Northwest Gospel Church Sermons Camas/washougal

After the death of Samson, the book of Judges takes a weird turn. The vicious cycle of chapters 3-16 has culminated in Samson, and the narrator seeks to bring home the central thesis of the book by means of a double conclusion. The conclusion of the book takes the form of two longer narratives (chapters 17-18 and chapters 19-21, respectively) that repeat the author’s thesis statement throughout. These two narratives mirror the opening of the book (we will examine more on this next week). By zooming in on the odd saga of “a man of the hill country of Ephraim, whose name was Micah” (Judges 17:1), the author of Judges will drive home the point, “In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 17:6, 18:1, 19:1, 21:25). These are days of subjective religion. Among the Israelites, a people called by God to worship and serve him as a light to the nations, darkness covers the land. After being saved by God again and again, chapters 17-21 give an intimate picture of just

Welcome to part three of the Samson saga. Our first week was filled with angels and animal sacrifice. Week two contained ripping lions apart with bare hands and foxes tied together to be used as weapons. It’s been quite the journey, and the story isn’t over yet. Part three contains sin, seduction, and even more amazing feats of strength. But behind all the theatrics that could fill a Marvel trilogy is the story of a people falling deeper and deeper away from their God, modeled in the character of our book’s last main judge, Samson.

Samson has been called by God, and in this week’s text, we begin to see Samson live out his calling. This is certainly an odd text; filled with riddles, murder, a strong man ripping apart a lion “as one tears a young goat” (as if that were simple), and a bunch of foxes with their tails on fire. While it can be easy to get lost in the wild, superhero-like story of Samson, it’s important to remember the pattern of the book of Judges. Last week’s text (about Samson’s parents) began with the first step in our cycle, and this week’s text continues the cycle. Make sure not to “lose the forest for the trees” this week as you study, remembering the downward spiral of the Israelites, who are beginning to look exactly like their Canaanite (or more specifically to this text, Philistine) enemies.

Chapter 13 starts in a familiar place for the people of Israel. “And the people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord.” The Lord has given the people of Israel over to the hands of the Philistines because of their rebellion, and we are about to meet the final judge that God raises up for his people. Even with the weight of sin ever-present throughout the book of Judges, we see glimpses of God’s sovereign hand working to advance his plans when an angel appears to a family from the tribe of the Danites. Throughout the book of Judges we see twelve men and women fill the role of Judge and here in chapter thirteen we are introduced to the last one, Samson. Samson is one of the better known of the judges, often remembered for his incredible physical strength and his infamous downward fall into sinfulness. Chapter 13 is the story of Samson’s parents and their encounter with a messenger from God. Samson’s father, a man named Manoah, and his wife were visited by an angel and told they would have a child

In some ways, this story is very similar to the cycle we’ve seen over and over… sin, oppression, deliverance, and peace. In other ways, this story is unique. Jephthah, our next Judge, is a very successful warrior, but he “makes a deal” with the God of Israel: “If you will give the Ammonites into my hand, then whatever comes out from the doors of my house to meet me when I return in peace from the Ammonites shall be the Lord’s, and I will offer it up for a burnt offering.” After the Lord delivers the Ammonites into his hand, the first thing to come out of his door is his only child. What does all this mean? That’s what we’ll explore this week, but for now, let’s notice just how far Israel has gotten from knowing the character of their God. With Jephthah’s deal, he’s treating the God of the Bible like all of the gods of the nations around him… and Israel is beginning to look a lot like those nations.

This week’s passage revolves around the tension between Abimelech, son of Gideon, and the corrupt leaders of Shechem who put him in power over Israel. First, we see Abimelech plotting and seizing power with the help of his mom, and hiring a gang of thugs, all with the blessing of these leaders. But the dynamic soon changes as God causes division between these two evil parties. Having fallen out of favor with the leaders of Shechem, Abimelech dodges assassination plots from both the leaders and their new golden boy, Gaal. Abimelech’s life comes to a swift, violent, and, as one can imagine, prideful end. Following the retributive slaughter of Shechem’s leaders and people, Abimelech leads an invasion attempt against a neighboring city and is killed by at the hands of a woman. Following the account of Abimelech violent beginning and ending, the author notes the judges who followed him and reminds the reader of the reality that these Israelite judges would come and go, but there is a greater leader to hope for.

In one of the oddest battle scenes in history, Israel defeats Midian by blowing trumpets and breaking jars. We’re told that the Lord set the swords of the Midianites against each other, and Israel won. In chapter 8, we see Gideon win another battle, but the narrative is quite different. The author took great care to remind us of God’s presence at every turn in chapter 7, but that language is oddly silent in chapter 8. After the battles, we see the continual downward spiral of both Gideon and the Israelites. He leads the Israelites in improper worship practices, where Israel “whored after” the ephod that Gideon made after his victories in battle. Years later, Gideon dies, and the cycle of the book of Judges continues.

