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[0:00] We are going to continue in Judges, but we're going to be taking it a little bit different than what we've typically taken it before because we have a couple different things.

[0:14] We're going to be jumping around a little bit through the book of Judges and be pulling out what the author's intention was of the minor Judges because throughout the book of Judges, you have these guys that are like one-verse kind of testimony of what happened in their lives.

[0:32] And they serve a particular role in the book of Judges and the whole narrative. But what comes to your mind thinking of minor Judges? If maybe you haven't heard of that before, if you haven't heard of even the book of Judges, you have major Judges and you have minor Judges, what comes to your head when you see minor?

[0:54] A Walkman? A Whopper. I'm sorry. Too much rock music in my day. I can't.

[1:07] Huh? Television. My? Oh, Waltner. You guys.

[1:18] You guys in your day shows. I'm working. All right? Gene, you should be working too. Maybe I'm just out of the loop.

[1:32] Young bucks up there thinking they know. But what comes to your mind when you hear minor? For the musician, for a celloist, you might think of like a minor key.

[1:45] Yeah. You might think music. For the student at YSU, you might think of maybe a focus on academics, like your minor versus your major. Well, the Webster Dictionary says that the adjective of minor, which is the context that we're going to be teaching today, is it means the inferior in importance, in size or degree, comparatively unimportant.

[2:13] And some synonyms to minor are inferior, junior, lesser, lower, smaller, subordinate.

[2:25] But today, we're going to see all these minor judges. We're going to lay them all out. And these minor judges appear in like three different sections throughout the book of Judges, this whole narrative.

[2:41] And their position within the narrative is quite unique. And I want that to be drawn out as the author's intention of this book. And these minor judges actually play a major role.

[2:53] So I'm going to kind of wordplay major and minor. The minor judges play a major role in communicating something, especially about the minor sin, which becomes a major problem when it goes unaddressed.

[3:07] We started out this whole series in Judges talking about that just a minor compromise can lead to just a major issue going on in life and ignoring sin.

[3:20] But we're one compromise away from being restored to God. And we're a confessional way from being restored to God. So while we're going to be looking at this, we're going to be looking at the progressive problem that's going on in the book of Judges today with the minor judges.

[3:36] And so how we're going to do this, we're going to basically lay them all out. We're going to become familiar with the minor judges, their lives, the verses that detail the accounts of the minor judges.

[3:48] And then we're going to be looking at how the author is using them to communicate something vital to the audience of the first readers of this book, but also to us today.

[3:59] So as we begin and open up God's word to Judges, we're going to be starting in Judges chapter three today. But while we're flipping there, I want to pray for our time to focus our minds upon his word this morning and what his word is going to communicate to us.

[4:18] So let's pray. Father God, we are humbled before you, before your word today.

[4:30] And Father, we pray that this is just not another ordinary time gathered with your word. But Father, you've fixed words, you've fixed phrases and meanings to communicate to us today.

[4:46] And Father, we pray that we steward your text well and that through the power of your Holy Spirit, you can help us to understand your word better and in so doing, understanding you better as well.

[4:58] Father, we pray for you to empower us with your word right now at this time. And we praise in Jesus' name. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. So the first section in the Judges of the Minor Judge, we meet Shamgar.

[5:17] He is in chapter three, verse 31. And I believe it's going to be up on our screen this morning. It says, After him was Shamgar, after Ehud, was Shamgar, the son of Anath, who killed 600 of the Philistines with an ox goad.

[5:36] And he also saved Israel. And he also saved Israel. Period. That's it. Shamgar. If you can remember the progression of the major judges, we had Othniel.

[5:48] The book of Judges started out with Othniel. It moved into Ehud. And then it got into this little tidbit of Shamgar, this guy with a stick, an ox goad. And then leading into Deborah and Barak.

[6:01] So it's very easy to summarize this Shamgar account. Look with me. He killed 600 Philistines with a pointed stick, which was used to manage cattle.

[6:14] I was asking for an ox goad today as a demonstration of what happened. But I don't think Rick could have pulled one out. We have like a cross with a stick, but I don't know if that would be good.

[6:27] But it was a pointed stick to manage cattle. So this means that Shamgar was a resourceful farmer. And with that, taking on 600 men with a pointed stick is quite a defeat, isn't it?

[6:44] This is stuff you see in Marvel movies. So this is an incredible victory, church. Which also shows us God in these pages.

[6:55] Because it was God's victory. We've been talking about this many weeks. It is God's victory. And what a testimony of a pointed stick can make that this was indeed God's victory.

[7:08] But notice the details that are missing. Comparatively to the major judges. You had a cycle sometimes with the major judges. Of Israel crying out to God for help in their distress.

