The Judge's Cycle

be seated. Good morning. My name is Matthew Capone, and I'm the pastor here at Cheyenne

Mountain Presbyterian Church, and it's my joy to bring God's Word to you today. A special

welcome. If you're new or visiting with us, we're glad that you're here, and we're glad

that you're here not because we're trying to fill seats, but because we're following

Jesus together as one community. And as we follow Jesus together, we've become convinced

that there's no one so good, they don't need God's grace, and no one so bad that they can't

have it, which is why we come back week after week to hear what God has to say to us in His

Word. We're continuing this week our series in the book of Judges, and you'll remember

that the book of Judges is about many things. It's about the need for constant revival and

renewal among God's people. It's about the need for a true and faithful king, a king

who can do what no human king can do, which is to change the hearts of men, and it's about

the power of spirit-enabled leadership. You'll also remember that the Judges, as we think about

the story of God's people in the Old Testament, come after they've been rescued from Egypt,

but before God gives them kings. So this is before King Saul, after their wanderings in the

wilderness, after God's brought them out of slavery in Egypt, and they are supposed to be

doing what was started in the book of Joshua. Joshua went with them to take the promised

land, and so they're supposed to finish what they started of clearing out the nations.

Two weeks ago, at the very beginning, we saw the first introduction to the book of Judges,

and the problem there was that there was partial, not complete obedience. God's people failed

to remember His power in the past, and they also failed to trust His promises for the present

in the future. In other words, they refused to take God at His word. And then last week,

we saw the second introduction where we had the lost generation. Things were good as long

as Joshua and the elders with him were alive, but as soon as they died, things went off the rails.

And so we talked about the challenge and the opportunity and the responsibility of passing

on our faith to the next generation.

Now, that catches us up to where we are at this week, and we left on an ominous note last week.

You may remember verse 15 said this,

And they were in terrible distress, which is a little bit of a cliffhanger. And you'll remember

they're in terrible distress for a variety of reasons. They're in terrible distress because

they had forsaken the Lord. And then in that same verse, verse 15, it says,

the hand of the Lord was against them. That means that the question this week is,

how is Israel going to get out of this mess? They are in terrible distress.

How are they going to get out of it? What's going to be the solution to their problem?

And we're going to see three things this morning. We're going to talk about first, hard hearts.

We're going to see a merciful God. And then we will also at the end see a greater judge.

Hard hearts, merciful God, and greater judge. It's with that I invite you to turn with me now

to God's Word. You can turn in your worship guide. You can turn on your phone. You can open up your Bible.

No matter where you turn, remember that this is God's Word. And God reminds us that His Word

is more precious than gold, even the finest gold. And it's sweeter than honey, even honey that comes

straight from the honeycomb, which is why we read now Judges 2, starting at verse 16.

Then the Lord raised up judges who saved them out of the hand of those who plundered them.

Yet they did not listen to their judges, for they whored after other gods and bowed down to them.

They soon turned aside from the way in which their fathers had walked,

who had obeyed the commandments of the Lord, and they did not do so.

Verse 18.

Whenever the Lord raised up judges for them, the Lord was with the judge,

and He saved them from the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge.

For the Lord was moved to pity by their groaning because of those who afflicted and oppressed them.

But whenever the judge died, they turned back and were more corrupt than their fathers,

going after other gods, serving them, and bowing down to them.

They did not drop any of their practices or their stubborn ways.

So the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel.

And He said,

Because this people have transgressed My covenant that I commanded their fathers and have not obeyed My voice,

I will no longer drive out before them any of the nations that Joshua left when he died,

in order to test Israel by them whether they will take care to walk in the way of the Lord as their fathers did or not.

So the Lord left those nations, not driving them out quickly,

and He did not give them into the hand of Joshua.

Before the testing of Israel to know whether Israel would obey the commandments of the Lord,

which He commanded their fathers by the hand of Moses.

So the people of Israel lived among the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites.

And their daughters they took to themselves for wives, and their own daughters they gave to their sons,

and they served their gods.

I invite you to pray with me as we come to this portion of God's Word.

