Episode Details

Faces of Our Faith: Deborah — A Woman of Fire

The book of Judges is Israel's tragedy — a downward spiral of violence and idolatry as the people forget who they're called to be. But tucked into chapter 4 is a flicker of light: Deborah, prophet and judge, sitting under her palm tree, dispensing wisdom to a people who trust her.

This week in our 'Faces of Our Faith' series, Pastor Chad explores what it means that Deborah is called "woman of Lappidoth" — a phrase some ancient interpreters read not as a husband's name but as a description: a woman of torches, a woman of fire. We follow her into the story of Barak's reluctance, the 900 iron chariots that looked unstoppable, and the wadi — a dry riverbed that wakes up all at once when the rains finally come.

It's a sermon about reading the ground beneath your feet: about wisdom that sees what others miss, courage that says "I will go with you" even on an uncertain road, and a God who keeps finding instruments of liberation in the people the story never expected to include.

Scripture: Judges 4:1-9