[7:20] And God raising up a judge. And them being delivered. And then the narrative will go as the deliverance comes. And there's rest in the land.

[7:33] Note that the importance is not necessarily on the missing details. But the role of Shamgar in the big narrative. The big picture of the book of Judges.

[7:44] Because it is short. And that is significant. And we're going to get into that very quickly. There's not a lot of details. There's not a lot of sin. There's not a lot of cycle. But we do see something.

[7:56] That it was God's victory. Clearly. You can't do what he did on your own power. Maybe you can. But trust me. This is God's word.

[8:07] And you can't. We have seen quite a few odd passages within scripture. Which lead to defeat of the enemy. Using kind of makeshift weapons.

[8:18] We had Ehud. Remember the Benjaminites. With the crafted sword. And the dagger that he hid under his cloak. We have Shamgar with the ox goad.

[8:29] Remember Jael. The foreigner woman out in the woods. With a tent peg. She used to defeat the enemy. We see Gideon. With the horns and the torches.

[8:42] And then you can't forget the millstone woman. Remember the millstone woman at the top of the. You know. Timber. Down on Abimelech. Make shift weapons. And spoiler alert.

[8:52] Coming in the coming week. In the next coming weeks. We're going to be getting into Samson. Who used a jawbone of a donkey. To defeat the enemy. Make shift weapons. Which only point that God.

[9:04] Gets credit for the glory. So God is truly communicating. Something to the sentries. That he is the one who intervenes. And he fights our battles.

[9:14] Just as that beautiful song we opened with. And that comes out of Psalm 46. It is him who fights our battles. And God's tools have many shapes. Many sizes.

[9:25] Many colors. Many interests. But we revere the God. Who makes the insignificant. Significance. So let's pause. On Shamgar.

[9:36] Let's just. Figuratively. Just hang him up for a minute. Let's hang up Shamgar for a minute. And move to the next section. The next section of Minor Judges. Is in chapter 10.

[9:49] So flip over a couple pages. To chapter 10. Chapter 10 verse 1.

[10:03] Oh it's up on the screen. Okay. Okay. It says. After Abimelech. There arose. There arose. There arose. There arose. To save Israel. Tola. The son of Pua.

[10:14] Son of Dodo. A man of Issachar. And he lived in Shamir. In the hill country of Ephraim. And he judged Israel. Twenty-three years. Then he died. And was buried at Shamir.

[10:25] After him. After him. Arose. Jer. The Gileadite. Who judged Israel. Twenty-two years. And he had thirty sons. Who rode on thirty donkeys.

[10:36] And they had thirty cities. Called Havoth Jer. In this day. To this day. Which are in the land of Gilead. And Jer died. And was buried in Kamen.

[10:48] So. We have the next section of Minor Judges here. Shamgar's hanging over here. Waiting for me to talk about him again. We have the major judges.

[10:58] We have the narrative. How do these fit into the narrative? We just ended with Gideon. The major judge of Gideon. We went to Abimelech. And now the minor judges of Tola and Jer.

[11:10] Which precede Jephthah. Which we spoke about last week. And the week before. And so looking at this passage. We can pull out a couple things. We can summarize this passage. That he was the hill country judge.

[11:24] Tola. All we know of Tola. Is that he was the son of Puah. And the grandson of Dodo. Of the house of Issachar. Those are humorous names.

[11:35] But that's their name. So. We read what it says. And. They lived in Shamir. In the hill country of Ephraim. He judged for 23 years.

[11:47] And he died and buried in Shamir. Okay. It still seems okay. Up to this point. Okay. We're checking off the list. Nothing. Nothing too radical about this. It still has the details missing.

[12:00] But Tola reminds me of Othniel. Do you remember Othniel? It's like a. The straightforward account. Of judgeship. The people cry out to the Lord. And the Lord does this.

[12:11] And Israel does this. And they make a bad decision. They get delivered. You know. Everything like that. Othniel was the model judge. In the book of Judges.

[12:21] He was the first major judge. For a very significant role. Of showing us clearly. What it was supposed to look like. Of how the Lord was intervening. And Tola kind of reminds me of Othniel.

[12:32] The first major judge. Straightforward judgeship. It was his life. Accomplishment. And his death. Boom. Done. Good.

[12:42] Moving over. Let's hang Tola up. With Shamgar too. And let's move on to Jer. He's called the 30s judge. For anybody.

[12:53] I was. Somebody actually came up to me earlier. They're like. Oh you're talking about the minor judges. Oh Jer. The 30. The guy who has 30. 30. 30. And I'm like. Yeah. It's really cool that.

[13:05] That you guys are reading ahead. But all we know of Jer. Is that. He was from Gilead. He had 30 sons. Who rode on 30 donkeys.

