Note: I would like to thank Wayne Dority for his message on Gideon, and Jamie Wright for the message The Devil's Worst Nightmare.
Jdg 6:1-13 Then the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD. So the LORD delivered them into the hand of Midian for seven years, (2) and the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel. Because of the Midianites, the children of Israel made for themselves the dens, the caves, and the strongholds which are in the mountains. (3) So it was, whenever Israel had sown, Midianites would come up; also Amalekites and the people of the East would come up against them. (4) Then they would encamp against them and destroy the produce of the earth as far as Gaza, and leave no sustenance for Israel, neither sheep nor ox nor donkey. (5) For they would come up with their livestock and their tents, coming in as numerous as locusts; both they and their camels were without number; and they would enter the land to destroy it. (6) So Israel was greatly impoverished because of the Midianites, and the children of Israel cried out to the LORD. (7) And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried out to the LORD because of the Midianites, (8) that the LORD sent a prophet to the children of Israel, who said to them, "Thus says the LORD God of Israel: 'I brought you up from Egypt and brought you out of the house of bondage; (9) 'and I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians and out of the hand of all who oppressed you, and drove them out before you and gave you their land. (10) 'Also I said to you, "I am the LORD your God; do 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 tree which was in Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, while his son Gideon threshed wheat in the winepress, in order 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, you mighty man of valor!" (13) Gideon said to Him, "O my lord, if the LORD is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying, 'Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt?' But now the LORD has forsaken us and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites."
Introduction
In Judges 6 we see the same cycle repeated. Over and over again in Judges the Israelites would sin against God, they would raise up their idols and God would send a nation to oppress them. Then they would finally get fed up and cry out to the Lord for help. God would send a deliver (never as they expected it) and deliver them for a season, it seems until another generation would raise up.
Reminds me of our pattern. We sin and in out sin God sends judgement. For some it maybe a slight tug at the heart for others it may be an exposure.
Illustration
Over the last two weeks we have watched the drama play out for the coach of Arkansas(Bobby Petrino) who had an affair and was caught by wrecking his motorcycle with the woman on the back.
Then we turn to the Lord and as always He is faithful. He forgives us.
Here in chapter 6 we read the story of Gideon. Gideon is the chosen deliver for Israel. As we look at this man let us read about who he is.
Gideon – Man of Valor? Valor – strength, strong, brave, integrity
Seemingly contradiction compared to where Gideon was – In the winepress hiding from the Midianites. But the good news is he was working.
IN other words GOD SEES SOMETHING IN YOU THAT YOU DON’T SEE IN YOURSELF
Gideon’s Question – If God is with us 1) why are we in this condition 2) where are all the miracles
Jesus said in Mark 16:17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; 18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
Gideon – Humble Beginnings
From the smallest of tribes
Offered up sacrifice of fleece before he began
Cleaned out his private before he could go public
Gideon – Unsure of self
Gideon – God’s mighty warrior
Characteristics of Gideon
Humility
Willing
Filled with the Spirit of the Lord – Judges 6:34 “the Spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon” literally means that it “clothed” Gideon
Faith
Obedience
Gideon’s Fleeces
The sacrifice
The flessces
Calling and Separating of an Army
32,000 called
Separate 22,000 who are afraid
Look if you will in chapter 7 verse 1,
"Then Jerubabal, who is Gideon, and all the people that were with him, rose up early, and pitched beside the well of Hard: so that the host of the Midianites were on the north side of them, by the hill of Moreh, in the valley. 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. 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."
Gideon says, “anybody who is afraid can go home.”
And after the dust settles twenty-two thousand have left.
God cannot and God will not use cowards
God says, Everybody who's afraid, go home.
Fear suits you for failure and not for fighting.
“FEAR IS A DARK ROOM WHERE PEOPLE DEVELOP THEIR NEGATIVES.”
Fear will paralyze you from doing impossibilities for God.
Why did God want the cowards to go home?
Because fear is infectious.
Deuteronomy 20:8, "And the officers shall speak further unto the people, and they shall say, What man is there that is fearful and fainthearted? let him go and return unto his house, lest his brethren's heart faint as well as his heart."
There is something about fearful people that infects other people
Joshua sent the twelve spies out. Ten came back and gave a fearful report. And nobody wanted to go into the land.
We’re always faced with people who are fearful, People who don't believe God can do what God wants to do. God has not given us the spirit of fear.
God has given us the spirit of power and of love and of a sound mind."
I'm speaking to people today who could teach,
But you don't teach because you're afraid.
I'm speaking of people who ought to tithe, But you don't tithe because you're afraid.
I'm speaking to some people who ought to witness, But you don't witness because you're afraid.
Some of you could sing, But the icy fingers of fear, has griped your throat and you dont sing.
Fear and faith don't live in the same heart.
Fear will conquer faith, or faith will conquer fear, One will conquer the other.
