Faithless Gideon Part 2

I. EXORDIUM:

Are you a conqueror?

II. AUDIENCE PROFILE:

Believers

III. OBJECTIVES:

To prove that we are more than conquerors, more than Gideon.

IV. TEXT:

Judges 7:10-11 (Amplified Bible)

But if you fear to go down, go with Purah your servant down to the camp

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 outposts of the camp of the armed men.

V. THESIS:

We are more than conquerors, more than Gideon

VI. TITLE:

Faithless Gideon Part 2

VII. EXPLICATION:

A. Author: unknown, tradition attributes the authorship to Samuel

B. Date written: 1086 - 1035 B.C.

C. Purpose: To preview Israel's history following the conquest and prior to the monarchy.

D. To whom written: Nation of Israel

E. Keyword: apostasy

F. Key verse: Judges 17:6 (Amplified Bible)

In those days there was no king in Israel; every man did what was right in his own eyes.

VIII. MAIN BODY:

A. Still afraid of the enemy

"But if you fear to go down, go with Purah your servant down to the camp"

Gideon has no capacity to believe and rely just on the WORDS of GOD, he still need to see and hear it from his own eyes and ear, to prove it first, even though he knows full well, that the LORD GOD is the One already talking with Him. Fear is an enemy you need to defeat.

Genesis 15:1 (Amplified Bible)

AFTER THESE things, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram, I am your Shield, your abundant compensation, and your reward shall be exceedingly great.

There's only one to fear in the Old Testament and that's LORD GOD, but in the New covenant, there's no fear but is replaced with three: power, love and sound mind.

2 Timothy 1:7 (Amplified Bible)

For God did not give us a spirit of timidity (of cowardice, of craven and cringing and fawning fear), but [He has given us a spirit] of power and of love and of calm and well-balanced mind and discipline and self-control.

GOD loves us first, that's our motivation in the New covenant, that's why fear is nothing to us.

1 John 4:19 (Amplified Bible)

We love Him, because He first loved us.

1 John 4:10 (Amplified Bible)

In this is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation (the atoning sacrifice) for our sins.

B. Hear what they say

"And you shall hear what they say, and afterward your hands shall be strengthened to go down against the camp."

2 Corinthians 5:7 (Amplified Bible)

For we walk by faith [we regulate our lives and conduct ourselves by our conviction or belief respecting man’s relationship to God and divine things, with trust and holy fervor; thus we walk] not by sight or appearance.

We live by faith not by our five natural senses, therefore, faith is our sixth sense.

Hebrews 11:6 (Amplified Bible)

But without faith it is impossible to please and be satisfactory to Him. For whoever would come near to God must [necessarily] believe that God exists and that He is the rewarder of those who earnestly and diligently seek Him [out].

C. They still went down even the LORD said it already

"Then he went down with Purah his servant to the outposts of the camp of the armed men"

In the Old Testament, people of GOD are accustomed in asking for signs, in the New covenant we no longer need signs to believe, We believe that's why we come to GOD.

1. Examples of asking for signs:

a. Slave of Abraham

Genesis 24:14 (Amplified Bible)

And let it so be that the girl to whom I say, I pray you, let down your jar that I may drink, and she replies, Drink, and I will give your camels drink also—let her be the one whom You have selected and appointed and indicated for Your servant Isaac [to be a wife to him]; and by it I shall know that You have shown kindness and faithfulness to my master.

b. Jonathan, friend of David

1 Samuel 14:8 (Amplified Bible)

Jonathan said, We will pass over to these men and we will let them see us.

1 Samuel 14:12 (Amplified Bible)

The garrison men said to Jonathan and his armor-bearer, Come up to us and we will show you a thing. Jonathan said to his armor-bearer, Come up after me, for the Lord has given them into Israel’s hand.

Well some notable men lived by faith even before the New covenant and they're listed in Hebrews Chapter 11.

Same with the New covenant, we have a choice, to live by faith or by signs.