Judges 3:14-23 So the children of Israel served Eglon the king of Moab eighteen years.
But when the children of Israel cried unto the LORD, the
LORD raised them up a deliverer, Ehud the son of Gera, a Benjamite, a
man lefthanded: and by him the children of Israel sent a present unto
Eglon the king of Moab. But Ehud made him a dagger which had two edges, of a cubit length; and he did gird it under his raiment upon his right thigh.
And he brought the present unto Eglon king of Moab: and Eglon was a very fat man.
And when he had made an end to offer the present, he sent away the people that bare the present. But he himself turned again from the quarries that were
by Gilgal, and said, I have a secret errand unto thee, O king: who
said, Keep silence. And all that stood by him went out from him. And Ehud came unto him; and he was sitting in a summer
parlour, which he had for himself alone. And Ehud said, I have a
message from God unto thee. And he arose out of his seat. And Ehud put forth his left hand, and took the dagger from his right thigh, and thrust it into his belly: And the haft also went in after the blade; and the fat
closed upon the blade, so that he could not draw the dagger out of his
belly; and the dirt came out. Then Ehud went forth through the porch, and shut the doors of the parlour upon him, and locked them.
What does an obscure story of a little-known judge, a story that happened thousands of years ago have to do with us today? Consider the world today and your battles and struggles. There was a strong influence of pagan worship around the people of Israel; this made them quit praying, quit worshiping God. They fell away from the Lord. They got themselves in the position of not knowing right from wrong. They did what was right in their own eyes. That's what we see today. Whatever you decide is right or wrong for you then it's okay. You can choose any flavor of Christianity or religion that you want. We need to consider ourselves fortunate to be in a house of the Lord that worships the true and living God. Where is God in our society? That IS NOT the question. The question is "where am I?"
The Moabites were a sorry nation. Their army was only half an army because of the lack of restraint of the men. YET, this sorry nation ruled Israel for 18 years. If you follow your own god, you'll find yourself in trouble just as the Israelites did. If there is anything we need for 2008 it is truth, not a hollow religion; we need a guide. We have someone true–God in heaven. Hope is through the bloody cross of Calvary. The only real peace is there. Israel reached out to God as we need to. God sent Ehud as the deliverer. Out of the smallest tribe of Israel God brought a deliverer. Ehud was willing to do what God wanted. God has sent a Deliverer, and if it seems nothing happens don't underestimate Jesus. He won't drop the ball–he will come through.
The devil likes to mandate your life. He's just like Eglon; he had Israel marching to the beat of his own drum. He saw Ehud as an ambassador of Israel with a gift for him; the became Israel's victory. There is nothing offensive about Jesus, but that's the attitude of the world. God has given us the best present. Eglon let Ehud come on in. We need to let the Lord in. The prince of darkness wants us to turn him away.
God worked in a strange way. Ehud told the king he had a secret errand from Israel's God and needed to give it to him alone. Eglon had a summer parlor in the castle that only he used. In the hot climate of that land royalty was able to do so and find relief in this cooling room. He took Ehud to this room. Stop and consider this. Is Jesus in the summer parlor of your heart–the private chamber of your soul? God is tired of our "intend to's" and our "hope to's." None of us should have made a New Years' resolution to be a better Christian. That should have been done way back, weeks, months and years ago. God help us not to treat God like a resolution. We are either right with God or we are not. God is either in or out of our summer parlor.
Eglon asked what his God had for him. What does God have for you? Peace. Purpose in life. He can make you what you've always wanted to be–you may not like how, and it may hurt a little. God had instructed Ehud to prepare a double-edged dagger and conceal it. When Paul writes about the Bible being a two-edged sword, this is his reference. Eglon said "gimme, gimme, gimme" not realizing what the message was. Ehud took the dagger and put it into Elgon's belly. The king was very fat. It went so deep it couldn't be removed and everything came out of him. He died. Ehud left and locked the door.
The times are saying "I have a message from God." The weather, nature, political signs of the world, the lawlessness and disregard for everything good and right all say "I have a message from God." The message may not be wanted. It's going to hurt. It may not really be desired, but it is the best gift–good for us.
Some didn't make it to 2008. You're not exempt from that. Over 3,500 years ago God said "I have a message." It cuts and separates things that you may not want done. Listen to God and let the two-edged sword come in and deliver you from all the dirt in your life. Do you think you can't get out? I have a message from God. Are there things you shouldn't be doing or things you should, I have a message from God. What is God telling you? How will you respond? For the sake of our people we must respond. We need some shifting, some evaluation. God has a message for you. Listen to it.
Adwolfe Freewill Baptist Church 