WEBVTT 00:00:00.340 --> 00:00:08.500 Father, we confess before you that we judge your word by the idols that Canadians serve. 00:00:09.279 --> 00:00:14.400 And we don't even recognize, Father, that we listen with idle ears often, 00:00:14.700 --> 00:00:21.820 idle ears of what often, too often, Father, we join with Canadians in giving far too much power 00:00:21.820 --> 00:00:27.620 to these false gods, non-gods, sometimes demonic idols. 00:00:27.620 --> 00:00:34.600 So, Father, we ask that there would be a powerful but gentle and deep work of your Holy Spirit in us this morning, 00:00:34.600 --> 00:00:40.520 that we might hear your word and that your word, Father, might confront the idols of our hearts 00:00:40.520 --> 00:00:45.560 and the idol we make of ourselves, that your word might come deeply in us 00:00:45.560 --> 00:00:53.359 and so that we might give Jesus that proper place in our lives that he deserves, 00:00:53.359 --> 00:01:00.700 that the gospel will be more real to us and that we might live whole and free for your glory and not our own 00:01:00.700 --> 00:01:03.320 in this city and at the ends of the earth. 00:01:03.780 --> 00:01:08.519 And all this we ask in the name of Jesus, your Son and our Savior. Amen. 00:01:09.200 --> 00:01:10.019 Please be seated. 00:01:14.180 --> 00:01:18.980 So, we're going through the book of Judges, which is a boring way to start. 00:01:18.980 --> 00:01:24.520 We're going to talk about a woman who drives a tent peg through a man's forehead. 00:01:25.060 --> 00:01:26.260 Now, I've caught your attention. 00:01:27.620 --> 00:01:29.600 Yes, there are stories like that in the Bible. 00:01:29.939 --> 00:01:33.300 I surprised some people this week when they asked me what I was preaching on. 00:01:33.380 --> 00:01:38.580 I said, I'm going to talk about a story in the Bible where a woman takes a man and he's asleep 00:01:38.580 --> 00:01:41.560 and she drives the tent peg through his head into the ground. 00:01:42.000 --> 00:01:47.880 We're also going to talk about other sort of dark topics. 00:01:47.879 --> 00:01:53.539 We're going to talk a little bit about rape and sexual predators and sexual slavery, 00:01:53.979 --> 00:01:56.340 all of which the Bible addresses, believe it or not. 00:01:56.739 --> 00:01:59.539 So, if you have your Bibles, now that I've got your attention, 00:01:59.859 --> 00:02:05.739 we're going to look at Judges chapter 4 and 5, but mainly Judges chapter 4, 00:02:05.959 --> 00:02:07.280 which is in the Old Testament. 00:02:08.199 --> 00:02:12.219 If you're wondering, if you're a guest here, one of the things that we do at Church of the Messiah 00:02:12.219 --> 00:02:18.319 is that we actually do something that Augustine did, Chrysostom, many of the early church fathers, 00:02:18.639 --> 00:02:20.000 probably Paul himself. 00:02:20.139 --> 00:02:23.560 We preach through books of the Bible and we're preaching through Judges. 00:02:24.319 --> 00:02:29.800 Judges is a book that describes the time period between Israel entering the Promised Land 00:02:29.800 --> 00:02:35.060 and then Joshua dies and after his death until there's the first king, which is Saul. 00:02:35.060 --> 00:02:37.199 That's the period of the book of Judges. 00:02:37.939 --> 00:02:43.860 And this story that we're looking at today, here's a little bit of a, sorry, geek moment, 00:02:44.060 --> 00:02:46.420 time out geek moment for grammar. 00:02:46.819 --> 00:02:50.960 I think it's only one of two places in the Bible where the same story is told twice, 00:02:51.539 --> 00:02:53.819 one by prose and one by poetry. 00:02:54.900 --> 00:02:59.199 And so chapter 4 tells the story by prose, like by a narrative, a story, 00:02:59.300 --> 00:03:03.240 and chapter 5 tells you the same story, only in poetic. 00:03:03.240 --> 00:03:08.900 It's supposed to be sung and it's filled with imagery and all of that other stuff that goes on in poetry. 00:03:09.400 --> 00:03:13.260 So we're going to mainly, because it's 55 verses all together, it's a long bit to read, 00:03:13.300 --> 00:03:17.760 we're going to mainly look at the prose bit and I'll fill in a few blanks 00:03:17.760 --> 00:03:22.620 because the poetry bit supplements the prose bit to give you a fuller picture of what happened. 00:03:23.260 --> 00:03:26.719 And here we go, chapter 4, verse 1. 00:03:26.719 --> 00:03:33.900 And the people of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord after Ehud died. 00:03:34.800 --> 00:03:37.740 That's the story that's sort of the main story just before this. 00:03:38.099 --> 00:03:43.919 And the Lord sold them into the hand of Jabin, king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor. 00:03:44.560 --> 00:03:49.039 The commander of his army was Sisera, who lived in Heresheth Hagoyim. 00:03:49.039 --> 00:03:56.120 Then the people of Israel cried out to the Lord for help, for he, that is Jabin and his general Sisera, 00:03:56.259 --> 00:04:01.959 had 900 chariots of iron and he oppressed, this is very important, 00:04:02.099 --> 00:04:06.780 he oppressed the people of Israel cruelly for 20 years. 00:04:07.239 --> 00:04:08.639 20 years is a long time. 00:04:09.299 --> 00:04:10.799 Now just pause before we read it. 00:04:11.299 --> 00:04:13.719 Those of you who might not have been here other weeks, 00:04:13.719 --> 00:04:19.240 you might wonder why this odd language of the Lord selling them into the hand of King Jabin, 00:04:19.439 --> 00:04:21.060 it's an image. 00:04:21.639 --> 00:04:25.899 And it's a very, very important image because it actually helps to communicate 00:04:25.899 --> 00:04:29.139 how the Lord's judgment usually works. 00:04:30.779 --> 00:04:34.220 Because you see, this is going to sound very, very counterintuitive to people, 00:04:34.360 --> 00:04:39.079 but the way the Lord usually judges is by letting us have the sinful things we want. 00:04:40.279 --> 00:04:42.160 That's how he actually judges us. 00:04:43.720 --> 00:04:52.260 And so the image is that you're like a boat and you're on a river 00:04:52.260 --> 00:04:54.440 and the river has a fairly swift current, 00:04:54.900 --> 00:04:59.280 but the boat, you, are tied to the dock by some rope. 00:04:59.960 --> 00:05:02.860 And what can happen is that sometimes on this side of the grave, 00:05:03.320 --> 00:05:06.880 God gives you a bit of a wake-up call, hopefully a wake-up call, 00:05:07.000 --> 00:05:10.420 by, in a sense, letting the rope run for 100 meters. 00:05:10.420 --> 00:05:15.160 And as soon as he lets out 100 meters of rope, the boat goes down the stream. 00:05:15.280 --> 00:05:17.259 You get carried away by your sinful desires. 00:05:17.980 --> 00:05:20.580 And that's, in a sense, what his judgment is. 00:05:20.660 --> 00:05:23.640 And so what's happened to the people of Israel is the people of Israel, 00:05:24.259 --> 00:05:28.020 Ehud has died, and they long to worship the gods of the nations. 00:05:28.160 --> 00:05:33.180 They long to worship the god of war, the god of sex, the god of fertility, 00:05:33.879 --> 00:05:35.020 the god of conquest. 00:05:35.019 --> 00:05:37.539 They long to worship the gods. 00:05:38.099 --> 00:05:40.879 And so what happens is the Lord says, I'm going to let them have it. 00:05:41.000 --> 00:05:42.359 I'm going to let them have what they want. 00:05:42.439 --> 00:05:44.839 But, you know, when you worship a god and a goddess, 00:05:44.939 --> 00:05:46.719 you don't just sort of worship the god and the goddess. 00:05:46.819 --> 00:05:49.680 The god and the goddess, they come with a culture. 00:05:50.899 --> 00:05:52.919 They come with habits. 00:05:53.180 --> 00:05:54.199 They come with rulers. 00:05:54.399 --> 00:05:55.359 They come with laws. 00:05:55.539 --> 00:05:57.319 So you can't just sort of have the god 00:05:57.319 --> 00:05:59.639 without all the stuff that goes along with the god. 00:05:59.719 --> 00:06:00.899 And that's what happens. 