Transcript of a published sermon by Sam Hodum, transcribed from subsplash. An attributed primary source — not Acts 2:38 Life doctrine text.
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Summary
Summary prepared by Acts 2:38 Life from the transcript below — the preacher’s words follow in full.
An odd book and a Levite's story
- He admits the nerves and the odd prop in his hand, then calls the Book of Judges one of the strangest books in the Bible, full of weird stories.
- He retells Judges 19: a Levite's wife ran away to her father's house; he followed and brought her back, and on the way home they stopped for the night in a city of Benjamin.
- There the men of the city threatened him; the woman was thrown out to them and crawled back by morning; he divided her into twelve pieces and sent them to the twelve tribes, and Israel rose up and nearly wiped out the tribe of Benjamin.
Scriptures: Judges 19
Consider it, take counsel, and speak
- Judges 19:30 says all who saw it declared such a thing had never happened or been seen from the day the people of Israel came up out of the land until this day — and the verse itself gives the charge: consider it, take counsel, and speak.
- He confesses he considered it without knowing what to do with it — the story is an example, and its explanation comes at the book's end.
Scriptures: Judges 19:30
Right in his own eyes
- The very last verse of the book explains it: in those days there was no king in Israel, and everyone did what was right in his own eyes.
- We live in that same society: give him any topic and he can argue and spin it six ways — we can justify anything we want to, and that is the condition the book describes.
Scriptures: Judges 21:25
Self-justification and the deceitful heart
- At every step of the story there was some self-justification, and in that self-justification people died, were hurt, and were abused — because a thing seemed right in somebody's own eyes, and its end was death.
- God put this message in his mind a few weeks ago — 'consider the end': whatever we set out to do, we will justify it emotionally, logically, or by an attitude that hardens from anger into bitterness until it defiles everyone around us.
- Jeremiah says the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked — who can understand it? The Lord searches the heart and tests the mind, giving to every man according to his ways and the fruit of his deeds.
Scriptures: Jeremiah 17:9-10
Until I went into the sanctuary
- David said his feet had almost stumbled and his steps nearly slipped, for he was envious of the arrogant when he saw the prosperity of the wicked.
- Trying to understand it was a wearisome, painful task — until he went into the sanctuary of God; then he understood their end. That is why the message is called 'consider the end.'
Scriptures: Psalm 73:2-3; Psalm 73:16-17
Search me (altar appeal)
- He asks the church to stand and pray — not about outward sin, but about what starts in the heart: God, search my heart, my thoughts, my intentions, and the things I may be trying to justify.
- He prays that God would pull out and root out any wicked way within, and opens the altar wide: somebody needs to spend some time with the Master today.
Scripture index: Judges 19; Judges 19:30; Judges 21:25; Jeremiah 17:9-10; Psalm 73:2-3; Psalm 73:16-17.
Transcript
we don't take that lightly do we Jesus we receive your word today God as you as you guys are sitting I'm not I'm I'm gonna do my best to Seth asked me earlier he said you nervous and I was apprehensive for the Gibson because I didn't I this is a new one for me okay if I I'm not familiar with this all right guys uh if if it's all right Z will you hold this I felt like Z right there I didn't know what to do with it but now I know thank you you're still confused and y'all might be and I might be as well but the Book of Judges is a is an odd book if you've ever read the Book of Judges in the Old Testament you'll know that it is one of the strangest got some of the weirdest stories in the world some some really quiet good classics like Sanson and Delilah I think I think all of us guys are taught that one ad nauseam just cops and that one's hammered into us but a couple chapters after that there's the oddest story spends about three chapters of the Bible talking about some of the weirdest just weird guys uh and I spent Lauren and I we spent all week at Camp so you know there's a bunch of weird stuff at camp but this is this is weird uh judges 19 or Levi his wife runs away to her father's house he follows after it gets her stay a little stays a little while starts heading back home stop some spend the night uh in a city in The Tribe of Benjamin now this is it may not mean much but you should just read this story so when he stops there weirdly enough the men of the city are like Hey we're going to rape you dude and he's like whoa what I know like super weird right and then he throws his wife out there and she crawls back the next day and he comes out and he's like get up let's go and when he gets home he I don't know if she died I don't know if he killed her doesn't say I don't super weird cuts her and pick 12 pieces sends her to the 12 tribes then everybody gets mad and they're like we're going to kill Benjamin we're just and they inquired of God at certain steps in this so they went and they killed almost the whole Tribe of Benjamin 600 guys escaped and in the weirdest Twist of it they were like we're not going to give them our daughters to marry so then then they out of their rage and blood rush they realize that hey we're no longer the 12 tribes of Israel we're just going to be the leaven and honestly that didn't work for anybody so they're like we've got to figure out something so then they went and killed some more people and stole their daughters and gave them to those guys and then they were like it's just a weird story all right there's just a little more to it just just the weirdest it doesn't make a lick of sense honestly judges 1930 says and all who saw it said such a thing has never happened or been seen from the day that the people of Israel came out of the land of ajiba until this day it says consider it take counsel and speak so I considered it I don't really know what to do with it so I can't speak on it much all right and I'm not it's just an example because when I was reading through it the very last verse of that book very last verse before it goes into Ruth judges 21 25 says and though that in those days there was no king in Israel and everyone did what was right in his own eyes and I was like man that explains it right there explains it and guys I don't know what to do with this all right I'm still