WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:22.260 Hi, and welcome to the Willow Ridge Church weekly podcast. 00:00:22.780 --> 00:00:25.880 This is where you can find audio for our current and past sermons. 00:00:26.100 --> 00:00:30.420 We hope that you enjoy this week's installment, and be sure to check back next week to hear 00:00:30.420 --> 00:00:31.260 the latest message. 00:00:31.680 --> 00:00:32.460 Thanks for listening. 00:00:46.140 --> 00:00:47.220 Well, good morning. 00:00:48.120 --> 00:00:50.360 I just want to share this with you guys, all right? 00:00:51.160 --> 00:00:56.840 Occasionally, God gives you these glimpses of pure joy, and you're the only one that 00:00:56.840 --> 00:00:57.840 can see them, all right? 00:00:58.320 --> 00:01:05.000 Over the last six weeks or so, every Sunday, I get to watch Johnny Cobb watch the puppet 00:01:05.000 --> 00:01:05.360 shows. 00:01:05.920 --> 00:01:09.880 And I've never seen a man get more excited and have such a good time. 00:01:09.940 --> 00:01:10.780 So, Johnny, thank you, man. 00:01:10.800 --> 00:01:12.060 I'm not watching the screen. 00:01:12.280 --> 00:01:14.500 I'm just watching you appreciating what God's doing. 00:01:14.600 --> 00:01:15.280 I appreciate it. 00:01:16.080 --> 00:01:21.440 Hey, as we get ready for next week, just a couple reminders for everybody that's here. 00:01:21.560 --> 00:01:25.660 We're going to be starting back into our kids' ministry on Sunday morning. 00:01:26.020 --> 00:01:30.220 So, a couple things, minor details, just want to remind everybody of, okay? 00:01:30.300 --> 00:01:34.440 So, next Sunday, services are at 930 and 11, okay? 00:01:34.800 --> 00:01:41.300 But we will only be having kids' ministry that's birth through fifth grade at the 930 service. 00:01:41.300 --> 00:01:45.820 And so, if you're used to coming, but during the 11 o'clock and you want your kids to be 00:01:45.820 --> 00:01:50.300 a part of that, we're going to need you to come to the 930 service for that, because that 00:01:50.300 --> 00:01:52.120 will be the only one that we have for kids' ministry. 00:01:52.340 --> 00:01:54.440 So, it's going to look different, all right? 00:01:54.480 --> 00:01:58.160 It's going to be different than any time that we've ever done kids' ministry. 00:01:58.560 --> 00:02:02.860 As the staff and I have talked about this, of getting you ready for what it'll be like 00:02:02.860 --> 00:02:07.460 to get the kids into their classes and all those things, we're kind of approaching 00:02:07.460 --> 00:02:09.280 next Sunday like this. 00:02:09.700 --> 00:02:12.400 Everyone who comes is a first-time guest, all right? 00:02:12.460 --> 00:02:17.440 So, it is our job to help you feel easy and understand about what you're to do, where 00:02:17.440 --> 00:02:19.600 you go and drop your kids off and do certain things. 00:02:19.680 --> 00:02:23.740 And so, if you're showing up next week to drop your kids off, maybe you're even watching 00:02:23.740 --> 00:02:27.660 at home this Sunday and you haven't been back yet, but you're ready to come back because 00:02:27.660 --> 00:02:30.880 children's ministry's starting, but you're not sure, where do I take my kids? 00:02:31.000 --> 00:02:31.600 What do I do? 00:02:31.880 --> 00:02:36.720 We're going to be here with you, walking you through that, making sure everyone gets taken 00:02:36.720 --> 00:02:37.720 care of. 00:02:37.720 --> 00:02:42.420 Now, with that said, I want to challenge you guys something that's really hitting a lot 00:02:42.420 --> 00:02:47.960 of churches hard right now, but God has been very gracious to us during this time as we've 00:02:47.960 --> 00:02:49.840 been regathering since June. 00:02:50.040 --> 00:02:54.000 I got a text message from a buddy of mine who's a pastor in the upstate. 00:02:54.140 --> 00:02:55.720 He said, man, please pray for our church. 00:02:56.040 --> 00:02:57.400 They're a church about 150. 00:02:58.100 --> 00:03:02.780 They will now be shutting down for the third time since they've regathered because of COVID 00:03:02.780 --> 00:03:03.320 outbreaks. 00:03:03.860 --> 00:03:08.060 And so, we don't take any of the credit that we haven't had to shut down. 00:03:08.240 --> 00:03:12.660 We truly believe God has just blessed us and we've been able to go forward with this. 00:03:13.060 --> 00:03:17.720 But we are excited about the fact that we haven't had to close down. 00:03:18.160 --> 00:03:23.340 And so, as we continue to push back forward and continue to open up more ministry, we just, 00:03:23.460 --> 00:03:28.840 we beg you, we plead with you, please continue to pray for us that we don't have to shut down. 00:03:29.020 --> 00:03:34.240 But then also, there are so many churches that, and when I talk about like this friend of mine, 00:03:34.580 --> 00:03:39.840 within the course of two days, 25% of the congregation tested positive for COVID. 00:03:39.980 --> 00:03:41.540 And so, they had to kind of work through that. 00:03:41.620 --> 00:03:45.120 And so, pray for churches like that that are going through these times. 00:03:45.560 --> 00:03:48.340 God has been very good and very fortunate to us. 00:03:48.380 --> 00:03:49.520 And so, we're excited to go. 00:03:50.040 --> 00:03:55.720 With that, with Kent's ministry starting back, I do have some bad news to share to folks like 00:03:55.720 --> 00:03:59.160 Johnny that we will not have our puppet shows. 00:03:59.600 --> 00:04:04.440 So, that is the last of the one, as the puppet show said, for now, right? 00:04:04.480 --> 00:04:06.600 Maybe we can bring those back in the future. 00:04:07.160 --> 00:04:10.920 But starting next week, we'll be moving back into the regular. 00:04:10.920 --> 00:04:13.340 So, if you've got your Bibles, open up to Judges 8. 00:04:14.420 --> 00:04:16.720 And like you saw, so the puppet show talked about Samson. 00:04:16.820 --> 00:04:18.560 We're still talking about Gideon. 00:04:18.940 --> 00:04:21.620 We want to make sure that we got that in for our kids. 00:04:21.980 --> 00:04:24.920 But this will be the last week that we look at Gideon as we continue on. 00:04:25.840 --> 00:04:28.460 And as we've looked at Gideon over the last several weeks, 00:04:28.500 --> 00:04:35.440 we've seen this great, this growth, this maturity that's happened in this man of Gideon. 00:04:35.740 --> 00:04:40.360 We see that what Gideon's life was marked by when we were introduced to him 00:04:40.360 --> 00:04:46.000 and Judges chapter 6 is a man who was at a very low point in his life. 00:04:46.160 --> 00:04:53.080 When we find him in Judges chapter 6, if you recall, it says that he is tucked away in a hole, 00:04:53.200 --> 00:05:00.540 in a cave, in a mountain, and you find him there hiding food because he's so scared of the oppressors 00:05:00.540 --> 00:05:14.260 And so when we find Gideon, we find him at the lowest spot that he's ever found himself. 00:05:14.460 --> 00:05:18.900 He is literally sitting there trying to hide his food away, right? 00:05:18.960 --> 00:05:21.900 Like think of a squirrel trying to pack acorns away. 00:05:22.060 --> 00:05:23.460 That's where we find Gideon. 00:05:23.460 --> 00:05:28.080 Can you imagine the desperate point that he finds himself? 00:05:28.860 --> 00:05:31.260 The lowest of the lows of his life. 00:05:32.140 --> 00:05:38.060 And yet in this is where God reveals himself to Gideon and where Gideon is going to go through 00:05:38.060 --> 00:05:45.360 this journey of obedience and faith that is found in the pursuit of God in the midst of Gideon's 00:05:45.360 --> 00:05:45.960 desperation. 