“300”
Pt. 1
Introduction:
It was a blockbuster hit. Released in 2006 “300” told the tell of 300 Spartans, who under the leadership of the Spartan King Leonidus, take on the Persian King Xerxes. The result is the historical battle of Thermopylae which took place in 480BC. History isn’t exactly clear but as many as 20,000 men were sent into a pass to remove the Spartans and four 3 days they were unable to move them. Spartans were known for their valor and their fighting ability. Of course the movie overstates this; since history reveals that the Spartans weren’t alone in this fight. The movie makes it appear that only a few men from another region joined them. However, they were joined by forces from other areas that numbered as many as 6,100 soldiers.
Long before this battle took place there was a similar conflict that took place. However, the account we find in Judges 7 300 men and only 300 men actually did take on an overwhelming force. You know that I am of course talking about the account of Gideon and his men. Over the course of the next few weeks I want us to reexamine this account and learn some valuable lessons from it. I want us to start prior to the gather of the 300 men a little and then move forward.
Text: Judges 6:1-2, 11-16, 25-27; 7:1-7
1And the children of Israel did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah: and Jehovah delivered them into the hand of Midian seven years. 2And the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel; and because of Midian the children of Israel made them the dens which are in the mountains, and the caves, and the strongholds.
11And the angel of Jehovah came, and sat under the oak which was in Ophrah (ya’ll didn’t know she was in the Bible did you? That is as close as she has been to a Bible in a while too), that pertained unto Joash the Abiezrite: and his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites. 12And the angel of Jehovah appeared unto him, and said unto him, Jehovah is with thee, thou mighty man of valor. 13And Gideon said unto him, Oh, my lord, if Jehovah is with us, why then is all this befallen us? and where are all his wondrous works which our fathers told us of, saying, Did not Jehovah bring us up from Egypt? but now Jehovah hath cast us off, and delivered us into the hand of Midian. 14And Jehovah looked upon him, and said, Go in this thy might, and save Israel from the hand of Midian: have not I sent thee? 15And he said unto him, Oh, Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? behold, my family is the poorest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house. 16And Jehovah said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man.
25And it came to pass the same night, that Jehovah said unto him, Take thy father’s bullock, even the second bullock seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that thy father hath (some of you need to cut off and cut down some family things – just because your father or your mother sinned, was addicted, was divorced, was messed up doesn’t mean you have to continue that cycle), and cut down the Asherah that is by it; 26and build an altar unto Jehovah thy God upon the top of this stronghold, in the orderly manner, and take the second bullock, and offer a burnt-offering with the wood of the Asherah which thou shalt cut down. 27Then Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as Jehovah had spoken unto him: and it came to pass, because he feared his father’s household and the men of the city, so that he could not do it by day, that he did it by night.
1Jerub-Baal (Gideon) got up early the next morning, all his troops right there with him. They set up camp at Harod’s Spring. The camp of Midian was in the plain, north of them near the Hill of Moreh. 2GOD said to Gideon, “You have too large an army with you. I can’t turn Midian over to them like this—they’ll take all the credit, saying, ‘I did it all myself,’ and forget about me. 3Make a public announcement: ‘Anyone afraid, anyone who has any qualms at all, may leave Mount Gilead now and go home.’” Twenty-two companies headed for home. Ten companies were left. 4GOD said to Gideon: “There are still too many. Take them down to the stream and I’ll make a final cut. When I say, ‘This one goes with you,’ he’ll go. When I say, ‘This one doesn’t go,’ he won’t go.” 5So Gideon took the troops down to the stream. GOD said to Gideon: “Everyone who laps with his tongue, the way a dog laps, set on one side. And everyone who kneels to drink, drinking with his face to the water, set to the other side.” 6Three hundred lapped with their tongues from their cupped hands. All the rest knelt to drink. 7GOD said to Gideon: “I’ll use the three hundred men who lapped at the stream to save you and give Midian into your hands. All the rest may go home.”
II. Gideon
Before we can focus in on the men that Gideon gathers we must first understand the setting of this account and we must also understand Gideon.
