Remain Humbly Faithful

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How often does God call us to something and we decide to do it our own way?

How often are we willing to take the glory for ourselves?

We take charge, we organize, we make sure we have more than enough resources. We are going to make sure it can’t fail.

Is that really what God asked us to do?

No!!!

God asks us to just go and do what He wants us to do. Yes it does require some planning and some preparation.

But He doesn’t want us figuring out every little detail and coming up with every answer before we even start. He wants us to trust in Him. He wants us to prove He deserves the glory.

This again is a spot where we have weak discipleship. If we were truly discipled to seek and know God, then we would also know when to plan and when to trust.

We would know when to wait and when to jump right in.

Knowing God in a deep intimate way only comes through discipleship, discipline, and a desire to love God. It’s also the only way we can truly remain humbly faithful.

We’re going to cover a lot of text today. From Judges 7:1 to 10:5. There are more words in that than my normal Sunday sermon, so we’re just going to be hitting the highlights.

These highlights will show three truths about humble faithfulness.

Our Humble Faithfulness Glorifies God

Our Lack of Faith Causes Chaos

God Alone Deserves The Glory

If I asked everyone here if they had a deep intimate relationship with God I’m sure every hand or almost every hand would go up, right?

How many can say they have a deep intimate relationship with God all the time. Every moment of your lives?

We can’t say that can we? In fact there are times where we feel distant from God. Times where we struggle in our relationship with Him.

Last week we saw where Gideon was so distant from God that he questioned why God abandoned Israel. He was so distant that he tested God how many different times?

At least three times right?

Our Humble Faithfulness Glorifies God

God’s patience in Gideon’s testing and God’s fatherly love brings Gideon to the point of faithful service. At least for a while.

Let’s look at Judges 7:1-8

Judges 7:1–8 NKJV

1 Then Jerubbaal (that is, Gideon) and all the people who were with him rose early and encamped beside the well of Harod, so that the camp of the Midianites was on the north side of them by the hill of Moreh in the valley. 2 And the Lord said to Gideon, “The people who are with you are too many for Me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel claim glory for itself against Me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’ 3 Now therefore, proclaim in the hearing of the people, saying, ‘Whoever is fearful and afraid, let him turn and depart at once from Mount Gilead.’ ” And twenty-two thousand of the people returned, and ten thousand remained. 4 But the Lord said to Gideon, “The people are still too many; bring them down to the water, and I will test them for you there. Then it will be, that of whom I say to you, ‘This one shall go with you,’ the same shall go with you; and of whomever I say to you, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ the same shall not go.” 5 So he brought the people down to the water. And the Lord said to Gideon, “Everyone who laps from the water with his tongue, as a dog laps, you shall set apart by himself; likewise everyone who gets down on his knees to drink.” 6 And the number of those who lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, was three hundred men; but all the rest of the people got down on their knees to drink water. 7 Then the Lord said to Gideon, “By the three hundred men who lapped I will save you, and deliver the Midianites into your hand. Let all the other people go, every man to his place.” 8 So the people took provisions and their trumpets in their hands. And he sent away all the rest of Israel, every man to his tent, and retained those three hundred men. Now the camp of Midian was below him in the valley.

You want to talk about a do you trust me moment! This would be it.

Gideon and the Israelites were facing army that far exceeded even their 32,000 number. Some commentators say even with the 32,000 they were outnumbered at least 4:1.

God says I’m not going to give you any reason to boast on yourselves for the victory. I’m going to make sure you have to give glory to Me for the victory. I’m going to make sure you have complete faith in Me, your God.

So you must reduce your army. Not once but twice. The army was reduced to less than 1% of its original size. They would have been outnumbered by over 400:1.

God’s way of saying do you trust Me?

Where would your faith be in that moment?

Let’s face it we struggle to trust God even with the trivial things in our lives!

I don’t know about you, but I would be saying, “Really? Aren’t you taking this trust thing a little too far?”

That only proves our continual need for discipleship, time in God’s word, and time in God’s presence through prayer. We forget far too easily that God wants total surrender.

Everything we have, everything we are, including our physical life. God expects us to trust Him with all of it.