00:05:46.640 --> 00:05:53.640 And so we see this weak little man from the weakest tribe, from the weakest family of the tribe, 00:05:53.800 --> 00:06:00.100 we see this great man of faith begin to grow and develop 00:06:00.100 --> 00:06:05.400 as he wants to pursue after God and understand him and be obedient to him. 00:06:06.400 --> 00:06:13.600 And so we see Gideon commit acts of treason against the people and the religion of the day. 00:06:14.280 --> 00:06:19.140 God calls him to go down and to tear down the idols of Baal and he does that. 00:06:19.920 --> 00:06:25.440 God calls him to go into war against an army and he does it. 00:06:26.360 --> 00:06:29.560 And during the entire time what Gideon is saying to God is, 00:06:29.840 --> 00:06:33.120 God, I want to know who you are more. 00:06:33.480 --> 00:06:35.080 I want to understand you. 00:06:35.140 --> 00:06:37.340 I want to fall deeper in love with you. 00:06:37.800 --> 00:06:41.620 And so we see when Gideon lays out the fleeces, you know, that's Gideon saying, 00:06:41.680 --> 00:06:45.060 God, help me understand more and more about who you are. 00:06:45.060 --> 00:06:51.000 When Gideon has the dreams interpreted for him and he overhears this, what he's dying to know, 00:06:51.080 --> 00:06:54.520 what he's longing to know is more and more, God, who are you? 00:06:55.160 --> 00:07:01.720 And through all of these journeys in the midst of Gideon's desperation, when logic tells him, 00:07:02.000 --> 00:07:03.320 no, you shouldn't do this. 00:07:03.320 --> 00:07:08.980 Faith in who God is drives Gideon to radical points of obedience. 00:07:10.020 --> 00:07:15.260 When Gideon tore down the altar of Baal that was at his dad's house, 00:07:15.840 --> 00:07:20.100 the next day men of the town came to kill him. 00:07:21.020 --> 00:07:24.340 That's the level of obedience that this man has. 00:07:24.980 --> 00:07:30.300 And what we looked at last week was Gideon leading his men into battle. 00:07:30.360 --> 00:07:40.060 A weak Israelite army of 32,000 men that some believe would have been up against as many as 200,000 soldiers. 00:07:40.460 --> 00:07:46.620 But Gideon is willing to lead 32,000 men, even though they're outnumbered, into battle. 00:07:47.360 --> 00:07:51.600 But God says, no, no, Gideon, it's too many. 00:07:52.820 --> 00:08:00.520 And then through the sovereignty and process of God, God whittles that army of 32,000 down to 300. 00:08:01.680 --> 00:08:08.400 And Gideon obeys and leads them into a battle where they didn't even have to draw their swords. 00:08:08.540 --> 00:08:09.680 They didn't even have to fight. 00:08:10.040 --> 00:08:12.740 And that God was the victor. 00:08:13.800 --> 00:08:21.360 And all of this starts, all of this can be traced back to a moment of brokenness, 00:08:22.020 --> 00:08:30.660 a moment of weakness, and a moment of desperation in Gideon as we find him hiding away. 00:08:31.620 --> 00:08:36.040 So when you look at the story of Gideon, you see what God is able to do from the weakness. 00:08:36.380 --> 00:08:38.860 You see what God is able to do with the least of these. 00:08:38.860 --> 00:08:44.600 But the key is that it's not because Gideon is weak, it's because Gideon is weak and he's desperate. 00:08:45.140 --> 00:08:49.540 It's because Gideon longs for and wants to be obedient to God. 00:08:50.340 --> 00:08:53.140 But we're going to see a different side of Gideon this morning. 00:08:54.200 --> 00:09:02.640 The story of the last two weeks were the story of Gideon that movies are made about to inspire men and women to great faith. 00:09:02.840 --> 00:09:08.240 But what we find in Judges chapter 8, we're not going to see that same side of Gideon anymore. 00:09:08.680 --> 00:09:20.760 We're going to see a man who stops living in desperation and who starts to live in the experience and maybe even believe in his own victory. 00:09:21.080 --> 00:09:27.340 Do you remember the whole reason why God shrunk the army from 32,000 to 300 was what? 00:09:27.800 --> 00:09:36.440 So that everyone who knew that Gideon had led them into battle would know that the victory came from God and God alone. 00:09:37.080 --> 00:09:42.840 But now we're going to see a different heart of Gideon that we've seen before. 00:09:43.360 --> 00:09:52.140 And in Judges chapter 8, Gideon's going to come into conflict as he continues to pursue the Midianites to fully defeat them. 00:09:52.660 --> 00:09:58.040 And Gideon is going to have conflict with some of the clans and the tribes that are part of the nation of Israel. 00:09:58.520 --> 00:10:05.080 And we're going to see in how Gideon interacts with them to begin to show us what Gideon is really dealing with. 00:10:05.080 --> 00:10:08.080 To see what Gideon is really going through. 00:10:08.400 --> 00:10:12.560 The first tribe that he has conflict with is the tribe of Ephraim. 00:10:13.000 --> 00:10:14.960 And they're a powerful tribe in Israel. 00:10:15.360 --> 00:10:23.140 And what Gideon does is he calls on this tribe to help him go into battle to fully defeat the Midianites. 00:10:23.520 --> 00:10:27.940 And they say, you know what, we're not going to go into battle with you. 00:10:28.740 --> 00:10:29.760 He's like, are you kidding me? 00:10:29.780 --> 00:10:30.080 No, no, no. 00:10:30.240 --> 00:10:31.240 You need to go. 00:10:31.720 --> 00:10:34.340 You and I, we can partner together and we can go. 00:10:34.640 --> 00:10:36.680 You're the most powerful tribe. 00:10:36.840 --> 00:10:38.340 You're the ones that we need. 00:10:39.180 --> 00:10:45.060 And kind of like some stubborn people, maybe you know somebody like this, maybe you and I, maybe we are some like this. 00:10:45.160 --> 00:10:50.060 They kind of step back and they're like, well, you didn't need us to begin with, so why do you need us now? 00:10:51.040 --> 00:10:54.820 So no, we're not going to be a part of what you're doing. 00:10:55.040 --> 00:10:58.280 We're not going to help you out because you didn't need it before. 00:10:58.540 --> 00:11:00.200 Why do you need us now? 00:11:00.300 --> 00:11:02.940 Because what they're going through, they're hearing all the chatter. 00:11:03.140 --> 00:11:04.360 They're hearing all the talk. 00:11:04.360 --> 00:11:09.820 They wanted to be a part of the victory so their name could be associated with that. 00:11:10.600 --> 00:11:11.680 And so what does Gideon do? 00:11:12.520 --> 00:11:13.680 Gideon doesn't challenge them. 00:11:14.380 --> 00:11:23.940 Gideon doesn't point out that God is the great victor, that it's only through God and God alone, that Gideon didn't do this, that God did this. 00:11:24.560 --> 00:11:29.280 Gideon instead, he does something that you and I often do. 00:11:30.200 --> 00:11:35.800 He appeals to their pride, and in doing so, he appeases their sin. 00:11:36.640 --> 00:11:45.260 In an attempt to smooth things over, in an attempt to get Gideon through this, Gideon no longer stands as the man of truth under the authority of God. 00:11:45.260 --> 00:11:51.380 But what we see is the crack that begins to happen in the character and the heart of Gideon. 00:11:51.720 --> 00:11:58.000 This is the first moment where we begin to see that Gideon begins to waver. 