WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:06.400 Hey Church, good morning. It's 1030 now so I'm going to go ahead and get us started. 00:00:06.400 --> 00:00:11.839 I appreciate you all joining me, although from a distance and virtually it would be 00:00:11.839 --> 00:00:15.919 super helpful if you are on Facebook and you're able to comment. If you could just 00:00:15.919 --> 00:00:21.440 make a comment so that we know that you're with us and so it gives us a 00:00:21.440 --> 00:00:26.560 small sense of community even as we're separated and it also helps me to not 00:00:26.559 --> 00:00:31.119 feel like I'm just completely alone in my family room talking into a cell phone. 00:00:32.000 --> 00:00:35.920 We're picking back up with our series in the book of Judges. Before we do that 00:00:35.920 --> 00:00:38.799 though, a couple announcements I want to remind you guys of. 00:00:38.799 --> 00:00:44.320 First of all, next Sunday, November 5th, is our celebration Sunday for our Grit and 00:00:44.320 --> 00:00:47.920 Grace Generosity Initiative. So next Sunday we're going to announce 00:00:47.920 --> 00:00:51.840 the number of commitments and we're also having lunch after worship so I just want 00:00:51.840 --> 00:00:55.280 you all to save the date for that. We're going to have, I believe, Rudy's 00:00:55.280 --> 00:00:58.960 barbecue. I hope I'm not speaking out of turn on that, but it will be good and be 00:00:58.960 --> 00:01:03.439 a time for us to celebrate together. There's also going to be fun activities 00:01:03.439 --> 00:01:06.560 for children. So please mark November 5th on your 00:01:06.560 --> 00:01:10.400 calendar. Speaking of grit and grace, the timing of 00:01:10.400 --> 00:01:14.159 us having a snow day is unfortunate because I know 00:01:14.159 --> 00:01:17.040 some of you are hoping to turn in your commitment cards today. 00:01:17.040 --> 00:01:20.159 If you can just get those to us to the church office 00:01:20.159 --> 00:01:24.959 before November 5th, that will help us to add your number to our final number. 00:01:26.479 --> 00:01:31.840 With that, let's go ahead and get started. We are picking back up in our series in the 00:01:31.840 --> 00:01:38.159 book of Judges. Remember, we took five weeks off for our Grit and Grace Generosity Initiative, 00:01:38.159 --> 00:01:42.879 and we're picking back up in Judges chapter 4. You'll remember that the book of Judges is 00:01:42.879 --> 00:01:49.679 about many things. It's about a need for constant renewal and revival among God's people. 00:01:50.159 --> 00:01:54.079 You'll remember that it's about our need for a true and faithful king, 00:01:54.079 --> 00:01:59.679 a king who can do what no human can do, which is to change the hearts of men. And we're also 00:01:59.679 --> 00:02:06.079 reminded of the power of spirit-enabled leadership. I'll add to that that the book of Judges is also 00:02:06.079 --> 00:02:13.280 about God's mercy. It's about his mercy to hard-hearted people. We're picking up in the middle of a story, 00:02:13.280 --> 00:02:18.879 so we sliced it in half. The beginning of the story was the story of Barak and Sisera. 00:02:18.879 --> 00:02:23.599 Right in the beginning of Judges chapter 4, you'll remember that Deborah gave a word to Barak, 00:02:23.599 --> 00:02:29.280 telling him, hey, you need to go fight Sisera. But Sisera hesitated, and he placed conditions on 00:02:29.280 --> 00:02:37.280 his obedience. So we saw the importance of courageous obedience, and we also saw the danger of placing those 00:02:37.280 --> 00:02:42.800 conditions on our obedience. We're going to see the other side of the coin this week as we look at the 00:02:43.520 --> 00:02:49.039 character of Jael. She's going to be not a negative example like Barak. She's actually going to be 00:02:49.039 --> 00:02:54.159 only positive. She's going to be an example of that courageous and faithful obedience. 00:02:54.159 --> 00:03:01.840 And so our question this morning is very simple, and it's this. Why does God use unexpected people? 