Gideon's Obedience
Notes
Transcript
We are skipping quite a bit ahead in the Old Testament today to a guy named Gideon. Most of you know this name but probably from the Gideon’s international or the free hotel Bible group. While the Gideon’s International uses Gideon’s name it is because of the life of Gideon that they chose to use his name. Gideon was a man of God who in a desperate and dark time for his people allowed God to use him to bring the people back to an understanding of who their God truly was. The people if Israel in Gideon’s time had been oppressed by the kingdom of Midian for seven years. The people would farm and produce crops and Midian would show up an encamp outside of their fields, take all the food, then burn their fields. The people of Israel had to take refuge in the caves and strongholds. While the people were oppressed they also took part in idol worship of Baal and gave in to the world around them. Instead of setting themselves aside they were people who took part in the pagan rituals of their time so that they could look and feel a part of the culture. In hopes that if they worshipped Baal that the armies of Midian would leave them alone. Does this sound familiar to you? We live in a world much the same as the Israelites at this time. We live in a world where it is easier to go along with the times than to stand up for the right thing. It is easier and safer to go along with society. We have churches giving in to the idea that they need to seek their own good and they are closing their doors to anyone not invited in to their congregation. We have churches that are afraid to in love make a stand on what the Word of God says because it is easier and more beneficial for them to give in and go along. Have you ever been in a situation like that? Have you ever felt like you just needed to go along with things to keep everyone happy and not make waves?
a young police officer was taking his final exam at Hendon Police College in north London. Here is one of the questions:
‘You are on a patrol in outer London when an explosion occurs in a gas main in a nearby street. On investigation you find that a large hole has been blown in the footpath and there is an overturned van lying nearby. Inside the van there is a strong smell of alcohol. Both occupants – a man and a woman – are injured. You recognise the woman as the wife of your Divisional Inspector, who is at present away in the USA. A passing motorist stops to offer you assistance and you realize that he is a man who is wanted for armed robbery. Suddenly a man runs out of a nearby house, shouting that his wife is expecting a baby and that the shock of the explosion has made the birth imminent. Another man is crying for help, having been blown into an adjacent canal by the explosion, and he cannot swim. – Bearing in mind the provisions of the Mental Health Act, describe in a few words what actions you would take. The officer thought for a moment, picked up his pen, and wrote: ‘I would take off my uniform and mingle with the crowd!’
There have been times in my life when I have wanted to blend in and just go along with things. The thing about God though is that His call for Obedience does not change. This morning we will see three things in relation to Gideon’s obedience. First we will see a Dedicated time. Second we will see Complete Dependence on God. Third we will see the Deliverance. Turn with me in your Bible this morning to Judges 6 and 7. We will again jump around a little bit but not quite as much as we did last week. Because of the amount of scripture this morning we will not stand together but we will pray and we will get right into the word this morning.
A Dedicated Time
A Dedicated Time
1 The people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord gave them into the hand of Midian seven years. 2 And the hand of Midian overpowered Israel, and because of Midian the people of Israel made for themselves the dens that are in the mountains and the caves and the strongholds. 3 For whenever the Israelites planted crops, the Midianites and the Amalekites and the people of the East would come up against them. 4 They would encamp against them and devour the produce of the land, as far as Gaza, and leave no sustenance in Israel and no sheep or ox or donkey. 5 For they would come up with their livestock and their tents; they would come like locusts in number—both they and their camels could not be counted—so that they laid waste the land as they came in. 6 And Israel was brought very low because of Midian. And the people of Israel cried out for help to the Lord.
7 When the people of Israel cried out to the Lord on account of the Midianites, 8 the Lord sent a prophet to the people of Israel. And he said to them, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: I led you up from Egypt and brought you out of the house of slavery. 9 And I delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of all who oppressed you, and drove them out before you and gave you their land. 10 And I said to you, ‘I am the Lord your God; you shall not fear the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell.’ But you have not obeyed my voice.”
11 Now the angel of the Lord came and sat under the terebinth at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, while his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the winepress to hide it from the Midianites. 12 And the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, “The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valor.” 13 And Gideon said to him, “Please, my lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our fathers recounted to us, saying, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has forsaken us and given us into the hand of Midian.” 14 And the Lord turned to him and said, “Go in this might of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian; do not I send you?” 15 And he said to him, “Please, Lord, how can I save Israel? Behold, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house.” 16 And the Lord said to him, “But I will be with you, and you shall strike the Midianites as one man.”
