"Here Comes The Judge - Gideon"

Here Comes The Judge – Gideon

Judges 6:11-17 (NLT)

The period of Israel’s history in the book of Judges is like a merry-go-round; a time full of ups and downs. Judges is set shortly after the conquest of Canaan. Moses and Joshua are both dead and buried. Great kings like Saul, David, and Solomon are yet to be born. The Bible describes the situation like this: “In those days there was no king in Israel; every man did what was right in his own eyes.” 

The nation of Israel was now suffering under the oppression of the Midianites. Israel was out manned and outgunned. The Midianites covered the landscape like grasshoppers, 135,000 strong. The land of Israel was terrorized by abuse and robbery. Can you imagine, farming your land, working hard to plough, plant and tend your crops; then others steal the produce. How would you feel knowing you cannot do a thing about it. This was the plight of Israel. How many of us have felt robbed in life? Each time things start to go right, something happens, and it’s gone. Every time God gives you something, it turns to disappointment again.

Gideon’s story takes place in Judges 6, the first verse of which says, “The Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight. So the Lord handed them over to the Midianites for seven years. The Midianites were so cruel that the Israelites made hiding places for themselves in the mountains, caves, and strongholds.” (Judges 6:1-2). 

When God comes to Gideon, he was busy working, threshing wheat, in a winepress! God comes to us when we are doing the everyday things in life. God is a present help in the time of trouble. Here in our lesson, God chooses to alleviate the suffering of His people by calling Gideon to be a judge. 

Gideon expected God to intervene miraculously, but God chose to work through Gideon’s leadership. Listen, God’s people cannot always depend on miracles to lead us out of trouble. We must be ready to answer God’s call to obedient action. God seeks a committed people, not an opportunity to show off his amazing power. He can help through miracles but often chooses to work His miracles through committed people. We must pray like everything depends on God, then get up and work like everything depends on us.

But Gideon wasn’t what you might expect from a mighty hero at first. In reality, when we first see Gideon, he was somewhat of a coward.

#1 – GIDEON WAS A COWARD

The Bible introduces us to Gideon, saying, “Then the angel of the Lord came and sat beneath the great tree at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash of the clan of Abiezer. Gideon son of Joash was threshing wheat at the bottom of a winepress to hide the grain from the Midianites.” (Judges 6:11).

The last place you would want to thresh wheat is at the bottom of a winepress. Threshing floors were usually wide-open spaces where the wind could blow freely. A winepress is just the opposite—a hollowed out stone pit, into which grapes were packed and then danced on in order to squeeze out the juice. Within the small confines of a winepress only a very minute amount of wheat could be threshed at a time. Yet, Gideon was attempting to thresh his wheat inside the winepress because he was afraid of the Midianites. Another translation says, “Gideon, had been threshing wheat by hand in the bottom of a grape press…for he was hiding from the Midianites.” This isn’t exactly the picture of heroism, is it?

There were two contributing factors that led to Gideon’s cowardice—bitterness and a poor self-worth. When the angel appeared to Gideon, his first words are, “Mighty hero, the Lord is with you!” Mighty hero, the angel calls him! But you can almost hear the despondency in Gideon’s voice, when he replies, “Sir, if the LORD is with us, why has all this happened to us? And where are all the miracles our ancestors told us about? Didn’t they say, ‘The LORD brought us up out of Egypt’? But now the LORD has abandoned us and handed us over to the Midianites” (vs. 13). Can you sense his bitterness and frustration with God? Can you relate?

As the conversation continues, the angel tells him that God has chosen him to save Israel, but again Gideon reveals his pessimistic heart, saying, “How and with what could I ever save Israel? Look at me. My clan’s the weakest in Manasseh and I’m the runt of the litter.” 

Gideon was a defeatist who questioned God’s presence altogether. He allowed his circumstances to cloud his vision of who God is and what he had done for his people. Can you sympathize with that? Are afraid to do what God has called you to do? Do you wonder if he’s even there at all? Do you know what it’s like to be the runt of the litter? Bitterness and disappointment can move us down into the winepress of isolation and discouragement, and once you’re down there it can be really hard to climb out. For Gideon, it took a personal encounter with the living God to assure him that he no longer had to be afraid. From the bottom of the winepress, Gideon heard the earth-shattering voice of God himself call out, “I will be with you. And you will destroy the Midianites as if you were fighting against one man” (vs. 16). Hearing God’s voice and realizing that God was, indeed, with him changed Gideon’s heart.

Perceiving and practicing the presence of God is what makes the difference. To Moses, God said, “I will be with you.” To Jacob, God said, “I am with you and will protect you everywhere you go.” To Joshua, God said, “Be strong and courageous and do not be afraid for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” Realizing God’s presence in our life is the only thing that can transform cowardice into courage. When Gideon realized that God was indeed with him, Gideon became a catalyst for change.

#2 – GIDEON WAS A CATALYST

Gideon’s decision to climb out of that winepress and follow God’s call sparked renewal and revival in his little tribe. His first mission from God was to destroy his father’s altar to Baal. Verse 27a says, “So Gideon took ten of his servants and did as the Lord had commanded.” 