00:06:00.979 --> 00:06:02.000 He says, you're worshiping. 00:06:02.000 --> 00:06:04.040 You want to worship these gods and goddesses? 00:06:04.540 --> 00:06:06.660 I will allow that to happen. 00:06:06.759 --> 00:06:09.040 I will give you over to what you want. 00:06:09.620 --> 00:06:12.920 And what happens is it means that they're oppressed cruelly. 00:06:14.079 --> 00:06:15.800 They are oppressed cruelly. 00:06:17.379 --> 00:06:19.720 Because ultimately what they desire is evil. 00:06:19.819 --> 00:06:22.920 And ultimately evil hurts us and others. 00:06:23.680 --> 00:06:25.240 Goodness is good for you. 00:06:26.420 --> 00:06:30.579 And so that's what this language of being sold is. 00:06:30.579 --> 00:06:35.839 And the other thing which is very interesting here is it's a very interesting sort of historical 00:06:35.839 --> 00:06:39.199 little moment where you see this reference to 900 chariots of iron. 00:06:40.019 --> 00:06:45.180 The book of Judges takes place at the time that the age of bronze is coming to an end 00:06:45.180 --> 00:06:47.279 and the age of iron, the iron age. 00:06:47.439 --> 00:06:50.680 The bronze age is coming to an end and the iron age is beginning. 00:06:51.519 --> 00:06:56.180 And 900 chariots of iron, those are the super weapons of the day. 00:06:56.180 --> 00:07:02.600 Like this would be, you know how in science fiction, you know, movies, there's some evil 00:07:02.600 --> 00:07:07.240 guy or some nation, they have weapons or like 20, 30, 50 years ahead of everybody else. 00:07:08.000 --> 00:07:11.840 Israel won't actually have iron for several hundred years. 00:07:11.839 --> 00:07:19.000 So this is military technology several hundred years in advance of what Israel has. 00:07:19.639 --> 00:07:27.039 You just try to think back to our military technology in 250 years ago or 200 years ago. 00:07:27.099 --> 00:07:27.679 What would that be? 00:07:27.759 --> 00:07:28.679 I have to do the math in my head. 00:07:28.759 --> 00:07:34.439 18, 1821 and compare it to going against a top military power today. 00:07:34.439 --> 00:07:39.600 That's what this is signaling. 00:07:40.160 --> 00:07:44.959 Israel won't manage to have iron weapons until King David. 00:07:46.500 --> 00:07:54.319 So, and you can see, by the way, and this, by the way, this is just so obviously powerful to us. 00:07:54.939 --> 00:08:00.500 I mean, it is obviously powerful for us as Christians to be wanting to maybe stop following Jesus 00:08:00.500 --> 00:08:04.740 because we look at other people and they have the gadgets, they have the toys, they're more successful, 00:08:05.019 --> 00:08:09.060 they just seem to be more prosperous, they know what to do, and that's what Israel is. 00:08:09.100 --> 00:08:11.800 They see in all these things, it's just so much better. 00:08:11.899 --> 00:08:14.180 So why wouldn't we try to be like them? 00:08:14.220 --> 00:08:19.180 But they try to be like them, it just means that they have this cruel oppression that they labor under. 00:08:19.579 --> 00:08:23.959 And once again, the cry out is not that they cry in repentance, but that the Lord, 00:08:24.240 --> 00:08:29.079 they're unrepentant, but their pain, their cry of pain comes to the Lord. 00:08:29.079 --> 00:08:33.980 And even without repentance, the Lord acts to save them and to deliver them. 00:08:35.579 --> 00:08:36.899 So what happens next? 00:08:37.259 --> 00:08:38.100 What does God do? 00:08:38.879 --> 00:08:41.799 Now, one of the things you're going to see with the book of Judges, which is really important, 00:08:42.079 --> 00:08:44.779 is that God delivers them time and time and time again. 00:08:44.860 --> 00:08:49.220 But because the Lord isn't tame, he's not like dealing with a bank machine 00:08:49.220 --> 00:08:52.399 where you get programmed answers to the things you type. 00:08:52.539 --> 00:08:56.600 He keeps doing surprising things and he's going to redeem them in a surprising way. 00:08:56.600 --> 00:09:01.700 He's going to redeem them through three people, not one, two of them being women. 00:09:03.220 --> 00:09:04.659 He's going to surprise them. 00:09:05.000 --> 00:09:05.600 So that's what happens. 00:09:05.680 --> 00:09:06.779 So verses four. 00:09:07.399 --> 00:09:12.379 Now, Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, was judging Israel at that time. 00:09:13.040 --> 00:09:19.159 She used to sit under the palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim. 00:09:19.519 --> 00:09:21.940 And the people of Israel came up to her for judgment. 00:09:21.940 --> 00:09:26.560 So it doesn't tell you how she's recognized as a prophetess, but a prophet and a prophetess, 00:09:27.100 --> 00:09:30.120 a simple way to understand them is think of them as God's mouth. 00:09:31.300 --> 00:09:33.020 God's mouth living among people. 00:09:33.880 --> 00:09:35.700 God speaks through Deborah. 00:09:36.080 --> 00:09:38.000 And when she speaks, not everything she says. 00:09:38.040 --> 00:09:40.760 If she says, you know, bring me some tabbouleh, it's not God speaking. 00:09:40.920 --> 00:09:42.360 But sometimes she speaks. 00:09:42.420 --> 00:09:44.960 And when she speaks, people recognize it's God speaking. 00:09:45.360 --> 00:09:46.520 And that's who she is. 00:09:47.220 --> 00:09:48.199 And so what's she going to say? 00:09:48.299 --> 00:09:51.179 Well, God is going to give a message that she sends. 00:09:51.840 --> 00:09:52.259 Verse six. 00:09:52.360 --> 00:09:59.659 She sent and summoned Barak, the son of Abinoham from Kedesh Naphtali, and said to him, 00:10:00.199 --> 00:10:01.059 here's the message. 00:10:01.519 --> 00:10:07.079 Has not the Lord, the God of Israel, commanded you, go, gather your men at Mount Tabor, 00:10:07.519 --> 00:10:11.220 taking 10,000 from the people of Naphtali and the people of Zebulun, 00:10:11.220 --> 00:10:17.840 and I will draw out Sisera, notice here the Lord will draw out Sisera, the general of Jabin's army, 00:10:18.279 --> 00:10:24.080 to meet you by the river Caishon with his chariots and his troops, and I will give him into your hand. 00:10:24.899 --> 00:10:25.680 Now pause. 00:10:26.279 --> 00:10:28.000 Remember I said chariots of iron? 00:10:28.139 --> 00:10:31.360 That, in a sense, is 200 years of weaponry earlier. 00:10:31.360 --> 00:10:38.820 So just to make it not even fully like that, it would be as if God gives us a message. 00:10:39.460 --> 00:10:43.519 I'm going to pick the part of, my wife is the prophetess, so she's the one that God speaks through, 00:10:43.600 --> 00:10:48.820 and she says, Daniel and Andrew and Matt, take your single-shot .22s, 00:10:49.460 --> 00:10:54.379 and I want you to go after an army ranger unit, a thousand of them, 00:10:54.379 --> 00:10:59.899 and they're, by the way, going to have attack helicopters, the latest, and all the latest missiles, and a few tanks. 00:11:00.379 --> 00:11:04.200 Daniel, Andrew, Matt, get a couple hundred of your buddies, your single-shot .22s. 00:11:04.519 --> 00:11:08.080 Oh, and by the way, because this is the significance of the Caishon, 00:11:08.460 --> 00:11:13.860 I'm going to have you go to a place that suits tanks and the other side. 00:11:14.000 --> 00:11:16.820 There's going to be no coverage, no ditches, nothing. 00:11:17.279 --> 00:11:21.220 Nice, big, bare, open field with good shooting lines for the other side. 00:11:21.860 --> 00:11:22.500 Go do it. 00:11:22.500 --> 00:11:30.580 That's, in a sense, in today's language, what the Lord asks Barak to do. 00:11:33.860 --> 00:11:40.379 And here's what he says in verses 8 to 10. 00:11:40.700 --> 00:11:43.580 Now, I'm going to read it, and I'm going to tell you right now that there's a, 00:11:44.240 --> 00:11:48.220 in the history of interpreting this text, you come to a T-junction. 00:11:48.960 --> 00:11:50.860 You have to go one way or the other. 