00:03:03.039 --> 00:03:08.560 Why does God use unexpected people? And hopefully, if you're familiar with the story, you know that Jael is 00:03:08.560 --> 00:03:16.400 very unexpected. We are picking up in Judges chapter 4. We're starting at verse 17, and I invite you to turn 00:03:16.400 --> 00:03:21.359 with me there. You can turn in your phone or your Bible. I would say your worship guide, but unfortunately, 00:03:21.360 --> 00:03:25.600 I think I'm the only one who has one of these. But it will be good to have your Bible or your phone, 00:03:25.600 --> 00:03:32.720 because I am at the beginning going to refer back to the beginning of chapter 4. With that, remember 00:03:32.720 --> 00:03:37.760 that this is God's Word. God tells us that the grass withers and the flower fades, but the Word of our 00:03:37.760 --> 00:03:43.680 God stands forever. And so that's why we read now Judges chapter 4, starting at verse 17. 00:03:45.280 --> 00:03:51.280 But Sisera fled away on foot to the tent of Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite, for there was peace. 00:03:51.360 --> 00:03:57.760 Between Jabin the king of Hatsor and the house of Heber the Kenite. And Jael came out to meet Sisera 00:03:57.760 --> 00:04:05.720 and said to him, Turn aside, my lord. Turn aside to me. Do not be afraid. So he turned aside to her 00:04:05.720 --> 00:04:14.060 into the tent, and she covered him with a rug. Verse 19. And he said to her, Please give me a little water 00:04:14.060 --> 00:04:22.060 to drink, for I am thirsty. So she opened a skin of milk and gave him a drink and covered him. And he 00:04:22.060 --> 00:04:28.980 said to her, Stand at the opening of the tent, and if any man comes and asks you, Is anyone here, say, 00:04:29.280 --> 00:04:36.540 No. But Jael, the wife of Heber, took a tent peg and took a hammer in her hand. Then she went softly 00:04:36.540 --> 00:04:42.760 to him and drove the peg into his temple until it went down into the ground while he was lying fast 00:04:42.760 --> 00:04:52.080 asleep from weariness. So he died. Verse 22. And behold, as Barak was pursuing Sisera, Jael went out 00:04:52.080 --> 00:04:58.700 to meet him and said to him, Come, and I will show you the man whom you are seeking. So he went into her 00:04:58.699 --> 00:05:06.899 tent, and there lay Sisera dead with the tent peg in his temple. So on that day God subdued Jabin the 00:05:06.899 --> 00:05:12.180 king of Canaan before the people of Israel. And the hand of the people of Israel pressed harder and 00:05:12.180 --> 00:05:19.279 harder against Jabin the king of Canaan until they destroyed Jabin king of Canaan. I invite you to pray 00:05:19.279 --> 00:05:26.519 with me as we come to this portion of God's word. Our Father in heaven, we praise you and thank you this 00:05:26.519 --> 00:05:31.959 morning that we are able to connect with each other virtually, even as we are separated physically. 00:05:32.399 --> 00:05:37.339 We do ask for the safety of our city and those in it, those on the roads, that you would protect them. 00:05:38.039 --> 00:05:42.819 And we ask that you would help us this morning as we dive into your word, that you would speak 00:05:42.819 --> 00:05:49.680 clearly to us, that you would remove the distractions that come with being virtual rather than in person, 00:05:50.079 --> 00:05:54.939 that you would still use your word in a powerful way in our lives, you'd speak clearly to us 00:05:54.939 --> 00:06:01.740 of your grace, and that we would respond with obedience and faith and love. And we ask these things in the 00:06:01.740 --> 00:06:04.180 mighty name of Jesus Christ. Amen. 00:06:07.420 --> 00:06:13.680 As we come into the story of JL, we are picking up in the middle, actually, of a larger story. 00:06:14.259 --> 00:06:18.959 And so it's important for us to remember what's happened before. If you have your Bible open, you can see 00:06:18.959 --> 00:06:26.560 earlier in the chapter, what we saw, I guess it was six weeks ago now. So verse six of chapter four, 00:06:26.719 --> 00:06:33.139 Deborah delivers this message to Barak, and she tells Barak, hey, it's your job to go and defeat 00:06:33.139 --> 00:06:40.620 Sisera. Remember, Sisera is working for Jabin king of Canaan. We see that in verse two. And then she doesn't 00:06:40.620 --> 00:06:46.159 just tell him what God's will is for him. She also gives him a great promise. Verse seven, she says, look, 00:06:46.160 --> 00:06:52.840 victory is yours. God is going to give you great success. So it's not just that you have this great 00:06:52.840 --> 00:06:58.080 task in front of you. You have everything that you need. You've been given a promise of God's support. 