Sermon manuscript:
Just like last week I’d like to begin tonight by talking a
little bit about geography, specifically topography, or the lay of the land.
Canaan is very diverse in its topography. Generally speaking, there are a lot
of low mountains. In the south the mountains are so close together that they form
somewhat of a rocky plateau. There isn’t much for low and broad plains or
valleys in the south. Toward the north there is a large valley, called the
Jezreel valley, but there are a still a lot of hill and valleys around it.
Toward the west is the Mediterranean Sea. There you have some flatter land along
the sea coast. Toward the east was the Jordan river, but that valley is not
very broad except in a couple places. So, to sum up, Canaan was a very hilly,
mountainous place—very different from the plains of Iowa, but maybe somewhat
like the river bluffs to our east along the Mississippi river, but larger.
Geography plays a larger role than we might realize in what
happens or doesn’t happen in certain locations. Hilly land makes several things
more difficult to do than doing the same things on flat land. For example, if
you were pulling wagon loads full of merchandise, would you rather pull those
wagons up and over mountains, or would you rather pull them on a flat and level
road? More wagon loads of merchandise means more business. More business means
more opportunities for advancing one’s self. More opportunities means a larger
population. A larger population means more resources for building things like
walls or having armies.
When the Israelites invaded and took over Canaan, they more
quickly and easily took over the mountainous areas because they were weaker.
They had a harder time with the flatter, leveler areas. Those places had more
people and more resources, and the land was more coveted. The large open spaces
were the areas that were hardest to conquer and the hardest to defend if you
did manage to conquer them.
In our reading tonight we heard about a conflict that took
place in the Jezreel valley, which I mentioned at the start. This was that
broad, flat area towards the north of Canaan. The king of Canaan was strong in
this area and made no end of trouble for the Israelites. He had chariots,
perhaps an especially strong type of chariot, for the writer of Judges calls
them iron chariots. As you can imagine, chariots don’t work that well up in the
mountains. However, on broad, flat land they were practically unbeatable at
that time. Perhaps you can get an idea of the power difference by thinking of a
fight between tanks and an infantry. People running around on foot have
basically no chance in a fight against tanks. So also the Israelites had a
devil of a time against the Canaanites with their 900 iron chariots.
But when the Lord is on your side, that becomes a different
matter altogether. This is one of the themes of the book of Judges. When the
Lord is on your side, then you can prevail with an 18 inch dagger, strapped to
your right thigh. With the Lord on your side you can defeat a huge enemy force
with just 300 men like Gideon does in chapter 8.
So also with Deborah, and her right hand man, Barak.
Although the Israelites did not have chariots, they were able to rout the
Canaanites and cut them down utterly. The rout is so bad that the Canaanites’
here-to-fore mighty commander, Sisera, is forced to flee on foot and hide like
a hunted rabbit. His death is embarrassing. Instead of dying in battle at the
hands of a worthy opponent, he has his temple smashed in by a woman with a tent
peg.
There is simply no defense against the Lord. You might
escape the battlefield, but you have to sleep sometime. Then someone you
thought was nice—someone who gave him milk instead of water he had asked for—becomes
the arm of the Lord.
So chapter 4 fits in with the rest of the book, indeed, with
the rest of the Scriptures, in demonstrating that the Lord is God. When he is
on your side, you are in a good spot. If not, sooner or later, you will get
what is coming to you.
So that is very usual. On the other hand, there is also
something unusual about the history this chapter records. God decided to do his
will and reign in his kingdom through the leadership of a woman instead of a
man. This is unusual, for God requires that we Christians be led by men. Paul
is unmistakably clear about this. The Scriptures also give us countless
examples of God choosing men to lead his people. Deborah is a glaring
exception. So what is going on here? What does this mean?
This topic is difficult to talk about in our times because
of the strength and overwhelming success of the feminist movement. Strict rules
are now in place by all the people who wield power in our society so that
talking about men and women can only be done in one way—their way. If someone
doesn’t follow these rules he or she can lose a lot. Such people can lose their
jobs. Having lost their jobs, they will likely not be able to find another one.
