HS Day 4 Night

I’ve shared a bit about my High School life with you all this week, but if I haven’t said it to anyone at meal times, I’m going to say it now.

I did not like High School.

It was not a period of my life I thrived in and not one I think back on fondly.

I got to know Jesus in High School but other than that, I don’t think about it much.

In fact, when it came to my graduation, I skipped it. Got my diploma in the mail.

I was told that one day I would look back and regret it, and that day has yet to come.

That’s not to say you should skip your graduation. That’s a decision between you and your parents.

And it is an earnest prayer that none of you had the kind of high school experience that will make you not care one bit about it even 20+ years later.

I don’t know each of your stories, but part of mine was I yearned for attention. I wanted people to see me and notice me and like me.

ANd I was invisible. I got exactly what I needed, but not what I wanted.

We have 2 books of the Old Testament to find Jesus in and I relate to this next one much more than the others.

The book of Judges is filled with people who were supposed to Love God and Love People, but as we often see love themselves and seek attention more than they Love God.

There are 12 Judges mentioned in the Book and I’m going to tell you about a few of them and how they relate to Jesus.

What is a judge?

It’s not a guy behind a big bench with a gavel.

A judge, in our modern idea of things would be like the county Sheriff, but him having the power to execute you when he caught you doing something wrong.

Like a feet on the ground judge.

Or like your Principal. If you get in trouble, they are the ones likely to deal out the major consequences and even catch you if you have apircipal that walks the halls.

I don’t know what kind of principal I had. Never saw the guy. Met the Vice Principal once, I think, but it might have been my guidance counselor, someone I also saw only once, I think.

Remember I was invisible and while I didn’t exactly like it. THere were advantages.

But these 12 Judges, I relate to some of them, so I want to tell you about the one I like the most and the one I don’t.

The Judges were supposed to enforce God’s Law and protect the people.

In other words, Love God and Love People.

Some did a great job. At least I can assume because it says stuff like Tola and Jair judged Israel and nothing at all happened worth mentioning for 45 years.

Then you have guys like Gideon and Sampson who have several chapters, lots of fighting and some down falls.

But the key here comes later in the book of Judges

Judges 17:6 ESV

6 In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.

For this it makes sense, one must realized that Israel is what is called a Theocracy.

The United States is a Republic, which means we elect representatives to make our laws and have a president to enforce them

In a theocracy, God is King and he has judges to enforce his Law.

Gideon has a few chapters in the book of Judges and he has a few familiar stories. He had the fleece where he tested God. He whittled down, at God’s instructions, thousands of soldiers down to 300 and won a war without lifting a sword.

I really like Gideon, because of his faith. He asks lots of questions, sure. But we should all do that.

If we don’t study and ask questions all we do is have a blind faith and that kind of faith is useless.

Gideon seemed to ask God a lot to do in him all that he need to so that he could do through him all that he wanted

But there is another account with Gideon that is less told, in my experience, but of equal value. IT’s where Gideon loses it a bit

Judges 8:22–28 ESV

22 Then the men of Israel said to Gideon, “Rule over us, you and your son and your grandson also, for you have saved us from the hand of Midian.” 23 Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, and my son will not rule over you; the Lord will rule over you.” 24 And Gideon said to them, “Let me make a request of you: every one of you give me the earrings from his spoil.” (For they had golden earrings, because they were Ishmaelites.) 25 And they answered, “We will willingly give them.” And they spread a cloak, and every man threw in it the earrings of his spoil. 26 And the weight of the golden earrings that he requested was 1,700 shekels of gold, besides the crescent ornaments and the pendants and the purple garments worn by the kings of Midian, and besides the collars that were around the necks of their camels. 27 And Gideon made an ephod of it and put it in his city, in Ophrah. And all Israel whored after it there, and it became a snare to Gideon and to his family. 28 So Midian was subdued before the people of Israel, and they raised their heads no more. And the land had rest for forty years in the days of Gideon.

The people wanted to set up Gideon as King, and while he refused, we see from this passage the beginnings of him acting like one. He makes an Ephod, which are for priests, not judges and the people begin to worship it. My translations says they whored after it.

In the following passage it mentions Gideon’s many wives, a concubine. And a son that after Gideon’s death sets himself up as king. Not a great ending.

I look at my being invisible in High School and I see it as a blessing now way more than I did back then.

I haven’t mentioned any of my family history. But I’ll say this. My dad and his brothers were very good looking guys.

