The Lot Line

Passage- Judges 1:1-8

Attention-

Last week I was working on something in the garage and I needed a flashlight.

not wanting to go into the house I first rummaged through my toolbox and found one

It was one that I had used years ago as a maintenance mechanic and I remembered how well it worked and that it was a trusty flashlight.

I would use it every day and probably about every hour I would pull it out to use it

I pulled it out of the drawer and I twisted it to turn it on and to my surprise do you know what happened?

Nothing

This trusty flashlight let me down

What does a guy do next?

Fix it…I opened it up and went to change the batteries and do you know what I found

A complete mess

THe batteries had leaked and might as well have welded them inside

I banged on that flashlight to get those batteries out but ended up having to throw it away.

Introduction-

Batteries are designed to be turned on, to be used, not neglected or ignored.

What you and I refuse to use we will surely lose. We’re meant to he turned on, too.

Our gifts are to be used!

Our lives are not meant to be “waited out” but to be a life of being salt and light!

Main truth-

God has called us to be salt and light in this world.

When we allow our affections to be tangled up in the world around us we become like them

God has called us to be in the world

He has also called us to be distinct from the world

Israel failed to do so and the rest of the book of Judges pictures what happens when we go from being in the world to loving the world.

Transition #1-

What is being taught? (Explain the passage and draw out the 1st century truth)

Read verses 1-5

We pointed this out int the first message that the Lord gave them the victory over the inhabitants of Bezek.

The Lord was using Judah to lead the nation of Israel.

We also pointed out that Judah, as a tribe, did well…they went and God gave them the victory

Does this mean that Judah was following after God?

I propose that they weren’t

It isn’t until Jesus sits on the throne in the millennial kingdom that this issue is resolved...

What issue

A leader that desires to God’s will and only God’s will

In 1 Samuel 13:14 we are told what the Lord is looking for and I believe that from the time of Moses and Joshua this is what is missing.

A leader who knows God and has a deep seated desire to follow after Him

Will we find that in the book of Judges?

NO!!

What do we find?

The unfaithfulness of our unstable and unpredictable hearts

Throughout Judges we will see Romans chapter one play out.

When the human heart is left to its own devices it will create only selfishness, suffering, and more evil.

But Judah is doing so well!!!

Are they really?!?!?!

They start well

But......read verses 6-9

What’s wrong with this picture?

Simply put A LOT

Morally and ethically we would see soooo much wrong here.

And as much as morality and ethics, at least for the Christian, are tied to the truths of the Bible I don’t want to get tied up too much in the line of questioning the cutting off of the toes and thumbs...

What we need to notice is their theological response

Their actions are displaying what they believe about God

What is the desire of God for the inhabitants of Bezek?

They are to be wiped out…completely

How does Judah do?

Well....it was only one man and he died eventually...

No, they disobeyed.

And when you come to his commentary on the situation he has better theology than the Israelites.

His response is this

“I was an evil ruler and did this same thing to 70 other kings…that must be why god did this to me.

Now in my notes I used a lower case “g”

There is no proof in the text that tells us that he is referring to Jahweh

But there is also no proof that he isn’t.

I do not think that he would associate this to his god but to the god that Judah serves.

So he is saying that the god who Judah follows did this to him

But it’s about more than just who did what

Notice with me that he gives value to the working of the divine

I love this because it’s almost as if it is a warning from Jahweh Himself to His people.

Jahweh’s people are going on as if He won’t correct them.

I tis interesting that he ascribes this to the working of God....but even he goes further than Israel does

“so God hath requited me.”

Websters uses “repay” or “avenge” as synonyms for requite

Jahweh uses this outsider to remind them not only that He is but He is also a God of justice.

Transition #2-

How do we understand this in our context? (Bridge 1st century truth to today)

What does this obscure character that covers three verses have to do with us today?

-We have hit on this a bit already…it is fascinating that he ascribes his consequences to the working of a deity.

-We are living in a culture that no longer jumps to the conclusion that God exits much less that he is working in the lives of His creation.

In the first half of the last century many individuals would have seen their circumstances as the working of God.

*It was not even a stretch for what we would consider the nominal’s to respond in looking for God in their circumstances

Somewhere in the 70’s-90’s there was a culture shift.

-The “nominal” started to begin to identify with the less conservative religious groups.

Then we had 911 and a large portion of the country looked to God and some even came back to church for a while

Now we are seeing a cultural shift in that nominal’s are no longer identifying with the church or with Christianity but with culture and identifying as non-Christian

They are not even identifying with theologically liberal churches

These nominal are being referred to as the “nones” based on their response to religious surveys

When asked about their religious affiliation they mark “none”.