00:11:50.860 --> 00:11:56.200 And the majority of interpreters, but not all of them, the majority of interpreters go one way. 00:11:56.740 --> 00:12:02.340 And I actually side with the minority of interpreters, and I'm going to go a different way with this text. 00:12:02.419 --> 00:12:03.860 But I'll read it to you first. 00:12:04.360 --> 00:12:05.639 And here's how it goes. 00:12:06.600 --> 00:12:07.320 Verse 8. 00:12:07.320 --> 00:12:09.520 Barak said to her, 00:12:09.520 --> 00:12:12.980 If you will go with me, I will go. 00:12:13.440 --> 00:12:15.740 But if you will not go with me, I will not go. 00:12:16.280 --> 00:12:18.640 And she said, I will surely go with you. 00:12:19.180 --> 00:12:22.740 Nevertheless, the road on which you are going will not lead to your glory, 00:12:23.100 --> 00:12:25.560 for the Lord will sell Sisera into the hand of a woman. 00:12:25.559 --> 00:12:29.779 Then Deborah arose and went with Barak to Kadesh. 00:12:30.339 --> 00:12:33.139 And Barak called out Zebulun and Naphtali to Kadesh. 00:12:33.299 --> 00:12:37.119 And 10,000 men went up at his heels, and Deborah went up with him. 00:12:37.539 --> 00:12:38.939 Now, here's the big divide. 00:12:39.879 --> 00:12:44.139 And by the way, the Hebrew, the original language is completely neutral on this. 00:12:44.259 --> 00:12:49.039 My minority interpretation fits just as well as the majority interpretation. 00:12:49.039 --> 00:12:54.959 The majority interpretation is this, that God says to Barak, 00:12:55.059 --> 00:12:57.059 Take your guys, go fight this battle. 00:12:57.199 --> 00:13:02.819 And Barak says, I'm not going to do this, Deborah, unless you come with me, because I'm timid. 00:13:03.179 --> 00:13:07.919 And then Deborah says, well, because you're timid, the glory is going to go to somebody else. 00:13:08.839 --> 00:13:10.439 That's the majority interpretation. 00:13:10.620 --> 00:13:11.860 But it's not required. 00:13:12.000 --> 00:13:15.039 The Hebrew text also allows another way of looking at it, 00:13:15.039 --> 00:13:16.759 which I think actually makes more sense. 00:13:19.039 --> 00:13:21.199 If you look at this simple point, 00:13:22.980 --> 00:13:29.480 godly faith desires to listen to what the Lord says in every facet of life. 00:13:29.599 --> 00:13:33.899 Godly faith desires to listen to what the Lord says in every facet of life. 00:13:34.639 --> 00:13:37.240 And if you think about the fact that Deborah is a prophetess, 00:13:38.039 --> 00:13:41.980 Barak is responding, not, even if it was weak faith, by the way, 00:13:42.059 --> 00:13:43.379 weak faith is still faith. 00:13:43.379 --> 00:13:49.220 But he's actually saying what you'd actually want a person to say. 00:13:49.360 --> 00:13:52.399 He's saying, listen, I want to do this. 00:13:52.860 --> 00:13:56.600 I want the Lord to speak into my life at every single step of the way. 00:13:58.340 --> 00:13:59.879 So you need to come with me. 00:14:00.320 --> 00:14:04.220 Because I don't want to just hear you once and then go off and try to figure this out by myself. 00:14:04.220 --> 00:14:11.399 I want you to speak into my life as I'm traveling, as I'm trying to find the right men, 00:14:12.180 --> 00:14:17.000 as I'm getting them provisioned, as we're waiting, when I know to leave. 00:14:17.120 --> 00:14:20.320 I want the Lord to speak into my life at every moment. 00:14:21.840 --> 00:14:26.220 And then the second thing which he says, we'll go back to the text. 00:14:26.899 --> 00:14:29.980 The second thing he says, you know, and so when she says, 00:14:30.060 --> 00:14:31.639 this is what's actually very, very interesting. 00:14:31.639 --> 00:14:37.559 So she says, not as a punishment, by the way, Barak, because you're weak in faith, no. 00:14:37.819 --> 00:14:41.639 But she then tells him a second thing, which is another check, 00:14:41.699 --> 00:14:43.539 which we're going to unpack for a couple of minutes. 00:14:43.919 --> 00:14:45.980 She says, by the way, Barak, you need to know. 00:14:47.100 --> 00:14:49.220 Remember I said to you the Lord's asking you to do this, 00:14:49.500 --> 00:14:52.340 and I'm asking you to trust that the Lord will go before you, 00:14:52.360 --> 00:14:53.580 and the Lord will defeat the army, 00:14:53.580 --> 00:15:01.399 even though you're going with 1821 weapons against the peak forces in the world with 2020 weapons. 00:15:02.639 --> 00:15:05.580 But by the way, I want you to know you're not going to get any glory out of this. 00:15:06.439 --> 00:15:07.699 And Barak still goes. 00:15:08.340 --> 00:15:10.899 Now here's the first of two thought experiments about this. 00:15:11.000 --> 00:15:16.039 Imagine for a moment that tonight the Lord himself appears to you in a dream. 00:15:17.360 --> 00:15:18.519 And it's more than a dream. 00:15:18.600 --> 00:15:19.759 You know that he's actually there. 00:15:20.179 --> 00:15:25.319 And the Lord says to you, I'm going to give you two options. 00:15:26.320 --> 00:15:27.940 And the first option is this. 00:15:28.040 --> 00:15:30.080 I'm going to reveal to you right now, 00:15:30.200 --> 00:15:32.260 and I'm going to give you the money for it to happen, 00:15:32.320 --> 00:15:35.600 and I'm going to open the minds of the drug companies and the regulators and everything like that, 00:15:35.660 --> 00:15:39.660 but I'm giving to you in your hand something, a pill, and medicine, 00:15:39.780 --> 00:15:44.360 that if people take it, it will save 10,000 people who are going to die, will live. 00:15:44.460 --> 00:15:45.680 10,000 people. 00:15:45.900 --> 00:15:47.800 Not only for this year, but for years to come. 00:15:47.799 --> 00:15:50.559 And you'll get all the glory. 00:15:51.839 --> 00:15:56.740 The CBC, they'll make statues for you on Parliament Hill. 00:15:56.919 --> 00:15:58.139 You'll appear to Oprah. 00:15:58.599 --> 00:16:00.379 You'll be famous all over the world. 00:16:00.959 --> 00:16:02.559 10,000 a lot. 00:16:02.639 --> 00:16:04.839 Or you can choose the second option. 00:16:07.759 --> 00:16:10.799 I'll give you a different recipe, a different medicine, 00:16:11.639 --> 00:16:14.339 and it'll save 20,000 people a year. 00:16:14.340 --> 00:16:17.820 But you'll get no credit for it whatsoever. 00:16:18.139 --> 00:16:18.420 Zero. 00:16:19.200 --> 00:16:21.420 And all the credit will go to somebody else. 00:16:22.259 --> 00:16:24.759 And when I say you'll get zero credit, I mean zero credit. 00:16:24.840 --> 00:16:26.700 Like even your wife or your husband won't know. 00:16:26.759 --> 00:16:30.240 Even your kids, even your best friend, even your dog won't know 00:16:30.240 --> 00:16:32.440 that you are the one responsible for it. 00:16:32.480 --> 00:16:33.700 So which one are you going to choose? 00:16:35.759 --> 00:16:39.519 Now, you came to church on a snowstorm. 00:16:39.519 --> 00:16:44.199 You're all going to choose the 20,000 people a year. 00:16:44.879 --> 00:16:45.779 I know that. 00:16:46.079 --> 00:16:46.259 Right? 00:16:46.919 --> 00:16:48.720 But let's be honest. 00:16:49.120 --> 00:16:51.419 You're going to pause about it a little bit, aren't you? 00:16:52.679 --> 00:16:54.879 10,000, all the credit, 20,000. 00:16:54.960 --> 00:16:55.639 And nobody will know. 00:16:55.720 --> 00:16:59.500 Like nobody will also know that I chose the 10,000 rather than the 20,000. 00:16:59.579 --> 00:17:00.860 Only God's going to know that. 00:17:01.639 --> 00:17:05.500 Like my wife and my buddies in the CBC won't discover 00:17:05.500 --> 00:17:07.680 that I could have saved 10,000 more a year. 00:17:07.680 --> 00:17:09.460 They're just going to know about my 10,000. 00:17:09.580 --> 00:17:11.120 And many of us would pause. 00:17:12.019 --> 00:17:15.080 And if we don't, and even if our pause is just a little bit thinking, 00:17:15.220 --> 00:17:19.060 well, maybe I'll choose the 20,000, but surely with the Facebook and 00:17:19.060 --> 00:17:25.019 maybe I'll get a whole pile of young people to do a TikTok about it. 00:17:25.080 --> 00:17:28.259 And then they'll know just somehow that I had something to do with the 20,000. 