Warriors in the Army of God
By Pastor Jim May
Welcome Warriors, Oh Mighty Men and Women of Valor! Welcome courageous youth; welcome children of God who have come to join the fight; Welcome to the Lord’s Army. All of you have volunteered for service, for the duration of your life, and you are here today to be prepared, trained and equipped for battle against the greatest enemy that mankind has ever faced.
We are not fighting for our American freedoms. We are not fighting for territory, wealth or power and control. We are not fighting for oil and natural resources. We are going to battle for a greater cause than all of those things combined. We will fight so that evil will not prevail, that righteousness, justice and goodness will reign supreme, and for the eternal glory of Heaven and the destiny of millions of lost souls.
Do not be fearful, for your commander has never lost a battle. At the same time, do not think that this will be an easy fight, for your enemy is not easily defeated. And even though you will be fighting against forces more powerful than any power on earth, you can go to war knowing that He who leads you is greater than any enemy and you will prevail.
You may not think of yourself as a hero. I’m sure that most of us didn’t wake up this morning, look into the mirror and say, “I’m a Mighty Warrior! I’m are a Hero! I am courageous, bold and prepared for war.” In fact, if we had looked into the mirror the first thing we might have done was to scream because we scared ourselves. Even after we do our best to correct the flaws, paste down the hair that has developed a mind of its own during the night, covered the wrinkles and tried to make ourselves presentable to the world, I doubt that many of us would have stood there with great admiration and said, “Wow! I am a mighty man or woman of God! Come on Devil, just make my day!”
But you are just that, a Mighty Warrior for God! Every day that you live you are fighting a war, battling against every power of hell that Satan can throw against you. And guess what? YOU ARE WINNING THE FIGHT! How do I know you’re winning? I know because you are still here, right now, hearing this message, sitting in this church, and doing all that you can to be an overcomer! You are winning – it may not seem so at times when you’re in the thick of the fight and demons are screaming in your ear and your heart is about to break in sorrow – but YOU ARE WINNING!
You cannot lose; and you won’t be defeated, just as long as you hold on to God’s unchanging hand.
John 10:27-29, "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand."
I know that most of us will never think of ourselves as men and women of valor but let me assure you that God looks down upon you and that’s exactly what He sees in you!
There was a man in the Bible who never thought of himself as a Mighty Man of Valor. When we first begin to see him, he is nothing but a farmer, harvesting grain in a secret place where he can hide from the enemy so that they won’t come and destroy his crops. His story can be found in the Book of Judges.
Here is how the story begins and it really isn’t a surprise because it happens so many times throughout the Old Testament. Israel had fallen into sin and God allowed the Midianites to put them under bondage and to tax Israel into extreme poverty. How many of you like taxes?
Don’t you just love the idea of paying taxes out of your hard-earned money so that some loafer somewhere can sit home and watch soap operas on his new High Definition, big screen TV? That’s what I call living the American Dream! That’s what we all work for and live for. I love paying taxes so George, down the street, can sleep until noon, lounge around all afternoon and then party all night. Doesn’t it just give you a warm, fuzzy feeling to know that your taxes are going for such a worthy cause!
The United States of America was born because of the same things that were happening in Israel thousands of years ago. The Boston Tea Party, one the events that led to the American Revolution against King George of the British Empire, happened because of an unfair tax on tea that was imposed upon the colonies. Taxation without representation was considered intolerable. The colonists of the New World refused to pay taxes to a king that would not allow them to have a vote or voice in the British Parliament, and so they raided the ships loaded with tea in the harbor at Boston and threw it all into the ocean in protest.”
And so, in the 6th chapter of Judges we find our mighty man of valor, our hero, hiding out from the tax collectors, “cheating on his taxes”, and harvesting grain. Then, just as he lifted another pitchfork of wheat into the air to throw it and separate the wheat from the chaff, he was surprised by the sudden appearance of the angel of the Lord
Judges 6:11-12 "And there came an angel of the LORD, and sat under an oak which was in Ophrah, (now that wasn’t Oprah Winfrey’s back yard, but a secluded place in the hills of Israel) that pertained unto Joash the Abiezrite: and his son Gideon threshed wheat by the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites. And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him, and said unto him, The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valor."
Oh Great! Here’s our Hero, cheating on his taxes, harvesting wheat and hiding out from the very enemy he is supposed to defeat for God. There just seems to be something wrong with this picture! What is there about Gideon that God saw, that I just can’t see? What made his stand out among all of the other farmers, shepherds, carpenters and anyone else in Israel?
Could it have been that he was more courageous? His courage will be proven later on, but I don’t see that now. He is hiding in fear.