00:11:58.840 --> 00:11:59.980 Well, this is Ephraim. 00:12:00.080 --> 00:12:01.620 This is a powerful tribe. 00:12:02.440 --> 00:12:08.580 But Gideon's also going to have conflict within two very small towns that he passes through. 00:12:08.940 --> 00:12:13.020 One town named Succoth and another town named Penuel. 00:12:13.160 --> 00:12:22.080 And as Gideon is in pursuit of two Midianite kings, Zeba and Zalmanah, we see that he comes through these towns. 00:12:22.580 --> 00:12:28.640 And as he's in pursuit of these kings, because once he defeats these kings, he will have defeated the nation as a whole. 00:12:29.040 --> 00:12:30.820 He finds that his men are tired. 00:12:31.360 --> 00:12:32.480 His men are hungry. 00:12:32.820 --> 00:12:34.440 And his men are thirsty. 00:12:34.900 --> 00:12:38.740 And so as he comes into each village, he says, hey, feed us. 00:12:39.320 --> 00:12:40.420 Give us something to drink. 00:12:40.680 --> 00:12:45.040 Give us rest so that we can gain our energy back so we can go forward. 00:12:45.240 --> 00:12:49.080 And the people of the town are like, I don't think so. 00:12:50.260 --> 00:12:52.940 I'm not sure we really want to be a part of this. 00:12:53.660 --> 00:12:55.900 I kind of just want to stay out of it. 00:12:56.480 --> 00:13:03.420 Because if you don't defeat them, if you don't overtake them, then what do you think is going to happen to us? 00:13:04.000 --> 00:13:06.240 They're going to find out, well, who helped you along the way. 00:13:06.300 --> 00:13:07.460 And you're going to tell them that we did. 00:13:07.640 --> 00:13:11.460 And we certainly can't stand up against them. 00:13:11.620 --> 00:13:13.680 So we're not getting involved. 00:13:14.560 --> 00:13:18.040 And you're going to see more and more of the downfall of Gideon. 00:13:18.100 --> 00:13:20.340 So look at Judges 8, verse 7. 00:13:20.340 --> 00:13:42.020 And from there he went up to Penuel and spoke to them in the same way. 00:13:42.020 --> 00:13:47.120 And the men of Penuel answered him as the men of Succoth had answered. 00:13:47.840 --> 00:13:55.080 And he said to the men of Penuel, when I come again in peace, I will break down this tower. 00:13:55.720 --> 00:13:57.980 Look now who Gideon's pointing to. 00:13:58.820 --> 00:14:03.520 Gideon's no longer pointing to God, but Gideon is pointing to himself. 00:14:04.060 --> 00:14:14.000 As Gideon takes step after step of obedience, what it has created and what is happening is step after step of the victory of what God is doing. 00:14:14.460 --> 00:14:25.040 But as Gideon is walking away from his desperation, is walking more into the victory, Gideon is starting to believe that the victory belongs to him. 00:14:25.400 --> 00:14:26.300 Notice what he says. 00:14:26.960 --> 00:14:31.300 When I come here again, here is what I will do. 00:14:31.980 --> 00:14:36.360 Gideon looks at them and says, how dare you doubt me? 00:14:37.720 --> 00:14:41.100 And we begin to see the pride of Gideon come out. 00:14:42.220 --> 00:14:43.920 And so they chase after the kings. 00:14:44.700 --> 00:14:46.120 They capture the kings. 00:14:46.240 --> 00:14:47.860 They will kill the kings. 00:14:48.300 --> 00:14:50.280 The victory has been full. 00:14:50.420 --> 00:14:51.240 It has been had. 00:14:52.100 --> 00:14:56.020 And we're going to see that Gideon does what he says he's going to do. 00:14:56.080 --> 00:14:56.800 Look at verse 14. 00:14:58.080 --> 00:15:01.620 And he captured a young man of Succoth and questioned him. 00:15:02.200 --> 00:15:06.340 And he wrote down for him the officials and the elders of Succoth. 00:15:06.600 --> 00:15:07.660 Seventy-seven men. 00:15:08.960 --> 00:15:15.760 And he came to the men of Succoth and he said, behold, Ziba and Zalmina, about whom you taunted me, saying, 00:15:15.760 --> 00:15:21.760 Are the hands of Ziba and Zalmina already in your hand, that we should give bread to your men who are exhausted? 00:15:22.480 --> 00:15:24.260 And he took the elders of the city. 00:15:24.840 --> 00:15:27.760 And he took thorns of the wilderness and briars. 00:15:27.980 --> 00:15:31.440 And with them taught the men of Succoth a lesson. 00:15:32.720 --> 00:15:39.320 And he broke down the tower of Penuel and killed the men of that city. 00:15:40.340 --> 00:15:43.680 Do we see what's beginning to happen in the heart of Gideon? 00:15:44.360 --> 00:15:47.220 Do you see what's beginning to happen in the character of Gideon? 00:15:47.780 --> 00:16:00.300 A man who at one point in time was willing to lead an unarmed army into battle because God had told him to, to take 300 in charge and to do this. 00:16:00.520 --> 00:16:04.260 And it's completely dependent on what God has called him to do. 00:16:04.500 --> 00:16:07.240 He captures one of his own Israelites. 00:16:07.800 --> 00:16:10.880 He has him turn against his own people. 00:16:10.880 --> 00:16:17.340 He takes the 77 elders that have, that he says, look, these are the guys that made the decision. 00:16:17.480 --> 00:16:18.520 He captures them. 00:16:18.720 --> 00:16:31.340 He takes the thorns from out of the wilderness and begins to beat them with it so that it would leave scars all over them so that they would never forget the wrath of Gideon and that everyone would know what had taken place. 00:16:31.520 --> 00:16:35.680 And then he goes to Penuel, just like he said he would do, and he tore down the tower. 00:16:36.000 --> 00:16:39.940 But remember from back before when we read, it said that the men of Penuel said no. 00:16:40.140 --> 00:16:40.960 And so what does he do? 00:16:41.100 --> 00:16:41.940 He kills them all. 00:16:43.200 --> 00:16:44.180 He kills them all. 00:16:44.800 --> 00:16:45.180 Why? 00:16:45.660 --> 00:16:49.660 Because they had gone against Gideon. 00:16:50.820 --> 00:16:55.940 And what we've seen in the life of this man is such a tragic story. 00:16:56.640 --> 00:17:03.460 But it's a story that honestly, many of us find ourselves in the exact same battle. 00:17:04.520 --> 00:17:07.060 You see, Gideon faced a test of adversity. 00:17:07.820 --> 00:17:09.760 The adversity of a man who was afraid. 00:17:10.500 --> 00:17:12.580 The adversity of a man who was weak. 00:17:13.140 --> 00:17:16.820 The adversity of a man who was unconfident of what to do. 00:17:17.500 --> 00:17:22.100 But now that he's going through this, he's going through now the test of prosperity. 00:17:22.960 --> 00:17:30.560 You see, in the test of adversity, in the test of prosperity, are the journeys of life that you and I will find ourselves going through. 00:17:30.900 --> 00:17:32.900 When we first find Gideon, he is what? 00:17:33.340 --> 00:17:34.060 He's broken. 00:17:34.640 --> 00:17:35.400 He's beaten. 00:17:35.880 --> 00:17:36.880 He's desperate. 00:17:37.120 --> 00:17:43.140 And there's nothing or no one else he can cling to other than God. 00:17:43.820 --> 00:17:47.880 And so we asked ourselves last week, right, how do you view your weakness? 00:17:48.720 --> 00:18:02.060 How do you view when you find yourself, figuratively speaking, hiding away in the cave, storing away some food in that moment of vulnerable, in the moment of adversity as it faces you? 00:18:02.060 --> 00:18:12.160 And we shared this quote last week, that you can't know that he being God is all that you need until he is all that you have. 00:18:12.960 --> 00:18:19.220 That for so many of us, as we go through adversity, we've tried everything else. 00:18:20.100 --> 00:18:25.320 We've done in our own power and in our own will and in our own might and our own strength. 