WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.200 Well, we're here, this is the third and really the final interlude that we find in the narrative of the book of Judges, 00:00:07.860 --> 00:00:14.919 which as we have highlighted with Shamgar first and then more recently with Tola and Jair, 00:00:15.800 --> 00:00:22.080 that these are good opportunities for us to kind of take a step back and consider where we are in the larger context of the book. 00:00:22.300 --> 00:00:26.920 When we get into these major Judges, we get so into the details of their life, 00:00:26.920 --> 00:00:34.300 there's so much information about them there that it's easy to kind of get lost in the context of what this book is doing and what it's about. 00:00:34.939 --> 00:00:44.719 So God inspires this author, whomever he may have been, to include for us these little interludes, these minor Judges as we call them. 00:00:45.040 --> 00:00:49.480 Not minor in their significance, just minor in the information that we have about them. 00:00:49.719 --> 00:00:55.660 And he gives us opportunity to kind of step and just kind of reset and think, okay, where are we here? 00:00:55.659 --> 00:00:59.179 What's happening and what is all of this actually about? 00:00:59.819 --> 00:01:04.060 So remember that Judges is essentially a sermon. 00:01:04.599 --> 00:01:10.140 It's a sermon about, first, the downward spiral of apostasy. 00:01:10.840 --> 00:01:16.560 Apostasy being, we might define it as a willful turning away from God's truth. 00:01:17.000 --> 00:01:21.739 It is understanding God's truth, acknowledging that it is God's truth, 00:01:21.739 --> 00:01:25.159 but then still willingly turning away from it, knowing what you're doing. 00:01:25.219 --> 00:01:28.419 That's what Israel is doing over the course of this book. 00:01:28.539 --> 00:01:29.899 And it's a downward spiral. 00:01:30.060 --> 00:01:32.219 It gets worse and worse and worse. 00:01:32.459 --> 00:01:36.379 So it's a sermon, the book, first on the downward spiral of apostasy. 00:01:36.439 --> 00:01:41.979 But it's also a sermon about the enduring mercy and love of God for sinners. 00:01:42.859 --> 00:01:45.319 Why does he keep helping these people? 00:01:46.159 --> 00:01:47.239 Why does he do it? 00:01:47.239 --> 00:01:49.599 Because he's a merciful God. 00:01:49.959 --> 00:01:51.339 Because he loves them. 00:01:52.000 --> 00:01:53.539 Not because they've earned his love. 00:01:53.939 --> 00:01:56.239 Just because he loves them. 00:01:57.119 --> 00:01:59.319 And which is a pattern that we see all through the scriptures. 00:01:59.560 --> 00:02:02.219 And we're foolish if we don't see the pattern in our very lives. 00:02:02.979 --> 00:02:03.899 In ourselves. 00:02:04.619 --> 00:02:10.099 We have the same downward spiral of apostasy. 00:02:10.099 --> 00:02:13.079 That same tendency to turn away from God and to rebel. 00:02:13.080 --> 00:02:13.920 We have that. 00:02:14.040 --> 00:02:20.060 And yet God over and over and over comes with his mercy and his love and his grace for us. 00:02:20.500 --> 00:02:22.640 Not because we have deserved that. 00:02:22.860 --> 00:02:24.439 But just because he's merciful. 00:02:25.080 --> 00:02:26.660 And because he loves us. 00:02:27.060 --> 00:02:28.000 We haven't earned that love. 00:02:28.620 --> 00:02:29.820 He just loves us. 00:02:30.460 --> 00:02:32.080 And what a wonderful thing that is. 00:02:33.000 --> 00:02:36.000 Well the book is in narrative form, isn't it? 00:02:36.000 --> 00:02:45.759 But the author's aim wasn't merely to give us historical facts about Israel that he could pass from one generation to the other. 00:02:45.840 --> 00:02:47.300 That's not why he's writing. 00:02:48.680 --> 00:02:54.080 He is telling us actually declaring a message from God. 00:02:54.219 --> 00:02:55.740 A message about God. 00:02:55.740 --> 00:03:00.860 And he's using actual history from the nation of Israel to do that. 00:03:00.860 --> 00:03:14.240 And we've reached a point in the narrative here where due to their continued rejection of God, Israel's existence in the land, in the land of Canaan, is nothing like what it was meant to be. 00:03:14.860 --> 00:03:16.540 And now God is acting. 00:03:16.660 --> 00:03:18.520 It's not that he has left them. 00:03:18.840 --> 00:03:19.740 He's still active. 00:03:20.020 --> 00:03:23.740 He's sovereign in every circumstance over all of history. 00:03:24.140 --> 00:03:27.380 But he is acting from a position of silence now. 00:03:27.420 --> 00:03:28.840 And he's told them that plainly. 00:03:28.840 --> 00:03:30.900 I will deliver you no more. 00:03:31.740 --> 00:03:36.700 And in an ultimate sense, he's been true to that. 00:03:37.259 --> 00:03:44.039 We still see his work of mercy happening and unfolding in maybe subtle ways, but it's still there. 00:03:44.580 --> 00:03:49.580 But he has not given the land complete rest since the days of Gideon. 00:03:50.159 --> 00:03:54.759 And we're well beyond the years of Gideon and the life of Gideon at this point in the story. 00:03:54.759 --> 00:04:03.699 In fact, Israel's present enemy here, the Philistia, the Philistines, they're going to continue to assault Israel. 00:04:03.780 --> 00:04:10.280 They're going to continue to be a thorn in Israel's side, not just in the book of Judges, but even beyond it. 00:04:10.659 --> 00:04:15.500 As the narrative of Israel continues beyond Judges into 1 Samuel and King Saul. 00:04:15.500 --> 00:04:22.800 It won't be until King David that any resolution is actually brought to that particular issue. 00:04:23.339 --> 00:04:28.420 But beyond that, Israel at this point in Judges is self-destructing. 00:04:29.459 --> 00:04:31.040 They are turning on one another. 00:04:31.199 --> 00:04:34.379 And that's just going to get worse and worse as we move toward the end of the book. 00:04:34.600 --> 00:04:35.560 Here's the bottom line. 00:04:35.839 --> 00:04:39.079 The situation for Israel is really, really bad. 00:04:39.079 --> 00:04:43.939 And their extinction seems inevitable at this point. 00:04:44.479 --> 00:04:47.959 It's just a matter of time until they're just completely gone. 00:04:49.680 --> 00:04:55.219 Well, God hasn't given them over to total destruction as with other nations, though. 00:04:56.180 --> 00:05:02.620 And as we journey to the end of the book, it's worth asking the question of why that is. 00:05:03.620 --> 00:05:06.079 Why does he keep being patient with them? 00:05:06.079 --> 00:05:13.620 Why doesn't he just do away with them as he's done with many other nations and start over? 00:05:14.579 --> 00:05:16.159 What is it about Israel? 00:05:16.639 --> 00:05:20.459 What is it about the Lord that he doesn't do that? 00:05:21.599 --> 00:05:24.759 Well, he didn't spare Israel because of something good in them. 00:05:25.519 --> 00:05:29.079 He spared Israel because of something good in him. 00:05:29.079 --> 00:05:36.859 It is his faithfulness to his promise, his love for his chosen people, 00:05:37.099 --> 00:05:40.560 that prevents him from destroying them altogether. 