Could it have been that he was a master strategist, who understood how to made battle plans that would work? No – he is nothing more than a farmer. He never went to the West Point of Israel, neither was he trained in covert ops or guerilla warfare. He didn’t join the Green Beret Special Forces, Navy Seals, or had any kind of training in hand-to-hand combat. He was a simple farmer trying to make a living any way that he could.
Could it be that he was a great leader and mad of influence among his people? I just don’t see that right now. There’s no crowd standing around waiting for him to make a big speech, no bands are playing and his name is not posted on every telephone pole, street corner and vacant lot. In fact, it seems that he is all alone, in the middle of nowhere, and working by himself to get enough food for his family.
Could it be that he prayed more than anyone else? Or did he go to the synagogue or temple more than anyone else? Or did he have a special ministry of deliverance as he traveled around in his horse-drawn RV? No, I don’t see any of that either.
So what was different about Gideon? Why did God call him a “Mighty Man of Valor”?
None of us can see those things in ourselves either. We don’t see ourselves as great leaders in God’s army. We certainly don’t know how we will win the next battle. We often enter the battle wondering how we will ever get out of it this time. We don’t have any special training or knowledge on how to defeat the devil every time. Not many people even care what we think, or what we have to say, and most of us are glad that we aren’t in the limelight that much because we like our privacy too much. Even though we all pray, come to church, and love the Lord, there’s nothing super-spiritual about us at all. We are nothing more than sinners, saved by the grace of God and the Blood of Jesus. Just plain, common, ordinary Christians, just trying to make it to Heaven by God’s mercy.
Hero? Mighty man or woman of valor? Leader of men? No – that’s not me. I can barely lead myself, and sometimes this church or my family, but certainly not the armies of God in the fight against the devil!
That’s what Gideon thought too. He was just like all of us. He didn’t know where God was taking him or what God saw in him. In fact, he began to question God and to try to “crawfish” from the call of God. (For those not from Louisiana that means to back away quickly)
Judges 6:13-17, "And Gideon said unto him, Oh my Lord, if the LORD be with us, why then is all this befallen us? and where be all his miracles which our fathers told us of, saying, Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt? but now the LORD hath forsaken us, and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites. 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 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. And the LORD said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man. And he said unto him, If now I have found grace in thy sight, then shew me a sign that thou talkest with me."
Now isn’t that just like a good old born again, Holy Ghost filled, tongue-talking, devil-chasing, anointed, called of God, and chosen Pentecostal! Gideon wanted a “sign”. He just couldn’t take God’s Word by faith and move on it. He had to have a sign. He began to fleece God for a sign with a fleece from a sheep!
You know the story. Let the fleece by dry and the ground wet in the morning. Then let the fleece by wet and the ground dry. One sign wasn’t enough, God’s Word wasn’t enough. Gideon just wanted to know beyond any shadow of doubt that it was really God talking to him. HAVE YOU EVER PLACED A FLEECE BEFORE GOD INSTEAD OF JUST STEPPING OUT BY FAITH AT HIS WORD TO YOU?
It certainly wasn’t Gideon’s great faith and pure trust in God that caused God to call him a mighty man of valor!
I think by now, some of us are beginning to get a little spark of hope to arise. We are beginning to see that all of our faults, failures and short-comings are not what God is focusing on. Gideon has all of the same things in his life but God still calls him a mighty man of valor! Maybe, just maybe, there’s something in me that God sees, that I just haven’t seen yet! Is there hope for me? Can I be a might warrior for the Lord? It is possible? YES IT IS AND YOU WILL SOON SEE WHAT STOOD OUT IN GIDEON THAT GOD SAW!
Judges 6:22-24, "And when Gideon perceived that he was an angel of the LORD, Gideon said, Alas, O Lord GOD! for because I have seen an angel of the LORD face to face. And the LORD said unto him, Peace be unto thee; fear not: thou shalt not die. Then Gideon built an altar there unto the LORD…"
When we finally do like Gideon and realize that we have lived in doubt and fear, and we have questioned God, failing to do His will as He has directed us to do, then we often have the same reaction as Gideon. How many times have I heard people say, “God won’t use me becasue I’ve messed up too much. I’m just not called to a ministry for the Lord.”
That’s hogwash! Romans 11:29 says, "For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance." God has called all of us to do a work for Him and He never removes that calling. Even though He often has to find someone else who will do what we refuse to do, the call of God is still there and we will have to either fulfill the duties that God has called us to do or answer for them in the judgment. God expects every one of us to be a mighty warrior for His kingdom.
The reason that so many of God’s people never really get into the fight can be found in the story of Gideon’s army.
