Without a King: [Gideon & Abimelech] (Judges 8-9)

Pastor Alan Hannah

May 21 & 22, 2022

²²Then the Israelites said to Gideon, “Be our ruler! You and your son and your grandson will be our rulers, for you have rescued us from Midian.”

²³But Gideon replied, “I will not rule over you, nor will my son. The LORD will rule over you! ²⁴However, I do have one request—that each of you give me an earring from the plunder you collected from your fallen enemies.”  

²⁵“Gladly!” they replied. They spread out a cloak, and each one threw in a gold earring he had gathered from the plunder. ²⁶The weight of the gold earrings was forty-three pounds, not including the royal ornaments and pendants, the purple clothing worn by the kings of Midian, or the chains around the necks of their camels.

²⁷Gideon made a sacred ephod from the gold and put it in Ophrah, his hometown. But soon all the Israelites prostituted themselves by worshiping it, and it became a trap for Gideon and his family. [Judges 8:22-27 NLT]

²²Then the Israelites said to Gideon, “Be our ruler! You and your son and your grandson will be our rulers, for you have rescued us from Midian.” ²³But Gideon replied, “I will not rule over you, nor will my son. The LORD will rule over you!

²⁴However, I do have one request—that each of you give me an earring from the plunder you collected from your fallen enemies.”

²⁵“Gladly!” they replied. They spread out a cloak, and each one threw in a gold earring he had gathered from the plunder. ²⁶The weight of the gold earrings was forty-three pounds, not including the royal ornaments and pendants, the purple clothing worn by the kings of Midian, or the chains around the necks of their camels.

²⁷Gideon made a sacred ephod from the gold and put it in Ophrah, his hometown. But soon all the Israelites prostituted themselves by worshiping it, and it became a trap for Gideon and his family. [Judges 8:22-27 NLT]

The greatest threat to our allegiance to Jesus is success.  

The greatest threat to our allegiance to Jesus is success.

⁵Do you think the Scriptures have no meaning?

They say that God is passionate that the spirit he has placed within us should be faithful to him. ⁶And he gives grace generously. As the Scriptures say,

“God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” [James 4:5-6 NLT]

The greatest threat to our allegiance to Jesus is success.  

⁷So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. ⁸Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world. [James 4:7-8 NLT]