the Angel of the Lord as God at first… Questions God about His miraculous power (even though God had just affirmed it to the people)…

B. God commissions Gideon to battle. “Go in this might of yours” – not so much a statement that God wouldn’t be involved (Gideon’s victory is due solely to God), but a proclamation that Gideon wouldn’t be going in worldly strength to the battle. He wouldn’t have to go to training school – nor raise a massive army – nor anything that showed itself strong. All Gideon needed to do was to be available to however God wanted to use him…

C. Gideon even acknowledges how weak he is – if a victory comes, it must be by the hand of the Lord God.
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17 Then he said to Him, “If now I have found favor in Your sight, then show me a sign that it is You who talk with me. 18 Do not depart from here, I pray, until I come to You and bring out my offering and set it before You.” And He said, “I will wait until you come back.” 19 So Gideon went in and prepared a young goat, and unleavened bread from an ephah of flour. The meat he put in a basket, and he put the broth in a pot; and he brought them out to Him under the terebinth tree and presented them. 20 The Angel of God said to him, “Take the meat and the unleavened bread and lay them on this rock, and pour out the broth.” And he did so. 21 Then the Angel of the LORD put out the end of the staff that was in His hand, and touched the meat and the unleavened bread; and fire rose out of the rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened bread. And the Angel of the LORD departed out of his sight.

A. How would you like that for a confirmation? Bring an offering & no matches…fire leaps up from the rock & consumes it on the spot…
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22 Now Gideon perceived that He was the Angel of the LORD. So Gideon said, “Alas, O Lord GOD! For I have seen the Angel of the LORD face to face.” 23 Then the LORD said to him, “Peace be with you; do not fear, you shall not die.” 24 So Gideon built an altar there to the LORD, and called it The-LORD-Is-Peace. To this day it is still in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

A. This is almost always the result when people realize they have spoken with God. Isaiah cringed for his life… Peter asked Jesus to leave the boat… When we understand God’s holiness in comparison with our own sinfulness, there’s nothing else we can do except cry out for mercy…

B. Does God show His mercy? Yes! The Lord is peace… Jesus is our peace with God…
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25 Now it came to pass the same night that the LORD said to him, “Take your father’s young bull, the second bull of seven years old, and tear down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the wooden image that is beside it; 26 and build an altar to the LORD your God on top of this rock in the proper arrangement, and take the second bull and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the image which you shall cut down.” 27 So Gideon took ten men from among his servants and did as the LORD had said to him. But because he feared his father’s household and the men of the city too much to do it by day, he did it by night.

A. Before Gideon can go fight the battle, he’s got to purify his house from sin…

B. Even in this, he didn’t have much courage. … But note, he still did the right thing.
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28 And when the men of the city arose early in the morning, there was the altar of Baal, torn down; and the wooden image that was beside it was cut down, and the second bull was being offered on the altar which had been built. 29 So they said to one another, “Who has done this thing?” And when they had inquired and asked, they said, “Gideon the son of Joash has done this thing.” 30 Then the men of the city said to Joash, “Bring out your son, that he may die, because he has torn down the altar of Baal, and because he has cut down the wooden image that was beside it.” 31 But Joash said to all who stood against him, “Would you plead for Baal? Would you save him? Let the one who would plead for him be put to death by morning! If he is a god, let him plead for himself, because his altar has been torn down!” 32 Therefore on that day he called him Jerubbaal, saying, “Let Baal plead against him, because he has torn down his altar.”

A. Amazing! Even after crying out to the Lord for help, the people are still wanting to cling to their false pagan altar… To the point of wanting to kill Gideon over it…

B. Joash’s response is classic: “Would you plead for Baal?” Would you really present the case to continue sinning against the Lord? Yet that’s exactly what some in the church attempt to do. People try to justify sins based on cultural changes – simply because it’s “politically correct” & thus we see ‘Christian’ arguments for homosexuality, justification for abortion, & more… Why would we plead for these things?

C. Through it all, Gideon gets a new name: Jerubbaal. Literally, “Let Baal plead”…probably not the 1st name that a servant of the Lord was looking to be named with, but it works. [Like Elijah – 1 Kings 18] Let Baal plead for himself; we’re going to follow the Lord!
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33 Then all the Midianites and Amalekites, the people of the East, gathered together; and they crossed over and encamped in the Valley of Jezreel. 34 But the Spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon; then he blew the trumpet, and the Abiezrites gathered behind him. 35 And he sent messengers throughout all Manasseh, who also gathered behind him. He also sent messengers to Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali; and they came up to meet them.

A. Gideon assembles the army…most of Northern Israel comes to fight. All except Ephraim – keep that in mind for Ch 8. It seems that Gideon didn’t send a messenger to them, or at least none is listed.
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36 So Gideon said to God, “If You will save Israel by my hand as You have said— 37 look, I shall put a fleece of wool on the threshing floor; if there is dew on the fleece only, and it is dry on all the ground, then I shall know that You will save Israel by my hand, as You have said.” 38 And it was so. When he rose early the next morning and squeezed the fleece together, he wrung the dew out of the fleece, a bowlful of water. 39 Then Gideon said to God, “Do not be angry with me, but let me speak just once more: Let me test, I pray, just once more with the fleece; let it now be dry only on the fleece, but on all the ground let there be dew.” 40 And God did so that night. It was dry on the fleece only, but there was dew on all the ground.

A. Throwing out a fleece…

B. Was this wisdom on the part of Gideon? Or a lack of faith? There’s nothing wrong with confirming the word of the Lord through Scripture, Godly counsel, etc. But when the word is confirmed, it’s confirmed. We don’t need to question God beyond that! Be careful about basing your walk with God around various “fleeces.” Why?
__i. We shouldn’t be tempting the Lord.
__ii. God’s word should be enough! God had already told Gideon what to do. He’d already sent the Holy Spirit upon Gideon. What more did Gideon need to actually walk in obedience? Too many times, our fleeces aren’t used to truly determine God’s will for our lives; their excuses as to why we won’t follow God’s will already revealed for us.

C. So how should we determine the will of God in any given situation? Do we need to ask for “signs” and miracles? No. We just need to follow His leading. Going to look at several verses:
__a. Seek 1st the Kingdom of God. God will provide everything else. Matthew 6:33-34 (33) But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. (34) Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. []
__b. Prayerfully search the Scriptures. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 (16) All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, (17) that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. []
__c. Ask for wisdom – God promises that He’ll provide it to those who ask in faith. James 1:5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. []
__d. Seek godly counsel… Proverbs 15:22 Without counsel, plans go awry, But in the multitude of counselors they are established. []
__e. Commit your way to the Lord. Ask that God would make His desires your desires… Proverbs 3:5-6 (5) Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; (6) In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths. []
__f. After all that’s done, walk in faith! All of these steps are obviously bathed in prayer, but they go beyond “only” prayer to action. (Tozer) “Prayer will become effective when we stop using it as a substitute for obedience.” Gideon was hesitant to walk in obedience…it was only the grace of God that God patiently took away every excuse that Gideon had.
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Judges 7 (NKJV)
1 Then Jerubbaal (that is, Gideon) and all the people who were with him rose early and encamped beside the well of Harod, so that the camp of the Midianites was on the north side of them by the hill of Moreh in the valley. 2 And the LORD said to Gideon, “The people who are with you are too many for Me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel claim glory for itself against Me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’

A. God is about to whittle the army down. Why? Wouldn’t it be better to go into battle with massive numbers & mighty warriors? Sure – if you want to use man’s methods to fight, that’s the only way to go. But Gideon wasn’t using man’s methods; this was God’s battle. And God didn’t want Israel to forget it…

B. Be careful not to take credit for that which God has done in your life…
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3 Now therefore, proclaim in the hearing of the people, saying, ‘Whoever is fearful and afraid, let him turn and depart at once from Mount Gilead.’ ” And twenty-two thousand of the people returned, and ten thousand remained. 4 But the LORD said to Gideon, “The people are still too many; bring them down to the water, and I will test them for you there. Then it will be, that of whom I say to you, ‘This one shall go with you,’ the same shall go with you; and of whomever I say to you, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ the same shall not go.” 5 So he brought the people down to the water. And the LORD said to Gideon, “Everyone who laps from the water with his tongue, as a dog laps, you shall set apart by himself; likewise everyone who gets down on his knees to drink.” 6 And the number of those who lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, was three hundred men; but all the rest of the people got down on their knees to drink water. 7 Then the LORD said to Gideon, “By the three hundred men who lapped I will save you, and deliver the Midianites into your hand. Let all the other people go, every man to his place.” 8 So the people took provisions and their trumpets in their hands. And he sent away all the rest of Israel, every man to his tent, and retained those three hundred men. Now the camp of Midian was below him in the valley.

A. Narrowed the army 2 ways… (1) Anyone who wants to go home, can go home… 22,000 people didn’t have to be told twice… (2) God’s determination of how they drank water. Either God chose the 300 who lapped like dogs because they were militarily ready for action (ready to run) – or because they were the least worthy out of the rest of the army. Based on 1 Cor 1:27 (God has chosen the foolish things), I’m inclined to favor the latter.

B. Gideon is left with 300 men. 300!? Gideon was facing an army of thousands. 300 men by the world’s standards wasn’t bravado; it was suicide! Yet God was the One fighting for them…300 was still 300 more than necessary. But enough for Israel to get the point.
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9 It happened on the same night that the LORD said to him, “Arise, go down against the camp, for I have delivered it into your hand. 10 But if you are afraid to go down, go down to the camp with Purah your servant, 11 and you shall hear what they say; and afterward your hands shall be strengthened to go down against the camp.” Then he went down with Purah his servant to the outpost of the armed men who were in the camp. 12 Now the Midianites and Amalekites, all the people of the East, were lying in the valley as numerous as locusts; and their camels were without number, as the sand by the seashore in multitude. 13 And when Gideon had come, there was a man telling a dream to his companion. He said, “I have had a dream: To my surprise, a loaf of barley bread tumbled into the camp of Midian; it came to a tent and struck it so that it fell and overturned, and the tent collapsed.” 14 Then his companion answered and said, “This is nothing else but the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel! Into his hand God has delivered Midian and the whole camp.” 15 And so it was, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream and its interpretation, that he worshiped. He returned to the camp of Israel, and said, “Arise, for the LORD has delivered the camp of Midian into your hand.”

A. Don’t you love this little act of grace from God? God has already appeared incarnate to Gideon through Jesus as the Angel of the Lord – He’s already consumed the sacrifice Gideon brought to Him – He’s already answered 2 fleeces that Gideon threw out – He’s given Gideon His word on multiple occasions… But in case Gideon is still a bit nervous about going out, God says, “Go listen in on the camp & see what the Midianites have to say.”

B. God understands our fear. God understands our lack of faith. 4 times in the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus points out the lack of faith on the part of the Jews & the disciples…He’s not surprised by it; it’s just a statement of fact. We do have very little faith…but God understands that & in His grace, meets us there. We have a wide-open invitation to go boldly before the throne of grace in our time of need – if we lack faith, we can ask for it. Faith can even be a spiritual gift (1 Cor 12:9). If you lack faith in trusting God; don’t be fearful & run further away from God; simply confess it to Him & ask for His help…
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16 Then he divided the three hundred men into three companies, and he put a trumpet into every man’s hand, with empty pitchers, and torches inside the pitchers. 17 And he said to them, “Look at me and do likewise; watch, and when I come to the edge of the camp you shall do as I do: 18 When I blow the trumpet, I and all who are with me, then you also blow the trumpets on every side of the whole camp, and say, ‘The sword of the LORD and of Gideon!’ ” 19 So Gideon and the hundred men who were with him came to the outpost of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, just as they had posted the watch; and they blew the trumpets and broke the pitchers that were in their hands. 20 Then the three companies blew the trumpets and broke the pitchers—they held the torches in their left hands and the trumpets in their right hands for blowing—and they cried, “The sword of the LORD and of Gideon!” 21 And every man stood in his place all around the camp; and the whole army ran and cried out and fled.

A. So what’s the battle plan? Go sneak into the camp with swords & plant traps? Roll boulders down upon the camp? No. Nothing militarily. Every man was armed with a trumpet (shofar) and a torch covered up under a pitcher. When the trumpet blows, the others are supposed to blow their trumpets & break open the torches to shine down on the Midianites… Basically the plan is to scare them to death… And it works.
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22 When the three hundred blew the trumpets, the LORD set every man’s sword against his companion throughout the whole camp; and the army fled to Beth Acacia, toward Zererah, as far as the border of Abel Meholah, by Tabbath. 23 And the men of Israel gathered together from Naphtali, Asher, and all Manasseh, and pursued the Midianites.

A. IOW, there was so much confusion that the Midianites started killing themselves! They took of running & the 300 men of Israel pursued them. This is exactly what God had told them would happen if they trusted in Him:
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24 Then Gideon sent messengers throughout all the mountains of Ephraim, saying, “Come down against the Midianites, and seize from them the watering places as far as Beth Barah and the Jordan.” Then all the men of Ephraim gathered together and seized the watering places as far as Beth Barah and the Jordan. 25 And they captured two princes of the Midianites, Oreb and Zeeb. They killed Oreb at the rock of Oreb, and Zeeb they killed at the winepress of Zeeb. They pursued Midian and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon on the other side of the Jordan.

A. Chased the Midianiate leaders down & killed them.

Conclusion:
Israel (once again) was overwhelmed due to their own fault… BIG problems! But God had a perfect solution.

Gideon was not a likely choice…
His army was not a likely size…
The strategy was not a likely choice…

But that’s exactly what God wanted. God put Gideon (and Israel) in a place where they’d look up after the victory and have no other option than to give God the glory for what took place! … That’s what He wants from us as well. Not that any of us want to be in such an overwhelming situation as Gideon – but we DO want to be in a relationship with God where we’re trusting Him for everything in our lives. We want to be fully reliant on God for our family – our finances – our future…where we realize that every good gift we have in life truly comes from the Father. And in all things, we give Him the glory for it…

So here’s the challenge: are you currently trusting the Lord for all these things, or are you constantly throwing out fleeces? The only thing stopping us from having a relationship with the Lord where we truly treat Him as Lord is us. Perhaps we have a lack of faith…where we’re not truly ready to trust God for His provision & His will… Or perhaps we have a lack of holiness, when we’re trying to hide certain sins in our past from His sight. We haven’t yet torn down the pagan altars to truly devote ourselves to Jesus.

Whatever it is – eventually we all come to a point where we have to make up our mind to either walk by faith, or don’t walk at all. Let’s walk by faith!

Beware of Hardened Hearts

Hebrews 3:7-19, “Beware of Hardened Hearts”
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Introduction:
Have you ever felt your heart harden? Not literally, but spiritually… The book of Hebrews is filled (among other things) with warnings for born-again believers in Jesus Christ, and one of the warnings is to beware of getting a heart hardened towards God.

[Context – writing to Hebrew Christians starting to walk away from Christ back to the law & Jewish traditions…] Already seen that as the Son of God, Jesus is better than the angels, so we shouldn’t drift away from the things we’ve heard & neglect so great a salvation as has been presented to us. We’ve seen that Jesus is the Son of Man, and is a merciful & faithful High Priest for the church (which we’ll come back to in later chapters). In Ch 3, we’ve seen that Jesus is better than Moses & that we can know we’re the work of Christ (His house) if we hold fast to Him.

Continuing in that thought, the writer of Hebrews shows what happens when we don’t hold fast to Jesus: we get hardened hearts & we need to beware!

Hebrews 3:7-19 (NKJV)
- The problem of hardened hearts – vs 7-11
7 Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says:

A. Extended quote from the end of Psalm 95 (vs 7-11). The psalm is really a call to worship – for Israel to come before God in sacrifice, praise & thanksgiving. One of the reasons they might not come is if their hearts were hardened – which is what the author of Hebrews picks up on.

B. Who wrote Ps 95? There’s no superscription, but according to many ancient translations, it was David. According to the author of Hebrews, in Ch 4:7 he affirms David, but here in Ch 3 it was the Holy Spirit. What’s the deal? This is a direct example of the inspiration of Scripture. (2 Tim 3:16-17, God-breathed…) Ultimately, the author of the Holy Scripture is always God Himself!
__a. That says a lot about the way we look at the word of God. I enjoy “red-letter” printings of the gospel, but we should not fall into the trap of thinking that the red-letters are more important than anything else given by inspiration for us. Whether Jesus spoke the words, or gave them through someone else, ALL the Scripture is given for our benefit & growth.
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…“Today, if you will hear His voice, 8 Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, In the day of trial in the wilderness, 9 Where your fathers tested Me, tried Me, And saw My works forty years. 10 Therefore I was angry with that generation, And said, ‘They always go astray in their heart, And they have not known My ways.’ 11 So I swore in My wrath, ‘They shall not enter My rest.’ ”

A. Who’s the “you” in vs 7? In Ps 95, it was Israel. Author of Hebrews is applying it to his own audience. What are we to do? 2 things:

B. First, we need to be willing to hear the voice of God. “if you will hear” – not every translation has “will hear,” but it helps in the interpretation of what was written. The verb “hear” is in the ‘subjunctive’ mood, indicating a probable action. God had given the invitation to all of Israel to come & worship, but they needed to be open to responding to that invitation by hearing His voice. [] Are we willing to hear the voice of God? Or do we cry out to Him in lip-service? It’s one thing to present our requests to the Lord; it’s another thing to be willing to do what He says in response…

C. Second, we need to have softened hearts. “Do not harden your hearts”… What does it mean to have a hardened heart? “Harden” = Gk σκληρύνω (sclerosis – MS) MS is a disease attacking the nervous system that leaved hardened scars on nerves, impeding signals from the brain. Hardened hearts (Biblically speaking) impedes our faith. Whether it’s based in scars in the past (how we think God ‘wronged’ us in some way) or if it’s based in our own sheer stubbornness & selfishness, hardened hearts stop us from trusting God for Who He is, simply because He IS Who He is.