00:06:58.240 --> 00:07:05.920 You know that you're going to be victorious over Sisera. And so that's why it's so shocking in verse 00:07:05.920 --> 00:07:13.560 eight when Barak says, okay, I will go, but only under this one condition. I will go if you, Deborah, 00:07:13.560 --> 00:07:19.240 go with me. And that's where Deborah's sort of rebuke comes in in verse nine. She says, okay, 00:07:19.800 --> 00:07:25.300 I'll go with you, but you're not going to get the glory. The glory is going to go not to you. 00:07:25.639 --> 00:07:31.899 It's going to go to a woman. That's an important point to remember because as we head into this next 00:07:31.899 --> 00:07:37.399 part of the story, that theme, that idea of glory is going to continue. We are going to see that Barak 00:07:37.399 --> 00:07:43.279 does not give up on this idea of glory. And then in verses nine and 10, Deborah and Barak go down. 00:07:43.679 --> 00:07:49.139 And then in verses 11 through 16, we see that they waved war against Sisera. And at the very end, 00:07:49.259 --> 00:07:56.500 they rout them. So verse 16, all the army of Sisera fell by the edge of the sword. Not a man was left. 00:07:57.319 --> 00:08:01.659 That is where we pick up for this week. It's important for us to know that as we come into 00:08:01.660 --> 00:08:10.660 verse 17, but Sisera fled away on foot to the tent of Jael. For there was peace between Jabod, 00:08:10.720 --> 00:08:16.920 the king of Hathor and the house of Heber, the Kenai. Verse 16, we know that Barak is chasing him. 00:08:17.400 --> 00:08:23.020 And it's likely here, based on what we're told about Jael, this is maybe even a prearranged site. 00:08:23.540 --> 00:08:28.240 Sisera knows, hey, I have this person who I have an alliance with. If things go sideways, 00:08:28.240 --> 00:08:35.419 I can run there. We had a little footnote in the last section about this man, Heber, the Kenite. 00:08:35.620 --> 00:08:44.039 Verse 11, last time we were told he had separated from the Kenites. He'd moved from the south up to 00:08:44.039 --> 00:08:50.960 the north. Now, who are the Kenites? Well, we saw them in chapter one, verse 16. These are allies of 00:08:50.960 --> 00:08:55.799 the Israelites. They're the descendants of Moses's father-in-law. So they're not, they're not 00:08:55.799 --> 00:09:00.659 ethnically Israelites. They're more just associated with them. They work with them. They have an 00:09:00.659 --> 00:09:06.539 understanding with them. And so we would expect these folks to be loyal to Israel. And yet Heber, 00:09:06.599 --> 00:09:12.299 the Kenite, has gone off the map. He has decided instead he's actually going to have an alliance 00:09:12.299 --> 00:09:17.359 with Sisera, Jabin, the king of Hathor. And not only is he going to have an alliance with them, 00:09:17.359 --> 00:09:22.919 he's moved from the south up to the north. And so that helps us understand why Sisera thinks it's a 00:09:22.919 --> 00:09:30.659 good idea. He's fleeing this defeat that he should make it to the tent of JL. Sisera is on the run 00:09:30.659 --> 00:09:38.620 here. Verse 16, Barak is pursuing Sisera. And why is he pursuing him? Well, he's been told by God, 00:09:38.699 --> 00:09:45.120 remember in verse 9, Deborah gave him this word, hey, someone's going to receive the glory and the 00:09:45.120 --> 00:09:49.599 honor. It's just not going to be you. It's going to be a woman. Well, apparently, Barak thinks that 00:09:49.600 --> 00:09:56.460 he's going to be able to outrun this. Barak is going to somehow be able to overturn the word that 00:09:56.460 --> 00:10:03.500 Hekka has already given. And so one commentator says this, Barak is not only running after Sisera, 00:10:04.060 --> 00:10:14.060 he is running after glory. Will Barak be able to outwit God? Will he be able to overturn the verdict 00:10:14.059 --> 00:10:20.919 that has already been given? It's with that tension that we see Sisera running to the tent 00:10:20.919 --> 00:10:26.779 of JL. We understand there must be some sort of treaty between them, because it tells us there is 00:10:26.779 --> 00:10:32.679 peace between Jabin, the king of Hopsor, and Heber the Kenai. You'll remember, Jabin is Sisera's boss. 00:10:33.139 --> 00:10:41.699 So Sisera's boss has a treaty with JL's husband. JL here shows him, at least initially, 00:10:41.700 --> 00:10:47.660 great hospitality. She meets him, verse 18, says, hey, come in here. There's no need to be afraid. 