Folks who do not follow these rules are unquestionably banned from academia,
politics, journalism, and any other role that might make an impact on what our
society thinks. Viewpoints outside of our society’s rigid orthodoxy are treated
with contempt and disgust.
The orthodox line that is taken is that men and women are
interchangeable. Whatever a man can do a woman can do. Whatever a woman can do
a man can do. Anything less than this interchangeability is oppressive and
demeaning. This is why our movies and TV shows now have quotas that have to be
filled. Traditionally male roles, such as being a soldier, must now be filled
with women. The interchangeability of the sexes also has something to do with
the LGBTQ movement. The sex of the person to which someone might be attracted
is without significance or consequence. The only thing that matters is that
there is mutual consent for whatever two or more people might want to do with
each other. Anything less than this or more than this is utterly bigoted,
hateful, and deserves to be thrown into the trashcan of history together with the
Nazis and the KKK.
The truth is, though, that the sexes are not
interchangeable. Male is different than female. There are implications that go
along with this difference. Men’s bodies are different than women’s bodies. The
mind and the spirit of a man is different than the mind and spirit of a woman.
They were created to be complimentary to one another—although, according to the
curse that is spoken after the fall into sin, this is no longer always easy.
Fathers are meant to be fathers, and mothers are meant to be
mothers, so that children may be raised in a stable and orderly home. The Bible
does not fight against this natural ordering of male and female, men and women,
but works within it. As it is with all other facets of life, Christians are
called to love one another according to the station in life that God has given.
Those who lead are not supposed to be tyrannical and cruel. Those who follow
are to submit and seek to please whomever has been placed over them.
These are the general outlines of what the Bible says about
men and women. And it is not as though there are just one or two passages. The
Bible is clear: when the natural order is no longer recognized, that society
has become hopelessly degenerate and corrupt. It is necessary to emphasize this
because of the overwhelming power the opponents have with their views. If we do
not stand up against it, we will just be carried along with the current.
On the other hand, Deborah is most certainly a positive
example that the Scriptures give to us. Her lengthy song in the chapter
following our reading has been laid down in Scripture by the Holy Spirit. She
is among the saints in heaven. There is no shame for what she has done, instead
there is acclaim. But don’t mistake what Deborah was all about either. She was
no amazon. She was not fighting for the interchangeability of the sexes. What
dominated her life was the Word of God. She was a prophetess, a judge, that
made decisions according to the Law that God had given to Moses. She did not make
her decisions based on what was popular or what was politically correct at the
time.
Hence, two easy resolutions to this issue are immediately
ruled out for us. On the one hand, we can’t simply take over wholesale the
unnatural and highly destructive teachings of our society and say that Deborah
was nothing other than an early feminist. That would be to form the Bible in
our society’s own image.
On the other hand, we can’t just stupidly say the opposite
of whatever those say who are so violently opposed to the Bible. We can’t say
that men are better than women, or that women are in any way second-class
citizens. We can’t say that only men can speak about God’s Word, and women dare
not say anything about God’s Word. We can’t say that only men have the Holy
Spirit, and women do not. All these things and more would be as unbiblical to
say as our society’s claim that men and women are interchangeable.
There is a lot that we need to unlearn, learn, and relearn
when it comes to what the Bible says about man and woman, husband and wife,
head of the household and the helpmeet that God gave to Adam to love. We will
not be able to do much more tonight. But it is important that we do it and not
shy away from it. In every time and in every age of God’s people there have
been teachings that conflict with what is popularly believed by the world
around them. Those are the teachings that need to be mastered. When they are
not mastered, they work like a cancer within the Christian Church. Eventually
the whole body will be taken over.
There has always been a battle for our souls. The world
would have us believe that we can be blessed in one way. The Bible declares
that we will be blessed through faith in God. This is what was going on at the
time of the Judges. It is what is going on also among us now. It is important
that we realize this, so that we do not just go quietly into that dark night.
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