D. When did Israel have hardened hearts? Many examples! The golden calf – the whining for meat, etc… Here, these are specific references to 3 instances:
__a. Massah & Meribah: Hebrew for Ps 95:8 “rebellion” is literally “Meribah.” Likewise “day of trial” is literally “Massah”. 1st mention is in Numbers 17 when the people complained about not having any water (after they had just seen the miracle of manna from heaven – Numb 16) & God told Moses to strike the rock for water to come forth.
__b. Another reference to Meribah…when Israel tested God again (Numb 20). Israel had the same error as before (nearly 40 years later), but this time Moses erred as well by misrepresenting God. (When we test God, we not only cause problems for ourselves, but we can also become a stumbling block to others!)
____i. How important are these two events in Israel’s history for us to learn from? This is the original context of the passage that Jesus quoted in His temptation from Satan not to test the Lord our God… (Matt 4:7)
__c. Their rebellion at Kadesh Barnea: How do we know for sure this is in mind? The Hebrews weren’t sent to wander in the desert 40 years as a result of Meribah or Massah; that was a direct response to their refusal to enter the Promised Land. [Num 14] … … Did Israel have any reason to rebel? After all, there were giants in the land… NO! They should have seen the giants as Joshua & Caleb did – as bread to be broken & consumed… Numbers 14:8-9 (8) If the Lord delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us, ‘a land which flows with milk and honey.’ (9) Only do not rebel against the Lord, nor fear the people of the land, for they are our bread; their protection has departed from them, and the Lord is with us. Do not fear them.” [] They knew better than anyone the power of God! God declares that they, “tested Me, tried Me, And saw My works forty years”…
____i. All 3 events have several things in common: (1) They had seen the works & power of God, (2) They knew the word & promises of God, (3) They chose not to trust God… Have you ever made a conscious decision NOT to trust the Lord, even though you fully knew what God was capable of doing? …

E. The result of their rebellion? Israel faced the anger & wrath of God…which is truly a terrifying prospect! God was so angry with Israel (justifiably so) that He was 1st ready to disinherit the entire nation & start over again with Moses (as He did with Abraham). It was only after the intercession of Moses that God relented & pardoned the nation, while condemning the older rebellious generation to death in the wilderness.
__a. That was the Old Covenant – what about the New? That’s what the rest of Ch 3 is going to deal with.

F. The result of God’s anger? Israel did not enter His rest… Save that thought for Ch 4.
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- The exhortation not to harden our hearts – vs 12-13
12 Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God;

A. “Beware!” This is the 2nd major warning in the book thus far. Ch 2 warned the readers against drifting away from the Lord. Ch 3 takes it a bit further, from drifting to departing.

B. Beware of what? “evil hearts of unbelief”: When our hearts become hard, then we have hearts of unbelief. Literally “no belief / no faith” – it’s the word “faith” in Greek completely negated. God forbid that those who would count themselves as believers would have no belief! Faith is not an option when it comes to the people of God – it’s foundational to our relationship with Christ. Hebrews 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. [] To those Hebrew Christians that would stop trusting in the work of Christ to be sufficient for them & try to go back to the Law to please God, the writer of the book is shouting, “You’re demonstrating hearts of unbelief! You’re not seeking God by faith; you’re seeking Him by works! You’re engaging in evil sin by walking away from the finished work of Christ, just like the Israelites did in the wilderness!”

C. That only leads to one thing: “departing from the living God” = apostasy… (Gk word is used in the same context in 1 Tim 4:1) Depending on your translation, “departing” might be translated “turns away, falls away, forsakes,” etc. “Falling away” might give the impression of something that happens by accident or by chance – but that’s not the intent here. When someone departs from the Living God, they are making a choice in their unbelief NOT to trust Him.

D. Who is it that these people would depart from? “The living God…” Our God is alive! Our God is active! Our God is interceding for you – He’s mediating for you – He’s sacrificed for you – He’s made you alive – made you a new creation – given you a new identify – given you a new inheritance. We do not sit around & sing songs about some idea of God… We don’t think happy thoughts about some concept of God… We worship the LIVING GOD. … Grab hold of this concept & don’t let go. Sunday mornings are not some ritual to make us feel better about ourselves…God forbid! If that’s what you think this is all about, then you need to hear the gospel again (repent & believe!)… Sunday mornings (and Wednesdays & any time God’s people get together) are times for the family of God to come together & worship a real, living, Personal God. To give praise to His name – to exalt His Son – to be filled with His Spirit – to learn of Him & from Him. He is the Living God!
__a. Here’s the crux for all these warnings in Hebrews. People were leaving the living God to go back to worshipping under some dead religious system. They wanted to go back to rituals they could see & feel & think that they were righteous because they followed the rules the right way. (We still see this today in some groups! Even ‘Christian’ ones…) But they were departing from the real faith…the worship of the Living God.

E. Is this a real danger for Christians? Yes! The author specifically ties this to the “brethren…” Several ways of looking at this – 2 main views are:
__a. This is a warning to people who think they are “brethren”: There are many who call themselves “Christian” that plainly aren’t. It might not be so evident to those around them – they know the words to say & how to act the right way… But in their heart of hearts they do not believe the gospel – they aren’t trusting Jesus as Savior & Lord – and deep down, they know it. …
__b. This is a warning to people who truly are “brethren”: How so? Even Christians can get disillusioned by doubt. Doubt in itself is not uncommon – but it becomes a problem when we’re spending more time nursing our doubt than affirming our trust by faith. At some point, people who do this have a hardened heart towards God & they refuse to listen to the One who they claim as their King. Eventually, they choose not to trust God & they place more faith in themselves than in God’s word.
__c. Leaving the question of any past belief aside, the pertinent issue is this: Do you have a hardened heart towards God? Have you departed from the Living Jesus to put your trust in your works, abilities, or reasoning? Whatever you believed of Jesus in the past, is He your Lord, Savior & King right now? … If not, you need to get on your face before God (spiritually speaking), repent, and trust Christ! Like the father who didn’t have the faith that Jesus could actually heal his daughter (Mark 9:24), you need to pray, “Lord I believe; help my unbelief!”
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13 but exhort one another daily, while it is called “Today,” lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.

A. This is part of the function of the church. We need each other within the church to help keep our hearts from hardening towards God. (In this respect, we are our brothers’ keepers – we have the ministry of comforting one another. 2 Cor 1) Why? Because all of us experience doubt from time to time. All of us can feel like we’re drowning because of our circumstances & wondering where God is in all of this? Thank God for brothers & sisters in the church who can come alongside us in those times by reminding us of the promises of God, praying with us, and interceding on our behalf.
__a. Understand that choosing to trust God over our doubts doesn’t mean that the problems that caused those doubts are any less severe or tragic. It just means that the God we serve is infinitely bigger than our worst tragedies.

B. Don’t wait to spur one another on in our faith – do it daily! There are people in our fellowship who likely need this kind of exhortation from us today. There are believers in your workplace who need this kind of exhortation today. Anywhere you can find born-again Christians, there are people who need to be exhorted to continue to have faith in the Christ Who saved us.

C. Why do it daily? Because time is of the essence. When people forget of the goodness & grace of God, it’s easy to become discouraged & eventually hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. Peter wasn’t the only one who Satan desired to sift as wheat! We have an enemy that is prowling about like a lion seeking whom he may devour & he (and his minions) will throw out temptation after temptation to entice us to forsake Christ in return for sin’s pleasures & unbelief. (Unbelief is itself sin)
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- How we know if our hearts are/are not hard – vs 14-15
14 For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end,

A. Those who have truly hardened hearts have departed from the Living God. But praise God that doesn’t describe all of us! Those who continue to trust Christ are “partakers of Christ.” In Ch 3:6, we were told we know we are the house of God “if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm to the end” – this continues the same thought with a different analogy. Not only are we the house of God, we’re “partakers of Christ.” The idea is that all of us as the church are partners & companions together in Jesus. We share in the Savior as we corporately partake of His grace.
__a. This is why we exhort one another to keep following Christ & keep trusting God. We’re partners together in this walk. I weep when you weep, you rejoice when someone else rejoices, we pray for each other, etc. When one of us departs from God with a hardened heart, it impacts the rest of the Body. There’s no such thing as a ‘Lone Ranger Christian’ – we NEED one another!

B. Call it perseverance – call it abiding – the idea is the same. The way we can know that we are “partakers of Christ” is if we hold fast to Him always… [Parable of the sower – birds, stony places, thorns, good soil] Matthew 13:20-22 (20) But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; (21) yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles. (22) Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. [] Whether our hearts are hardened through tribulation or because of sinful enticements, either one is a dangerous place to be, spiritually speaking. We need to persevere until the end!
__a. Question: when we hold fast our faith in Christ in perseverance, is that a work that we perform? Do we maintain our salvation by works? No. We will absolutely have good works & demonstrate growth in Christ when we hold fast to Christ, but those are results of His work; not ours. All we do is simply abide in Jesus & in His work. John 15:5-6 (5) “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. (6) If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. [] When we’re resting in Christ (abiding in Him), then we’re being changed by His work – without Him we can do nothing. It’s when we depart from the Living God that red flags should go up in our lives – it’s a clarion call to us that we need to persevere!
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15 while it is said: “Today, if you will hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”

A. Here’s the application from Psalm 95. The people of God (Israel) had hardened their hearts to the work & grace of God – they ignored God’s word & God’s promises & thus missed out on the rest God offered. We don’t want to make the same mistake! Don’t harden your heart! Hear the voice of God today & trust Him – hold your confidence in Christ steadfast to the end!
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- The result of hardened hearts – vs 16-19
16 For who, having heard, rebelled? Indeed, was it not all who came out of Egypt, led by Moses? 17 Now with whom was He angry forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose corpses fell in the wilderness?

A. The point is that these weren’t strangers to the works, miracles, & power of God…they saw it with their own eyes… (As God points out repeatedly in Deut & Joshua)… Of ALL people on the planet to rebel against God, the Hebrews were the ones who absolutely should not have. No human is without excuse before God, but the Hebrews coming out of Egypt had less than anyone else… Yet they still rebelled.

B. Make no mistake: there will be people who seem to do incredible things for God – have a marvelous influence for the Kingdom – are charismatic in their proclamation of the gospel…but will still never be partakers of Christ. Matthew 7:21-23 (21) “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. (22) Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ (23) And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ [] The issue is not what you do for God – or what you’ve seen God do. The issue is whether or not we know Christ as Savior & Lord & if He knows us! We need to partake of Christ – take part in His goodness, grace, & salvation. God forbid you would see Jesus face-to-face & have Him say (confirming your own knowledge), “You never entered my rest – you never trusted in Me. You saw My works & heard My gospel, but although you played along, your heart was hard & you didn’t partake of My salvation.”
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18 And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who did not obey? 19 So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.

A. Introduces the primary argument of Ch 4. Those who rebelled against God & did not trust Him ended up not possessing the Promised Land. They had been freed from Egypt, but they never entered the rest of God because of their unbelief. Stay tuned. 

B. Do vs. 18 & 19 contradict? Is it obedience or unbelief that kept them out of the rest of God? It’s not a contradiction; it’s complementary. Their unbelief was demonstrated through their disobedience… Likewise for us – the person who has & keeps Jesus’ commandments demonstrates their love for Jesus & it’s to that person that Jesus will manifest Himself (John 14:20). We need to believe – and we need to hold to that belief until the day comes where we don’t see by faith but we see Jesus face-to-face.

Conclusion:
Beware of hardened hearts! If it could happen to Israel on the edge of the Promised Land, it can happen to us in our walk with Christ. Instead of tempting & testing the Lord with sinful unbelief, we need to hold fast to our trust in Jesus & abide in Him & His work.

Are you holding fast to Jesus? It’s easy to give lip-service to Him in the good times, but are you holding fast to Jesus in the tough times? When the whole world is sneering at you, saying, “Where’s your Jesus now?” – do you know that He’s with you, empowering you, & sustaining you? Israel was on the cusp of the Promised Land for sure, but they faced momentous challenges getting in there. Not only did they have the Jordan River to cross (with over 3 million people, that’s quite a challenge!), but they were walking into battle with armies bigger & stronger than them. Not to mention the giants! From the world’s perspective, they had every reason in the world to rebel against God & harden their hearts. From God’s perspective, they had none – if God is for us, who can be against us?

You may be facing giants right now. But not a single promise of Jesus Christ has changed. If you’re a born-again Christian, you’re still sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise. Jesus will never leave you nor forsake you. He’ll still give you the peace that passes all understanding when we lay our prayer requests at His feet. Every promise He’s given is firm – don’t harden your heart to Him.

If you’re not facing giants right now, there’s someone around you that is. As the church, we need to come alongside them, encouraging them & exhorting them to keep their hearts soft & their eyes on Christ. Who have you spent time on your knees for lately? Ask God to help you intercede for those who need help.

Have you trusted Christ for His primary promise of salvation? The reason it’s called “salvation” is because we need to be saved! In our sin, we’re doomed – because of our rebellion against God, we’re spiritually dead & destined to face the wrath of God. But Jesus died on the cross & rose again from the grave to save us from all that.

Deborah

Judges 4-5, “Deborah”
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Introduction:
With the list of leaders in Hebrew history going from man to man to man (Moses, to Joshua, to the judges, to the kings, etc.) – it’d be understandable to women to say, “Where are all the ladies?!” Tonight, we find out. Not only are the women covered in Ch 4-5 providing leadership for Israel & working in the gifting God has given them – they are the ones God uses to bring the victory for Israel & free them from the enemy!

Judges 4 (NKJV)
1 When Ehud was dead, the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the LORD.

A. Who was Ehud? The left-handed judge who stuck a dagger in Eglon king of Moab & couldn’t pull it out again… He was followed by Shamgar the judge, but obviously there was some overlap in their years…

B. What happened after Ehud died? The spiral of apostasy began again…
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2 So the LORD sold them into the hand of Jabin king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor. The commander of his army was Sisera, who dwelt in Harosheth Hagoyim. 3 And the children of Israel cried out to the LORD; for Jabin had nine hundred chariots of iron, and for twenty years he had harshly oppressed the children of Israel.

A. Who sold Israel? God. This was His loving discipline. As our heavenly Father, God doesn’t sit back & wring His hands & worry if we fall into sin…He does something about it! Throughout Judges, He sells Israel into the hands of their enemies (various enemies at different times). This is the consequence for Israel’s sin & God let’s them experience it in full.
__a. God does the same thing for us. PTL that we never need experience the wrath of God (that was placed upon Christ), but we do often experience the discipline of God for our sin. He allows us to face the consequences for our actions… The church is actually encouraged to do that as a last result in discipline – [context] 1 Corinthians 5:4-5 (4) In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when you are gathered together, along with my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, (5) deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. [] Very specific purpose! … God wants our flesh to be destroyed (we’re called to reckon ourselves dead to it – Rom 6:11) & if it takes facing the consequences of our sin to get us to that point, then God loves us too much NOT to let us experience them…

B. Sold them to a very strong & demanding enemy. Jabin (royal name of the king) ruled harshly & he had access to a mighty arsenal. Iron chariots were the top of the line in the day & surely helped quench any thought of rebellion… This was a bad time for Israel!
__a. Is every spiritual battle we face bad? It may seem so at the time, but it may be exactly the thing God uses to get us to fall to our knees & seek His face.
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4 Now Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, was judging Israel at that time. 5 And she would sit under the palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the mountains of Ephraim. And the children of Israel came up to her for judgment.

A. Deborah: the female judge. Deborah isn’t mentioned outside of Judges 4-5, but she makes a big impact! Normally, we wouldn’t expect to find a woman judging the land of Israel, but obviously that’s what happened. Opinions vary as to why God would raise up a female judge when God normally did otherwise…but in the end, it’s speculation. The historical fact is that she was a judge & God blessed it.

B. Not only was she a judge; she was a prophetess. Interestingly enough, none of the other judges are mentioned to have been prophets – so Deborah is unique among them. Several women are mentioned as prophetesses throughout Scripture: Deborah, Miriam (Moses’ sister), Anna (Luke 2:36), & Philip’s daughters (Acts 21). Women are encouraged to prophecy within the NT church within Scriptural guidelines (1 Cor 11:5-6). Spiritual gifting is not limited to males! The Holy Spirit distributes gifts to everyone individually within the church as He wills (1 Cor 12:11).
__a. Are you using the gifts that the Holy Spirit has given you? The Afterglow services are a perfect time to do so…

C. Does God value women? YES! OT & NT alike show this… The roles between men & women are different, but women are no less capable than men, nor are they any less valued by God. There is neither male nor female at the cross; we are all one in Christ Jesus (Gal 3:28)…
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6 Then she sent and called for Barak the son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali, and said to him, “Has not the LORD God of Israel commanded, ‘Go and deploy troops at Mount Tabor; take with you ten thousand men of the sons of Naphtali and of the sons of Zebulun; 7 and against you I will deploy Sisera, the commander of Jabin’s army, with his chariots and his multitude at the River Kishon; and I will deliver him into your hand’?”

A. Deborah gives Barak a call to battle – not her words, but the Lord’s. God had determined the time of discipline was enough & was sending Barak to war.

B. But it wasn’t just a call to battle; it was a promise of victory! God wasn’t sending Barak to defeat, but to witness the deliverance of the Lord.
__a. What God calls us to do, God equips us to do. That doesn’t mean every challenge we face will be a bed of roses (Barak still had to go to battle!), but it does mean that even in the times when we feel overwhelmed, God is still equipping us & providing for us. Sometimes He gives us immediate victory; sometimes He gives us His presence in the fellowship of His suffering. But He will always equip us through His strength!
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8 And Barak said to her, “If you will go with me, then I will go; but if you will not go with me, I will not go!” 9 So she said, “I will surely go with you; nevertheless there will be no glory for you in the journey you are taking, for the LORD will sell Sisera into the hand of a woman.” Then Deborah arose and went with Barak to Kedesh.

A. What’s going on with Barak? And why is he listed in the Hall of Faith when Deborah isn’t? We may not know why Deborah isn’t listed in Hebrews 11, but it’s surely the grace of God that Barak is. He faltered in his faith, but yet God still used him. We may falter in our faith, but it doesn’t mean God’s done with us…

B. Deborah will go; but there’s a cost for Barak. He won’t get any credit among Israel for the victory – instead it’ll go to a woman (and not Deborah!)…
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10 And Barak called Zebulun and Naphtali to Kedesh; he went up with ten thousand men under his command, and Deborah went up with him. 11 Now Heber the Kenite, of the children of Hobab the father-in-law of Moses, had separated himself from the Kenites and pitched his tent near the terebinth tree at Zaanaim, which is beside Kedesh. 12 And they reported to Sisera that Barak the son of Abinoam had gone up to Mount Tabor. 13 So Sisera gathered together all his chariots, nine hundred chariots of iron, and all the people who were with him, from Harosheth Hagoyim to the River Kishon.

A. Everyone is prepared for battle. Barak got a massive army from among the various tribes in Israel. Sisera is equipped with the latest in weaponry: 900 iron chariots… (Iron is stronger than bronze…) Both sides are ready for a massive showdown…

B. Keep Heber in mind. Although he’s a Kenite (usually on friendly terms with Israel), he apparently warned Sisera about the coming battle. His family’s going to come into play later on.
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14 Then Deborah said to Barak, “Up! For this is the day in which the LORD has delivered Sisera into your hand. Has not the LORD gone out before you?” So Barak went down from Mount Tabor with ten thousand men following him.