00:05:41.560 --> 00:05:48.459 No matter how wickedly they act, God will fulfill his saving promise. 00:05:49.519 --> 00:05:54.659 And he's proven all through the book that he will judge their sin. 00:05:54.660 --> 00:06:07.540 But ultimately, in the end, he will bring a better Savior who will take that judgment for their sin on himself, 00:06:08.460 --> 00:06:13.300 a substitute for those who love and believe him. 00:06:14.300 --> 00:06:15.860 But that time hasn't come yet. 00:06:16.400 --> 00:06:19.720 It won't come for a very long time after the book of Judges. 00:06:19.720 --> 00:06:22.520 So what does God do in the meantime? 00:06:23.140 --> 00:06:31.080 He sends these other deliverers, saviors, judges, as they're referred to in this particular book. 00:06:31.880 --> 00:06:36.600 And what he does with them is he extends mercy and love to his people through them, 00:06:37.440 --> 00:06:41.660 constantly pointing their attention to a greater Savior that will one day come. 00:06:41.660 --> 00:06:50.620 And what we find in these verses that we just read is the very brief mention of three such deliverers. 00:06:51.540 --> 00:06:55.260 We may not know much about who they were or what they did, 00:06:55.380 --> 00:07:02.140 but they still point us to a better Savior who has done for us what no one else could ever do. 00:07:02.820 --> 00:07:03.780 And that's the point. 00:07:03.779 --> 00:07:11.259 And so what I'd like to do this morning is I want to just take a few minutes to examine as much as we can 00:07:11.259 --> 00:07:13.299 about what's here with these three men. 00:07:13.679 --> 00:07:21.759 But really what we want to do is we want to finish by seeing how the mention of them points us to the gospel of Jesus. 00:07:22.000 --> 00:07:22.139 Okay? 00:07:22.879 --> 00:07:26.579 You say, how can we find the gospel of Jesus in these little verses here? 00:07:26.859 --> 00:07:27.639 Well, I'm going to show you. 00:07:27.739 --> 00:07:27.879 Okay? 00:07:28.019 --> 00:07:30.639 But let's start with the examination of who they are. 00:07:30.639 --> 00:07:30.819 Okay? 00:07:31.039 --> 00:07:32.399 First up, Ibzan. 00:07:32.759 --> 00:07:32.979 Okay? 00:07:33.199 --> 00:07:33.539 Ibzan. 00:07:33.639 --> 00:07:34.099 Verse 8. 00:07:34.419 --> 00:07:36.899 After him, Ibzan of Bethlehem judged Israel. 00:07:38.019 --> 00:07:39.899 He had 30 sons and 30 daughters. 00:07:40.459 --> 00:07:42.459 He gave in marriage outside his clan. 00:07:43.719 --> 00:07:45.319 Can you imagine you moms? 00:07:45.979 --> 00:07:48.060 60 kids you got to wrestle with? 00:07:50.659 --> 00:07:54.939 30 daughters he brought in from outside for his sons, and he judged Israel seven years. 00:07:55.419 --> 00:07:58.279 Then Ibzan died and was buried at Bethlehem. 00:07:58.279 --> 00:08:00.599 Now, Ibzan was a man of Bethlehem. 00:08:00.799 --> 00:08:03.000 Probably not the one that you're thinking of, though. 00:08:03.779 --> 00:08:07.779 There were two cities in Israel that were named Bethlehem. 00:08:08.299 --> 00:08:13.819 The one we're familiar with was in the tribal allotment given to Judah. 00:08:13.819 --> 00:08:22.000 And it is often in the scripture mentioned with a qualifying description like Bethlehem Ephrathah, we see in the prophets. 00:08:22.779 --> 00:08:24.040 Bethlehem Ephrath. 00:08:24.540 --> 00:08:25.759 Bethlehem of Judah. 00:08:26.040 --> 00:08:30.100 Or Bethlehem in reference to the city of King David. 00:08:30.180 --> 00:08:36.559 And we see it mentioned all through the scriptures, but it almost always has one of those qualifying markers on it. 00:08:36.559 --> 00:08:50.659 Well, there was a lesser known Bethlehem in the tribal allotment given to Zebulun, which was in the northern region of the promised land that we know better as Galilee. 00:08:50.659 --> 00:08:53.519 Okay, so Judah is toward the south. 00:08:54.139 --> 00:08:58.319 Zebulun, along with many other of the smaller tribes, is in the north. 00:08:58.600 --> 00:09:00.860 And there's a Bethlehem in both places. 00:09:01.219 --> 00:09:01.419 Okay. 00:09:01.939 --> 00:09:07.159 The Bethlehem in view here with Ibzan is the Bethlehem in the north. 00:09:07.279 --> 00:09:10.500 The Bethlehem in the tribe of Zebulun. 00:09:10.500 --> 00:09:23.740 Now, that's worth knowing because it situates Ibzan's focus in a territory very close to where the previous conflicts in the book of Judges has taken place. 00:09:23.980 --> 00:09:25.320 I want you to think about this for a moment. 00:09:25.779 --> 00:09:29.960 We can go all the way back to Barak or Barak and Deborah. 00:09:30.080 --> 00:09:32.980 Remember, they had this massive battle. 00:09:33.159 --> 00:09:34.100 Guess where it was? 00:09:34.440 --> 00:09:38.980 It was in the north, in this northern region near Zebulun. 00:09:38.980 --> 00:09:41.720 Then we go from there to Gideon. 00:09:42.480 --> 00:09:44.620 And guess where Gideon's whole showdown was? 00:09:45.019 --> 00:09:45.960 Same region. 00:09:46.800 --> 00:09:47.860 We get to Jephthah. 00:09:48.320 --> 00:09:49.420 What's happening with Jephthah? 00:09:49.519 --> 00:09:53.420 Or excuse me, before we even get there, we get to Abimelech and the problems with Abimelech. 00:09:54.259 --> 00:09:55.600 Same general area. 00:09:56.340 --> 00:09:58.440 We get to Jephthah, and it's to the east. 00:09:58.659 --> 00:10:08.620 But when Jephthah turns in civil war against Ephraim, we're getting closer back over here to this northern, kind of central, northeastern area of the land of promise. 00:10:08.620 --> 00:10:11.519 Now, that's helpful for us when we're understanding the context here. 00:10:11.679 --> 00:10:17.080 Because we don't move from Jephthah to a completely different location, a completely different setting. 00:10:17.360 --> 00:10:24.080 All of these things are kind of happening in the same general area, which helps us understand a little bit of what Ibzan may have been doing. 00:10:24.080 --> 00:10:33.460 So in addition to that, we're told Ibzan had 60 children, which indicates that he had a harem of wives. 00:10:33.680 --> 00:10:35.920 I hope that wasn't one wife, poor woman. 00:10:36.580 --> 00:10:43.120 But a harem of wives, this would have been consistent with wealthy, powerful men of the time. 00:10:43.120 --> 00:10:50.080 But the focus, the distinction with Ibzan here is on his strategy for arranging his children's marriages. 00:10:50.659 --> 00:10:54.440 And that strategy is somewhat difficult for us to interpret. 00:10:55.500 --> 00:10:59.360 Was he trying to unite the tribes together? 00:10:59.960 --> 00:11:06.980 Is that why he was marrying all of his children outside of the clan of Zebulun, outside of his direct family? 00:11:07.580 --> 00:11:09.000 This was unusual for them. 00:11:09.139 --> 00:11:11.100 We don't necessarily expect them to do that. 00:11:11.320 --> 00:11:12.399 So why is he doing it? 00:11:12.399 --> 00:11:14.439 Well, maybe he's uniting the tribes together. 