Why are We Battling? The Preliminary of War with Israel - Judges 11:12-28

Introduction

D. Israel is fighting with an enemy who’d rather they didn’t exist.

P. We must recognize we also are in a battle with a foe that wishes we didn’t exist.

T. 1 Peter 5:8 “8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:”

1. Conquest is initiated to forcibly take.

Judges 10:17 “17 Then the children of Ammon were gathered together, and encamped in Gilead. And the children of Israel assembled themselves together, and encamped in Mizpeh.”

Explain

The children of Israel were getting right with God.

Then, their enemies, the children of Ammon, come as a united force right in their land, the land of Gilead.

The children of Israel have been vexed and oppressed by this nation for 18 years already. They destroyed and crushed them.

Now this bully nation has assembled in Gilead to fight with Israel. They think they are ready to annihilate Israel from what they claim is their land.

The children of Israel have repented and turned to the Lord and the children of Israel have found Jephthah and made him their captain with the promise upon victory that he will be their head.

Argue

Why do you say that. The oppression and vexation was very to destroy and crush the nation of Israel.

Why had this happened? They had sought the false gods of the nations about them. When we yield to our sinful passions the end result is always destruction and death.

Sin is like a beautiful, slithering, snake that enchants its victim and then eats them.

Sin destroys the person who indulges in it. The alcoholic, the drug addict all are common day examples we see of lives, families, potential, and opportunities destroyed.

Laziness or bitterness too can also destroy.

Illustrate

My wife’s strawberry plants:

Strawberries are your life.

Net - God’s laws

Removal of the net is when we disregard God’s laws.

The Critters are the sins that destroy the crops and plants.

Apply

We too find ourselves in situations of conflict that are greater than we can handle. We must call out to the Captain of our salvation Jesus Christ.

The Lord’s our rock in Him we hide, a shelter in the time of storm, secure whatever ill betide, a shelter in the time of storm.

Hebrews 2:10 “10 For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.”

As we tread this world below we will have conflict. The conflict is not bad. It is an awakening call to our dependence on our Savior. He is waiting for our call upon him. Psalm 50:15 “15 And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.”

The Lord although allowing the conflict of 18 years to continue for know is providentially working in behalf of the Israelites as they have turned back to him and the Lord will give them a decisive victory.

2. Counter of what for?

Judges 11:12 “12 And Jephthah sent messengers unto the king of the children of Ammon, saying, What hast thou to do with me, that thou art come against me to fight in my land?”

Explain

When you know your headed for a conflict always wise to ask questions rather than just condemn a person. Always think the best until proven otherwise.

Proverbs 15:1 “1 A soft answer turneth away wrath: But grievous words stir up anger.”

Questioning is better received than you know better!

When debating it is good to get an understanding of why you are taking a particular course of action. When doing any debate an important aspect is to define your terms and the boundaries of your debate.

Argue

Although I will argue the you directness is often a good thing with little children, when dealing with adults questioning as peer to peer is often better recieved.

Illustrate: Building duty at Maranatha.

Integrity of the boyfriend girl friend relationships

Apply

When people have disagreements with you it is better to ask them questions than to treats them as a rebel.

Matt Powell goes to Universities and sets up booths to let students ask questions about the Bible and creationism.

It allows for opportunity for honest debate rather than lambasting them as dummies.

1 Peter 3:15 “15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:”

3. Reasoning is given of a Canard finding.

Judges 11:13 “13 And the king of the children of Ammon answered unto the messengers of Jephthah, Because Israel took away my land, when they came up out of Egypt, from Arnon even unto Jabbok, and unto Jordan: now therefore restore those lands again peaceably.”

Explain

This is a three hundred year-old history of wrongs. They are claiming they should be given back their land. Putting this into modern perspective this would be like the U.S. government giving the land back to the Indians who occupied it before the U.S. This is in my mind is non-sensical. Conquest is a legitimate thing. In the case of Israel the situation has moral ramifications. God gave Israel the land as an eternal inheritance.

In your Bible you probably have a Bible map. On the east side of the Dead Sea there is a river that flows into the dead sea. The river makes up the border of Moab.

The Jabbok river is a river about a third of the way up between the Dead Sea and the Sea of Galilee. It flows into the Jordan River. The Jordan river has a North to South flow down to the Dead sea and is the border of Gad and Reuben’s land. This area makes up the whole of Reuben’s tribal inheritance and a great deal of the tribe of Gad’s inheritance.