00:18:25.460 --> 00:18:32.720 And we have failure after failure after failure that we can do nothing else but now desperately cling to God. 00:18:34.200 --> 00:18:42.520 We have the child who's in rebellion, the marriage that's fallen apart, the bank account that's at zero, the sickness that there's no cure for. 00:18:43.640 --> 00:18:51.600 And in those moments where we can't trust, we can't rely on ourselves, we find ourselves desperate for God. 00:18:51.780 --> 00:18:54.660 And in that, we experience his faithfulness. 00:18:55.140 --> 00:19:02.740 And we look at this and we see the test of adversity and we see Gideon walk through that and grow through that. 00:19:02.740 --> 00:19:07.760 But where we begin to see Gideon's failings is not in the adversity of life. 00:19:07.920 --> 00:19:13.140 But when we see the failings of Gideon, we find it, ironically enough, in the prosperity. 00:19:14.580 --> 00:19:16.220 God, if all these things would just work out. 00:19:17.260 --> 00:19:20.800 God, if all this could happen, if I could be a part of this. 00:19:21.580 --> 00:19:24.580 God, if I could move from the valley to the mountaintop. 00:19:25.300 --> 00:19:32.100 But what we find is in the valley, there's nothing else to do but cling to God and to cry out for him. 00:19:32.920 --> 00:19:39.240 But in the mountaintop, we begin to think more highly of ourselves than we ought. 00:19:40.440 --> 00:19:44.640 You know, are you desperate for God when things are bad? 00:19:45.800 --> 00:19:48.380 Are we desperate for God when there's adversity? 00:19:49.340 --> 00:19:52.400 Are we desperate for God when we've tried everything else? 00:19:52.560 --> 00:19:54.280 Most of us would say absolutely. 00:19:55.240 --> 00:20:02.380 But what we see here in chapter 8 is the same level of being desperate for the Lord 00:20:02.380 --> 00:20:06.280 when we go through seasons and times of prosperity. 00:20:07.240 --> 00:20:08.700 You want to hear people that say, 00:20:09.360 --> 00:20:11.680 I woke up this morning and I desperately needed God? 00:20:12.420 --> 00:20:14.100 They're probably walking through a battle. 00:20:15.220 --> 00:20:19.800 But when we find we wake up that morning and we don't need him as we did before, 00:20:20.640 --> 00:20:25.540 that's probably because we're beginning to lean in on ourselves. 00:20:26.940 --> 00:20:29.900 You know, before, in Judges 6 and Judges 7, 00:20:30.660 --> 00:20:32.260 in the adversity, Gideon prayed. 00:20:33.140 --> 00:20:34.760 But in the prosperity, he stopped. 00:20:36.100 --> 00:20:40.820 Before, in the adversity, Gideon consulted others and surrounded himself with others. 00:20:40.820 --> 00:20:45.520 But now, he begins to operate in the prosperity in isolation. 00:20:46.740 --> 00:20:51.500 Now, Gideon, in his prosperity, is not one of forgiveness. 00:20:52.120 --> 00:20:56.780 Remember, all the nation had turned to idolatry and Gideon still called them back. 00:20:56.960 --> 00:21:02.520 But now that they push against him, Gideon embraces resentment and unforgiveness. 00:21:03.800 --> 00:21:06.260 Before, Gideon wanted everyone to know, 00:21:07.180 --> 00:21:09.360 no, no, no, no, no, it's not the 300. 00:21:10.120 --> 00:21:10.880 It's not me. 00:21:11.500 --> 00:21:12.140 It's God. 00:21:13.220 --> 00:21:16.640 But now, what do we find Gideon more concerned with? 00:21:17.240 --> 00:21:23.000 We find Gideon more concerned with his reputation than the glory of God. 00:21:24.180 --> 00:21:26.980 And church, when I look at myself, 00:21:28.240 --> 00:21:31.800 when I see and I walk through in the lives of men and women, 00:21:33.620 --> 00:21:40.660 seasons of adversity create within us a desperation to cry out for God. 00:21:41.780 --> 00:21:48.120 But seasons of prosperity, when they're walked in sinfully, 00:21:48.980 --> 00:21:52.300 cause us to say, nah, I'm good. 00:21:52.880 --> 00:21:53.860 I got this. 00:21:54.720 --> 00:21:58.440 I don't need anyone else. 00:21:59.600 --> 00:22:01.380 And we see that lived out. 00:22:02.580 --> 00:22:03.900 So Gideon looks in this. 00:22:04.000 --> 00:22:05.180 That's all that's going on. 00:22:06.360 --> 00:22:09.440 And Gideon, being the focal point of his own worship, 00:22:09.600 --> 00:22:11.100 he seeks to bless himself. 00:22:11.220 --> 00:22:12.080 Look down at verse 22. 00:22:13.920 --> 00:22:16.660 After the defeats have happened, after the battles have happened, 00:22:17.280 --> 00:22:19.080 then the men of Israel said to Gideon, 00:22:20.160 --> 00:22:21.560 rule over us. 00:22:22.720 --> 00:22:25.880 You and your son and your grandson also. 00:22:25.880 --> 00:22:29.480 For you have saved us from the hand of Midian. 00:22:30.540 --> 00:22:31.640 Gideon said to them, 00:22:32.440 --> 00:22:36.160 I will not rule over you and my son will not rule over you. 00:22:36.400 --> 00:22:38.140 The Lord will rule over you. 00:22:38.140 --> 00:22:39.580 Let me explain what's happening. 00:22:40.540 --> 00:22:43.120 Gideon brings them out of this bondage. 00:22:43.160 --> 00:22:44.860 He brings them out of this captivity. 00:22:45.280 --> 00:22:48.520 They're beginning as a nation to experience prosperity. 00:22:49.020 --> 00:22:51.900 because Gideon has taken his eyes off of God. 00:22:52.180 --> 00:22:55.080 They've taken their eyes off of God as well. 00:22:55.080 --> 00:22:59.820 And as Gideon places his eyes on himself, they place their eyes on Gideon. 00:23:00.060 --> 00:23:01.660 And so they come to Gideon and say, 00:23:01.740 --> 00:23:04.000 Gideon, we want to make you king. 00:23:04.680 --> 00:23:09.240 And not just for you, but we want to create a lineage that comes from you. 00:23:09.440 --> 00:23:13.480 And so Gideon, it'll be you and then it'll be your son and then it'll be your grandson. 00:23:13.840 --> 00:23:15.020 And this continues on. 00:23:15.340 --> 00:23:19.320 And if we stop reading at verse 23, we think that Gideon rejects it. 00:23:19.820 --> 00:23:20.960 But he doesn't. 00:23:21.380 --> 00:23:21.920 He doesn't. 00:23:22.000 --> 00:23:23.280 Let's keep reading verse 24. 00:23:24.600 --> 00:23:27.740 And Gideon said to them, after they've come to him and said, do this, 00:23:27.940 --> 00:23:29.860 he said, I want the Lord to rule over you. 00:23:30.140 --> 00:23:33.900 Verse 24, Gideon said to them, let me make a request of you. 00:23:34.740 --> 00:23:38.400 Every one of you give me the earrings from his spoil. 00:23:38.840 --> 00:23:41.720 For they had golden earrings because they were Ishmaelites. 00:23:42.420 --> 00:23:45.140 And they said, we will willingly give them. 00:23:45.780 --> 00:23:50.380 And they spread a cloak and every man threw in it the earrings of his spoil 00:23:50.380 --> 00:23:56.360 and the weight of the golden earrings that he requested was 1,700 shekels of gold. 00:23:57.020 --> 00:24:03.600 Besides the crescent ornaments and the pendants and the purple garments worn by the kings of Midian. 00:24:04.040 --> 00:24:07.280 And besides the collars that were around the necks of their camels. 00:24:08.040 --> 00:24:15.260 In verse 27, and Gideon made an ephod out of it and put it in his city in Ophrah. 00:24:15.820 --> 00:24:19.620 And all Israel whored after it there. 00:24:20.000 --> 00:24:24.380 And it became a snare to Gideon and to his family. 