00:10:47.780 --> 00:10:55.120 Of course, he knows, right? There's this treaty here. Then she gives him a little blanket and puts 00:10:55.120 --> 00:11:01.360 it over him, covers him with a rug. It's almost like there's this motherly overtone that JL is 00:11:01.360 --> 00:11:07.980 putting Sisera, in a sense, to bed. He asks for water, and she, being this just great, 00:11:07.980 --> 00:11:13.039 over-the-top host, decides, no, water's not good enough for you. Actually, I'm going to give you 00:11:13.039 --> 00:11:20.420 milk instead. And then he asks her to stand guard at the opening of the tent and to make sure if 00:11:20.420 --> 00:11:27.519 anyone comes that she tells them, no, there's no one there. So we see initially, JL is showing him 00:11:27.519 --> 00:11:33.740 this over-the-top hospitality, milk rather than water. She gives him a blanket. She practically 00:11:33.740 --> 00:11:41.080 tucks him into bed. She's there prepared to protect him. But then the story shifts a little 00:11:41.080 --> 00:11:47.960 bit, and she's not showing over-the-top hospitality. JL is actually showing the opposite of hospitality. 00:11:48.279 --> 00:11:56.639 Verse 21 is where the twist happens. She takes a tent peg and a hammer, and while Sisera is sleeping, 00:11:56.639 --> 00:12:02.899 she drives it through his head. So on the one hand, it looks like she's welcoming him with this 00:12:02.899 --> 00:12:09.039 ancient Near Eastern hospitality. On the other hand, she's been preparing this whole time to put 00:12:09.039 --> 00:12:18.500 him to bed, not for a little bit, but permanently. It's not just that Sisera here is killed. In fact, 00:12:18.539 --> 00:12:23.679 he has maybe the most disgraceful death that he could experience. He's killed not by another warrior. 00:12:23.679 --> 00:12:29.879 He's killed by a woman. And he's not just killed by a woman. She uses what would be considered to be a 00:12:29.879 --> 00:12:36.639 woman's instrument. The tent would have been considered to be the sphere that was under the control of the 00:12:36.639 --> 00:12:43.099 woman, and so a tent peg would have been a woman's tool in that time. So killed by a woman with a woman's 00:12:43.099 --> 00:12:48.959 tool, not while he's fighting and protecting himself, not in some valiant battle, but instead simply while 00:12:48.960 --> 00:12:56.639 he's sleeping. In other words, there is nothing honorable about Barak's death. God has taken the 00:12:56.639 --> 00:13:04.620 enemy of his people. He's put him to shame. He's disgraced him. It's with that that we then get to 00:13:04.620 --> 00:13:13.220 meet Barak again. He's coming in, verse 22, and you can imagine Barak is excited. It seems like maybe 00:13:13.220 --> 00:13:18.920 he's getting close to Sisera. He has exactly what he wants. JL comes out to meet him. Again, 00:13:19.000 --> 00:13:24.920 this is verse 22, and she says, come and I will show you the man whom you are seeking. Now we can 00:13:24.920 --> 00:13:30.000 imagine what's going through Sisera's mind at this point. He's been told he's not going to get the 00:13:30.000 --> 00:13:37.220 honor. It's going to go to a woman. But look, he's been successful. He has found this man. He's going to 00:13:37.220 --> 00:13:43.460 be the one to get the honor and the glory. He might be saying something to JL like this, don't worry, 00:13:43.560 --> 00:13:50.759 little lady, I'll take care of him. And so then he walks into the tent ready to be the mighty and 00:13:50.759 --> 00:13:58.860 victorious man who gets the victory. And he has the ultimate surprise, disappointment, and letdown. 00:13:58.860 --> 00:14:11.500 God's word has actually stood. God meant what he said. The glory does not go to Barak. It goes to jail. 00:14:12.620 --> 00:14:20.480 She's not presenting him a victim to be killed. She's presenting him with a corpse. His pursuit has 00:14:20.480 --> 00:14:31.159 not overturned God's word. His pursuit has proved God to be correct. It turns out that God was right 00:14:31.159 --> 00:14:36.600 when he spoke through Deborah in verse nine. The road on which you are going will not lead to your 00:14:36.600 --> 00:14:46.600 glory for the Lord will sell Sisera into the hand of a woman. Barak could not outwit or outrun God. 00:14:46.600 --> 00:14:59.700 Barak failed to take God at his word. Honor ultimately escapes the one who runs after it. 00:15:00.639 --> 00:15:07.800 Honor comes to the one who is faithful. And we see in this passage again, the same pattern that's come 00:15:07.800 --> 00:15:13.840 before in the scriptures and the pattern that will come after, which is that God uses unexpected people 00:15:13.840 --> 00:15:23.600 in unexpected ways to accomplish his purposes. Jael is the wrong person from every perspective. 