God Can Use What Makes You Different

Devotional

Day 1: Left-Handed in a Right-Handed Tribe

The story of Ehud turns on an unexpected detail: a left-handed man from Benjamin, a tribe whose name means "son of the right hand." His difference became his deliverance. God often works through what culture overlooks—the quiet, the unorthodox, the ones who don’t fit the mold. Ehud’s left-handedness wasn’t a flaw but a hidden strength, a way to bypass the assumptions of power. In a world obsessed with obvious qualifications, God delights in surprising strategies. What seems like a liability in human eyes can be divine leverage. [36:48]

"But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong."
(1 Corinthians 1:27, NIV)

Reflection: What part of your story or identity feels like a “left-handed” trait in a “right-handed” world? How might God repurpose that perceived weakness for His purposes?

Day 2: The Fat King and the Fragility of Power

Eglon’s opulence—his summer palace, attendants, and excess—symbolized invincibility. Yet his power proved paper-thin. The sword hidden beneath Ehud’s cloak pierced more than flesh; it exposed the lie that human strength is ultimate. Every earthly power, no matter how imposing, exists under God’s sovereignty. Like Eglon’s bloated body, systems of oppression may appear unshakable, but they cannot outlast the God who hears the cries of the oppressed. [38:08]

"Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation. When his breath departs, he returns to the earth; on that very day his plans perish."
(Psalm 146:3–4, ESV)

Reflection: Where have you been tempted to equate visible success or influence with God’s favor? How does Eglon’s story challenge that assumption?

Day 3: Bloody Swords and Unfiltered Stories

Scripture doesn’t sanitize Ehud’s gruesome victory. The sword plunged so deep the fat closed over it—a raw, unsettling image. God works in the mess of history, not just in stained-glass moments. The Bible’s gritty honesty about human failure and divine deliverance invites us to bring our own unresolved tensions to God. If He can use a violent assassination for redemption, He can redeem your complicated story too. [35:50]

"The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all."
(Psalm 34:18–19, ESV)

Reflection: What messy, unresolved part of your life feels too “unholy” for God to use? How might His grace be at work there?

Day 4: Evil’s Self-Destruction and God’s Mercy

Eglon’s downfall began when he dismissed his guards, craving a “word from God” that flattered his pride. Evil often sabotages itself through overreach. Yet even in judgment, God’s mercy shines: He answered Israel’s cry before they repented. Our deliverance starts with God’s compassion, not our perfection. The same mercy that cut down a tyrant waits to dismantle the strongholds in our hearts. [41:01]

"Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?"
(Romans 2:4, ESV)

Reflection: Where have you seen pride or sin unravel itself in your life or community? How does God’s kindness invite you deeper into repentance?

Day 5: From Ehud’s Dagger to Jesus’ Cross

Ehud’s victory bought eighty years of peace—a temporary fix. Jesus’ cross offers eternal deliverance. Where Ehud used stealth and violence, Christ used surrender and love. The underdog judge points to the ultimate Redeemer who transforms not just circumstances but hearts. Our differences, wounds, and quirks find their purpose when offered to the One who turned a crucifixion into resurrection. [54:52]

"He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him."
(Colossians 2:15, ESV)

Reflection: How does Jesus’ victory over sin and death reframe your view of the “battles” you face? What might it look like to trust His deliverance today?

Sermon Summary

Judges 3 lays it out plain. Israel does evil in the Lord’s eyes, so the Lord hands them to Eglon of Moab. Eighteen hard years grind on. Israel cries out, not even with full repentance, just a cry, and the Lord in mercy raises a deliverer. Ehud steps forward, a left handed Benjamite from a tribe whose name literally means right handed. The text leans on that difference. He hides a short double edged sword on his right thigh where no one expects a weapon, carries tribute into a bloated court, and asks for a private word.