The demand is to restore the land peaceably to them.

Opposition may be motivated by greed.

Opposition may be motived by faulty history.

Argue

We have this in the current Israel Palestinian conflict.

We have this destructive attitude in the Iranian Israeli conflict. Where Israel is fighting existentially for their nation and lives.

Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has vowed to "destroy" Israel following Israeli strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.

"The armed forces will act with determination and destroy the despicable Zionist regime," the religious leader said in a statement read on state television on Friday.

This demonic led regime has vowed to destroy Israel. Why? For the simple reason they are God’s people.

Illustrate:

Sounds similar to today where the descendants of slaves have been trying to get a million a piece for offenses of a 100 years ago. The blame game is always a favorite for those who don’t take responsibility for their present condition and work to rectify it themselves. (https://pulptastic.com/rapper-t-i-demands-44-trillion-in-slavery-reparations/)

Apply

Know your Bible and the facts about what’s going on.

The Bible is your foundation to navigate the lies of the enemy.

Recognize the devil always fights with downright lies or a mixture of error and truth.

John 8:44 “44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.”

The Cult of Jehovah’s witnesses deny Jesus is God. They call him a god. He is still god in their eyes, but the God. There is but one God the living and true God. He exists in three person the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. These three are of the same essence, equal in power and glory.

4. The finding is countered with the correct facts.

Judges 11:14–27 “14 And Jephthah sent messengers again unto the king of the children of Ammon: 15 And said unto him, Thus saith Jephthah, Israel took not away the land of Moab, nor the land of the children of Ammon: 16 But when Israel came up from Egypt, and walked through the wilderness unto the Red sea, and came to Kadesh; 17 Then Israel sent messengers unto the king of Edom, saying, Let me, I pray thee, pass through thy land: but the king of Edom would not hearken thereto. And in like manner they sent unto the king of Moab: but he would not consent: and Israel abode in Kadesh. 18 Then they went along through the wilderness, and compassed the land of Edom, and the land of Moab, and came by the east side of the land of Moab, and pitched on the other side of Arnon, but came not within the border of Moab: for Arnon was the border of Moab. 19 And Israel sent messengers unto Sihon king of the Amorites, the king of Heshbon; and Israel said unto him, Let us pass, we pray thee, through thy land into my…”

Explain

Awareness of his history.

Proverbs 15:28 “28 The heart of the righteous studieth to answer: But the mouth of the wicked poureth out evil things.”

Awareness of those who twisting the truth or are lying.

Awareness of how to utilize the truth diplomatically. Proverbs 15:2 “2 The tongue of the wise useth knowledge aright: But the mouth of fools poureth out foolishness.”

Argue

How do we know what to believe today when every body says they have a truth. Like Jephthah we have to go back to the Bible.

He would have been familiar with the nation’s history through writings of Moses.

Numbers 14:25 “25 (Now the Amalekites and the Canaanites dwelt in the valley.) To morrow turn you, and get you into the wilderness by the way of the Red sea.”

Numbers 13:26 “26 And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron, and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the wilderness of Paran, to Kadesh; and brought back word unto them, and unto all the congregation, and shewed them the fruit of the land.”

Numbers 20:14 “14 And Moses sent messengers from Kadesh unto the king of Edom, Thus saith thy brother Israel, Thou knowest all the travail that hath befallen us:”

Numbers 20:18–21 “18 And Edom said unto him, Thou shalt not pass by me, lest I come out against thee with the sword. 19 And the children of Israel said unto him, We will go by the high way: and if I and my cattle drink of thy water, then I will pay for it: I will only, without doing any thing else, go through on my feet. 20 And he said, Thou shalt not go through. And Edom came out against him with much people, and with a strong hand. 21 Thus Edom refused to give Israel passage through his border: wherefore Israel turned away from him.”

Numbers 21:4 “4 And they journeyed from mount Hor by the way of the Red sea, to compass the land of Edom: and the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the way.”

Numbers 21:11 “11 And they journeyed from Oboth, and pitched at Ije-abarim, in the wilderness which is before Moab, toward the sunrising.”

Numbers 21:13 “13 From thence they removed, and pitched on the other side of Arnon, which is in the wilderness that cometh out of the coasts of the Amorites: for Arnon is the border of Moab, between Moab and the Amorites.”

