God still Delivers His people

We can be Thankful because God is gracious even when His people are unfaithful (Judges 4:1-3)

Explanation: This is the third cycle of disobedience and deliverance in the book of Judges. Note in v. 4 the words again did evil in the sight of the LORD. The Deborah - Barak cycle is not the first time the Israelites brought misery and bondage upon themselves due to sinful behavior, and sadly, it wasn’t the last time either.

The Israelites had not listened to the Word of God, and had disobeyed their leaders and prophets. They had allowed the Canaanite society to exert more influence over them than the principles of separation that God had imposed on them. They had been warned of the consequences of disobedience and at this point they had been under oppression for a 20 year period.

Argument: The Church of Jesus is facing some tough times in the present day. As the Church we need to face the tough truth that some of the responsibility lies with us. Before we blame the secular pagans for their celebration of sin, we should look to our own house and confess that it was our compromise with the world that opened the door to many of the social ills we now face. We the people of God have been slack in standing on godly principles and we have been far too silent as the secularists have gained ground.

The third stage of each cycle is where the people cry out to God for help. God’s grace is most evident when we notice that while the people are crying out to God because of their oppression and bondage and hard times, the text gives no indication of their repentance. That is Amazing Grace indeed!

Caution must be taken at this point or we may fall into error. The American Church is not Israel, and we are not living under a direct Theocracy as they were. The specific outcome for Israel as a nation is not the same as our specific outcome, but the principle is timeless: God delivers those who do not deserve His help! We can rejoice and be thankful that He is a good and gracious God who has not lost His power - He is able to save to the uttermost!

Application: For our part we are called to remember that “the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God” (1 Peter 4:17) and that we are called to be holy as He is holy (1 Peter 1:16)

We can be Thankful because God is Sovereign and has a plan even when we can’t see it (Judges 4:4-7)

Explanation: We are introduced to Deborah and Barak at this point in the account. Deborah is a prophetess who serves the nation by sharing the truths of God with the people. God leads Deborah to summon Barak to serve as the human leader against the Canaanites. Deborah is obedient in fulfilling God’s desires in this manner (v.6) and summons Barak. She explains the plan to him which sounds pretty thin.

The basic upshot of the plain is for Barak to take 10,000 men down from a mountain stronghold to face the general Sisera with his 900 chariots on the plains of the Jezreel valley. The plan is for Barak and his soldiers to leave a place of safety and move to a place of great vulnerability

Illustrate: Union disaster at Cold Harbor

Argument: God is outside the Box. He is the Alpha and Omega and He knows the end from the beginning. We are finite and limited and we do not have His perspective. He actually tells us that we don’t have the ability to understand.

For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:8-9)

God is not obligate to explain Himself to us. This world and our nation may seem to be exploding into chaos with an uncertain future, but make no mistake, God has a plan, and in His Sovereignty He is bringing out His purposes and fulfilling His agenda. Because He is God, He can bring about things in spite of our sin and rebellion.

Application: The task for the Believer is to trust, especially when we don’t understand. We CAN be thankful knowing the Unseen Hand is on the wheel.

We express our gratitude by serving Him through obedience (Judges 4:8-14)

Explanation: When Barak hers the plan, he is probably like, “Hey Deborah, I know you’re a prophet and all that, but are you sure that’s what God said? I mean, this doesn’t make military sense - matter of fact, it sounds like a plan for our side to get slaughtered.”

While Barak may have not said anything like that, the text does indicate that even though he was not overly excited about the plan (v. 8), he does obey God’s word, and he does muster the 10,000 men on the mountain (v, 10). And when decision time arrives, Barak leads those 10,000 men down the mountain into the face of almost certain defeat(v.14).

Illustrate; not nearly as scary as a battle, but recently at Forgiven Ministry we had a trust and obey experience. God opened up an opportunity for a camp at Franklin Correctional for August 14. As of July 19 we had zero local volunteers. We were going to cancel the camp at the end of that week if we did not have volunteers. We obeyed God and He delivered.

Argument: When we are obedient to God’s revealed will, He does what He has said He would do. (vv. 15-16). Our problem is that we want to wait until we can see the way forward before we move ahead. What makes good sense to us is not generally the way of the Kingdom. As Jesus people we are called to “walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Cor. 5:7)

We express our gratitude through Praising Him for His Deliverance (Judges 5)

Explanation: The Deborah / Barak cycle is found in chapters 4 and 5 of the book of Judges. Chapter 4 presents the narrative account of the cycle of the people’s sin and God’s deliverance. Chapter 5 is the poem; it is the praise anthem that proclaims God as the True Hero of the story.

READ verses 1 - 5 of Chapter 5

Argument: God is a good God, and He is good all the time. He is at work in His world and He is carrying out His agenda. He is the God who answers the prayers of His people, and He is the One who brings comfort and healing in our time of need. Our God is faithful, even when we are not (2 Timothy 2:11-13)