[13:15] And his sons. Ruled over 30 cities. And. He couldn't last another 8 years. He didn't rule for 30 years. He ruled for 22 years. I don't know why he couldn't last another 8 years.

[13:26] Just to make it. Perfect. 30. 30. 30. But he led Israel for 22 years. So. He had 30 donkeys. What does that mean?

[13:37] It actually means something significant. There's a problem starting to develop. Within the judgeship. And. This draws an understanding. That. The only people back in this time.

[13:49] Who would ride donkeys. Were royalty. Were the higher in status. Would ride donkeys. Don't ask me why. I think it's ridiculous. To see anybody riding a donkey.

[14:00] Especially. Not. Not. Not. Not. Not to mention a grown man. Which also points to Jesus. You know. Jesus rode in. On a donkey as well. You see what it was communicating. That it was.

[14:11] It was a symbol. Of. Of. Honor. Of ranking. And so. In this passage. We understand that this is stating. That this family had wealth.

[14:23] And they had power. They were the Ferrari family. There they go. The Ferrari family. Going down the road. Have all this stuff. So note the importance.

[14:38] We got Shamgar. Very little. We got Tola. A little bit more. But still nothing bad. But now we're starting to see something. Creep into the minor judgeship. And that is.

[14:50] Status. Identity. Things that you own. And so. We're starting to see something develop here. So. Before we get too ahead of ourselves. Let's pause on Tola and Jared.

[15:01] Let's hang up Jared with Shamgar and Tola. Let's move to the next section. Which is in chapter 12. Verse 8. It says.

[15:15] After him. Ibsen. Of Bethlehem. Judged Israel. He had 30 sons. And 30 daughters. He gave in marriage. Outside. His clan.

[15:26] And 30 daughters. He brought in from outside. For his sons. And he judged Israel. Seven years. Then Ibsen died. And was buried at Bethlehem. After him.

[15:38] Elon. The Zebulonite. Judged Israel. And he was. And he judged Israel. Ten years. Then Elon. The Zebulonite. Died. And was buried.

[15:48] In Ijilon. In the land of Zebulon. After him. Abdon. The son of Hillel. The. The Pirithan. Pirithanites. Judged.

[16:00] Judged Israel. The Pirithanites. Judged Israel. He had 40 sons. And 30 grandsons. Who rode on 70. Donkeys. And he judged Israel.

[16:10] Eight years. Then Abdon. The son of Hillel. The Pirithanites. Died. And was buried. In Pirithan. In the land. Of Ephraim. In the hill country.

[16:21] Of the Amalekites. So looking at the. Scope. This is right where we're at. Today. In the minor judges. We just got done talking about.

[16:32] Jephthah's judgeship. Last week. We concluded his. Story. And this is right where the narrative. Picks up. And this is where we're going to be. Leaving off from. Starting next week as well. So we have.

[16:43] Ibsen. Elon. Abdon. Which leads up to Samson. So looking at. Ibsen. He's the marrying judge.

[16:54] Look. Look between. Verse 8. And verse 10. All we know. Of Ibsen. Is that. He was from Bethlehem. And that he married. His 60 sons.

[17:05] And daughters. To individuals. Outside of his clan. Ibsen. Led. Israel. For seven. Years. He died. And was buried. At Bethlehem. There's something new.

[17:17] In the text now. So looking in the scope. Of the minor judges. Is. We saw. The wealth. Starting to creep in. With Tola and Jer. And now we're starting to see. Something else. We're starting to see.

[17:28] This. Intermingling. With. The foreigners. A covenant. Breaking. Of the Lord. And it is something new.

[17:39] Intermarriage. With the enemies of God. And then Elon. He's a decade judge. Decade long judge. Two verses. On his account. Nothing too crazy.

[17:50] And all we know. Of Elon. Is that he was from Zebulun. And he led Israel. For ten years. Nothing too crazy there. And then Abdon.

[18:01] The grandfather judge. All we know. Of Abdon. Was that he was a. Pyritonite. In Ephraim. He had. Forty sons. And thirty grandsons. And together.

[18:11] They rode on seventy donkeys. The last. Minor. Judge. Is stating. That they all rode on. Seventy. Donkeys. And Abdon. Led Israel. For eight years.

[18:23] Died. And was buried. In Pirithon. So we see donkeys again. So you know what that means. I don't need to go back. With that again. But we're starting to see something develop.

[18:33] I don't know if you can tell yet. But with these three sections. Of judges. Of the minor judges. They're placed strategically. Throughout these pages. Because. What have we been talking about.

[18:43] Through this whole narrative. Of judges. Judges. Things are just. Things are not getting better. They're actually getting progressively worse. And these minor judges. Actually play.

