Judges 17 and 18 tell one story of what life was like during the time of the Judges. It’s a tragic story overflowing with family dysfunction, deceit, thievery, violence and idolatry. Join Pastor Jim for an overview and to see how this passage makes us long for the hope of the gospel of God’s grace in Christ!
Sermon Notes
The repeated theme found in the book of Judges is:
“The sons of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord” occurs 7 times! (2:11; 3:7, 12; 4:1; 6:1; 10:6; 13:1)
Repeating cycle of spiritual decline in Judges:
1. Rebellion
2. Retributive justice
3. Regret/Remorse/Repentance
4. Rescue & Restoration
Thus far we have studied accounts of the following personalities from the OT book of Judges:
- Othniel
- Ehud
- Shamgar
- Deborah
- Gideon
- Abimelech
- Tola
- Jair
- Jephthah
- Ibzan
- Elon
- Abdon
- Samson
The repeated refrain from this final section of Judges is:
“In those days there was no king in Israel and everyone did that which was right in their own eyes” (17:6; 18:1; 19:1; 21:25)
- Apostasy
- Anarchy
- Assimilation
- Idolatry
Judges 17-18
Spiritual chaos
Judges 19-21
Moral bankruptcy
Spirituality degenerates into mere idolatry when it becomes…
- Custom spirituality
- Convenient spirituality
- Cultural spirituality
- Crumbling spirituality
“If the Christian church has one obvious characteristic today, I would suggest it is uncertainty, a lack of assurance. Indeed I think it is true to say that the nominal visible Christian church manifests an insecurity which is positively adolescent. Churches today are what adolescents are — unsure of themselves, insecure, not knowing who they are, what they are here for or where they are going.”
John Stott
“It costs something to be a true Christian. Let that never be forgotten. To be a mere nominal Christian, and go to church, is cheap and easy work. But to hear Christ’s voice, and follow Christ, and believe in Christ, and confess Christ, requires much self-denial. It will cost us our sins, and our selfrighteousness, and our ease, and our worldliness. All–all must be given up.”
J. C. Ryle
“There are ways to stand for the good, advocate for cultural realities that engender human flourishing, and do so in a loving way. That’s the future convictional Christians need. Churches that are preaching the Gospel and are focusing on biblical truths are going to become more clearly distinct from the culture around them. The end result? Robust Christian communities are going to get stronger.”
Ed Stetzer
“Our lifelong nostalgia, our longing to be reunited with something in the universe from which we now feel cut off, to be on the inside of some door which we have always seen from the outside, is no mere neurotic fancy, but the truest index of our real situation.”
C. S. Lewis
The Weight of Glory