Latest / Bible in a Year with Jack Graham / The Palm of Deborah - The Book of Judges

Transcript

The Palm of Deborah - The Book of Judges · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Let us pray. And behold, as Barak pursued Sisera, Jael
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: came out to meet him, and said unto him, Come,
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: and I will show ye the man whom thou seekest.
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: And when he came into her tent, behold, Sisera lay dead,
• 0:16
  Speaker 1: and the nail was in his temples. Judges 4.22 Dear
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: Heavenly Father, as I reflect on the life of Deborah,
• 0:25
  Speaker 1: I thank you that you are giving me the wisdom, knowledge,
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: and understanding that I possess. Today, I declare that Deborah's
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: boldness on the battlefield will be the same boldness I
• 0:36
  Speaker 1: have as I walk through new doors of opportunity. As
• 0:40
  Speaker 1: she declared victory in advance, I too am claiming victory
• 0:45
  Speaker 1: and divine favor over my life, my decisions, and my projects.
• 0:50
  Speaker 1: I will not wait to see the victory before I
• 0:53
  Speaker 1: claim it. Because I have faith, and faith is believing
• 0:58
  Speaker 1: what is not seen. to call what is not as
• 1:01
  Speaker 1: though it was. As in Judges 4-5, I praise you
• 1:06
  Speaker 1: for setting up others to help accomplish my task, like
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: you did through the life of Barak and Jael. I
• 1:13
  Speaker 1: decree and declare that all fear-based thinking will be pinned
• 1:17
  Speaker 1: to the floor of defeat as I raise and claim
• 1:22
  Speaker 1: my victory. In Jesus' name. Amen. Listening to these daily
• 1:29
  Speaker 1: prayers strengthens your relationship with God. Continue hearing from the
• 1:33
  Speaker 1: Lord by listening to today's Bible in a Year. Brought
• 1:37
  Speaker 1: to you by BibleInAYear.com.
• 1:46
  Speaker 2: The Palm of Deborah Previously we learned about the backsliding
• 1:51
  Speaker 2: people of Israel. Despite all God had done for them,
• 1:56
  Speaker 2: they continued to give themselves to other idols. As a result,
• 2:00
  Speaker 2: they were overtaken and made slaves by neighboring kingdoms. But
• 2:05
  Speaker 2: God sent the mighty judges, Othniel and Ehud. Both were
• 2:10
  Speaker 2: crafty and brave men, chosen by God to save the
• 2:14
  Speaker 2: Israelites from their own disobedience and captivity. Now we will
• 2:19
  Speaker 2: learn about the deliverance of Israel once again. God summons
• 2:24
  Speaker 2: the leadership of Deborah and Barak to free the people
• 2:28
  Speaker 2: from the oppression of the Canaanites, inspired by the book
• 2:32
  Speaker 2: of Judges.
• 2:36
  Speaker 3: Hello, I'm Pastor Jack Graham with today's episode of the
• 2:39
  Speaker 3: Bible in a Year podcast. In our previous episode, we
• 2:43
  Speaker 3: enter into the time of the Judges. We heard how
• 2:46
  Speaker 3: Israel entered into a cycle of sinning and captivity and
• 2:50
  Speaker 3: repentance and then rescue from God. Each time they cried
• 2:54
  Speaker 3: out to God for help, God would give them a
• 2:56
  Speaker 3: powerful man of valor and righteousness who would lead God's
• 3:00
  Speaker 3: people to freedom. Not just from physical captivity, but spiritual bondage.
• 3:07
  Speaker 3: Today we'll learn how Israel sinned again and were conquered
• 3:11
  Speaker 3: by another nation. As always, God will set them free
• 3:15
  Speaker 3: from oppression. And he'll work through two notable and powerful women.
• 3:22
  Speaker 3: As you listen today, take note and remember that the
• 3:25
  Speaker 3: hero in the story is never the one through whom
• 3:27
  Speaker 3: God works, but rather God himself. So, let's listen now
• 3:32
  Speaker 3: to today's reading.