Numbers 21:21 “21 And Israel sent messengers unto Sihon king of the Amorites, saying,”

Numbers 21:24 “24 And Israel smote him with the edge of the sword, and possessed his land from Arnon unto Jabbok, even unto the children of Ammon: for the border of the children of Ammon was strong. 25 And Israel took all these cities: and Israel dwelt in all the cities of the Amorites, in Heshbon, and in all the villages thereof.”

Illustrate

The Baptists and the forerunners of Baptists who went by different names such as the Waldensians were back to the Bible people.

Because of their unwillingness to accept the Catholic church as their authority or even the reformed church traditions. They were persecuted, treated with spite, hated, tortured, and killed.

1 Timothy 3:15 “15 But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.”

The truths in our KJV Bibles are the unadulterated word of God. Many modern versions use an underlying text that was not received by the church until some time after 1880. Those who promoted the text claimed they had an older and better text. Now their very premise for accepting text has been proven false. The text underlying our King James Bible is overwhelming the underlying text used in the ancient translations of God Word. Additionally of the 5,800 extant Greek text most agree with what scholars call a Majority text reading.

Apply

Do you know basics about being a Christian?

The Romans Road. How is a person Saved. Admit, Believe, Forever receive.

Romans 3:10 “10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:”

Romans 3:23 “23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;”

Romans 6:23 “23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

Romans 5:12 “12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:”

Romans 5:8 “8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

Romans 6:23 “23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

Romans 10:9–10 “9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”

Romans 10:13 “13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

Do you have temptations that are a constant battle for you?

Get some 3X5 cards and get a strong’s concordance or use your phone Bible and look up key words that deal with your struggle.

Read the verses you find.

Pick a few of your favorites to memorize.

Put them in first person and realize God has given those verses as part of your inheritance in Christ.

Let another Godly Christian know who can fight with you in your battle.

Utilize next time you struggle with that particular sin.

As you do you will you can have victory. 2 Corinthians 10:4–5 “4 (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) 5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;”

Having the correct facts like Jephthah will help insure your victory.

5. Rejection of truth by contemptible foes.

Judges 11:28 “28 Howbeit the king of the children of Ammon hearkened not unto the words of Jephthah which he sent him.”

Explain

Sometimes it doesn’t matter the evidence presented, people refuse to believe the truth.

The evidence was founded that was presented, but yet it was rejected.

Argue

Well if you just got them the right verse maybe they’d be saved?

The Word of God is quick and powerful.

Yet, God has created each of us with a choice to believe or reject the Gospel.

1 John 3:23 “23 And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment.”

Just as the King of Ammon had the choice to reject or believe, we do as well. Not only for salvation, but also in our daily walk with God. We must choose to believe that God’s grace can transform us into Christ as we yield to him. Philippians 1:6 “6 Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:”

We can just deny the truth or make excuses for our shortcomings. However, until we take responsibility nothing will really change.

Illustrate

Door knocking over the years I have realized a grim reality: A lot of people don’t want to know the truth or will acknowledge it intellectually but have no heart to believe it.

Matthew 7:14 “14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.”

Apply

What foes do you face? The foe could be a wrong that pattern, a wrong identity, or just giving up.

Knowing who you are and what God did to you in the past is a game changer. Because your enemy the Devil knows the truth, but will tell you lies to get you to question yourself and cause you to despair.

The devil may say. Oh, you failed again. I bet God has had enough of you. See you in the fires of hell.

1 John 1:7 “7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.”

1 John 1:9 “9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

You’ll always be a loser.

2 Corinthians 2:14 “14 Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.”

You’ll never change, you’ll always be ___________.

Philippians 4:13 “13 I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”

Why would God want you?

Ephesians 1:11–12 “11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will: 12 That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.”

Everyone who trusts Christ is going to one day be like Christ. That is predestination. Romans 8:29 “29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.”

Pray for your friends and family to come to know Christ so they too can see this miracle of transformation in their life too.

Galatians 6:9 “9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.”

Realize that although you may give an excellent presentation of the truth like Jephthah’s messengers people will still reject Christ.

Our job is to fight the good fight of faith and present the truth.

Our job is not to save the soul that’s the Holy Spirit’s job.

There will be continued conflict throughout your life against these foes. But going forth in the name of the Lord, in the power of His might, and submission to His will we can win the skirmishes.

Conclusion

There will be conquests by the enemy to destroy. That is a fact for life. However, how you respond to the conflict is critical. Counter with questions to make the battle ground clear. If the reasoning is false, prove the error with scripture. And realize you have a master liar, and a deceitful heart you are fighting constantly. Don’t give an inch in the battle.