00:11:14.819 --> 00:11:20.439 Maybe he just wants to extend his own authority or his own power in some way. 00:11:21.579 --> 00:11:29.399 The passage doesn't explicitly tell us, but there must be a reason why the author included this particular note. 00:11:30.159 --> 00:11:34.100 Because when we get to Elon, it doesn't say anything about that. 00:11:34.699 --> 00:11:39.039 When we get to Abdon, we see the kids, but we don't see any kind of strategy for how he married the kids. 00:11:39.039 --> 00:11:42.000 Why does the author put this here? 00:11:42.399 --> 00:11:51.840 And I tend to think that this was the primary way that Ibzan worked as a deliverer of God's people. 00:11:51.959 --> 00:11:58.480 That this was the characteristic, the nature of his judgeship in Israel. 00:11:59.319 --> 00:12:01.000 Let's flesh that out for just a second. 00:12:01.000 --> 00:12:11.480 We know that the Philistines were operating at this time in the south, but that's not quite very close to where Ibzan is at this point. 00:12:12.100 --> 00:12:15.399 So we know that he's probably not fighting all Philistines. 00:12:15.399 --> 00:12:24.720 We also know that Ammon, the enemy to the east that was encroaching in closer and closer, they've already been dealt with, right? 00:12:25.259 --> 00:12:27.059 God used Jephthah to deal with them. 00:12:27.139 --> 00:12:28.600 They've been completely subdued. 00:12:28.600 --> 00:12:35.139 So when we come to Ibzan here, we find that because he immediately follows Jephthah, 00:12:36.019 --> 00:12:40.800 there's no reason for us to think that there was an external enemy for him to fight. 00:12:41.180 --> 00:12:43.139 That's not what his work as a judge was. 00:12:43.240 --> 00:12:51.360 Rather, his work as a judge was to restore what had been broken by Ammon and Jephthah. 00:12:51.360 --> 00:13:01.019 And I think he was attempting to unite the people together through marriage after Jephthah had just torn them apart with civil war. 00:13:02.060 --> 00:13:06.560 42,000 Ephraimites were just slaughtered by the people of Gilead. 00:13:07.279 --> 00:13:08.879 Well, Ephraim's real close to Zebulun. 00:13:08.960 --> 00:13:09.800 There's a lot happening. 00:13:10.060 --> 00:13:11.919 Perhaps Ibzan, he sees the brokenness. 00:13:12.100 --> 00:13:13.720 He recognizes the brokenness. 00:13:13.840 --> 00:13:16.860 God raises him up in a place of authority and leadership. 00:13:16.860 --> 00:13:20.759 And the way he exercises that leadership is with his 60 children. 00:13:20.759 --> 00:13:22.139 He marries them off. 00:13:22.200 --> 00:13:23.379 He's trying to bring peace. 00:13:23.620 --> 00:13:26.120 He's trying to restore what's been broken among the people. 00:13:26.319 --> 00:13:28.600 I tend to think that's probably what's happening here. 00:13:29.860 --> 00:13:35.080 Of course, the plan, well-meaning as it might have been, had many flaws. 00:13:35.980 --> 00:13:42.840 Not the least of which was polygamy or the objectification of women and children for political gain. 00:13:43.500 --> 00:13:44.439 Those are problems. 00:13:45.200 --> 00:13:46.179 Those are sins. 00:13:46.179 --> 00:13:49.319 And of course, none of these men are perfect men. 00:13:49.320 --> 00:13:51.740 But those aren't the biggest failures here. 00:13:52.820 --> 00:14:04.480 The biggest failure was that the fundamental objective, unity through marriage, was destined to fail from the very beginning. 00:14:05.520 --> 00:14:06.160 And here's why. 00:14:06.159 --> 00:14:23.639 Unity among God's people can only truly exist when a shared love of, faith in, and obedience to God is the source of that unity. 00:14:23.639 --> 00:14:41.279 Unity among God's people cannot truly exist unless loving God, believing God, and obeying God is the thing that brings those people together. 00:14:41.279 --> 00:14:47.559 It's great if we find commonality in other interests in relationships. 00:14:47.959 --> 00:14:49.519 It's not that that's a problem. 00:14:49.519 --> 00:14:59.899 But it's only when the gospel of Jesus is the central focus of our togetherness that we will display the glory of God. 00:15:01.819 --> 00:15:10.059 God desires that our unity together be centered on knowing him, which is the only way it will ever last. 00:15:10.579 --> 00:15:12.939 We talked about this in our most recent members meeting. 00:15:12.940 --> 00:15:19.240 Andy had given me a book that was so helpful in helping me understand this. 00:15:19.740 --> 00:15:27.120 That one of the things that displays the glory of God in the local church is the fact that it's kind of a ticking time bomb. 00:15:28.620 --> 00:15:37.360 That God brings together all kinds of different people from all kinds of different backgrounds who have all kinds of different opinions about all kinds of different things. 00:15:38.080 --> 00:15:41.660 It's just like a bomb waiting to go off. 00:15:41.659 --> 00:15:50.860 And as soon as we start to turn our attention, as soon as we start to make our unity about something other than Jesus, that's when the bomb goes off. 00:15:51.740 --> 00:15:53.299 That's when the conflict happens. 00:15:53.419 --> 00:15:55.459 That's when things really mess up. 00:15:55.539 --> 00:16:04.799 But so long as the focus is on Christ, so long as what brings us together is our common love for God and our faith in his word and our obedience to him, 00:16:04.799 --> 00:16:09.399 those are the things that will help us love the people that we don't really like. 00:16:11.659 --> 00:16:20.500 I think that's what's happening with Ibzan. 00:16:21.539 --> 00:16:22.600 Good motive. 00:16:23.600 --> 00:16:25.579 He recognizes a real problem. 00:16:27.000 --> 00:16:28.799 But it didn't have any legs. 00:16:30.539 --> 00:16:37.839 It couldn't survive this way because that's not what unity as God's people actually means. 00:16:37.939 --> 00:16:38.959 It's not what it looks like. 00:16:38.960 --> 00:16:45.960 I think this has become a glaring failure in the ministry of many modern churches. 00:16:46.280 --> 00:16:48.560 We can take maybe a different angle at it now. 00:16:50.720 --> 00:16:55.740 It's not that churches are always abandoning Jesus and his gospel. 00:16:58.080 --> 00:17:01.660 It's just easy to let other things become the focus of our unity. 00:17:01.659 --> 00:17:04.480 Think for just a moment. 00:17:04.619 --> 00:17:11.139 What is the main criteria that people use when looking for a church or deciding to leave a church? 00:17:13.019 --> 00:17:24.859 Certain programs, styles of worship, political engagement and preferences, generational dynamics even, 00:17:24.859 --> 00:17:29.019 have become the issues that some people are building their church upon. 00:17:30.379 --> 00:17:33.419 Think about that generational dynamic for just as one example. 00:17:34.619 --> 00:17:39.699 There are churches who have just decided we want everybody to come, 00:17:40.000 --> 00:17:45.599 but we're really going to target the people who are maybe young couples with kids. 00:17:45.699 --> 00:17:47.039 Like that's where the money is. 00:17:47.139 --> 00:17:48.419 That's where the time is. 00:17:48.420 --> 00:17:50.240 That's where the energy is going to be right now. 00:17:50.480 --> 00:17:52.700 So we're going to gear everything that we're doing toward them. 00:17:52.980 --> 00:17:55.140 And their unity, it's not really about Jesus now. 00:17:55.380 --> 00:18:00.640 Their unity is about how many people within this generational demographic can we bring together 00:18:00.640 --> 00:18:05.580 so that our church looks like what we want it to look like, this vision that we have. 00:18:07.180 --> 00:18:08.880 And the focus turns off of Jesus. 