• 3:35
  Speaker 2: The pursuit of darkness continued. Israel was tempted by every
• 3:40
  Speaker 2: god of the land. They looked for any excuse to
• 3:44
  Speaker 2: satisfy their selfish desires and pursuit of simple comforts. As before,
• 3:50
  Speaker 2: God removed his hand of blessing and allowed them to
• 3:53
  Speaker 2: fill their hearts with sin. God would not beg for
• 3:57
  Speaker 2: their love, but he would not leave them either. Soon
• 4:02
  Speaker 2: after Ehud died, Jabin, king of Canaan, and his general, Sisera,
• 4:07
  Speaker 2: attacked Israel with 900 chariots of iron. Like a black wave,
• 4:12
  Speaker 2: the Canaanite army crashed upon Israel. They consumed them. Drowning
• 4:18
  Speaker 2: in oppression, sin, and helplessness, the children of Israel cried
• 4:22
  Speaker 2: out to God again. Judging over Israel at that time
• 4:27
  Speaker 2: was Deborah. She was a strong and wise woman, a
• 4:31
  Speaker 2: prophetess devoted to God. People would often seek Deborah's wisdom
• 4:36
  Speaker 2: and come to her with disputes. Her pragmatism, discernment, and
• 4:41
  Speaker 2: sensitivity to God's Spirit made her a leader worth following.
• 4:45
  Speaker 2: When the oppressive hand of Jabin pressed upon the throat
• 4:48
  Speaker 2: of Israel, Deborah sent for Barak, a commander of Israel's army.
• 4:53
  Speaker 2: Barak came at once and stood at attention before Deborah.
• 4:58
  Speaker 2: She spoke to him, saying, The Lord has commanded you
• 5:02
  Speaker 2: to take ten thousand soldiers and go against Sisera. Barak gulped.
• 5:08
  Speaker 2: slightly scared at the thought of facing nine hundred iron
• 5:12
  Speaker 2: chariots and even more foot soldiers. He looked at Deborah
• 5:16
  Speaker 2: and said, I will go, but only if you go
• 5:20
  Speaker 2: with me. Deborah smiled and nodded, saying, Of course I
• 5:24
  Speaker 2: will go with you, but know this, there will be
• 5:27
  Speaker 2: no glory for you if you are victorious, for the
• 5:30
  Speaker 2: Lord is giving Cicera into the hand of a woman.
• 5:34
  Speaker 2: Then Deborah arose and rode like the wind with Barak
• 5:38
  Speaker 2: to the valley of Kadesh. Ten thousand men followed them,
• 5:42
  Speaker 2: and they rode with purpose to war. The two armies
• 5:46
  Speaker 2: met for battle. The vast numbers of Israel looked thin
• 5:50
  Speaker 2: compared to the bulk of Sisera's chariots. Deborah could sense
• 5:54
  Speaker 2: the weakness in her men. She rode among them, clanging
• 5:58
  Speaker 2: her sword against theirs. She yelled at the top of
• 6:01
  Speaker 2: her lungs, saying, Arise! God has already given them into
• 6:06
  Speaker 2: our hands. Does he not go before you? The soldiers
• 6:10
  Speaker 2: raised their swords and spears and followed Deborah and Barak
• 6:15
  Speaker 2: into battle. The army of Israel overpowered the chariots. One
• 6:20
  Speaker 2: by one, iron fell into the dust. Barak fought among
• 6:24
  Speaker 2: the men, his sword gliding through flesh and bones. Spears
• 6:29
  Speaker 2: flew through the air, hitting the hearts of the chariot drivers.
• 6:33
  Speaker 2: Horses and men fell to the ground, and Cicera could
• 6:37
  Speaker 2: already sense he had lost the battle. Cicera leapt off
• 6:41
  Speaker 2: his chariot and ran away on foot, looking back to
• 6:44
  Speaker 2: make sure none of his men witnessed his cowardice. They
• 6:48
  Speaker 2: ran further and further away from the camp, and the
• 6:51
  Speaker 2: screams of men were replaced by silence. None were left alive.
