Sermon Tone Analysis

Me

Planting Congregation Mayim Chayim was kind of a weird experience.

We knew we were called by God to start a Messianic Synagogue here on the Eastern Shore, there was no doubt in our mind.

However, we didn’t really know anyone here… We grew up in Mobile, we had spent about five years in New York working with a synagogue and going to college there, and then two years in South Georgia working with a synagogue there.

We legitimately knew no one here… But, we knew this was what God was calling us to do, we knew that if we were faithful He would be faithful to make it successful for His Kingdom.

But I would be lying if I said we weren’t scared… At that point I had been in I had been involved in congregational ministry for quite a while, so I was well aware of how difficult it could be.

I had helped plant a number of synagogues, so I was well aware of how difficult that could be.

I was young, I think I was about 28 years old and God was calling us to start a Messianic Synagogue… I wasn’t just scared, I was terrified… I was young, the job was huge, the field that needed to be worked was seemingly insurmountable… I don’t even know that terrified was the right word… It was almost paralyzing…

But, we pushed forward.

We knew this was what God was calling us to do, we knew He had a reason for it, we knew He made promises to us about the Congregation, so we pushed forward.

We didn’t let the fear of failure, the fear of “what if,” the fear of not being liked, the fear of doubt, the fear of anything get in our way… And we made a choice to give in solely to the fear of the Lord, follow His direction and calling, and push forward no matter what.

There have for sure been some rocks and bumps along the way, there have been a ton of battles that we’ve faced—both physical and spiritual—but God has always been faithful to His promise to us and for CMC.

We

Have you ever felt fear like that before?

You know, that gut wrenching kind of fear…

Maybe you had a difficult conversation needing to be had with a family member...

Maybe you were facing a doctor’s appointment where you weren’t sure what kind of outcome you’d be looking at...

Maybe God was calling you into a different direction in your life and it was way out of your comfort zone...

Maybe you had to make a difficult decision about a relationship in your life...

In fact, I’m pretty coincident the last few years have produced this exact kind of fear in the hearts of many...

My guess is, in one situation or another, each and everyone of us have experienced scenarios in our life where we were nearly paralyzed by the fear of the unknown laying before us...

God

This week we read Parasha Shoftim, Deuteronomy 16:18-21:9.

Just to give a quick synopsis of the Parasha we start with the beginning, Deuteronomy 16:18-22 which reiterates the need to establish and maintain judges who will seek justice first and foremost.

This is followed into chapter 17 with the commands for investigations into transgressions and the need for two or more witnesses to disseminate capital punishment, and this is important, because it is for any sin that required capital punishment.

The end of chapter 17 is a series of commands specifically for Israel’s future kings, which included them having to scribe their own copy of Torah and read it daily.

But it also details that we’d end up with a king because we’d end up asking for one so we could be like all the nations around us, rather than being set apart and HaShem being our king.

Deuteronomy 18 begins with the reminder that the Levites would have no physical inheritance in the Land, the command to not learn and observe the abominations of the nations being dispossessed including walking our children through fire, fortune-telling, omen reading, sorcery, witchcraft, necromancing, or anything of the like.

Chapter 18 also contains the Messianic prophecy of a prophet like Moses to whom we must listen and the command to avoid false-prophets and how to determine a false-prophet.

Chapter 19 lays out the description and purpose of the cities of refuge.

In chapter 20 the Lord encourages Israel not to fear their enemies ahead of them as they prepare for the battles they will face on the other side of the Jordan.

Finally, Parasha Shoftim ends with the first part of Chapter 21 which details the process for redeeming the people of innocent blood spilled when there is no killer known.

We see this very concept dealt with in Parasha Shoftim, in fact, considering where Israel is in our journey, the second generation out of Egypt standing on the shores of the Jordan looking across to the Promised Land knowing that war assuredly awaits them on the other side… Fear was a very central reality… And it’s amazing how rapidly something like fear can deteriorate our success if we let it.

Simply consider what happened in Numbers when the spies returned with an evil report of the land… Fear completely consumed Israel… And this second generation couldn’t afford the same reality.

In fact, there’s a powerful principle to take away from this in our own lives:

When faced with crisis, we can cower in fear or we can trust in the One who fights for us.

(Repeat)

Let’s dig into the text together.

If you have your Bibles go ahead and open up to Devarim/Deuteronomy chapter 20, physical or virtual on your phones works just fine… And, just in case, we will also have the passages up on the screens as well.

As I mentioned a moment ago, Moses is talking to the second generation of Israel out of Egypt.

These are the people who are going to cross the Jordan with Joshua and Caleb and who will take possession of the Promised Land.

The first generation died out in the wilderness because they rejected the Promised Land out of fear caused by the evil report of the spies.

This is what Moses says to Israel in Deuteronomy 20...

Do not fear!

This is the central theme here… Israel is getting ready to face war, to go to battle… They have to trust that God is in control, that God is paving the way for them, and that He has ALREADY provided the victory.

That last reality is key, He has ALREADY provided the victory… Before Israel ever crossed the Jordan; before they ever came to Mount Sinai; before they ever walked across the Yom Suf on dry ground; before they ever witnessed the 10 plagues; before Moses ever encountered the Burning Bush… Heck, before Abraham was ever called out of his father’s home, HaShem had already provided the victory that Israel would be walking into on the other side of the Jordan.