00:15:24.440 --> 00:15:32.019 She's a woman. It's not just that she's a woman here in battle. It's that she is not even an Israelite 00:15:32.019 --> 00:15:39.420 woman. And it's not even that she's not an Israelite. It is that her husband is actually a military 00:15:39.419 --> 00:15:46.419 ally with Jabin, the king of Hazor. And so she's wrong from all these different perspectives. She's the wrong 00:15:46.419 --> 00:15:55.259 gender. She's the wrong ethnicity. She's the wrong alliance. And it's not even that. It's even more in verse nine 00:15:55.259 --> 00:16:02.219 when Deborah says, hey, I will go with you, but the Lord will sell Sisera into the hand of a woman. 00:16:02.360 --> 00:16:07.839 What would be our logical assumption there? Well, we would assume, especially if we were hearing this story 00:16:07.840 --> 00:16:13.019 for the first time, that Deborah is saying, I, Deborah, am going to receive the glory. 00:16:14.259 --> 00:16:20.399 And so this narrative, it surprises us at multiple points. It doesn't just surprise us that it's Jael. 00:16:20.720 --> 00:16:27.019 It surprises us that it is not Deborah. So that raises again the question that I mentioned at the 00:16:27.019 --> 00:16:36.840 very beginning. Why is it that God uses unexpected people? God uses unexpected people because God uses 00:16:36.840 --> 00:16:54.000 those who are obedient. God uses unexpected people because he uses those who take him at his word. 00:16:55.040 --> 00:17:02.500 God is not interested in who is the strongest, the wisest, the most gifted, or the most talented. 00:17:02.500 --> 00:17:13.579 God is not interested in the one that everyone else expects. God is interested in using the one who obeys. 00:17:14.779 --> 00:17:24.240 God, therefore, used Jael. He used Jael's violation of an alliance between her husband and this king. 00:17:24.240 --> 00:17:30.440 He uses her violation of these sacred ancient Near Eastern norms of hospitality. 00:17:31.519 --> 00:17:40.059 He upends what is expected of women in general and wives in particular. He upends what is expected of hosts. 00:17:40.859 --> 00:17:47.539 That, by the way, raises a tension in this story, which is what do we do with all of those unexpected things about Jael? 00:17:47.539 --> 00:17:58.019 Should we see her as someone who is wicked, but God uses for good ends? Should we see her as someone who is righteous, but God uses for good ends? 00:17:58.220 --> 00:18:10.920 Should we say that she did what she did in her way and that doesn't justify it? Like, how do we wrestle through all these things that Jael does that up in treaties and cultural norms and expectations? 00:18:10.920 --> 00:18:18.120 Well, one of the principles that we use when we read the Bible is we believe that Scripture interprets Scripture. 00:18:18.240 --> 00:18:22.039 In other words, one part of the Bible can help us to understand another part. 00:18:22.480 --> 00:18:27.039 Thankfully, then, we have chapter 5, which we'll see next week, which follows chapter 4. 00:18:27.480 --> 00:18:30.940 And chapter 5 helps us understand how we should think about Jael. 00:18:31.340 --> 00:18:40.100 Chapter 5, and this, if you want to look ahead, it's in verses 24 through 27, tells us about Jael, and it only speaks positively about her. 00:18:40.099 --> 00:18:44.259 It tells us about Jael, and it says she's the most blessed of women. 00:18:44.379 --> 00:18:48.099 She's the most blessed of those who live among tents. 00:18:48.519 --> 00:18:54.740 In other words, the view that we're given from the Bible of Jael is extremely positive. 00:18:55.839 --> 00:18:59.799 She is the one who obeys when no one else does. 00:19:00.319 --> 00:19:01.899 At least the one who obeys when Barak does. 00:19:02.000 --> 00:19:03.779 Deborah, obviously, is faithful. 00:19:04.539 --> 00:19:09.500 And so in the midst of all of that discussion about how to think of Jael, we don't want to miss the main point. 00:19:09.500 --> 00:19:12.059 Jael is the bravest of all. 00:19:13.279 --> 00:19:17.980 She is the one who remains faithful when others hesitate. 00:19:19.079 --> 00:19:20.019 Barak hesitates. 00:19:20.880 --> 00:19:23.079 Barak places conditions on his obedience. 00:19:24.279 --> 00:19:26.059 Jael does not hesitate. 00:19:26.859 --> 00:19:29.779 She places zero conditions on her obedience. 