Our Father in Heaven, we thank You again, as we do every week, that You speak to us in Your Word.

We ask that You would do it again this week,

that You would show us clearly and precisely our need for Your mercy and Your grace.

And You would also show us that You meet us at that very same need,

that You would challenge us and encourage us,

that we would see Your love and Your power and Your authority and Your mercy

towards men and women like us.

Most of all, we ask that You would show us Jesus Christ,

that we would see and know His glory and His beauty.

And we ask these things in the mighty name of Jesus Christ.

Amen.

Amen.

In 1999, a young man named Christopher Miller decided to walk into Stride Wright,

a shoe store, on Hooper Avenue in Toms River, New Jersey,

because he wanted to steal.

So he did that.

He tied up the employees, he put them in the back room,

and he made out with some cash.

Now, he was arrested shortly thereafter,

and he ended up serving 15 years in prison.

Now, that's relatively boring.

Robbery happens all the time.

People end up in prison all the time.

What's interesting about this story is not how it began, but how it ended.

So, 1999, he starts his 15-year prison sentence.

He's released in 2014, 15 years later.

He is now not 25 years old, he is 40 years old.

What is the first thing that he does when he's released from prison?

Well, he takes a bus.

He goes to the Stride Wright shoe store on Hooper Avenue in Toms River, New Jersey,

and robs it again.

In fact, he tries to have an almost identical robbery.

And just like the previous robbery, he's quickly arrested again.

And so they ask the police chief, why do you think this happened?

And he said, well, maybe that's the only life he knows.

Maybe he's become so used to prison, he wants to return again.

Of course, that's simply a guess, right?

That's a theory.

That's why the police chief says maybe.

There's one thing we know for sure.

Prison restrained him.

It did not change him.

Prison restrained him.

It did not change them.

Remember, I told you the question of this passage is,

what is going to happen to Israel?

They are in a mess.

How are they going to get out?

And the answer is this.

They're not.

Israel is not going to get out of their mess,

at least not permanently,

because they are going to return to the same thing over and over and over.

In fact, it's such a pattern that it's become known

in the studies of Judges as the Judges cycle.

God's people will be restrained.

They will not be changed.

We're reminded of the problem at the very end of last week's passage.

Remember verse 15?

And they were in great distress.

Of course, this is because they were passed by the nations around them.

And so that problem requires a solution.

We meet the solution at the very beginning of this passage.

Verse 16,

Then the Lord raised up Judges.

Now, when we talk about Judges,

it's important to have clarity on what they are and what they are not.

You have a quote on the back of your worship guide,

which I'll briefly summarize for you, which is this.

When we think about Judges in the Old Testament,

we are not talking about people in black robes who sit in courtrooms.

When we talk about Judges in the Old Testament,

we are talking about military leaders.

And that makes sense,

because the problem and the solution need to go together.

The problem is that they are oppressed by other nations.

What would the solution then be?

It would be that they would have someone to rescue them from that oppression.

They would have a military leader who would be able to rise up

and fight against the nations that are holding them down.

So the solution fits the problem, right?

You're oppressed.

You need a rescuer to deliver you.

Notice, though, that we're not told about a judge.

We are told about Judges, plural.

In fact, that occurs in three verses in a row.

Verse 16, Judges.

Verse 17, Judges.

Verse 18, Judges.

Which is to tell us the author is not describing one event.

He is describing many events.

He is telling us about what happened over and over again.

Because, of course, these judges were not all serving simultaneously.

It's not as if Deborah was doing her thing,

and at the exact same time Othniel was working,

and then also Shamgar was doing something.

No.

These are judges that serve at different places in different times.

In fact, the book of Judges covers at least 200 years of history.

So the author is telling us here this is a pattern.

This is what happens over and over again.

We are getting, at the very beginning,

before we talk about any individual judge, an overview.

We are getting a look at what the rest of the book is going to show us.

And, in fact, it is not encouraging or heartening.

Because the pattern is this.

Verse 17 tells us,

Yet they did not listen to their judges,

for they whored after other gods and bowed down to them.

Didn't listen.

Went after other gods.

Now, we talked about this a little bit a week or two ago.

