Fine wine from dry wheat
Are you talking to me?
Judges 6:11-16
When you think of a hero, you’re usually inclined to think of strength, great intellect, personal charisma and beauty, or enormous wealth. But our hero today had none of these. He started out as a quiet peaceful farmer, but was transformed into a warrior in a most unlikely fashion.
Today we are talking a about Gideon.
During this time the nation of Israel was occasionally were led by judges who were raised up by God to call the people to together for common good and to bring them back to proper worship of God. Just before our scriptures today, the land had peace for 40 years. Then the people again start doing evil in God’s sight.
For 7 years God has allowed the people of Israel to be attacked and abused. They brought it on themselves. They are living in the promised land and fighting all the different neighbors that they failed to remove when they first entered.
Judges 6:11-16
The angel of the LORD came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, where his son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress to keep it from the Midianites. When the angel of the LORD appeared to Gideon, he said, "The LORD is with you, mighty warrior."
"But sir," Gideon replied, "if the LORD is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our fathers told us about when they said, ’Did not the LORD bring us up out of Egypt?’ But now the LORD has abandoned us and put us into the hand of Midian."
The LORD turned to him and said, "Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?"
"But Lord , " Gideon asked, "how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family."
The LORD answered, "I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites together."
When we first meet Gideon he is doing the work of a farmer. He is threshing wheat. Pretty normal stuff. Except he was threshing wheat in a wine press. You all know how to thresh wheat, right? You take a big scoop of wheat and pour it on the floor, use a round stick and lightly crush the seeds. Then you toss batches of crushed seeds in the air and let the chaff, the crusty outside blow away.
That is what Gideon was trying to do. Clean up enough wheat to feed somebody, maybe his family or to sell. However, we was in a winepress.
Normally a threshing floor was on top of a hill to take advantage of the wind from any direction. It really helps to separate the chaff. A wine press on the other hand was normally down in a valley. It was a cistern like one that might be used to hold water. The grapes were smashed and the juice collected in the cistern.
An angel of God comes to Gideon at this moment. He looks like a coward. Trying to stay out of sight. Perhaps desperate to try to keep what little he has. Trying to hide it from the Midianites.
I guess if I had people that came to steal and destroy all I have leaving with little or nothing I would be a pretty desperate character as well. I would guess he is pretty bitter about life. This introduction to Gideon is not exactly a picture of strength and power ore courage.
But, The angel appears and says “"The LORD is with you, mighty warrior."
I imaging that Gideon looks around wondering who the angel is talking to. When he is sure they are alone, he is thinking, sorry fella you have go the wrong guy.
And he tries to make a point, If the Lord is with us, how can all this happen?
Every group of people that pass by attack and take what they want from us. The medinaites are a constant thorn in our side. Where are the wonders that our fathers talked about. Where is the God that led people out of Egypt? He has abandoned us.
Gideon is not exactly the poster child for encouragement and readiness. He is more likely the best example for a defeated people. Hiding and wanting to avoid conflict. And trying to place blame for all that is happening on God.
He neglects to mention how the people are acting. What they are doing and that they might have some personal level of failure and blame themselves.
Two things contributed to his cowardice: bitterness and timidity. Gideon was set up to live a life of frustration. He was bitter with God for not coming through for him. In addition to the bitterness, Gideon felt that he had nothing to offer to help improve things. He didn’t have the skills and power to turn things around he thought.
The angel does not address Godeon’s statements.
The LORD turned to him and said, "Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?"
"But Lord , " Gideon asked, "how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family."
Go in the strength you have and save Israel.
I have heard people say , be careful what you pray for, you might get it. Gideon has issues about his environment and when he gets a chance to talk to an angel about it the angel says, that is why I am here. I am sending you to take care of the Mideanite problem.
Gideon does not seem happy about the response to the problems. He starts back pedaling “But Lord, how can I deliver Israel? Just look! My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my family.”
You’ve got the wrong guy. You need a hardened warrior to do this.
Question: Are you hiding down in a winepress threshing wheat and afraid to go public with your faith in God – afraid to do the task that God wants you to do?
Gideon was bitter, disappointed, timid, and afraid. Like Gideon, we can all give great reasons to be bitter, and push away from God but there is no life there.
We are constantly in situations where we feel the pressure and pain of the world. The bills are too high, Gasoline prices steal from the food budget. Medical bills wipe out all the extra they kept for a rainey day.
This does not even consider all the crime and the war that steals our ability to live a free life. It is easy to be disappointed and discouraged and isolate ourselves moving into a personal winepress out of sight from the dangers.
I could tell you that is not how to act. I could try to convince you that there is nothing to be afraid of. But my words mean nothing to you and they would have really meant nothing to Gideon.
The thing that changed Gideon was a personal encounter with God. That is what changed Gideon. And that is what all of us need this morning.
We have been thrashing around in the winepress far too long. The Midianites are winning. We have suffered; our families has suffered; and our church has suffered. We need a God-encounter if you’re going to make it out of the winepress.
Gideon gave all of his best excuses and the angel gave him a reply,
The LORD answered, "I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites together."
We will be looking at what happened to Gideon during this month. We will be comparing how this encounter changes Gideon and enabled him to do the impossible for God