• 6:57
  Speaker 2: Cicera had escaped up towards the tent of one of
• 7:00
  Speaker 2: his allies, Heber. There, Cicera met with Heber's wife, Jael.
• 7:06
  Speaker 2: He ordered Jael to bring him food and something to drink,
• 7:09
  Speaker 2: and then keep watch while he slept. Jael brought Cicera
• 7:13
  Speaker 2: milk in a blanket.' Do not be afraid,' she whispered.
• 7:17
  Speaker 2: Stroking his hair, she hushed him to sleep. She brushed
• 7:21
  Speaker 2: his hair until Cicera fell into a deep slumber. She
• 7:24
  Speaker 2: covered him with a blanket. Jael went to the entrance
• 7:27
  Speaker 2: of the tent and picked up a tent peg and hammer.
• 7:31
  Speaker 2: She turned towards Cicera and slowly approached him. She stroked
• 7:36
  Speaker 2: his hair some more and then in one decisive swoop
• 7:39
  Speaker 2: hammered the tent peg into Cicera's skull. The peg was
• 7:44
  Speaker 2: driven straight through his temple and touched the dirt. Meanwhile,
• 7:49
  Speaker 2: Barak was in hot pursuit of Cicera and had followed
• 7:52
  Speaker 2: him to Jael's tent. Jael rushed out of the tent
• 7:55
  Speaker 2: and stopped him, saying, Come quick, I will show you
• 7:58
  Speaker 2: where he is. Barak's eyes widened as he saw Sisera's
• 8:02
  Speaker 2: dead body bolted to the floor by his head.
• 8:06
  Speaker 3: It was true.
• 8:07
  Speaker 2: God did grant victory over Sisera to a woman. But
• 8:11
  Speaker 2: it was not Deborah, but Jael. A pool of blood
• 8:15
  Speaker 2: surrounded his skull. Back on the battlefield, a pool of
• 8:18
  Speaker 2: blood surrounded the Canaanite army.
• 8:27
  Speaker 3: Today's story begins with Israel being seduced again by foreign gods.
• 8:32
  Speaker 3: The hearts of God's people turn away from him again.
• 8:36
  Speaker 3: Living among those who do not know God or follow
• 8:39
  Speaker 3: him is a challenge today, just as it was for
• 8:41
  Speaker 3: these Israelites so long ago. And the only hope for
• 8:46
  Speaker 3: staying true to God and keeping our faith in him
• 8:50
  Speaker 3: is to always keep our eyes on the Lord and
• 8:53
  Speaker 3: trust in his word to us from generation to generations.
• 8:58
  Speaker 3: We see from generation to generation in the life of Israel,
• 9:02
  Speaker 3: the people turning away from him and then repenting and
• 9:05
  Speaker 3: then coming back. We see this in our own generation.
• 9:10
  Speaker 3: And we are praying for revival and restoration because the
• 9:14
  Speaker 3: Bible says, blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord.
• 9:19
  Speaker 3: There was a foreign king in our story, Jabin of Canaan,
• 9:21
  Speaker 3: who attacked Israel with his army. The army was led
• 9:24
  Speaker 3: by a man named Caesarea and they endured cruel enslavement
• 9:28
  Speaker 3: for 20 years. God's people cried out to Him for help,
• 9:33
  Speaker 3: as they often did when things became difficult. How much
• 9:37
  Speaker 3: heartache and how much pain could have been spared if
• 9:40
  Speaker 3: they simply had called upon God not just in the
• 9:43
  Speaker 3: bad times, but in the good times? But God did
• 9:47
  Speaker 3: not abandon His people. God is faithful to His promise
• 9:50
  Speaker 3: and to His people. He heard their cries for help.
• 9:53
  Speaker 3: In those days, there was a woman by the name
• 9:55
  Speaker 3: of Deborah, a prophetess and the only woman ever named
• 10:00
  Speaker 3: as a judge in the Bible. A judge in the
• 10:03
  Speaker 3: Bible is a deliverer, a conqueror. And the people looked
• 10:07
  Speaker 3: to Deborah for wisdom, strength, and guidance. So Deborah, responding
• 10:12
  Speaker 3: to God's Spirit, sent for Barak, a commander of Israel's army.