00:17:28.900 --> 00:17:32.799 But at the end of the day, I mean, you people who come to church on a snowstorm morning, 00:17:33.000 --> 00:17:34.440 you're going to choose the 20,000. 00:17:34.759 --> 00:17:36.200 Here's the second thought experiment. 00:17:36.200 --> 00:17:38.500 The Lord shows you up in a dream. 00:17:38.620 --> 00:17:39.360 Same type of thing. 00:17:40.059 --> 00:17:41.240 I'm going to give you the pill. 00:17:41.340 --> 00:17:43.220 It'll save 10,000 people's lives. 00:17:43.460 --> 00:17:44.960 And you'll get all the glory. 00:17:45.460 --> 00:17:47.019 And you'll get all the riches. 00:17:47.279 --> 00:17:48.340 You'll get all the acclaim. 00:17:48.440 --> 00:17:50.019 There'll be statues about you. 00:17:50.279 --> 00:17:51.160 All that stuff. 00:17:51.240 --> 00:17:52.279 10,000 people. 00:17:52.580 --> 00:17:53.480 That's option A. 00:17:53.580 --> 00:17:54.680 Option B is this. 00:17:54.860 --> 00:17:57.319 You'll save 10,001. 00:17:57.319 --> 00:18:02.019 And you get zero credit. 00:18:02.960 --> 00:18:05.980 And zero, zero, zero, zero, zero, zero, zero credit. 00:18:06.059 --> 00:18:06.779 What will you choose? 00:18:08.799 --> 00:18:12.059 Now, for most of us, if we're ominous, we're going to really pause at that. 00:18:12.859 --> 00:18:13.859 I mean, it's just one person. 00:18:14.519 --> 00:18:15.879 We're saving 10,000. 00:18:16.980 --> 00:18:17.980 It's just one. 00:18:19.099 --> 00:18:19.939 Nobody will know. 00:18:19.940 --> 00:18:24.160 Many of us would be very tempted by that. 00:18:25.820 --> 00:18:26.640 Very tempted. 00:18:26.860 --> 00:18:30.559 Nobody would know that I chose one person extra would die every year. 00:18:30.559 --> 00:18:44.460 You see, what this story opens us up to when Barak is told that he's going to do this and receive no glory is something that touches very deep in the human heart. 00:18:44.599 --> 00:18:50.859 You see, at the end of the day, I would like to suggest to you that Buddhism is wrong about the central problem facing human beings. 00:18:50.859 --> 00:18:56.200 And the central problem facing human beings is not desire, but self-centeredness. 00:18:57.559 --> 00:18:59.379 Desiring glory for yourself. 00:18:59.380 --> 00:19:06.420 I'm going to suggest that Hinduism is wrong with how it understands the central problem facing human beings. 00:19:06.540 --> 00:19:09.200 That the problem isn't illusion of difference. 00:19:10.800 --> 00:19:16.480 But the problem is that we human beings desire to be like God and have the praise and glory. 00:19:16.600 --> 00:19:25.640 And I want to suggest to you the central problem facing human beings is not like Islam and all other religions like that, including forms of Christianity and Judaism. 00:19:25.640 --> 00:19:26.640 That it's all a matter of faith. 00:19:26.640 --> 00:19:30.120 That it's all a matter about obeying God and keeping the rules. 00:19:30.300 --> 00:19:34.759 Because then the problem is often that you just don't know enough or you're just not motivated enough. 00:19:34.759 --> 00:19:41.500 But the fact of the matter is that that doesn't deal with the central human problem of self-centeredness and desire and of our own glory. 00:19:41.500 --> 00:19:51.259 And I want to suggest to you that the main way that all the Western world thinks about ethics, which is all a form of utilitarianism. 00:19:52.539 --> 00:20:00.680 Utilitarianism is that you make the moral decision whereby you choose something that will minimize pain and maximize happiness. 00:20:00.680 --> 00:20:04.060 That you look and you see if I do this option like these people are hurt. 00:20:04.180 --> 00:20:06.140 And if I do this option, less people are hurt. 00:20:06.759 --> 00:20:08.779 And so I'll choose the lesser option. 00:20:08.940 --> 00:20:15.500 And the fundamental problem with that and almost all the moral systems that you learn in university and you learn in high schools. 00:20:15.539 --> 00:20:18.200 And that you hear on the CBC and you hear in the Globe and Mail. 00:20:18.299 --> 00:20:19.920 They're all versions of that. 00:20:19.920 --> 00:20:32.220 And they're all fundamentally wrong because they do not grasp the fact that the fact of the matter is, is that if ten of you are hurt and I am inconvenienced, I weigh myself more than the ten of you. 00:20:34.100 --> 00:20:35.240 And so do you. 00:20:36.720 --> 00:20:37.600 So do you. 00:20:40.340 --> 00:20:44.940 And that's part of the reason we're so screwed up in this country. 00:20:44.940 --> 00:20:48.580 Because the central human problem is self-centeredness. 00:20:49.000 --> 00:20:50.539 Is desiring to be God. 00:20:50.799 --> 00:20:53.019 Genesis 3 is true. 00:20:57.519 --> 00:21:08.539 And one of the things that we're going to see as the story unpacks, despite the fact that it's going to talk, we haven't got to it yet, it's going to talk about rape and sexual predators and sexual slavery. 00:21:08.539 --> 00:21:24.920 Is that the story leads us in a direction that the cross will help us to understand why, given this is our problem, what happens in the gospel is what every human being desperately, desperately, desperately needs. 00:21:27.059 --> 00:21:29.200 So let's see how the story continues. 00:21:30.779 --> 00:21:31.700 Verse 11. 00:21:32.139 --> 00:21:33.779 First, we have a little tiny bit of a pause. 00:21:33.899 --> 00:21:36.279 If you're watching this on Netflix, there'd be a little bit of a pause. 00:21:36.379 --> 00:21:37.500 The action's been going this way. 00:21:37.500 --> 00:21:39.960 All of a sudden, there's this odd little vignette. 00:21:40.440 --> 00:21:45.440 But this odd little vignette sets up something that's going to happen down the road. 00:21:45.519 --> 00:21:46.240 And here's how it goes. 00:21:46.299 --> 00:21:49.259 The vignette is now Heber, the Kenite. 00:21:49.420 --> 00:22:02.039 Heber, the Kenite, had separated from the Kenites, the descendants of Hobab, the father-in-law of Moses, and had pitched his tent as far away as the oaks of Zananim, which is near Kadesh. 00:22:02.940 --> 00:22:03.559 A little aside. 00:22:03.660 --> 00:22:04.900 It's setting up what's going to happen a bit. 00:22:04.900 --> 00:22:09.820 In other words, basically what happens is that not that far from the battle, this guy lives. 00:22:10.480 --> 00:22:12.560 And it's going to set up something that happens in a moment. 00:22:12.840 --> 00:22:13.759 So what happens? 00:22:14.100 --> 00:22:14.720 Verse 12. 00:22:14.800 --> 00:22:15.700 Remember, we've set it up. 00:22:15.700 --> 00:22:20.360 God has said to Barak, by the way, I want you to get all these soldiers. 00:22:20.480 --> 00:22:21.120 You're going to go fight. 00:22:21.180 --> 00:22:24.059 And you're going to fight in an area which is advantageous to Sisera. 00:22:24.360 --> 00:22:25.700 And you're not going to get any glory. 00:22:25.819 --> 00:22:28.380 And Barak says, listen, I want to listen to you all the way along. 00:22:28.420 --> 00:22:29.059 And I'm going to do it. 00:22:29.100 --> 00:22:31.740 And I'm only going to do it listening to you all the time. 00:22:31.960 --> 00:22:32.840 All the time. 00:22:33.400 --> 00:22:34.220 Keep speaking. 00:22:34.220 --> 00:22:36.500 I need you to speak into my life. 00:22:37.380 --> 00:22:39.259 And in verse 12, it goes like this. 00:22:39.259 --> 00:22:46.900 When Sisera was told that Barak, the son of Abinoham, had gone up to Mount Tabor, 00:22:47.379 --> 00:22:49.859 remember Sisera is the general, the pagan general, 00:22:50.579 --> 00:22:54.740 General Sisera called out all his chariots, 900 chariots of iron, 00:22:54.740 --> 00:23:01.500 and all the men who were with him from Harasheth Hagoyim to the river Kishon. 00:23:01.559 --> 00:23:03.420 The battle is going to be fought by the river Kishon. 