holding a plant but I think I think I understand where God was wanting to go with it because we live in a society that does what's right in their own eyes you can argue I can argue you give you give me anything you you give me any any topic you want to and I'll argue with you all day long over it as long as it's not real serious okay like we start getting real serious I I try I stop arguing but as long as we're just discussing an idea I'll take that and I'll spin it six ways to Sunday and you can guess what you can justify anything in the world you want to that's what these guys were doing every step in this story there was some sort of self-justification and in that self-justification so many people died got hurt got murdered got abused got hurt because if someone's self-justification they were doing what was right in that scenario and they said you know what this is going to be okay because it's right in my own eyes I can justify it to myself foreign says there's there's a way that seems right to a man but the end that way of death is the way of death look these carry a heavy weight all right and and honestly can I be real I I didn't feel this was a you're going to walk out and die type day and I I don't I don't even know if I feel that now I don't think I do but you know what I feel I feel like this is a start for somebody God God has he put something in my in in my mind I don't know a few weeks ago called consider the end because any any issue any problem any anything we want to do anything we set our mind to do we'll do it and we'll justify it we'll we'll say this emotionally if someone questions us this this is just the way I feel about it and you can't do anything about it guess what that's self-justification logically will say well they did this so I've got to do this self-justification we'll copy I'm I'm sorry I've been been with teenagers this week we'll cop an attitude as adults and it takes a lot longer to show up because we've kind of learned how to interact with Society a little bit but when we cop that attitude and we get that thought we start letting anger dwell just a little bit longer than it should then it becomes bitterness and then it all of a sudden we look up and it's defiled everyone around us I don't know what to do with it guys well I do know this is it's right here Jeremiah he says the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked who can understand it the Lord speaking he said I the Lord searched the heart and test the mind to give every man according to his ways according to the fruits of his deeds if you don't mind I'm I'm closing out here if you don't mind to stand with me Psalm says something so beautifully David said but as for me my foot had almost stumbled my step said nearly slipped for I was envious of the Arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked but in verses 16 and 17. he said when I thought how to understand this it seemed to me a wearsome task or it was painful for me and then verse 17 until I went to the sanctuary of God then I understood therein I think somebody needs to pray today I really do I think we all need to I think we need to lift our hands and our hearts in our minds and say God just search in me that I'm not talking about out and out seeing honestly that's not what I'm feeling I'm talking about what starts right here in the heart God searched my heart God search my my thoughts search my intentions God search my the things that I may be trying to justify the things that oh oh this ain't right but maybe it's a little petty God search me today oh God seek if there's any wicked way within me and God pull it out God rooted out God pull it out faster away on the Lord is he not God this altar is wide open right now somebody needs to spend some time with the master today come on come on make a declaration I coming to you where else will I go foreign 's wide open come on come on pray Church come on it's prayer time come in close it's prayer time come on yes I'm gonna wait for you Lord cause I need you I need you to touch my mind I need you Lord to touch my my attitude and my spirit Lord Jesus wait on you oh come on everybody ought to pray right now come on deep it's called in the Deep today hey yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah come on let the word today work in your life I so mean and yes oh come on breakthrough in this place come on there's breakthrough in your life come on this breakthrough in your life can't do it without you Jesus in my desperation Lord I recognize I cannot do it without you Jesus I must have you come on that's right come on stand in the path come on stand the path today come to love you Jesus in the name of Jesus come on pray come on reach for the Lord come on reach for the Lord reach for in Jesus I must have you I must have you Jesus Jesus Jesus come on let the spirit of the Lord work right now wait on the Lord thank you that try and come on Hallelujah yes come on pray come on somebody run into the presence of the Lord I need you all in my life I need you in my mind in my home and my family so he's ordering come on would you pray for somebody get a hold of somebody come on pray one for another God you know what my brother needs today you know what my sister needs today come on get a hold of somebody God the day Lord is the day today Lord is the day this is the moment Jesus yes we give it to you today Jesus we give it to you Jesus Jesus Jesus Jesus come on there is breakthrough in Jesus there is breakthrough in Jesus Jesus how about healing right now healing come on get up under the flow of the Spirit Come On Healing right now that's right there's healing right now there is healing right now there is healing right now hello Jesus that's right that's right that's right come on in the name of Jesus Jesus the name of Jesus Oh Come On Healing right now restoration right now the word of the Lord heaven to fruition come on there's a flow of the spirit right now come on connect with it Jesus I must have you today holy holy holy holy time the name of Jesus let's try go pray with someone else come on me and reach out to other men ladies reach out to other ladies come on pray one for another let the prayer Faith heal the sick let the prayer of faith work in somebody's love we so need you Jesus I love you more I eat you Jesus I need you Jesus yeah Jesus that's right that's right that's right come on let there be a break right now let there be a breaking right now come on let there be a breaking right now before the master I need you you're over to ring my steps Jesus Jesus thank you
Scripture references as spoken: Judges 19; Judges 19:30; Judges 21:25; Jeremiah 17:9-10; Psalm 73:2-3; Psalm 73:16-17.