[18:55] A vital role. In kind of. Checking the pulse. On this nation. It kind of reminded me. Every. Every time we saw. These minor judges pop up. It's kind of like. Checking your blood pressure.

[19:06] You know. Just checking in on things. To see how they're doing. And the author. Using them. Figuratively. In a way. That can. Highlight. That things are actually. Getting worse. Because we're starting.

[19:17] To see this develop. When you meet Samson. Coming up. You're going to see this continue. And. Something interesting. Is looking at the years. In total judgeship.

[19:27] Over Israel. In all three sections. Of. Of the six minor judges. We see. That equals 70.

[19:38] We see a mathematical equation. That equals 70. And we also see 70 donkeys. And 70. Sometimes when you're reading scripture. You know Old Testament. You.

[19:49] You. You. You know the figurative language. When you see 70. It kind of like. Sparks your interest. You're like. Ooh. There might be something to that. And I think there is. In this passage as well.

[20:00] Because. Might. The progression. Of their sin. Have reached. Its. Fullness. At this point. In the judges. Narrative. In the same figurative manner.

[20:12] Saying at this point. They're riding 70. It can't get any worse. Man is after wealth. They're after status. They're intermarrying. With the enemy. We're giving away.

[20:22] All these sons. And daughters. Because what is. What do they do? They ride on 70 donkeys. All of them. Who are intermarried. With this. This nation. With the moral decay.

[20:35] Of the nation of God. Could this mean. That at this point. In their book. The sin. Has reached. This maximum level. Of offense. And we're going to have to wait. And see. In the next. Coming.

[20:45] Coming weeks. When we study. Samson. So. We have our minor judges. Hanging out. Over on the side here. We see.

[20:55] Kind of. This broad scope. Of how this author. Could have. Possibly. Placed them. In various. Strategic points. Within the judge's narrative. There's a progression. At certain places.

[21:08] The pulse checking. In this. In this. In this. Life. In Israel. Of their devotion. To God. Or lack thereof. The progression. Progression is seen. In numerous ways.

[21:19] There's. There's two different ways. That I actually saw progression. You see it simply. In the length of verses. Look in the first section. Of minor judges. It had. 24 Hebrew words. The next section.

[21:30] Had 87 Hebrew words. The next section. Had 117 Hebrew words. There's a progression. Going on. And also. Because it shows locations. I.

[21:41] Oh. I forgot the map. I was going to show you a map. And have a cool little graphic. For you. Forgot it. But there's a. I'm thinking of. Geographic locations. Shamgar was located.

[21:53] His judgeship was. In the southernmost. Regions. The next section. Of judges. Tolan Jer. Was a Transjordan orientation. And then. Ibsen. Elon.

[22:03] And Abzin. Were northern orientation. So there's a progression. And I don't know if you can remember. Back in the introductory section. Way back when. It was like. Fall time. We talked about. The angel of the Lord.

[22:15] Going up. And reviewing. All the progression. That. That Israel was doing. Because they were. Instructed to. Go. Take over the land.

[22:25] To wipe out the enemy. And to not. Intermix with them. To not make. A covenant. A covenant with them. They were supposed to keep. The covenant of the Lord. And the angel of the Lord. Went up.

[22:36] Scripture says. And in going up. It's reviewing. And surveying. Everything that's done. And I don't think. It's a coincidence. What the author is trying to. Kind of artistically communicate.

[22:47] In this Hebrew. Book. Today. The author truly sets up. A clear trajectory. Of the increasing. Spiritual. And moral corruption.

[22:58] That increases. In human kingship. At the expense of God's. Capital K. Kingship. Are you with me church? This truly comes.

[23:08] In full swing. A maturity. And development. In chapters 17. And 21. Because. There's a new refrain. That's going to be introduced. You probably know it.

[23:18] If you've read through judges. There's no king in Israel. And everyone does. What's. Right in their own eyes. So the main points. Of all these minor judges.

[23:30] They play a major role. To show the problem. When man plays the lead role. In God's narrative church. Okay. And this is going to continue. In the life of Samson.

[23:41] And. But I want to ask you a question. Kind of survey. The. The faults. Of these judges. Might we be prone to suffer.

[23:52] In very. Very similar ways. In this life. Because the minor judges. Speak of. Speak of major implications. In our life.

[24:02] As well. And I want to talk about that. For a moment. Because we see. In Jer's judgeship. The 30's judge. You remember that? The 30's judge.

[24:13] We just read. Abdon. He was the 70's judge. All. Are revealed. As leaders. Who seem to leave. A legacy. Recorded.

[24:23] Of the things. That they had. And all the things. That they built. Strutting on their donkeys. And their dynasty. Were they. God's kingdom builders.

