July 10, 2025 – Pray Before the Battle
Judges 11:9-11
Sermon: 1807 Men of Strength, Part 2
Pray Over This
“So Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, ‘If you take me back home to fight against the people of Ammon, and the Lord delivers them to me, shall I be your head?’ And the elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, ‘The Lord will be a witness between us, if we do not do according to your words.’ Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and commander over them; and Jephthah spoke all his words before the Lord in Mizpah.”
Judges 11:9-11
Ponder This
Jephthah’s confidence was not in himself but in God. The words in this passage give us a glimmer of the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus will ask you the same question: “If I deliver you, will I rule over you? Will I be your head?” I want to tell you very clearly and plainly that unless He is your Sovereign, He’ll never be your Savior.
How much like our Lord was Jephthah? Those who despised him, rejected him, hurt him, and cast him out—they were the ones he came to save. In verse 11, we see that he went to God in prayer and asked for strength. He did this before he went to battle, not afterward. Prayer was not his last resort; it was his first thought. He entered battle in prayer. Don’t claim to be a person of strength if you’re not a person of faith, and don’t claim to be a person of faith if you’re not a person of prayer.
- What does it look like to have confidence in God daily? How does that change the way you live?
- What is your confidence in right now? What are some ways you need to grow in dependence on God?
Practice This
Think about your last spiritual battle. Confess to God the places you often go before coming to Him for strength.
For more from Love Worth Finding and Pastor Adrian Rogers, please visit www.lwf.org.
You can also listen to Adrian Rogers at OnePlace.com.
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