The Verdict on Judges
One Decision from Victory
DEBORAH monologue
I am Deborah. I have had many roles in my life. First, and foremost I was just a humble homemaker, the wife of Lapidoth; a mother in Israel. But then I became a counselor to my people, next, a judge in their disputes, and finally a deliverer in time of war. I have been compared to Joan of Arc because like her, I rode in front of the Israelite armies and led them to victory. Appointed by God, and chosen by common consent of the people, I attained the high position of a judge: the only woman to do so.
After our great leader Joshua died, we rebelled against the command of God to drive the wicked and evil Canaanites from the land of Palestine. We were not only disobedient in allowing the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and the Jebusites to remain and live among us, but we intermarried with them, and began to worship their Gods. We did evil in the eyes of the Lord. No wonder he was angry with us and allowed them to become our enemies, to plunder and to conquer us. But when things became too evil, and we were in great distress, we would turn to the Lord for help, and he would raise up a judge to save us. As long as that judge was alive our people were saved by our compassionate God. As soon as that judge died, the people turned to ways even more corrupt than before, refusing to give up their evil practices and stubborn ways.
First God raised up Othniel who overpowered the King of Aram and delivered our nation; then Ehud became judge, followed by Shamgar. The people followed each of these brave and mighty men until their death, when they returned to wickedness in the eyes of God.
After Ehud and Shamgar, God allowed the Israelites, because of their disobedience, to be sold into the hands of Jabin, King of Canaan. Jabin had been oppressing our people for twenty years. It was at this time that I began leading Israel as a prophetess. I held court under a palm tree between Ramah and Bethel. People came to me for help asking me to settle their disputes. I sat under this mighty palm and gave counsel as God gave me wisdom. But, I became frustrated and indignant at the weakness of our men, who seemed to be fearful of our enemies. I felt a call to rise up against their fear and complacency. And so I sought out Barak, who in the past had been one of Israel’s most capable military men. I sent for him to come from his home in Kedesh and together we worked out a plan for action against the enemy. I let him know that I was not afraid of Jabin, and I was not afraid of the commander of his army, Sisera, or of his 900 iron chariots. I reminded him that God had led our people out of the mighty oppression of Pharaoh; helped us cross the Red Sea and for forty years protected us in the wilderness. I told him that our God was mightier than Pharaoh or Jabin or Sisera.
When he still seemed fainthearted, I commanded him to "Go and pick out 10,000 men from the tribes of Napthali and Zebulun. And I convinced him that God WOULD deliver Sisera and his chariots and his multitudes into his hands."
Imagine my surprise when he, a mighty warrior, said, "If you will go with me, I will go. But if you won’t go with me, I won’t go." Without hesitation, I declared triumphantly, "I will surely go with you, but because of the way you are going about this, the honor will not be yours, for the Lord will hand Sisera over to a woman." Indeed, I did not need to sit home and ponder the matter. I arose immediately and went with him for I firmly believed that God would be our strength.
But when Barak saw how poorly armed the 10,000 men of Zebulun and Napthali were in the face of Sisera and his multitude of men and chariots, I had to urge him on, saying, "Go, for this is the day the Lord has given Sisera into your hands. Has not the Lord gone ahead of you?" AND IT WAS SO. The Lord routed Sisera and all his chariots and his army by the sword. Sisera, himself, had to abandon his chariot and flee on foot.
He fled to the tent of Jael, wife of Heber the Kenite, thinking he would be safe there, for there had been friendly relations between Jabin, the King, and Heber. Jael went out to meet Sisera, inviting him into her tent and saying, "Come my Lord, come right in. Don’t be afraid." So he entered the tent and she put him to bed. He asked for a drink of water and she brought him milk, comforting and covering him. But, when he fell asleep, Jael took a sharpened tent peg and a hammer, and drove the peg though his temple into the ground. And he died.
Barak came by in pursuit of Jabin, and Jael went out to meet him. "Come," she said, "I will show you the man you are looking for." So he went into the tent with her, and there lay Sisera with the tent peg through his temple – dead.
On that day, God subdued Jabin, the Canaanite King, and the hand of our people, the Israelites grew stronger and stronger until we were able to completely destroy him. And Barak and I sang a great song of praise, thanksgiving, and victory.