And one day my dad was looking through one of my year books. He pointed to a guy and said, hey, you know him.

I had gone to school with him all my life, but remember, INVISIBLE. Nope, I said honestly.

Could you find out what his dad’s name is?

Long story short, it took me a while, but I found out the guy had the same name as my Dad.

He nodded his head. “I thought so, that’s my son my girlfriend had in high school. Don’t say anything, he doesn’t know.”

That could have been me if I had gotten the attention I thought I needed. Kids I didn’t know and a life I wasn’t proud of.

The more attention I get, the more I look and act like Gideon.

Jesus spoke against living for the material quite a bit.

Matthew 6:19–21 ESV

19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Gideon forgot later in life who he was working for. He let himself look more important than he really was. Scripture says the Ephod became a snare to Gideon and his family. But there was still peace in the time that he judged

Sometimes, we do the wrong things and good still happens.

Gideon allowed himself to be snared. His son set himself up as King and led Israel to more sin.

So often we take a little step away and nothing bad happens, so we take another step.

Jesus is clear. Our treasure is in heaven, not here.

Can we have nice things, sure. But our stuff, or our fame is not based on our works or our achievements. They are based on God and what he has done and is doing.

Our treasure is in him and in heaven, not in Gideon, not in our stuff, not in our achievements.

Gideon teaches us, through his mistakes that God should always be number one.

Which leads us Sampson. The guy I don’t like at all

I worked with a guy for a few years and he loved suckers. We often had them at the front counter and when he’d come by he would snag one. We got along well and one time we had a bowl full of

Dum Dums

he walked by, grabbed on and I said, “Carlos, you know, you are what you eat.” He looked at the sucker and laughed very hard. Then next time I came to work the bowl was filled, not with suckers but with

Smarties

and every time we walked by, he’s grab some and say, I am what I eat.

Samson, must have lived on Dum Dums.

If you’ve read the story on the guy you might understand why I don’t like him. He made every bad choice you could make and instead of learning from them, he just made worse ones.

I want to say only one thing about Samson, because everything he did was selfish, self-centered- and self -serving, all things I’ve been guilty of and many of here as well.

But he did one thing right. After his mistake of telling his prostitute how to weaken him, Samson had his strength taken away and his eyes gouged out.

Judges 16:28–30 ESV

28 Then Samson called to the Lord and said, “O Lord God, please remember me and please strengthen me only this once, O God, that I may be avenged on the Philistines for my two eyes.” 29 And Samson grasped the two middle pillars on which the house rested, and he leaned his weight against them, his right hand on the one and his left hand on the other. 30 And Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines.” Then he bowed with all his strength, and the house fell upon the lords and upon all the people who were in it. So the dead whom he killed at his death were more than those whom he had killed during his life.

Samson’s life time job was to protect God’s people from people who would harm them. Namely the Philistines. Instead he married one, slept with another and made countless other bad decisions.

Finally he submits to God and says, let me do now, what I should have been doing for 20 years. Loving God and Loving People.

The book of Judges continues for 5 more chapters, but no more judges are mentioned. But the phrase, “when Israel had no King” was mentioned a few times.

God, is the King. Not just of Israel, but of all of creation. We are called to love him with all of our mind, soul and strength. God also loves people. And he wants us to love them too. Sometimes, when we act in a way that does not love God or People, we, for lack of better phrasing, get sent to time out. Not to cut us off, but to bring us back.

That small sample of the book of Judges and is a whole picture of Jesus.

John 3:16 ESV

16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

God loves you so much that he gave his own son to die, so that we could live with him forever.

The debt has been paid, the forgiveness is offered. But so many refuse to accept it. They are either stubborn, or think they have to do something to earn it, but that is not the case. God Loves us, and we can love him too.

I called out last night if anyone wanted a relationship with Jesus. I’m going to make that call again tonight.

Do you want to make Jesus, not just your friend, but your king?

Jesus calls us to Love God, Love People and it’s only through him that we can.

God, do in me all that you need to do so that you can do through me all that you want to do.

Giving your life to Jesus is a big decision, but I hope it is one you make.

Because I love God and all you people, I am reminded of

2 Peter 3:9 ESV

9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

God wants you. If you haven’t joined him in relationship, if you haven’t accepted his gift. Now is the time.

We’ve got one more book tomorrow. The book of Ruth. It’s really short and I’m going to encourage your cabins to read it together tonight. Find Jesus and tell me tomorrow.

Love God, and Love people and you will be free.