Israel wonders after other gods, they repent and turn to the one true God. God sends a deliverer, Jephthah, to defeat the Ammonites.

Are we pushing past God to get to the top of the ladder? Listen as Tim gives this insightful message from the book of Judges.

God used Gideon in a mighty way to defeat the Midianites. Afterward, Gideon made choices that may not have been God's will. Even though Gideon said he did not want to be king, he made choices that may have set him up as a kind of king over Israel. These choices cause great harm to Gideon and his family.

God did not want Gideon's army to think that they had won the battle themselves. God told Gideon to trim his army down to 300 men. The Midian army had 135,000 men. Even though they were outnumbered, God brought about the victory.

God worked with Gideon to bring him to a point where he learned to trust God. God is patient with our disbelief.

Just as God delivered His people through Deborah, Barak and Jael, so God delivers us through the death and resurrection of Jesus.

Pastor Tim is continuing his series in the book of the Judges. Today Tim talks of how the Israelites are under the subjection of the Moabite King, Eglon for 18 years. The people cry out to God and God saves them through the Judge, Ehud. God is the real Hero in this story.

The Israelites, one generation after entering the promised land, had forgotten their God and had started to follow after the idols of the inhabitants of the land. Because of this, God sent these inhabitants of the land to plunder the Israelites. When the Israelites cried out to God, God sent Judges to defeat these plunderers.

This sermon is an introduction to the book of Judges. Two questions that are answered in this sermon are, 1) What game the Israelites the right to drive out the people who occupied the land and 2) How do we move towards compromise in our lives?

This is the Easter sermon from April 16, 2017 at First Baptist Church, Canoga Park, CA by Pastor Tim Pickard.