A. Gotta love this! Barak is facing overwhelming odds & yet he’s presented with the promise that God has already won the victory. Imagine leading an army on horseback against several hundred aircraft fighters. By any rational expectation, you’d think you were toast. But not if the Lord has gone out before you…
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15 And the LORD routed Sisera and all his chariots and all his army with the edge of the sword before Barak; and Sisera alighted from his chariot and fled away on foot. 16 But Barak pursued the chariots and the army as far as Harosheth Hagoyim, and all the army of Sisera fell by the edge of the sword; not a man was left.

A. How overwhelming was the victory? All the charioteers were defeated. All of Sisera’s army was killed. Sisera couldn’t even retreat in his chariot, but had to run away on foot! God completely turned the tables… Psalm 20:7 Some trust in chariots, and some in horses; But we will remember the name of the Lord our God. []

B. Question: Why is that? How come we can trust God despite overwhelming odds? Because nothing in all existence is overwhelming to God. Every demon in hell could rise up against Him, combined with the rebellion of every man & woman who hated God – and it still would be no contest. Fighting against the Lord is always futility because God is GOD! …
__a. Have there been times when you’ve lost sight of that? Have you gone through trials when you wonder “God, IF you could to ____ “… With God, the only “if” involved is “if” it is His will. With God, all things are possible… …
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17 However, Sisera had fled away on foot to the tent of Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite; for there was peace between Jabin king of Hazor and the house of Heber the Kenite. 18 And Jael went out to meet Sisera, and said to him, “Turn aside, my lord, turn aside to me; do not fear.” And when he had turned aside with her into the tent, she covered him with a blanket. 19 Then he said to her, “Please give me a little water to drink, for I am thirsty.” So she opened a jug of milk, gave him a drink, and covered him. 20 And he said to her, “Stand at the door of the tent, and if any man comes and inquires of you, and says, ‘Is there any man here?’ you shall say, ‘No.’ ”

A. Sisera enters Jael’s tent to use it as a disguise. He may have commanded an army of 900 iron chariots at one time, but now his army is decimated & he’s basically hiding behind a girl.

B. For her part, Jael brings him into the tent, gives him milk instead of water (which makes him sleepy) & covers him up. Exhausted, he goes to sleep…which was exactly her intent. See vs. 21…
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21 Then Jael, Heber’s wife, took a tent peg and took a hammer in her hand, and went softly to him and drove the peg into his temple, and it went down into the ground; for he was fast asleep and weary. So he died. 22 And then, as Barak pursued Sisera, Jael came out to meet him, and said to him, “Come, I will show you the man whom you seek.” And when he went into her tent, there lay Sisera, dead with the peg in his temple.

A. 100% true to Deborah’s prophecy. God sold Sisera into the hands of a woman…and not just any woman; Heber’s wife. The man who warned Sisera about the battle is the man who’s wife ended up killing Sisera after it was over.

B. Ouch…! Was this treachery? To an extent, perhaps. Sisera had come in under her hospitality (due to Heber’s alliance)…though we don’t know to what extent Jael had a choice in the matter. Tradition forbade women from taking any men other than their husband or father into their tent. Although it was an ideal place for Sisera to hide; his very presence was illegal & coerced & it seems like she took advantage of the 1st opportunity she had to take a stand for righteousness (unlike her husband) & strike for the God of Israel.

C. Keep in mind that many things within the Bible are accurate descriptions of the events; just necessarily prescriptions of what to do. There aren’t too many people God would have us drive a tent stake through their temple. But – that IS the way we ought to deal with sin in our own lives. Israel was oppressed by Canaan because of their sin – and God used a sinful people to bring discipline. Israel didn’t need to make deals with Canaan; they needed to get out from under them. The only real way of dealing with sin is through death…
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23 So on that day God subdued Jabin king of Canaan in the presence of the children of Israel. 24 And the hand of the children of Israel grew stronger and stronger against Jabin king of Canaan, until they had destroyed Jabin king of Canaan.

A. The battlefield victory was the start of a greater one. Eventually all of Israel was liberated from Canaan & they experience 40 years of freedom (seen in Ch 5:31)
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Judges 5 (NKJV)
1 Then Deborah and Barak the son of Abinoam sang on that day, saying: 2 “When leaders lead in Israel, When the people willingly offer themselves, Bless the LORD! 3 “Hear, O kings! Give ear, O princes! I, even I, will sing to the LORD; I will sing praise to the LORD God of Israel.

A. Praising God for the victory… No doubt who Deborah is giving credit to – she’s repeatedly using the covenant name of God. “Bless the LORD … sing to the LORD… sing praise to the LORD God of Israel” Give GOD the glory! He deserves the praise. Every victory we experience in our walk with Christ belongs to God. Every trial we endure to the end we’ve endured because of the grace of God. Whether you’re singing out of joy or sorrow, we can praise God in all things because He is worthy to be praised…if for no other reason, then for your salvation in Christ!

B. It’s a beautiful thing when leaders lead…that’s why God put them there in the 1st place! Many times leaders don’t lead; they abdicate responsibility & show up for the accolades. Barak almost was in this category, but in the end he did what God had called him to do…and that’s a reason to praise God.
__a. Note it’s not just a matter of leaders leading; the people need to willingly follow as well. The two always go together – and anytime a leader is hogging all the credit for himself & giving none to the people behind him, he usually won’t be a leader for too much longer.
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4 “LORD, when You went out from Seir, When You marched from the field of Edom, The earth trembled and the heavens poured, The clouds also poured water; 5 The mountains gushed before the LORD, This Sinai, before the LORD God of Israel.
A. Recounting past history with Moses…
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6 “In the days of Shamgar, son of Anath, In the days of Jael, The highways were deserted, And the travelers walked along the byways. 7 Village life ceased, it ceased in Israel, Until I, Deborah, arose, Arose a mother in Israel. 8 They chose new gods; Then there was war in the gates; Not a shield or spear was seen among forty thousand in Israel.
A. Recounting how Israel fell (again)…
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9 My heart is with the rulers of Israel Who offered themselves willingly with the people. Bless the LORD! 10 “Speak, you who ride on white donkeys, Who sit in judges’ attire, And who walk along the road. 11 Far from the noise of the archers, among the watering places, There they shall recount the righteous acts of the LORD, The righteous acts for His villagers in Israel; Then the people of the LORD shall go down to the gates.

A. Praising God for the leaders & people rising up & going to battle. They didn’t just hear the call-to-arms & do nothing about it; they went to fight for the Lord.
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12 “Awake, awake, Deborah! Awake, awake, sing a song! Arise, Barak, and lead your captives away, O son of Abinoam! 13 “Then the survivors came down, the people against the nobles; The LORD came down for me against the mighty.

A. God raised up an army… All very poetic as if God was awakening Deborah & Barak to their roles. Like Esther (raised up for such a time as this – Esth 4:14), God had a role & a purpose in mind for Deborah & Barak.
__a. Likewise, God has a role & purpose in mind for you & me. It may not be “big” in our own mind, like going to war. But God has called you to be a Godly husband & father – or Godly wife & mother – or a Sunday School teacher or whatever… Perhaps He’s even saying to you “Awake!” tonight…

B. Going to list it off from the various tribes – which came & which didn’t…
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14 From Ephraim were those whose roots were in Amalek. After you, Benjamin, with your peoples, From Machir rulers came down, And from Zebulun those who bear the recruiter’s staff. 15 And the princes of Issachar were with Deborah; As Issachar, so was Barak Sent into the valley under his command; Among the divisions of Reuben There were great resolves of heart. 16 Why did you sit among the sheepfolds, To hear the pipings for the flocks? The divisions of Reuben have great searchings of heart. 17 Gilead stayed beyond the Jordan, And why did Dan remain on ships? Asher continued at the seashore, And stayed by his inlets. 18 Zebulun is a people who jeopardized their lives to the point of death, Naphtali also, on the heights of the battlefield.
A. Some tribes fought; others didn’t…
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19 “The kings came and fought, Then the kings of Canaan fought In Taanach, by the waters of Megiddo; They took no spoils of silver. 20 They fought from the heavens; The stars from their courses fought against Sisera. 21 The torrent of Kishon swept them away, That ancient torrent, the torrent of Kishon. O my soul, march on in strength! 22 Then the horses’ hooves pounded, The galloping, galloping of his steeds.

A. Shows how God intervened in the battle. This wasn’t an ordinary military conflict; the stars & heavens got involved. God apparently sent a torrent of rain & a flood along the river Kishon to immobilize the chariots & bog them down in the mud…

B. Isn’t it amazing that those that seem to be the biggest challenges to us are so easily handled by the Lord? The 900 iron chariots were enough to strike fear into the heart of Barak – these were huge armaments against Israel. But for God, He just takes them all out at once with a bunch of mud & water! … …
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23 ‘Curse Meroz,’ said the angel of the LORD, ‘Curse its inhabitants bitterly, Because they did not come to the help of the LORD, To the help of the LORD against the mighty.’

A. Where’s Meroz? Most likely, a city in Naphtali. It seems that although the rest of the tribe had come to fight (even to the point of death – vs. 18), Meroz stayed home & let the others do the fighting for them.

B. What was their crime? Not doing anything… When it came to the battle, the cry was “All hands on deck!” & Meroz just yawned & said, “Can’t someone else do it?” We get the impression sometimes that only wrong actions are sin…but sometimes inaction is just as sinful.
__a. Vividly illustrated in the parable of the talents! [5, 2, 1 talent – buried in the ground] Matthew 25:26-28 (26) “But his lord answered and said to him, ‘You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed. (27) So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest. (28) So take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents. [] Harsh words & a fitting response! “Talent” in the parable was money – but the concept applies to anything the Lord has given us. If it’s a spiritual gift, God expects us to use it. If it’s a ministry or calling, God expects us to fulfill it. If it’s a gift, God expects us to give it. The one thing we’re NOT supposed to do with it is nothing! To not use what God has entrusted to us is foolishness, poor stewardship, and ultimately sinful.
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24 “Most blessed among women is Jael, The wife of Heber the Kenite; Blessed is she among women in tents. 25 He asked for water, she gave milk; She brought out cream in a lordly bowl. 26 She stretched her hand to the tent peg, Her right hand to the workmen’s hammer; She pounded Sisera, she pierced his head, She split and struck through his temple. 27 At her feet he sank, he fell, he lay still; At her feet he sank, he fell; Where he sank, there he fell dead.

A. That’s what you call a “splitting headache”…
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28 “The mother of Sisera looked through the window, And cried out through the lattice, ‘Why is his chariot so long in coming? Why tarries the clatter of his chariots?’ 29 Her wisest ladies answered her, Yes, she answered herself, 30 ‘Are they not finding and dividing the spoil: To every man a girl or two; For Sisera, plunder of dyed garments, Plunder of garments embroidered and dyed, Two pieces of dyed embroidery for the neck of the looter?’

A. Jael is contrasted with Sisera’s mother. One expected defeat; the other victory, but the tables were turned…
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31 “Thus let all Your enemies perish, O LORD! But let those who love Him be like the sun When it comes out in full strength.” So the land had rest for forty years.

A. One day, all of God’s enemies will perish. We’re not to curse our enemies, but this is just a fact. One day, Satan & all the demons will be suffering in a lake of fire for eternity. And that actually gives me a lot of hope!

B. The blessing for those who love the Lord is basically to have an abundant life. And that’s exactly what Jesus promises…He gives life in abundance to those who trust Him as Savior & Lord!

Conclusion:
Another cycle of apostasy down (and there will be many more to go in Judges) – but God brought deliverance through a most unexpected source. Not only did Israel’s top general back away a bit from the battle – not only did God use the only recorded female judge to stir Barak on – but God used a Gentile woman to kill the most powerful commander in Canaan! Our God delivers – sometimes in the most unexpected of ways…

Consider Christ

Hebrews 3:1-6, “Consider Christ”
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Introduction:
We all have our Bible heroes… For the Hebrews, it was Moses! They viewed Moses better than anyone. It’s understandable why: he wrote the 1st 5 books of the OT – God gave the law through him – he led the people out of slavery in Egypt – God performed many mighty signs & wonders through him – he spoke to God face-to-face… Among the OT prophets, there were none that rose to the stature of Moses & in fact, Moses had said there would be only One who would & that would be the Messiah. (Deut 18:15 & Acts 7:37)

The problem? The Hebrew Christians started losing perspective. Moses was great, but they forgot that Jesus is far better than Moses! Moses was pointing the way to Christ; not the other way around. But in their slide back to doing things the way they had always done, they began to forget that Jesus was the fulfillment of what Moses taught. So the author of Hebrews gives another exhortation: not only is Jesus superior to the angels; He’s superior to Moses. We ought to consider Christ!

Hebrews 3:1-6 (NKJV)
1 Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus,

A. Wherefore the therefore? The book of Hebrews has a tendency to build upon every argument that came before it (wonderfully written!) & so we really need to go back to the beginning. [Hebrews 1:1-2a] “Various times & various ways” vs. “spoken to us by His Son”… The Son is the Son of God, the revelation & glory of God. The Son is better than the angels (who also spoke to us regarding God). The Son of God is also the Son of Man, who was made a little while lower than the angels, but now infinitely exalted higher than them. The Son of God is the captain of our salvation & our faithful High Priest who destroyed the power of death & brings freedom to those in bondage to it. Now with all that in mind, we’re exhorted to think on Christ.

B. Pretty strong indication here that the writer of Hebrews thought that the majority of his readers were saved:
__a. “holy brethren”: Made holy by God…set apart unto Himself… Joined into one body & one family…
__b. “partakers of the heavenly calling”: Those who are truly saved don’t merely know of the grace of God through Jesus; we’ve partaken of it… Ps 34:8… And we’re not alone. We share in the calling with all those whom God has called. Together, we receive the inheritance of being co-heirs with Christ & we are all seated with Jesus in the heavenlies (Eph 2:6).

C. Those who are saved ought to “consider” their Savior. The idea is that we’re to ‘ponder’ Him – spend time giving Jesus careful consideration. (“consider the ravens…” – Luke 12:24) Intentionally gaze upon your Savior & God to learn from Him. … This is part of Bible study & worship! We don’t just read the Bible to get a lot of trivia facts stored away – we read the Bible as a letter from our God to learn of Him & what He would have for us. We know Him through reading His word. We engage with Him through prayer & worship as we seek His face. These aren’t actions to go through the motions with…this is how we carefully consider our Savior.
__a. Specifically, the writer of Hebrews is pointing out Jesus in comparison with Moses (beginning in vs 2). Look at Jesus 1st & foremost in comparison…

D. Who is He?
__a. The pre-eminent “Apostle”: This doesn’t mean Jesus was #13 out of 12… “Apostle” simply means “one who was sent” – like an ambassador. Jesus had 12 that He invested with the apostolic gift & sent them out to preach the gospel & lay the foundation of the church, Christ being the chief cornerstone (Eph 2:20). But Jesus Himself was sent by His heavenly Father! Over & over again in the Gospel of John, Jesus affirms that He was sent by God (John 4:34, 6:29, 7:16, 8:42, & much more!)… Jesus had a definite purpose. He didn’t wander around Judea for the fun of it – God sent Him to be our sin sacrifice & to seek & save the lost.
__b. The “High Priest of our confession”: Repetition of what was already introduced in Ch 2:17 – and another foundation of the comparison with Moses. Moses was definitely sent by God, and although he helped set up the priesthood, Moses was not the High Priest; that belonged to Aaron. But Jesus is both sent of God & the High Priest of God. He intercedes for us (Rom 8:27) – He mediates for us (1 Tim 2:5) – He offers our atoning sacrifice & more. We’ll see more of this in Ch 5 & 7.
__c. The King Messiah! “Christ” is not Jesus’ last name; it’s His title. He’s the Anointed One of God, invested with Kingly authority over His people & His creation. He’ll rule in righteousness & in glory!
____i. Note a 3 fold ministry here – each fulfilling & surpassing the highest types in the OT. Jesus is sent like Moses – Jesus is High Priest like Aaron (like Melchizedek) – Jesus is King like David…Jesus is ALL of these roles because Jesus is GOD!

E. BTW, what exactly is “our confession”? Unless you’ve grown up in a liturgical church, most likely you haven’t memorized various church creeds or confessions – but the writer of Hebrews makes it plain that every born-again believer in Christ shares the same confession, whether we call it that or not. It’s simply the gospel! That Christ died for our sins, was buried & rose again from the dead on the 3rd day according to the Scriptures (1 Cor 15:4). Paul outlines it in Romans – Romans 10:9-10 (9) that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. (10) For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. [] What’s our common confession? That Jesus is Lord!!
__a. Have you made that confession yet? …
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2 who was faithful to Him who appointed Him, as Moses also was faithful in all His house.

A. Picks up the thought from the end of Ch 2 – Jesus is a truly “faithful” High Priest… Specifically, Jesus is faithful to God the Father. There’s a reason Jesus could declare “It is finished!” from the cross – it’s because He was faithful to the work God the Father gave Him to do.

B. Note God the Father “appointed” God the Son to be High Priest. This wasn’t declared upon Him by man – Jesus didn’t inherit it from Aaron. God Himself made Jesus our High Priest.

C. Introduces the comparison to Moses. The writer isn’t going to say anything bad about Moses (just like he didn’t say anything bad about angels); he’s simply going to keep Moses in perspective when comparing him with Christ. They were both sent by God – they were both faithful to God’s calling upon them – they were both used by God in incredible ways. Even in Moses’ failings, the whole of the Bible has nothing bad to say about him at all – in fact, it gives him the highest compliment, calling him the “servant of the LORD” (Deut 34:5)… It’s not a matter of denigrating Moses, but of elevating Jesus…
__a. Sometimes we get the idea that the OT is bad & thus something to be avoided like the plague. Not true! The OT is just as inspired as the NT! … But keep it in perspective – the OT leads to the NT. Once we’re under Christ, we can learn from Moses, but we have zero reason to go back to him.

D. What was Moses faithful with? The “house” of God. Some limit this (or at least specifically point) to the Tabernacle, which indeed Moses was completely faithful with. But “house” in context doesn’t seem to be literal, but symbolic – a metaphor for the people of God. OT holds up here, as well. The idea of Moses being faithful in all of God’s house comes from when God disciplining Aaron & Miriam in their rebellion… Numbers 12:6-8 (6) Then He said, “Hear now My words: If there is a prophet among you, I, the Lord, make Myself known to him in a vision; I speak to him in a dream. (7) Not so with My servant Moses; He is faithful in all My house. (8) I speak with him face to face, Even plainly, and not in dark sayings; And he sees the form of the Lord. Why then were you not afraid To speak against My servant Moses?” [] Note the context is far broader than the Tabernacle – speaking of everything God told Moses to tell the people…
__a. It’s a good thing to be known for! …
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3 For this One has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as He who built the house has more honor than the house.

