God’s Arsenal

Judges 3:16

Introduction

Disarmed. The book of Judges tells of Israel's spiritual decline. This decline will have serious repercussions for the people of Israel. We are talking about moral decline, economic decline and military decline. Israel, far from God, is an immoral, poor and defenseless people.Regarding military decline, the prophet Samuel provides us with an important detail that explains Israel's military weakness: Not a blacksmith could be found in the whole land of Israel, because the Philistines had said, “Otherwise the Hebrews will make swords or spears!” (1 Samuel 13:19 - NIV).The Philistines had a monopoly on iron and would not allow Israel to build an arsenal. Israel has no weapons, no swords, spears, shields or arrows... it is a people that has no arsenal.

In the eyes of opponents. This military weakness of the people of Israel was evident to all the Canaanite peoples. In the eyes of enemy nations, Israel presented itself as a divided, poor and unarmed people, a nation without a real arsenal.

In the eyes of God. God does not need iron to have a sword, for He can transform any object into a powerful weapon, even a piece of wood can become a fast and poisonous killer: Then the Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?”“A staff,” he replied. 3 The Lord said, “Throw it on the ground.” Moses threw it on the ground and it became a snake, and he ran from it (Exodus 4:2-3 - NIV).

Sermon's outline. Today I want to talk to you about God's Arsenal. We will consider four objects that will become four powerful weapons in the hands of the judges of Israel. My prayer is that each of us will realize how many weapons God has given us so that we can have victory over the enemy. Here are the four objects:

A little sword;

An oxgoad;

A tent peg and a hammer;

A jawbone.

1. A little sword

A little sword. Regarding the small sword forged by the second judge of Israel I would like to consider 2 aspects:

A limited weapon. Ehud's sword was a small weapon compared to other swords.The limitations of this sword, those fewer centimeters, were not a problem for God. We often believe that our financial limits, our little strength, our little experience, also constitute a limit for God.Later God will tell Gideon that there were too many soldiers in his army: But the Lord said to Gideon, “There are still too many men. Take them down to the water, and I will thin them out for you there. If I say, ‘This one shall go with you,’ he shall go; but if I say, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ he shall not go.” (Judges 7:4 - NIV).

An undetected weapon. Thanks to its small size, Ehud's sword goes unnoticed; even King Eglon's bodyguards do not notice that small sword. We live in a society that exalts and glorifies everything flashy. The church often runs the risk of evaluating things as the world evaluates them. Yet God has given us so many weapons that, although not flashy, can be lethal against the enemy. This is how the prophet Isaiah describes the Weapon that defeated death and sin: He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him (Isaiah 53:2 - NIV).

2. An oxgoad

An Oxgoad. We now want to consider the tool that Shamgar uses to defeat his enemies, underlining 2 aspects of his weapon:

An unconventional weapon. The object in question was used to lead oxen. In other words, it was an object designed to guide animals, not to kill enemies. But in Shamgar's hands that tool turns into an unconventional weapon. I know the story of a sister who wanted to serve God, but she didn't know how. The Lord answered her prayer: after getting her driver's license, this sister made her car available to take people to church. That car became a powerful instrument of blessing for all those people who could not reach the church on foot.

A fragile weapon. This oxgoad was not made of iron, but of wood. Only the tip of this stick was iron. Despite the fragility of this instrument, Shamgar was able to defeat 600 enemies. That object did not break, but remained intact. God can use what is fragile and weak to gain victory over the enemy. You feel fragile, close to breaking point. Put yourself in the hands of the lord. anyone who puts himself in the hands of God can exclaim what the prophet Joel said: Beat your plowshares into swords and your pruning hooks into spears. Let the weakling say: “I am strong!” (Joel 3:10 - NIV).

3. A tent peg and a hammer

A tent peg and a hammer. Jael was a foreign woman used by God to defeat the powerful general Sisera. Regarding the weapon used by Jael I want to consider 2 aspects:

An unknown weapon. The tools Jael used to defeat Sisera were tools that men used, certainly not a woman. Usually what is new scares us. We don't have that necessary familiarity with new things, that's why we don't feel comfortable. But God rewarded Jael's initiative. God will also reward our dynamism in using what is new to us for the Kingdom of God.

A composite weapon. Sisera was killed thanks to the combination of two instruments. Jael used the hammer and a tent peg. These two instruments combined together, in the hands of Jael, gave a great victory to Israel. Throughout the Christian life there are battles in which we must use multiple tools. We need the power of the hammer and the precision of the tent peg. We cannot expect the hammer to always solve everything (example of how to educate children). We see this principle of collaboration and harmony in achieving God's plan masterfully expressed in the book of Acts. The Holy Spirit had called Barnabas (tent peg) and Paul (hammer) on a mission (Acts 13). Together they achieved glorious goals for the kingdom of God.

4. A jawbone

A Jawbone. The last instrument transformed into a weapon exalts the power of God. In this regard I would like to consider only one aspect:

A revitalized weapon. That jaw was once part of a living being, but now it no longer represents anything! Yet, what was decaying and made no sense, when grabbed by Judge Samson, turns into a deadly weapon! Our life, our home, our marriage, are perhaps in the same condition as this donkey's jaw: there is death, there is despair and there is no future. Let Jesus take hold of your life, let the Judge of Israel take you by the hand, let the Holy Spirit breathe on your home, and you will see how the Lord will use what was dead as a mighty weapon.

Conclusion

Open your eyes! In the eyes of the Canaanite peoples, Israel was without weapons and even Israel was unable to see the arsenal that God had made available to them.

Like Israel, perhaps even in your eyes you don't see weapons to defend yourself.

You feel defenseless before this enemy who oppresses and threatens you.

This morning allow the Holy Spirit to open your eyes and see the arsenal God has given you.

Everything and everyone can be weapons in the hands of God... entrust yourself to Him.