Judges Chapter 1 Verses 22 – 28

• This is a picture of compromise. They are in the Promised Land. They have broken the strength of the inhabitants of that land and now they are infecting…spreading across the entirety of their inheritance. So they come across some trouble…this is to be expected! That land has been indwelt for years…how long we don’t know but for us it may be 10, 20, 50 years…and so taking it in the name of the Lord’s promise, the Word of God, most likely…not going to be easy…and sure enough will be a battle…
• So fight! Here we see a picture of compromise…a peace treaty with sin…rather than drive them completely out…they are put under tribute. Ok you can stay, but just let the righteousness tax the unrighteousness. Listen that simply does not work…to the point that your heart will at worst fold and at best become entirely ineffective!
• Thorned up…snared all about…that is what we will see happen to them and that will happen to us…count on it! Here’s the thought though, here’s the practical fix…if God has given you enough strength to put them under tribute, then why not drive them out? You can…the issue is now that they choose not to…they make a conscious decision not to…circumstantial compromise has degraded into open transgression…yet they have the strength…so what must be done? A simple change of mind, man.

• The churchy word for that is repentance…a turning from one way to another. That is the fix. Isn’t that awesome! Not a circumstance change. Not a change in how she is or he is…but a change in how YOU are…yet what we see here, what we’re about to see, is an unrepentant nation of God…still a nation of God…yet in their unrepentance they will become entirely ineffective and ultimately captive…

Judges Chapter 1 Verses 29 – 36

• Notice, where in this account did the Israelites get together and say, “Let’s forsake God!” “Let’s turn against Him!” Nowhere! But the plain sight truth is that they are satisfied with far less than what God has given them and commanded of them. And so they didn’t say it, but let’s just say they had, would their result be any different? What a crazy thought but so very true...
• What have you become? Where do you find yourself tonight? Have you forsaken God? “No, never! I’m a Christian! Unashamed! I would never…” Here’s the exhortation. Look at your life/marriage. Look at your career. Look at your relationship with them. Look at your time in the Word, time in prayer, examine your lands, man…Have you forsaken God? Without truth and courage and humility, one will never truly find repentance…

Judges Chapter 2 Verse 1

• Proof positive that this is God Himself, most likely a Christophany or a Spiritophany however we can’t be sure, but several places in the Old Testament we see this manifestation of God in the form of a man and He is called the Angel of the Lord. 1 Timothy 6:16 says that no man has seen or can see the Father so we know this is most likely a Chistophany.

• And we know that for two reasons. First He says that He is the One that led them out of Egypt and second He says that He is the One who made a covenant with Israel.

Judges Chapter 2 Verses 2 – 3

• I want to make a quick point. Here we see God judging Israel for their disobedience. Our judgment for disobedience was handed to Jesus in full upon the cross. God is forever finished judging the Christian. All the punishment you or I will ever deserve was placed upon His Son. But…we punish ourselves by settling for less than what God bought…
• You have every right and access to free will even as a Christian. Someone once said you are entitled to your own opinion, just not your own facts…if your life, year, month, week, day, moment is ungodly then expect thorns and snares man…You’ve heard, “When life brings you lemons, make lemonade,” right? Well when your behavior and sensual decisions give you thorns as ingredients, how can you expect to blend those thorns into juice?? Thorn juice…that’s just weird…make your blender explode!

Judges Chapter 2 Verses 4 – 6

• Long when they are born, tall when they are grown. An odd thought I had about babies this week with the birth of Sarai. When they are infants, we don’t say they are tall or how tall they are…why? Because they don’t stand. We say how long they are…
• Here they weep long. They wail with regret over what has been done but this is not revival. This is not repentance. Real revival shows itself clearly in action…They are sorry about the consequence of the sin but not the sin itself…how do we know…all they do is long…nothing tall. They don’t take a stand…

• Spurgeon once said, “It is wonderful indeed to see people truly weeping over their sin, and Christians should never discourage that. However, “the tear is the natural drop of moisture, and soon evaporates; the better thing is the inward torrent of grief within the soul, which leaves the indelible mark within…One grain of faith is better than a gallon of tears. A drop of genuine repentance is more precious than a torrent of weeping!”

Judges Chapter 2 Verses 7 – 18

• I think this is a sad statement. That the Lord was moved to pity by their groaning because of those who oppressed them and harassed them. Why were they oppressed and harassed? Their own sin, right? A little root cause analysis for us…and so God is moved to pity…was God moved to pity when Stephen was being stoned for his faith in Acts Chapter 7? Paul was stoned almost to death in Acts 14…talk about oppression and harassment…do we read of God’s pity in that account?
• What about when Peter was locked up in Acts 12…do we read of God’s pity there…? Stephen was received unto eternity that day. Paul was somehow kept alive…Peter walked through the prison walls and bars with an angel of the Lord…that’s very different than what we just read here…the nation is unrepentant and has wholly turned away from God…and thus He pities them…as opposed to Him showing Himself King in the lives of Stephen, Paul and Peter…that’s what I’m after…God loves me so much as to pity me in my sin, but I want to love Him enough, trust Him enough…that He doesn’t have to…

Judges Chapter 2 Verses 19 – 23

• Chapter 2 really gives us a brief summary of the book of Judges. How the nation would be in a mess and God would raise up a Judge, a hero, and during the period of the Judge they would surge…but then they would revert right back to their mess and go back into oppression…and so God would raise up another hero…and the cycle would continue…

• You know what…we do the same thing…Here’s the truth. God wants to be your Judge. Sounds almost unfavorable because of what our culture has done to our minds…God wants to call the shots, wants to be our Hero…is that better? He says in Hebrews 3, “Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion…” and in 2 Chronicles, “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land. Now My eyes will be open and My ears attentive to prayer made in this place.  For now I have chosen and sanctified this house, that My name may be there forever; and My eyes and My heart will be there perpetually. As for you, if you walk before Me as your father David walked, and do according to all that I have commanded you, and if you keep My statutes and My judgments, then I will establish the throne of your kingdom, as I covenanted with David your father, saying, ‘You shall not fail….”