"When the princes in Israel take the lead,
When the people willingly offer themselves.
Praise the Lord.
Hear this, you kings! Listen you rulers,
I will sing to the Lord, I will sing;
I will make music to the Lord, the God of Israel.
O Lord, when you went out from Seir,
When you marched from the Land of Edom,
The earth shook, the heavens poured
The clouds poured down water.
The mountains quaked before the Lord, the one of Sinai.
before the Lord, the God of Israel.
"Curse Meroz." Said the angel of the Lord,
"Curse its people bitterly, because they did not
Come to help the Lord
To help the Lord against the mighty.
Most blessed of women be Jael,
The wife of Heber the Kenite,
Most blessed of tent dwelling women.
He asked for water and she gave him milk,
In a bowl fit for nobles, she gave him curdled milk.
Her hand reached for the tent peg,
Her right hand for the workman’s hammer.
She struck Sisera, she crushed his head.
She shattered and pierced his temple.
At her feet he sank, he fell; there he lay.
At her feet, he sank, he fell.
Where he sank, there he fell --- dead.
So may all your enemies perish, O Lord!
But may they who love you, be like the sun
When it rises in its strength."
And so the land had peace for forty years
God Wins the Victory
14 Then Deborah said to Barak, “Get up! Today is the day the LORD will hand over Sisera. The LORD has already cleared the way for you.” So Barak led ten thousand men down Mount Tabor. 15 As Barak approached, the LORD confused Sisera and his army and chariots. The LORD defeated them with the sword, but Sisera left his chariot and ran away on foot.
Judges 4:14-15
It is God who wins the victory – not Deborah, not Barak, not Jael, and not the fighting men of Israel. God wins the victory.
5:19-21
19 "Kings came, they fought;
the kings of Canaan fought
at Taanach by the waters of Megiddo,
but they carried off no silver, no plunder.
20 From the heavens the stars fought,
from their courses they fought against Sisera.
21 The river Kishon swept them away,
the age-old river, the river Kishon.
March on, my soul; be strong!
Sisera commanded an army of 900 iron chariots. These were like Abrams M60 Tanks coming against peasants with pitchforks. The entire account is deliberately constructed to emphasize the deliverance provided by Yahweh. God is the one who pulls the strings, raises generals, deploys the armies, dictates strategies, and gains the victory. …
Do you see how this narrative encourages us to understand God’s sovereignty over history and our own lives?
Whether it is in his rebuke, in his compassionate deliverance, in his financial help, or in his leading and guiding of decisions, God is sovereign over life, and he is at work bringing his plan to a successful completion.
I don’t understand when or how but Scripture is clear that God can and does do things like this. The point is when God wants something to be accomplished, he’ll do it! Somehow, someway He gets it done!
He parts seas, he causes suns to stand still, he impregnates a virgin, he empowers a bunch of fisherman to speak languages they don’t know, he guides missionaries, he can and will do anything to get his will done! I believe he still does that today. I don’t know how but I believe he can and will pull the strings when he needs to.
God is in control!
1989 Romanian Revolution
In December of 1989 Ceauşescu in Romania fell from power because he stood against God and God brought him down when believers came together against him. It all started when a pastor named Lazlo Tokes.
On December 15 Lazlo Tokes was to be evicted from his home in Romania. He was the pastor of an Hungarian congregation in a community in Romania. He had been effective in leading a large youth revival in the center of one of the most oppressive communist dictatorships in the Soviet sphere. The Romanian authorities acted to evict him from his church and his home.
But on the day that the militia came to carry out the eviction they found the streets filled with peaceful church members surrounding his home. They carried candles and sung hymns. For three days the streets were filled with people and the crowds grew every night. Eventually the militia broke out the water canons and began to disperse the people but instead of dispersing they just moved to different locations and the crowds grew until it became a revolution.
The revolution spread across the country and in seven days Ceacasecue was deposed and taken captive. After a brief trial he and his wife were executed on Christmas Day 1989. God is in control.
Look, I know that this world is a scary place. We live
under the real threat of evil men having control of nuclear weapons – I encourage you to remember this simple fact: God is still in control of our world.