What we see in this scripture is that God has placed Gideon in this specific place at this specific time for a purpose. God knows everything about Gideon, including where he lives and his heart towards the Lord. Have you ever taken time to consider that you were designed and placed where you are now for God’s divine purpose? The world we live in is no secret to God and the people He has on this planet at this time in these places are no coincidence. Make no mistake God has designed you with a purpose. Just as we find Gideon in a specific time and a specific place, you are in a specific time and in specific places. What are you doing with the times and places that God has put you in? Some of us need to be grateful for the place and time we are in. I don't know about you but just a hundred year difference and many of the conveniences we get to live with today did not exists. Some of us need to understand our time. Some people are so stuck in trying to say that things need to be the way they were that they can never be effective in the time they are in. Granted we all miss things from our past, God did not keep us in our pasts though for a reason. What are you doing with the time and place that God has put you in? Are you obedient in this time and place?
A little girl was visiting over at grandpa's house. She crawls up into his lap and says "Grandpa, did God make you?"
He says "Oh, yes, my dear, God created me a long time ago."
She says "Did God make me, too?"
He says "Oh, yes, my dear, God created you a little while ago."
She thinks about it for a moment. Then she says "God's been doing better work the last while, hasn't He?"
God does not make mistakes on where and when He creates us. It would have been easy for Gideon to say God, why couldn’t you make me back when we first came into the promised land and everyone was honoring you and things were amazing? What is the point in worshiping you now? All has been lost and there is no point in trying. Do you fall into the trap of believing that you are not an important part of God’s plan? That you were not born at the right time and place? No one else was designed for the specific places and times God has you in. What are you going to do with that? The scriptures tell us that you were created for a dedicated time.
14 For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”
26 And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place,
8 The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me;
your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever.
Do not forsake the work of your hands.
10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
5 The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup;
you hold my lot.
6 The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.
God has created the time and the place of your life. You are designed with a divine purpose for the Glory of God. Many people never get fully into obedience because they wonder what is the point? Look at the state of the world and the times we live in why would we even try to make a difference? We were placed in the times we are in so that we would have completed Dependence on God. Just as Gideon was.
Complete Dependence on God
Complete Dependence on God
1 Then Jerubbaal (that is, Gideon) and all the people who were with him rose early and encamped beside the spring of Harod. And the camp of Midian was north of them, by the hill of Moreh, in the valley.
2 The Lord said to Gideon, “The people with you are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hand, lest Israel boast over me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’ 3 Now therefore proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, ‘Whoever is fearful and trembling, let him return home and hurry away from Mount Gilead.’ ” Then 22,000 of the people returned, and 10,000 remained.
4 And the Lord said to Gideon, “The people are still too many. Take them down to the water, and I will test them for you there, and anyone of whom I say to you, ‘This one shall go with you,’ shall go with you, and anyone of whom I say to you, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ shall not go.” 5 So he brought the people down to the water. And the Lord said to Gideon, “Every one who laps the water with his tongue, as a dog laps, you shall set by himself. Likewise, every one who kneels down to drink.” 6 And the number of those who lapped, putting their hands to their mouths, was 300 men, but all the rest of the people knelt down to drink water. 7 And the Lord said to Gideon, “With the 300 men who lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hand, and let all the others go every man to his home.” 8 So the people took provisions in their hands, and their trumpets. And he sent all the rest of Israel every man to his tent, but retained the 300 men. And the camp of Midian was below him in the valley.
So we are starting to put the pieces together. God placed Gideon in the place he was in for the purpose of God. He however did not placed Gideon in this place and time without the foreknowledge that Gideon would need to depend fully on God. Guess what Gideon was not born with? Thats right an Army. Gideon was not born with a kingdom, chariots, or knowledge of war. There was nothing Gideon would be able to do without God and without God providing. As a matter of fact after God provided, He said. Well I provided too much, break the people down. We saw 22,000 men return on the first cut. The second cut we see that God said anyone who laps the water like a dog set in a group and anyone who kneels down to drink set in another group. They were about to go to war and defeat their enemies guess who I would have been asking for. Certainly not the guys drinking like Dogs! Yet who does God let Gideon keep? Yep the dogs. After that the groups are split up into groups of 100 men. God was going to make sure that the only one who recieved the glory for what was about to happen was Him! Many of us miss this dependence on God. We work for what we need and we delay obedience to God until we have what we think it will take to be successful. We often times see God’s taking from us as a curse, sometimes though God is taking the excess out of our lives so we can see that it is His hand that blesses. His words that make mountains move. God is the author and authority of our lives and He wants complete dependence on Him. Not our strength, not our money, not our armies, not our leaders. On Him and on Him alone.