Eglon sits in ease, big on opulence and small on discernment. The idols near Gilgal give him false confidence. Ehud says, I have a message from God for you, and the blade disappears into the king’s belly. The doors get locked. The servants stall out, assuming a bathroom break, and Ehud slips away to blow the trumpet, seize the fords of the Jordan, and lead Israel to rout Moab. Ten thousand fall. Eighty years of peace follow. The narrative does not put a halo on anyone. It names sin straight and keeps the details unsanitized, even to the point of disembowelment, because real life is messy and God still works without endorsing any of the mess.

The text insists that God delivers because He is merciful, not because His people are impressive. It shows that God will even bend the schemes of the wicked back on themselves, letting evil turn in on itself. Eglon looks secure, but he is not sovereign. He has a palace, but not authority. He has the appearance of control, but the Lord still sits on the throne. That contrast stands in every generation. Pride can look untouchable. Corruption can look permanent. Yet evil is never sovereign, and God can topple what looks untouchable.

Ehud’s left handedness lands as a quiet parable. God often uses what looks off script to everyone else. A left handed person in a right handed place can become the exact instrument God will use. Still, Ehud is not the point. He is a pointer. He gives a temporary rescue that expires after eighty years. Jesus is the better deliverer, the One who dies and rises to break oppression at the root and to give peace that is measured not in decades but in eternity.

Key Takeaways

1. Mercy, not impressiveness, delivers God’s rescue rises from His heart, not human polish. Israel cries out under judgment, and the Lord sends help before anyone looks worthy. That kind of mercy steadies a soul that knows its limits and failures. It also removes boasting, since grace wrote the story long before credentials appeared. [39:47]
2. God uses what makes you different Ehud’s left hand in a right handed tribe becomes strategy, not setback. What looks out of place to the crowd may be the exact shape of obedience God intends. Difference can become precision when placed in God’s hands, which frees a disciple from envy and from trying to fit a borrowed mold. [36:48]
3. Power without God is fragile Eglon’s palace, guards, and abundance look like safety until a single hidden blade exposes the thin ice under his feet. Authority that ignores God can perform strength for a season but cannot secure the end of the story. Reverence, not reach, is the ground of real stability. [47:05]
4. Scripture refuses to sanitize sin Judges tells the truth with graphic edges because God’s word is dealing with a real world, not a fairy tale. That honesty protects the church from naive optimism and from cynicism at the same time. God works in and through the mess without blessing the mess, which is why repentance remains a live door. [35:05]
5. Ehud points to a better Deliverer An eighty year peace is mercy but not final. The pattern of temporary relief primes the heart to recognize Jesus, whose cross and resurrection secure a freedom that does not lapse. The shadow gives shape, but the substance is Christ. [54:29]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[23:49] - Underdogs series and Ruth recap
[29:36] - Meet Ehud in Judges 3
[29:58] - A graphic, messy narrative
[31:28] - Israel’s evil and Moab’s rule
[32:38] - Secret message and the strike
[33:31] - Servants delay, Ehud escapes
[33:55] - Trumpet, fords, decisive victory
[35:05] - Scripture refuses to sanitize
[36:48] - Left handed in a right handed tribe
[38:57] - Mercy, not merit, delivers
[47:05] - Power without God is fragile
[49:20] - God topples the untouchable
[54:29] - Jesus the better Deliverer
[56:15] - Closing prayer

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading
Judges 3:12-30 (ESV): The story of Israel’s oppression under Eglon, Ehud’s deliverance, and God’s mercy.
Psalm 37:21 (ESV): “The wicked borrows but does not pay back, but the righteous is generous and gives.”
Proverbs 5:22 (ESV): “The iniquities of the wicked ensnare him, and he is held fast in the cords of his sin.”

