Trapped in the Pit
Trapped – Week #1 – March 23, 2025
Trapped in the Pit
Judges 6:1-14
Nobody likes feeling trapped
The Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight. So the Lord handed them over to the Midianites for seven years. 2 The Midianites were so cruel that the Israelites made hiding places for themselves in the mountains, caves, and strongholds. 3 Whenever the Israelites planted their crops, marauders from Midian, Amalek, and the people of the east would attack Israel, 4 camping in the land and destroying crops as far away as Gaza. They left the Israelites with nothing to eat, taking all the sheep, goats, cattle, and donkeys. 5 These enemy hordes, coming with their livestock and tents, were as thick as locusts; they arrived on droves of camels too numerous to count. And they stayed until the land was stripped bare. 6 So Israel was reduced to starvation by the Midianites. Then the Israelites cried out to the Lord for help. Judges 6:1-6
Then the angel of the Lord came and sat beneath the great tree at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash of the clan of Abiezer. Gideon son of Joash was threshing wheat at the bottom of a winepress to hide the grain from the Midianites. Judges 6:11
There are two metaphors for The Holy Spirit in the New Testament; Fire and Wind
As we make ourselves available to The Holy Spirit, He will sift us
The angel of the Lord appeared to him and said, “Mighty hero, the Lord is with you!” Judges 6:12
Jesus meets us in the pit
Jesus doesn’t speak to our past, He speaks to our potential
“Sir,” Gideon replied, “if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? And where are all the miracles our ancestors told us about? Didn’t they say, ‘The Lord brought us up out of Egypt’? But now the Lord has abandoned us and handed us over to the Midianites.” Judges 6:13
Victims never walk in victory
What would happen if we made ourselves available to The Spirit of God and we allowed The Word of God to direct our steps?
Then the Lord turned to him and said, “Go with the strength you have, and rescue Israel from the Midianites. I am sending you!” Judges 6:14
When Jesus speaks to us in the pit, He’s speaking affirmation, not condemnation
Jesus… through the power of your Holy Spirit and your word remove from me what does not belong and replace it with all that you want. I am yours. Amen