Posts with the category “judges”

Give Me Eyes to SeeReading: Psalm 139:23-24 and 2 Kings 6:15-17Samson's final prayer was for revenge. He asked God to strengthen him so he could repay the Philistines for what they had done to his eye...  Read More

God Acts Even When We Do Not AskReading: Romans 5:6-8One of the most striking details in Samson's story is that the Israelites never cried out to God for deliverance. They did not ask. They did not pr...  Read More

When You Do Not Know You Are in the PotReading: Revelation 3:14-17Three thousand men from Judah confronted Samson not to celebrate his victory over the Philistines, but to defend the very people who w...  Read More

The Faithfulness Behind the FailureReading: Hebrews 11:32-34Samson appears in what many call the Faith Chapter (Hebrews 11), and that can feel deeply confusing. His life was marked by selfishness, bro...  Read More

The Slow DriftReading: Judges 13:1-5The opening of Samson's story does not begin with a dramatic fall. It begins with a quiet sentence: the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord. No single momen...  Read More

The Table of MercyReading: Psalm 23The sermon closed with a prayer drawn from the imagery of Psalm 23, and it is a fitting place to end this week. We walk through valleys. We do not camp in them. God ...  Read More

When Victory Belongs to GodReading: 2 Corinthians 12:7-10God reduced Gideon's army to 300 men so that no one could claim the victory as their own. The principle at work is the same one Paul describes ...  Read More

Grace That Delivers AnywayReading: Lamentations 3:19-33Even knowing the Israelites would turn back to idolatry, God delivered them from Midian anyway. That is the scandalous nature of grace. He gave t...  Read More

Caught in a Bigger StoryReading: Romans 8:18-28Gideon could not see beyond his own suffering to understand that he was living inside a much larger story. The passage in Romans reminds us that all of c...  Read More

Honest Before GodReading: Psalm 22:1-11Gideon stood before the angel of the Lord and voiced what many of us only dare to think: where is God in all of this? The psalm for today's reading captures that...  Read More

Strength Made Perfect in WeaknessReading: 2 Corinthians 12:7-10; Joshua 1:9Joshua 1:9 reminds us that God commands courage not because the task is easy, but because He is present with us in it.Paul pl...  Read More

God's Plan Will Not FailReading: Isaiah 46:9-11; Judges 4:17-22Isaiah 46:9-11 declares that God's purpose stands firm and that He will accomplish everything He intends.Sisera was defeated. Israel was ...  Read More

God Does Not Write Us OffReading: Judges 4:10-16; Lamentations 3:22-23Lamentations 3:22-23 reminds us that God's mercies are new every morning and that His faithfulness never fails.Barak refused the f...  Read More

The Danger of Misplaced ConfidenceReading: Judges 4:6-9; Psalm 118:8-9Psalm 118:8-9 warns against placing ultimate trust in human beings rather than in God.Barak heard the command of God delivered thr...  Read More

When God Calls the UnexpectedReading: Judges 4:1-10Deborah was already leading when God used her to deliver His word to Barak. God's calls rarely follow the patterns we expect. He raises up leaders fr...  Read More

Getting Back on the BikeReading: Lamentations 3:22-26; Psalm 103:8-14Falling is expected. Everyone who has ever learned to ride a bike has fallen. The question is never whether you will fall -- it is ...  Read More

He Will Never Stop Remembering YouReading: Isaiah 49:15-16; Matthew 28:20The Israelites forgot God -- but God never forgot them. While they were dismissing Him from their minds, He was working on thei...  Read More

The Pattern of GraceReading: Judges 3:7-11; Romans 5:8The cycle in Judges -- disobedience, judgment, crying out, deliverance, peace -- can look like a story of failure. But look more carefully. Every ...  Read More

God's Priority Is Relationship, Not ComfortReading: John 10:10; Deuteronomy 7:3-4One of the most persistent myths in the Christian life is the belief that God's top priority is our happiness. It is no...  Read More

The Danger of ForgettingReading: Deuteronomy 7:1-6The Israelites did not forget God accidentally. The Hebrew word used in Judges 3:7 describes a deliberate dismissal -- a choice to stop remembering. T...  Read More