00:18:09.140 --> 00:18:10.320 It's not that they've abandoned him. 00:18:10.420 --> 00:18:12.259 It's not that they've changed their stance on the gospel. 00:18:12.259 --> 00:18:17.879 They've just moved their focus away from Jesus to something that doesn't, it's not going to last. 00:18:18.460 --> 00:18:21.180 Because those young families aren't going to stay young families. 00:18:22.000 --> 00:18:23.220 They're going to get old. 00:18:24.059 --> 00:18:26.440 And one day that generational dynamic is going to change. 00:18:26.559 --> 00:18:28.039 It can't last that way. 00:18:28.099 --> 00:18:29.140 It just doesn't work. 00:18:30.160 --> 00:18:30.940 It doesn't work. 00:18:33.099 --> 00:18:37.420 Their statement of faith may be biblically sound, but their unity isn't about the Lord. 00:18:37.420 --> 00:18:43.060 They may be purely motivated, well-meaning, but in the end it just won't work. 00:18:43.440 --> 00:18:50.460 If fearing God isn't what brings us together, and if the gospel of Jesus isn't the focus of all that we do, 00:18:51.019 --> 00:18:55.320 our church, Lakeside Bible Church, is either going to die, 00:18:55.980 --> 00:19:03.779 or it's going to succeed in ways that are eternally fruitless, that just won't matter. 00:19:03.779 --> 00:19:07.480 You say, how do we avoid this? 00:19:07.980 --> 00:19:09.700 How do we avoid this tendency as a church? 00:19:10.680 --> 00:19:13.019 We stay gospel-focused in what we do. 00:19:13.799 --> 00:19:15.079 That's hard work. 00:19:16.220 --> 00:19:20.160 We preach the gospel to ourselves, not Sunday by Sunday, day by day. 00:19:21.359 --> 00:19:27.519 And the next time that conflict is starting to peak its head around the corner between you and that other person, 00:19:27.639 --> 00:19:30.960 stop and ask yourself, what good is it for me to enter this? 00:19:30.960 --> 00:19:36.079 Does it serve the purpose of the gospel, or am I making too much of something that I should? 00:19:38.019 --> 00:19:38.420 Evangelism. 00:19:39.779 --> 00:19:43.200 Not just trying to come up with all kinds of programs that we can put on a website 00:19:43.200 --> 00:19:45.319 and say, you know, we've got all the offerings. 00:19:45.460 --> 00:19:46.380 We're the Walmart church. 00:19:46.460 --> 00:19:48.700 You can come and you can do all your shopping in one place. 00:19:49.380 --> 00:19:49.940 Just come here. 00:19:50.039 --> 00:19:51.700 That's not what's going to do it. 00:19:53.279 --> 00:19:54.279 Evangelism's going to do it. 00:19:54.279 --> 00:19:57.799 Actually talking to your neighbors about Jesus. 00:19:58.399 --> 00:20:01.960 Actually bringing up the gospel message to someone that you work with. 00:20:02.220 --> 00:20:04.779 Actually going to our community at an outreach event or whatever. 00:20:04.940 --> 00:20:07.700 Trying to engage people about the gospel of Jesus. 00:20:08.139 --> 00:20:09.740 Make it about Jesus. 00:20:09.740 --> 00:20:10.099 Jesus. 00:20:11.440 --> 00:20:14.799 It will mean that sometimes we're going to have to let some things go. 00:20:16.200 --> 00:20:19.039 The Bible says love covers a multitude of sins. 00:20:19.440 --> 00:20:21.380 There's going to be people that sin against you. 00:20:21.819 --> 00:20:23.980 And those things need to be dealt with from time to time. 00:20:24.039 --> 00:20:26.640 But there could be some things that just says, you know what, I love this person. 00:20:26.980 --> 00:20:28.819 And I'm just going to let this one go. 00:20:30.140 --> 00:20:31.160 Because I love them. 00:20:32.579 --> 00:20:33.759 You say, I don't know how to do that. 00:20:33.839 --> 00:20:35.079 Well, just look at your marriage. 00:20:35.120 --> 00:20:36.500 You've probably done that a million times. 00:20:36.500 --> 00:20:39.740 Yeah, that's just how he is. 00:20:40.099 --> 00:20:40.480 It's okay. 00:20:40.579 --> 00:20:41.019 I love him. 00:20:42.299 --> 00:20:43.960 You can't do that with people in your church. 00:20:47.119 --> 00:20:48.500 As one author puts it. 00:20:49.680 --> 00:20:52.519 We're going to have to learn to love the ones who drive us crazy. 00:20:54.259 --> 00:20:56.160 Because all of us are driving somebody crazy. 00:20:58.440 --> 00:21:02.519 And if Jesus is the thing that has brought us together, we can get through that. 00:21:03.220 --> 00:21:04.220 We can get through that. 00:21:04.279 --> 00:21:04.940 And the Lord can use us. 00:21:04.940 --> 00:21:08.580 And what we end up doing in the process is we display God's glory. 00:21:09.860 --> 00:21:11.500 We display God's glory. 00:21:11.960 --> 00:21:14.940 We glorify the gospel in that. 00:21:16.860 --> 00:21:26.840 Ibzan might have created a bond between certain clans and tribes that provided a measure of healing and security after they had gone through a difficult time. 00:21:26.940 --> 00:21:28.160 We can't discount that. 00:21:28.980 --> 00:21:31.539 That's probably true of his leadership. 00:21:31.539 --> 00:21:37.200 But he still couldn't unite the nation in a way that ultimately pleased God. 00:21:37.200 --> 00:21:43.500 As long as the method was unity through marriage rather than unity through worship. 00:21:43.500 --> 00:21:47.039 And that was the fundamental flaw. 00:21:47.279 --> 00:21:48.799 And you say, well, Jared, I think you're reaching on that. 00:21:48.859 --> 00:21:50.059 You probably made a little too much of it. 00:21:50.099 --> 00:21:50.579 Well, that's okay. 00:21:51.400 --> 00:21:52.900 We'll move on to Elon then, okay? 00:21:53.500 --> 00:21:54.700 Elon is the second one. 00:21:55.539 --> 00:21:56.200 Verse 11. 00:21:56.200 --> 00:22:12.360 Well, there's less information given about Elon than any other judge in the book. 00:22:12.359 --> 00:22:14.039 We know his name. 00:22:14.219 --> 00:22:15.439 We know where he was from. 00:22:15.759 --> 00:22:19.959 We know that he was a judge, that he did that for 10 years, and that he died. 00:22:20.539 --> 00:22:21.279 That's it. 00:22:22.799 --> 00:22:24.559 But we can discern a couple of things. 00:22:24.819 --> 00:22:32.919 That he and Ibzan were both from Zebulun suggest that he picked up where Ibzan left off after his death. 00:22:33.419 --> 00:22:34.679 Notice the phrasing here. 00:22:35.179 --> 00:22:39.939 After him, after Ibzan, rose Elon. 00:22:40.580 --> 00:22:42.360 They're both from the same general area. 00:22:42.820 --> 00:22:43.920 Perhaps they knew each other. 00:22:44.019 --> 00:22:47.340 Perhaps he's just kind of stepping up where Ibzan left off. 00:22:48.039 --> 00:22:51.000 But there is a unique connotation to his mention here. 00:22:51.360 --> 00:22:54.779 He's not called Elon from such and such place like Bethlehem. 00:22:54.779 --> 00:22:57.940 He's called Elon the Zebulunite, almost like a title given. 