Those of us in the church today are living through a major shift not only in culture in general but some major shifts in the church as well.

How does this happen?

-First there needs to be decisions that what culture does has no affect on the church and therefore we will ignore culture and just do church.

*This only results in the church becoming irrelevant and unconnected with the culture they are commissioned to reach

-There is a second decision that is summed up in the motto of the last year.... “you do you and I’ll do me”

You worry bout yourself and your circle and I’ll stay over here and take care of myself and my little circle”

This results in the gospel witness of the church falling asleep.

-The fields are white unto the harvest but we are in the church building ...

We are called to go into the harvest not stay in the barn and pray the harvest in

The parable of the wedding feast and the servants are to GO INTO the streets and invite....

***FRIENDS, our gospel influence needs to reach further than the lot line

We need to be building redemptive relationships in all of our spheres of influence

-Family

-Coworkers

-Neighbors

-Community members

Transition #3-

How do we live this out in our context? (Application of the biblical truth to us personally)

How should this change my thinking. (Mental understanding and/or reasoning?)

I would challenge you to change the way that you think about the culture around you...

-Instead of seeing a lost and beyond hope culture lets see what is really there.

-There is a harvest.

-The fields are more ripe for the harvest than ever.

Just because someone doesn’t acknowledge God doesn’t put them beyond His reach

-What puts them out of the reach of the gospel is when we don’t love them enough to preach the gospel to them

How should this change my heart? (What do I love?)

We need to transform our affections by changing the way we think...

-We ought to be praying that the Lord give us His heart for the culture we live in

*Pray that we would respond the way Jesus does in Matthew 9:36

Matthew 9:36 KJV 1900

But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.

Pray for a compassionate heart

How should this change my whole being? (Behavioral change)

Pray for ways to engage your circles of influence

Pray for ways you can be lead them to the Chief Shepherd

Pray for ways our church can influence the community we are in

-Pray for ways we can engage our community

For ways we can step out past our lot line and see lives transformed.

Pray for myself and the deacons as we discuss outreach and how this church can impact our community.

Conclusion

We may not live in a culture or a community that recognizes or esteems God

But that does not repeal the commission that God gave to us to preach the gospel

He did not call us to preach the gospel when it seemed like it would be successful

Or when we could bring him great numbers

We are not responsible for the numbers…and we cannot use that as an excuse to be lazy about the gospel

Especially in smaller churches it’s easy to justify and use the excuse that the Lord is the one who does it...

Yes, but He still needs someone to speak for Him!!!!

As the lord of Bezek implied…God is the judge

Call to action-

The reality of God being judge ought to compel us to share the news of not only the judgment but the free gift of deliverance from the coming judgment.

-There are lost should going to hell every day because churches have become gospel introverts

-We are socially awkward and struggle to be relevant and create redemptive relationships so we just stay home and wait for others to come to us

-It’s time to step out of our comfort zones and beyond the lot line and start building relationships that lead to salvation

Not only do we need to remember that God is the judge and unsaved souls are going to hell but also for the fact that we will give an account for our service to Him

-I think first and foremost on this reckoning will not be our:

-Tithes

-Our church attire

-The version we used

It will be an account of how well we loved others into His kingdom

How well did we develop relationships

How well did we love the unlovable

How well did we purpose to use those relationships redemptively

How are we doing

Personally and corporately

Are we engaging our community?

Are we becoming like the “nones” and becoming more like culture instead of redeeming it?

That is what happened to Judah

The fingers and toes, ever wonder what was up with that?

It was not a Jewish custom, they acquired it by becoming apathetic to Jahweh and affectionate toward the culture around them.

So when I call us personally and corporately to engage culture I am not calling us to forget God and love the world

I am asking us to love those around us as much as God loves them

We can be in the community without placing our affections on what they do

We can love them and engage them without accepting what they worship

I would challenge us to see engaging our culture and engaging them past the lot line as a part of our worship.

God is calling us past the lot line

What is it that’s keeping you

Fear

Fear of man

Fear like Jonah…that God will bring new converts in and make the church “messy”

Let’s pray that He does!!!!

Bitterness

An unloving heart that has become bitter to the unsaved?

Apathy

An unmotivated heart because the battle seems so lost

The battle isn’t yours…you are only a servant with orders

God will give salvation we are called to preach it

Whatever it is that’s holding you back bring it to the Lord this morning

Pray that he will work in your heart to draw you out of the pew and out of your comfort zone and past the lot line.

Seemingly impossible futures for us are only matter of time to God.

Closing song-

507 I Believe In Miracles