Gideon: When God Calls the Cowardly

Introduction

Israel was living under oppression, fear, and defeat. The Midianites had stolen their crops, their peace, and their courage. The people were hiding in caves, crying out for deliverance. Yet in the middle of this despair, God raises up an unlikely hero — Gideon, a man full of questions, fears, and hesitations.

“God doesn’t call the qualified; He qualifies the called.”

The story of Gideon teaches us how to move from fear to faith, from hiding to fighting, and from defeat to victory.

Overcome Your Oversights

Judges 6:6 “6 And Israel was brought very low because of Midian. And the people of Israel cried out for help to the Lord.”

Judges 6:25–26 “25 That night the Lord said to him, “Take your father’s bull, and the second bull seven years old, and pull down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the Asherah that is beside it 26 and build an altar to the Lord your God on the top of the stronghold here, with stones laid in due order. Then take the second bull and offer it as a burnt offering with the wood of the Asherah that you shall cut down.””

Some of us are so burdened by the guilt and shame of past sin that we’re failing in the present. Gideon had to tear down his father’s altar before he could build one to the Lord.

Israel’s greatest problem wasn’t the Midianites — it was their idolatry. Before Gideon could defeat his enemies, he had to deal with what was wrong at home.

1 John 1:9 “9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

John 8:36 “36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”

2 Corinthians 5:17 “17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”

Application: You can’t have freedom without repentance. What altars in your life need to be torn down — pride, bitterness, addiction, comfort, or compromise?

Failure isn’t God’s plan for His people. Stop making peace with it! Let Christ overcome your oversights, your guilt, and your grudges, and leave them buried God’s grace.

Denounce Your Dread

Judges 6:27 “27 So Gideon took ten men of his servants and did as the Lord had told him. But because he was too afraid of his family and the men of the town to do it by day, he did it by night.”

Judges 7:3 “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.”

Some of us are so afraid of what the future may bring that we are unable of serving in the present.

God has no room for cowards!… Fear is one of Satan’s favorite tools because it paralyzes faith.

2 Timothy 1:7 “7 for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.”

Deuteronomy 20:8 “8 And the officers shall speak further to the people, and say, ‘Is there any man who is fearful and fainthearted? Let him go back to his house, lest he make the heart of his fellows melt like his own.’”

Application: Don’t let fear talk you out of obedience… What has fear kept you from doing — forgiving someone, sharing your faith, stepping into a role of servanthood?

Engage Your Enemy

Judges 6:2–5 “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.”

Israel hid in caves because they forgot who their real enemy was. The Midianites weren’t just raiders — they were a symbol of the spiritual forces trying to starve God’s people of faith

This is a real war, we have a real enemy… Our enemy may look like a politician but it is a principality… It may seem like a social issue but it is a Spiritual one

1 Peter 5:8 “8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”

Ephesians 6:12–13 “12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.”

“The devil is not fighting religion; he’s too smart for that. He’s producing a counterfeit Christianity so much like the real one that good Christians are afraid to speak out against it.” — Vance Havner

Application: Your battle isn’t with your boss, your spouse, or the government — it’s with the spiritual forces trying to destroy your faith and your witness. Stop hiding and start fighting on your knees.

Reinforce Your Resolve

Judges 7:9–10 “9 That same night the Lord said to him, “Arise, go down against the camp, for I have given it into your hand. 10 But if you are afraid to go down, go down to the camp with Purah your servant.”

Judges 7:15 “15 As soon as Gideon heard the telling of the dream and its interpretation, he worshiped. And he returned to the camp of Israel and said, “Arise, for the Lord has given the host of Midian into your hand.””

Jdg 6.17-21 = consumed food / Jdg 6.36-40 = Sign of the Fleece

Even after being called, anointed, and confirmed, Gideon still wrestled with fear. God graciously strengthened his faith through signs — but we have something greater: the Holy Spirit and the finished work of Christ.

We need no fire food… we have the Holy Spirit of Heaven… We need no soggy fleece we have a blood stained cross and an empty tomb!

You are not fighting from your back foot, your back is not against the wall. The LORD “has given” your enemy into your hand!

James 4:7 “7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”

Luke 10:19 “19 Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you.”

1 Corinthians 1:26–27 “26 For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong;”

Application: Reinforce your resolve by worshiping before the victory comes. Worship turns fear into fuel.

Practice Your Purpose

Judges 6:14 “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?””

Judges 7:19–21 “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.”

When Gideon finally obeyed, God turned a torch, a trumpet, and a jar into instruments of victory. The weapons of obedience are always stronger than the weapons of the world.

Do you see that this victory was given to them out of obedience!?

2 Corinthians 10:4 “4 For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds.”

1 Samuel 15:22 “22 And Samuel said, “Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams.”

Philippians 2:8–10 “8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,”

Illustration: David didn’t win with armor and sword but with faith and a sling. Gideon didn’t win with numbers but with obedience.

Application: God is still looking for men and women who will simply do what He says — even when it doesn’t make sense. Obedience is the spark that ignites divine power. (means/method… obedience/holy power)

Complete Your Calling

Judges 7:22–25 “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 Beth-shittah 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. 24 Gideon sent messengers throughout all the hill country of Ephraim, saying, “Come down against the Midianites and capture the waters against them, as far as Beth-barah, and also the Jordan.” So all the men of Ephraim were called out, and they captured the waters as far as Beth-barah, and also the Jordan. 25 And they captured the two princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb. They killed Oreb at the rock of Oreb, and Zeeb they killed at the winepress of Zeeb. Then they pursued Midian, and they brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon across the Jordan.”

When the battle began, the Lord turned the enemies against each other. God gave the victory — but Israel still had to pursue it to completion!

Adrian Rogers - Now, do you know what most of us want? We don’t want victory; we want ease. Isn’t that right? I mean, all we’re saying is, “Devil, would you leave me alone? I’ll leave you alone.” All we want is a standoff. General Douglas MacArthur said, “In war, there is no substitute for victory.”

2 Peter 3:18 “18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.”

Deuteronomy 20:17 “17 but you shall devote them to complete destruction, the Hittites and the Amorites, the Canaanites and the Perizzites, the Hivites and the Jebusites, as the Lord your God has commanded,”

Illustration: You can’t win a race by stopping at mile 25. The last mile is often the hardest — and most worth it.

Application: Don’t settle for partial obedience or halfway victory. Finish what God started in you. Keep pursuing holiness, keep growing in grace, keep fighting until the war is won.

Conclusion

Gideon began afraid and unsure, but he ended as a man who believed God. The same Spirit that empowered Gideon empowers you today.

“The same God who called you out will carry you through.” - Philippians 1:6 “6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”

It’s time to tear down your idols, overcome your fears, engage your enemy, and step into your calling. The victory is already given — now walk in it.

Small Group Questions

What part of Gideon’s story stood out to you most, and why?

Have you ever felt “too weak” or “too afraid” to follow God’s call? How did you respond?

What are some “altars” in your life that God might be asking you to tear down?

How does fear show up in your daily life, and how can God’s Spirit help you overcome it?

Gideon had to trust God even when the plan seemed risky or impossible. How can we apply that trust today?

What does it look like to engage your spiritual enemies in practical ways, as opposed to avoiding them?

How can worship strengthen your resolve in moments of fear or uncertainty?

Obedience was key to Gideon’s victory. What is one step of obedience God is asking you to take this week?

How does the story of Gideon encourage you to stop living in past failures or regrets?

How can we as a small group support each other in stepping out of fear and walking in God’s calling?