The Unlikely Hero

Welcome to episode 250 of Grasp the Bible. In this episode, we will examine the topic of the unlikely hero — how God uses the unqualified to accomplish the impossible. 

Key takeaways:   

• God’s discipline has purpose and His anger has limits. Eighteen years of oppression ended the moment Israel cried out. He disciplines to restore, not destroy. 
• Ehud was a left-handed man from the tribe of Benjamin — the tribe whose name means “son of the right hand.” God’s choice of deliverer was deliberate divine irony. 
• What you consider your disqualifying characteristic may be exactly what God intends to use. Left-handedness was a battlefield liability that became Ehud’s tactical advantage. 
• Godly boldness is not recklessness — it is calculated courage rooted in careful preparation. Ehud made a plan, chose his moment, and acted with precision. Bold obedience and wise planning are partners, not opposites. 
• God’s deliverance often comes through means we would never have chosen. He works through the weak and unexpected precisely so no one can claim human credit. 
• One act of strategic obedience can produce lasting fruit. Ehud’s mission resulted in 80 years of peace — the longest rest in the entire book of Judges. 
• God doesn’t need cookie-cutter servants. He specializes in using the unexpected to accomplish the impossible — and He has been doing it since the beginning. 

Quotable:   

Stop apologizing for what makes you different. What you call a disqualification, God may be calling a qualification. He doesn’t choose the most likely — He chooses the willing, then uses their weakness to put His power on display. 

Application:   

• Stop disqualifying yourself. Make a list of the limitations, failures, or differences you believe make you unusable to God. Then hold that list against Ehud — a man from the wrong tribe who couldn’t use the right hand. If God could use him to deliver a nation, your list is not the final word. 

• Prepare before you act. When God calls you to difficult obedience — a hard conversation, a major decision, a step of faith — don’t mistake urgency for recklessness. Pray for wisdom, make a plan, count the cost, then move. Ehud’s courage was inseparable from his preparation. 

• Stay open to unconventional answers. The solution to your impossible situation may not look the way you expect. Don’t limit God to conventional methods. The provision, the breakthrough, or the open door may come from a direction you never anticipated. Keep your eyes open for what He might be doing sideways. 

• Act when God gives you the moment. Ehud waited for the right time, then moved without hesitation. There are moments God puts in front of us — a conversation, an opportunity, an open door — that require immediate response. Preparation without action is just planning. When the moment comes, step through it. 

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Grass the Bible's podcast Spring Baptist Church that walks through selected books of the Bible verse by verse, as well as spends time exploring biblical ideas and topics to help you understand and apply God's Word in your daily life. I'm Marty Richardson, one of your co-hosts, and today I'd like to welcome you to our summer series called Hidden Treasures Overlook Passages with Profound Truth. Join us each week as we discover life-changing wisdom in the Bible's lesser-known verses. Today, Pastor Daryl Stein will be talking about Ehud, the unlikely hero. Let's get into today's study.