A. Construction analogies are pretty timely considering our renovations right now! Is the new building going to be beneficial? Sure. Is it going to be beautiful? It already is. But the building in which we’re meeting is nothing compared to the Reason why we’re meeting. Jesus Christ is the reason we’re there – and He’s the One providing the space & giving grace to those who are working on it.. …

B. Likewise, Jesus is worthy of more glory & honor than Moses. If the house is a picture of the people of God, Moses is an important part of it – but he’s still just a part of it like us. We’re just the house; Jesus is the chief cornerstone AND the builder.
__a. Never forget Who it is that builds the church! We’re commissioned to go share the gospel of Christ, but we’re not the builders; Jesus is. Matthew 16:18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. [context] Jesus is the Master Builder & thus everything we do as a local church fellowship must be based & centered around Him. We could build with fancy programs & games & titles – but if we build upon that stuff, then that’s the stuff we’re going to have to use to maintain it. Instead, we preach Jesus & His word – and HE’s the One who builds His church.
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4 For every house is built by someone, but He who built all things is God.

A. God built “all things…” He is the Creator! And thus since Jesus is the builder, then the writer declares that Jesus is God.

B. Skeptics ask all the time: “Where’s the proof of God? Show me definitive proof!” Ummm….look around you. Creation is the most obvious proof of a Creator… Houses don’t pop out of nowhere – automobiles aren’t randomly thrown together by tornadoes – books aren’t written by pencils falling on paper over thousands of years. Yet all of these things are far less complex than the entire universe. Just a cursory study of biology (or any number of the sciences) boggles the mind. There is so much complexity in the human body: the heart has to beat the right way – there’s got to be the right amount of blood – the nervous system has to function properly – the muscular system is designed perfectly for movement & on & on. Ever compare the human body to the most “life-like” robots available? How much study & research did it take to design & build the robot – and yet it pales in comparison with a human… But yet we’re supposed to believe that life as we know it evolved out of random chance & carbon atoms assembling themselves together?! Talk about a leap of faith! Creation is its own proof of a Creator God.
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5 And Moses indeed was faithful in all His house as a servant, for a testimony of those things which would be spoken afterward,

A. Moses was faithful, but Moses isn’t the main attraction. He’s just a “servant”… An honored servant, to be sure; but just a servant like us. Grk is not the normal word used for servant/slave (δουλος); this is θεράπων & the only time the word is used in the NT. Implies a willing servant – someone who does his duties with care & diligence. Again, we see the writer holding Moses in esteem; it’s simply that next to Jesus, everything pales in comparison. I.e., “Moses was a really great servant of God, but don’t get too caught up with him. Consider Jesus!”

B. Moses’ main purpose was bring the people to God – and that applies to his writings as well. All of the Law of Moses ultimately speaks of God & the grace He was to show through Christ…this is the testimony God gave through Moses. Jesus personally referred to it when responding to the Jews trying to kill him – John 5:45-47 (45) Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you—Moses, in whom you trust. (46) For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me. (47) But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?” []
__a. The next time someone tries to persuade you to leave the grace of Christ & go back under the law of Moses, remember that if that’s their argument, then they don’t understand Moses in the slightest! Moses wrote about Jesus. Every single commandment within the law was to bring us to the feet of Christ so that we could receive forgiveness, grace, and a new covenant with God… To stay at Moses & not proceed to Christ is not merely foolishness; it’s missing the whole point. (Which is what the rest of Ch 3 & 4 covers…)
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6 but Christ as a Son over His own house, whose house we are if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm to the end.

A. Moses was a servant, but Jesus is a “Son”…a similar comparison was made in Ch 1 regarding the angels. They were ministers (1:7), but Jesus is the Son of God. Likewise, Moses was a faithful servant in the house, but Jesus is a Son. He built the house – He owns the house. Being the Son, Jesus is far superior to any servants – no matter how honorable they may be. [Eliezer the servant of Abraham (Gen 15:2) vs. Isaac the son…]

B. Who’s the house? Us! “whose house we are” We may not fully understand the word picture, but there’s no getting around it in the NT…the church is the house of God! We are God’s building (1 Cor 3:9) – we are individually living stones being built up into a spiritual house (1 Pet 2:5) – the house of God is the church, the pillar & ground of the truth (1 Tim 3:15).
__a. Question: does Almighty God need a place to live? Of course not. Heaven is His throne & the earth is His footstool! (Isa 66:1) God doesn’t need anything from us in the slightest; but He desires to dwell among us. With the Israelites, His ‘dwelling place’ was the Tabernacle & later the Temple. In the incarnation, Jesus dwelt among us physically. Today, God dwells within us & we (both individually & corporately as the church) are the temple of the Holy Spirit. This is an act of His grace! What have we done to earn the favor of Almighty God that He would dwell with us? Absolutely nothing – but that goes to show the extent of the work of Jesus. That we would be made so righteous in the sight of God that His Holy Spirit could dwell within us permanently & we’d have daily access to His throne of grace (which is far more than the Hebrew high priest ever did!)…

C. How do we know if we’re part of Jesus’ house? By abiding in Him – staying rooted in the Vine of Christ (John 15:4-6)… Specifically if we hold fast:
__a. “the confidence”: (Wuest) Notes that the Greek is a compound word literally meaning “all speech.” “Its dominant idea is one of the boldness and confidence which are exhibited in freedom of speech, the unreserved, unfettered flow of language which is opposed to fear, ambiguity, and reserve.” Because of our new covenant with God through Jesus, we can come boldly before the throne of grace in our time of need (Heb 4:16) – this is the confidence we hold to.
__b. “the rejoicing of the hope”: Often translated “boasting”…not in a bad sense (which is how the Gk word is often used) – but a holy boasting. We can glory in the fact that we’ve been saved – and we boast in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ (Gal 6:14)… We hold fast to that hope!
__c. For how long? “to the end”: All our lives. We never stop trusting in Christ…why on earth would we?

D. What do we do with these warnings in Hebrews? Ought they scare us into thinking that we can’t know that we’re saved? Should we ignore them under the assumption that because we’re saved, they can’t possibly apply to us? I’d suggest that both extremes are errors. The author of Hebrews is writing to a group of which he’s fairly confident that they’re born-again believers (they are partakers of the heavenly calling)…yet he still presents these warnings to them. [] So what do we do with them?
__a. Read them for what they are: the inspired word of God. It applies to us just like every promise given to the church applies to us…
__b. Take it at face-value as a warning. It’s not something to scare us away from Christ, but it is a good ‘gut-check’ for us to know where we don’t want to find ourselves. This is something the NT exhorts us to do! (Dealing with a disobedient church…) 2 Corinthians 13:5-6 (5) Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified. (6) But I trust that you will know that we are not disqualified. []
__c. Thus, if you’re holding fast to Jesus Christ as your Lord & Savior – where you have confidence in coming boldly to God the Father in prayer because of what Jesus did for you on the cross, then praise God! If you can rejoice in the hope of your salvation because of His work, praise God! That’s a wonderful confirmation that Jesus has saved you. If you don’t have confidence – if you don’t have any hope to rejoice in, then get on your knees.
____i. Don’t let anything get in the way of your salvation! What a sorry state to find yourself in on Judgment Day if you let your pride stand between you & eternity with Christ…

Conclusion:
So who are you looking towards in your walk with God? Who’s your Bible hero? We have a tendency to see Jesus through that lens. Going back to Matt 16, that’s exactly what the people following Jesus did. Asking His disciples who the people that He was, they answered everyone from John the Baptist (with his calls to repentance) – to Elijah (with his miracles) – to Jeremiah (with his weeping compassion & call to holy living). None of these aspects about Jesus’ ministry is bad; they’re all wonderful! But they’re all combined together – to take one to the exclusion of all the others is (1) unbalanced, & (2) backwards…we’re to look to Christ, where He fulfills ALL these ministries.

Likewise with the Hebrews. It’s not that Moses was bad; he was faithful! But the One worthy of honor is the One who built the house – the Son. Moses is good, but we dare not stop at Moses… We’ve got to go all the way to Jesus Christ. So consider Christ & hold fast to Him! Don’t let anyone or anything take you away from His feet in freedom, worship, study, prayer, & relationship. Our highest desire as believers ought to be to know Jesus; let us never stop being amazed at His person & grace.

Resurrection Sunday – Who is Jesus?

Hebrews 2:10-18, “Who is Jesus?”
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Introduction:
One of the most important questions anyone could ask themselves is simply this: “Who is Jesus?” To many skeptics, Jesus of Nazareth was just another in a long line of prophets & gurus. To others, Jesus was a wonderful (but often misunderstood) teacher, whose followers took His teaching in a direction that Jesus didn’t intend. To some, Jesus was simply insane – and to be treated like any other nutcase claiming to be God. All of these objections miss out on (at least) one very important fact: the historicity of the Resurrection. Jesus of Nazareth was indeed crucified on a cross, certified to be dead, and then rose to life again 3 days later. This can be said with absolute assurance based upon the testimony of the Roman guards, the Jews who crucified Him, the disciples, fulfilled prophecy, and much more…

That Jesus Christ is God in the flesh, crucified for our sins, & risen from dead is precisely the reason that we’ve gathered here to worship this morning! …

So with that in mind, who is Jesus to the Christian? With the assumption that Jesus is indeed fully God (as was the primary argument of Hebrews 1), but yet also fully man (as Ch 2 has been explaining), what are some of the roles that Christ fulfills? What are the ways in which the Risen Son of God relates to those who receive the gift of salvation through faith? The remainder of Ch 2 gives us 5 ways to answer “Who is Jesus?”.

Context so far: the writer of Hebrews is showing that Jesus is far better than any other revelation of God given to us through any other means. The 1st example was of angels. Angels may be awe-inspiring, but Jesus is far more & far better than they in every respect. Even when, in the incarnation Jesus was made a little lower than the angels, He is still far better today because God has exalted Christ to the highest place. Verse 9 tells us why: Jesus tasted death for everyone – He fulfilled His role as the Last Adam. Whereas the 1st Adam brought death to everyone, the Last Adam reverses the curse for all who believe. Because Jesus suffered on the cross & rose again in victory & life, He shows Himself to be God & worthy of honor. But He’s not only worthy of honor as the Son of God; He’s worthy of honor as the Son of Man in that He relates to us in every area of our humanity…

Hebrews 2:10-18 (NKJV)
- 1st, Jesus is the captain of our salvation…
10 For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.

A. Who’s “Him”? Speaking of God the Father… God the Father willed by His grace for Jesus to taste death for everyone (vs 9). By doing so, He made Jesus “perfect through sufferings.” Wasn’t Jesus already perfect? Yes – but the writer is not using the word in the sense of Jesus being morally perfect & sinless. Rather, Jesus’ work is made perfect (complete) through His sufferings. I.e., if Jesus hadn’t suffered & died on the cross, His work of salvation would be incomplete or imperfect. Jesus came specifically to seek & save the lost (Luke 19:10) & give life in abundance (John 10:10), but without the cross & resurrection He couldn’t have done it…Jesus wouldn’t have any basis to cry out, “It is finished!” because the price would not have been paid. Thus it is right & “fitting” for God the Father to send His Son to suffer and die on the cross – that’s what makes Jesus’ work complete & perfect.

B. Jesus is our King, but He’s also our Captain – the “captain of our salvation.” Some translations say “author” or “founder”…the basic idea is that Jesus is our pioneering leader – He leads the way for us. If many sons are going to be brought to glory, than we need to know the way & be led there…and our Captain does exactly that. John 14:5-6 (5) Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?” (6) Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. [] As the old hymn proclaims, “All the way my Savior leads me…”

C. Where are we going? Where is our Captain taking us? Into the presence of God Almighty Himself: “glory”…talking about salvation! We were doomed through our sin to spend eternity in Hell away from God, experiencing His wrath forever – but Christ Jesus took our punishment upon Himself, fulfilled the righteous wrath of God & saves all those who trust in Him. Now we’re born-again, cleansed, sanctified, adopted & will one day stand in the presence & glory of God, worshipping Him & serving in perfect fellowship for all time…it’s glorious!
__a. This is the whole point of Easter/Resurrection Sunday! The empty tomb declares Jesus to be the Messiah: the Son of God who sufficiently pays the price for our sin. We never need to second-guess or wonder if Jesus is the Captain that we ought to be following – He is risen from the grave! He has already led the way & gone before us in glory – and one day He’ll come back & receive us to Himself that we may be where He already is.

D. BTW, don’t miss: God is Creator & the Recipient of creation: “for whom are all things & by whom are all things”… No time to get into it today, but this would be wonderful to chew on sometime this week during your personal prayer time with God. The entire universe was created for the glory of God & indeed declares His glory. He did it all by His word & through His will.
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- 2nd, Jesus is our sanctifier…
11 For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren,

A. What does it mean that Jesus “sanctifies” us? Simply that He sets us apart & makes us holy. Gk “sanctifies” is the same root used for “holy,” “saint,” etc. Keep in mind this doesn’t mean Christians are “holier-than-thou” – simply speaking of the work Christ Jesus does in us. When we are born-again, He sets us apart to Himself because we’ve been clothed in His righteousness. In this sense, it’s an immediate completed work…we’ve already been set apart & seated with Christ in the heavenlies (Eph 2:6).

B. At the same time, it’s also ongoing. We are in the process of “being sanctified” – both “sanctifies” & “being sanctified” are in the present tense. Whereas we are declared righteous (justified) by God immediately upon trusting Christ, for the rest of our lives, we are in the process of being sanctified – continually set apart by Jesus & molded & shaped into His image.
__a. Ever wonder why Christians still struggle with sin? Because we’re still in the process of being set apart. We’re not in glory with Christ Jesus yet. He’s freed us from the power of sin in our lives, in that no one forces us to give into temptation – but we’re still in the presence of a sinful world.
__b. That said, don’t give up hope! We obviously do participate in the process of sanctification (hence all the commands to be holy as God is holy – 1 Pet 1:15-16), but the work of sanctification originate with our Savior. Jesus is our sanctifiER, and we are the ones being sanctifiED. The work Jesus started, He will be faithful to complete (Phil 1:6). If there’s an area or besetting sin in which you struggle, confess it to the Lord, throw yourself upon Him, entrust yourself to His grace… … Don’t relegate yourself to failure – if you’ve trusted Christ, He has made you a new creation (2 Cor 5:17), and He is continuing to sanctify you.

C. Going back to the humanity of Jesus, the writer declares that the Sanctifer & the sanctified are the same body – we are made brothers with our Savior. We are Jesus’ hands & feet, but He is our head (Eph 5:23). And though He is our Lord & Master, He is also our friend (John 15:15) – and in addition, He is made our brother as well.
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- 3rd, Jesus is our brother…
12 saying: “I will declare Your name to My brethren; In the midst of the assembly I will sing praise to You.”

A. Back to the OT quotes – author of Hebrews is masterful at supporting the NT ideas from the Hebrew Scriptures. (Shows how well he knew them!) Quoting Psalm 22:22 – a truly Messianic psalm… [] This is actually the 2nd half of the Psalm (after the more famous crucifixion prophecy), right after the Psalmist (Jesus) declares that God had answered His prayer. Because of the Resurrection, now Jesus could sing forth the praises of God among the people…the answer of God gave the world a reason to worship!

B. The writer of Hebrews keys in on the fact that Jesus calls us “brethren…” In His humanity, the Lord of all Creation became brothers with His creation – a mind-blowing thought! Stunningly declared on the original Resurrection Sunday morning with Mary Magdalene… John 20:17 Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.’ ” []
__a. We speak often of the “new covenant” when celebrating Communion – this is exactly what the new covenant brings! In our sin, we were children of the devil, but in the righteousness of Christ, we are children of God! Jesus’ Father is our Father & we’ve been given a spirit of adoption in that we can approach God in intimate relationship – He’s Abba Father! Talk about a “new covenant” & “new creation”…if you’ve trusted Christ, you’ve gone from eternal damnation to the family of God, being declared a brother & co-heir with Christ. Amazing…

C. “assembly” is appropriate considering this is a Greek translation of the original Hebrew – but interestingly enough, this is the same Greek word translated “church.” Interesting thought to consider that just as we praise God as a church body, the Lord Jesus praise Him right along with us…
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13 And again: “I will put My trust in Him.” And again: “Here am I and the children whom God has given Me.”

A. Both OT quotes from Isaiah 8:17-18. Isaiah 8 begins with a prophecy showing the eventual downfall of Assyria, transitions to a prophecy speaking of how Assyria will 1st be used by God to discipline Israel, and then moves to an appeal to trust the Lord even when it seems that God (and applied specifically to Christ in the NT) will be a “stone of stumbling & a rock of offense.” (Isa 8:14) In response to all this, Isaiah declares that he & his family will trust the Lord. God was using his family to speak to Israel & Judah in times of trial, and though it would yet be difficult in days to come, Isaiah & his children would hope in God.

B. Since we know the original context & speaker is Isaiah, what is the writer of Hebrews doing in applying this to Jesus?! Keep in mind this is the inspired word of God… Much prophecy has an immediate fulfillment & a future fulfillment – which is the case here. Just as Isaiah trusted in God, the writer of Hebrews shows that Jesus trusted in God, right along with the rest of the church. This is yet one more way that Jesus is our brother & is made exactly like the rest of humanity. When it came to the suffering Jesus would endure spiritually & physically upon the Cross, His only hope to endure would be to hope in God….thus one more way in which He is our brother.
__a. Sometimes we get the idea that because Jesus was God, He was a superman in that trials didn’t bother Him, He must not have experienced pain, heartache, loss, etc., because “He’s God, after all!” Wrong! Jesus DID suffer – and He suffered immensely. In His humanity, there’s nothing we experience that Jesus did not, with the exception of giving into sin – and even there, Jesus became sin for us in order that we might receive His righteousness. Jesus knows what it’s like to have to trust in God in times of hopelessness, because that’s exactly what He had to do.
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- 4th, Jesus is our victorious emancipator…
14 Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil,

A. In Ch 1, the writer of Hebrews concentrated heavily on the Deity of Christ. Here (and earlier in Ch 2), he brings out the humanity of Jesus… We (as the creation) have “partaken of flesh and blood” & for Jesus to be our Savior, He had to take on flesh & blood Himself. He had to share in the same…hence the incarnation of Christ. It’s not merely that Jesus looked human & shared in human experiences (which He did) – but that the infinite God actually put on finite flesh and dwelt among us as a true man.

