AN UNLIKELY HERO
Judges 6:1-12
1. And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord: and the Lord delivered them into the hand of Midian seven years.
2. And the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel: and because of the Midianites the children of Israel made them the dens which are in the mountains, and caves, and strong holds.
3. And so it was, when Israel had sown, that the Midianites came up, and the Amalekites, and the children of the east, even they came up against them;
4. And they encamped against them, and destroyed the increase of the earth, till thou come unto Gaza, and left no sustenance for Israel, neither sheep, nor ox, nor ass.
5. For they came up with their cattle and their tents, and they came as grasshoppers for multitude; for both they and their camels were without number: and they entered into the land to destroy it.
6. And Israel was greatly impoverished because of the Midianites; and the children of Israel cried unto the Lord.
7. And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried unto the Lord because of the Midianites,
8. That the Lord sent a prophet unto the children of Israel, which said unto them, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I brought you up from Egypt, and brought you forth 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 that oppressed you, and drave them out from before you, and gave you their land;
10. And I said unto you, I am the Lord your God; fear not the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but ye have not obeyed my voice.
11. And there came an angel of the Lord, and sat under an oak which was in Ophrah, that pertained unto Joash the Abiezrite: and his son Gideon threshed wheat by the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites.
12. And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him, and said unto him, The Lord is with thee, thou mighty man of valour.
WHAT QUALITIES MAKE UP A HERO
When I say the word "Hero," who is it that comes to your mind?
John Wayne?
Arnold Schwartzenaeger?
Or perhaps, Ronald Raegan?
Or maybe, George W. Bush?
When we think of Heroes, often we think of men portrayed with Grit, Character.We think of one who doesn’t neccassarily run from a fight. And here we find where a man camed Gideon was found hiding from the Mediates yet the Angel of the Lord called him, "A Mighty Man Of Valour." How can this be? We can see that Gideon was a bit timid due to the fact he was hiding from the Midianites in a wine press.
In those days, the wine presses were generally dug into the ground. Now then, if Scared, Nervous, ’Lil ’ol Gideon was looked upon by the Lord as a Hero, (Mighty Man Of Valor), that should be encouragement to many of us. If God could see the Hero in Gideon surely he can see a Hero in us! So now let’s look and see how Gideon was changed into this Great Leader of his people.
HE HAD A PERSONAL EXPERIENCE WITH THE LORD
(12) And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him, and said unto him, The Lord is with thee, thou mighty man of valour.
Now here’s a man hiding in a wine press, and an Angel of the Lord calls him, "A MIGHTY MAN OF VALOUR."
Don’t you kind of think his first thought might have been, "Hey, you got the wrong guy!" Gideon was saying to God; "You got the wrong man." "You are looking for a Great Soldier." "You are looking for a Super Hero, but not me!" Do you ever feel like you are too weak to do what God is asking you to do? I recall the Lord impressing upon me to Preach. To those of you who remember, I wasn’t so eager to do so. I would often call my preaching, "Speaking" to keep from accepting the fact that God had placed the call upon my life. In fact, I more or less said to the Lord at times, "Hey, you got the wrong guy." Gideon told God he had the wrong guy in the begining. He couldn’t see it. He couldn’t see how if he was to be the Hero of God’s people, how then could they be under oppression by the Midianites? But God had a plan! God always has a plan!
(14) And the Lord looked upon him, and said, Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites: have not I sent thee?
And then we find in the next verse (15), Gideon making excuses:
(15) And he said unto him, Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? behold, my family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house.
Yet in verse (16) the Lord says unto him I WILL be with you & you WILL strike down the Midianites!
The fist step in Gideon becoming "AN UNLIKELY HERO," was that he was called by God. If you are going to succeed you too must first be "Called by God."
The reason why many fail today is simply because they are relying on their own abilities. It wasn’t Gideon’s talents that God knew he could use; in fact, it was his disabilities God knew he could use. Often times God chooses what is weak to confound the wise. Often God chooses unlikely Men & Women to accomplish great things.
