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Applications To Sermon: The Deliverance Through Two Women (Judg.5)
We preached the above sermon last Sunday night but I didn’t have the time to give the three applications to the story. I promised you that I would put the applications in the bulletin this week.
The first application: Why didn’t God just wipe out Jabin, Sisera & their army the moment Israel cried for help? Why did God command the volunteers to rush down the mountainside into the face of iron chariot forces? Why did God require a seemingly suicidal attempt to fight the enemy? Why put the people through all the trouble?
The answer is in Judges 3:1-2: 1 These are the nations that the Lord left in the land to test those Israelites who had not experienced the wars of Canaan. 2 He did this to teach warfare to generations of Israelites who had no experience in battle.
The reason why God left the enemies there for Israel to fight was that God wanted to teach them (& us) how to wage warfare and how to stand. Sometimes God is more interested in developing His people than in displaying His power so God lets us get up on the mountainside & take a good look at iron chariots and then He commands us to engage them in battle.
Maybe we have given up and are saying, “We can’t win the battle. I don’t like the looks of iron chariots and this life of trusting God, so I’ll just retreat.” No, God wants us to learn to fight & He supplies the grace to teach us how (Eph.6:10ff).
The second application: He wants us to volunteer – 5:2 says they willingly offered themselves. “But Barry, you don’t see the 900 iron chariots I’m facing” But Who is the real architect behind Israel’s victory? The battle belongs to the Lord. We need to have all of God’s people willingly serving but only 6 tribes were involved in the battle & the others stayed behind. But God still gave victory to those who obeyed His command. Whether a few or many, we need to be committed to obeying God.
The third application: The men were not stepping up to their responsibilities so God chose a woman to be His judge. Look at the two women who delivered God’s people here in Judg.4-5.
Ladies, we need you to be involved as Deborah and Jael were involved. Women are not second-class saints. They fulfill a vital role in God’s kingdom work. If all the women were removed from the average local church, the work of the Lord would grind to a halt. Sometimes the ladies see the work that needs to be done & accomplish it while the men stand around and talk about how hard or impossible the work is.
Women hold a vital place in local church. They are the ones who, for the most part, teach our children. They have the compassion that encourages those who need lifting up. They are always looking for opportunities to serve the Lord. We are very blessed with the godly women we have here in Clermont. By and large, they are more dependable than the men, when it comes to being involved in the work of the Lord. They have an impact on our world like Deborah did by her godly life.
I am thankful for our godly, active women in this church. Don’t let anyone ever minimize the impact you can have on this world. Be a Deborah and fulfill your role as a woman.