00:19:30.420 --> 00:19:33.480 In fact, Jael faces a much greater risk than Barak does. 00:19:33.779 --> 00:19:37.220 Barak has received a direct promise of success from God. 00:19:37.220 --> 00:19:40.279 We don't see something similar from Jael. 00:19:40.400 --> 00:19:45.019 All we see is that she understands which side she's on. 00:19:45.360 --> 00:19:50.019 She does not go after, as one person has said, after her husband's alliance. 00:19:50.140 --> 00:19:50.299 No. 00:19:50.660 --> 00:19:55.579 She remains faithful to God above everything else. 00:19:56.299 --> 00:20:00.079 She remains faithful and committed despite her husband. 00:20:00.079 --> 00:20:05.879 And she does whatever it takes to defeat God's enemies. 00:20:06.720 --> 00:20:10.159 So we see this ironic inversion in the story. 00:20:10.299 --> 00:20:11.359 I've mentioned this before. 00:20:11.359 --> 00:20:35.339 In fact, we're told this very thing in 1 Samuel 2. 00:20:35.339 --> 00:20:37.099 God says, 00:20:37.099 --> 00:20:44.139 For those who honor me I will honor, and those who despise me shall be lightly esteemed. 00:20:45.480 --> 00:20:46.779 Jael honors God. 00:20:47.579 --> 00:20:49.179 She takes great risk. 00:20:49.899 --> 00:20:51.720 And so she also receives honor. 00:20:51.819 --> 00:20:53.559 Not because she's looking for it. 00:20:53.799 --> 00:20:56.240 She's not running after it like Barak is. 00:20:56.480 --> 00:21:00.240 But because she obeys God above all else. 00:21:00.240 --> 00:21:05.519 Now the danger, as I say things like this, is that you might think, 00:21:05.640 --> 00:21:09.079 Well, I guess it's time for me to start using tent pegs. 00:21:09.920 --> 00:21:12.160 And of course I want to pull you back from that and remind you 00:21:12.160 --> 00:21:17.380 that in the Old Testament, we see things battle as very physical. 00:21:17.940 --> 00:21:21.900 In the New Testament, we see this shift to things being very spiritual. 00:21:22.200 --> 00:21:24.640 Now, I don't mean to create a false distinction there, 00:21:24.660 --> 00:21:26.339 but even in blessings in the Old Testament, 00:21:26.680 --> 00:21:28.700 blessings are spoken of in a physical way. 00:21:28.700 --> 00:21:32.080 In the New Testament, blessings are spoken of in a spiritual way. 00:21:32.539 --> 00:21:37.140 We also see here that God has given a direct mandate to Israel 00:21:37.140 --> 00:21:39.019 to go into this holy war. 00:21:39.120 --> 00:21:42.039 That's not something that we experience in the New Testament. 00:21:42.539 --> 00:21:46.279 And so instead, as we think about people who live in the age of the New Testament, 00:21:46.380 --> 00:21:50.039 the age of the church, what it looks like for us to be like Jael, 00:21:50.380 --> 00:21:55.580 it looks like us being willing to engage not in physical war, but spiritual war. 00:21:55.579 --> 00:22:01.179 If we were in person together this morning, we would have already read our New Testament reading, 00:22:01.519 --> 00:22:03.699 which was going to come from Ephesians chapter 6, 00:22:03.759 --> 00:22:06.279 which talks about putting on the whole armor of God. 00:22:06.659 --> 00:22:09.980 It talks about the reality that we see in the book of Ephesians. 00:22:10.359 --> 00:22:12.299 Ephesians chapter 6, verse 10 says, 00:22:12.419 --> 00:22:15.919 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. 00:22:15.920 --> 00:22:20.160 For us to be people who are like Jael, that's what we want to be. 00:22:20.240 --> 00:22:22.920 We want to stand strong in the Lord and the strength of his might, 00:22:23.320 --> 00:22:26.259 obeying him no matter the cost. 00:22:26.779 --> 00:22:31.900 We want to have the same kind of obedience that Jael has, which is risky obedience. 00:22:32.700 --> 00:22:36.519 Risky obedience means we share our hope in Jesus Christ, 00:22:36.880 --> 00:22:39.640 no matter what other people might think or say. 00:22:39.640 --> 00:22:46.900 It means we raise our children to love and know God, no matter the cost or the ridicule. 00:22:47.660 --> 00:22:52.200 It means that we value human life as something that's incredibly sacred, 00:22:52.420 --> 00:22:55.340 because we know that each person's made in the image of God, 00:22:55.540 --> 00:23:02.360 and we do that no matter what it costs us in our convenience, in our comfort, in our wealth. 00:23:02.359 --> 00:23:09.219 It means that we do what's right, even when the whole world is against us. 00:23:09.959 --> 00:23:16.639 We also see this other reminder with Jael, which is that sometimes leaders falter, 00:23:18.019 --> 00:23:21.319 and it's the little people who stand up strong. 