B. Why was it important that Jesus be human (as well as God)? Because He had to die… This goes back to vs 10 – this is one aspect of how God perfected the work of Christ. The incarnation of Jesus makes no sense without His death & resurrection – after all, what would be the point? Simply to demonstrate the perfection of God while people are left doomed in sin? What’s the use in healing lepers if they’re only going to die later without hope of salvation? No – Jesus was born specifically that He might die for our sins, fulfill our death sentence, and be raised from the dead.

C. What did Jesus accomplish through death? Was He a failure? No! He is a victor! On Friday, it may have seemed like the devil won, but when Jesus slumped over dead on the cross, it was the winning stroke for God. The wages of sin had been paid – and Sunday morning was the proof! Because the price was paid, Jesus destroys the one who has the power of death – the devil. Question: when did the devil have the power of death? When Adam listened to his lies in the Garden. God alone has the power to give life and take it away – but Satan can murder & that’s exactly what he did to Adam and Eve when he deceived them & put them under a spiritual & physical death sentence, which was in turn passed on to us.
__a. The devil is no match for Jesus Christ! It’s not like there’s some epic struggle between them & we’re waiting around to see who’s going to win… Let’s keep our theology straight: Jesus is the Creator & Satan is part of Jesus’ creation. Game over. There simply is no comparison between the two…
__b. Is the devil still around? Sure. Grk “destroy” does not mean “annihilate” – more like “abolish/annul.” The devil still roams about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour (1 Pet 5:8), but when it comes to a believer’s eternity, he’s toothless. He can attack & he still lives to steal, kill, & destroy (John 10:10) – but ultimately he’s defeated & he knows it. The devil knows better than anyone that his future is in a lake of fire. (Not ruling Hell, but suffering in it…)
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15 and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

A. How does the fear of death keep us in bondage? (Wm. Newell) “From the time you were born your mother was afraid you would die; the household kept in touch with doctors – “through fear of death;” funerals passed your house, often carrying loved ones, over whom you wept…the cemeteries you passed cried out, “You will soon be here!”… The human race is today SUBJECT TO BONDAGE. They may talk peace – but yonder comes the undertaker!” If you don’t think it’s slavery, try walking the halls of the ICU wing of a hospital. There’s but one question & fear on every family’s mind there: “Will my loved one die?” The whole thought of our culture is that life is tough, and then you die…death is always on the horizon & even the most hardened atheist knows that he’s going to have to face that event one day; and he has no hope with which to face it.

B. Why should we no longer fear death? Because Jesus is victorious over death! 1 Corinthians 15:55-57 (55) “O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?” (56) The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. (57) But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. []
__a. How do we know? Through the death & resurrection of Jesus. That’s the whole point of 1 Cor 15… Because of Jesus’ resurrection, we can be assured that those who trust Jesus for salvation will be resurrected to glory as well!

C. Have you been released from the fear of death? Have you received Jesus as your victorious emancipator? The Scripture is clear that it is appointed every man once to die & then the judgment (Heb 9:27). We can face that die in confident assurance when our hope is in Christ…
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16 For indeed He does not give aid to angels, but He does give aid to the seed of Abraham.

A. Brief reminder of Ch 1… Jesus is better than the angels. Jesus reigns over the angels. Jesus doesn’t even help the angels – but He helps us. Obviously the Hebrew Christian being written to would have understood themselves as the “seed of Abraham,” but it also applies to born-again Gentiles as well. (Gal 3:7-9)
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- 5th, Jesus is our High Priest…
17 Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.

A. Therefore… If Jesus was going to help us & defeat death for us, He had to be like us in every respect…

B. Jesus is our High Priest…the writer of Hebrews is starting to transition a bit to the next section of the book. He only briefly introduces the idea here & will mention it again in Ch 3 & really jump into things in Ch 5. For now, he mentions 2 aspects:
__a. Jesus is a merciful High Priest: Not only does God show His mercy & grace in our salvation through Christ, Jesus Himself shows mercy to us in His work of intercession & salvation. The idea is “compassion” – the gospels speak of Jesus having compassion for the people, and that continues in His work as High Priest. As He intercedes for us & mediates on our behalf before God, Jesus bears us on His heart (like the high priest’s breastplate)…
__b. Jesus is a faithful High Priest: Everything God gave Jesus to do, Jesus did. He leaves nothing undone or incomplete. Jesus is faithful “to make propitiation” for our sins…i.e., to satisfy the wrath of God through sacrifice. But Jesus’ sacrifice was far better than the Jewish priests – they offered bulls & goats; Jesus offered Himself as the perfect lamb of God…
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18 For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted.

A. Lest there be any doubt, Jesus suffered… Specifically, Jesus suffered through His temptation. Whether speaking of the explicit temptation in the wilderness, or simply the trials He endured when going to the cross – Jesus truly came as the Suffering Servant.

B. Was there a purpose in Jesus’ suffering temptation? Yes. Now we can be assured that He is able to help us in our temptation…this is part of His work as our merciful and compassionate High Priest.

Conclusion:
So who is Jesus? He’s the Son of God & He’s the Son of Man. In His humanity as the Messiah:
A. Jesus is the captain of our salvation: He’s the author & finisher of our faith & He leads the way…
B. Jesus is our sanctifier: His initial & ongoing work in our lives sets us apart to worship Him & walk in holiness…
C. Jesus is our brother: He can relate to us in every way because He’s just as much human as we are. Yet more so, He’s bestowed upon us the grace of being family…
D. Jesus is our victorious emancipator: We were enslaved to death, but no longer! Death has no more sting because Jesus died the ultimate death for mankind…
E. Jesus is our High Priest: He shows His compassion to us as He intercedes to God on our behalf & became not merely the presenter of sacrifice, but our sacrifice itself…

He’s all of this & more! He’s the King of Kings & Lord of Lords. He’s the sacrifice for our sins & He’s risen from the dead. He can relate to our worst temptations, yet He is without sin. He is the way, the truth, and the life – and He’s the destroyer of death & the devil. He is JESUS!

With that in mind, who is Jesus to you? He IS the King of Kings, but do you recognize Him as such? He IS God, but is He your Lord? One day, you will recognize Him that way – the Bible declares that every knee will bow & every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord to the glory of God the Father. But God gloriously gives you the opportunity to do it now, in willing response to His offer of grace, rather than under mandated compulsion. If you’ve never repented from your sin & trusted Christ for salvation, what’s stopping you?

Good Friday – Psalm 22

Superscription reads: “To the Chief Musician. Set to “The Deer of the Dawn.” a Psalm of David.” Although it was written by David; could not possibly be about David…nothing he endured in suffering ever came close to this. Psalm 22 describes in excruciating detail a typical Roman crucifixion, 400 years prior to the invention of it. (Mistakenly said 1000 years the other day…) Much prophecy is fulfilled in this Psalm – from the opening statement, to the crucifixion itself, to the soldiers casting lots (throwing dice) for the clothes of Jesus (vs. 18). There couldn’t be more indications that this is a Messianic Psalm unless David had written in big bold letters: THIS IS ABOUT JESUS!

The psalm can be divided into 2 distinct parts: Jesus’ suffering & Jesus’ praise. It speaks of His 1st coming as the Suffering Servant & then turns to the Resurrection & 2nd Coming as King of Kings. We’re not going to go into detail of every verse – just looking at 4 key areas:
(1) The spiritual sufferings of Christ
(2) The physical sufferings of Christ
(3) Jesus’ response to His sufferings
(4) The result of His sufferings

(1) Jesus suffered spiritually.
A. This was the whole point of the 1st 2 verses, partially quoted in Matthew & Mark. “1 My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? Why are You so far from helping Me, And from the words of My groaning? 2 O My God, I cry in the daytime, but You do not hear; And in the night season, and am not silent.” Translated into Aramaic, it’s “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabacthani!” Surely this is the most depressing cry in all of history: God the Son in His deepest need crying out to God the Father, Who is silent as His only begotten Son suffers immensely.
__a. Why would God the Father turn His face away from God the Son – with whom He enjoyed perfect fellowship from eternity past? Because Jesus (the only Son of God) became sin. 2 Corinthians 5:21 (21) For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. [] Note, it’s not just that Jesus bore our sins (which He did – 1 Pet 2:24), but Jesus actually “became” sin…God willed that His perfect Son be made sin. When Jesus hung on the cross, He became all the sin that rebels and is in opposition to our Holy God. Thus for the only time in all history, God the Father forsook God the Son. There can be no greater spiritual suffering.

B. Not only did Jesus suffer from the rejection of His Father, but He also suffered in the rejection from His people… (vs 6-8, 12-13)… Jesus knows what it’s like to be abandoned. Jesus knows what it’s like to be betrayed. Jesus knows what it’s liked to be mocked. Jesus knows what it’s like to have His closest friends deny they even know Him. If there’s any area in which we think Jesus simply cannot relate to what we’re going through emotionally or spiritually, we’re wrong. Jesus has been through it all.
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(2) Jesus suffered physically.
A. Roman crucifixion was one of the most painful methods of execution ever devised. As traumatic as the spikes nailed through the hands (median nerves of the wrist) & feet would be, that wasn’t the mode of death. The victim died of suffocation. The position the victim was in distended their body & in order to breath, the victim had to push up their torso to gasp a breath (obviously pushing down on the foot-spike). Their shoulders & hips were usually already dislocated due to the cross dropping into the ground, which made it extra-difficult. Eventually, the victim ended up exhausted & died from lack of breathing. Compare that with what the Psalmist writes – Psalm 22:14-16 (14) I am poured out like water, And all My bones are out of joint; My heart is like wax; It has melted within Me. (15) My strength is dried up like a potsherd, And My tongue clings to My jaws; You have brought Me to the dust of death. (16) For dogs have surrounded Me; The congregation of the wicked has enclosed Me. They pierced My hands and My feet; []
__a. Prophetically speaking, this is absolutely mind-boggling. Again, remember this was written 300 years prior to the Persian form of crucifixion & 400 years prior to the Roman ‘perfection’ of the practice. Vs. 18 goes on to describe how the soldiers gambled for Jesus’ clothes. There’s no doubt that Ps 22 is specifically written about Jesus Christ.

B. Add to this what Jesus had already endured: (1) so much stress that He actually sweat blood – a medical condition called “hematohidrosis”, (2) beatings with fists & reeds (Matt 26:67, 27:30), (3) a crown of thorns shoved into His forehead, (4) scourging – featuring a cat-of-nine-tails that had bits of bone & rocks intertwined with the whips … Did this really hurt Jesus as the Son of God? Yes! Never forget that Jesus is 100% God AND 100% man. To deny His humanity is just as much heresy as denying His deity (which was the focus of many heresies dealt with by the Council of Chalcedon in 451). Jesus truly suffered physically on that day – to the point where many would have died prior to ever being placed on the cross. It’s no wonder that His death came relatively soon for people suffering through crucifixion.

C. Why?? It was the wrath of God being poured out upon Him for our sin! WE deserved every strike of the whip & every nail in His hands – but Jesus took it for us as our sin sacrifice. Isaiah 53:4-6 (4) Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted. (5) But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed. (6) All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. [] Too many take these verses for physical healing – but that’s not the primary context. Jesus was paying the price for our sin! We are healed spiritually because Jesus was bruised physically. Jesus wasn’t bruised for our sickness; He was bruised for our iniquities, etc… …
__a. When we consider the Cross, we ought to consider that it should have been us hanging up there for our own sins. There’s nothing wrong with using the Cross in jewelry & decoration – the problem comes when that’s all we think it is. The Cross is the symbol of the wrath of God, which our sin required. If there had been another way, God would have given it (that’s what Jesus prayed for…). But because God is absolutely holy, the price of sin had to be paid – and it could only be paid through Christ. As the Son of God, only His death is sufficient to cover an infinite offense against an infinite God. So God willingly sent Jesus there on our behalf.
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(3) How did Jesus respond to His sufferings?
A. By proclaiming God’s faithfulness in Israel… (vs. 3-5) For as often as people conceive of the “God of the OT” as a harsh judge of Israel, the primary picture of God in the OT is One who is truly holy (to be sure), but truly gracious & merciful. In spite of Israel’s continued sin, God continued to deliver them from the hand of Egypt – provide for them in the wilderness – take them into the Promised Land – provide judges & deliverers – preserve their lives in captivity & much more… God had always delivered His people – and had proven His faithfulness. Even in His moment of abandonment, Jesus could sing of God’s holiness & proclaim He was “enthroned in the praises of Israel.”
__a. God is God, no matter what. (God is good, all the time…even when we don’t understand what’s going on.)

B. By proclaiming God’s faithfulness in His life… (vs 9-11) Beyond the national relationship God had with Israel, there was a personal relationship God has with His Son. God the Holy Spirit was the One Who came upon Mary – Jesus knew from a young age that He needed to be about His Father’s business – God proclaimed from the heavens that Jesus was His beloved Son, in Whom He was well pleased… Even in the midst of His suffering when Jesus became the sin, this never changed.
__a. God always loves you – even in His discipline…

C. By praying to God even when it seemed hopeless & God had forsaken Christ… (vs. 19-21). Jesus never stopped crying out to His Father. He had spent the evening before in prayer, pleading with God for another way. He continued to give God glory through His interrogation & beating. He refused to curse God when the people were taunting Him to do so. Jesus understood in His darkest hour that God was still on the throne & God was His only help – even if it was God’s will that Jesus endure.
__a. Never, never, never, never stop turning to God. Even if it seems as if our prayers go unanswered, we are to persist in prayer – oftentimes it the prayer itself that God uses to change us…
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(4) Jesus didn’t suffer for naught. God answered Him (vs. 21) through the Resurrection. There was a purpose to His sufferings & a definite result:
A. The answer of God gives reason for Israel to praise the Lord (vs. 22-24). How so? Although the cry of vs 1 is how God had forsaken Christ, the joy of vs 24 is that God had not despised the afflicted or hidden His face from Him. How can that be reconciled? Through the resurrection! God did indeed turn His face from Christ on the cross, but God did not allow His holy one to see corruption (Ps 16:10) & raised Jesus from the dead on the 3rd day…
__a. How does this relate to Israel? This was proof that Jesus is their awaited Messiah! The Jews could rejoice that their Messiah was here (and 3000 understood that on the day of Pentecost)… They were waiting for their King to defeat their foes, but didn’t understand that the main foe to be defeated was sin & death – and Jesus in His 1st Coming totally wipes them because of His suffering. It’s through His 2nd Coming that He’ll rule & reign in righteousness.

B. The answer of God lifts up the downtrodden (vs 25-26). Who are the “poor” & “those who seek” the Lord? Us! Because of the Resurrection, we can come to God & taste & see that the Lord is good (Ps 34:8). The gospel is the gospel because of the death & resurrection of Jesus Christ…

C. The answer of God gives reason for the Gentiles to praise the Lord (vs. 27-29). Both now & in the millennium the Gentiles will bow before Jesus & worship the Lord. Only now we have the opportunity to do it willingly out of gratefulness & repentance; in the millennium the time for choice will be over…then every knee will bow.

D. We have a reason to keep praising the Lord & telling others what He has done! It’s the Great Commission – Psalm 22:30-31 (30) A posterity shall serve Him. It will be recounted of the Lord to the next generation, (31) They will come and declare His righteousness to a people who will be born, That He has done this. [] When we share the gospel with our neighbors, we’re telling of the righteousness of the Lord. We’re declaring how Jesus was perfect & did not deserve to die, but He did so for us…and because of His sufficient sacrifice and resurrection, we have the hope of salvation. May we continue telling it to every generation…
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The crucifixion of Jesus is indeed an awful thing – the worst event imaginable: Deicide… And if the crucifixion was the end of the story, we’d have no hope…we’d be left in darkness & despair… But it doesn’t end there! The reason we can call it “Good Friday” is because Sunday’s coming…God did answer the prayer of Christ, raised Him from the dead, and we have reason to rejoice!

Compromise & Apostasy

Judges 1-3, “Compromise & Apostasy”
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Introduction:
Ever come across a car wreck on the highway & can’t stop looking at it? The book of Judges feels that way in some regards! Some of the events recounted in the book are simply awful: apostasy, rape, dismemberment, civil war & more. If the Israelites had a poor record in worshipping the Lord when being led by Moses & Joshua, that record is flushed down the toilet in Judges. Judges is the tale of the degradation of God’s chosen people from a victorious unified nation, into a divided sinful people living in anarchy & rebellion against their Lord & King.

There are bright moments in Judges (Deborah – Gideon’s 300 men), but for the most part, Judges is a book of apostasy. Whereas Joshua demonstrated what it was like to live the victorious Spirit-filled life, we might say that Judges demonstrates the opposite: what it’s like to claim the name of Christ, but waste our days in carnal living…

Who wrote it? No one knows…possibly Samuel. Covers a period of around 300-400 years of Hebrew history (some of the reigns of the Judges overlapped a bit). Depending on whether or not we count Abimelech (Ch 9), there are either 12 or 13 Judges mentioned… There are some bright moments (even picked up in the hall of faith in Hebrews 11) – but almost all of the judges are flawed in some ways. As with Genesis & the patriarchs, the Scripture shows the judges fairly: at their best & at their worst. The lessons we learn aren’t so much from the judges themselves, as much as God’s faithfulness, in spite of our flaws & sin.

Ch 1-3 captures the beginning. It sets the stage by transitioning out from Joshua – shows how Israel neglected to continue to conquest as they were instructed – how they 1st started turning from the Lord – and the 1st judges that God raised up to deliver them. …

Judges 1 (NKJV)
1 Now after the death of Joshua it came to pass that the children of Israel asked the LORD, saying, “Who shall be first to go up for us against the Canaanites to fight against them?” 2 And the LORD said, “Judah shall go up. Indeed I have delivered the land into his hand.” 3 So Judah said to Simeon his brother, “Come up with me to my allotted territory, that we may fight against the Canaanites; and I will likewise go with you to your allotted territory.” And Simeon went with him. 4 Then Judah went up, and the LORD delivered the Canaanites and the Perizzites into their hand; and they killed ten thousand men at Bezek.

A. Starts off well… Israel is seeking the Lord…Judah & Simeon are continuing to drive out the Canaanites (natural for them to go together ) – MAP

B. What’s the result? God blesses it! This is what was supposed to have happened…
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5 And they found Adoni-Bezek in Bezek, and fought against him; and they defeated the Canaanites and the Perizzites. 6 Then Adoni-Bezek fled, and they pursued him and caught him and cut off his thumbs and big toes. 7 And Adoni-Bezek said, “Seventy kings with their thumbs and big toes cut off used to gather scraps under my table; as I have done, so God has repaid me.” Then they brought him to Jerusalem, and there he died.

