Sermons

Jesus is going to look people in the eye on the Day of Judgement and tell them that He never knew them. Those people will spend eternity in hell. What is so distressing about this is that those same people thought they were good with God! They were not atheists or agnostics… they were people who claimed to be in a relationship with the real God. The last chapters of Judges paint us a vivid picture of how easy it is to be spiritually self-deceived. Don’t fall prey to this horrible mistake!

We have learned so much from the life of this enigmatic saviour, Samson. Now we hit the one story for which he seems most famous. Why is that? Why are we so intrigued by the love and manipulation of this mighty man? And is this just a bit of a forbidden titillation that snuck into our Bibles, or does it have something to teach us about Jesus Christ? After all, didn’t Jesus Himself say that all the Scriptures were pointing to Him (Luke 24:27)?

Sometimes things are not as they seem. In fact, this is often the case when God is at work. What can appear as a dismal failure might actually be a roaring success. This is nowhere more evident than at the crucifixion of Jesus. An event captured well by the interesting words of Joseph, centuries earlier: “What some meant for evil, God meant for good.” Perhaps Samson’s exploits were not as sad as we tend to think. Or perhaps they were, but were pointing to Another?

Samson is the only Judge whose birth is described. Remarkably it takes up an entire chapter of his story. What is most unique to his nativity is the plan of God to make him a Nazirite (not, Nazarene) from the womb. In an age of spiritual darkness and Philistine oppression, everyone is confused by the remarkable birth and ministry of this new saviour.

The six minor Judges scattered throughout the Book of Judges have a major role to play. While we do not know as much about them as we do the others, their stories help us to understand the dire straits of idolatry and the desperate need for a full-scale and eternal rescue. From Shamgar to Abdon, the same problem remains… we need a Saviour.

The story of Jephthah can basically be understood in one of two very different ways. One option is to see him as a rash and arrogant warlord. The other is to view him as a God-fearing saviour. Either way, the Lord felt it was important for us to both read and ponder this event in Israel’s history. Doing so should help us to understand even more clearly why it is we so desperately need a Saviour. Plus, the current preacher thinks Jephthah was one of the good guys.

Tenacity can be a great character quality, unless you are tenacious in your sins and constantly rejecting the warnings of God. For some reason, we can hold on to our silly belief that our idols will save us even though all the presenting evidence suggests the opposite. Judges 10 is something like a calendar with five pages on it covering many, many years. And it is not until we flip to the last page that we get any hope. Here is picture of what we are like at our worst. Let the reader beware.

As Jesus Christ lived in this world, He suffered and was tempted. Because He endured such difficulties, He is able to sympathize with us when we suffer and are tempted. In our sorrows we can have confidence that Jesus knows about our weaknesses, He cares about our weaknesses, and He reaches out to help us in our weaknesses.

As we hit the last section of Gideon’s life, we enter some of the most confusing portions of the account. There are some random events, strange questions, unclear motives and a disappointing end. But, if we move slowly, and hold our conclusions with an open hand, there are three big encouragements we can harvest from this text.

Nothing ruins a good revival like a little sinful fear and jealousy. Just as God is bringing about a great deliverance using weak Gideon and his tiny force of 300, new enemies come on the scene. Fellow Israelites. Few things sting as much as friendly fire and Gideon is busy getting buzzed by these two bees as he tries to finish off God’s enemies.

Much of life is about finishing things well. Your Christian walk is no different. The Galatians were in danger of shipwrecking their faith because they were turning away from the gospel of grace and turning toward a false gospel of works and self reliance. So, in Galatians 3:1-9, the apostles call all Christians to finish their race well by relying on the Holy Spirit and by trusting the Word of God.

Have you ever been invited to a big celebration that you were unable to attend? Luke 14:16-24 tells of a banquet that you do not want to miss out on! It is a feast to be relished, and once you have relished it you ought to tell others about it.

Because the Galatians were in danger of deserting the gospel by turning to works, Paul calls them back to the real, true gospel: justification by faith. He reminds them that Christians are declared righteous not by anything that have done, but by what has been done for them through Christ.

As the narrative in Galatians continues, the Apostle Paul shows us that he’s willing to do whatever it takes to protect the true gospel. He’s willing to confront and reject not only false teachers, but even another apostle whose conduct didn't match his profession. Paul shows us that the gospel is worthy of protection and that it takes intentional effort to not distort the message of Jesus.