He began with a sizable force even though his army was still outnumbered by the Midianites. But a large army wasn’t what God needed. All God needed was a few valiant warriors who would have enough faith and trust to attack the Midianites. God began to select the warriors for the battle.
Judges 7:2-6, "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. And the LORD said unto Gideon, The people are yet too many; bring them down unto the water, and I will try them for thee there: and it shall be, that of whom I say unto thee, This shall go with thee, the same shall go with thee; and of whomsoever I say unto thee, This shall not go with thee, the same shall not go. So he brought down the people unto the water: and the LORD said unto Gideon, Every one that lappeth of the water with his tongue, as a dog lappeth, him shalt thou set by himself; likewise every one that boweth down upon his knees to drink. And the number of them that lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, were three hundred men: but all the rest of the people bowed down upon their knees to drink water."
Was there anything wrong with being afraid? After all, even with all of Gideon’s men present they were still vastly outnumbered and going against the most powerful, and well-armed enemy in the region. Who wouldn’t be a little afraid of what might happen?
Fear is a crippler! It can stop faith in its tracks. Fear in the heart of God’s people has caused us to miss out on so many of God’s blessings. We have lost so many battles with the devil just because he strikes fear into our hearts. Fear comes because of a lack of faith and trust in God’s Word. That’s why God chose to send the fearful warriors home. They didn’t need to hinder the fight. Their fear wouldn’t defeat the Midianites, so they went home to fight another day. Sooner or later, all of them would have to fight. If not the Midianites, then another enemy, because the battles are always there and the enemy never quits. Their time to be a might warrior for God will come if they just continue on.
What about being thirsty? Was there anything wrong with being thirsty? After all, they were marching and camping in dry, mountainous country. It was probably hot and dusty and they needed water. So it wasn’t wrong to be thirsty. It was a natural desire to have that water.
The question is, how did they get their water? Did they throw caution to the wind, throw themselves into the water and just begin to gulp it down to quench their thirst? Did they swallow every little wind of doctrine that entered their mouths? Did they forget about the enemy, drop their guard and go after that water like that was all that mattered?
All but 300 of Gideon’s army did just that! They threw down the weapons of their warfare, cast aside their shields and swords, dove into the water with all their might and just began to satisfy the needs and desires of the flesh, forgetting that there was a deadly powerful enemy out there just seeking to devour and destroy them once and for all.
Doesn’t that sound like so many of God’s warriors in the church today? Too many of us are all about satisfying the desires of the flesh and the needs that we think we just have to have to enjoy life. Too many cast aside the Bible, forget about prayer, let their faith be shipwrecked, and turn away from serving the Lord in fear simply because they want what they want more than what God wants and they forget that the devil is more than happy to throw a carrot in front of their nose to draw them away from God where he can defeat them.
But God wouldn’t allow the fearful and those who would not stay on guard to share in the victory. He sent them all back to get some more training. God was going to defeat the enemy. He was going to win the battle. But those who failed the tests would never experience the “Thrill of Victory” and never know that it was God who would win the battle and not the armies of Israel. Israel would benefit by God’s victory, but they didn’t defeat the Midianites, God did it all!
The rest of the story of Gideon is one that we all know. With broken pitchers, lamps and trumpets, God used 300 men to defeat an army of many thousands. Almighty God, the Commander of the Hosts of Israel and of Heaven did it again! Was there a doubt that God would win? I don’t know what Gideon thought for sure. Maybe by this time he knew that the battle was won, or maybe there was still a small about of doubt that Israel would prevail. Regardless of what he thought, God still routed the Midianites and Israel was delivered once again.
Have you seen what God saw in Gideon that made Gideon a “Mighty Man of Valor”? Just in case you haven’t let me tell you what it was.
God looked at this poor, uneducated, untrained farmer and saw a “Mighty Man of Valor” because God looked past all the weaknesses of the flesh and saw a heart that loved God and that would obey God, learning to trust in God, no matter what the cost!
Is that you this morning? Does God see that kind of heart and spirit within you? Are you willing to be obedient to the end? Are you willing to take God at His Word, put your trust in Him and go out and defeat the devil? Will you stay faithful to God until the battle is over?
If so, then you really are a “Mighty man or woman of valor”, and a mighty warrior for God. And God is looking for a few good men and women who will fill the ranks of His army.
We are the Church of the Living God and we are marching forward. Keep your eyes on the enemy, but put your faith and trust in Jesus Christ and march on! Victory is yours as God fights your battles.
You are a “Mighty man or woman of valor” so go out and beat the devil. Make him run from you in fear.