David was just an old Shepherd Boy; The youngest among his brethern. Yet he was later known as one who killed Bears & Lions & even a Giant Slayer.
Rahab apparently an Harlot. God used her to house the two Israelite Spies which saved all of her house
Moses who was hid as a child to escape death from Pharoah. Later he freed the Israelites from slavery from Egypt.
Jepthae son of a harlot; knew not his father; own brothers sought to kill him. Yet in the end, those who cast him out sought him and he later led the children to victory.
If you have had an Experience with the Lord, nothing can stop you, if you follow through, on his will!
How many times over the years has our Pastor and this church been attacked? What has kept him & will keep him is the call of God! All of the battles yet he and the church continues on! We all know our pastor not to have the voice of an Angel when it comes to singing. But how many times has that same voice said the sinners prayer with someone that was lost? If you are in the will of God, no matter your circumstances, you too can be, "AN UNLIKELY HERO!"
GIDEON CLEANED UP HIS OWN HOUSE FIRST
Hey, start from where you are! Before God sends him off to fight the Midianites God gives him a task to fulfill at home. First he has to go and remove the source of idolatry that’s polluting his home town.
You have to clean up your own act before God can use you. All too often today many of us Christians find ourselves depending on our money, status, politics. We get caught up in the pursuits of this world.
Yet we must be as Gideon and put things in order for God to be able to use us.
It wasn’t an easy thing for Gideon to do, but he did it. Despite the timidity of his actions, look at the effect it has on his father. It’s as though his father has been waiting for someone to do something about these idols. Perhaps timidity was a family trait! When the men of the town protest to Joash, he tells them that if Baal really is a god he can look after himself. But if anyone wants to take Baal’s side they’ll be put to death. Gideon’s action has reawakened Joash’s devotion to the LORD.
So God tells Gideon to start at home, for a number of reasons. One is to clean up their own act before they start fighting their enemies. Another is to show him that he isn’t alone. There are others who care about serving God. Thirdly it shows him in a small way that when he acts God will bring him success.
What makes a hero?
Is it one’s own ability?
Is it becuase one has been given good teachers?
Is it the training that one receives?
I tell you what realy makes a Hero;
IT’S A GIFT FROM GOD
A Gift from God.
Here we discover the secret of the great heroes of the Bible. The real secret is that God chooses to equip people in special ways for his work.
(33)Then all the Midianites and the Amalekites and the children of the east were gathered together, and went over, and pitched in the valley of Jezreel.
(34) But the Spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet; and Abiezer was gathered after him.
God took this little timid, scared, man that was once found hiding in the wine press and made him a Great leader of his people.
Suddenly, Gideon blows the trumpet and 32,000 men come out to fight with him! How did this happen? The Spirit of the Lord came upon him! The Spirit of the Lord took possesion of him, empowered him! This same Spirit is the same Spirit that empowers us today! He’s a gift! Who is he? He’s called, "The Holy Ghost!"
Jesus said; (John 16:7-8)
(7) Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.
(8) And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:
Then Jesus said;
(John 14:12)
(12)Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.
Then Jesus says; (Acts1:8)
(8) But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
You say, "I can’t meet up to the challenge of being a Christian." "I can’t tell others about Jesus." Oh yes you can! You can be that Hero! Look upon Gideon’s life. If God can turn Gideon into a mighty warrior, he can do the same for you! If you’re worried about whether you’re up to the challenge of being Jesus’ disciple then take courage from the example of Gideon, the mighty warrior; mighty only because of God’s mighty power which enabled him to do great things.
Who is a canidate to be "AN UNLIKELY HERO?" You are looking at him. And if you will go home and look in the mirror, you will see another one. The fact is we’re all "UNLIKLEY HEROES." If it wasn’t for God’s mercy & grace none of us would be able to do anything that we do for him. It is a gift. And a gift is to be treasured. Do you have that giftt? Do you know that Spirit that empowers men & women to do great things for his work? It is for you. God’s gift is for you.
copyright 2002 by James W. Bryant
