Sermon for Lent Wed March 22, 2023
Judges 10:10 10And the people of Israel cried out to the Lord, saying, “We have sinned against you, because we have forsaken our God and have served the Baals.”
People always cry out the loudest when they realize things are not going their way. People look for loopholes in everything to justify their actions. Many people spend most of their time looking for what will entertain them, give them a happy fix, or make them feel superior over others. People do not like being bored, setting still, or waiting for the good stuff to happen. We want it and we want it now!
People are children who constantly look for attention and go out of their way to try to bring attention to themselves. Part of the reason the lost generation is lost and can’t find themselves is that they think in order to be someone they have to have everyone pay attention to them. Many want to be, and think they deserve to be, an idle for others to bow down to.
Take a good look at what people do to try and fit in to a world they pay no attention to, yet feel the world owes them. True, the world really doesn’t care for anyone. And strange as it sounds the people are the world. The world falls to clothing, body markings and piercings, weird hair, makeup, hats and hoodies.
People fall to everything they can possibly find whether it is alcohol, drugs, astrology, palm reading, and what not. But the one we should turn to; people only do when everything else has failed. Maybe if people never turn from God, they might find their identity and realize they are the children of God, whom God loves.
Cry out oh Israel you have turned your back on God and found out it didn’t go well. Do we not do the same and even blame God for our misfortunes that we wandered into? Everyone wants a God who will turn His head from what we do, but be there immediately when we get ourselves in so deep we can no longer swim to the surface. And the truth, even though we forsake God He does not forsake us.
Judges 10:11–12 11And the Lord said to the people of Israel, “Did I not save you from the Egyptians and from the Amorites, from the Ammonites and from the Philistines? 12The Sidonians also, and the Amalekites and the Maonites oppressed you, and you cried out to me, and I saved you out of their hand.
How many times does God have to save us before we will be saved for eternity. Unfortunately, God has to save us every day, otherwise we would put an end to ourselves like sheep wondering off in the wild to be devoured by the predators of the world. Like sheep we are easy prey and need protection of a Godly kind. And fortunately, we have a God who actually is working every day to save us.
We think that we should be so protected that we should not suffer a stubbed toe or a scuffed knee. We wine and cry about everything and let everything rule our feelings. I’m surprised God hasn’t washed His hands of us a long time ago. But God does not forsake us, instead He continues to live up to His promises and gives us the means of salvation. Why look any further than the one who promises us an eternal life of joy?
Judges 10:13–14 13Yet you have forsaken me and served other gods; therefore, I will save you no more. 14Go and cry out to the gods whom you have chosen; let them save you in the time of your distress.”
Strange isn’t it, we forsake God for other gods and then turn to Him when our false gods fail to do what we designed them to do. What if we never repent? What if we never turn back to God? Then God will relent fully of His offering to us, and we will die to eternal death and suffering.
Cry all the louder oh Israel, ask God’s forgiveness, show your repentance, and live with Him who called you to be His, even His first chosen. God leads us to repentance through His Word and Holy Spirit. This is one way that the Holy Spirit sanctifies us is to lead us into repentance.
Judges 10:15–16 15And the people of Israel said to the Lord, “We have sinned; do to us whatever seems good to you. Only please deliver us this day.” 16So they put away the foreign gods from among them and served the Lord, and he became impatient over the misery of Israel.
So, we know that confession is good for the soul, and that when we confess, the truth will set us free. The truth we know is Jesus Christ and the freedom we speak of is the freedom from sin and death. Both sin and death are urging us to turn away from God. But the love of God, the suffering, death, and resurrection of our Savior Jesus Christ turns us towards our God for He gives us eternal life and relationship with Him at His cost not ours. Amen.
Written by Pastor Curtis A. May