SPEAKER_01 0:34

Welcome back to our summer series. And today, we're going to be looking at Judges chapter 3, verses 12 through 30, at what I'm calling the unlikely hero. The unlikely hero. So as we begin, let me ask you this. What disqualifies you? Maybe you've been told that you're too old or too young, or maybe you have the wrong background, or a lack of education, or physical limitation, or maybe there are past failures that hold you back. Perhaps you don't have all the right connections. We all have our list of reasons why God couldn't possibly use us for anything significant. Hollywood loves the underdog story, the unlikely hero who saves the day despite impossible odds. But those are fantasies, right? In the real world, we believe success requires the right credentials, the right connections, and the right abilities. God wouldn't choose someone with obvious limitations for crucial work, would he? Well, let's meet Ehud. He's a left-handed man from the tribe of Benjamin, which literally means son of the right hand. In ancient warfare, being left-handed was a disability, not an advantage. He had no impressive resume, no military rank, no apparent qualifications for the mission God was about to give him. By every human measure, he was the wrong choice. But here's what makes this story so powerful. God deliberately chose someone who, by human standards, was handicapped for the role of warrior deliverer. And why is that? It's to demonstrate that his power is perfected in weakness, to show that he specializes in using the unlikely to accomplish the impossible. To prove what we consider disqualifying characteristics may be exactly what he plans to use. Today I want you to see three truths from Ehud's story that will challenge how you view your own limitations and God's ability to work through them. So let's look at the first thing, and that is God raises up deliverers in his timing. Let's take a look at verses 12 through 15. Once again the Israelites did evil in the Lord's sight, and the Lord gave King Eglon of Moab control over Israel because of their evil. Eglon enlisted the Ammonites and Amalekites as allies, and then he went out and defeated Israel, taking possession of Jericho, the city of Palms. And the Israelites served Eglon of Moab for eighteen years. But when the people of Israel cried out to the Lord for help, the Lord again raised up a rescuer to save them. His name was Ehud, son of Girah, a left-handed man of the tribe of Benjamin. The Israelites sent Ehud to deliver their tribute money to King Eglon of Moab. Israel's eighteen-year oppression under Eglon wasn't random, it was divine discipline. The cycle in Judges is tragically repetitive. Israel sins, God sends oppression, Israel cries out, God raises a deliverer, peace follows, and then Israel sins again. Yet when Israel cried out after 18 years, God didn't say too late. No, he immediately raised up a deliverer. His discipline has purpose, and his anger has limits. He disciplines to restore, not destroy. The deliverer God chose is fascinating. Ehud, a left-handed man from Benjamin, the tribe whose name means son of the right hand. In ancient warfare, left-handedness was a significant disability. From the tribe named for a favored hand comes a man who can't use that hand effectively. This is divine irony. God deliberately chose someone who, by human standards, was handicapped for warrior duty. Why? Well, it's to demonstrate that his power is perfected in weakness. What do you consider your disqualifying characteristic? Is it your age, your background, your limitations? Well, they may be exactly what God intends to use. So stop apologizing for what makes you different. God doesn't need cookie-cutter servants, he specializes in using the unexpected to accomplish the impossible. So let's look at verses 16 through 23 of what I'm calling strategic boldness that requires careful preparation. Now Ehud had made a double-edged sword about a cubit long, which he strapped to his right thigh under his clothing. He presented the tribute to Eglon, king of Moab, who was a very fat man. After Ehud presented the tribute, he sent on their way those who had carried it. But on reaching the stone images near Gilgal, he himself went back to Eglon and said, Your Majesty, I have a secret message for you. The king said to his attendants, Leave us, and they all left. Ahud then approached him while he was sitting alone in the upper room of his palace, and said, I have a message for you from God. As the king rose from his seat, Ehud reached with his left hand, drew the sword from his right thigh, and plunged it into the king's belly. Even the handle sank in after the blade, and his bowels discharged. Ehud did not pull the sword out, and the fat closed in over it. Then Ehud went out to the porch, he shut the doors of the upper room behind him, and locked them. Ehud's assassination demonstrates that godly boldness isn't reckless, it's calculated courage rooted in careful preparation. Every detail shows meticulous thought. He made a custom weapon designed for concealment. He concealed it on his right thigh, which is a brilliant strategy since guards would check the left side first. His left-handedness, normally a liability, became his tactical advantage. He crafted a perfect excuse for private audience. I have a secret message for you. The irony is staggering. Ehud's secret message was indeed from God, a message of judgment delivered not in words, but with a blade. The timing was perfect. He went with the tribute delegation to avoid suspicion. He waited until the guards were