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ill you turn to Judges, Chapter 6, in the Old Testament?
It’s page 344 in my Bible. Now look at this Bible—that
Bible is 7 years beat up. I’m gonna retire this Bible
today. Seven years is enough to beat a Bible to death
and I’m moving to this one in my 8th year. But thank
God this one held together till the end of the 7th
year. Sixth chapter of Judges. “The children of Israel
did evil in the sight of
the
Lord: and the Lord
delivered them into the hands of the Midianites seven
years.” Now this message reaches to every
individual who
listens, as well as to this Church and to me. I
believe in putting flesh and blood on the Bible, and I
want you to ask yourself in this time of recession is
your circumstance any worse than this: “The children of
Israel did evil in the sight of the
Lord: and
the Lord
delivered them into the hand of the Midianites,” or
“hand of Midian”—“seven years.”
“And the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel: and
because of the Midianites the children of Israel made
them the dens which are in the mountains, and caves, and
strongholds,” living there. “So it was, when Israel had
sown, that the Midianites came up, and the Amalekites,
and the children of the east, even they came up against
them; They encamped against them, and destroyed the
increase of the earth, till you come to Gaza, left no
sustenance for Israel, neither sheep, nor ox, nor ass.
For they came up with their cattle and their tents, and
they came as grasshoppers for multitude; for both they
and their camels were without number: and they entered
into the land to destroy it.” |
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Now I can’t add much to that Biblical description,
living in caves. Every time they would get a little
increase, like grasshoppers, the enemy would come and
swallow it up. “And Israel was greatly impoverished
because of the Midianites; and the children of Israel
cried unto the
Lord. It came to pass, when the children of
Israel cried unto the
Lord because of the Midianites, That the
Lord sent a
prophet unto the children of Israel, which said unto
them, Thus saith the
Lord God of
Israel, I brought you up from Egypt, and brought you
forth out of the house of bondage.”
And without reading further, all he did is what this
Preacher’s done for 7 years—remind the people who were
crying. Now some people think “Well they cried unto the
Lord and the Lord gave them an answer.” Not quite! He
didn’t send a bolt of lightning and kill all the
Midianites. He didn’t just wipe them out in a day and
send a bunch of angels in scotch plaids piping or
blowing trumpets like blue-clad deliverance cavalry over
the hill to a poor band hemmed in by Indians. Too many
people look for their miracles the wrong way. A prophet
is one who speaks forth the Word of the Lord, and all
the prophet did was tell them what they should of known
already—the record of God’s past performance. God has
written this Book to teach a simple truth: God is
Faithful. Faith is hanging your body on God’s Word.
This may seem like a ludicrous statement but God hangs
His body, whatever that may mean, on His Word once it’s
said “For ever, O
Lord, thy word is settled in heaven;” “God is not
a man to lie; neither the son of man to repent”—when He
speaks He’s gonna do it.
Now a prophet was sent. I’m sure that a lot of people
that cried unto the Lord would rather of had those
angels come marching or a bolt of lightning wipe out the
Midianites. Seven years is a long time. Believe me, I
know it now. He sent a prophet. “Thus saith the
Lord |
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