Look at verse 9

Judges 7:9 NKJV

9 It happened on the same night that the Lord said to him, “Arise, go down against the camp, for I have delivered it into your hand.

Gideon was in the same boat. He obviously had some serious doubts about God’s plan. I can hear it now.

“Are you crazy!! Do you know how many Midianites and Amalekites are down there?”

“Uhuh, no way, I’m not doing it.”

Have you ever been guilty of that? Telling God nope, not gonna do that. I’ve done that over something as senseless as going to talk with someone God prompts me to speak with.

Why? Because I was afraid of rejection.

At least Gideons fear was legitimate.

Even here we see God’s patience.

Judges 7:10–11 NKJV

10 But if you are afraid to go down, go down to the camp with Purah your servant, 11 and you shall hear what they say; and afterward your hands shall be strengthened to go down against the camp.” Then he went down with Purah his servant to the outpost of the armed men who were in the camp.

A dream caused the Midianites and Amalekites to fear the God of Israel and Gideon’s army. God’s battle plan gets even crazier.

It’s almost like God was saying you don’t want to trust me without proof. Fine, I want you to go down there with trumpets and torches in ceramic jars.

You blow the trumpets, break the ceramic jars and yell this battle cry. I’ll cause them to turn on each other and kill each other. I’ll cause those who remain to flee.

“Do you trust me now?”

How many times has God done that in our lives?

I know He’s done that a lot in mine. I doubt, He proves, then He asks in a way that I still have to trust. “Do you trust me now?”

I don’t know about you, but sometimes I’m a little slower to come to that trust than Gideon was. Sometimes it takes God several times of the back and forth, doubt, prove, scared, show, still doubt, prove again cycle before I get it.

Our Lack of Faith Causes Chaos

Gideon’s army goes on to defeat the Midianites and Amalekites, with the help of other tribes in the nation of Israel.

I don’t know that this was God’s plan. God wanted only the 300 to defeat the Midianites and the Amalekites. This unfaithfulness led to an immediate rebuke from Ephraim that caused Gideon to appease them.

Now it all may seem as if Gideon were being faithful to God. He says all the right things and Israel is not bothered by the Midianites or any other nation while Gideon is the judge.

And he says all the right things that make one think he’s completely faithful. Look at chapter 8 verses 22 and 23

Judges 8:22–23 NKJV

22 Then the men of Israel said to Gideon, “Rule over us, both you and your son, and your grandson also; for you have delivered us from the hand of Midian.” 23 But Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, nor shall my son rule over you; the Lord shall rule over you.”

If you listen to his words you would think he’s an amazing man of God. He’s living in God’s presence and following God’s will.

But if we look at the next verse we see that his heart and his actions betray his words.

Judges 8:24 NKJV

24 Then Gideon said to them, “I would like to make a request of you, that each of you would give me the earrings from his plunder.” For they had golden earrings, because they were Ishmaelites.

He’s acting like the king he claims he doesn’t want to be. And the people of Israel are more than happy to let him do so.

Judges 8:25 NKJV

25 So they answered, “We will gladly give them.” And they spread out a garment, and each man threw into it the earrings from his plunder.

Does this sound like anything we might see in the church today?

How many pastors, or church leaders claim they are following Christ, but their actions belie their words?

Unfortunately we are the reason that happens. We’re more than happy to place them on a pedestal. Or at least a portion of Christians are willing.

What did Gideon do with the gold? Look at verse 27

Judges 8:27 NKJV

27 Then Gideon made it into an ephod and set it up in his city, Ophrah. And all Israel played the harlot with it there. It became a snare to Gideon and to his house.

Just another example of what happens to God’s people when they aren’t discipled.

We might even say, it was well intentioned. But was it really?

Who do those spoils of war truly belong to?

God!! And Gideon intentionally took God’s plunder. He turned it into an idol.

We are guilty of the same thing. Church leaders have used spiritual insight to create doctrines. We hold onto whatever doctrine that fits our beliefs so strong that we fail to see truth outside of it.

How many times do we disregard what one person says because they believe a different doctrine than we do. Yet we automatically believe what another person says because they are one we put on a pedestal within our doctrine.