00:24:25.120 --> 00:24:27.540 All right, let's look at what's happened in this passage of scripture. 00:24:28.180 --> 00:24:31.640 They come to Gideon and say, let's make you king. 00:24:32.820 --> 00:24:33.680 Gideon says, no. 00:24:34.620 --> 00:24:42.120 No, your Lord, the ruler over you, needs to be the one and true God. 00:24:42.480 --> 00:24:46.560 But then what Gideon does, doesn't match what he says. 00:24:47.280 --> 00:24:49.600 Gideon says, now I'm not going to be king. 00:24:50.840 --> 00:24:52.940 But I am kind of a big deal. 00:24:53.000 --> 00:24:53.820 So here's what we're going to do. 00:24:54.180 --> 00:24:56.020 Give me all the gold from the spoil. 00:24:56.740 --> 00:24:58.400 Give me everything that we've gotten. 00:24:58.720 --> 00:25:01.820 And I am going to make an ephod. 00:25:02.440 --> 00:25:03.680 A golden ephod. 00:25:04.260 --> 00:25:08.740 Now an ephod was an item that was worn by the high priest in the tabernacle. 00:25:08.740 --> 00:25:15.380 Which there was one, and it was where the people went to hear from God. 00:25:16.020 --> 00:25:17.700 And so look at what Gideon's doing. 00:25:18.500 --> 00:25:20.100 Gideon says, there's an ephod. 00:25:20.180 --> 00:25:24.800 And that determines where the people go to listen and to surrender to the Lord. 00:25:24.920 --> 00:25:29.020 So I'm not going to be king because I know that's not what I'm supposed to do. 00:25:29.120 --> 00:25:30.580 But here's what I am going to do. 00:25:30.680 --> 00:25:32.480 I'm going to make a copy of this. 00:25:32.600 --> 00:25:34.480 And I'm going to set it in my hometown. 00:25:34.680 --> 00:25:38.600 And what I'm going to do is I'm going to encourage people, hey, hey, come to me. 00:25:39.340 --> 00:25:40.320 Don't go to God. 00:25:41.340 --> 00:25:45.500 Come to me instead of going to him. 00:25:45.860 --> 00:25:50.380 And so what Gideon does is he turns worship into idolatry. 00:25:51.280 --> 00:25:57.020 And in this we see another turn in the life of Gideon that's going to continue to build and build and build. 00:25:57.020 --> 00:26:04.660 And what he instills in his people is that they are no longer going to be the people of God who they were before. 00:26:05.080 --> 00:26:09.500 Because people of God are people of word and action. 00:26:10.460 --> 00:26:14.040 Gideon's words say, oh, no, I would never do that. 00:26:14.100 --> 00:26:17.760 But his actions say, yes, I would do that. 00:26:17.860 --> 00:26:27.040 As crazy as this is, all right, I'm trying to lose a little bit of weight, but it would be like somebody coming up to me and saying, would you like a milkshake? 00:26:27.220 --> 00:26:29.260 And me saying, no, no, no, I'm good. 00:26:29.360 --> 00:26:34.080 And then as soon as they leave, go in and get in a big bowl of ice cream and saying, well, it's different. 00:26:34.600 --> 00:26:34.760 You know? 00:26:35.020 --> 00:26:36.400 No, it's not, right? 00:26:36.700 --> 00:26:39.140 It's completely against what you said. 00:26:39.780 --> 00:26:42.620 And as silly as that is, that's what we see in Gideon. 00:26:43.520 --> 00:26:46.240 No, I'm not going to be king, but treat me like one. 00:26:47.680 --> 00:26:52.260 No, I'm not going to be king, but you need to respect me like I am. 00:26:53.440 --> 00:26:53.880 No, no, no, no. 00:26:54.240 --> 00:26:59.940 God is who you need to seek as long as you seek after me. 00:27:01.080 --> 00:27:12.300 You know, church, it is so easy for you and I to fill our conversations with words of faith, but lack the obedience that comes with them. 00:27:13.520 --> 00:27:19.880 Gideon would probably be the best at quoting scripture, but fails at the applying it to his life. 00:27:21.080 --> 00:27:24.440 It's the whole purpose of the book of James in the New Testament. 00:27:24.780 --> 00:27:30.720 I think I've preached through that twice since I've been the pastor here, seven and a half years, and we may need to do it again. 00:27:30.820 --> 00:27:34.360 But the whole point is like, look, faith without works, it's dead. 00:27:35.160 --> 00:27:37.420 So Gideon, you say these things, that's great. 00:27:38.000 --> 00:27:42.140 That's great that you say them, but it doesn't match with who you are. 00:27:43.080 --> 00:27:45.960 And it begins to build and build and build. 00:27:46.880 --> 00:27:53.260 I just want to ask you, like take a moment back in our lives and look at the things that we say. 00:27:54.260 --> 00:28:05.280 And honestly ask yourself, do my grand, beautiful words of faith truly line up with the man or woman who I am by my actions? 00:28:05.840 --> 00:28:07.520 Is there hypocrisy? 00:28:07.800 --> 00:28:09.660 Is there conflict within there? 00:28:09.820 --> 00:28:16.960 Or is there a level of we're meshing and we're working these together to see what comes from these? 00:28:17.720 --> 00:28:26.360 And what Gideon is building in the Israelites, what Gideon is building in his family, what Gideon is building in those around him, 00:28:26.360 --> 00:28:31.880 is a culture that is going to drastically bring them away from God. 00:28:32.440 --> 00:28:41.180 One of the things that God's given me a passion for is going to, experiencing, and talking to people of other cultures. 00:28:41.640 --> 00:28:49.500 It's one of the reasons why I love to go to other countries, because I love to hear from people who grew up in a different way than I did, 00:28:49.700 --> 00:28:51.760 who were taught in a different way than I was taught. 00:28:51.900 --> 00:28:58.340 If I found out that anyone here has lived in for an extended period of time, or maybe was even born in another country, 00:28:58.500 --> 00:29:02.760 I love to sit down and to talk and to listen and to see what that's like. 00:29:02.760 --> 00:29:09.800 Because there's the beauty of how much we begin to realize that the culture that we live in, how it molds and shapes us. 00:29:10.240 --> 00:29:14.500 Now, we live in a society of multiple cultures. 00:29:15.520 --> 00:29:20.480 Every day, you live and you function and you operate in many different cultures. 00:29:21.120 --> 00:29:25.500 You've got the culture of your individual life, which affects the culture of your family, 00:29:26.000 --> 00:29:27.820 which affects the culture in which you work, 00:29:28.240 --> 00:29:30.700 which affects the culture in which we all live, 00:29:30.980 --> 00:29:32.960 which affects the culture in which we worship, 00:29:33.220 --> 00:29:37.580 and you can continue to build on and farther and farther out. 00:29:37.800 --> 00:29:44.040 The culture of my home and how we do things may be different than the culture of your home and how you do things. 00:29:44.380 --> 00:29:52.000 And as men and women of faith, what we are working toward is establishing a culture that lives to glorify and honor God. 00:29:52.520 --> 00:29:55.580 And that's not what we see here in Gideon. 00:29:56.160 --> 00:30:01.540 So the question that we have to ask as we look at his life and we examine our own is, 00:30:01.680 --> 00:30:06.020 are we embracing a culture of sin or a culture of sanctification? 00:30:07.020 --> 00:30:12.540 In Gideon's desperation, Gideon was walking in a culture of sanctification. 