Obey My Voice

Judges 6:1 ESV

The people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord gave them into the hand of Midian seven years.

Judges 6:

Back at it

The people are back at doing evil in God’s sight

They have experienced the rest of God and now they are back at sin

They got conformatable and left Jesus to trust in the idols of those around them

Notice the object of God’s address

He is speaking to the people not the person

How do we talk about God’s word and sin and What God is doing?

We often talk about God’s work and word in an individual sense

We talk about spiritual things individually but we forget the diection of much of the Bible is not to individuals but to the group

There are aspects of God’s word that are individual, call to salvation, repentance, faith, and leadership

These are often spoken of as individual responses to the call of God

But we often talk about response to God and His instruction in an individual sense that I think entails the way we think about God’s work and ways generally.

This point is important because it factors into our identity

Who are you?

Are you what you are on your own or who you are a part of?

What gives you identiy?

is it your ability?

Is it what you have done?

Is it your family?

Is it in possessions?

Isreal is Identified and a leader is identified

Our identity should be in what and who we are a part of not in ourselves

What makes you somebody is not your strength, ability, success

Your identity is in your community and in God

Are you part of the church?

Are you in Christ?

Judges 6:2

Judges 6:2–5 ESV

And the hand of Midian overpowered Israel, and because of Midian the people of Israel made for themselves the dens that are in the mountains and the caves and the strongholds. For whenever the Israelites planted crops, the Midianites and the Amalekites and the people of the East would come up against them. They would encamp against them and devour the produce of the land, as far as Gaza, and leave no sustenance in Israel and no sheep or ox or donkey. For they would come up with their livestock and their tents; they would come like locusts in number—both they and their camels could not be counted—so that they laid waste the land as they came in.

God gave His people into Midian’s hands because of His discipline

It was God’s providence not the math of who has more soldiers

When it was harvest time the people of Midian would come in droves to claim the food of Israel

If you could give advice to these Israelites what would you say?

They had to eat, couldn’t live without food, so they had to grow food

No choice right?

Have you ever been in a situation where you felt hopeless?

Judges 6:6

Judges 6:6 ESV

And Israel was brought very low because of Midian. And the people of Israel cried out for help to the Lord.

Israel was humbled very low

Rather than fighting back at the opressors, crying out for the injustice done to them, arguing for their rights and priveldges, they cried out to the LORD

How we respond to dark days and difficulties will display the trusts of our hearts and our identity

Israel was wicked, as said in v1

Yet they were called

Romans 11:29 ESV

For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.

God had called His poeple and they were His people, Israel

Romans 11:

Their idenityt was in their God

The way respond to times of trouble will either show our hearts of faith after God by turning to Him and crying out for His help. Or our hearts of trust in ourselves, or something else will be shown in how we turn to and rely on other things (law, rights, ability, family, etc.)

Judges 6:7–10 ESV

When the people of Israel cried out to the Lord on account of the Midianites, the Lord sent a prophet to the people of Israel. And he said to them, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: I led you up from Egypt and brought you out of the house of slavery. And I delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of all who oppressed you, and drove them out before you and gave you their land. And I said to you, ‘I am the Lord your God; you shall not fear the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell.’ But you have not obeyed my voice.”

The people cried out and god answered

God sent a prophet to speak to His people

God had done so much for them and yet they had not obeyed

This is the same story in Israel we have seen and it has continued

It has continued to our day

God has done so much for us, yet we often turn away and sin

We often do wicked things in the sight of God

What does God say?

“You have not obeyed but return”

John 6:27 ESV

Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.”

John

John 6:37 ESV

All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.

Whoever comes to Jesus will not be turned away

If God calls you to trust in Him and gives you new life in Jesus

You are His,

You are part of His family,

You are eternally adopted into His family!

What a relieving joy!

His promise and character is mercy to those who turn and trust!

Look here...

John 6:40 ESV

For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”

Anyone who turns to Jesus and believes will have eternal life

Do you know this?

Do you have this promise?

Turn or renew

Realize friends… times of trouble will come, they might be your fault, they might be discipline, they might be circumstantial, they might be persecuiton for Jesus’ name or righteousness sake

Regardless, seek the Lord for the cause and the remedy

Ask HIm if there is somehwere you have not obeyed

Have you turned from His voice?

Repent

But remember His faithfulness amid the storm

Psalm 91:1–10 ESV

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler. You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness, nor the destruction that wastes at noonday. A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. You will only look with your eyes and see the recompense of the wicked. Because you have made the Lord your dwelling place— the Most High, who is my refuge— no evil shall be allowed to befall you, no plague come near your tent.