A. Kind of brutal by our standards; SOP of the day…would have prevented them from fighting in the future. … Lex Talonis (eye for eye; tooth for tooth)
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8 Now the children of Judah fought against Jerusalem and took it; they struck it with the edge of the sword and set the city on fire. 9 And afterward the children of Judah went down to fight against the Canaanites who dwelt in the mountains, in the South, and in the lowland. 10 Then Judah went against the Canaanites who dwelt in Hebron. (Now the name of Hebron was formerly Kirjath Arba.) And they killed Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai. 11 From there they went against the inhabitants of Debir. (The name of Debir was formerly Kirjath Sepher.)

A. More conquest. This time from Judah…
B. Sets up the transition to Caleb (from Judah)…
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12 Then Caleb said, “Whoever attacks Kirjath Sepher and takes it, to him I will give my daughter Achsah as wife.” 13 And Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother, took it; so he gave him his daughter Achsah as wife. 14 Now it happened, when she came to him, that she urged him to ask her father for a field. And she dismounted from her donkey, and Caleb said to her, “What do you wish?” 15 So she said to him, “Give me a blessing; since you have given me land in the South, give me also springs of water.” And Caleb gave her the upper springs and the lower springs.

A. Almost verbatim of what was told in Joshua 15:13-19. Considering Ch 1 begins with Joshua’s death, we can assume this is flashback. Perhaps specifically done to lay the foundation for Othniel in Ch 3.
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16 Now the children of the Kenite, Moses’ father-in-law, went up from the City of Palms with the children of Judah into the Wilderness of Judah, which lies in the South near Arad; and they went and dwelt among the people. 17 And Judah went with his brother Simeon, and they attacked the Canaanites who inhabited Zephath, and utterly destroyed it. So the name of the city was called Hormah. 18 Also Judah took Gaza with its territory, Ashkelon with its territory, and Ekron with its territory. 19 So the LORD was with Judah. And they drove out the mountaineers, but they could not drive out the inhabitants of the lowland, because they had chariots of iron.

A. More conquest…Judah does great till they get to the valley (lowland). Question: If the Lord was with Judah, why couldn’t they drive out the inhabitants of the lowland? Iron chariots are no match for the Lord! Might be an indication of a lapse of faith or a move away from depending on the Lord for victory.

B. Interestingly enough, there’s no record of a battle taking place in the lowlands & a defeat. It’s almost as if Judah saw the iron chariots & thought, “Boy, that’s tough…we can’t take that!”
__a. If our God can create the world & save sinners like you & me through the death & resurrection of Jesus Christ, then there’s nothing that would be a challenge for Him to accomplish. With God, all things are possible! (Matt 19:26) Beware of letting our lack of faith stop us from walking in His promises. God had promised He’d fight for Israel; Israel obviously wasn’t willing to trust God to do so.
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20 And they gave Hebron to Caleb, as Moses had said. Then he expelled from there the three sons of Anak. 21 But the children of Benjamin did not drive out the Jebusites who inhabited Jerusalem; so the Jebusites dwell with the children of Benjamin in Jerusalem to this day.

A. Interesting contrast between the two. Caleb is one man, but he (with the Lord) was able to defeat 3 giants. Benjamin was a whole tribe – yet they were not able to fully defeat the Jebusites by driving them out.
__a. Again, this is another contrast in faith. Caleb had the faith to take mountains (Josh 14:12)… The whole tribe of Benjamin was content to compromise…

B. FYI – this gives us a clue as to the date of authorship of the book. The Jebusites were finally defeated by David & expelled from Jerusalem in his reign. Thus “Judges” had to have been written prior to David.
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22 And the house of Joseph also went up against Bethel, and the LORD was with them. 23 So the house of Joseph sent men to spy out Bethel. (The name of the city was formerly Luz.) 24 And when the spies saw a man coming out of the city, they said to him, “Please show us the entrance to the city, and we will show you mercy.” 25 So he showed them the entrance to the city, and they struck the city with the edge of the sword; but they let the man and all his family go. 26 And the man went to the land of the Hittites, built a city, and called its name Luz, which is its name to this day. 27 However, Manasseh did not drive out the inhabitants of Beth Shean and its villages, or Taanach and its villages, or the inhabitants of Dor and its villages, or the inhabitants of Ibleam and its villages, or the inhabitants of Megiddo and its villages; for the Canaanites were determined to dwell in that land.

A. Exploits of Manasseh… They defeated Luz/Bethel with the help of a spy (reminiscent of Rahab & Jericho), but they couldn’t defeat the rest…
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28 And it came to pass, when Israel was strong, that they put the Canaanites under tribute, but did not completely drive them out. 29 Nor did Ephraim drive out the Canaanites who dwelt in Gezer; so the Canaanites dwelt in Gezer among them. 30 Nor did Zebulun drive out the inhabitants of Kitron or the inhabitants of Nahalol; so the Canaanites dwelt among them, and were put under tribute. 31 Nor did Asher drive out the inhabitants of Acco or the inhabitants of Sidon, or of Ahlab, Achzib, Helbah, Aphik, or Rehob. 32 So the Asherites dwelt among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land; for they did not drive them out. 33 Nor did Naphtali drive out the inhabitants of Beth Shemesh or the inhabitants of Beth Anath; but they dwelt among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land. Nevertheless the inhabitants of Beth Shemesh and Beth Anath were put under tribute to them. 34 And the Amorites forced the children of Dan into the mountains, for they would not allow them to come down to the valley; 35 and the Amorites were determined to dwell in Mount Heres, in Aijalon, and in Shaalbim; yet when the strength of the house of Joseph became greater, they were put under tribute. 36 Now the boundary of the Amorites was from the Ascent of Akrabbim, from Sela, and upward.

A. From a worldly perspective, this might sound like a success. Israel had many military victories & the various tribes were strong enough to make the Canaanite nations pay tribute to them…

B. From a spiritual perspective, this is an utter failure. Israel wasn’t supposed to gather tribute from the Canaanites; they were to inflict God’s judgment upon them & drive them out! [] Ultimately, they are compromising with sin & it’s going to hurt them.
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Judges 2 (NKJV)
1 Then the Angel of the LORD came up from Gilgal to Bochim, and said: “I led you up from Egypt and brought you to the land of which I swore to your fathers; and I said, ‘I will never break My covenant with you. 2 And you shall make no covenant with the inhabitants of this land; you shall tear down their altars.’ But you have not obeyed My voice. Why have you done this? 3 Therefore I also said, ‘I will not drive them out before you; but they shall be thorns in your side, and their gods shall be a snare to you.’ ”

A. Angel of the Lord = Jesus. He is the image of the invisible God (Col 1:15) & makes it clear that He Himself was the One who made the covenant with Israel.

B. Jesus rebukes Israel in response to their refusal to drive out the Canaanites, but rather take tribute from them. This wasn’t mere laziness; this was sin! God specifically commanded them to drive out the inhabitants of the land (Num 33:50-56), not because He needed to give Israel “busy-work”, but to protect them from the temptation of idolatry, apostasy, fornication, and numerous other sins. (God’s rules are to protect & provide for us…) By not driving out the people & not tearing down the pagan altars, Israel was setting themselves up for failure…
__a. How often do we set ourselves up for failure by leaving remnants of sin around? Old movies we shouldn’t watch, but hesitate throwing away… Keeping liquor in the house because it’s too expensive to pour down the drain… (Or whatever your old besetting sin was.) Until we get rid of these temptations, they will always be thorns in our sides & snares…

C. The consequence? God will no longer drive out the Canaanites, and Israel is going to have to deal with them on an ongoing basis. Israel had the opportunity to continue to experience the victory they had under Joshua’s leadership – but they wasted it.
__a. Sin always has consequences… Even when we go to the Lord to seek forgiveness, we may have consequences to face for the rest of our lives. Be careful what it is you’re sowing – you’re going to have to reap it one day.
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4 So it was, when the Angel of the LORD spoke these words to all the children of Israel, that the people lifted up their voices and wept. 5 Then they called the name of that place Bochim [“weepers”]; and they sacrificed there to the LORD.

A. Israel is sorry & emotional – but there’s no evidence that this was godly sorrow. How can we say for sure? Godly sorrow leads to repentance (2 Cor 7:10) – but apart from the one sacrifice mentioned, there’s no evidence of any change of direction from their sin…in fact, it only gets worse.

B. Beware of substituting emotion for obedience! Passion is good (and necessary) in our worship of the Lord – but if all we have is emotional passion & no action to back it up, it’s not much good. (To obey is better than sacrifice… 1 Sam 15:22) Likewise, if we go through the motions, but have no change of heart & no true earnest desire to please God, then it’s a waste of time. (Rend your hearts & not your garments – Joel 2:13). We need both! Godly sorrow (emotion/passion) leads to repentance (action/change of direction)…
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6 And when Joshua had dismissed the people, the children of Israel went each to his own inheritance to possess the land. 7 So the people served the LORD all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great works of the LORD which He had done for Israel. 8 Now Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died when he was one hundred and ten years old. 9 And they buried him within the border of his inheritance at Timnath Heres, in the mountains of Ephraim, on the north side of Mount Gaash.

A. Not chronological – remember Ch 1 had begun with the death of Joshua… This is a flashback to show how far Israel was already departing from the days of Joshua…
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10 When all that generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation arose after them who did not know the LORD nor the work which He had done for Israel. 11 Then the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD, and served the Baals; 12 and they forsook the LORD God of their fathers, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt; and they followed other gods from among the gods of the people who were all around them, and they bowed down to them; and they provoked the LORD to anger. 13 They forsook the LORD and served Baal and the Ashtoreths.

A. What did compromise with the Canaanites lead to? Idolatry & apostasy! …
B. Keep in mind that Israel had no reason to fall into apostasy – their forefathers had seen the work of the Lord on their behalf. Obviously they neglected to pass along the knowledge to their children.
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14 And the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel. So He delivered them into the hands of plunderers who despoiled them; and He sold them into the hands of their enemies all around, so that they could no longer stand before their enemies. 15 Wherever they went out, the hand of the LORD was against them for calamity, as the LORD had said, and as the LORD had sworn to them. And they were greatly distressed. 16 Nevertheless, the LORD raised up judges who delivered them out of the hand of those who plundered them. 17 Yet they would not listen to their judges, but they played the harlot with other gods, and bowed down to them. They turned quickly from the way in which their fathers walked, in obeying the commandments of the LORD; they did not do so. 18 And when the LORD raised up judges for them, the LORD was with the judge and delivered them out of the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge; for the LORD was moved to pity by their groaning because of those who oppressed them and harassed them. 19 And it came to pass, when the judge was dead, that they reverted and behaved more corruptly than their fathers, by following other gods, to serve them and bow down to them. They did not cease from their own doings nor from their stubborn way.

A. Basically describes the overall cycle of apostasy & deliverance…
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20 Then the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel; and He said, “Because this nation has transgressed My covenant which I commanded their fathers, and has not heeded My voice, 21 I also will no longer drive out before them any of the nations which Joshua left when he died, 22 so that through them I may test Israel, whether they will keep the ways of the LORD, to walk in them as their fathers kept them, or not.” 23 Therefore the LORD left those nations, without driving them out immediately; nor did He deliver them into the hand of Joshua.

A. Reiterates the consequences mentioned earlier. Was God right to be angry? Yes! They had transgressed the covenant & God’s response was the response Israel agreed to when they affirmed the covenant.

B. Did God tempt Israel? No. (He doesn’t tempt anyone – James 1:13) But He did test them. KJV, “prove” – the idea is that God would allow Israel to endure trial in order to prove their mettle…to help strengthen them & see what they were made of.
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Judges 3 (NKJV)
1 Now these are the nations which the LORD left, that He might test Israel by them, that is, all who had not known any of the wars in Canaan 2 (this was only so that the generations of the children of Israel might be taught to know war, at least those who had not formerly known it), 3 namely, five lords of the Philistines, all the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites who dwelt in Mount Lebanon, from Mount Baal Hermon to the entrance of Hamath. 4 And they were left, that He might test Israel by them, to know whether they would obey the commandments of the LORD, which He had commanded their fathers by the hand of Moses.

A. Lists out the nations left to test Israel…

B. We tend to think any challenge we face is from the devil. Not necessarily the case! Perhaps God is testing us to see if we’ll trust Him & rely on His power & grace. One reason we can count it all joy when we face various trials (James 1:3) is because whatever we face in the power of God is going to be used by God to grow & develop our character. Sometimes that challenge is a result of sin & the Fall – other times it may be specifically brought to us by God. Either way, it’s what He’s allowed in our lives to keep us turning towards Christ & His all-sufficient grace.
__a. Unfortunately, the Hebrews did not turn towards God; they failed the test…
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5 Thus the children of Israel dwelt among the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 6 And they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their daughters to their sons; and they served their gods. 7 So the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD. They forgot the LORD their God, and served the Baals and Asherahs. 8 Therefore the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and He sold them into the hand of Cushan-Rishathaim king of Mesopotamia; and the children of Israel served Cushan-Rishathaim eight years.

A. 1st specific instance of apostasy (Ch 2 was a general overview). Here, we see how Israel compromised with all sorts of pagan gods (generally fertility gods) & added fornication to their list of sins. As a result, God “sold them” to Mesopotamia…ie., God allowed Israel to face His discipline – and if it takes a pagan people & oppression to get through to Israel, then that’s what God is going to allow to happen.

B. Keep in mind that God’s discipline is an indication of His love for us as children. If He didn’t love us, He’d ignore us & allow us to rot in our sins. But God cares too much for us to allow that to happen. He’d rather allow us to be disciplined in order that we would seek His face & be restored in fellowship.
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9 When the children of Israel cried out to the LORD, the LORD raised up a deliverer for the children of Israel, who delivered them: Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother. 10 The Spirit of the LORD came upon him, and he judged Israel. He went out to war, and the LORD delivered Cushan-Rishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand; and his hand prevailed over Cushan-Rishathaim. 11 So the land had rest for forty years. Then Othniel the son of Kenaz died.

A. Judge #1, Othniel…the son-in-law of Caleb [MAP]. What qualified Othniel to be judge? Was it his military exploits? No – it was God. “The Spirit of the Lord came upon him…” What do we need to fight the spiritual battles we face? The power of the Holy Spirit! …

B. Eventually Othniel dies & the cycle begins again…
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12 And the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the LORD. So the LORD strengthened Eglon king of Moab against Israel, because they had done evil in the sight of the LORD. 13 Then he gathered to himself the people of Ammon and Amalek, went and defeated Israel, and took possession of the City of Palms. 14 So the children of Israel served Eglon king of Moab eighteen years.

A. 2nd apostasy – this time they were defeated by Moab, a nation founded in iniquity (the incestuous relationship between Lot & one of his daughters).
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15 But when the children of Israel cried out to the LORD, the LORD raised up a deliverer for them: Ehud the son of Gera, the Benjamite, a left-handed man. By him the children of Israel sent tribute to Eglon king of Moab.

A. Judge #2, Ehud. As a left-handed man, Ehud wouldn’t have been anyone’s 1st choice for a deliverer – it was culturally considered a defect. (Not too much different today!) But what culture despised, God used – keep his left-hand in mind in his encounter with the king.
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16 Now Ehud made himself a dagger (it was double-edged and a cubit in length) and fastened it under his clothes on his right thigh. 17 So he brought the tribute to Eglon king of Moab. (Now Eglon was a very fat man.) 18 And when he had finished presenting the tribute, he sent away the people who had carried the tribute. 19 But he himself turned back from the stone images that were at Gilgal, and said, “I have a secret message for you, O king.” He said, “Keep silence!” And all who attended him went out from him. 20 So Ehud came to him (now he was sitting upstairs in his cool private chamber). Then Ehud said, “I have a message from God for you.” So he arose from his seat. 21 Then Ehud reached with his left hand, took the dagger from his right thigh, and thrust it into his belly. 22 Even the hilt went in after the blade, and the fat closed over the blade, for he did not draw the dagger out of his belly; and his entrails came out.

A. Pretty gruesome…but although it’s somewhat offensive to our 21st century ears, battles, blood & guts were commonplace for most of history. Eglon was an oppressor of God’s people & God used Ehud to deliver His justice to Eglon & freedom to the Hebrews.

B. Note Ehud’s dagger was strapped on his right thigh (which was not usually searched) – precisely because Ehud was left-handed. [] What we perceive as weaknesses are often what God uses in our lives to glorify Himself. [Joni Erikson Tada] Think of it this way: if God didn’t use weak things, He wouldn’t ever use us! But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise & the weak things to shame the mighty (1 Cor 1:27). WE are the weak ones; we can do nothing of our own to save ourselves – it’s the work of Jesus alone. And because His work IS sufficient, the world is left amazed at what God would do.
__a. If there’s an area in your life in which you’re weak, take heart! We serve a mighty God – and we can take our weaknesses & leave them at the feet of Christ for His use & His glory.
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23 Then Ehud went out through the porch and shut the doors of the upper room behind him and locked them. 24 When he had gone out, Eglon’s servants came to look, and to their surprise, the doors of the upper room were locked. So they said, “He is probably attending to his needs in the cool chamber.” 25 So they waited till they were embarrassed, and still he had not opened the doors of the upper room. Therefore they took the key and opened them. And there was their master, fallen dead on the floor. 26 But Ehud had escaped while they delayed, and passed beyond the stone images and escaped to Seirah.

A. Basically, they thought Ehud was going to the bathroom & they didn’t want to interrupt…
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27 And it happened, when he arrived, that he blew the trumpet in the mountains of Ephraim, and the children of Israel went down with him from the mountains; and he led them. 28 Then he said to them, “Follow me, for the LORD has delivered your enemies the Moabites into your hand.” So they went down after him, seized the fords of the Jordan leading to Moab, and did not allow anyone to cross over. 29 And at that time they killed about ten thousand men of Moab, all stout men of valor; not a man escaped. 30 So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel. And the land had rest for eighty years.

A. Their deliverance from Moab…
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31 After him was Shamgar the son of Anath, who killed six hundred men of the Philistines with an ox goad; and he also delivered Israel.

A. Judge #3, Shamgar… This is all that’s mentioned of him, but it’s pretty impressive! We don’t know if Shamgar killed all 600 Philistines at one time, or if it was spread out over time – but either way, it’s reminiscent of Samson & the jawbone or David & Goliath. An oxgoad was an 8-10 foot sharp spear-like stick…but to take out 600 soldiers with it is definitely an act of God.

Conclusion:
Quite a tumble in Ch 1-3! They begin with continuing the conquest under the divine power of God – but they compromise with the people of the land & descend into apostasy. By Ch 3, the cycle of failure has begun & God starts raising up judges to deliver His people.

So what can we learn from all this?

A. We dare not compromise with the things of the world! They only drag us down into carnality & away from God…

B. God is faithful! Even when His people disobey, God is ready to respond to them upon their repentance. Every time the Hebrews cried out to God, God was ready with a deliverer. Today, we don’t have just any-old-deliverer, we’ve got THE Deliverer in Jesus Christ! When we get drug down by sin, we don’t have to stay there…we simply need to seek the Lord in repentance, and Jesus is ready to forgive & deliver.