00:22:58.660 --> 00:23:02.039 Which means that there is something specific maybe we need to draw from that. 00:23:03.480 --> 00:23:07.820 Now, Zebulun, the people of Zebulun, there's negative connotations in chapter 1. 00:23:07.819 --> 00:23:11.480 Because like all the other tribes, they didn't drive the people of the land out. 00:23:11.759 --> 00:23:18.779 But since then, in the book of Judges, the men of Zebulun have come to be known as really courageous warriors. 00:23:19.579 --> 00:23:26.639 They willingly answer the call to fight alongside Barak and alongside Gideon. 00:23:27.039 --> 00:23:28.720 They're active in both places. 00:23:29.240 --> 00:23:31.500 They're not said to have been active with Jephthah. 00:23:31.819 --> 00:23:34.899 But Jephthah didn't go all the way to Zebulun to recruit them either. 00:23:34.900 --> 00:23:38.360 He stopped at Manasseh. 00:23:38.680 --> 00:23:43.900 So, we see that what we see elsewhere in the book is that they were fighters. 00:23:44.100 --> 00:23:45.100 They were willing to fight. 00:23:45.720 --> 00:23:52.880 So, the emphasis on Elon as a Zebulunite may indicate his capability in battle. 00:23:53.700 --> 00:23:57.980 So, perhaps his efforts as a judge of the people, a deliverer of the people, 00:23:58.120 --> 00:24:02.620 had to do with providing security at a time when they were really vulnerable. 00:24:02.619 --> 00:24:03.059 Okay? 00:24:03.259 --> 00:24:10.379 So, if Ibzan is the networker, then Elon is the security guy. 00:24:10.579 --> 00:24:11.659 He's the security guard. 00:24:12.139 --> 00:24:15.079 And that's the way that perhaps the two of them were helping. 00:24:15.699 --> 00:24:18.259 Well, aside from that, we don't know anything about him. 00:24:18.579 --> 00:24:19.319 But that's okay. 00:24:19.899 --> 00:24:23.859 Because there's a point to his inclusion that we're going to get to here in just a minute. 00:24:23.859 --> 00:24:24.199 Okay? 00:24:24.779 --> 00:24:26.819 Third guy, Abdon. 00:24:27.399 --> 00:24:28.299 Verse 13. 00:24:29.679 --> 00:24:37.279 After him, that is after Elon, Abdon the son of Hillel, the Parathonite, judged Israel. 00:24:37.740 --> 00:24:39.919 He had 40 sons and 30 grandsons. 00:24:40.000 --> 00:24:43.139 So, now we're up to a lot more than even what Ibzan had. 00:24:43.140 --> 00:24:46.580 These guys rode on 70 donkeys. 00:24:47.280 --> 00:24:49.180 And he judged Israel eight years. 00:24:50.620 --> 00:24:58.840 Then Abdon, the son of Hillel, the Parathonite, died and was buried at Parathon in the land of Ephraim in the hill country of the Amalekites. 00:24:59.580 --> 00:25:07.440 So, we get here and it seems like the characteristics of Abdon's tenure are a combination of the other two judges. 00:25:08.320 --> 00:25:11.360 Most notably, he's from Ephraim. 00:25:11.359 --> 00:25:14.559 Now, this should mean something to us now, right? 00:25:15.299 --> 00:25:27.379 Because it's only been about 15 years, maybe 20, since Gilead and Ephraim went to civil war and 42,000 Ephraimites died. 00:25:28.519 --> 00:25:30.619 And he's coming not too long after that. 00:25:31.879 --> 00:25:36.240 His own tribe, his own people would have been desperate for care at this point. 00:25:36.240 --> 00:25:49.140 And Abdon, with his 70 sons and grandsons, step up, it seems, and made a name for themselves as helping to deliver their people, deliver the nation. 00:25:49.539 --> 00:25:59.380 Now, believe it or not, the best clue about the nature of Abdon's leadership is that his sons and his grandsons rode on 70 donkeys. 00:25:59.380 --> 00:26:02.820 That's the best clue, and it's a helpful one, actually. 00:26:03.740 --> 00:26:10.420 At that time, donkeys were used for two things, work and ceremony. 00:26:11.360 --> 00:26:12.600 Let me give you an example. 00:26:13.260 --> 00:26:16.840 Do you remember when Jesus had his triumphal entry into the city of Jerusalem? 00:26:16.839 --> 00:26:22.659 And it was imperative that he ride on a donkey's colt that had never been ridden on before. 00:26:23.379 --> 00:26:26.000 There was ceremonial significance to that. 00:26:26.879 --> 00:26:32.959 It was a symbol of royalty that they would ride on donkeys in these ceremonies that had never been ridden before. 00:26:33.059 --> 00:26:36.119 It was preserved just for that moment, just for those people. 00:26:36.599 --> 00:26:43.740 But the other thing that a donkey would be used for is work, farming, building, construction, all the things that Ephraim needed. 00:26:43.740 --> 00:26:46.799 And both of those uses are probably in view here. 00:26:47.660 --> 00:26:49.460 Abdon's family had power. 00:26:50.160 --> 00:26:53.839 They had wealth, all consistent with a tribal king. 00:26:54.339 --> 00:27:07.140 And his usefulness in delivering the Ephraimites likely had to do with building a future for those families who lost fathers and sons and brothers in the war with Gilead. 00:27:08.059 --> 00:27:09.480 But that's all we know. 00:27:10.720 --> 00:27:12.440 All right, let's bring it all together now. 00:27:13.740 --> 00:27:16.400 There are some commonalities between the three judges. 00:27:17.519 --> 00:27:22.960 All of them led the nation in the aftermath of civil war. 00:27:25.000 --> 00:27:30.200 Silently, God was using them to care for his people. 00:27:31.200 --> 00:27:39.460 He was using them to provide healing, security, restoration from war. 00:27:39.460 --> 00:27:41.900 We can't discount that. 00:27:42.079 --> 00:27:44.059 God's using them even with their flaws. 00:27:45.120 --> 00:27:50.079 Praise God for that, that he would use any of us even with our flaws and our sins. 00:27:50.079 --> 00:28:00.740 But our disappointment with these three men is that all we can discern of their leadership was civil, not spiritual. 00:28:00.740 --> 00:28:05.839 Now, that doesn't mean that they didn't worship God. 00:28:06.079 --> 00:28:09.759 It doesn't mean that they didn't exercise spiritual leadership in some way. 00:28:09.960 --> 00:28:11.539 They just aren't noted for it either. 00:28:11.539 --> 00:28:14.500 That wasn't the thing that marked them. 00:28:14.500 --> 00:28:21.519 It wasn't that Ibzan was a worshiper of God and he loved God and he tried to point the people's hearts back to truly worshiping God. 00:28:21.659 --> 00:28:24.240 Surely the author would have included that if that was true. 00:28:24.759 --> 00:28:27.379 He includes it with the other people that it's true with. 00:28:27.380 --> 00:28:33.400 But none of these men are mentioned for their spiritual leadership, only for their civic leadership. 00:28:34.580 --> 00:28:37.200 And Israel certainly needed strong civic leaders. 00:28:37.600 --> 00:28:40.320 But they needed spiritual leadership most of all. 00:28:42.540 --> 00:28:51.580 The rebuilding of society in and around Ephraim wouldn't matter in the long term if the people continued to forget the Lord. 00:28:51.579 --> 00:28:57.079 It was their apostasy that got them into the mess. 00:28:57.559 --> 00:29:02.759 And it would only be repentance and faith that would lead them out of the mess. 00:29:03.559 --> 00:29:09.539 So as much as we'd like to come to these three guys and think, okay, things are going to start to turn around for Israel at this point. 