Observation questions

In Judges 3, why does the text emphasize Ehud’s left-handedness and his tribe’s name (“Benjamite,” meaning “son of the right hand”)? How does this detail shape the story? [36:48]
What does Eglon’s physical description (“a very fat man”) symbolize about his leadership and the source of his power? [38:08]
The sermon highlights that Israel’s cry to God was not full repentance, just a cry. How does the text describe Israel’s response to oppression before God raises Ehud? [39:22]
The narrative includes graphic details (e.g., Eglon’s death). Why might Scripture avoid sanitizing this event? [35:05]

Interpretation questions

Ehud’s story shows God using an “off-script” trait (left-handedness) to deliver Israel. Why might God choose to work through unexpected differences rather than conventional strengths? [45:12]
Eglon’s power collapses suddenly despite his apparent security. How does this illustrate the fragility of human authority that ignores God? [47:21]
The sermon says, “Evil will always turn in on itself.” How do Psalm 37:21 and Proverbs 5:22 reinforce this idea in Ehud’s story?
Judges 3 ends with 80 years of peace, but Israel eventually returns to sin. How does this temporary deliverance point to the need for a “better Deliverer” (Jesus)? [54:29]

Application questions

The sermon says, “God’s rescue rises from His heart, not human polish.” When have you hesitated to cry out to God because you felt unworthy? How does this story challenge that hesitation? [39:47]
Ehud’s left-handedness made him an unlikely hero. What unique traits or experiences do you downplay as “too different” for God to use? How could surrendering them to God reframe your perspective? [45:35]
Eglon’s palace looked secure but was fragile. Where do you (or society) place false confidence in power, wealth, or control? How can you actively practice “reverence, not reach” this week? [47:05]
The sermon warns against “naive optimism” about sin. How can acknowledging the “messiness” of life (like in Judges 3) deepen your trust in God’s sovereignty? [35:23]
Ehud’s victory brought temporary peace; Jesus offers eternal deliverance. What areas of your life do you still try to “fix” yourself, rather than resting in Christ’s finished work? [54:52]

Sermon Clips

77s

#GodStillOnTheThrone

“``One of the other ideas in our passage is that power without God is way more fragile not having power and being with God. Iglon Iglon looks secure, but he's not sovereign. He has a palace, but doesn't have ultimate authority. He has the appearance of control, but God is still on the throne. And this is something we need to remember in every generation. Evil looks strong, And it can be for a season be strong. Pride can look untouchable. Corruption can look permanent. The powerful can look protected. And the wicked may look like they're winning. But evil is never sovereign. We need to remember that. God may allow evil for a season, and God may even use evil in ways we can't fully understand. But God never loses control, and evil never gets the final word.”

55s

#JesusTheTrueDeliverer

“And that is what I believe is our big takeaway from Ehud. Even though it's a weird story, it's a story that, to be honest with you, I I I struggle with even reading because there's violence and all this stuff, and Jesus says, turn the other cheek. So what what is that? But one thing we can be reminded is that Ehud is not the ultimate deliverer here. He points us to a better deliverer, Jesus. Ehud only provided freedom from oppression for eighty years. The Israelites sinned and went back into captivity. Jesus is the better deliverer. When he went to the cross, died, and rose again, he not only provided freedom for eighty years, he provided freedom for eternity, for anyone who would call on his name.”

50s

#GodDeliversByMercy

“the Israelites had done evil in the eyes of the Lord. And we see that the Moabite king was able to overtake them. Even though he wasn't a good guy, God was using him to punish the Israelites for doing evil in the eyes of the Lord. But they cried out. They didn't repent. They cried out, it says. And God, even hearing their cries, His people, even if they didn't say they're sorry, they didn't come back to Him, He heard them and said, you know, I'm going to relent, and I'm gonna send you a deliverer. And this guy was Ehud. And that's our big take first big takeaway is God doesn't deliver His people because we're impressive. He delivers His people because He is merciful and He loves us.”

57s

#ProphetsPointToJesus

“All the Old Testament, all the prophets, they're pointing back to a better deliverer, a better prophet, a better person, and it's Jesus. These are all shadows of something that we were lesser than pointing to Jesus, which is the greatest. And that is even better than finding out that God can use what makes us different. Because Jesus will use you if you allow him. It may not look like you think it's going to look, but he will because he's greater than Ehud. He's greater than all the Old Testament prophets and priests. He's perfect. He's the great deliverer that delivers us not only from sin and oppression, but from death.”

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God Can Use What Makes You Different | 7-5-26