00:23:22.719 --> 00:23:28.339 Sometimes the leaders of God's people are the ones who are filled with fear and cowardice. 00:23:28.399 --> 00:23:30.899 Sometimes it's the unexpected ones. 00:23:30.900 --> 00:23:35.660 Those who live in the corners of the room, the Jaels, 00:23:36.080 --> 00:23:41.920 who know God's promises, who believe them, and who take God at his word. 00:23:43.180 --> 00:23:45.160 Athanasius of Alexandria said this, 00:23:45.220 --> 00:23:49.620 If the world is against the truth, then I am against the world. 00:23:51.120 --> 00:23:55.060 Jael's husband's alliance, the rules of hospitality, 00:23:55.059 --> 00:24:01.599 the expectations on her as a woman were all against God's people and his plan. 00:24:02.799 --> 00:24:08.480 And so Jael was against all of those things, because she stood with God. 00:24:10.940 --> 00:24:15.440 Now how do we have this type of courage, this type of obedience? 00:24:15.819 --> 00:24:20.059 Well, we certainly don't have it by pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps. 00:24:20.879 --> 00:24:22.859 We certainly don't have it by willing it. 00:24:22.859 --> 00:24:27.759 What we know from the Bible is we actually need a new birth, a new heart, 00:24:27.859 --> 00:24:29.859 to be able to follow God in this way. 00:24:30.240 --> 00:24:33.199 That's what Jesus told Nicodemus in the Gospel of John. 00:24:33.679 --> 00:24:37.339 And so really we need to remember God's faithfulness and his promises to us. 00:24:37.459 --> 00:24:40.719 We obey in the way that Jael obeys, 00:24:40.720 --> 00:24:44.880 because and when we believe Psalm 20, verse 7, 00:24:45.000 --> 00:24:49.259 that some trust in chariots and some in horses. 00:24:50.019 --> 00:24:54.220 We trust in the name of the Lord our God. 00:24:56.000 --> 00:25:00.220 We obey because of what we see in Psalm 46, verses 1 and 2. 00:25:00.339 --> 00:25:04.019 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. 00:25:04.019 --> 00:25:07.480 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth gives way, 00:25:07.900 --> 00:25:11.299 though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea. 00:25:12.220 --> 00:25:16.599 We can be faithful because God has been faithful to us. 00:25:17.319 --> 00:25:21.639 We can obey because we know that his promises are true. 00:25:21.640 --> 00:25:27.400 I asked you at the beginning, why does God use unexpected people? 00:25:27.640 --> 00:25:29.340 And we've seen our first answer. 00:25:29.440 --> 00:25:32.580 He uses unexpected people because he uses obedient people. 00:25:33.180 --> 00:25:34.380 The second reason is this. 00:25:34.460 --> 00:25:37.380 He uses it for his own glory. 00:25:38.240 --> 00:25:39.720 We know from the New Testament, 00:25:39.920 --> 00:25:43.360 God uses the weak to shame the strong. 00:25:44.400 --> 00:25:49.200 God wants us to trust in him more than we trust in our methods, 00:25:49.200 --> 00:25:51.160 our skills, our ways. 00:25:52.540 --> 00:25:56.220 The glory of men comes to nothing 00:25:56.220 --> 00:25:59.280 so that the glory of God would be even greater. 00:26:01.940 --> 00:26:05.000 Isaiah 42, verse 8 says this, 00:26:05.060 --> 00:26:08.020 My glory I will not share with a man. 00:26:09.300 --> 00:26:13.560 God is not interested in sharing success with those who are hungry for glory. 00:26:13.560 --> 00:26:18.780 No, God is interested in us looking to him and trusting him alone. 00:26:18.779 --> 00:26:21.899 And so that's why as we look at this narrative, 00:26:22.039 --> 00:26:24.399 you know, it would be tempting for us to kind of get a, 00:26:24.859 --> 00:26:27.259 for me to give you kind of a go-girl message, right? 00:26:27.299 --> 00:26:32.160 We have Deborah and we have JL showing up and being brave where the men are weak. 00:26:32.160 --> 00:26:34.640 And that is true in a sense. 00:26:34.640 --> 00:26:38.540 But if we leave ourselves there, if we place the accent mark, 00:26:38.600 --> 00:26:42.019 if we underscore that, we have missed the point of this passage. 00:26:42.420 --> 00:26:48.820 Because verse 15 and verse 23 tell us who actually won. 00:26:49.240 --> 00:26:50.920 Verse 15 says this, 00:26:50.920 --> 00:27:04.039 Did Barak, did Deborah, did JL defeat Sisera? 00:27:05.080 --> 00:27:06.580 In a sense, yes. 00:27:07.240 --> 00:27:08.039 Ultimately, no. 00:27:09.019 --> 00:27:12.300 Ultimately, God won the victory. 