relaxed, and then he acted. This wasn't impulsive violence, it was warfare conducted with intelligence and precision. During World War II, Cory Tinboom's family didn't impulsively hide Jews during the Holocaust. They carefully constructed a hidden room in their home, they rehearsed emergency procedures, established code words, and coordinated with the underground network. Their boldness in harboring refugees required meticulous planning. Strategic courage isn't reckless, it's calculated obedience. When God calls you to difficult obedience, like confronting sin, making a career change, having that hard conversation, don't mistake faith for recklessness. Pray for wisdom, make a plan, prepare carefully, then act boldly. Ahud's courage was matched by his preparation. Bold obedience and wise planning aren't opposites, they're partners. Let's take a look at my final point, which is God's deliverance often comes through unexpected means. Let's take a look at verses 24 through 30. After he had gone, the servants came and found the doors of the upper room locked. They said he must be relieving himself in the inner room of the palace. They waited to the point of embarrassment, but when he did not open the doors of the room, they took a key and unlocked them. There they saw their Lord fallen to the floor, dead. While they waited, Ehud got away. He passed by the stone images and escaped to Sira. When he arrived there, he blew a trumpet in the hill country of Ephraim, and the Israelites went down with him from the hills, with him leading them. Follow me, he ordered, for the Lord has given Moab your enemy into your hands. So they followed him down and took possession of the fords of the Jordan that led to Moab. They allowed no one to cross over. At that time they struck down about ten thousand Moabites, all vigorous and strong. Not one escaped. That day Moab was made subject to Israel, and the land had peace for eighty years. The escape sequence contains both dark humor and divine providence. When servants found the doors locked, they assumed Eglon was using the bathroom, so they waited, too embarrassed to interrupt. This brought Ehud crucial escape time. While servants stood outside, too polite to disturb the king, Ehud was miles away rallying Israel's forces. God's deliverance came not through conventional military might, but through the unexpected. A left-handed assassin with a concealed weapon, a private audience obtained through deception, and a bathroom assumption that provided the escape window. The results were decisive. 10,000 Moabites killed, and 80 years of peace, the longest rest in judges. One act of strategic courage produced nearly a century of peace. And this demonstrates an important principle. God's ways are not our ways. We expect him to use the strongest, most qualified, most conventional methods. But God often works through the weak and unlikely precisely to demonstrate that the power is his, not ours. When deliverance comes through means we never could have chosen, no one can claim human credit. The glory goes to God alone. In 1776, Washington's Continental Army was trapped in facing annihilation. His audacious Christmas night crossing of the Delaware, attacking Hessian forces during their holiday celebrations, was so unexpected it seemed foolish. Yet this unconventional strategy revitalized the revolution. Victory came not through superior numbers, but through unexpected tactics. Don't limit God to working in conventional ways. The solution to your impossible situation may not look like what you expect. Perhaps your church's growth won't come through the latest program, but the genuine hospitality. Your financial provision might not come through that expected promotion, but an unexpected opportunity. Stay open to God's unconventional methods. Ehud's account teaches us that God delights in using unlikely people through unexpected means. Your perceived weaknesses may be exactly what God plans to use for his purposes. Don't disqualify yourself because you don't fit the mold. Instead, prepare carefully, act boldly when God calls, and trust him to work in ways you never imagined. The same God he used a left-handed deliverer can use you, limitations and all, to accomplish his purposes. Let me pray for us. Father, thank you that you specialize in using unlikely people to accomplish the impossible. You don't need our impressive credentials or perfect abilities. You delight in displaying your strength through our weaknesses. For those who feel disqualified by age, background, or limitation, remind them that you chose a left-handed man from the tribe of the right hand to deliver your people. Our weaknesses don't disqualify us. They positioned us to showcase your power. For those facing impossible circumstances, help us to remember that your ways are not our ways. Give us wisdom to prepare carefully, encourage to act boldly when you call. Teach us to trust your unconventional methods, even when they don't match our expectations. Lord, we confess that we often try to solve problems with conventional thinking and human strength. Open our eyes to see the unexpected opportunities you're providing. Give us faith to believe what seems like a liability might be exactly what you plan to use. Use us, limitations and all, to accomplish your purposes in ways that bring glory to your name alone. In Jesus' name, amen.

SPEAKER_00 13:41

Thank you, Pastor Darrell, for that message. And I want to thank you, our listeners, for your time. Join us next week as Pastor Darrell will speak about Agrippa and the danger of almost