• 10:17
  Speaker 3: Deborah spoke prophetic words to Barak. revealing what God had
• 10:21
  Speaker 3: commanded Barak to do in order to defeat Jabin and
• 10:24
  Speaker 3: free Israel from captivity. She spoke with confidence, trusting that
• 10:29
  Speaker 3: God would be true to his word. Barak agreed to
• 10:33
  Speaker 3: go into battle, but only if Deborah went with him.
• 10:37
  Speaker 3: Surely he was expecting the confidence that comes from God,
• 10:41
  Speaker 3: but also the wisdom from Deborah. All we know is
• 10:45
  Speaker 3: he wanted Deborah to go with him, and she agreed.
• 10:48
  Speaker 3: But she made it clear that the glory for the
• 10:51
  Speaker 3: victory would not go to men, but that God would
• 10:54
  Speaker 3: be given the glory. In fact, God would give over
• 10:58
  Speaker 3: Jabin's general, Caesarea, into the hands of a woman. Surely
• 11:02
  Speaker 3: Barak assumed Deborah was speaking of herself. The truth would
• 11:06
  Speaker 3: prove much more surprising. So Deborah went with Barak to
• 11:10
  Speaker 3: meet the Canaanite army in battle. They would not have
• 11:13
  Speaker 3: been favored to win this battle. They were outmatched, outweaponized,
• 11:18
  Speaker 3: and outnumbered. But Deborah didn't view things through human eyes.
• 11:24
  Speaker 3: She looked with eyes of faith, and her faith filled
• 11:27
  Speaker 3: Barak with courage as well as he fought the battle.
• 11:31
  Speaker 3: God granted the Israelites victory that day. It wasn't through
• 11:35
  Speaker 3: the might of their army, but by the hand of
• 11:37
  Speaker 3: their God. Every Canaanite warrior, all the enemies were killed.
• 11:42
  Speaker 3: But General Caesarea escaped to the tent of Heber. one
• 11:46
  Speaker 3: of King Jabin's allies. He certainly thought he had cheated death.
• 11:51
  Speaker 3: But Jael, the wife of Heber, drove a stake through
• 11:54
  Speaker 3: Caesarea's temple as he lay sleeping. And when Barak, who
• 11:58
  Speaker 3: had pursued Caesarea, came to the tent, Jael showed him
• 12:01
  Speaker 3: his enemy dead by her hand. It was the fulfillment
• 12:04
  Speaker 3: of Deborah's prophecy. Israel was freed that day, and it
• 12:08
  Speaker 3: was two very different women who played such a huge
• 12:11
  Speaker 3: role in the victory. God will use us, both men
• 12:15
  Speaker 3: and women, to accomplish his purposes for his children and
• 12:18
  Speaker 3: for his glory. Dear God, thank you that you use
• 12:22
  Speaker 3: seemingly unimportant, unknown people to accomplish wonderful and powerful things.
• 12:29
  Speaker 3: Thank you that, as you did for Israel, you go
• 12:32
  Speaker 3: before us and never leave us or forsake us in
• 12:35
  Speaker 3: our personal battles. In Jesus' name, amen. Thank you for
• 12:40
  Speaker 3: listening today to the Bible in a Year podcast. I'm
• 12:42
  Speaker 3: Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas, pastor of Prestonwood Baptist Church.
• 12:47
  Speaker 3: Download the Pray.com app and make prayer a priority in
• 12:51
  Speaker 3: your life. And if you enjoy this podcast, share it
• 12:54
  Speaker 3: with others, people that you love and care about, people
• 12:57
  Speaker 3: who want to know the Bible, help them understand the
• 12:59
  Speaker 3: Bible as well. This podcast can make a huge difference
• 13:04
  Speaker 3: in someone's life. If you want more resources on how
• 13:07
  Speaker 3: to tap into the power of Jesus Christ in your life,
• 13:11
  Speaker 3: then be sure to visit jackgram.org.