God’s hand is on every government, every nation, every state, every commonwealth, every province, every city, every town, every village, every county, every parish, every township, and every principality. No one stands apart from God.
Remember this too, God has put you in the right place at the right time to make a difference and to be part of the Victory.
Those who Stand with God Gain the Victory
Those who waver, dither, hesitate, hang back, and watch miss out on the accomplishment and the glory. Victory is diminished for those who waver – not for God!
Barak wavered but Stood with God
Cosider Barak. Barak is the general who leads the men of Israel into battle yet he loses out on the greatest glory and honor because his faith in God’s control of the situation is weak. Barak is so full of doubt that he wants to go home.
When we who are believers fail to trust God, demanding assurance and reassurance when God has already spoken – we lose out on the opportunity to be used by him to the fullest extent… and we lose out on his good gifts.
Even worse, we often find ourselves exerting all kinds of time and energy hopelessly trying to make up the difference.
It’s difficult to go into battle. There’s a reason Barak is hesitant – on paper he doesn’t have a chance! 900 iron chariots – come on – let’s be reasonable. Barak – without God – rightly decides to go home and read a book.
Look, It is likely that when God calls you to do something the odds will be against you – that’s where faith comes in. That’s where prayer comes in. That’s where God comes in and we rely on his ability to bring the victory.
James addresses this when he says, “If you need wisdom—if you want to know what God wants you to do—ask him, and he will gladly tell you. He will not resent your asking. But when you ask him, be sure that you really expect him to answer, for a doubtful mind is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. People like that should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.” – James 1:5-7 (NLT)
Reuben, Dan, Asher, the people of Gilead and Meroz all Hesitated and Stayed Home
Consider the tribes of Reuben, Dan, Asher, the people of Gilead, and Meroz who all dithered, wavered, and ultimately stayed home.
Reuben stayed with their sheep and played music, Dan went sailing, Asher stayed in their seaports, Gilead played it save across the Jordon River, and Meroz just stayed home.
It kind of reminds me of the little saying we do with our children’s toes. This little piggy went to market, this little piggy stayed home, this little piggy had roast beef, this little piggy had none, and this little piggy went wee wee wee, all the way home!
In Deborah’s song we see her frustration and disgust that the whole of Israel didn’t participate in this battle. Total participation from God’s people was expected.
There are two instances where this is especially evident: Failure to participate is considered an abomination. God has this expectation that everyone become involved in his work. Non-involvement was unacceptable and is unacceptable.
That may seem to contradict the other point – Well God can pull some strings and he will win the victory – with or without us – so why should I risk my life, my time, my energy. Why should I expend the resources when God will get it all done anyway! Someone else can fund the project. Someone else will teach the class. Someone else will lead the ministry. Someone else will work with the kids.
And, in a sense that thinking is correct – God will get it done. But that thinking is depriving you of a great blessing to be involved in the work of God!!! We lose out on blessings when we don’t participate in the work of God. We miss out in the glorious victory when we watch instead of pitching in and being part of the battle.
Victory is the sweetest to those who have fought the hardest - to those who have sacrificed the most – and to those who have invested most.
It’s great to sit back and watch your team win, but that feeling is nothing compared to actually being out there on the field, being part of a team and celebrating the victory. Real blessings, the abundant life, don’t come to spectators, they come to the combatants.
One Decision from Victory
We talk about MCC being a family. In a family we all have responsibilities and we contribute to the well being of the whole body.
Today in the bulletin you will find – pull it out right now – a postcard sized form asking for you to get involved in our Children’s Ministry.
I’d like to encourage you to get involved in this ministry. It’s a battle for the souls of our kids and it is worth the effort. Contribute to this work. It’s not that God needs you – God wants to give you the blessing of participating in his work and when you do you start tasting the promises of God.
I believe God has a great work to be accomplished in this community, in this world. I know that He will get it done, with or without us. But I want to be part of that victory. I want to be part of that team. I want to feel the unspeakable joy of receiving that crown of righteousness that Paul talks about. And God wants that feeling of victory for each of you – but you won’t feel it unless you join the team.
We stand one decision from victory. The decision – is to stand with God and to serve him.
