Trust the Sovereign One

Date: August 3, 2022

Scripture: Judges 7:9-25

Theme: Trust the Sovereign One

Introduction: Review - What part of the Judges cycle of Sin and Salvation are we on? - deliverance! The Lord has dwindled the size of the army [for what purpose? So that the people would trust the Lord for victory] However, this puts Gideon in a tight spot. How will the Lord deliver Israel through a contingent of soldiers that nowhere near matches the numbers of the enemy? Thus, Gideon faces a temptation here that we all face, regardless of the threat. Instead of giving into temptation we must … Trust the Sovereign One.

Confidently Trust the Sovereign One (vv. 9-18)

Confidently Trust the Sovereign One Who Dispels Our Fears (vv. 9-11).

What time of day does this new scene occur?

Night

Where has this time of day surfaced in the Gideon narrative before?

When Gideon pulled down the altar of Baal and the Asherah pole.

How does the Scripture describe Gideon’s emotional state during that time?

Fear

Therefore, how do we expect Gideon to respond here?

The same; in fear

When we think about it, this is not all that surprising.

What has just happened to Gideon’s troops?

They were initially reduced by 20,000.

Finally, the troops were reduced by 9,700 to only 300.

Additionally, how risky is an attempted attack at night?

It’s a great risk.

The attack depends on surprise (DBI).

In spite of all the temptations to be afraid, what does Gideon have at his disposal?

God’s sure Word of victory.

Is this the first time that God has given Gideon His sure Word of victory?

No.

The Lord gave it to Gideon back in 6:14.

This Word was confirmed by a miracle.

Then at the conclusion of Ch. 6 (vv. 36-40), we have the Lord giving Gideon another confirming miracle of the Lord’s presence with Gideon to fight the Midianites.

Relatedly, Josh. 2:25; 10:8; and 11:6 include some similar phrasing that encourages Joshua and the people to trust the Lord based on the Lord’s confident Word of victory.

However, in spite of having God’s Word whose authority was confirmed by miracles and having a track record of faithfulness, Gideon is still afraid (v. 10).

How do we know that Gideon is afraid here?

Because the Lord calls him out on it.

In other words, the Lord’s statement is more than just strictly conditional.

Rather, the Lord is making an observation about reality.

What evidence do we have other than the Lord’s statement that Gideon is afraid?

Nothing.

Gideon’s mannerisms and tone that would evidence his fear are all left to our imaginations.

However, the emphasis here is that the Lord knows that Gideon is afraid.

Before we are tempted to chide Gideon too much for being afraid despite the abundant evidence of the power of God’s authoritative Word, let’s consider how the Lord responds to Gideon’s fear (vv. 10-11).

Given the incident associated with the fleece, what might Gideon be afraid that the Lord would do?

Be angry with Gideon.

Why is this a concern?

Because Gideon is not fully trusting the Word of the Lord.

Think about it, we experience this sort of temptation in our relationships.

We work hard to build the trust of another.

Yet it seems to fail more often than succeed.

However, what does the Lord do here instead of getting angry?

He gives Gideon His Word, again!

What marvelous patience the Lord continues to demonstrate with this fearful man!

Additionally, was the Lord required to give Gideon this next episode to strengthen Gideon’s courage and trust in the Lord?

No!

Therefore, we see God’s grace at work.

The Lord is giving something to Gideon that the Lord was under no obligation to give him.

Gideon had demonstrated a lack of trust numerous times.

Yet the Lord continued to patiently and graciously build Gideon’s trust.

So far, we’ve seen a fearful man with abundant reason to trust the Lord receive yet again further gracious pieces of evidence to place his confidence in the Lord.

This account, along with the others in Scripture, have been preserved so that we would see God’s faithfulness to His people and confidently trust Him more and more.

In other words, the Lord has a proven track record that makes Him trustworthy, regardless of the circumstances that we face.

When we’re tempted to fear, let’s turn to His Word and confidently trust Him rather than cower at our circumstances.