Don’t Ignore the Son

Hebrews 2:1-9, “Don’t Ignore the Son”
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Introduction:
One of the things that’s so interesting to me about the Gospel accounts of Palm Sunday & the week leading up to the crucifixion is how quickly the moods of the crowds change. Masses of people are often fickle & the 1st Century Jerusalem Jews were no exception. On Sunday, Jesus came riding in on a young donkey & the crowds rejoiced! They exalted Him as their King & Messiah. They were so exuberant that the Pharisees & priests tried to calm things down – and Jesus’ response is basically: “They can’t help it. If they didn’t rejoice, the rocks would.” Yet a lot changed in a week’s time! The same crowds that shouted “Hosanna” on Sunday were shouting “Crucify Him” by the ends of the week.

What they didn’t understand is that although Jesus is indeed King & Messiah, He was coming twice. 1st to suffer, 2nd to reign…the people wanted to skip the 1st part. But Jesus had to taste death for everyone & thus His 1st coming wasn’t to dominate, but to die for our sins – and then be raised to life & exultation by God.

It’s the Resurrection itself that shows Jesus (definitively) to be God & showing for all time that the gospel of grace is absolutely true. And that the gospel is true is what the writer of Hebrews has been leading up to regarding his audience. These Jewish Christians had started to fall away from the faith & go back to things under Judaism. In Ch 2, we get the 1st of 5 warnings for people to stay faithful to the gospel. These people had put much stock in angels (as we saw in Ch 1) & the author’s been showing, Jesus is better than the angels – He has a far greater message proven in far better ways & He alone offers such a great salvation. Don’t ignore Him!

Hebrews 2:1-9 (NKJV)
1 Therefore we must give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest we drift away.

A. What’s the “therefore” there for? Remember our context: the writer has been comparing Jesus with the angels – showing that Christ is far superior to even the most glorious supernatural beings. God may have spoken in the past via angels, but now, we have been given a far better revelation! Therefore, we better pay attention…

B. How much attention? “the more earnest heed…” The writer isn’t saying, “Just file this away for later,” – but rather, “Pay attention! This is important! Don’t just hear the words or read the letter; do something with the knowledge. Apply it!” People often blow off spiritual things as if it doesn’t really matter. Wrong! When dealing with questions of eternity, there can’t be anything more important…

C. Is this for Christians or non-Christians? Both! Non-Christians need to pay the more earnest heed to the gospel message, but Christians need to do so as well! What’s the danger? Christians might “drift away” – they might slip past the relationship of grace that God has for us through Jesus Christ. Our default mode of trying to relate to God is through our works. Religion after religion tries various ways, methods, and rituals designed to try to please God…and of course the problem is that our best attempts at righteousness (outside of Christ) are nothing but filthy rags in the sight of God. Even Bible-believing Christians are in danger of this – they abandon the relationship founded on grace alone & try to fill it up with rituals & legalistic practices. Paul says in Galatians that it’s like Christians trying to put themselves under the law of Mt. Sinai after they’ve already experienced the freedom given at Mt. Calvary. He concludes – Galatians 5:1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage. [] For a born-again Christian to “drift away” into legalism is to abandon the liberty we’ve been given in Christ Jesus – it’s to put ourselves into the bondage from which we’ve already been freed…and it’s definitely not what God would have us do!
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2 For if the word spoken through angels proved steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just reward, 3 how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation, which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed to us by those who heard Him,

A. Sets up the contrast behind verse 1…this is what the author was trying to compare… IOW, what the angels spoke was true… And if what they said was true, how much more the Son?

B. What was the word spoken through the angels? Beyond the various prophecies given to Daniel & the many appearances of the Angel of the Lord – this is probably a reference to the 10 Commandments itself…the Law of God. (Deut 33:2, God brought the law on Sinai with 10,000 of saints/angels… Gal 3:19, the law was appointed through angels…) We don’t know how exactly the angels were involved, but Scripture definitely gives the indication that they were involved. And if the immediate context is indeed the Law, then it only serves to underscore the importance of what they said…
__a. Question: Wasn’t the Law of God ultimately given by God? Yes…so how could it be viewed with somehow lesser importance even if it was given via the angels? Answer: it’s not that the Law is not important (Paul makes that argument very clear in Romans!), but rather it is lesser in comparison with the gospel of salvation through Jesus Christ. The law’s main purpose is educate us on what sin is (Rom 7:7), and to bring us to the feet of Christ as a tutor to the professor (Gal 3:24). The Law is a gift of God & incredibly valuable – but if we stay at the Law & never move to the Gospel, then we’ve missed the whole point.

C. What happened when people were disobedient to the word of God given them through the angels? (I.e. the law…) They received a “just reward.” Our God is a just & righteous God. Even His judgment and wrath that is poured out because of sin is righteous…it’s a fully just response to rebellion against Holy God.[] The punishment for law breaking varies depending on the circumstance. If I spank Olivia (rightly), I’m viewed as a decent parent. If I hit a stranger, I’ll get cited & maybe arrested. If I hit the President, I’d get Secret Service on me & locked away without a key. Same action; different responses. When we commit offenses against Almighty God & break His law – the “just reward” is eternal death. We either pay for that in eternity in Hell ourselves, or the eternal Son of God pays it on our behalf at the cross.
__a. The point? Angels ain’t nothing compared to Jesus. If those who knew the word of God & disobeyed it were punished before; what should we expect God to do to those who hear the gospel of grace through Jesus Christ & ignore or dismiss it? They “neglect so great a salvation”…they turn away from the glorious gospel offered to them. For unbelievers, they never repent from their sin & trust Jesus. For ‘Christians’, they turn away from the gospel of grace in legalism or even apostasy. God offers grace, but they have no care for it & ignore the gracious gift.

D. How is “salvation” described? As “great” – this isn’t so much a description of emotion as a description of its magnitude. Salvation is great, in that it’s the good news & there’s not much else that brings more joy to a believer’s ear. But the word here speaks of its vastness. The salvation we have through Christ is massive. The wrath that we faced because of our sin was overwhelming, but faith in Jesus brings us not simply to a place of tolerance in the eyes of God, but adoption! We’re born again of the Holy Spirit & brought into the family of God, made co-heirs with Christ for all of eternity. Do you understand the scope of your salvation? Consider moving from death-row to the White House & multiply it by a billion… That’s at least a start in the right direction. Our salvation is truly great!

E. How did the good news of salvation through Christ come? 3 ways mentioned (2 in this verse):
__a. 1st, it was “spoken by the Lord”: It was spoken by God Himself. In the Old Covenant, there were angels speaking for God, or prophets speaking for God to the people, but God speaking directly to the masses was very rare. In the Gospels, that’s the main event – God Himself (Jesus Christ) spoke His word, and personally acted on behalf of His creation.
__b. 2nd, it was “confirmed to us by those who heard Him” – IOW, eyewitnesses. Obviously we think of the 12 disciples, but there were many more. The 1st church in Jerusalem (prior to Pentecost) was 120 that met & prayed while waiting for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:15) & there were hundreds of witnesses to the Resurrection (500 at one time! – 1 Cor 15:6).
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4 God also bearing witness both with signs and wonders, with various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit, according to His own will?

A. 3rd, it was confirmed by God through “signs & wonders…miracles, & gifts of the Holy Spirit”… IOW, if the testimony of angels was good regarding the law, how much better is the testimony of God regarding the gospel? He bears witness of it through many miracles…using many terms to describe different aspects of the same thing. God used “signs” (miraculous instances specifically pointing to God), “wonders” (rare supernatural instances designed to grab our attention), “various miracles” (many different ways of supernatural outpouring of power by God – i.e., the virgin birth, water turning to wine, healings, etc.), and “gifts of the Holy Spirit” (charismatic gifts poured out on the church that verified the truth behind the gospel of Christ).
__a. Just the word “miracle” can be a stumbling block for some people. On the one hand, there are many who cannot believe in supernatural occurrences whatsoever. On the other hand, there are many who gin up emotions & use mind techniques to try to show ‘miracles’ every 5 minutes during their ‘signs & wonders revival’ (usually right before the offering is taken).
__b. Can miracles exist? Absolutely. 1st words in the Bible are “In the beginning, God…” There’s not much that needs to be said after that point. If God truly does exist (which is evident!), then by definition God is supernatural (‘above/apart from’ nature)… Thus miracles are definitely possible.
__c. Is it a miracle every time a self-proclaimed ‘healer’ says it is? Of course not. The gifts of the Holy Spirit are given “according to His own will”… Paul affirms this in 1 Cor 12:11 that the Holy Spirit distributes the gifts individually as He wills. God is God; we’re not. We don’t command God to do anything; we respond to what He’s doing.

B. Which signs/wonders/miracles/gifts specifically verify the gospel of Jesus Christ?
__a. The healing miracles of Jesus (and by extension, the miracles done through the apostles). That’s what Jesus used to encourage JtB when in jail… Luke 7:21-23 (21) And that very hour He cured many of infirmities, afflictions, and evil spirits; and to many blind He gave sight. (22) Jesus answered and said to them, “Go and tell John the things you have seen and heard: that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have the gospel preached to them. (23) And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me.” []
__b. Prophecy: Although not necessarily a supernatural work of power in the general sense, prophecy is definitely used supernaturally by God to point people to Christ as a sign. Over 300 prophecies refer to Jesus 1st Coming, and He fulfilled them to a “T.” They range from the city in which He was born (Micah 5:2) – to the type of ministry He would have (Isa 61:1, Isa 53) – to the amount of money He would be betrayed for & what the betrayal money would be used for (Zech 11:13) – to the type of death He would die (Ps 22) – to the Resurrection (Ps 16:10) & much more!
__c. Gifts of the Holy Spirit exercised through the church. That’s specifically the purpose of prophecy w/in the NT church (speaking forth the word of God). Once the secrets of the heart of an unbeliever are revealed (his thoughts, motives, cut to the quick by the word & God’s people), “he will worship God & report that God is truly among you.” (1 Cor 14:25)
__d. Most importantly: the Resurrection! This was the ultimate stamp of approval placed upon Jesus Christ. Peter referred to it when talking to the Jews in Jerusalem on Pentecost (and 3000 of them believed that day!) – Paul referred to it when teaching the Aeropagus in Athens & with kings Festus & Agrippa – it’s the consistent message throughout the NT. Romans 1:3-4 (3) concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, (4) and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead. []
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5 For He has not put the world to come, of which we speak, in subjection to angels.

A. Picks up the thought from Ch 1 again, comparing Jesus with the angels… Angels are pretty incredible & all, but ultimately they are messengers & ministers (servants) of God (Heb 1:14)… They are NOT rulers. Apparently some Jewish sects (as shown by the DSS at Qumran) believed that the kingdom age would be ruled by Michael & other angels. Completely non-biblical thought…they were always shown as ministers of God who ultimately pointed to the coming Messiah (Jesus).

B. So who are the rulers of the world to come? We are, though Christ. See vs. 6…
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6 But one testified in a certain place, saying: “What is man that You are mindful of him, Or the son of man that You take care of him? 7 You have made him a little lower than the angels; You have crowned him with glory and honor, And set him over the works of Your hands. 8 You have put all things in subjection under his feet.”

A. Quoting Psalm 8:4-6. Speaks of the wonder & majesty of God, and the wonder that Almighty Creator God would even take notice of mankind – much less grant to him the responsibility of caring for the Creation.

B. Speaking of mankind in general, or Jesus? Original context is referring to Man & his place in the universe as given by God (Jesus does not need anyone to “take care of him” – but people do!), but ultimately the teaching is applied & fulfilled in Jesus…the writer will show how in vs. 9…
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…For in that He put all in subjection under him, He left nothing that is not put under him. But now we do not yet see all things put under him.

A. Originally, God had put all things under subjection to mankind. Adam was supposed to have dominion over all creation (Gen 1:28) – everything had been given to him for his use: the fish of the sea, birds of the air, herbs, trees, etc. Obviously that’s not the case right now. Wild animals maul people – cancer ravages people – violent weather patterns & more because of the fallen nature of the world show that Man does not yet “see all things put under him.”
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9 But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone.

A. It’s interesting that for an epistle that has focused so much on the person of Christ, this is the 1st time the name “Jesus” is mentioned. To the Jewish believers who were drifting away from the gospel of grace, they would have readily identified with the “Son” who would have been the heir of all things, the glory of God, the creator of the world, etc. At this point the writer has built up the theology of the Son of God immensely – and brings it to a climax as he finally reveals His name. The Son of God is none other than Jesus of Nazareth. “Jesus” is a Greek transliteration of Hebrew “Yehosua” (Joshua) meaning “Yahweh/Jehovah who saves.” With the name “Jesus” all of a sudden, any doubt in the Hebrew’s mind becomes clear: the One who is infinitely greater than the angels, yet made for a little while lower than the angels is none other than Jesus.
__a. Takes this back to vs 3. If we drift away from the gospel message & neglect so great a salvation, we are neglecting Jesus, the Lord God who saves. Salvation is found in no other name (Acts 4:12) – one day every knee will bow & every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord (Phil 2:10). To neglect Christ Jesus is to neglect our only hope. He is the only God who saves.

B. What does it mean that Jesus was made “a little lower than the angels?” Wasn’t He always above the angels? Sure – as the Son of God, Jesus is infinitely higher than the angels (that’s part of what we saw in Ch 1)… But in His incarnation, Jesus was made for a little while ‘lower’ in that God became flesh & dwelt among us. He’s 100% God & 100% Man [“hypostatic union”] Ch 1 concentrated on the fact that Jesus is God. Here, the author looks at Jesus’ humanity. In His human nature, Jesus was made a little lower than the angels & experienced the same things we do: the same temptations, the same discomforts, the same pain, etc…

C. Why did Jesus have to become human? Why did He have to don mortal flesh? In order that He might experience “the suffering of death” for us… In doing so, He tasted “death for everyone…” Understand that Jesus had to die. It’s not that He was a failure – it’s not that He had no control over the crowds (He slipped out of their hands on numerous occasions when He wanted) – it was the purpose & design of God, because it was the only way that the price of sin could be paid. Isaiah 53:10-11 (10) Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, And the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand. (11) He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, For He shall bear their iniquities. [] Jesus bore the iniquities of every human being that ever existed upon His shoulders – He’s the only One who could (He’s the Son of God)… We are justified [] in the sight of God because of Christ Jesus, and even though Jesus was bruised & killed, His days have been prolonged because He rose from the dead.

D. Is Jesus still lower than the angels? No – through His resurrection & ascension, He’s now “crowned with glory and honor”. Psalm 8 is ultimately fulfilled here in Christ – Jesus has been exalted to the highest place (the right hand of God) & been given the name which is above every name!

E. How do we know this? How do we participate? “By the grace of God”… Salvation is an act of God alone – an outpouring of His unmerited favor upon us. In our sins, we are doomed to face the wrath of God, but God loves us – His desire for us is that we would be saved. Since we can’t save ourselves, He acts on our behalf. [Mephibosheth – 2 Sam 9] It’s the grace of God!

Conclusion:
Praise God that Jesus was made a little lower than the angels! If He hadn’t, He would have never have gone to the cross, never paid the price for sin by tasting death for you & me, and certainly never risen again to power & glory. But through the grace of God, Jesus DID go through all that in order that we could be forgiven & glorify God. It’s been proven through signs, wonders, eyewitnesses – it’s got the testimony of Almighty God Himself.

So what is your response to that glorious message? It’s the best news in all of history – and we ought to embrace it & praise God for it! Every day a born-again believer wakes up is a new day in which we can glorify God & thank Him for our salvation in Christ. We can rejoice in our liberty & walk in the power of the Holy Spirit.

But yet some people drift away. Don’t drift! Some just let their faith slowly die; others take the grace of God for granted. Beware of the slippery slope of legalism that would siphon of the liberty we have in Christ. The Hebrew Christians that were being addressed were starting to slip away from the sufficiency of Christ & trying to find their righteousness in themselves – and that only leads to one place: apostasy… Don’t do it – rejoice in what Christ has done for you! Rest in your loving relationship & covenant with God the Father…

Worse yet, some people completely neglect the great salvation offered to them in Christ. Maybe you’re a person with a lot of knowledge about the Lord – you’ve been in Sunday School all your life (maybe even taught it), but you’ve never truly partaken of the forgiveness & grace He offers you. Beware of just ‘hearing’ the gospel – you need to pay the more earnest heed! Take it from a place of learning to application…you need to respond to the gospel of Jesus Christ… Maybe you’re a person who’s never really known much about Jesus at all – except now you’ve been convicted of the truth that He really is the Son of God who died for your sins & has risen from the grave. Don’t leave your conviction at the door – respond to it & trust Christ!

Joshua’s Farewell

Joshua 23-24, “Joshua’s Farewell”
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Introduction:
Assuming that Joshua & Caleb were about the same age, by the end of the book of Joshua, the conquest has been completed for about 20 years. The major battles are over, the land has been distributed, and Israel has seen the miraculous hand of the Lord. Not that they haven’t had troubles along the way (as evidenced by the near-civil war with the Transjordan tribes), but overall the mission has been an overwhelming success & Israel has now settled in the Promised Land.

It’s upon this background that Joshua gathers the people together for 2 final addresses. The first is a reminder of God’s faithfulness; the 2nd is a reminder of God’s covenant. If Israel is going to continue to experience victory in the land God has given them, they need to always remember (1) God indeed gave it to them, and (2) they are servants of the Most High God alone. It’s when they forget this that things spiral out of control in Judges – so Joshua takes the time at the end of his life to very carefully charge them to love & serve God.

Joshua 23 (NKJV) – God is faithful; you be faithful…
1 Now it came to pass, a long time after the LORD had given rest to Israel from all their enemies round about, that Joshua was old, advanced in age. 2 And Joshua called for all Israel, for their elders, for their heads, for their judges, and for their officers, and said to them: “I am old, advanced in age. 3 You have seen all that the LORD your God has done to all these nations because of you, for the LORD your God is He who has fought for you.

A. How old was he? Joshua died at 110 – we don’t know how much time passed between Ch 23-24, but we can assume he was pretty close to the end of his life at this point & thus he’s starting to say ‘goodbye’… 1st of 2 national gatherings. The location in Ch 24 is named; this is not…perhaps Shiloh where the Tabernacle was located.