00:23:03.420 --> 00:23:11.180 And Deborah said to Barak, up, for this is the day in which the Lord has given Sisera into your hand. 00:23:11.740 --> 00:23:14.060 Does not the Lord go out before you? 00:23:14.620 --> 00:23:18.660 So Barak went down from Mount Tabor with 10,000 men following him. 00:23:19.160 --> 00:23:26.480 And the Lord routed Sisera and all his chariots and all his army before Barak by the edge of the sword. 00:23:27.180 --> 00:23:30.300 And Sisera got down from his chariot and fled away on foot. 00:23:30.299 --> 00:23:35.700 And Barak pursued the chariots and the army to Harasheth Hagoyim. 00:23:35.940 --> 00:23:37.240 I keep pronouncing it differently. 00:23:37.779 --> 00:23:40.339 And all the army of Sisera fell by the edge of the sword. 00:23:40.720 --> 00:23:41.659 Not a man was left. 00:23:42.500 --> 00:23:43.720 Now, just sort of pause here. 00:23:44.399 --> 00:23:47.000 If you read, remember I told you the same stories told twice, 00:23:47.139 --> 00:23:49.279 once in poetry and song and once in prose. 00:23:49.879 --> 00:23:52.019 I'm not going to look at it now because of the time constraints. 00:23:52.099 --> 00:23:56.139 But if you go back and you read later on, chapter 5, the beginning and towards the end, 00:23:56.619 --> 00:23:59.159 what you'll see is, well, actually, here's what you'll see. 00:23:59.160 --> 00:24:03.400 Many of you know I was in Israel on a tour at the end of October. 00:24:04.019 --> 00:24:07.200 And the Israeli tour guide, as we were going through the desert, 00:24:07.759 --> 00:24:13.880 as we were going through the desert for the first time towards Jerusalem, 00:24:14.400 --> 00:24:15.920 and he was pointing out the desert and everything. 00:24:16.000 --> 00:24:18.200 And he shared with us one of his peculiarities. 00:24:18.360 --> 00:24:20.720 And one of the things he said I really, really love is, 00:24:20.720 --> 00:24:24.460 I love when rain comes, all of a sudden, a big rainstorm, 00:24:24.579 --> 00:24:28.380 and I dash out in my car to go to different areas because I love seeing flash floods. 00:24:29.120 --> 00:24:29.900 He said I'm a tour guide. 00:24:29.960 --> 00:24:32.920 I drive through all parts of Israel all the time for different groups. 00:24:32.980 --> 00:24:36.740 And I know where all the places are just dry and brown and nothing's living. 00:24:37.039 --> 00:24:39.460 And I love when there's a big rainstorm. 00:24:39.460 --> 00:24:41.240 I say to my wife, you look after my kiddo. 00:24:41.319 --> 00:24:41.940 I'm going to go out. 00:24:42.279 --> 00:24:46.240 And there's this raging torrent where he knows that just like the day before, 00:24:46.319 --> 00:24:48.039 there was nothing, nothing at all, just dry. 00:24:48.200 --> 00:24:49.299 You could just dry. 00:24:49.380 --> 00:24:50.799 But now there's this raging torrent. 00:24:51.440 --> 00:24:55.180 And so what you see if you look at chapter 5 is that Cicero is thinking to himself, 00:24:56.480 --> 00:24:58.579 Barak is the world's biggest idiot. 00:24:58.579 --> 00:25:02.639 Like, not only do I have more troops than him, not only do I have super weapons, 00:25:03.220 --> 00:25:06.079 but he's come and chosen to fight me in a place where it's a plane, 00:25:06.179 --> 00:25:08.579 where I can use my super weapon to their best advantage. 00:25:08.659 --> 00:25:10.220 Like, this guy's a complete and utter idiot. 00:25:10.339 --> 00:25:12.839 And you know, and you look at chapter 5, it's the dry season. 00:25:13.279 --> 00:25:17.199 And another thing which is really important to know from having read all of this 00:25:17.199 --> 00:25:19.399 is that who would Cicero worship? 00:25:19.539 --> 00:25:21.359 Cicero would worship the storm god. 00:25:21.879 --> 00:25:24.299 And so he goes and lines himself up for battle. 00:25:24.319 --> 00:25:25.879 And what does the Lord do in the dry season? 00:25:25.879 --> 00:25:26.879 He sends a storm. 00:25:29.240 --> 00:25:33.039 And he turns a tiny little creek into a raging river and into a floodplain. 00:25:33.720 --> 00:25:37.819 And all of a sudden, the 900 chariots, which are the super weapons, are stuck in the mud. 00:25:38.419 --> 00:25:39.699 And they can't move. 00:25:39.939 --> 00:25:42.879 And the entire battle plan is based around the 900 chariots. 00:25:43.699 --> 00:25:45.000 And they have no plan B. 00:25:45.079 --> 00:25:48.039 Why do you need a plan B in dry season when you have super weapons? 00:25:48.399 --> 00:25:50.699 And everything's in chaos and they get slaughtered. 00:25:52.379 --> 00:25:56.099 The Lord brings a rain and a flash flood and everything turns to mud. 00:25:56.099 --> 00:26:00.879 And Cicero rode to his doom. 00:26:01.319 --> 00:26:03.319 And the storm god failed him. 00:26:03.939 --> 00:26:08.219 Because the storm god does not exist, but the Lord exists. 00:26:09.919 --> 00:26:13.319 And if you read the poem, it has all this language about the stars fighting. 00:26:13.319 --> 00:26:19.379 And it's all mocking language of the gods and goddesses that the Canaanites worship. 00:26:19.700 --> 00:26:26.059 That, in fact, these gods and goddesses don't exist and that the Lord is the one who controls all of these types of things. 00:26:26.679 --> 00:26:27.899 And so they all die. 00:26:27.900 --> 00:26:31.640 So, but Cicero is still alive. 00:26:32.680 --> 00:26:34.160 And leadership matters. 00:26:35.280 --> 00:26:36.080 So what happens? 00:26:36.880 --> 00:26:43.140 Cicero, and here we're coming to the tough bit. 00:26:44.019 --> 00:26:48.600 Cicero fled away on foot to the tent of Jael, the wife of Heber, the Kenite. 00:26:49.420 --> 00:26:52.860 Remember they mentioned this thing about Heber living not that far away? 00:26:53.299 --> 00:26:54.359 So verse 17 again. 00:26:54.500 --> 00:26:57.959 Cicero fled away on foot to the tent of Jael, the wife of Heber, the Kenite. 00:26:58.279 --> 00:27:02.699 For there was peace between Jabin, the king of Hazor, and the house of Heber, the Kenite. 00:27:03.359 --> 00:27:06.199 And Jael came out to meet Cicero and said to him, 00:27:06.539 --> 00:27:07.659 Turn aside, my lord. 00:27:08.059 --> 00:27:09.399 Turn aside to me. 00:27:09.519 --> 00:27:10.319 Do not be afraid. 00:27:11.079 --> 00:27:16.459 So King, so General Cicero turned aside to her into the tent and she covered him with a rug. 00:27:16.460 --> 00:27:21.640 Now, this is all going to become very, very more significant in a moment. 00:27:21.740 --> 00:27:23.980 But I just want you to notice again at the beginning of verse 17. 00:27:24.799 --> 00:27:27.120 It goes, but Cicero fled away on foot. 00:27:27.880 --> 00:27:33.420 Not to, there would have been lots of tents, but he goes to the tent of the woman. 00:27:33.960 --> 00:27:35.579 It's going to be very important in a moment. 00:27:36.079 --> 00:27:37.920 But he goes to the tent of the woman. 00:27:38.799 --> 00:27:39.680 She knows he's there. 00:27:39.779 --> 00:27:40.680 She invites him in. 00:27:40.680 --> 00:27:47.900 And then, in verses 19 and 20, and one of the things to notice here, by the way, 00:27:47.940 --> 00:27:52.460 is sometimes people struggle over the fact that they claim that Jael lied. 00:27:52.560 --> 00:27:54.400 But if you actually read the text very carefully, 00:27:54.519 --> 00:27:57.340 she actually never says anything other than come in and don't be afraid. 00:27:58.799 --> 00:28:01.259 All the time Cicero says, do this, do this, do this. 00:28:01.279 --> 00:28:02.779 She doesn't say she's going to do it. 00:28:03.039 --> 00:28:03.980 Like, not once. 00:28:05.080 --> 00:28:06.140 So look what happens. 00:28:06.960 --> 00:28:08.980 He said to her, now he's inside. 00:28:08.980 --> 00:28:10.779 He's covered with a rug. 00:28:11.160 --> 00:28:11.940 He's tired. 00:28:12.700 --> 00:28:16.720 He says, give me a little water to drink for I am thirsty. 00:28:16.900 --> 00:28:20.299 So she opened a skin of milk, which is far more precious, 00:28:20.620 --> 00:28:22.940 and gave him a drink and covered him again. 