Confidently Trust the Sovereign One Who Directs Human Activity (vv. 12-14).

How are the armies of the enemy described here?

Nearly innumerable.

They’re described like a plague of locusts ready to devour the Israelite forces.

When faced with impossible odds, Who are we forced to turn to?

The Lord!

Why?

Because only the Lord is capable of defeating and conquering such a foe.

We know this to be true because the Lord has a track record of defeating impossible enemies before His people.

The Exodus, the Conquest of Canaan and the Judges’ accounts we have read so far testify to these things!

Hence, only the Lord could be attributed with the victory.

Next, we have probably one of the weirdest discussions ever recorded in the Scripture.

How did Gideon come to overhear this discussion?

The Lord directed Gideon to come to the camp to listen to this conversation.

Hence, here we see evidence of the Lord’s control of events, regardless of if they are His people or otherwise.

What did the discussion that Gideon overheard pertain to?

A dream that one of them had.

We don’t know when this soldier had this dream.

However, we know when the soldier relayed the dream to his colleague: at night.

What normally prompts us to share a dream that we’ve had?

Either we thought it was interesting enough to share.

Or, we were so disturbed by it that we felt compelled to share.

The fact that this Midianite soldier is relaying the content of a dream at night likely indicates that this soldier may have been so disturbed by the dream that he is afraid and unable to sleep.

If the Lord is the One Who directed Gideon to this spot to hear this conversation about the dream, Who then is responsible for giving the dream to this soldier?

The Lord.

Yet another evidence of God’s sovereignty.

What was the content of the dream?

A loaf of bread destroys a camp.

Where else has something pertaining to bread appeared in the narrative associated with Gideon?

Gideon is so fearful about the threat of the Midianites and Amalekites in Ch. 6 that he threshes wheat in a winepress.

Why would Gideon be afraid in this scenario?

Because the Midianites and Amalekites have plundered the resources of the Israelites.

Therefore, Gideon was trying to survive.

When we put this together, what we have is irony.

That which the Midianites attempted to steal from the Israelites is the source of their own destruction.

Thus, the Lord is the One turning the tables on the Midianites.

In other words, only the Lord could do such a thing for human effort would fail.

How did the soldier’s colleague respond to the dream?

He interpreted the dream as being victory for God’s people and defeat of Midian.

How did the soldier know to interpret the dream this way?

That’s left to the imagination.

We know from the account of Joseph that the interpretation of dreams belongs to the Lord.

Thus, we can expect that the Lord gave him this interpretation.

Therefore, we see further evidence of God providentially working out His sovereign plan to deliver His people.

We can be confident that, despite how circumstances may appear to the contrary, the Lord is doing the same even in our own day as we have the testimony of His working in Gideon’s.

Confidently Trust the Sovereign One Who Gives Us Courage (vv. 15-18).

In what 2 ways does Gideon respond to the scene that the Lord has led him to and orchestrated?

Worship

Why would worship at this moment be significant?

In worship, we acknowledge the Lord’s exclusive authority over all of our life.

In other words, Gideon is trusting in the sovereignty of the Lord at this moment.

In this moment, when we are invited with Gideon to overhear this dream and interpretation brought about by the providence of God, we are also invited to consider the whole scene and respond in worship that acknowledges the Lord’s supreme authority and control over all things.

Courageous action

How does Gideon’s statement to his troops differ from the Gideon that we have seen so far? (v. 15)

Gideon is confident in the Lord and fully prepared to undertake the task that the Lord has given to him.

Gideon tells the people to ‘Arise’.

This is a call to action.

There’s no time to waste or to deliberate.

Here we see the product of what the Lord had told Gideon earlier about strengthening him.

Gideon has motivation to complete the task before him.

Have you ever experienced this kind of energy to fulfill a responsibility that the Lord has given you? (illus. The Wilds, united to proclaim the Gospel)

Gideon references the Lord having given over Midian in their hands.

What comes to mind when you think of something being given over to the hand of another?

Simple transfer.