After Hurricane Katrina came through I was able to take a trip with my church to Gulf Port Mississippi and help with storm restoration. We cut trees, we cleaned trash, we did so much drywall work I learned to hate it. One thing that I remember from that time is the heart that the people had towards God. I worked for a few days in one of the wealthiest areas and found homes stripped of all their beautiful ornate designs and basic needs. I found people who drove expensive cars walking in their pajamas to the FEMA trailer to take a shower. I met a man named Mark while I was working. The CEO of a local small business and wealthy but not overly wealthy. Wealthy enough he said that he never though he would ever have to depend on anyone else but what he had gained on his own. He said to me you know the funny thing about a Hurricane is it does not care how much money you have or do not have. It destroys the poor mans house and the rich mans house. I was still young in my faith and was not sure what to say and before I could think it though I said well God restores the poor mans house and the rich mans house. It was one of the defining times in my life when I knew what just came out of my mouth was not my words. Mark looked back at me and tears welled up in his eyes and he said I can’t remember the last time I had to depend on God. I hope He never has to get my attention like this again.
Are you going to be obedient to God when it means complete dependence on Him? I have been told over the years that God calls us to Faith but does not call us to be stupid. Well let me tell you Faith to the world looks stupid. I do not know if it looks any more stupid than taking 300 of the men that drink like animals to fight a massive army of Midian. God though does not care how it looks. What did He tell Gideon?
2 The Lord said to Gideon, “The people with you are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hand, lest Israel boast over me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’
God wants us to depend on Him. The Scriptures tell us to depend on God and not on our own.
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding.
6 In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make straight your paths.
10 fear not, for I am with you;
be not dismayed, for I am your God;
I will strengthen you, I will help you,
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
7 “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord,
whose trust is the Lord.
1 I lift up my eyes to the hills.
From where does my help come?
2 My help comes from the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.
3 You keep him in perfect peace
whose mind is stayed on you,
because he trusts in you.
14 The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”
God has created you just as He did Gideon for a dedicated time for complete dependence on Him so you can experience the deliverance that only God can provide.
19 So Gideon and the hundred men who were with him came to the outskirts of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, when they had just set the watch. And they blew the trumpets and smashed the jars that were in their hands. 20 Then the three companies blew the trumpets and broke the jars. They held in their left hands the torches, and in their right hands the trumpets to blow. And they cried out, “A sword for the Lord and for Gideon!” 21 Every man stood in his place around the camp, and all the army ran. They cried out and fled. 22 When they blew the 300 trumpets, the Lord set every man’s sword against his comrade and against all the army. And the army fled as far as Behashittah toward Zererah, as far as the border of Abel-meholah, by Tabbath. 23 And the men of Israel were called out from Naphtali and from Asher and from all Manasseh, and they pursued after Midian.
Because of Gideon’s obedience in his time and dependence on God, he found deliverance from God. Are you willing to live in obedience to God in this time and place? Are you willing to obey at the risk of having nothing that you need to obey and trust in God’s complete deliverance? Have you ever been in situations in your life that only God can deliver you from? No doctors, no medicines, no therapists, no police offices, no EMS, no school teachers, no public servants, no pastors, only God. A situation that only God can get you out of? I have found myself in a few of these situations. Most of mine are caused by my inability to be obedient to God. Much like the Israelites I believe many of us find ourselves in these places. What I can tell you this morning is that God is a God of deliverance. If you will obey God and you will depend on God He will deliver you from anything and everything this world can throw at you. We serve a God who is even willing to deliver you from self inflicted situations in your life. Could you imagine having the kind of Faith to take 300 men who drink like dogs into a fight against thousands? Could you imagine standing up against a pagan nation and people in your own culture who have given in to the world around them? Could you imagine what your life would be like if you understood that God created you for a purpose in a dedicated time? God is calling you this morning to complete dependence on Him. Are you ready to take those steps? Are you ready to obey God in whatever area of your life He is demanding your obedience in? No matter the cost, no matter the challenges, God is calling you to obedience and He said He would deliver you.
2 The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer,
my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge,
my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
5 Every word of God proves true;
he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.
2 I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”
8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”
11 But let all who take refuge in you rejoice;
let them ever sing for joy,
and spread your protection over them,
that those who love your name may exult in you.
11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.