00:27:12.299 --> 00:27:19.259 He used unexpected people so that we would see his glory and we would give it to him. 00:27:20.000 --> 00:27:22.279 Verse 23 tells us the same thing. 00:27:22.399 --> 00:27:29.680 So on that day, God subdued Jabin, the king of Canaan, before the people of Israel. 00:27:30.839 --> 00:27:33.059 Glory belongs to God. 00:27:33.419 --> 00:27:36.079 It belongs to God alone. 00:27:37.299 --> 00:27:41.879 God will honor whom he chooses to honor. 00:27:42.299 --> 00:27:45.960 God will use whom he uses. 00:27:47.419 --> 00:27:51.859 And God will give the glory to those who honor him. 00:27:53.000 --> 00:27:56.220 Those who honor me, I will honor them. 00:28:00.519 --> 00:28:04.279 And those who despise me shall be lightly esteemed. 00:28:05.059 --> 00:28:08.599 Now we're told the same thing in the New Testament in James chapter 4, verse 6. 00:28:08.599 --> 00:28:12.319 God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble. 00:28:13.819 --> 00:28:18.959 And so, brothers and sisters, God will accomplish his purposes no matter what. 00:28:20.079 --> 00:28:23.819 God will do what he has said he would do. 00:28:24.679 --> 00:28:26.899 Christian, trust him. 00:28:26.900 --> 00:28:30.240 Trust what he said. 00:28:31.120 --> 00:28:34.620 Follow him in courageous obedience. 00:28:37.019 --> 00:28:48.100 One theologian has pointed out that the image that we see here of Jael driving a stake through Sisera's head reminds us of God's promise in Genesis chapter 3, verse 15. 00:28:48.099 --> 00:28:52.079 That ultimately he is going to crush the head of the serpent. 00:28:52.179 --> 00:28:54.459 The serpent there being a representation of Satan. 00:28:54.859 --> 00:28:55.799 And what do we see here? 00:28:55.899 --> 00:29:01.019 We see someone whose name is Sisera, which sounds a lot like a snake. 00:29:01.899 --> 00:29:04.639 And what do we see but his head being crushed? 00:29:04.640 --> 00:29:11.960 And so, as believers in the New Testament, we know now how God has brought that promise to fulfillment. 00:29:12.440 --> 00:29:15.280 We know that he has crushed evil once and for all. 00:29:15.620 --> 00:29:20.160 He has crushed the head of the servant in his son and our Savior, our Lord Jesus. 00:29:20.740 --> 00:29:28.220 That we have already seen what a Jael or a Barak or a Deborah could only look forward to. 00:29:28.220 --> 00:29:36.559 We have seen the faithfulness of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, in destroying and defeating evil once and forever. 00:29:37.100 --> 00:29:42.900 And we see that he did that when our Lord Jesus came and he lived the perfect life that we should have lived. 00:29:43.420 --> 00:29:45.980 He died the death that we deserve to die. 00:29:46.299 --> 00:29:48.700 And what do we find in 1 Corinthians chapter 15? 00:29:48.819 --> 00:29:51.180 Paul tells us he's defeated the enemy. 00:29:51.299 --> 00:29:54.059 The last enemy to be defeated is death. 00:29:55.059 --> 00:29:56.779 And so that's where we gain our great confidence. 00:29:56.779 --> 00:29:58.839 We don't stir it up within ourselves. 00:29:59.319 --> 00:30:04.480 No, we gain our confidence from knowing that God has already crushed the head of the serpent. 00:30:04.980 --> 00:30:09.099 And so we have enormous confidence and trust in him. 00:30:11.160 --> 00:30:13.599 God will accomplish his purposes. 00:30:15.019 --> 00:30:18.480 And he will use the unexpected to do it. 00:30:19.259 --> 00:30:23.899 Because he uses those who are obedient for his own glory. 00:30:23.900 --> 00:30:29.640 Christian, will he use you? 00:30:31.720 --> 00:30:32.380 Let's pray. 00:30:34.180 --> 00:30:40.180 Our Father in heaven, we praise you and we thank you for your word and the encouragement that we find in it. 00:30:40.259 --> 00:30:42.700 We ask that you would be at work in our lives and our hearts. 00:30:42.700 --> 00:30:45.440 Reminding us that you have conquered evil. 00:30:46.100 --> 00:30:52.519 And using that to grow in us a great confidence in you that leads to courageous obedience. 00:30:52.860 --> 00:30:55.620 And we ask these things in the mighty name of Jesus Christ. 00:30:56.059 --> 00:30:56.340 Amen. 00:30:58.480 --> 00:31:00.700 Thanks to all of you for joining me this morning. 00:31:01.080 --> 00:31:02.440 And stay safe today. 00:31:02.539 --> 00:31:03.900 I look forward to seeing you all soon. 00:31:04.059 --> 00:31:04.640 Thanks so much. 00:31:04.900 --> 00:31:05.200 Bye-bye. 00:31:05.200 --> 00:31:35.180 Bye-bye.