00:29:09.619 --> 00:29:11.859 Look at the restoration work that they're doing. 00:29:12.119 --> 00:29:14.980 Unfortunately, things in Israel stayed much the same. 00:29:15.720 --> 00:29:18.919 They even get worse if you can believe it. 00:29:18.920 --> 00:29:22.519 And there's a simple lesson in this for us. 00:29:23.539 --> 00:29:36.039 We can experience success and progress in many ways that will mean nothing, nothing, if we haven't been reconciled to God. 00:29:37.360 --> 00:29:38.880 Those things will mean nothing. 00:29:39.860 --> 00:29:42.519 We can raise our kids to be wildly successful. 00:29:43.140 --> 00:29:46.759 We can work to build a life of comfort and security for our families. 00:29:46.759 --> 00:29:51.579 We can make efforts to improve the society and the culture in which we live. 00:29:52.079 --> 00:29:53.900 We can even build a church ministry. 00:29:54.460 --> 00:30:01.359 But if we do not lead others to know and love Jesus, we will have done nothing of lasting value for them. 00:30:02.940 --> 00:30:05.160 All of those other things are temporary. 00:30:05.359 --> 00:30:05.779 They're temporal. 00:30:05.940 --> 00:30:06.940 They will go away. 00:30:07.599 --> 00:30:08.440 They will fail. 00:30:08.440 --> 00:30:13.860 And if we haven't led them to know and love Jesus, we've failed them. 00:30:13.859 --> 00:30:25.139 And even the best of motives won't be able to make up for the wrong emphasis and the wrong priorities in what we do. 00:30:26.240 --> 00:30:28.939 Isn't this what Jesus is getting at in Mark 8? 00:30:29.659 --> 00:30:30.379 When he says, 00:30:30.599 --> 00:30:35.059 What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and yet forfeit his soul? 00:30:35.059 --> 00:30:38.879 For what can a man give in return for his soul? 00:30:39.779 --> 00:30:40.740 You can be successful. 00:30:40.879 --> 00:30:45.379 You can do a lot of philanthropic work that is wonderful and should be celebrated. 00:30:45.859 --> 00:30:50.759 But if you don't help people know Jesus, you're not really helping them in the long run. 00:30:52.440 --> 00:30:54.299 Well, let's turn the angle a little bit again. 00:30:56.099 --> 00:31:01.500 This also tells us of the dangers of looking for salvation in all the wrong places. 00:31:01.500 --> 00:31:14.660 At the end of the day, if the people in Ephraim and Zebulun and anywhere else in Israel had decided they were going to put all of their hope and faith in Ibzan and Elon and Abdon, they were fools. 00:31:16.160 --> 00:31:19.440 Because Ibzan and Elon and Abdon all failed. 00:31:20.640 --> 00:31:24.539 At least in what mattered most, they failed. 00:31:27.359 --> 00:31:28.759 And we do the same thing. 00:31:28.759 --> 00:31:33.700 We put our trust in so many things that will ultimately fail. 00:31:35.539 --> 00:31:49.440 We live as if things that really only bring momentary happiness will be the same things that fill the void, that bring true and lasting fulfillment. 00:31:49.700 --> 00:31:51.480 And it just never works that way. 00:31:51.480 --> 00:31:55.259 We look to relationships. 00:31:56.400 --> 00:31:57.880 We look to wealth. 00:31:58.819 --> 00:32:00.620 We look to successes. 00:32:01.339 --> 00:32:06.299 We look to societal movements to satisfy our longings. 00:32:06.799 --> 00:32:15.579 To try to bring an end to the brokenness that we immediately feel and never can seem to escape. 00:32:15.579 --> 00:32:19.199 We're looking for all kinds of things to do that. 00:32:21.199 --> 00:32:25.519 At one point in our lives, we think, you know, if I could just get married, I'll be happy. 00:32:25.659 --> 00:32:26.939 Things will be better for me. 00:32:27.099 --> 00:32:29.659 And then you get married and you realize, no, that didn't work. 00:32:29.919 --> 00:32:35.220 Maybe if I have kids, the kids will bring me the happiness and the joy and the fulfillment. 00:32:35.220 --> 00:32:39.299 But that doesn't work either because, let's be honest, they can be a handful. 00:32:40.400 --> 00:32:41.200 And we love them. 00:32:42.240 --> 00:32:43.799 But they fail us too, don't they? 00:32:45.240 --> 00:32:50.680 You can say, well, if I can just improve my community, things will be better. 00:32:50.860 --> 00:32:54.299 And maybe they help, but it still doesn't work. 00:32:54.299 --> 00:32:57.019 All of those things are fragile. 00:32:57.159 --> 00:32:58.259 They're fruitless saviors. 00:32:59.579 --> 00:33:01.099 People disappoint us. 00:33:01.779 --> 00:33:04.259 Jobs and wealth can vanish in just a moment. 00:33:04.899 --> 00:33:07.379 Cultural circumstances are constantly changing. 00:33:08.339 --> 00:33:09.599 None of those things last. 00:33:10.039 --> 00:33:10.700 But here's the thing. 00:33:11.259 --> 00:33:13.399 None of those things are our greatest need either. 00:33:15.919 --> 00:33:21.039 The insufficiencies that we find in relationships and in culture 00:33:21.039 --> 00:33:24.639 and in all the other things that we try to put our trust in. 00:33:25.000 --> 00:33:29.519 The insufficiency in those things are appointed by God 00:33:29.519 --> 00:33:34.339 to reveal to us our real need and our true hope. 00:33:35.639 --> 00:33:40.079 Our real need, our greatest need, is to be reconciled to God. 00:33:41.220 --> 00:33:42.980 That's the reason for the brokenness. 00:33:44.740 --> 00:33:48.299 The brokenness isn't because we just haven't evolved enough to figure it out. 00:33:48.720 --> 00:33:50.500 The brokenness is because we're sinners. 00:33:51.859 --> 00:33:54.240 Our sinfulness, it makes us God's enemies. 00:33:55.180 --> 00:33:57.579 It makes us destined for his eternal wrath. 00:33:58.879 --> 00:34:01.240 But he graciously withholds that wrath. 00:34:01.339 --> 00:34:02.659 That's what's so amazing about it. 00:34:02.899 --> 00:34:04.819 He graciously withholds that wrath. 00:34:05.079 --> 00:34:06.740 He gives what we call common grace, 00:34:07.000 --> 00:34:09.440 where even the people that are vehemently against him 00:34:09.440 --> 00:34:12.820 get to enjoy love, and they get to enjoy peace, 00:34:13.000 --> 00:34:14.920 and they get to enjoy creation. 00:34:15.320 --> 00:34:17.340 They get to enjoy so many things about life. 00:34:17.340 --> 00:34:20.380 And God withholds that judgment for a season 00:34:20.380 --> 00:34:23.260 in order that he may draw us to himself, 00:34:23.559 --> 00:34:27.840 in order that he may give us time to turn from that sin, 00:34:28.100 --> 00:34:31.280 in order that he may give us time to repent and come back to him. 00:34:31.280 --> 00:34:34.380 But as he's withholding that judgment, 00:34:34.800 --> 00:34:36.820 he does allow us to endure suffering. 00:34:37.240 --> 00:34:37.519 Why? 00:34:38.060 --> 00:34:40.880 Why does he make the brokenness of this world 00:34:40.880 --> 00:34:45.200 such a present experience all through our lives? 00:34:45.199 --> 00:34:51.299 Because the brokenness of this world teaches us that something's wrong. 