00:28:23.720 --> 00:28:27.180 And General Cicero said to her, stand at the opening of the tent, 00:28:27.240 --> 00:28:30.440 and if any man comes and asks you, is anyone here, say no. 00:28:31.319 --> 00:28:32.160 What happens? 00:28:32.640 --> 00:28:34.759 Remember, now she doesn't say she's going to do that, by the way, does she? 00:28:34.759 --> 00:28:46.940 But Jael, verse 21, the wife of Haber took a tent peg and took a hammer in her hand. 00:28:48.319 --> 00:28:50.859 And by the way, in the ancient world at that time, 00:28:51.059 --> 00:28:53.559 setting up and taking down tents was woman's work. 00:28:53.559 --> 00:29:00.480 So she takes what would be woman's tools, not men's tools, but woman's tools. 00:29:01.399 --> 00:29:02.919 She took a hammer in her hand. 00:29:03.039 --> 00:29:09.079 Then she went softly to General Cicero and drove the peg into his temple 00:29:09.079 --> 00:29:15.399 until it went down into the ground while he was laying fast asleep from weariness. 00:29:16.339 --> 00:29:17.779 And so he died. 00:29:17.779 --> 00:29:22.799 We're going to talk more about this in a moment, but let's just see how the story finishes. 00:29:23.879 --> 00:29:28.440 And behold, as Barak was pursuing, verse 22, pursuing Cicero, 00:29:29.039 --> 00:29:31.839 Jael went out to meet Barak and said to him, 00:29:32.319 --> 00:29:35.299 Come, and I will show you the man whom you are seeking. 00:29:36.399 --> 00:29:39.980 So Barak went into her tent, and there lay Cicero dead, 00:29:40.059 --> 00:29:42.119 with the tent peg in his temple still. 00:29:42.119 --> 00:29:48.359 So on that day, God subdued Jabin, the king of Canaan, before the people of Israel. 00:29:49.059 --> 00:29:53.399 And the hand of the people of Israel pressed harder and harder against Jabin, the king of Canaan, 00:29:53.739 --> 00:29:57.219 until they destroyed Jabin, king of Canaan. 00:29:57.639 --> 00:30:00.779 In other words, the death of Cicero is the tipping point 00:30:00.779 --> 00:30:07.579 that the cruel oppression of Jabin cannot survive, that tipping point, 00:30:07.759 --> 00:30:08.959 and it comes to an end. 00:30:08.960 --> 00:30:13.799 Now, about Jael and this gruesome act. 00:30:15.299 --> 00:30:17.299 Now, you need to have a bit of context here. 00:30:17.360 --> 00:30:21.840 Remember how the story begins with the fact that it just says very roughly 00:30:21.840 --> 00:30:27.440 that Jabin had been cruelly oppressing Israel for 20 years. 00:30:28.340 --> 00:30:31.360 And we're going to just jump, if you turn in your Bibles to chapter 5, 00:30:31.500 --> 00:30:35.440 the last four verses, chapter 5, verses 28 to 31, 00:30:35.440 --> 00:30:41.340 this gives you some context to help you to understand the cruelty of what was going on. 00:30:41.940 --> 00:30:45.920 And I'll just read it, and then I'll unpack it a little bit, the significance of it. 00:30:47.120 --> 00:30:48.980 So it's talking about Cicero. 00:30:49.120 --> 00:30:49.360 Oh, here. 00:30:49.500 --> 00:30:50.980 Out of the window, she peered. 00:30:51.500 --> 00:30:54.500 The mother of Cicero wailed through the lattice. 00:30:55.080 --> 00:30:55.360 Sorry. 00:30:55.359 --> 00:31:00.099 And she's wailing and wondering, why is his chariot so long in coming? 00:31:00.899 --> 00:31:03.459 Why tarry the hoofbeats of his chariots? 00:31:04.319 --> 00:31:06.679 Her wisest princess's answer. 00:31:07.279 --> 00:31:08.519 Indeed, she answers herself. 00:31:09.419 --> 00:31:11.559 Have they not found and divided the spoil? 00:31:11.699 --> 00:31:13.599 A womb or two for every man. 00:31:13.799 --> 00:31:16.419 Spoil of dyed materials for Cicero. 00:31:16.579 --> 00:31:18.359 Spoil of dyed materials embroidered. 00:31:19.359 --> 00:31:22.659 Two pieces of dyed work embroidered for the neck of spoil. 00:31:22.660 --> 00:31:26.580 So may all your enemies perish, O Lord. 00:31:27.560 --> 00:31:30.340 But your friends be like the sun as he rises in his might, 00:31:30.440 --> 00:31:32.100 and the land had rest for 40 years. 00:31:33.259 --> 00:31:35.160 Now, this is still toned down. 00:31:35.759 --> 00:31:40.380 And the NIV and many other translations try to take away, 00:31:40.740 --> 00:31:43.720 they don't translate it, they don't, they don't, 00:31:43.900 --> 00:31:47.660 they're trying to hide or maybe unintentionally the shock of the text. 00:31:47.660 --> 00:31:53.140 And in the text, womb is accurate, but it's actually way more shocking. 00:31:55.300 --> 00:32:00.360 It would be the rudest way of referring to a woman's sexual anatomy. 00:32:01.200 --> 00:32:04.040 Like the type of thing that if you were saying at your work, 00:32:04.140 --> 00:32:05.300 everybody would go, what? 00:32:05.820 --> 00:32:06.920 What did you just say? 00:32:09.620 --> 00:32:12.620 It's rude, it's graphic, it's brutal. 00:32:13.640 --> 00:32:17.140 And just to think about it, my wife's vastly better than me. 00:32:17.660 --> 00:32:21.259 Try to imagine for a second the type of leadership culture of a nation. 00:32:22.320 --> 00:32:25.800 If, you know, one of my sons was General Sisera, 00:32:25.980 --> 00:32:29.700 and my wife is looking out the window saying to herself, 00:32:30.320 --> 00:32:33.360 I wonder when, you know, fill in whatever one of my sons, 00:32:33.540 --> 00:32:35.460 I wonder when Tosh is coming home. 00:32:36.180 --> 00:32:39.980 And then my daughters and daughters-in-law and the princesses, 00:32:40.019 --> 00:32:43.480 and they all say, oh, he's just delayed raping women. 00:32:43.480 --> 00:32:50.380 And capturing women as sex slaves and robbing. 00:32:50.860 --> 00:32:54.440 I wonder what nice things he'll bring home for me to wear. 00:32:54.440 --> 00:33:04.860 Like the callous, casual brutality at the leadership level of the country 00:33:04.860 --> 00:33:07.720 is revealed there. 00:33:10.039 --> 00:33:15.320 How many of you are bothered that J.L. put a tent peg through his skull? 00:33:15.319 --> 00:33:22.279 That's what went on. 00:33:26.839 --> 00:33:27.200 Now, 00:33:29.200 --> 00:33:35.319 a Christian is a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:33:35.419 --> 00:33:36.159 Very, very simple. 00:33:36.259 --> 00:33:37.700 I want to wrap this all up a little bit 00:33:37.700 --> 00:33:39.460 and bring it home and connect it to the gospel 00:33:39.460 --> 00:33:40.960 in a very way which is important. 00:33:40.960 --> 00:33:44.779 And, you know, a disciple means that you follow Jesus. 00:33:45.000 --> 00:33:48.640 He's your Lord and your Savior, and you follow him. 00:33:49.340 --> 00:33:51.259 But there's a way of talking about that, 00:33:51.299 --> 00:33:53.700 and for many people in our country, when they hear about it, 00:33:53.720 --> 00:33:55.799 it just sounds like another type of religion 00:33:55.799 --> 00:33:58.299 that you just choose to follow Jesus, 00:33:58.460 --> 00:34:00.700 and you think you're maybe a little bit better than other people 00:34:00.700 --> 00:34:01.980 because you follow Jesus. 00:34:02.519 --> 00:34:04.940 And then when you tell them all about grace and the cross 00:34:04.940 --> 00:34:05.840 and everything like that, 00:34:05.860 --> 00:34:07.420 it just sounds like it's sort of weird. 00:34:07.519 --> 00:34:08.579 It just sounds as if, 00:34:08.980 --> 00:34:10.539 you know what it sounds like for many of us? 00:34:10.539 --> 00:34:13.159 It sounds as if God just decides, 00:34:13.739 --> 00:34:15.360 look at George. 00:34:16.199 --> 00:34:16.920 You know what? 00:34:18.579 --> 00:34:19.980 I like the way he smiles. 00:34:20.960 --> 00:34:22.239 I'm going to give him a pass. 00:34:23.320 --> 00:34:26.420 He's not going to have to appear before my judgment seat 00:34:26.420 --> 00:34:28.059 because, you see, 00:34:28.619 --> 00:34:32.679 no human being can escape being judged by the triune God. 00:34:32.800 --> 00:34:35.599 No human being can escape being judged by the triune God. 00:34:35.679 --> 00:34:37.259 But many people hear this thing of, 00:34:37.259 --> 00:34:39.659 you know, grace, 00:34:39.659 --> 00:34:40.199 and they think, 00:34:40.259 --> 00:34:40.779 ah, look at George. 