SERMON #6: “A Pointed Message from a Left-Handed Savior"

SERMON APPLICATION QUESTIONS

1. This section of Judges reminds us that God is not afraid to get involved in the messes of our daily lives and He delights to deliver His people. Many of us tend to think our lives have become too much of a mess for God to get involved. How does this reality bring encouragement and comfort when life gets messy, either as a result of our sins or the sins of others? Are there any circumstances in your life that you are tempted to believe are out of God’s control? How have you experienced God’s deliverance in your life? Take a moment and express gratitude to the Lord for His grace and deliverance.

2. How might you use the theme of this narrative to encourage a wayward brother or sister who thinks they have gone too far for God to restore them?

3. Judges 3:14 warns that continued and repeated neglect of the Lord by His people will bring an increased severity of discipline (3:8 and 3:14). In what ways have you witnessed this principle in your own life? How is this principle meant to encourage you to take sin more seriously in your life? Where possible, share your responses and take a moment to pray for one another.

4. Though we live thousands of years later, a pattern of stubborn sin has a similar effect on us.  What are some examples of how our sinful patterns lead us into deeper misery?

5. How would you respond to someone who believes the treatment of Eglon, the king of Moab, was too harsh or unfair? After all, God raised him up to go against Israel. How might you share the pointed message given to Eglon to an unbeliever as part of presenting the gospel to them? 

6. How can Ehud, an unlikely deliverer, help us ponder the wonder of what Jesus Christ, our great and ultimate Deliverer, has accomplished for His people? 

7. The story of Eglon and the Moabites is told as a kind of humorous satire. It shows that the wisdom of the world is dull and their ways are disgusting. The point is not to mock the Moabites but to challenge the people of God who have embraced their ways and worldview. Why would you embrace the culture over and above the Word and way of the Lord?  How has the culture gained influence over your thinking, choices, and actions?