00:30:12.540 --> 00:30:17.260 It was what he was building around him in his desperate moments for the Lord. 00:30:17.540 --> 00:30:26.180 But what we see here in Judges chapter 8 is him moving away from the culture of sanctification and moving more toward a culture of sin. 00:30:26.740 --> 00:30:35.000 We find out in Scripture, all right, that Gideon has 70 sons, all right? 00:30:36.060 --> 00:30:38.060 So, we'll figure this out. 00:30:38.680 --> 00:30:40.060 It means Gideon had many wives. 00:30:41.280 --> 00:30:45.500 When you read about, because I get this question a lot, there is polygamy in the Old Testament. 00:30:46.440 --> 00:30:48.140 It's common in the Old Testament. 00:30:49.060 --> 00:30:56.200 But it's important for us to know that while polygamy, having more than one wife, is common in this practice in the Old Testament, 00:30:56.520 --> 00:31:00.000 it is never, not one time is it condoned by God. 00:31:00.780 --> 00:31:02.020 It's not God's plan. 00:31:03.420 --> 00:31:06.440 Gideon has 70 sons by many different wives. 00:31:07.440 --> 00:31:08.840 But Gideon also has a concubine. 00:31:10.080 --> 00:31:13.000 And again, the culture of his day says, this is okay. 00:31:13.800 --> 00:31:19.260 God never, God never says, this is good by me, that this is my will for you. 00:31:19.920 --> 00:31:23.140 And we begin to see this life that Gideon has. 00:31:23.140 --> 00:31:30.660 We begin to see this culture of sin that is more and more invading his heart and his life. 00:31:31.180 --> 00:31:33.840 And so, Gideon has a son from the concubine. 00:31:35.140 --> 00:31:39.080 And this son, Gideon, gives the name Abimelech. 00:31:39.740 --> 00:31:44.580 And it's very important that we understand that Gideon gives him this name. 00:31:45.100 --> 00:31:49.700 Because the name Abimelech means, my father is king. 00:31:50.540 --> 00:31:52.140 My father is king. 00:31:52.820 --> 00:31:57.080 Oh, here's almighty Gideon, all noble Gideon. 00:31:57.760 --> 00:31:59.620 Nah, I'm not going to be king. 00:32:00.820 --> 00:32:04.220 But I'm going to name my son, my father is king. 00:32:05.140 --> 00:32:09.540 Gideon who says, no, no, no, no, no, God is your lord, God is your king. 00:32:09.960 --> 00:32:13.620 But with my actions, seek after me. 00:32:14.460 --> 00:32:22.360 And what Gideon is doing in these moments is he's continuing to build more and more of a culture of sin around him. 00:32:23.080 --> 00:32:24.380 And then Gideon dies. 00:32:25.460 --> 00:32:29.940 And what we are going to see is this culture of sin and how it plays out. 00:32:30.360 --> 00:32:38.120 So, I ask myself this question with looking at Gideon's life, with understanding scripture, what does the culture of sanctification look like? 00:32:40.000 --> 00:32:54.240 Parents, let's go ahead and acknowledge that in our lives, I say parents, but let me say for all of us, where we go, that there are parts of us, because we are not perfect, where we embrace cultures of sin. 00:32:54.920 --> 00:32:55.080 Right? 00:32:55.200 --> 00:32:58.100 There's not a one of us in here who's perfect. 00:32:58.480 --> 00:33:00.180 So, we all have that. 00:33:00.500 --> 00:33:10.520 But when we begin to live boldly for the Lord, when we begin to pursue after him, what we find that comes from that is a culture of sanctification. 00:33:10.820 --> 00:33:13.420 And what we see from that in scripture is this. 00:33:13.620 --> 00:33:16.660 A culture of sanctification first is marked by repentance. 00:33:17.740 --> 00:33:19.540 Will always be marked by repentance. 00:33:19.920 --> 00:33:27.840 Where men and women of God are confident enough in their faith in God and their standing in God to look at all the people around them and say, 00:33:28.220 --> 00:33:32.940 Not only do I understand that I'm not where I need to be, but I repent before God of it. 00:33:33.660 --> 00:33:37.060 And the level of boldness of faith that it takes in that. 00:33:37.640 --> 00:33:45.240 A culture of sanctification is one that shows complete dependence and trust on God on the mountaintop and in the valley. 00:33:45.240 --> 00:33:51.260 A culture of sanctification requires a deep-rooted sense of prayer in your life. 00:33:51.480 --> 00:33:56.100 One of the first things that we see Gideon walk away from is this communication with the Lord. 00:33:57.360 --> 00:34:06.960 And in a culture of sanctification, more so than anything else maybe, from a man or woman of God, is to be desperate to grow. 00:34:07.680 --> 00:34:08.960 To experience growth. 00:34:09.900 --> 00:34:13.500 I heard a sportscaster, and I may offend some people in here. 00:34:13.800 --> 00:34:19.640 I found that when you talk about this sports team, some people you offend and others cheer when you give them a hard time. 00:34:20.300 --> 00:34:24.380 But he was talking about the dysfunction of the Dallas Cowboys, all right? 00:34:24.700 --> 00:34:27.100 And so if you're a Dallas Cowboys fan, you don't like that. 00:34:27.140 --> 00:34:30.780 But he said they're the most dysfunctional sports program. 00:34:31.400 --> 00:34:35.360 The most dysfunctional sports team that we have going on right now. 00:34:35.700 --> 00:34:37.020 And he said this about them. 00:34:37.220 --> 00:34:46.500 He said, when it comes to life and to where you need to be, I'm not asking for perfection, but I'm just asking for growth. 00:34:47.460 --> 00:34:50.580 And I heard him say that, like I said, on a sports talk show. 00:34:50.780 --> 00:34:55.100 And I thought, man, how much does that relate to us with God? 00:34:56.320 --> 00:34:56.560 Right? 00:34:56.880 --> 00:34:59.120 God knows that you can't be perfect. 00:34:59.680 --> 00:35:01.500 God knows that I can't be perfect. 00:35:01.620 --> 00:35:04.540 That's why we're made perfect through Christ. 00:35:05.180 --> 00:35:17.140 But what he desires and what he longs for us is to experience and to go through growth so that day by day we're seeking and looking to walking closer and closer with him. 00:35:18.120 --> 00:35:35.620 And so what Gideon could have left behind was the culture that was created in that cave, was the culture that was created with a fleece, was the culture that was created when he shrunk the army of 32,000 down to 300, but instead he left behind a culture of sin. 00:35:36.220 --> 00:35:54.680 And so he dies, and in Judges 9, verse 6, it says, all the leaders of Shechem came together, and all Beth Milo, and they went and they made Abimelech king by the oak of the pillar of Shechem. 00:35:55.480 --> 00:36:01.260 And we begin to see what the culture of sin has created. 00:36:02.260 --> 00:36:04.400 God never wanted them to have a king. 00:36:05.140 --> 00:36:06.280 God was their king. 00:36:07.180 --> 00:36:08.220 But they said, no. 00:36:08.980 --> 00:36:10.580 We can't trust you. 00:36:11.440 --> 00:36:13.540 Instead, give us a man. 00:36:14.520 --> 00:36:15.460 Give us a man. 00:36:17.080 --> 00:36:18.460 And so they took Abimelech. 00:36:18.520 --> 00:36:19.300 They made him king. 00:36:20.300 --> 00:36:32.860 And we're not going to read it this morning, but if you want to continue on reading through chapter 9, what you'll see is the depth of depravity that Israel goes through. 00:36:34.060 --> 00:36:51.780 And I believe when you and I take a step and take a moment, and we look at our culture, and we look at our climate, and look at where we find ourselves today. 00:36:51.780 --> 00:36:56.400 Are we following man, are we following God? 00:36:58.040 --> 00:37:02.460 See, they desperately, desperately wanted a man to follow after. 