00:34:40.859 --> 00:34:41.039 You know, 00:34:41.480 --> 00:34:42.119 God just says, 00:34:42.239 --> 00:34:43.659 I'm going to give George a bit of a pass. 00:34:45.699 --> 00:34:46.199 And, you know, 00:34:46.279 --> 00:34:48.420 if it's all before the last throne of judgment, 00:34:48.639 --> 00:34:49.179 like, you know, 00:34:49.199 --> 00:34:49.759 my wife, 00:34:49.859 --> 00:34:50.519 my kids, 00:34:51.099 --> 00:34:51.359 you, 00:34:51.639 --> 00:34:52.359 other people, 00:34:52.480 --> 00:34:53.779 people throughout my entire pass, 00:34:53.819 --> 00:34:54.859 they might wave their hand and say, 00:34:54.920 --> 00:34:57.039 whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. 00:34:57.079 --> 00:34:58.339 Don't let him off so soon. 00:34:58.440 --> 00:34:58.839 Like, surely, 00:34:59.239 --> 00:35:00.159 do you know he did this? 00:35:00.219 --> 00:35:00.879 You know he did this? 00:35:00.940 --> 00:35:01.699 You know he didn't do that? 00:35:01.759 --> 00:35:02.699 You know this is what he thought? 00:35:02.699 --> 00:35:03.159 You know that, 00:35:03.239 --> 00:35:03.339 that, 00:35:03.559 --> 00:35:04.439 like, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. 00:35:04.759 --> 00:35:05.559 Like, no, no. 00:35:05.639 --> 00:35:06.339 And then afterwards, 00:35:06.480 --> 00:35:08.000 if that was just the way grace worked, 00:35:08.079 --> 00:35:08.579 that you'd just say, 00:35:08.619 --> 00:35:08.919 ah, you know, 00:35:08.939 --> 00:35:09.639 I like George. 00:35:09.759 --> 00:35:09.980 You know, 00:35:10.059 --> 00:35:11.319 I'm just going to give him a pass. 00:35:12.039 --> 00:35:13.259 Then everybody would say, 00:35:13.299 --> 00:35:14.299 God's not just. 00:35:15.159 --> 00:35:16.739 And that Christianity stuff, 00:35:16.779 --> 00:35:17.739 it just sucks. 00:35:18.239 --> 00:35:20.659 And it's just another way to think you're better than people. 00:35:20.739 --> 00:35:22.239 That somehow God gives you a pass 00:35:22.239 --> 00:35:23.099 and I'm going to go to hell. 00:35:23.159 --> 00:35:23.319 Like, 00:35:23.339 --> 00:35:24.980 how does that make any sense whatsoever? 00:35:24.980 --> 00:35:27.519 And they would be right. 00:35:28.960 --> 00:35:30.900 Any version of understanding the cross, 00:35:30.960 --> 00:35:32.179 which ultimately just says, 00:35:32.280 --> 00:35:32.719 ah, you know, 00:35:32.760 --> 00:35:33.659 I like George's smile. 00:35:33.699 --> 00:35:34.780 I'm going to give him a pass. 00:35:35.420 --> 00:35:36.659 That's cheap grace. 00:35:36.820 --> 00:35:37.699 It's abhorrent. 00:35:39.019 --> 00:35:41.000 Nobody should worship a God like that. 00:35:42.740 --> 00:35:44.780 What we see here in the story, 00:35:44.820 --> 00:35:46.219 like we see in all of the Old Testament, 00:35:46.340 --> 00:35:49.139 is that sometimes we have a precursor of the judgment 00:35:49.139 --> 00:35:50.760 that all human beings will face. 00:35:51.519 --> 00:35:54.880 And that precursor of judgment happens on this side of the grave. 00:35:55.960 --> 00:35:58.699 And none of us here probably have done anything 00:35:58.699 --> 00:36:03.159 even remotely as bad as what Sisera was responsible for. 00:36:03.260 --> 00:36:04.619 But every single one of us, 00:36:04.639 --> 00:36:08.159 if we actually were to have every single thing we've thought, 00:36:08.260 --> 00:36:09.679 every single thing we've done, 00:36:09.820 --> 00:36:11.519 everything we've failed to do, 00:36:11.780 --> 00:36:13.380 and it became clear to a lot of people, 00:36:13.460 --> 00:36:15.199 we'd say even for the best one here, 00:36:15.340 --> 00:36:15.699 come on, 00:36:15.820 --> 00:36:17.340 you've got to do something about this. 00:36:17.380 --> 00:36:18.179 They got away with this. 00:36:18.240 --> 00:36:18.960 They got away with this. 00:36:18.960 --> 00:36:19.719 They got away with this. 00:36:19.780 --> 00:36:20.420 They got away with this. 00:36:20.480 --> 00:36:21.320 They got away with this. 00:36:22.340 --> 00:36:24.500 And then you bring out the cross and people go, 00:36:24.500 --> 00:36:24.860 what? 00:36:26.380 --> 00:36:27.420 But here's the thing. 00:36:29.159 --> 00:36:32.039 No human being has an option 00:36:32.039 --> 00:36:34.519 about escaping the judgment of God, 00:36:34.619 --> 00:36:36.519 including you and me. 00:36:36.519 --> 00:36:39.199 But here is what God says. 00:36:41.199 --> 00:36:42.119 God says, 00:36:43.119 --> 00:36:44.500 I have provided the means 00:36:44.500 --> 00:36:47.440 by which the judgment that should fall on you 00:36:47.440 --> 00:36:51.079 will fall on somebody else in their place. 00:36:52.079 --> 00:36:53.440 They haven't been compelled. 00:36:54.400 --> 00:36:56.420 They truly can represent you. 00:36:57.119 --> 00:36:58.340 They do it freely, 00:36:58.340 --> 00:36:59.800 and they do it because they love you. 00:36:59.800 --> 00:37:03.740 And what we actually see in the cross 00:37:03.740 --> 00:37:09.680 is God's final judgment in advance on Jesus. 00:37:11.880 --> 00:37:15.220 And the option that he gives 00:37:15.220 --> 00:37:17.180 is in a sense Jesus says, 00:37:17.340 --> 00:37:18.180 you're doom on me, 00:37:18.740 --> 00:37:20.080 my destiny on you. 00:37:20.560 --> 00:37:21.519 Come to me. 00:37:22.019 --> 00:37:22.800 Be mine. 00:37:23.519 --> 00:37:24.260 Follow me. 00:37:24.260 --> 00:37:25.780 And that's what Jesus says. 00:37:26.420 --> 00:37:27.240 So on the cross, 00:37:27.340 --> 00:37:30.300 we see that God takes my wrongdoing 00:37:30.300 --> 00:37:33.060 in terms of the active sense 00:37:33.060 --> 00:37:34.080 and the passive sense, 00:37:34.180 --> 00:37:35.740 the wrongdoing of my mind. 00:37:36.060 --> 00:37:38.500 He takes that with complete 00:37:38.500 --> 00:37:40.480 and utter seriousness. 00:37:41.860 --> 00:37:43.440 But grace and mercy 00:37:43.440 --> 00:37:45.740 is offered at the same time 00:37:45.740 --> 00:37:47.700 because no one can stand 00:37:47.700 --> 00:37:49.860 under the judgment of God. 00:37:49.860 --> 00:37:51.300 No one. 00:37:52.620 --> 00:37:54.680 So the choice before every human being is, 00:37:54.780 --> 00:37:56.140 you are going to be judged, George. 00:37:57.320 --> 00:37:58.820 Will you take my son 00:37:58.820 --> 00:38:00.920 who bears your judgment for you? 00:38:02.019 --> 00:38:03.720 Or will you take it yourself? 00:38:05.760 --> 00:38:07.320 And you will not stand 00:38:07.320 --> 00:38:08.700 under that judgment. 00:38:12.320 --> 00:38:13.120 And you see, 00:38:13.260 --> 00:38:14.140 then what it means 00:38:14.140 --> 00:38:15.360 to be a disciple of Jesus 00:38:15.360 --> 00:38:16.519 is something completely 00:38:16.519 --> 00:38:17.360 and utterly different 00:38:17.360 --> 00:38:18.320 because it doesn't mean, 00:38:18.320 --> 00:38:19.720 well, now that he's just 00:38:19.720 --> 00:38:20.960 taking favorites with me 00:38:20.960 --> 00:38:21.920 because the same offer 00:38:21.920 --> 00:38:23.059 is made to every human being. 00:38:23.160 --> 00:38:24.460 And it's not then 00:38:24.460 --> 00:38:25.960 that if I just do enough rules 00:38:25.960 --> 00:38:27.080 and go to church on snow, 00:38:27.180 --> 00:38:28.320 like when there's been bad snow 00:38:28.320 --> 00:38:29.220 and do this and then this, 00:38:29.280 --> 00:38:30.460 I earn some brownie points 00:38:30.460 --> 00:38:32.380 because the world isn't divided 00:38:32.380 --> 00:38:34.240 between good people and bad people. 