The setting is that the Midianites had prevailed against the land of Israel for 7 years. Bondage had become so bad the children of Israel had begun to make houses and dens in the mountains to stay hidden from the Midianites. Every year the Midianites would come and take the crops and the fields that the Israelites had worked so hard to plant and tend.
Isn’t that just like the enemy? He seems to attack us in the area that we have worked the hardest. He seems to come against in the areas that mean the most.
Don’t be surprised if the enemy seeks out your most precious for an attack!
This is where we pick up the story. Gideon is hiding. The Word says that he is trying to thresh a little wheat and keep it from the Midianites. He is trying to be as stealthy as he can be. Don’t draw any attention. Hiding. Looking out for himself and his family. Minding his own business. Just trying to get what he needed to get by.
Gideon wasn’t the only one to ever hide. In fact, we have many accounts of men hiding, doing their own thing, and minding their own business when God comes calling. Moses is hiding on the back of a dessert when he is interrupted by a burning bush to be named a deliverer. Saul was hiding in the luggage when destiny interrupted and made him king. David was hiding as a cheese delivery boy when his name was called and he faced a giant. Paul was masquerading, hiding as an assassin when he was interrupted by destiny on the road to Damascus.
Many of you are in this place. You are hiding. You are trying to just get by. Minding your own business. Trying not to attract too much attention. Doing your own thing. You showed up at Passion Church bruised, battered, unsure, bitter, burned out ready to hide. I just want to sit back and scrape by, don’t call on me, don’t look at me, and don’t challenge me. But I am here to declare that this morning you are being interrupted by destiny. You may have thought you are here on a fluke. But I believe your steps have been ordered. This was a set up. You are being interrupted by destiny. This is no fluke. This is no accident. This isn’t just coincidence. God brought you here to change your survival to significance. He positioned you here to pull you out of hiding, to give you hope again, and to thrust you back into the fight!
You can’t hide forever! The day will come when you have to come out and fight. Come out come out where ever you are! It is time to recognize that God wants to use you again!
We could examine Gideon’s low self esteem. He didn’t recognize who he was. When the angel called him a mighty man of valor he balked and he sputtered out excuses as to why he couldn’t be who the angel said he was. And yet his excuses didn’t change who we was destined to be.
I am here to tell you that all of the excuses you have as to why you can’t do what God has called you to do doesn’t diminish or change the fact that you are called and if you are called you will be equipped to do what God said! You are a mighty man, you are mighty woman of valor. You just need a reality check. Don’t consult the mirror consult your God! Don’t consult your rival or your friend. Consult your God. What does He say about you?
Before Gideon could free others, before he could produce freedom in the nation, before he could run the enemy out of other people’s lives, before he could move into the realm of the significant, and before he could fulfill his destiny he had to clean out his own house. Gideon had to make sure his own house was in order and clean. He had to remove the idols from his own house.
We must start with us. Peter tells us that judgment must begin at the house of God. You have to do a self-inventory and cut down and destroy every idol. Everything and anything that comes before God must be destroyed. You must begin in your own house. Any relationship, any object, anything or anyone that must be removed. Music, dates, reputation, materials, anything that is an idol must come down. A total commitment to fulfilling your destiny in God mandates that you destroy every idol in your life. Before you can free anyone else. Before we can impact this community we must first deal with our own idols, our own sin, and our own issues. It is time to cut some things down. You produce freedom in anyone else until you are first free!
III. 300
It is after Gideon sets his household free that he is then ready to set his nation free. And it is at this point that we can focus on the 300 that join him. You will remember that when he makes the rallying cry that 32,000 men respond. Even then they were outnumbered because the Midianites had 135,000 soldiers. And yet God says to Gideon that his army is too large. So he sends all those who were afraid home and 22,000 walked off the battlefield.
a. I believe that more soldiers are lost in the kingdom due to fear than they are lost to sin. More soldiers are paralyzed by fear than they are sidelined by sickness. May I remind you that we have not been given the spirit of fear!
b. Insurmountable odds. 10,000 to 135,000. But the members of this army, particularly the 300, did not fear insurmountable odds.
These 300 men knew what they were facing. They had numerous opportunities to quit, throw in the towel, tuck tail and run. However, they refused.
