God’s Glory Revealed Through Gideon

God’s Glory Revealed Through Gideon

Text: Judges 6:33-7:2

Intro: In First Corinthians 10:31, Paul exhorts us with these words: “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.” This familiar passage of scripture sums up the purpose of every Christian’s life: to bring glory to God. It almost goes without saying that we all fail miserably in this area. But that does not change the fact that glorifying God should be our ultimate goal in life.

Too often however, Christians have the mistaken idea that they must be “somebody,” possess great abilities or talents in order to bring glory to God. The truth is that God isn’t looking for ability, but availability. God is looking for those who will submit themselves wholly to God, so that He can use them for His purposes and plans.

When God first approached Gideon about being His instrument of Israel’s deliverance from the Midianites, he protested, saying that he could not possibly save his people from bondage, since he and his family were insignificant. But God wasn’t looking for a significant man, just a submitted man—a man whose life was surrendered to God.

You see folks; God doesn’t use those who are significant in their own eyes to bring glory to His great name. Gideon was nothing and had nothing. However, that was all God required, because He is everything. God only needed an insignificant instrument through which to demonstrate His power. Paul brought out this very idea when he said: “But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;” (I Cor. 1: 27).

The story of Gideon is an amazing account of a man whom God called to be the instrument of His glory, in an impossible and hopeless situation. And in spite of insurmountable odds, God promised Gideon the victory. “Why would God do a thing like that?” you might ask. It was because when all the smoke cleared, the only explanation for the victory of God’s people over their enemies would be God Himself. Only God would receive the glory.

Folks, God wants to show Himself strong in the difficulties of our lives, not only to teach us how to trust and follow Him, but also to bring glory to his matchless name. God’s Word says:

“For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him…” (2 Chron. 16:9a).

“I am the Lord: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images” (Isa. 42:8).

Is your life revealing the glory of God? That should be the goal of every child of God’s life. As God’s glory was reveal through Gideon, He can reveal His glory through you.

Theme: God revealed His glory through:

I. GIDEON’S ARMY

A. These Soldiers Were Not To Be Fearful.

Judges 7:2 “And the Lord said unto Gideon, The people that are with thee are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel vaunt themselves against me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me.

3 Now therefore go to, proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, Whosoever is fearful and afraid, let him return and depart early from mount Gilead. And there returned of the people twenty and two thousand; and there remained ten thousand.”

NOTE: [1] The words Gideon heard from the Lord were probably not what he was hoping for. Without a doubt, from a human standpoint, even 32,000 men were insufficient for the monumental task at hand. After all, the Midianites and Amalekites had what appeared to be an innumerable host at their disposal.

[1a] In spite of the fact that Gideon’s army was obviously outnumbered, God said, “Gideon, you’ve got too many soldiers. If I give you the victory with 32,000 men, Israel will boast that they accomplished the feat on their own.”

Gas Mileage

According to a story in the Grand Rapids Press, the owner of a small foreign car had begun to irritate his friends by bragging incessantly about his gas mileage. So they decided on a way to get some humor out of his tireless boasting, as well as bring it to an end.

Every day one of them would sneak into the parking lot where the man kept his car and pour a few gallons of gas into the tank. Soon the braggart was recording absolutely phenomenal mileage. He was boasting of getting as much as 90 miles per gallon, and the pranksters took secret delight in his exasperation as he tried to convince people of the truthfulness of his claims. It was even more fun to watch his reaction when they stopped refilling the tank. The poor fellow couldn’t figure out what had happened to his car.1