Judges The flawed and the flawless This autumn at 1st Islandmagee we are going to be studying the Old Testament book of Judges. We plan to do that during our morning services as well as in some home groups. We hope you will join with us in seeing what God wants to say to us through this book. You may be thinking at this point - I don’t know a lot about the book of Judges. I hope that this short booklet leads us all into our study and what God has to teach us. How might I describe Judges? Our study guide for home groups gives us an answer to this question … “Judges can be described as ‘despicable people doing deplorable things.’ It is a history of (few) highs and (more) lows; of murder, assassination and massacres; of immorality, lawlessness and unfaithfulness. It is a story of some of the Bible’s most familiar heroes … yet as the history unfolds, the heroes become increasingly flawed and failing. Judges is a dismal story—and it is all true.” Given this summary why on earth would we study such a book?
pto ...
As we take time to read, study and preach through this book we want to make sure we see who the REAL hero of this book is. We sometimes jump straight to the lives of those we find in scripture to see what we can learn, of which there is often much. However over the
coming
weeks I don’t want us to miss who is at the very centre of this book and who is the only hero - God himself. Judges is ... “about the God of mercy and long-suffering, who continually works in and through and for his people; and who does so despite his people’s constant resistance to his purposes, both then and now.” We want to remember that
scripture is a revelation from God
about God. Our goal is to discover and see the beauty of YAHWEH (our promised making and promise keeping God) woven through these verses. As we begin our journey through Judges there are a number of things that can aid us. Across the page you can see a timeline that takes us through scripture. This helps us see where Judges fits into the story line of the Bible. The Children of Israel have reached the land that God promised them. The opening chapters of Judges form an introduction which reveal to us the challenge of obedience for God’s people. Can I encourage you to take time to read through the book of Judges over the coming weeks (see reading plan). As you do so you will see a repeating cycle of ... “Rebellion - Punishment - Cry of help - Salvation - Obedience - Rebellion” Throughout this repeating cycle we are pointed towards God’s flawless salvation for the flawed that we find through Jesus Christ.
Judges Reading Plan Wk beginning Mon 22 Sept • Judges 1v1 - 2v5 • Judges 2v6 - 3v6 Wk beginning Mon 29 Sept • Judges 3v7 - 31 • Judges 4 Wk beginning Mon 6 Oct • Judges 5 • Judges 6 Wk beginning Mon 13 Oct • Judges 7v1 - 8v21 • Judges 8v22 - 32 Wk beginning Mon 20 Oct • Judges 8v33 - 9v57 • Judges 10v1 - 16 Wk beginning Mon 27 Oct • Judges 10v17 - 12v7 • Judges 12v8 - 15 Wk beginning Mon 3 Nov • Judges 13 - 14 • Judges 15 - 16 Wk beginning Mon 10 Nov • Judges 17 • Judges 18 Wk beginning Mon 17 Nov • Judges 19 • Judges 20 Wk beginning Mon 24 Nov • Judges 21
Services this autumn 21 Sept
11.30am 7pm
PW Service Six Steps to Encouragement (God the Speaker)
28 Sept
11.30am
Judges 1v1 - 3v6
5 Oct
11.30am 7pm
Harvest Thanksgiving Service Harvest Praise Service with United Choir
12 Oct
11.30am
Judges 3v7 - 5v31
19 Oct
11.30am 7pm
All Age Service Six Steps to Encouragement (God’s word changes us and others)
26 Oct
11.30am 7pm
Judges 6v1 - 8v31 Harvest Service at 2nd Islandmagee
2 Nov
11.30am 7pm
Judges 8v32 - 12v15 (Fiona Craig) Six Steps to Encouragement (God’s fellow workers)
9 Nov
11.30am
Judges 13-16
16 Nov
11.30am 7pm
All Age Service: GB & BB Enrolment Six Steps to Encouragement (What to say)
23 Nov
11.30am
Rev Mark Brown (Granshaw Presbyterian Church)
30 Nov
11.30am
Judges 17 - 21
7 Dec
11.30am 4pm
Prepare Him Room (1) Community Carol Service (Church)
14 Dec
11.30am
Prepare Him Room (2)
21 Dec
11.30am 7pm
All Age Service: Prepare Him Room (3) Carols by Candlelight (2nd Islandmagee)
25 Dec
10.30am
Christmas Morning Service at 2nd Islandmagee
29 Dec
11.30am
Prepare Him Room (4)