I believe we must become a people, who have not only heard that God has not given us the spirit of fear, but also believe and live this truth. We must become an army of men and women who like the Three Hebrew Children refuse to give in or bow down just because it looks tough or just because the deck seems to be stacked against us. Even when it looks like there is no way out.
I am challenging you to become people that even when the odds may seem insurmountable, even when others will say it is impossible, even when the majority quit and give up because of fear you will stare the odds in the face and; though outnumbered, that you will realize that we aren’t outpowered. When faced with violence, threats, anger, and abuse you will continue pressing on and winning victories. To hold on when everyone else is letting go. To pray when everyone else has forgotten how to pray. To fast when everyone else is feasting. To go to war when everyone else is hiding in their homes! To claim your children when everyone else has given them over to the influences of this society. To fight for your marriage when everyone else says give up and find someone else.
Yes the odds are stacked against us, but we don’t fear the odds. We can beat the odds.
Don’t let fear keep you from winning the victories that God has already declared as yours. If we are to accomplish what God has called this church to accomplish it will take this kind of army!
c. Convenience doesn’t lead to conquering.
After gathering a great number of men Gideon is commanded to prune down the numbers by watching the men as they drink. God says those that lap like a dog are the ones that He has chosen. After they had been marching in the heat I am sure every man was extremely thirsty. It probably wasn’t very convenient for the men who were desperate for water to lap water like a dog. You can’t really get that much water drinking like this (go ahead try it, I know you want to). It would have been much easier and convenient to just do like everyone else and duck your head into the water to satisfy your thirst. It was messier and required more effort to drink like this, but this special group of men did it so that they could stay on guard and watch for the enemy.
We must get over the idea of being convenience. Church and the kingdom is not and has never been about and the concept of convenience. We have become spoiled to the point that we have taken societies expectations and placed them on the church. I can only worship if I am comfortable. What happened to a sacrifice of praise? I can only praise when the volume is right. What happened to making a joyful noise? I can only serve if I have time. What happened to acknowledging God in all of our ways? I can only tithe if I can make ends meet and see if I have enough left over. What happened to giving God the first fruit of our increase? This isn’t about you being convenienced. News flash - this is not a cake walk or a garden stroll this is war. War is never convenient and is never easy.
Convenience only leads to complacency, callousedness, and complaints.
We are in a spiritual battle and yet we want to live like we are on vacation.
I realize it isn’t convenient to stand out in a crowd. I understand that it isn’t convenient to go against the flow. I comprehend the fact that it isn’t comfortable to speak out against homosexuality, and lust, and drunkenness, and prejudice when everyone else is staying silent and preaching about your great, your life is great, your children are great, we are all great, so go out of here and have a great day. It isn’t easy to stand up when everyone else is bowing down. It isn’t exactly easy to pray that extra amount of time each day. It isn’t always fun to fast when everyone else is headed for Chili’s. But to be a member of this army you cannot be concerned with convenience.
No, our attention must be on conquering. We won’t concern ourselves with carpet color, worship styles, petty arguments, or turf wars. We are in battle. Souls are at stake. Our children are at stake. Our marriages are at stake.
Yes, being in this army requires more effort, more energy, and at times more sacrifice. But the members of this army also have more victories.
So my question for you is are you looking for easy street? Then you had better find another army because if you are you won’t find it here. Are you looking for someone to stroke your ego and ignore your sin so you can feel good about yourself for the rest of the day? If so, you won’t find it here. Are you looking for a place where we pick and choose which of the standards we want to follow out of God’s Word and throw the rest away (holiness, tithing, forgiveness, order)? You won’t find that here.
Are you trying to take the easy road or are you willing to be inconvenienced for the sake of the invasion?
While others worry about comfort and ease, join me as we forget about the effort, pain, and the occasional messiness and march into victory! I am looking for people like the 300 who were willing to face insurmountable odds and who are willing to pay the price of inconvenience when necessary.
Those kind of soldiers win wars and make history! In this instance we should embrace the Spartan’s mentality – “No Retreat, No Surrender.”
IV. Prayer
a. Willing to start with you.
b. Recognize the odds, but aren’t willing to bow down to them.
c. Will give up convenience and your own way to get the win?