One does not need to work to receive the thing changing hands.

The idea being communicated here is that the Lord has done all the work of preparing the enemy to be defeated.

This statement has been used 6 times so far in the Gideon narrative.

The first instance occurs concerning God allowing Israel to be defeated on account of their sins of idolatry.

The last 5 refer to the Lord’s promise of victory to Israel who has repented.

Not only do Israel and Gideon have these 5 promises of victory but this phrase is also used in the Ehud and Deborah and Barak narratives.

Hence, the Lord’s promise of victory to Israel is a sure promise since He has a faithful track record of giving victory to His people in a variety of circumstances.

While we’re not the children of Israel and victory will look different from simply waging a physical battle against the enemy, we rely on the Lord to equip us to achieve the victory in the responsibilities that He has given to us: faithful marriage, parenting, employee, friend, witness, etc.

What are the articles of their warfare that they employed?

Pitchers, lamps, trumpets and a message.

Do these sound like the best weapons to use (NAC)?

No!

How does Gideon present these articles of warfare that they will employ?

There’s seemingly no hesitation in his voice.

Gideon does not ask for a sign as he did at other times.

In other words, Gideon is fully confident in the Lord’s victory so that any resource is the right choice when employed in service to the Lord.

The Lord continues today to employ little resources or seemingly unexpected resources to accomplish His purposes so that all would know that He is the One Who has given the victory.

Notice, what phrase does Gideon lead his troops to proclaim?

“For the Lord and for Gideon.”

Another way to understand the initial ‘For’ is that of ownership (NAC).

In other words, these troops are uniquely proclaiming God’s victory over the battle before them.

Thus, they are not claiming any personal responsibility for the victory but giving the Lord the praise that He deserves.

Let’s consider what we have seen so far.

Gideon has finally gained the confidence that he needs to defeat the enemy in accordance with God’s Word and empowerment.

This confidence was God’s gracious gift to a man that had personal difficulties in trusting the Lord.

Not only do we have Gideon’s testimony, but we have the testimony of all of Scripture of how God has uniquely empowered and emboldened His people to accomplish the responsibilities given to them.

Transition: The Lord has challenged our expectations about the resources that He uses to achieve victory identifying that such belongs to Him uniquely. Let’s take a look now at vv. 19-25 where I desire that we understand that we must …

Trust the Sovereign Victor (vv. 19-25)

Trust the Sovereign Victor Whose Uses Unconventional Means and Circumstances for Victory (vv. 19-23).

The Middle Watch referenced here would be around midnight (v. 19).

What is the purpose of a watch of this sort?

To prepare for night threats.

What is the benefit of attacking at night?

The element of surprise.

Did the Midianite efforts to post a night watch work?

No!

The use of lamps and trumpets in battle would have been used by a select few within an army contingent so that the rest of the soldiers would be free to employ traditional weapons.

Hence, the panic that the Midianites experienced likely related to the fact that they believed that a larger military force had invaded the camp.

What’s fascinating is that the Midianites did not fall by any sword of the Israelites.

Why?

Because the Israelites did not carry any swords!

Instead, the Midianites fell by their own swords.

This can only be the Lord who turns the weapons of the enemy on themselves.

Notice, how does the war cry of v. 20 differ from what Gideon told them in v. 18?

The troops insert the word ‘sword’.

Their cry demonstrates their expectation that the Lord will gain the victory in this circumstance, even with their unconventional means and circumstances.

This same Lord Who gave His people the victory in unconventional circumstances is still not limited by either circumstances or means to give His people victory.

Trust the Sovereign Victor Who Gives Complete Victory (vv. 24-25).

The name Oreb also means raven.

The name Zeeb means wolf.

In striking down both of these military commanders, the Lord has completely delivered His people from the threats to both their security and sustenance.

Conclusion: Our passage has concluded with the Lord giving victory to His people in the unlikeliest of circumstances. Let us look to this example of trust in the Sovereign One and be confident in the Sovereign Victor who shares the victory with His people.