Gideon rose above the influence of his idolatrous neighbors and destroyed the altar to Baal, erecting an altar to the one true God in its place. Although his actions were first met with resistance, he eventually inspired the entire tribe of Manasseh to give up their false gods and return to the Lord. One man changes the hearts of thousands of people. One of the most amazing things about genuine faith is how it inspires other people to step out in faith.

Do you remember the four-minute mile? For millennia people believed that it was impossible to run a mile in under four minutes—it just couldn’t be done. Historians have records of how the ancient Greeks tried to accomplish it. They had wild animals chase the runners in hopes that they would run faster. They drank tiger’s milk, thinking that it would give them the speed of a tiger. 

Nothing worked. Trainers and researchers determined that our bone structure was insufficient, our lung power was inadequate, and the wind resistance was just too great. Then, in 1954, Roger Bannister broke the four-minute mile. He finished in 3:59.4. Some thought it was a fluke, that it would never be achieved again. But just 46 days later, Banister’s record was broken by a runner in Finland. His accomplishment inspired others to push harder and in the years since then, over a thousand runners have broken the four-minute barrier as well. All because one man proved it was possible.

That’s what modern-day Gideons do. They stand up and step out on faith, they accomplish what everyone else says is impossible, and they inspire and challenge others to do the same. One person can change a church, a community, or even a country. Gideon put an end to idol worship in his generation, but his job still wasn’t over. God would transform Gideon from a coward to a conqueror.

#3 – GIDEON WAS A CONQUEROR

After Gideon accepted the challenge, he was afraid, yet he moved in faith. But before heading off to battle, though, Gideon had a little conversation with God. He was still struggling with doubt, and so he asked God for small sign. He laid a wool fleece on the ground and asked God to keep the grass dry but allow the dew to collect on the fleece in the morning. God condescended to his request and assured Gideon that he was indeed with him. The next day, he asked God to do just the opposite, keep the wool dry but the grass wet. Once again, God proved patient and did as Gideon had asked. Only then did Gideon find the courage he needed to become a conqueror. So, he gathered his men and set off to pick a fight.

He gathered the army together of 32,000 men. The Midianites army totaled 135,000. He was thinking, “it’s not enough God!” Then God said, “it’s too many!” 

There were 22,000 that had to be sent away. They were made up of relatives, friends, and acquaintances. They were made of the fearful and afraid, glory seekers, and who left things behind they felt was more important. Gideon selected the ones who didn’t think about their own comforts; they managed on little; they could endure fatigue without complaining of thirst or weariness, but there were only 300! When the odds are stacked against you, God moves. God not only changed their numbers, but God also changed their equipment, no sword, shield or weapons! 

Soldiers became trumpeters; all they had was the trumpet, a torch and an earthen jar. God was saying, “Gideon you fight with faith or with nothing at all!” This is our message today, God is either in complete control, or we are. 

God wanted Gideon and all of Israel to know that the battle belonged to the Lord. They were victorious because God was with them and as long as they followed his instructions, he would always fight their battles for them.

What was true for them is true for you, too.

God wants you to be a conqueror! But he’s the one who will fight the battles and win the victory. Your job is simply to trust him to do so and obey his instructions. Trust and obey—that’s how you become a conqueror.

#4 – GIDEON GAINED CONFIRMATION

Judges 6:16 – The Lord said to him, “I will be with you. And you will destroy the Midianites as if you were fighting against one man” 

God provided Gideon the confirmation he needs. This assurance called Gideon to action. Gideon’s case teaches us that God will listen to our complaints, knows our frustrations, and realizes our sense of inadequacy.

Often times, circumstances, situations and pressures of life can cause us to want to hide in a winepress and get away from it all. It becomes easy to lose sight of who we are and what God has called us to do. We become so frustrated that we complain instead of praise. We feel so inadequate, and start to wonder, “Am I the right person for the job?” “Did I really hear from God?” “God, why did you call me here?” “Can I even make a difference in this place?” God will send you a word of confirmation! 

Abraham wondered if he would ever have a son. He second guessed God twice, once with Eleazar and then with Ishmael. Moses wondered and asked the Lord, “What am I going to do with these people?” Joshua wondered, “How can we go on without Moses?” God answers these questions and a million more besides with a word of assurance:

Hebrews 13:5-6 says, “Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” 6 So we may boldly say: “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?” (NKJV)

Conclusion

Gideon was a fearful man in command of a fearful army, yet through him God still accomplished a fearsome victory. Gideon became a champion, not because he was a fearless warrior, but because he had enough faith to do what God called him to do despite his own fears—to trust and obey.

God is still looking for modern-day Gideons—men and women of courage who are willing to stand up and step out on faith, willing to make a difference. Nothing Gideon did was incredibly difficult—he had a promise to believe, an altar to build, a torch to burn, and a trumpet to blow—but he acted in faith and God gave him the victory. God uses ordinary, imperfect people to do extraordinary things.

You are the right one baby! Does it shock you? Well, get over, get up, go forward… In the name of Jesus.