[24:35] Or were they building. Their own kingdom. Because. Their leadership. Rubs against the grain. Of the Lord. Being their. Ruler. And their. Capital. Capital J.

[24:45] Judge. The focus of the passage. Is. Is not necessarily. On their great defeats. And everything. It's. It's on. We see all this. Detail. On.

[24:57] What they had. What they owned. Who they ruled over. There's many instances. Church. Of man. Building. Their own kingdom. We saw that.

[25:08] In full swing. Back in World War II. With Nazi Germany. Didn't we? With Hitler. With the horrific acts. Done at the Holocaust. He built his own. Kingdom.

[25:19] And that kingdom. Was only as good. As a quality. Of the human builder. In charge. Everything rested. On. His motives. On his.

[25:30] Character. His heart. And his benevolence. Or. Within Hitler's case. His lack. Thereof. Thereof. Psalm 127. Says. Unless the Lord. Builds the house.

[25:40] Those who build it. Labor in vain. Unless the Lord. Watches. Over the city. The watchman. Stays awake. In vain. It is in vain. That you rise up early.

[25:51] And go to. Go late to rest. Eating the bread. Of anxious toil. Before he gives. To his. Beloved sheep. Might we suffer. From the same thing.

[26:02] In this life. Of building. Our own. Kingdom. As we read. Our minor judges. Today. They reveal. A disease. Of self-interest. And. This.

[26:12] Minor account. Reveals. A major problem. Which is. Which was progressing. In this nation. They were. Foolish. Builders. I want to ask you. A question.

[26:24] Are you a. Kingdom. Builder. In your. In your life. This is important. To remind. Christians. The imperative. Of keeping Christ. As their head. In all that we do.

[26:36] Okay. Especially the church. Colossians 2. 18. Said that. Said that. And when it says. He is the head. Of the body. Of the church. That followed the words. Of saying that.

[26:46] He holds. All things together. And he is the head. Of the body. Of the church. And the Bible. Being a theocentric. Book. That. This doesn't mean. That.

[26:57] Human. Mankind. Is useless. It doesn't mean. It doesn't inquire. Fatalism. Like God. Doesn't need me. But what this does mean. Is that.

[27:08] Yes. God wants to use us. And he wants. Him. Self. To be at the center. The Bible. Is a theocentric book. This is why. We don't enter judges. Saying don't be like him or her.

[27:19] But we rather see God. Who everyone was neglecting. Scripture cries out. Behold our God. Just as Isaiah 40 says.

[27:30] Our only reply then. Can be grateful hearts. And thanksgiving. And obedience. As he reigns over. Our lives. As we are building. In our lives.

[27:41] So. To make some pointed questions. To you today. Yeah. Brent's going to be a little bit. Off the rail today. I want you to look at your marriage.

[27:52] What does your marriage say. About kingdom building. When things are getting a little bit rocky. And things like that. If your parents are still alive. When there's an argument.

[28:02] Between your spouse. Are you more prone to. Quickly picking up the phone. And calling your mom or dad. And saying like this. This. This. And they did this. And that. And this. Or are you quick to.

[28:13] Just come together. And work things out. Because there's. There's an important imperative. Within building. Our. The kingdom of our marriages.

[28:24] That Ephesians 5. 31. Talks about. Therefore. A man shall leave his father and mother. Just like in Genesis 2. 24. Says. And hold fast to his wife. And the two will become one flesh.

[28:36] They're a new creation together. Maybe this. Maybe that doesn't have anything to do with you. Maybe your marriage is struggling with purity. Maybe your eyes in your marriage.

[28:47] Aren't focused upon your spouse. In direct violation of what 1 Corinthians 7. 7. 2 says. Nevertheless to avoid fornication. Let every man have his own wife.

[28:59] And let every woman have her own husband. Are you kingdom builders in your marriage? Or does your marriage reveal the headship of Christ at all? Do people see Christ in your marriage?

[29:12] Just as Ephesians 5. 22. Says. Wives submit to your. To your own husbands. As. As to the Lord. For the husband is the head of his wife. Even as Christ is the head of the church.

[29:23] His body. And is himself. His. His. His. Savior. Now as the church submits. To Christ. But. So also. Wives submit. And everything. To your husbands.

[29:34] Husbands. Love your wives. As Christ loved the church. And gave himself up for her. That he might sanctify her. Having cleansed her. By the washing of water. With the word. So that he might present.

[29:45] The church to himself. In splendor. Without spot or wrinkle. Or any such thing. That she might be holy. And without blemish. In the same way. Husbands love their wives. As their own bodies. He who loves his wife.