00:38:34.940 --> 00:38:36.680 No Christian should believe that. 00:38:37.200 --> 00:38:39.320 The line between the good and the bad, 00:38:39.420 --> 00:38:40.019 the good and evil, 00:38:40.120 --> 00:38:41.059 runs down the center 00:38:41.059 --> 00:38:42.720 of every single human being 00:38:42.720 --> 00:38:44.860 and every single cell of our body 00:38:44.860 --> 00:38:45.940 and all of our mind. 00:38:46.059 --> 00:38:47.380 The difference between good and evil 00:38:47.380 --> 00:38:48.640 is in each of us. 00:38:48.700 --> 00:38:49.960 It's not between the good people 00:38:49.960 --> 00:38:50.300 in the world 00:38:50.300 --> 00:38:51.619 and the bad people in the world. 00:38:51.920 --> 00:38:53.400 It's between those 00:38:53.400 --> 00:38:54.519 for whom evil 00:38:54.519 --> 00:38:56.079 is a real part of their lives 00:38:56.079 --> 00:38:56.740 and they, 00:38:57.240 --> 00:38:58.680 in mercy and in gratitude, 00:38:59.400 --> 00:39:00.400 accept Jesus 00:39:00.400 --> 00:39:01.619 to bear that punishment 00:39:01.619 --> 00:39:02.539 that they deserve 00:39:02.539 --> 00:39:03.500 in their stead. 00:39:04.099 --> 00:39:05.260 And the Christian life 00:39:05.260 --> 00:39:06.380 is lived then 00:39:06.380 --> 00:39:08.039 out of gratitude 00:39:08.039 --> 00:39:11.000 at his accomplishment 00:39:11.000 --> 00:39:14.220 and not out of 00:39:14.220 --> 00:39:16.539 promoting our own rectitude. 00:39:17.380 --> 00:39:18.559 And in light 00:39:18.559 --> 00:39:20.740 of such a great 00:39:20.740 --> 00:39:22.400 offering 00:39:22.400 --> 00:39:23.579 of sacrifice 00:39:23.579 --> 00:39:24.599 and love, 00:39:26.039 --> 00:39:27.680 it is there 00:39:27.680 --> 00:39:29.440 that we can begin 00:39:29.440 --> 00:39:30.519 to have the help 00:39:30.519 --> 00:39:31.500 of the Holy Spirit 00:39:31.500 --> 00:39:32.820 as we're gripped by the gospel 00:39:32.820 --> 00:39:36.720 to have our self-centeredness 00:39:36.720 --> 00:39:37.640 brought to him 00:39:37.640 --> 00:39:38.660 and die 00:39:38.660 --> 00:39:40.960 that the glory might be his. 00:39:40.960 --> 00:39:44.019 please stand. 00:39:52.280 --> 00:39:53.039 In the sense, 00:39:53.119 --> 00:39:53.800 the Christian life 00:39:53.800 --> 00:39:54.420 just begins 00:39:54.420 --> 00:39:55.440 if you just say 00:39:55.440 --> 00:39:55.860 to the Lord, 00:39:55.960 --> 00:39:56.179 Lord, 00:39:56.579 --> 00:39:59.059 may that be true of me. 00:39:59.179 --> 00:39:59.460 Jesus, 00:39:59.659 --> 00:40:00.280 that is what you, 00:40:00.639 --> 00:40:00.940 Jesus, 00:40:01.280 --> 00:40:03.019 I say yes to that. 00:40:04.139 --> 00:40:05.500 Please come and take me 00:40:05.500 --> 00:40:06.699 and the Lord 00:40:06.699 --> 00:40:07.739 will turn no one away 00:40:07.739 --> 00:40:09.679 because he doesn't 00:40:09.679 --> 00:40:10.480 weigh your merits. 00:40:11.199 --> 00:40:12.000 He has done it all 00:40:12.000 --> 00:40:13.119 on the cross. 00:40:14.840 --> 00:40:15.639 And one of the things 00:40:15.639 --> 00:40:16.579 which makes church 00:40:16.579 --> 00:40:17.320 so wonderful 00:40:17.320 --> 00:40:18.019 is church 00:40:18.019 --> 00:40:20.079 is a weekly reminder 00:40:20.079 --> 00:40:21.340 on the Lord's day 00:40:21.340 --> 00:40:22.480 to have a bit 00:40:22.480 --> 00:40:23.099 of a reset. 00:40:25.440 --> 00:40:26.659 I couldn't get the TV 00:40:26.659 --> 00:40:27.619 to work the other day 00:40:27.619 --> 00:40:28.500 the way I wanted to. 00:40:28.579 --> 00:40:29.760 I told my grandkids, 00:40:29.880 --> 00:40:30.820 here's the very, 00:40:30.920 --> 00:40:32.179 very top secret method 00:40:32.179 --> 00:40:32.840 of fixing it. 00:40:32.840 --> 00:40:34.280 I unplugged everything, 00:40:34.720 --> 00:40:35.940 plugged it back in. 00:40:37.220 --> 00:40:38.200 And that's in a sense 00:40:38.200 --> 00:40:38.880 what church is. 00:40:39.000 --> 00:40:39.840 It's a chance for us 00:40:39.840 --> 00:40:41.180 to have that reset button 00:40:41.180 --> 00:40:42.660 before the Lord 00:40:42.660 --> 00:40:43.800 to respond 00:40:43.800 --> 00:40:44.720 in a worthy manner. 00:40:45.200 --> 00:40:45.740 Let's bow our heads 00:40:45.740 --> 00:40:46.140 in prayer. 00:40:51.640 --> 00:40:52.079 Father, 00:40:52.140 --> 00:40:52.780 we thank you 00:40:52.780 --> 00:40:54.079 that you see 00:40:54.079 --> 00:40:54.880 how ridiculous 00:40:54.880 --> 00:40:55.559 and foolish 00:40:55.559 --> 00:40:56.860 we are as human beings 00:40:56.860 --> 00:40:58.039 going after idols, 00:40:58.280 --> 00:40:59.720 going after evil, 00:40:59.960 --> 00:41:01.440 going after false gods, 00:41:01.440 --> 00:41:03.280 trying to be a God 00:41:03.280 --> 00:41:03.880 ourselves, 00:41:04.139 --> 00:41:04.700 always wanting 00:41:04.700 --> 00:41:05.500 to be the center, 00:41:05.659 --> 00:41:06.300 always thinking 00:41:06.300 --> 00:41:06.980 for everything 00:41:06.980 --> 00:41:08.039 from our point of view 00:41:08.039 --> 00:41:08.900 of what helps us 00:41:08.900 --> 00:41:10.039 or hurts us the most. 00:41:10.260 --> 00:41:10.960 And Father, 00:41:11.059 --> 00:41:12.740 you see the ridiculousness 00:41:12.740 --> 00:41:13.159 of us 00:41:13.159 --> 00:41:13.800 and still 00:41:13.800 --> 00:41:15.220 when we didn't see 00:41:15.220 --> 00:41:16.579 our own ridiculousness, 00:41:16.679 --> 00:41:17.460 you loved us 00:41:17.460 --> 00:41:18.260 and sent Jesus 00:41:18.260 --> 00:41:19.300 to be our Savior. 00:41:20.179 --> 00:41:20.720 So Father, 00:41:20.800 --> 00:41:21.659 we give you thanks 00:41:21.659 --> 00:41:22.200 and praise 00:41:22.200 --> 00:41:23.599 for your great love 00:41:23.599 --> 00:41:24.960 and that you would offer 00:41:24.960 --> 00:41:26.460 such mercy and grace 00:41:26.460 --> 00:41:27.519 and that your Son 00:41:27.519 --> 00:41:29.260 would do this 00:41:29.260 --> 00:41:31.520 for one as unworthy 00:41:31.520 --> 00:41:32.040 as me 00:41:32.040 --> 00:41:32.880 and for those 00:41:32.880 --> 00:41:34.260 unworthy as are here. 00:41:34.820 --> 00:41:35.180 Father, 00:41:35.280 --> 00:41:35.920 we thank you 00:41:35.920 --> 00:41:36.540 for Jesus 00:41:36.540 --> 00:41:38.800 and his mighty work 00:41:38.800 --> 00:41:39.620 of love 00:41:39.620 --> 00:41:40.940 by which we are 00:41:40.940 --> 00:41:41.940 made right with you. 00:41:42.440 --> 00:41:43.740 We thank you for it. 00:41:44.280 --> 00:41:45.100 And we ask, 00:41:45.420 --> 00:41:45.500 Father, 00:41:45.580 --> 00:41:46.740 that the Holy Spirit 00:41:46.740 --> 00:41:47.400 would help us 00:41:47.400 --> 00:41:48.700 to be gripped by Jesus 00:41:48.700 --> 00:41:50.400 and gripped by what he did, 00:41:51.200 --> 00:41:52.200 so gripped 00:41:52.200 --> 00:41:54.240 that we might respond 00:41:54.240 --> 00:41:55.360 in a worthy manner 00:41:55.360 --> 00:41:56.020 and receive it 00:41:56.020 --> 00:41:57.040 in a worthy way 00:41:57.039 --> 00:41:58.739 and begin to live 00:41:58.739 --> 00:41:59.579 out of that, 00:41:59.960 --> 00:42:00.019 Father, 00:42:00.159 --> 00:42:00.840 as the center 00:42:00.840 --> 00:42:01.759 of our identity, 00:42:02.440 --> 00:42:03.779 the center of our past, 00:42:03.880 --> 00:42:04.900 the center of our present, 00:42:05.019 --> 00:42:06.139 the center of our future, 00:42:06.800 --> 00:42:07.480 and that we might 00:42:07.480 --> 00:42:09.559 listen to your word 00:42:09.559 --> 00:42:10.539 in every area 00:42:10.539 --> 00:42:11.820 and facet of our lives 00:42:11.820 --> 00:42:13.239 with new longing 00:42:13.239 --> 00:42:13.940 and yearning, 00:42:14.400 --> 00:42:15.800 hearing how you speak 00:42:15.800 --> 00:42:16.639 to us in light 00:42:16.639 --> 00:42:17.559 of being gripped 00:42:17.559 --> 00:42:18.599 by the gospel. 00:42:18.779 --> 00:42:19.039 Father, 00:42:19.119 --> 00:42:20.519 we ask that your Holy Spirit 00:42:20.519 --> 00:42:21.559 would do this gentle 00:42:21.559 --> 00:42:22.460 but deep work 00:42:22.460 --> 00:42:23.279 within us. 00:42:23.659 --> 00:42:25.159 And all God's people said, 00:42:25.940 --> 00:42:26.360 Amen. 00:42:26.360 --> 00:42:26.579 Amen.