00:37:03.320 --> 00:37:06.060 And God said, no, no, no. 00:37:06.320 --> 00:37:09.240 You seek after me. 00:37:10.400 --> 00:37:16.660 And when they don't, the culture of sin builds, and it builds, and it builds. 00:37:18.240 --> 00:37:19.160 Take the time. 00:37:19.340 --> 00:37:21.220 Read through chapter 9. 00:37:22.680 --> 00:37:28.400 See the depth of which the nation will go, and the depth in which it will fall. 00:37:29.360 --> 00:37:40.580 And honestly, reading through it, kind of find yourself like, God, man, like, I'm not sure, like, if there's ever a point in time that you could, like, wipe your hands and say, I'm done. 00:37:41.440 --> 00:37:43.540 Israel, y'all, y'all have done messed this up enough. 00:37:44.160 --> 00:37:49.560 I mean, there was all of these from the times where I showed you my faithfulness to my faithfulness to my faithfulness. 00:37:49.800 --> 00:37:59.480 But yet, this is who you are, even though of Abraham, even though of Moses, even though of Joshua, but yet, time after time, this is what we find ourselves. 00:37:59.820 --> 00:38:06.760 And even after the history of all of the judges that you've seen, after you've left me, and as you've pursued other things. 00:38:06.960 --> 00:38:16.360 Like, if you read chapter 9, and you don't walk away from it going like, God, I don't know why you just didn't wipe them all out, dry your hands off, and walk away from this. 00:38:16.360 --> 00:38:20.240 Like, in that moments where you're like, I get it, God, I get it. 00:38:20.780 --> 00:38:22.100 God, just start over. 00:38:22.940 --> 00:38:24.320 God, be done with this. 00:38:25.360 --> 00:38:27.440 But read with me, and we're going to close with this. 00:38:28.360 --> 00:38:30.000 Read Judges 10, 1 through 3. 00:38:32.180 --> 00:38:32.740 It says, 00:38:32.740 --> 00:38:43.920 After Abimelech, there arose to save Israel, Tola, the son of Pua, son of Dodo, a man of Iskar. 00:38:45.240 --> 00:38:50.420 And he lived at Shemir, in the hill country of Ephraim. 00:38:50.420 --> 00:38:54.580 And he judged Israel 23 years. 00:38:55.380 --> 00:38:58.820 Then he died and was buried at Shemir. 00:38:59.840 --> 00:39:09.380 And after him arose Jaar, the Gileadite, who judged Israel 22 years. 00:39:10.880 --> 00:39:11.900 Do you get it? 00:39:13.240 --> 00:39:20.660 As Israel wanders away, they can never wander too far from God's grace. 00:39:21.620 --> 00:39:22.220 Never. 00:39:23.300 --> 00:39:29.920 And in spite of their idolatry, in spite of all they've done, God says, 00:39:30.420 --> 00:39:34.800 I know what you deserve, but here's what I'm going to give. 00:39:35.500 --> 00:39:36.940 And here's what I'm going to give. 00:39:37.460 --> 00:39:38.720 And here's what I'm going to give. 00:39:39.800 --> 00:39:45.780 Even in your culture of sin, here's what I grant you. 00:39:46.680 --> 00:39:48.000 God's grace. 00:39:49.340 --> 00:39:58.860 You know, the beautiful part of God's grace is that the same way that God gives His grace to Israel in Judges 10, 00:39:59.320 --> 00:40:00.740 He gives to you and I. 00:40:02.200 --> 00:40:06.880 Because we've collected earrings and made idols. 00:40:08.240 --> 00:40:11.040 We've taken the credit for what God's done. 00:40:12.000 --> 00:40:18.220 We've pursued after the things of our hearts more than we've pursued Him. 00:40:19.600 --> 00:40:27.980 In not one point in time, did God look at His hands and wipe them clean and say, 00:40:28.060 --> 00:40:28.520 I'm done. 00:40:29.260 --> 00:40:30.180 I'm done. 00:40:31.060 --> 00:40:31.640 I'm done. 00:40:33.020 --> 00:40:33.940 God's grace. 00:40:35.340 --> 00:40:36.780 Now, God's grace is a big deal. 00:40:38.200 --> 00:40:44.780 God's grace is what keeps us out of hell and gives us eternal life with Him. 00:40:46.480 --> 00:40:51.360 God's grace is how we find our right standing with Him and how we're heard by Him. 00:40:52.660 --> 00:41:01.060 God's grace is what He gives the filthiest of sinners and those who view themselves as the most religiously elite. 00:41:01.660 --> 00:41:03.640 It's His grace time and time again. 00:41:04.860 --> 00:41:11.000 I don't know that anyone will ever ask you a more important question in your life than this. 00:41:11.960 --> 00:41:14.660 Have you experienced God's grace? 00:41:15.920 --> 00:41:21.560 Have you experienced the favor of God by understanding that you didn't deserve it? 00:41:22.340 --> 00:41:28.740 The forgiveness of every wrong that you've ever done and every wrong that you'll ever do. 00:41:29.740 --> 00:41:38.620 To experience God's grace by understanding that every sin in your life and every sin in my life 00:41:38.620 --> 00:41:43.660 fully deserves every ounce of God's wrath. 00:41:44.660 --> 00:41:45.780 Just for one. 00:41:47.500 --> 00:41:52.160 But God's grace says, no, not on them. 00:41:53.220 --> 00:41:56.500 And instead, He pours it all out on Jesus. 00:41:57.440 --> 00:41:58.160 That's it. 00:41:59.180 --> 00:42:00.640 Every part of it. 00:42:01.780 --> 00:42:07.080 So that because of the sacrifice of Christ, you and I, by experiencing God's grace, 00:42:07.220 --> 00:42:10.960 are no longer His enemies, but are His children. 00:42:12.220 --> 00:42:17.480 Made new and whole and complete in God. 00:42:18.920 --> 00:42:21.040 Have you experienced God's grace? 00:42:22.440 --> 00:42:25.960 And if you have, let me ask you this. 00:42:26.960 --> 00:42:28.480 Are you displaying it? 00:42:29.800 --> 00:42:31.220 Are you displaying it? 00:42:34.700 --> 00:42:38.000 I want to close by just kind of sharing my heart. 00:42:40.500 --> 00:42:42.640 I don't know if everyone's aware, but 00:42:42.640 --> 00:42:52.380 it's not hard to find division in our culture right now. 00:42:54.380 --> 00:42:56.620 It's not hard to find people who disagree. 00:42:58.420 --> 00:42:59.880 People who don't like each other. 00:43:02.020 --> 00:43:03.260 People who hate each other. 00:43:06.500 --> 00:43:13.620 And the condition that I think we find ourselves right now in the world in which we live 00:43:13.620 --> 00:43:17.380 is not a surprising condition to find the world. 00:43:18.700 --> 00:43:19.440 The world's broken. 00:43:20.740 --> 00:43:21.780 It's full of sinners. 00:43:23.120 --> 00:43:25.860 It's full of people who don't know the Lord, who don't understand grace. 00:43:29.420 --> 00:43:30.720 It's the way it's always been. 00:43:30.820 --> 00:43:32.640 It's the way it'll always be until Christ returns. 00:43:34.780 --> 00:43:40.100 The painful part that I think that we're experiencing right now in our culture 00:43:40.100 --> 00:43:44.040 is not that there's the divide between the world, 00:43:45.080 --> 00:43:48.600 but that those of us who call themselves the bride of Christ, 00:43:49.780 --> 00:43:51.180 that there's the divide that's there. 00:43:53.660 --> 00:43:55.580 Joel Van Ham and I were talking this morning. 00:43:57.000 --> 00:44:00.080 And I was telling him, I said, man, I just, I don't know. 00:44:01.820 --> 00:44:08.640 I watched a Facebook conversation happen with two people that I know who I dearly love and care about. 00:44:09.840 --> 00:44:13.500 And before this conversation started, they dearly loved and cared for each other. 00:44:15.620 --> 00:44:20.740 And now at the end of this, they can't even find themselves in the same room. 00:44:22.780 --> 00:44:26.460 And yet both of them say that they're followers of Jesus. 