[29:57] Loves himself. For no one ever hated. His own flesh. But nourishes. And cherishes it. Just as Christ. Does the church. Because we are members. Of his. Body.

[30:08] The bible. Is a theocentric book. And our lives. Must be a theocentric book. What is. What is your. What do your friends. Or your co-workers say. About your kingdom building.

[30:19] In your life. Are you. And the person. That Matthew. 14. Talks about. 5. 14. It says. You are a light of the world. A city set on a hill. Cannot be hidden.

[30:30] Or Philippians 2. 14. Do all things. Without grumbling. Or disputing. That you may be blameless. And innocent. Children of God. Without blemish. In the midst of a crooked. And twisted generation.

[30:43] Among whom you shine. As lights to the world. Holding fast to the word of life. So that in the day of Christ. I may be proud. That I did not run the race. Did not run in vain. Or labor in vain.

[30:54] What do your neighbors say? What do people say. About your kingdom building? Are you. Are you doing unto others. As you wish them to do unto you. The golden rule church.

[31:06] What would your account look like. If. If it were listed. In. In the minor judges. Would it be more focused. On your kingdom building. Or the. The. Fault. The flaws. In our kingdom building.

[31:18] The loss of focus. Of our. Our split devotion. Between God. And the world. We better take the mission of God. On this earth. Seriously church. Or else we may.

[31:30] You may find yourself. Living. Living a life of. Void of eternal purpose. Intended for you. By God. The church with Christ. As its head. Needs to wake up.

[31:42] We need to realize. That our. Our lives. Must reveal. Gospel attraction. If you know what I mean. By that. Gospel interest. People should be curious. About the gospel.

[31:53] By how. We live. Our lives. This is what it means. To be. Be living in missional outreach. At Youngstown Metro Church. Our third core value. This is an individual endeavor.

[32:03] Of every person. Gathered here. In this church. And also a corporate endeavor. When we gather together. The second thing.

[32:14] I want to pull out. Of these. These minor judges. And evaluate. Within our. Within. Shiamgar. Tolajer. There. But more specifically. I want to look at.

[32:24] Ibsen. He's the marrying judge. Israel was not to intermarry. With the Canaanites. And so. We can draw another point. That is not only for their day.

[32:35] But our day today. This has made. A huge. Huge turn. In the account of Ibsen. Hasn't it? With this marriage. This intermarriage. That's going on. In which he makes arrangements.

[32:46] For all 60 of his children. To intermarry. And he brings 30 foreign wives. In for his sons. This is going to get even worse. In the life of Samson. And today.

[32:56] This can also apply. To us today. Because Christians. Have a. Equal call. To not. Be unyoked. Unequally yoked. With unbelievers.

[33:09] Just like. 1 Corinthians 7. 39. Says that. If a wife's husband should die. A wife is bound to her husband. As long as he lives. But if. Her husband dies. She is free to be married.

[33:20] To whom she wishes. Only in the Lord. And then. 2 Corinthians 6. 14. Says. Do not be equally yoked.

[33:31] With unbelievers. For what partnership. Has righteousness. With lawlessness. Or what fellowship. Has light. With darkness. What accord.

[33:42] Has Christ. With Belial. Or what portion. A believer. Share. With an unbeliever. What agreement. Has the temple of God. With idols. Just as the.

[33:52] The author. In first. In second Corinthians. Stated. Leviticus 26. A historic text. Is still profound. Today. For we are a temple. Of the living God.

[34:04] As God said. Back in Leviticus 26. I will make my dwelling. Among them. And walk among them. And I will be their God. And they shall be my people. Therefore. Go out from their midst. And be separate from them.

[34:15] Says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing. Then. I will welcome you. And I will be. A father to you. And you shall. Be sons and daughters. To me. Says the Almighty.

[34:27] Those who fail. To follow. A biblical command. Such as these. Those in Christ. Set themselves up. For a world. Of hurt. To be unequally.

[34:38] Yolked. In your marriages. And with things. In this world. But also. A divided loyalty. You can't serve. Two masters. Remember that. And this could only.

[34:49] Lead to a compromised. Faith. Just as James 4.4 says. You adulterous people. Do you not know. That friendship. With the world. Is enmity with God. Therefore. Whoever wishes. To be a friend. Of the world.

[35:00] Makes himself. A what? Enemy. Of God. And this isn't just. For married people. As well. We have. A significant amount.

[35:11] Of people. Who are single. In this. In our gathering. Week after week. And. I want to encourage you.

[35:21] As well. To control the desire. To be united. With someone. In marriage. Don't allow. A good desire. To yield a bad result. If you're a single. In here.

[35:31] The Lord is in control. He knows. The desire. Of your. Your heart. That is single. And you must. Let him. Govern. Govern. Those desires. And wait. For his timing. To find the right person.