If you are not a Christian, you might be wondering,

Okay, well, why should we really be that worried

that they are turning after other gods?

Some people are religious.

Some people are not religious.

And maybe Christians should be a little less uptight

about who worships what God.

Because really, we are all just trying to get along.

And to that, I will tell you the same thing I told you last week,

which is this.

Everyone worships something.

We cannot escape the reality of religion.

We are told, verse 11 from last week,

They did evil in the sight of the Lord.

When we worship anyone other than the triune God,

the true and living God of the Bible,

it will lead to evil.

It will lead to destruction.

If you worship money,

you will choose profit over people.

You will destroy those around you.

In fact, you only need to look at the news

to see this happening all the time.

If you worship sexual experiences,

you will choose pleasure over respect for other people.

You will choose the convenience of adults

over the needs of children,

sometimes over their lives.

You will idolize the young,

and you'll discard the old.

If you worship radical autonomy,

then you'll get to experience incredible isolation.

You'll see deaths of despair,

and at its most extreme,

we get to see the mutilation of people's bodies.

When we worship anything other than the true God,

destruction and evil follow.

And so that's what Israel experiences over and over.

They cannot, you cannot,

worship other gods

and expect everything to turn out fine.

Other gods can't and won't deliver on their promises,

and so we talked about this last week.

Verse 14, what happened?

Plunderers came and plundered them.

That's what always happens

when we turn away from the true God.

If you don't worship God,

what do you worship?

Because I guarantee you

that you worship something.

If this is not your religion,

what are you religious about?

Because I know you are religious.

Everyone worships something.

And so that's the problem

that the Israelites have worked themselves into.

It's a problem, in fact,

that's even worse than that.

A couple commentators point out,

really, pattern is not the right word

to use for what happens in the judges.

It is not, in fact, a pattern.

It is a spiral.

And it's a spiral that heads down.

We see this in verse 19.

Whenever the judge died,

they turned back and were more corrupt.

They did not drop any of their practices

or their stubborn ways.

In other words,

things get worse every cycle.

Things become more wicked,

judge after judge.

We'll come back to that next week.

We're going to see Othniel

as the first judge.

He's the best judge.

That's not a coincidence.

Because things start out good

and they get worse.

The worst chapters of judges

are going to be at the very end.

And so chapter 2, verse 19,

is a critical verse

for understanding

how the book of Judges functions.

It starts out not so great

and ends up really terrible.

And it's going to get worse

judge after judge after judge.

And so that's an interpretive key.

It's a paradigm

for understanding the entire book.

They're more corrupt.

They did not drop their practices

or their stubborn ways.

So what do we learn?

What does this teach us

at the end of chapter 2

and the beginning of chapter 3?

First, it shows us this.

We need a leader

who is more powerful

than a mere man.

We need a leader

who is more powerful

than a mere man.

Because these judges,

they're able, again,

remember,

they're able to restrain.

They're not able to change.

The judges are able

to hold things back.

They're not able

to fix the problem.

That's why I told you earlier,

what is the solution

to Israel's problem?

There isn't ultimately a fix.

Things actually get worse.

And so as we look

at these judges,

as we head through the book,

in what sense

are we going to see

these men as models?

Well, we're going to see them

as models

in a certain sense,

but a very narrow sense.

We're going to see them

as models

in as much

as they rely on God.

Okay?

In as much

as they cling

to God and His power.

In fact,

we see that

in verse 18 here.

Whenever the Lord

raised up judges for them,

the Lord

was with the judge.

These men

are not powerful enough,

and they are only powerful

as God is with them.

These men

are not powerful enough,

and they are only powerful

when God is with them.

In other words,

we don't

and we cannot

put our hope

in men.

We don't

and we cannot

put our hope

in earthly leaders.

We don't

and we cannot

put our hope

in pastors

and elders

and deacons

and our women leaders.

leaders.

Because no matter

how good

we might be,

we cannot

change

the hearts

of men.

We are not

powerful

enough.

And so we see

first

that men,

that leaders,

that humans

are insufficient.

The judges

are not going

to be enough

to fix Israel.