Keep that in mind for your own lives, folks.

Whatever battle God is taking you towards, He has already provided the victory.

We’ve just got to trust Him and walk behind Him and follow His lead.

Now, why is this reality so important for Israel at this point?

Because in Numbers 13 Moses sends 12 spies in to spy out the Promised Land and ten of them come back with an evil report of the Land.

In essence, they say the Land is exactly as God promised, but we don’t stand a chance to take it...

Moses is reminding Israel of what happened last time we stood in this very spot.

He is reminding us that we have nothing to fear because God has already provided the victory and we just have to walk in and take it.

Let’s take note of the words used in Deuteronomy 20:3

Al-Yeirach l’vav’chem- Do not be fainthearted...

The root word is Rachach- which means “to be tender, weak, or soft”

Al-Tiru- Do not fear… The root word is Yarei- which literally means “to fear”

Al-Tachp’zu- Do not panic… The root word is Chaphaz- which means “to be in trepidation, hurry, or alarm”

Al-Taartzu- Do not tremble… The root word is Aratz- which means “to cause to tremble, or to tremble”

In other words, when you come up against your enemies— Do not be weak of heart before them… Do not be afraid of them… Do not be trepid or apprehensive before them… Do not let them cause you to tremble before them… Another way we might word this today, do not let them smell fear in you.

This verse makes me think of a Black Mamba, which is the most poisonous snake in Africa.

The Black Mamba doesn’t hold on to its prey once it bites it, it will let the prey run off and then follow behind it until it succumbs to the poison then it will consume it.

But, it has also been noted that they are able to sense the fear in its prey and will follow the prey while hunting or after biting for miles simply following the sent of fear.

It was fear that caused the first generation to fail and not take the Land, and it is fear of the enemy that Moses is reminding Israel to not walk in, but rather to trust that the Lord our God is fighting for us.

Moses continues on the next few verses and tells the officers of Israel’s army a series of ways to weed out those who shouldn’t go into battle because fear could take over.

If you’ve built a house and not dedicated it, otherwise he might be afraid someone else might live in it… If you’ve planted a vineyard and not put it to use, otherwise he might be afraid someone else might gain from it… If you’ve gotten engaged and not been married yet, otherwise he might be afraid he’d die and someone else marry her… And lastly, once all of those are thinned out, the Torah just gets down to the nitty gritty of the problem…

When faced with crisis, we can cower in fear or we can trust in the One who fights for us.

Here’s the thing though, God continually reminds us not to fear the enemies laying before us.

Over and over again throughout the Tanakh and the Brit Chadashah He reminds us to trust in Him, to not fear those before us, and to know that He goes before us and fights for us.

See, when we allow the Lord to direct our footsteps we have nothing to fear because He has already prepared the way, and He has already secured our victory.

His message has never changed.

As FDR is famous for saying, “We have nothing to fear but fear itself.”

Here’s a few examples from the Tanakh:

And when the Assyrians attacked against Hezekiah:

And here’s the reality, folks, this message hasn’t changed.

The battles we may be facing may have changed, but HaShem’s promise to go before us and fight for us has not.

We may not be facing the uphill battle of concurring the Promised Land, but if this past few years have shown us anything it is that there is still a battle raging, a battle raging for our very souls.

The battles may have changed, but the enemy is still the same.

The same enemy (hasatan) trying to destroy Israel before they even stepped foot in the Promised Land is the same enemy who tried to destroy the Good News of Messiah before it even got rolling.

He’s the same enemy who has tried to derail the Jewish people through the destruction of the first and second Temples, through the Assyrian, Babylonian, and Roman onslaught and through the Pogroms and Holocaust.

He’s the same enemy fighting with all his might to keep the world from recognizing the truth of the Promised Jewish Messiah.

But, as we’ve already noted, God is calling us not to fear the battles that lie ahead because He’s already provided us the victory.

And the enemy we face today is the same as the enemy Israel has faced in the past, the God who told us He was giving us the Promised Land is the same God who told us He’d provide the Promised Jewish Messiah.

And through Messiah He has already provided us the victory against the enemy, against sin and death.

Listen folks, a simple look around us in today’s world tells us something just isn’t right anymore… There is so much pain and anguish, so much death and suffering all around us.

Everything in the world feels upside down… What is good is called evil, what is evil is called good… Hearts have turned cold to one another… The world around us is falling apart as the return of Messiah draws closer.

And, despite how we’d all like to see things, it isn’t going to get any better.

But we still have a job to do.

The Good News must still be preached.

We must still strive to fulfill the Great Commission and make disciples who make disciples.

We are all facing some crazy times, we have plenty happening all around us to be afraid of… But, the call from the Lord is the same today as it was when Moses spoke to Israel at the shores of the Jordan River.

When faced with crisis, we can cower in fear or we can trust in the One who fights for us.

Here’s a few words of encouragement to this very issue from two men who knew a lot about suffering for the Good News of Messiah, both were direct disciples of Yeshua.

From 1 John 4 verse 4

Skipping to verse 17

And finally from 1 Peter 3

When faced with crisis, we can cower in fear or we can trust in the One who fights for us.

You

(Call the worship team back to the stage and unmute)