Come Up Out of That Pit!
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· 16 viewsGod calls you out of fear, hiding, and sin to show others the way to life
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Transcript
Pre-service Passage
Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits— who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. The Lord works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed. He made known his ways to Moses, his deeds to the people of Israel: The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
Introduction
After conquering the Promised Land and dividing it among the 12 tribes and Josua’s death, Israel had a time of relative peace. The people who had transitioned from being slaves in Egypt to people of conquering warriors, gradually evolved into a nation of farmers and herders.
Eventually God began to give the people Judges to lead them, because they tended to drift into sin and following the religion and customs of the people around them
In other words…they kept following the path of falling into pits of sin and despair…sin always leads to despair and death, eventually
Judges 3:7 (Othniel)
Judges 3:12 (Ehud)
Judges 3:31 (Shamgar)
Judges 4 (Deborah)
Judges 5:31b “Then the land had peace for 40 years”
By this time they had been in the Promised Land for about 200 years
Read/summarize Judges ch. 6
PRAYER
Transition: Drifting away from God is such a deceiving, hypnotizing process — people that have known Jesus don’t just decide one day to turn their backs on Him — it is a gradual slide that eventually ends up in a deep pit
WHEN YOU DRIFT AWAY FROM GOD, THE ENEMY IS MORE THAN READY TO FILL THE VOID
Weakness
Compromise
Idol Worship
Talk about idol worship
The enemy will find every chink in your armor — every way to profit from your weaknesses
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
WHEN YOU FINALLY CALL OUT TO GOD, EXPECT THINGS TO HAPPEN
The people cried out to God because of their oppression — the Midianites — miserable life
God sent a prophet to remind them what God had done for His people and how they were now in disobedience because they were worshipping Baal and Asherah
God will call you to face your sin
God will bring you to repentance
God’s presence and grace will draw you to worship
God will lead you to amazing victories over the enemy
What will you do today, tomorrow, and in the days to come?
Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
He has already rescued us from the pit…why would we stay down in the pit?
TAKE JESUS’ HAND AND COME UP OUT OF THAT PIT!
Story of people displaced by war…years later they find out the war is over…they’ve been cowering in caves when freedom is just outside
Jesus is calling each one to enjoy a real, daily, 24-7 relationship with Him…there is nothing better
“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”
Remember: By His grace, God calls you out of fear, hiding, compromise, and sin and will use you to show others His love and the message of hope through Christ