We’re now with our next judge: Gideon. What immediately sticks out (compared to the judges of chapters 3-5) is the length of this narrative, which spans three chapters of the book. More time is spent on Gideon than Ehud, Othniel, Shamgar, and Deborah... combined. While the flannel graph Sunday school lessons of our youth may have us believe that Gideon is the hero of this three-chapter story, what we actually find is a man who is a coward, questioning God at every turn. What hope is there for Israel when even the judges exemplify the weakness of the people?

Once again, the people of Israel do what is evil in the sight of the Lord. Already, we’ve seen the same story twice. Remember the pattern that was laid out for us in chapter 2: God’s people do what is evil, they are oppressed, they repent, God sends a judge to deliver them, and then there is a time of peace. And this week is no different. There’s evil (4:1), the Israelites cry out to God for rescue (4:3), God sends Deborah (4:4-24), and there’s a time of peace (chapter 5). There is one way that this week’s text differs from what we’ve explored so far in the book of Judges: we get a glimpse into the mind of the judge through a song (chapter 5). Here we see Deborah recount the events of chapter 4 in song, giving glory to God and reminding the Israelites of God’s goodness.

This week, we’re introduced to our first three judges: Othniel, Ehud, and Shamgar. It’s also here that we see the first two examples of the pattern we were introduced to in chapter 2, a pattern that we’ll see throughout the book: God’s people do what is evil in the sight of the Lord, they are oppressed, they repent, God sends a judge to deliver them, and then there is a time of peace.

The first two chapters of Judges grab the reader’s attention immediately, as it opens in the middle of a war. This is a Holy War. God’s people have been commanded by Him to enter the Promised Land and execute God’s judgment on the wicked nations therein by “devoting them to destruction” (Judges 1:17). From the outset, the reader gets a taste of this dark and exceedingly odd book. A king named Adoni-bezek faces God’s judgment, as his weird fetish of cutting off thumbs and big toes of the kings he defeats gets visited on him. The reader is also confronted by a foreshadowing of what is to come. The tribes of Israel fail to follow the Lord. They “did not drive out” the inhabitants of the land, instead intermarrying with them and falling into idolatry, worshiping their pagan gods. But though Israel is in the process of abandoning the Lord, the book of Judges exists, because the Lord refuses to abandon His people. In chapters 1 and 2, we meet a fickle people and a faithful God.

We don't need to look far to find evidence of the distress in our world. Even in our own lives, stress and suffering too often seem to be present. What does God's word have to say about that? In Psalm 4, King David calls out to God for relief, and in calling out he is reminded of the goodness and love of God for his people. Here, we see that the goodness of God means peaceful rest for the believer.

"Oh come, let us sing to the Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!" It's in Psalm 95 where we see Israel glorifying the Lord and testifying to his amazing deeds. This incredible psalm points us to God as the object of our worship and reminds us that he alone is worthy of our worship.

To kick off our Summer Psalms sermon series, we turn to Psalm 3. This psalm, written by King David, is all about dealing with our sin and facing the consequences of our rebellion against God. Sin and death stand as enemies that can only be defeated by the work of Jesus Christ.

Who is the true King? While our modern American minds may have trouble with the language of royalty, this was a big question in Daniel's day. Many of us are familiar with the story of King Nebuchadnezzar, of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, but what is the purpose of this story? How does its message affect us today? Join us today as we see that even in difficult circumstances, we're called to worship and trust the King who can rescue us.

Nathan Noorlun • This week, we come to the end of our series in Paul's first letter to the Thessalonians. The final words of this letter encourage and exhort us to live in line with the ways of God's kingdom. Here, we see that gospel-centered reminders equip a gospel-centered church.

Ben Potloff • This week, we enter the final chapter of Paul's first letter to the Thessalonians. Once again, Paul comments on the beautiful example set by the Thessalonian Christian, and he encourages them to continue in their ways more and more. We recognize that Jesus is going to come again, and we are to remain awake and alert in hopeful anticipation of that day.

Max Janusch • As we continue in our journey through 1 Thessalonians, we come to 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18. In this passage, Paul and his companions write to inform the Thessalonians about the fate of those Christians who have already died. There is good news! Whether living or dead, all those in Christ will be raised with Christ and will spend eternity together with God.

Gavin Hesse • "Now concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write to you." The Thessalonian Christians loved one another deeply. But what does that kind of brotherly love look like in our lives? How can we better model the example set by the Thessalonians? As Paul continues to instruct and exhort these early Christians he addresses our love for fellow believers and the patterns that define our life and work. Here, we see that God’s Church is represented by God’s people.