The nightmares
Jdg 7:12-15 Now the Midianites and Amalekites, all the people of the East, were lying in the valley as numerous as locusts; and their camels were without number, as the sand by the seashore in multitude. (13) And when Gideon had come, there was a man telling a dream to his companion. He said, "I have had a dream: To my surprise, a loaf of barley bread tumbled into the camp of Midian; it came to a tent and struck it so that it fell and overturned, and the tent collapsed." (14) Then his companion answered and said, "This is nothing else but the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel! Into his hand God has delivered Midian and the whole camp." (15) And so it was, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream and its interpretation, that he worshiped. He returned to the camp of Israel, and said, "Arise, for the LORD has delivered the camp of Midian into your hand."
The other man said, That barley bread is Gideon.
Gideon in himself was nothing, nothing when the Lord said unto him, Hail thou, man of valor.
He said, I'm the least in my father's house. My family is the poorest in Manasseh and I'm the least in my father's house.
He said, Of all the tribes, my family's the worst. And of all the kids, I'm the runt of the litter. I'm the least in my father's house.
And God called him a man of valor. He's just a piece of barley bread,
But God said, You go down there, and I will show you what the enemy thinks.
Listen, The devil knows more about you than you know about you.
The dread of hell is that you'll wake up to the power that God has given you.
Let me tell you friend, God wants to put his life into you.
6:34 The Bible says, "But the Spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon."
Do you see that? The spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon.
May I tell you what the literal translation of that is, "the Lord clothed Himself with Gideon."
Illustration: The Coat
I brought my special coat today; I want you to see it.
See that coat? You've never seen a coat just like that. That is an incredible coat. It can do magnificent things.
Now watch this, I want you to see what this coat can do. Are you ready?
Coat, stand up. It's awful when you have a disobedient coat.
Coat, wave your arms. Coat, hold up my Bible.
You say, wait a minute Pastor, you're loosing it.
No, no this is a great coat, I'm just doing it wrong. Watch. Put Coat on
Coat, stand up. Did you see that?
Coat, wave your arms. That's pretty neat, eh?
Watch this ... Coat, hold up my Bible. Pastor, that's dumb.
That's not the coat, that's you in the coat. It's not the man, it's God in the man.
Verse 34, that God clothed Himself with Gideon. God wore Gideon like a suit of clothes.
Zechariah 4:6'Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' Says the LORD of hosts.
Gideon's just that barley bread.
It's not your scholarship, it's your relationship.
It's not your ability, it's your availability.
It's not your fame, it's your faith.
It's not who you are, it's whose you are.
1 Corinthians 1:26, "… how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: 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."
THE WORST NIGHTMARE TO THE DEVIL IS THAT YOU WILL DISCOVER WHO YOU ARE IN CHRIST.
HELL’S WORST NIGHTMARE IS THAT YOU WILL WAKE UP AND BELIEVE THAT
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me
Greater is he who is in me
No weapon formed against me shall prosper
I am more than a conqueror
I am not bound I am free
The Defeat
Jdg 7:16-22 Then he divided the three hundred men into three companies, and he put a trumpet into every man's hand, with empty pitchers, and torches inside the pitchers. (17) And he said to them, "Look at me and do likewise; watch, and when I come to the edge of the camp you shall do as I do: (18) "When I blow the trumpet, I and all who are with me, then you also blow the trumpets on every side of the whole camp, and say, 'The sword of the LORD and of Gideon!'" (19) So Gideon and the hundred men who were with him came to the outpost of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, just as they had posted the watch; and they blew the trumpets and broke the pitchers that were in their hands. (20) Then the three companies blew the trumpets and broke the pitchers; they held the torches in their left hands and the trumpets in their right hands for blowing; and they cried, "The sword of the LORD and of Gideon!" (21) And every man stood in his place all around the camp; and the whole army ran and cried out and fled. (22) When the three hundred blew the trumpets, the LORD set every man's sword against his companion throughout the whole camp; and the army fled to Beth Acacia, toward Zererah, as far as the border of Abel Meholah, by Tabbath.
Torch- the Holy Spirit
Pitcher-our lives with the Holy Spirit inside. Must be broken so all can see.
The shout and trumpets-burning testimonies
Now I said all of this to say to you. We are in a battle. Our church is in a battle. A battle for the souls of this world. We are in war. We are called out to do battle. The question is are we willing. I sit back sometimes and ask God what is the purpose of our church. Why are we here? God what are you trying to do in this church? Then he says you are here for the souls. The souls, the souls. As we stand.
2 Corinthians 10:3-5 says, "For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds): Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;"
Isaiah 54:17, "No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD."
God can use our weaknesses
All God needs from us is Our clay bodies, Our light, and Our Trumpet Call
2Co 4:6-7 KJV For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. (7) But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.
2Co 12:9 KJV And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me
Zechariah 4:6, "… Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts."
Isaiah 55:8-9, "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts."