It’s silly, it’s crazy, and it’s stupid. But it’s true. We as sheep place our human shepherds on the same level as Christ. We say we don’t, and we truly believe we don’t, but our actions betray our words.

And yet, we wonder how so many Americans blindly believe the lies they are being fed by politicians and the media?

I’m telling you it stems from the same lack of discipleship we’re talking about in Judges. We don’t have the deep, intimate relationship with the Father that leads to complete and total surrender.

Gideon not only became exactly what he claimed he didn’t want to be, but he taught his children to be the exact same way. The only discipleship Gideon gave his family and children was how to be prideful and greedy.

And that led to division within the nation of Israel. It led to interIsrael wars. It led to civil and spiritual unrest. It led to Israel destroying itself.

God Alone Deserves The Glory

In all of this chaos, in the midst of Israel destroying itself, God raises up two judges, Tola and Jair, to save Israel.

Judges 10:1–5 NKJV

1 After Abimelech there arose to save Israel Tola the son of Puah, the son of Dodo, a man of Issachar; and he dwelt in Shamir in the mountains of Ephraim. 2 He judged Israel twenty-three years; and he died and was buried in Shamir. 3 After him arose Jair, a Gileadite; and he judged Israel twenty-two years. 4 Now he had thirty sons who rode on thirty donkeys; they also had thirty towns, which are called “Havoth Jair” to this day, which are in the land of Gilead. 5 And Jair died and was buried in Camon.

Do you notice anything different with these two judges?

Israel isn’t crying out to God for help.

Why?

Because they aren’t being oppressed. I love these five verses. They show the true lack of repentance.

They show how Israel’s cries to God were nothing more than remorse. They show the consequences God’s people have for lack of discipleship.

God proves He alone deserves the glory when He saves Israel from themselves. Not because they asked Him too.

No, because He faithfully preserves His people. He faithfully delivers His people. Even if it means delivering them from themselves.

Now that’s a God who deserves all the glory.

Is it just me, or do you think there maaayy be some similarities in the church today?

We have times where we are humbly faithful and God does some amazing things through the church.

We’ve seen some amazing revivals and God is definitely glorified.

We have Spirit led ministries that do wonderful things for people in need. Again God is glorified in those ministries.

However, there are many times that our lack of faith causes us to glorify others and/or take the glory for ourselves.

We have a ministry that God has done miraculous work through and we begin to take the glory for ourselves. Sometimes we lift the ministry leader up on a pedestal and give them the glory God deserves.

We place our faith in some man made doctrine, ministry program, worship style, you fill in the blank. We buy in so deeply that we begin to criticize other Christians for their differing doctrines, ministry programs, worship styles, you name it.

The church has become so divided over silly and stupid nonsense. We are completely blind to our part in the division and point the finger at those crazy tongue speaking Charismatic Pentecostals.

We chastise the Catholics for their views of the Virgin Mary. I could go on with the Lutherans, Methodists, and Baptists. And the non-denominational churches have their own set of problems.

We’re so busy pointing fingers and finding fault that we don’t see the truth in their beliefs. And we definitely don’t see the faults in our own beliefs.

The church is destroying itself right now. Much the same way Israel was destroying itself.

It stems from lack of discipleship and discipline. Christians haven’t been discipled for far too long. That lack of discipleship has caused a lack of discipline.

If we want to see God’s faithfulness prove He alone deserves the glory, then we have to start with personal discipline. Spending time in the word each day and spending time in prayer with God each day.

I’m talking about prayer that isn’t asking anything of God. Prayer that just seeks to glorify Him. Silent prayer sitting in His presence in the throne room of God.

Second, we must start discipling others so they know how to be in the word and come before God. So they become disciplined in their time with God.

Jesus took our punishment on the cross and defeated death so we could come before God in the throne room. He sits at the right hand of God interceding for us.

We all too often forget Christianity isn’t about what God does for us. It’s about an intimate relationship with a loving God. It’s about total surrender to our Creator.

It’s about how we humbly serve Him. That’s how we experience God. That’s how we remain humbly faithful.