[35:43] Don't just compromise. In that. Because more compromise. Will follow. This is the story. Of judges. No matter how starry-eyed. You might become. No matter how. Perfect. The other person.

[35:54] Might be. Don't set yourself. Up for failure. And this is another note. Your dating relationship. Is not. A mission field. Okay.

[36:05] This said. Moving on. And the last thing. I want us to see. In these minor judges. As we saw. The things that they built. In their life.

[36:15] Being kingdom builders. Or lack thereof. Seeing the accounts. Of the inner marriage. The inner mixing. And disobeying the Lord. In that way. I want to stand back.

[36:26] And see. The communal. The corporate endeavor. Of all the judges. Because. Who was at fault. When. A major judge.

[36:36] Would fall into sin. And lead the world. Lead the. Lead the nation. To sin. Like Gideon. For instance. Who made a. Who made an ephod. Who was held responsible.

[36:47] Yeah. Gideon was. But the whole nation. Was held responsible. On account of. One man's sin. And so we see. Quite a few victories.

[36:58] In the major judges. As well as the minor judges. I mean. Shamgar with an ox code. You can't make that stuff up. The corruption. And the lostness. Is increasing though. As well. Right? The sad reality.

[37:10] Is that. All these judges. Are all collectively. Responsible. Of breaking. The covenants. This was. Communal disobedience. Which also. The nation of Israel.

[37:20] Was equally. In disobedience. As well. Now. Today's the. The. A big game. I guess. Is anybody. Watching the Super Bowl. This. This year. Is anybody.

[37:31] Really. Like. Wanting somebody. To win. Passionate. About this game. Today. I don't even know. Who's playing. I am not. A sports guy.

[37:42] They're going to know. That about me. I. I don't really. Get together. And talk about sports. I'll watch them. It's fun to watch. I think. Except baseball. Most of the time. Baseball is not. Too much fun. But.

[37:53] But I'll go and eat some peanuts. If you want to take me. But I'm not a sports guy. But. Christianity. Has quite a lot in common. With sports teams.

[38:04] Christianity. And sports team. Have a lot in common. We share everything. Don't we? We share our successes. We share our failures. We share our goals.

[38:16] And we share our plans. Just like the major judges. And their relationship with Israel. And the minor judges. With their relationship with Israel. And today. Jesus Christ.

[38:27] Desires his church. To be sanctified. Ephesians 5. Spoke about this. When we just read. About husbands loving your wives. But this is important.

[38:38] Because marriage is a. Is a. Is an image. Of Christ's relationship. With the church. So I'm going to read that again. But look at the. The command. To be sanctified.

[38:49] In the church. Husbands. Love your wives. As Christ loved the church. And gave himself up for her. That he might sanctify her. Who? Who's her in this? The church. That he might sanctify.

[39:01] The church. Having cleansed her. The church. By the washing of water. With the word. So that he might present. The church. To himself. In splendor.

[39:11] Without spot. Or wrinkle. Or having any such thing. That she might be. Holy. And without. Blemish. In the same way. He goes back to husbands and wives. Same way.

[39:22] Husbands. Should love your wives. As their own body. He who loves his wife. Loves himself. For no one ever hated. His own flesh. But nourishes. And cherishes it. Just as.

[39:33] Christ. Does. The. Church. Because we are members. Of his body. Christians. Today. This church. At Youngstown.

[39:44] Metro. Has. A great responsibility. To take great care. Of this communal endeavor. Of corporate holiness. Each member of the body of Christ.

[39:56] Has the indwelling spirit. That seals you. That. That separates you. That regenerates you. That gives you a new nature. With all these gifts. To serve and glorify God.

[40:08] New desires. And he is the head. Of this church as well. And we are his body. But what happens. When the body gets sick. The whole body is affected.

[40:21] And we see this in Judges. The book of Judges. Reveals quite a sickness. Doesn't it? And considering. The communal relationship. Of the entire nation. Breaking the covenant of God.

[40:31] When our church is sick. When one person in the church. When somebody over here is sick. Speaking of sin. And things going on in their lives. We are all sick. And we all suffer together.

[40:43] Therefore. My sin is your sin. Your sin is my sin. And likewise. With. With sin being within the body.

[40:54] There comes a concern. For one another. We see this happen. In Matthew 18. Which is called. Church discipline. But it's a restorative process. That calls us out. One another.

[41:04] Brothers and sisters. In Christ. For your sin. For the sake of our corporate. Glory. That we're drawing to God. This is a communal. Endeavor. We rejoice together.

[41:15] And we suffer together. You're labeled as saints. Wouldn't it take. Wouldn't it make you.