00:44:29.180 --> 00:44:34.600 My fear is not that the world is going to be divided because the world is. 00:44:35.840 --> 00:44:37.020 Truth divides. 00:44:39.520 --> 00:44:43.380 I've got friends who are lost and we disagree on a whole lot of things, right? 00:44:44.580 --> 00:44:48.060 But my heart breaks right now, not because of the division that's in the world, 00:44:48.140 --> 00:44:49.340 but the division that's in the church. 00:44:51.800 --> 00:44:58.200 And if God's people who are called, God's word tells us, to be ministers of reconciliation, 00:44:59.040 --> 00:45:05.040 to love one another, to love others, to share the hope of the gospel. 00:45:06.920 --> 00:45:12.200 If that doesn't bother us, that there's division within the body, 00:45:13.460 --> 00:45:19.920 that there's brothers and sisters who hate and who mistrust each other, 00:45:21.540 --> 00:45:23.060 and church, we've fallen off. 00:45:24.160 --> 00:45:26.060 And we're absolutely missing it. 00:45:27.760 --> 00:45:32.520 I get right now, just like it is every four years, 00:45:33.440 --> 00:45:36.940 is the wonderful time where people have opinions. 00:45:38.160 --> 00:45:39.760 And I'm glad that people do. 00:45:41.040 --> 00:45:42.780 I say this to everyone in here. 00:45:42.860 --> 00:45:47.220 As you vote, vote your conviction as you've prayed before God 00:45:47.220 --> 00:45:50.340 and as God leads you. 00:45:51.280 --> 00:45:56.060 Before you listen to a commercial or a Facebook post, listen to God. 00:45:56.480 --> 00:45:57.440 Let Him lead you. 00:45:58.940 --> 00:46:03.300 But if we can't hit the point where we can't disagree 00:46:03.300 --> 00:46:08.800 and we can't extend each other the same grace that God's extended us, 00:46:09.800 --> 00:46:10.560 we've missed it. 00:46:11.380 --> 00:46:12.060 We've missed it. 00:46:13.500 --> 00:46:14.740 As I look at Gideon, 00:46:14.740 --> 00:46:22.920 I see a man who started so well in his pursuit with the Lord, 00:46:23.920 --> 00:46:28.500 but took his eyes off of him and placed it everywhere else. 00:46:29.280 --> 00:46:31.960 And he forgot what grace looked like. 00:46:33.960 --> 00:46:39.360 Before we speak, before we speak, before we act, before we post, 00:46:40.160 --> 00:46:45.520 ask yourself the same question that my grandma told me 00:46:45.520 --> 00:46:46.560 before I walked out the door. 00:46:46.660 --> 00:46:47.320 Every time, 00:46:48.660 --> 00:46:48.900 Bo, 00:46:49.900 --> 00:46:52.400 is what you're going to do going to glorify God? 00:46:54.740 --> 00:47:12.560 God, I thank you for your grace and your kindness and your compassion to us. 00:47:14.020 --> 00:47:16.420 Lord, as Israel continued to wander, 00:47:18.220 --> 00:47:20.480 Lord, oftentimes so do we. 00:47:22.540 --> 00:47:25.800 Lord, in the midst of the adversity, we cling to you. 00:47:27.940 --> 00:47:30.180 But, Lord, in the midst of prosperity, 00:47:32.200 --> 00:47:33.980 Lord, for lack of better terms, 00:47:34.180 --> 00:47:36.220 we kind of forget where we came from. 00:47:39.140 --> 00:47:41.920 And so, Lord, I pray that we would carry on 00:47:41.920 --> 00:47:44.320 a position of our heart 00:47:44.320 --> 00:47:47.840 of a desperate cry for you and for you alone. 00:47:49.660 --> 00:47:51.280 Lord, I pray for our country 00:47:51.280 --> 00:47:53.800 as more and more 00:47:53.800 --> 00:47:58.360 the words of hate 00:47:58.360 --> 00:48:00.540 tend to fill 00:48:00.540 --> 00:48:02.180 the mouths and the hearts 00:48:02.180 --> 00:48:02.880 of so many. 00:48:04.840 --> 00:48:06.540 Lord, I pray that the church, 00:48:08.280 --> 00:48:09.600 that the bride of Christ, 00:48:11.000 --> 00:48:12.600 while so many of us 00:48:12.600 --> 00:48:14.180 may be 00:48:14.180 --> 00:48:15.200 different politically, 00:48:16.240 --> 00:48:18.100 Lord, that 00:48:18.100 --> 00:48:19.780 we could be unified in the gospel. 00:48:22.100 --> 00:48:23.380 Lord, that we could seek 00:48:23.380 --> 00:48:25.620 to extend 00:48:25.620 --> 00:48:26.700 one another grace. 00:48:28.900 --> 00:48:29.720 Lord, to have 00:48:29.720 --> 00:48:31.620 great, wonderful, challenging, 00:48:32.100 --> 00:48:33.280 meaningful conversations 00:48:33.280 --> 00:48:34.280 with each other. 00:48:35.920 --> 00:48:36.900 But, Lord, that we 00:48:36.900 --> 00:48:38.100 walk away 00:48:38.100 --> 00:48:40.480 understanding 00:48:40.480 --> 00:48:42.320 a complicated word 00:48:42.320 --> 00:48:43.220 called perspective. 00:48:47.920 --> 00:48:48.840 Lord, grant us 00:48:48.840 --> 00:48:49.960 hearts of meekness 00:48:49.960 --> 00:48:51.060 and of kindness 00:48:51.060 --> 00:48:51.960 and compassion. 00:48:52.960 --> 00:49:04.440 help us to understand 00:49:04.440 --> 00:49:05.480 the plight of those 00:49:05.480 --> 00:49:05.680 that 00:49:05.680 --> 00:49:08.820 don't look like us, 00:49:09.160 --> 00:49:10.160 don't act like us. 00:49:18.160 --> 00:49:19.000 Lord, in us, 00:49:20.200 --> 00:49:22.700 as Satan 00:49:22.700 --> 00:49:23.680 seeks to tear us 00:49:23.680 --> 00:49:24.140 apart, 00:49:26.720 --> 00:49:27.740 may we hold 00:49:27.740 --> 00:49:28.620 your word true 00:49:28.620 --> 00:49:31.840 that your church 00:49:31.840 --> 00:49:32.520 will stand. 00:49:38.120 --> 00:49:39.160 Lord, help us 00:49:39.160 --> 00:49:40.260 understand 00:49:40.260 --> 00:49:41.260 how you loved us 00:49:41.260 --> 00:49:45.980 and in that same way 00:49:45.980 --> 00:49:46.360 we're called 00:49:46.360 --> 00:49:47.100 to love one another. 00:49:50.380 --> 00:49:51.260 Lord, while we were 00:49:51.260 --> 00:49:51.860 yet sinners, 00:49:52.740 --> 00:49:54.640 you died for us. 00:50:03.520 --> 00:50:04.460 Every head bowed 00:50:04.460 --> 00:50:05.320 and every eye closed. 00:50:06.860 --> 00:50:07.860 have you received 00:50:07.860 --> 00:50:07.860 have you received 00:50:07.860 --> 00:50:08.580 God's grace? 00:50:12.180 --> 00:50:12.940 If not, 00:50:13.040 --> 00:50:13.620 why not today? 00:50:16.260 --> 00:50:17.560 And if you have, 00:50:18.680 --> 00:50:20.920 if you've received it, 00:50:21.680 --> 00:50:23.340 if you understand 00:50:23.340 --> 00:50:24.180 how dirty 00:50:24.180 --> 00:50:25.500 and filthy you were 00:50:25.500 --> 00:50:27.940 and Christ loved you 00:50:27.940 --> 00:50:29.340 in spite of it, 00:50:30.280 --> 00:50:33.140 would you go 00:50:33.140 --> 00:50:33.900 and walk 00:50:33.900 --> 00:50:35.940 in that same grace? 00:50:37.860 --> 00:50:38.600 Extending it 00:50:38.600 --> 00:50:39.800 to so many others. 00:50:41.920 --> 00:50:43.080 God, change us. 00:50:44.360 --> 00:50:45.700 Make us more like you. 00:50:46.700 --> 00:50:47.460 in Jesus' name is right. 00:50:57.460 --> 00:51:02.520 Thanks again for listening 00:51:02.520 --> 00:51:03.660 to the Willow Ridge Church 00:51:03.660 --> 00:51:04.460 weekly podcast. 00:51:04.980 --> 00:51:05.980 We hope that you enjoyed 00:51:05.980 --> 00:51:07.260 listening to this week's message. 00:51:07.740 --> 00:51:08.820 If you'd like to learn more 00:51:08.820 --> 00:51:09.660 about who we are 00:51:09.660 --> 00:51:11.260 or explore additional resources, 00:51:11.880 --> 00:51:12.760 visit us online 00:51:12.760 --> 00:51:15.700 at www.willowridgechurch.com. 00:51:15.700 --> 00:51:17.540 Or by searching 00:51:17.540 --> 00:51:18.560 for Willow Ridge Church 00:51:18.560 --> 00:51:19.900 on Facebook and Instagram.