Second thing

we see

is this.

we must

have

radical

heart

change.

We must

have

radical

heart

change

or

we

will

keep

destroying

ourselves.

In fact,

this cuts

against

the religious

mindset.

One summary

of the gospel

goes like this.

If you are

religious,

then you'll

say,

be good

like I'm

good.

be good

like I'm

good.

If you're

not

religious,

you might

say,

well,

we just

each need

to find

our own

good.

The gospel

says something

quite different.

It says,

no one is

good,

only God

is good.

No one

is good,

only God

is good.

We're

reminded

of our

need

for a

radical

heart

change.

The

religious

person

says,

be good

like I'm

good.

The

non-religious

person

says,

find your

own

good.

The gospel

says,

no one

is good,

only God

is good.

I've told

you before,

embracing

the gospel

means admitting

two things.

First,

I know

I must

change,

and

second,

I cannot

change

myself.

I know

I must

change,

and I

cannot

change

myself.

The book

of Judges

shows us

that with

tremendous

clarity.

Verse 19,

they became

more

corrupt.

They kept

to their

stubborn

ways.

They did

not drop

any

of their

practices.

Do you

know

that you

need

a radical

change

in your

heart?

do you

know

that you

cannot

bring

about

that

change

yourself?

You

must

know

those

two

things

to be

able

to

embrace

the

gospel.

You

must

know

those

two

things

for

Jesus

to be

more

than

a

good

teacher.

If

you're

not a

Christian,

are you

honest

enough

to be

able to

say that

the evil

in the

world is

not just

evil

that's

out

there?

Are you

honest

enough to

say that

it's

also

evil

that's

in

here?

do

you

know

that

the

problems

of

the

world

include

you?

That's

the bad

news

of the

gospel.

The

bad

news

is that

we

must

change

and

we

cannot

change

ourselves.

Being

a

Christian

is

not

merely

about

believing

certain

things

and

it

is

not

merely

about

living

in a

certain

way.

Although

there are

things we

believe

and there

is a

way of

life to

being a

Christian.

Being a

Christian is

about much

more than

that.

It's

something

deeper

than

that.

It is

about

recognizing

that you

need a

supernatural

work in

your life

that can

only be

brought about

by God's

power.

It is

recognizing

that only

the Spirit

of God

is great

enough

to bring

the change

that you

need.

It is

realizing

that Paul

is correct

in Ephesians

Ephesians 1 · chapter mention

chapter 1

when he

says the

same power

that raised

Christ from

the dead

is the

power that's

at work

in you.

And

knowing

that

resurrection

power is

the only

power that's

enough to

change our

hearts.

people of

Israel

must

change.

People of

Israel

cannot

change

themselves

and we

don't see

them admit

that in

this passage.

In this

whole book

the people

of Israel

actually need

more than

a judge

because a

mere man

is not

powerful

enough.

That brings

us to our

second point.

Remember I

told you

first we

would talk

about hard

hearts and

second a

merciful God.

And our

question at the

beginning was

what would be

the solution

to the

problem in

which Israel

finds themselves?

And we've

seen verse

16 God

giving the

judges is

actually not

a solution.

yes verse

15 and

they were

in great

distress and

for the rest

of the book

and especially

at the end

they are going

to be in

terrible

distress.

And so

what's God

going to

do?

Well

part of what

we see here

is what we

don't see.

Between

verses 15

and 16

there is

something

that's

missing.

Verse 15

and they

were in

terrible

distress

verse 16

God

raised up

judges.

What step

did we

skip?

Nowhere

does it

say that

Israel

repented

and turned

from their

sinful ways.

In other

words

God

shows

mercy

on his

people

because

he's a

merciful

God.

God

has

mercy

on

his

people

even

as

they're

turning

away

from

him.

We

find out

the reason

in verse

18.

Whenever

the Lord

raised up

judges

for them

the Lord

was with

the judge

and he

saved them

from the

hand of

their enemies

all the

days of

the judge

because

they were

really

sorry

and they

repented.

No

it doesn't

say that.

God

rescues

his

people

because

of his

mercy

on them.