00:34:52.419 --> 00:34:54.819 It points us to our greatest need, 00:34:55.599 --> 00:34:57.159 reconciliation with him, 00:34:57.419 --> 00:35:00.019 and it ultimately points us to a savior. 00:35:01.199 --> 00:35:03.819 But see, our problem is that we think salvation 00:35:03.819 --> 00:35:06.339 is about fixing the brokenness now. 00:35:06.340 --> 00:35:09.980 So we keep turning to pseudo-saviors. 00:35:10.320 --> 00:35:11.940 All those other things that I've already mentioned. 00:35:12.200 --> 00:35:13.860 We think, well, there's brokenness in my family, 00:35:13.940 --> 00:35:17.180 so I need to find some type of relational dynamic 00:35:17.180 --> 00:35:18.600 that will finally fix the brokenness, 00:35:18.640 --> 00:35:19.500 but it won't fix it. 00:35:20.460 --> 00:35:22.320 Salvation isn't about the here and now. 00:35:22.760 --> 00:35:27.380 Salvation is about what awaits beyond the here and now. 00:35:27.380 --> 00:35:31.420 So, even if we found ways to solve all of our problems, 00:35:32.000 --> 00:35:37.300 we would still lack a solution for our sin against God. 00:35:38.539 --> 00:35:41.099 We'd still be headed to an inevitable death, 00:35:41.460 --> 00:35:44.240 which leads to an inevitable judgment, 00:35:44.900 --> 00:35:47.460 where we must give an account for the life that we've lived, 00:35:48.019 --> 00:35:51.180 and we must give an account for the sin that we've committed. 00:35:52.500 --> 00:35:53.720 So what do we do? 00:35:53.719 --> 00:35:57.579 Well, by God's grace, 00:35:58.219 --> 00:36:00.639 there is a better savior, 00:36:01.519 --> 00:36:02.959 better than all these things, 00:36:03.699 --> 00:36:05.199 better than a husband or wife, 00:36:06.079 --> 00:36:07.559 better than children or grandchildren, 00:36:08.419 --> 00:36:11.119 better than cultural movements and societal movements, 00:36:11.659 --> 00:36:12.539 better than wealth, 00:36:13.059 --> 00:36:14.139 better than success. 00:36:14.500 --> 00:36:15.699 There's a better savior, 00:36:16.439 --> 00:36:19.539 and he's already dealt with our eternal need. 00:36:20.059 --> 00:36:21.219 He's already dealt with it. 00:36:21.379 --> 00:36:23.000 We're not awaiting for it to be dealt with. 00:36:23.000 --> 00:36:24.139 It's already done. 00:36:25.019 --> 00:36:26.480 That's what's amazing about it. 00:36:26.880 --> 00:36:29.139 Jesus, the sinless son of God, 00:36:29.900 --> 00:36:35.840 whose sacrificial death paid for the eternal debt owed by our sin. 00:36:37.000 --> 00:36:38.280 It's finished. 00:36:40.300 --> 00:36:43.179 Jesus has no sin for which he had to pay, 00:36:43.340 --> 00:36:44.500 but he still died. 00:36:45.340 --> 00:36:46.320 So why did he die? 00:36:47.380 --> 00:36:48.579 Well, it wasn't for his own sin. 00:36:48.579 --> 00:36:50.880 It was for someone else's sin. 00:36:51.500 --> 00:36:52.920 He was a substitute. 00:36:54.319 --> 00:36:55.779 He took our death. 00:36:57.139 --> 00:36:58.920 And we know that's the case, 00:36:59.179 --> 00:37:00.860 because on the third day, 00:37:01.299 --> 00:37:03.019 God raised him from the dead. 00:37:03.799 --> 00:37:05.500 And when he raised him from the dead, 00:37:05.579 --> 00:37:06.900 it was God's way of saying, 00:37:07.539 --> 00:37:08.880 I accept this. 00:37:10.159 --> 00:37:11.380 This is sufficient. 00:37:11.380 --> 00:37:14.300 When Jesus cries out, 00:37:14.400 --> 00:37:15.599 it's finished on the cross, 00:37:15.800 --> 00:37:17.720 God raises him from the dead and says, 00:37:18.059 --> 00:37:20.420 indeed, it is finished on the cross. 00:37:20.880 --> 00:37:23.039 I am satisfied now, 00:37:24.140 --> 00:37:24.960 God says. 00:37:26.720 --> 00:37:28.300 He's already dealt with it. 00:37:29.280 --> 00:37:31.480 Through his death and his resurrection, 00:37:32.099 --> 00:37:34.180 Jesus meets our greatest need, 00:37:34.920 --> 00:37:36.640 reconciliation with God. 00:37:36.639 --> 00:37:36.719 God, 00:37:37.299 --> 00:37:40.739 he took the punishment for our sins. 00:37:41.139 --> 00:37:45.519 He applies his righteousness to us in its place. 00:37:46.420 --> 00:37:48.279 And in the process of doing that, 00:37:48.699 --> 00:37:53.480 he makes peace between sinners and a holy God. 00:37:54.559 --> 00:37:55.859 He's the better Savior. 00:37:57.400 --> 00:37:58.739 He's the better Savior. 00:37:59.539 --> 00:38:00.319 Colossians 1. 00:38:01.480 --> 00:38:03.920 In him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell. 00:38:04.059 --> 00:38:05.219 He wasn't just a man. 00:38:05.219 --> 00:38:06.679 He was God in flesh. 00:38:07.919 --> 00:38:09.199 And through him, 00:38:09.319 --> 00:38:12.279 God reconciled to himself all things, 00:38:12.559 --> 00:38:14.779 whether on earth or in heaven, 00:38:15.379 --> 00:38:19.339 making peace by the blood of his cross. 00:38:20.699 --> 00:38:24.279 And you who were once alienated, 00:38:25.599 --> 00:38:27.299 hostile in mind, 00:38:28.139 --> 00:38:29.579 doing evil deeds, 00:38:30.219 --> 00:38:33.899 he has now reconciled in his body of flesh 00:38:33.900 --> 00:38:35.639 by his death. 00:38:35.639 --> 00:38:38.039 In order that, 00:38:38.280 --> 00:38:38.860 Paul says, 00:38:39.420 --> 00:38:40.940 he may present you 00:38:40.940 --> 00:38:41.960 holy 00:38:41.960 --> 00:38:44.099 and blameless 00:38:44.099 --> 00:38:47.059 and above reproach before God 00:38:47.059 --> 00:38:48.599 if 00:38:48.599 --> 00:38:51.860 you continue in faith. 00:38:53.639 --> 00:38:55.840 2 Corinthians 5.21 00:38:55.840 --> 00:38:58.720 For our sake, 00:38:59.200 --> 00:39:01.740 God made him to be sin 00:39:01.739 --> 00:39:03.519 who knew no sin 00:39:03.519 --> 00:39:06.059 so that in him 00:39:06.059 --> 00:39:08.319 we might become 00:39:08.319 --> 00:39:10.239 the righteousness of God. 00:39:12.519 --> 00:39:13.919 Christ has met 00:39:13.919 --> 00:39:15.099 our need 00:39:15.099 --> 00:39:17.459 and he calls us 00:39:17.459 --> 00:39:18.919 to receive the gift 00:39:18.919 --> 00:39:20.019 of eternal life 00:39:20.019 --> 00:39:21.339 and forgiveness 00:39:21.339 --> 00:39:22.899 and reconciliation 00:39:22.899 --> 00:39:24.159 with the Father 00:39:24.159 --> 00:39:26.339 simply through faith. 00:39:26.340 --> 00:39:29.140 all those things 00:39:29.140 --> 00:39:29.920 we trust in 00:39:29.920 --> 00:39:30.860 to bring us life 00:39:30.860 --> 00:39:31.539 and fulfillment, 00:39:32.000 --> 00:39:33.180 to heal our brokenness, 00:39:33.460 --> 00:39:34.059 relationships 00:39:34.059 --> 00:39:34.800 and religion 00:39:34.800 --> 00:39:35.340 and politics, 00:39:35.440 --> 00:39:36.660 whatever it may be for you, 00:39:37.000 --> 00:39:38.680 you must abandon them 00:39:38.680 --> 00:39:40.460 to trust in Jesus. 00:39:42.300 --> 00:39:42.480 You say, 00:39:42.539 --> 00:39:43.340 what in the world 00:39:43.340 --> 00:39:44.059 does that have to do 00:39:44.059 --> 00:39:44.539 with the judges? 