B. The main theme throughout Joshua’s farewell discourses? Look at what God has done! He’s fought for you & proved Himself faithful to His promises. For all the various memorial witnesses throughout the book of Joshua, the best witnesses are the people themselves. They’ve seen with their own eyes what God has done – they knew that it was God who fought for them.
__a. So have we! Whenever it comes to our lengthy ongoing battle against sin & the flesh, if we’re in Christ, every single one of us has a witness to fall back upon. We know what God saved us from & how God made us new creations… There’s a reason Paul referred to his personal conversion 3 times in Acts – not only was it a way in which he could share the gospel, but it was a constant reminder of the utter change the Risen Jesus wrought in him. ALL the work done in our lives as believers is due to Jesus Christ – none of it is our own. All the glory belongs to the Lord who has fought for us…
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4 See, I have divided to you by lot these nations that remain, to be an inheritance for your tribes, from the Jordan, with all the nations that I have cut off, as far as the Great Sea westward. 5 And the LORD your God will expel them from before you and drive them out of your sight. So you shall possess their land, as the LORD your God promised you.

A. What’s left still to be completed… The major fighting is finished & the land has been allotted between the 12 tribes, but there were still pockets of enemies that remained in the land. The people were expected to go in & finish the fighting – never compromising with the Canaanites, but driving them out per the Lord’s instruction & judgment.
__a. We see something similar regarding the spiritual life. The victory has been won. Jesus has defeated death & sin, and given us new life. But we have an ongoing battle against the flesh (the old man) till the day we experience death or rapture. We are never to compromise with the flesh – we’re not supposed to get comfortable living side-by-side with it; we’re supposed to ‘possess that land’ in the power of the Lord.

B. The promise is that God will continue to fight for Israel. But this is a conditional promise, as Joshua will describe… What a glorious incentive Israel had to follow the Lord: God Himself would continue to fight for them! The same miracles they saw at Jericho & with Adoni-zedek, they could expect to continue to see if they only followed the Lord God alone.
__a. So why didn’t they do it? The same reason we fail in walking with Christ when we have the best incentives in the world: they loved their sin more than they loved their God…
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6 Therefore be very courageous to keep and to do all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, lest you turn aside from it to the right hand or to the left, 7 and lest you go among these nations, these who remain among you. You shall not make mention of the name of their gods, nor cause anyone to swear by them; you shall not serve them nor bow down to them, 8 but you shall hold fast to the LORD your God, as you have done to this day.

A. This is the same charge Joshua received from God in Ch 1 – Joshua 1:7-8 (7) Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go. (8) This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. [] It was a good exhortation for Joshua & it’s still a good exhortation for Israel. Be courageous & walk with God as according to the Scriptures.
__a. It takes courage to walk by faith! We have temptation after temptation to do things according to what the world says is ‘best’ rather than trusting what the Lord has to say on the matter. (‘Take care of #1’ – ‘Prayer is a crutch’, etc.) Be courageous! Walk by faith & trust your Lord & Savior…

B. For Israel, this was summed up in two ways:
__a. Keep the law. Don’t turn to the right or to the left – God had given them a very specific law, detailed in the Scripture. If they wanted to know what to do to please God, all they had to do was open the book. [] For us today, this isn’t a legalistic thing – the law is fulfilled in Christ. But the principle applies…God has very specifically laid out His will for our lives; we just need to open the book to find out.
__b. Hold fast to God & don’t commit idolatry. This would be an ongoing temptation for Israel – there were a lot of false gods to choose from in the land. [] There are still a lot of false gods to choose from! … We’re to serve God & God alone – not attempt to compromise in the slightest…
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9 For the LORD has driven out from before you great and strong nations; but as for you, no one has been able to stand against you to this day. 10 One man of you shall chase a thousand, for the LORD your God is He who fights for you, as He promised you. 11 Therefore take careful heed to yourselves, that you love the LORD your God.

A. One more reminder: it’s the Lord who has been fighting for them & He will continue to fight for Israel if they hold fast to Him. Thousands shall flee from one man (as in the case of Gideon’s 300 – Judges 7). Quite a promise! Should have inspired a lot of confidence. After all, if God is for us, who can be against us?

B. The primary thing is to “love the LORD your God”. Want to wrap up what it means to keep the law (vs 6)? Love God! This is the 1st & greatest commandment – if/when we love God before all else, we naturally do the things that please Him. Legalism never helps people refrain from sin; on the contrary – it just helps them be obsessed about it. Love, on the other hand, starts with a change of the heart (through Christ) & our actions naturally follow.
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12 Or else, if indeed you do go back, and cling to the remnant of these nations—these that remain among you—and make marriages with them, and go in to them and they to you, 13 know for certain that the LORD your God will no longer drive out these nations from before you. But they shall be snares and traps to you, and scourges on your sides and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from this good land which the LORD your God has given you.

A. Here’s the one condition: if they do NOT hold fast to the Lord, they can be assured that God will not fight for them. When they intermarry with pagan people & start compromising with idolatry, they will experience constant & consistent defeat.

B. Living with compromises of the flesh will always be snares and traps to us… We’re fooling ourselves when we think “I can keep this much sin in my life; it won’t trip me up.” Baloney! God calls us to be holy as He is holy – why? Because Jesus called us, cleansed us, and made us His holy people. When we continue to live in sin, we’re living in that in which we died to (Rom 6:2)…it just doesn’t work…

C. On a practical note – this is exactly why single Christians need to avoid unequal relationships. ‘Missionary dating’ is rarely successful – usually it’s the Christian that ends up falling away from his/her convictions; not the other way around.
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14 “Behold, this day I am going the way of all the earth. And you know in all your hearts and in all your souls that not one thing has failed of all the good things which the LORD your God spoke concerning you. All have come to pass for you; not one word of them has failed.

A. Lest they doubt that God really will fight for them if they hold fast to God – Joshua affirms that God is faithful. Not one word has failed… Moses affirmed the same thing – Deuteronomy 7:9-10 (9) “Therefore know that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments; (10) and He repays those who hate Him to their face, to destroy them. He will not be slack with him who hates Him; He will repay him to his face. [] God is faithful in all things! He’s faithful in judgment with those who reject Him, but He’s also faithful in mercy to His covenant people. Without a shadow of doubt, we can trust the promises of God – He is trustworthy! Not one word of His will ever fail.
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15 Therefore it shall come to pass, that as all the good things have come upon you which the LORD your God promised you, so the LORD will bring upon you all harmful things, until He has destroyed you from this good land which the LORD your God has given you. 16 When you have transgressed the covenant of the LORD your God, which He commanded you, and have gone and served other gods, and bowed down to them, then the anger of the LORD will burn against you, and you shall perish quickly from the good land which He has given you.”

A. What will happen if they forsake the Lord? The judgment He would have put on the pagan inhabitants of the land, He’ll put on the Israelites… And notice the “when”; not “if.” This is exactly what happened when Israel & Judah got taken into captivity.
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Joshua 24 (NKJV) – Renewing the Covenant…
1 Then Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem and called for the elders of Israel, for their heads, for their judges, and for their officers; and they presented themselves before God.

A. [MAP] Shechem… Significance with Abraham (Gen 12:6 – 1st promise of the land) & Jacob (Gen 33:18 – came back to the land)… This was the site where the covenant was reaffirmed in Josh 8 at Mt. Gerizim & Ebal.

B. This was basically one big family meeting… Everyone came together before God – probably brought the Tabernacle to Shechem for the occasion.
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2 And Joshua said to all the people, “Thus says the LORD God of Israel: ‘Your fathers, including Terah, the father of Abraham and the father of Nahor, dwelt on the other side of the River in old times; and they served other gods. 3 Then I took your father Abraham from the other side of the River, led him throughout all the land of Canaan, and multiplied his descendants and gave him Isaac. 4 To Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau. To Esau I gave the mountains of Seir to possess, but Jacob and his children went down to Egypt.

A. The majority of Joshua’s address is actually going to be God talking (much like God did through Moses). Much like the entire book of Deuteronomy, He’s basically laying out a treaty between a king & His people. Going to look at how God had proved His generosity & love, describe the inheritance God is giving them, charge them to serve God, and provide witnesses.

B. What’s interesting about God’s past work with Israel (His proof of His love for them) is that it mirrors God’s past work with us. 1st, God chose Israel. Israel did not deserve to be God’s people (they deserved His wrath on many occasions!) – they were not ‘worthy’ in terms of numbers or strength (they were weak). But God in His sovereignty God chose Abraham (and Israel) simply out of His grace.
__a. God did the exact same thing with us. We did not deserve to be saved; we have nothing of worth that God would desire us – outside of Christ, we are completely dead & tainted by sin. But God chose us for Himself & gave us new life…

C. Note that Abraham wasn’t always a Hebrew. He started life as an idolatrous pagan. Sometimes we have a tendency to think that he was just born a worshipper of God & always followed God. Not true; Abraham has a conversion story just like you & me!
__a. The point is that because of God, Abraham didn’t stay a pagan. God chose him & gave him a new life & new promise. It’s the same with us. We may look like the same person on the outside, but we are new creations in Christ. We’re different – so we ought to not act like we used to act. Instead, we should walk in the promises of our God & Savior.

D. God took – God led – God multiplied – God gave… All the work of God! We’re saved by grace… (Eph 2:8-9)
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5 Also I sent Moses and Aaron, and I plagued Egypt, according to what I did among them. Afterward I brought you out. 6 ‘Then I brought your fathers out of Egypt, and you came to the sea; and the Egyptians pursued your fathers with chariots and horsemen to the Red Sea. 7 So they cried out to the LORD; and He put darkness between you and the Egyptians, brought the sea upon them, and covered them. And your eyes saw what I did in Egypt. Then you dwelt in the wilderness a long time.

A. 2nd, God redeemed Israel…God took them out of Egypt & redeemed them from slavery under Pharaoh. Likewise, God redeemed us through Jesus Christ. We were enslaved to sin & sharing the same fate & condemnation as the devil, and God saved us. When we trusted Jesus Christ for forgiveness from sin, the blood He shed on the cross was put to our account, and God spiritually ‘bought’ us out from the condemnation.

B. Not only did God bring them out of Egypt; the Israelites themselves knew it! They were themselves witnesses…they say it with their own eyes. Same too with us – we (better than anyone else) know what Jesus did for us on the cross. We know what He saved us from – we know the new birth He’s given us. (And if we don’t, that’s a problem! That may be an indication that we haven’t yet trusted Christ for salvation!)
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8 And I brought you into the land of the Amorites, who dwelt on the other side of the Jordan, and they fought with you. But I gave them into your hand, that you might possess their land, and I destroyed them from before you. 9 Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, arose to make war against Israel, and sent and called Balaam the son of Beor to curse you. 10 But I would not listen to Balaam; therefore he continued to bless you. So I delivered you out of his hand. 11 Then you went over the Jordan and came to Jericho. And the men of Jericho fought against you—also the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. But I delivered them into your hand. 12 I sent the hornet before you which drove them out from before you, also the two kings of the Amorites, but not with your sword or with your bow.

A. 3rd, God fought for Israel & equipped them for the battle… Whether it was the Amorites (Sihon & Og), or Balak & Balaam [], or any of the other enemies in the land…God was the One who defeated them. God was the One who sent the hornet (His fear) before Israel to where cities like Jericho were trembling at the news that Joshua was on his way. Was it due to Joshua? No – it was due to the Lord God!

B. Likewise, God fights for us & equips us for the battle. Jesus didn’t save our souls & then leave us alone to fight out our sanctification till the day we die… He sent the Holy Spirit as our comforter (John 14:17) – He empowers us through the Holy Spirit to walk as victorious witnesses (Acts 1:8, Eph 5:18) – He intercedes for us (Rom 8:26-27) – He sanctifies us through the Scriptures (John 17:17) – He gives us the armor of God to stand in spiritual battle (Eph 6:13)… We have truly been equipped! God has given us everything we need for the fight against our flesh…we simply need to trust Him & His work.
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13 I have given you a land for which you did not labor, and cities which you did not build, and you dwell in them; you eat of the vineyards and olive groves which you did not plant.’

A. 4th, God gave Israel an inheritance…He gave the Hebrews a land & home. According to Hebrews 4, that inheritance of rest is complete in Jesus Christ in that we rest from working towards our salvation.
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14 “Now therefore, fear the LORD, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the LORD!

A. In light of all these things the Lord did for them, what ought to be their response? 3 things:
__a. Fear the Lord: Don’t cower in terror, but respect & reverence the Lord as Almighty Creator God, the King.
__b. Serve the Lord: Don’t merely give lip-service to the word of God; do what it says. Jesus said that we know we love Him if we keep His commandments (John 14:21). Serving the Lord is putting feet to our faith.
__c. Put away false gods: Get rid of the idols, which apparently many in Israel kept lying around. They were to serve God & God alone.

B. In light of all the things Jesus did for us, what ought to be our response?
__a. Love the Lord. We do still reverently fear the Lord, but a proper fear of Him ought to move us to a love for Him. That’s the whole purpose…
__b. Serve the Lord as a living sacrifice…it’s simply a logical, reasonable response & service (Rom 12:1).
__c. Turn away from our past wickedness… (How can we live in it any longer?)
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15 And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”

A. Joshua gave Israel a clear choice… He knew what his family would do, but everyone needed to make their own choice. God already chose Israel as His people; now they needed to make their choice in response to what God had done.

B. A choice MUST be made! It’s not that Joshua was saying that it was ok for Israel to serve other gods (it wasn’t!), but the fact is that humans are hard-wired by God to worship. His desire is that we would worship Him, but we don’t. Because of the fall, every man, woman, and child are natural idolators. Even if we don’t worship statues of silver & gold, we end up worshipping our money, our jobs, our kids, or ourselves. We need to choose to serve the Lord! This isn’t something Joshua (or we) leave to chance – we don’t stumble into faith. God calls us – God convicts us of sin, righteousness, & judgment – God gives the faith we need to trust Jesus as the Risen Son of God – and then we choose to exercise the faith God has given us. We need to choose to respond to Christ!
__i. This doesn’t stop after we become believers in Christ Jesus. Every day we wake up we have a choice to either walk with Christ or walk in our flesh. Who is it that you will serve?

C. Notice Joshua made the choice for his family. What choice has your family made? No matter how old our children are, we can always set the example for them with how we serve & worship the Lord.
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16 So the people answered and said: “Far be it from us that we should forsake the LORD to serve other gods; 17 for the LORD our God is He who brought us and our fathers up out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, who did those great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way that we went and among all the people through whom we passed. 18 And the LORD drove out from before us all the people, including the Amorites who dwelt in the land. We also will serve the LORD, for He is our God.”

A. They swear allegiance to God…acknowledging everything He did in their sight. Their desire is to serve the Lord – the only question is: are they making a ‘piecrust promise’ & just responding to respond? Or are they truly committing themselves to following the Lord? Joshua follows up…
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19 But Joshua said to the people, “You cannot serve the LORD, for He is a holy God. He is a jealous God; He will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins. 20 If you forsake the LORD and serve foreign gods, then He will turn and do you harm and consume you, after He has done you good.” 21 And the people said to Joshua, “No, but we will serve the LORD!” 22 So Joshua said to the people, “You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen the LORD for yourselves, to serve Him.” And they said, “We are witnesses!”

A. Interesting interchange. Joshua says, “No you can’t.” Israel says, “Yes we will.” “Are you sure?” “We’re sure.” Is Joshua trying to dissuade them from following the Lord? No. He’s simply reminding them of their past history…they don’t exactly have a stellar track record on this point. When Moses was receiving the 10 Commandments from God on Mt Sinai, the children of Israel weren’t rejoicing in the Lord; they were molding a golden calf… Israel needed to understand that serving the Lord isn’t a part-time commitment; to belong to the Lord God is to truly belong to Him. We are not our own; we were bought with a price (1 Cor 6:20).

B. The other thing Joshua seems to be warning Israel way from is the idea that they could just serve the Lord God out of their sheer will. As Peter & John found out, our spirits may be willing, but our flesh is weak… It is impossible for us to serve the Lord God in our own strength…which is why Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to come upon us with power.
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23 “Now therefore,” he said, “put away the foreign gods which are among you, and incline your heart to the LORD God of Israel.” 24 And the people said to Joshua, “The LORD our God we will serve, and His voice we will obey!”

A. What’s amazing about all this back & forth about Israel choosing to serve the Lord is that they had foreign gods among their people the whole time. As if they were saying, “Sure, I’ll serve the Lord. I’ll just put my Torah scroll next to all the little Baal statues in my tent.” ?!? Can’t do it!

B. We can not compromise on this point. We either serve God alone through Jesus Christ, or we do not serve Him at all. It’s not like we can pick & choose which bits of other religions we’d like to keep & what bits of sin we’d like to go on committing…it’s not a buffet line. The only way we can approach God is on His terms & He’s made it very clear what His terms are in John 14:6 – Jesus!
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25 So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and made for them a statute and an ordinance in Shechem. 26 Then Joshua wrote these words in the Book of the Law of God. And he took a large stone, and set it up there under the oak that was by the sanctuary of the LORD. 27 And Joshua said to all the people, “Behold, this stone shall be a witness to us, for it has heard all the words of the LORD which He spoke to us. It shall therefore be a witness to you, lest you deny your God.” 28 So Joshua let the people depart, each to his own inheritance.

A. Covenant was renewed & yet another witness stone was set up.
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29 Now it came to pass after these things that Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died, being one hundred and ten years old. 30 And they buried him within the border of his inheritance at Timnath Serah, which is in the mountains of Ephraim, on the north side of Mount Gaash. 31 Israel served the LORD all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua, who had known all the works of the LORD which He had done for Israel.

A. Joshua died… Had the greatest title ever – just like Moses: “the servant of the Lord.”
B. The people actually kept their part of the covenant for a while…it won’t last.
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32 The bones of Joseph, which the children of Israel had brought up out of Egypt, they buried at Shechem, in the plot of ground which Jacob had bought from the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem for one hundred pieces of silver, and which had become an inheritance of the children of Joseph.

A. Shows the fulfillment of a 400 year old promise made to Joseph…
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33 And Eleazar the son of Aaron died. They buried him in a hill belonging to Phinehas his son, which was given to him in the mountains of Ephraim.

A. The passing of a generation & an era…

Conclusion:
Thus ends Joshua. Though his account is much shorter than his mentor’s (Moses), he ends much the same way as a faithful servant of the Lord God. He did what God called him to do & brought the people of God into the Promised Land. As he passes on, he leaves them with two very important thoughts:
(1) God has been faithful; you can trust Him!
(2) God has chosen you; choose Him!

Do you know that God is faithful? Every promise God has ever made has been fulfilled – let God be true & every man a liar. There’s no part of our lives we need fear turning over & entrusting to Him…

Have you chosen Christ? He made the invitation clear when He went to the cross… And beyond our justification, are you choosing Christ for your sanctification. Every day walking with Him & serving Him as your Lord & King in the power of the Holy Spirit…