This

groaning

language

appears

only two

other times

in the

Old Testament

and it

appears in

the book

of Exodus

when God's

people are

crying out

in Egypt.

This is

rescue

from slavery

language.

God

rescues

his

people

because

and only

because

of his

great love

and his

great mercy.

God

continues

to pursue

his people

even when

they are

running

from him.

And so

what Paul

says in

2 Timothy

2 Timothy 2:13

chapter 2

verse 13

is correct.

If we

are faithless

he remains

faithful

for he

cannot

deny

himself.

God

in his

grace

returns

to his

hard-hearted

people

over

and over

again.

Christian

God

returns

to you

in your

hard-heartedness

over

and over

again.

We have

hard hearts

and we

also have

a merciful

God.

Now

this raises

attention

for us.

If God

is a

God of

justice

how is

it that

he is

able to

show

mercy

for people

with

hard

hearts?

One of the

things we

see in

the judge's

pattern

or the

judge's

spiral

is that

the judges

are able

to tap

the brakes.

So if

we think

of Israel

as a

runaway

car,

the judges

are able

for a

time to

get in

the driver's

seat and

slow things

down.

Here's what the

judges don't

do though.

They never

turn the

car around.

I've told

you before

that's what

repentance is.

Repentance

is a

180 degree

turn.

So that

leaves us

with another

question.

How is

the car

going to

get turned

around?

If it

starts out

bad in

Judges

Judges 1 · chapter mention

chapter 1

and gets

extremely

terrible in

chapters 19

through 21,

what is

the answer

to the

end of

Judges?

The answer

is simple.

We need

a greater

judge.

We need

a judge

who is

more powerful

than a

mere man.

We need

a judge

who can

do more

than tap

the brakes.

We need

a judge

who can

turn around

the car.

And it's

not until

long after

Judges is

over and

the period

of the

Kings has

passed

that we

meet the

true

and

greater

judge.

Of course,

the true

and greater

judge is

our Lord

Jesus.

He comes

and shows

mercy in

the way

that God

shows mercy

in this

passage.

He comes

for those

who need

to change

but are

unable to

change

themselves.

That's why

Jesus told

us in

Mark 2,

those who

are well

have no

need of a

physician but

those who

are sick.

I came

not to

call the

righteous

but sinners.

sinners.

And it's

in Jesus

that we

see how

God has

mercy on

those who

have not

yet repented.

That's what

Paul tells us

in Romans

Romans 5 · chapter mention

chapter 5.

But God

shows his

love for

us in

that while

we were

still sinners,

Christ died

for us.

And how

does Jesus

do it?

how does

he have

mercy on

stubborn

people who

are running

away?

How does

he change

hearts that

are hearts

of stone and

make them

into hearts

of flesh?

Well, he

does it in

the way we

looked at in

the Gospel

of Mark.

He comes,

he becomes

not just

God but

also man,

100% God

and 100%

man.

He lives

the perfect

life that we

should have

lived and

he takes

the punishment

that we

deserved.

He does

not leave

things hanging

in injustice.

He does

not let

the guilty

get away.

Instead,

he takes

the punishment

himself on

the cross.

Jesus is

the greater

judge that's

able to bring

together people

with hard

hearts,

people like

you and

me,

and God's

great mercy.

will you

ask him

to change

your heart?

Will you

trust a

judge who

is more

powerful than

any man?

Let's pray.

Our Father

in heaven,

we praise

you and

thank you

that you

have not

left us

to our

own devices.

You

haven't

left us

to our

hard hearts

as we

return to

sin over

and over

again,

but instead

you've

sent Jesus

who's more

powerful than

a judge or

a mere man,

and who's

more loving,

who has

compassion on

the groanings

of his

people and

comes and

dies on

their behalf.

We ask

that you

would be

at work

in this

community,

that you

would change

our hearts

and make

them ever

true,

that they

would be

soft and

tender towards

you and

your word,

that we

would be

quick to

repent and

fast to

follow you,

that we

do this

because of

our Lord

and Savior,

Jesus Christ.

We ask

these things

in his

mighty name.

Amen.