00:39:46.860 --> 00:39:48.300 The judges teach us 00:39:48.300 --> 00:39:49.260 about all the things 00:39:49.260 --> 00:39:50.000 that cannot 00:39:50.000 --> 00:39:51.600 ultimately deliver us 00:39:51.599 --> 00:39:55.000 so that we might 00:39:55.000 --> 00:39:56.039 put all our hope 00:39:56.039 --> 00:39:57.139 in the one who can. 00:39:59.079 --> 00:40:00.039 They lived, 00:40:00.619 --> 00:40:01.779 they died, 00:40:02.319 --> 00:40:04.159 but there's one 00:40:04.159 --> 00:40:04.739 who lives 00:40:04.739 --> 00:40:06.360 who died 00:40:06.360 --> 00:40:08.599 but remains living. 00:40:09.819 --> 00:40:11.119 He conquered death. 00:40:12.059 --> 00:40:13.279 He did what they couldn't do. 00:40:14.279 --> 00:40:15.639 Their insufficiency 00:40:15.639 --> 00:40:18.079 reveals to us 00:40:18.079 --> 00:40:20.199 his sufficiency. 00:40:20.199 --> 00:40:25.099 So what's the author's 00:40:25.099 --> 00:40:25.939 intent then 00:40:25.939 --> 00:40:26.619 in mentioning 00:40:26.619 --> 00:40:28.039 these three minor judges 00:40:28.039 --> 00:40:28.719 in particular? 00:40:29.359 --> 00:40:30.519 He really just doesn't 00:40:30.519 --> 00:40:31.379 say much about them 00:40:31.379 --> 00:40:32.159 so what's the point 00:40:32.159 --> 00:40:33.199 in even including them? 00:40:34.199 --> 00:40:35.019 And I think 00:40:35.019 --> 00:40:35.799 it's pretty simple. 00:40:37.239 --> 00:40:37.939 His purpose 00:40:37.939 --> 00:40:39.819 is to explain 00:40:39.819 --> 00:40:41.379 that other individuals 00:40:41.379 --> 00:40:43.379 besides the main six 00:40:43.379 --> 00:40:45.539 arose to lead the people 00:40:45.539 --> 00:40:47.919 but none of them 00:40:47.919 --> 00:40:48.679 could affect 00:40:48.679 --> 00:40:49.439 the deliverance 00:40:49.440 --> 00:40:50.360 that Israel needed. 00:40:52.460 --> 00:40:53.920 This simple repetition 00:40:53.920 --> 00:40:55.059 of life, 00:40:55.820 --> 00:40:56.240 rule, 00:40:56.659 --> 00:40:57.440 and death 00:40:57.440 --> 00:40:58.539 in these three men, 00:40:58.860 --> 00:40:59.760 it reads 00:40:59.760 --> 00:41:00.440 like a series 00:41:00.440 --> 00:41:01.039 of failures. 00:41:02.000 --> 00:41:02.700 Well here's Ibzam, 00:41:02.820 --> 00:41:03.679 maybe he'll do it. 00:41:03.900 --> 00:41:04.159 Nope, 00:41:04.500 --> 00:41:05.179 he died too. 00:41:05.639 --> 00:41:05.820 Oh, 00:41:06.059 --> 00:41:06.820 well here comes Elon, 00:41:07.139 --> 00:41:08.400 maybe Elon will do it. 00:41:08.940 --> 00:41:09.260 Nope, 00:41:10.099 --> 00:41:10.559 he died. 00:41:11.280 --> 00:41:12.220 Well what about Abdon? 00:41:13.059 --> 00:41:13.539 Nope. 00:41:14.059 --> 00:41:14.579 Samson? 00:41:15.280 --> 00:41:15.780 No. 00:41:16.780 --> 00:41:17.179 Saul? 00:41:17.179 --> 00:41:17.739 Nope. 00:41:17.739 --> 00:41:18.460 Nope. 00:41:19.559 --> 00:41:20.239 David, 00:41:20.480 --> 00:41:21.279 surely David. 00:41:21.980 --> 00:41:22.299 No. 00:41:23.419 --> 00:41:24.279 None of them. 00:41:25.460 --> 00:41:26.460 They couldn't do it. 00:41:29.299 --> 00:41:30.519 Time passed. 00:41:31.539 --> 00:41:32.359 Some men governed 00:41:32.359 --> 00:41:33.179 to some extent 00:41:33.179 --> 00:41:35.099 but Israel's circumstances 00:41:35.099 --> 00:41:36.179 never really improved. 00:41:37.159 --> 00:41:38.279 They weren't reconciled 00:41:38.279 --> 00:41:38.679 to God. 00:41:39.059 --> 00:41:40.000 They didn't receive 00:41:40.000 --> 00:41:40.799 God's blessings 00:41:40.799 --> 00:41:41.419 in the land. 00:41:41.940 --> 00:41:42.519 They continued 00:41:42.519 --> 00:41:43.219 to be assaulted 00:41:43.219 --> 00:41:43.940 by their enemies. 00:41:44.440 --> 00:41:45.199 What did they need? 00:41:46.000 --> 00:41:47.039 They needed a king 00:41:47.039 --> 00:41:49.599 but not just any king. 00:41:50.579 --> 00:41:52.179 They needed God's king. 00:41:53.159 --> 00:41:53.839 A savior 00:41:53.839 --> 00:41:55.519 who wouldn't only 00:41:55.519 --> 00:41:56.099 deliver them 00:41:56.099 --> 00:41:57.159 from the Philistines 00:41:57.159 --> 00:41:58.599 or from the Ammonites 00:41:58.599 --> 00:41:59.500 or whoever else. 00:41:59.719 --> 00:42:00.719 They needed a king 00:42:00.719 --> 00:42:01.579 who would deliver them 00:42:01.579 --> 00:42:02.319 from their sin. 00:42:02.699 --> 00:42:03.639 Who would lead them 00:42:03.639 --> 00:42:04.679 in perfect righteousness. 00:42:05.159 --> 00:42:06.239 Who would unite them 00:42:06.239 --> 00:42:07.759 as God's chosen people. 00:42:07.759 --> 00:42:08.899 And the closest 00:42:08.899 --> 00:42:10.000 that they ever got 00:42:10.000 --> 00:42:10.960 was David. 00:42:11.599 --> 00:42:12.279 But even he 00:42:12.279 --> 00:42:13.019 couldn't do it. 00:42:13.019 --> 00:42:14.860 Even he was a murderer 00:42:14.860 --> 00:42:16.320 and an adulterer 00:42:16.320 --> 00:42:17.440 and a sinner 00:42:17.440 --> 00:42:18.719 that cost thousands 00:42:18.719 --> 00:42:19.259 of people 00:42:19.259 --> 00:42:20.219 innocent people 00:42:20.219 --> 00:42:20.739 their lives. 00:42:21.460 --> 00:42:22.920 And he was the best one. 00:42:26.079 --> 00:42:27.639 But they all point us 00:42:27.639 --> 00:42:28.539 to a better savior. 00:42:29.460 --> 00:42:30.179 That's the point. 00:42:30.920 --> 00:42:31.880 They point us 00:42:31.880 --> 00:42:32.719 to a better savior 00:42:32.719 --> 00:42:33.360 and you don't have 00:42:33.360 --> 00:42:34.259 to know all the details 00:42:34.259 --> 00:42:35.239 about all the other people. 00:42:35.320 --> 00:42:35.980 You just have to know 00:42:35.980 --> 00:42:36.679 that they failed. 00:42:37.519 --> 00:42:38.679 But Jesus didn't. 00:42:39.679 --> 00:42:40.679 Jesus is God's 00:42:40.679 --> 00:42:41.340 eternal king. 00:42:41.340 --> 00:42:43.100 And he's done 00:42:43.100 --> 00:42:44.300 exactly what we need 00:42:44.300 --> 00:42:46.720 to be part of his kingdom. 00:42:49.400 --> 00:42:50.800 So the question is 00:42:50.800 --> 00:42:53.620 are you trusting 00:42:53.620 --> 00:42:54.519 the better savior? 00:42:55.220 --> 00:42:56.039 Are you trusting 00:42:56.039 --> 00:42:56.700 the better savior? 00:42:58.960 --> 00:43:00.019 If you are trusting 00:43:00.019 --> 00:43:00.740 the better savior 00:43:00.740 --> 00:43:01.980 is he actually 00:43:01.980 --> 00:43:02.880 the central focus 00:43:02.880 --> 00:43:03.559 of your life 00:43:03.559 --> 00:43:04.019 and ministry 00:43:04.019 --> 00:43:04.600 to others? 00:43:04.920 --> 00:43:05.960 Whether it's a ministry 00:43:05.960 --> 00:43:06.480 as a parent 00:43:06.480 --> 00:43:07.100 or a ministry 00:43:07.100 --> 00:43:08.900 as just a church member 00:43:08.900 --> 00:43:09.740 or whatever it may be. 00:43:09.739 --> 00:43:11.319 is Jesus 00:43:11.319 --> 00:43:12.359 at the center 00:43:12.359 --> 00:43:12.899 of that? 00:43:13.339 --> 00:43:14.099 So that what you're 00:43:14.099 --> 00:43:14.779 doing for others 00:43:14.779 --> 00:43:15.399 actually has 00:43:15.399 --> 00:43:16.879 eternal value to it. 00:43:19.019 --> 00:43:20.019 Receive his mercy 00:43:20.019 --> 00:43:22.039 and then live 00:43:22.039 --> 00:43:22.899 in light of it 00:43:22.899 --> 00:43:24.019 moving forward. 00:43:24.739 --> 00:43:25.659 That's what we get 00:43:25.659 --> 00:43:26.219 from these three. 00:43:26.219 --> 00:43:42.199 NING 00:43:42.199 --> 00:43:42.199