[41:25] A little bit more serious. About how you live your life. If you actually consider yourself. A priest. Like. Going out with a mission. To proclaim the gospel. That is your job. God.

[41:38] Would you prayerfully consider. If there is any. Corporate. Sin. In your lives. Going on. Right now. That people might know about.

[41:49] That people might. Might be sharing. Maybe your wife. Doesn't even know. What is God. Calling you. To repent of. Today. The call of the church. Is not passivity.

[42:00] It's proactivity. We have to take captive. Our thoughts. This should not be new. To us church. We are in this together. And the greatest beauty.

[42:12] I think. Of the minor judges. Is that. Well yes. Because I'm. I'm used to reading. 60 verses. Yeah. They're short. Yeah. That's great. You can give me a high five. For that.

[42:23] But as soon as they appear. What? They're gone. Within verse 10. They're here. Within verse 11. They're gone. Shamgar.

[42:33] Didn't even last. A second verse. Here today. Gone. Tomorrow. And we need to realize this. As being. The reality. In our lives.

[42:43] As well. We get quite a perspective. You know that one song. I don't know when it was written. Dust in the wind. It's like that downtrodden song. All we are is dust.

[42:55] You know. It's like this depressing song. That talks about a reality. It's the worst way. Of probably communicating. But we know what he's trying to say. He's trying to say. James 4.14.

[43:05] In a very depressing manner. Where it says. What is your life? For you are a mist. That appears for a little time. And then vanishes. We are here today.

[43:17] And gone tomorrow. Do you know that it wasn't. Only seven. Seven days ago. That this happened for Kobe Bryant. Going. Going. Going. Going. Going. Going. Going. Going. Just a daily routine.

[43:29] Here today. Going on a. On a helicopter ride. To a game. For his daughter. And boom. Gone. Just like that. And if you.

[43:39] Can grasp the reality. Of the. Feudleness of life. It makes you want to use your time. Much more wisely. In what you build. Relating to point.

[43:50] Point one. Relating to your marriage. Within your friendships. Within your co-workers. With what you do at work. With what you do with your neighbors. With what you do with your singleness. What you do in your marriages.

[44:03] It brings everything into perspective. That time is valuable. So use it. Wisely. We can't be. We can't be victim of. Spiritual pride.

[44:14] Of being better than anyone else. Or spiritual elitism. We have hope. That is the only hope. That has saved us. Wretched sinners. We are no better. Than the worst of them all. This week was a wake-up call.

[44:27] By golly. Social media. Woo. This week. It's a wake-up call. That we need to be. Not so much focused on. Pointing. People away from.

[44:37] Like false teachers. But we need to be pointing. Be focused more on. Pointing people to. Jesus Christ. Yeah. Call out false teacher. But people know. Instantly. Who we are against. But does anybody know.

[44:48] Who we are for? Proclaiming the gospel. And letting the gospel. Defend itself. Church. The only hope. That we have. Is that. Spurgeon put it.

[44:59] Like this. The gospel. Is like a caged lion. It does not need. To be defended. It simply needs. To be let out. Of its cage. Okay. Hope in the gospel.

[45:12] Hope in the gospel. The only hope we have. Is that we have. A capital L. Leader in Israel. Capital J. Judge. Who continues. Forever.

[45:24] Death could not hold. This king. No one can stand against him. And he is the savior. Of the world. Church. Second Timothy 1.9.

[45:35] Says. He gave us. In Christ Jesus. Before the ages began. This was. God's plan. From the beginning. A hope. For us. In which. As verse 10.

[45:46] Continues. Which. Now has been manifested. Through the appearing. Of our savior. Christ Jesus. Who abolished death. And brought life. And immortality. To light. Through the gospel. What you do.

[45:58] With Jesus Christ. Is the one thing. That truly matters. In this life. What do you do. With Jesus Christ. In your marriage. With how you.

[46:09] How you. Behave. Around your neighbors. And your co-workers. Are you proclaiming. The gospel. And especially. Within our corporate. Gathering. Just as the minor judges.

[46:22] Reveal. The progressive. Decay of sin. We know. That sin breeds sin. We have to address it. We have to call it out. And this is a corporate endeavor. So may Christ reign supreme.

[46:34] In all things. As. As we let our sin. Be repented of. Daily. This is a daily. Repentance. So that our lives. Are honest. In revealing Christ.

[46:45] As we submit. Our lives to him. Let this church. Proclaim something. Very vital. To the world. In this life. In the social media world.

[46:57] Let this church. Every member. In this church. Proclaim. The words in Isaiah 40. Behold. Our God. Behold. Our God. Proclaim.

[47:07] The gospel church. Let's pray. analogousel. Eat.ト The wind.

[47:24] aghetti The horror. Seattle.