Gideon, Judges and Conquest
- John Beeson
- Apr 24, 2022
- 3 min read
Right in My Own Eyes: Gideon
Judges 6
G: Story of the power of feeling God with me.
J: Right in My Own Eyes series. Deborah, Barak, and Jael: could see
that God was with them. Every judge from here on out: the flaws
get worse.
We meet Gideon today: he has significant flaws, but at the core is
not having the eyes to see that God is with him. When we know
God is with us, our lives change.
G: Jdgs 6:1-6: The devastating consequences of rejecting God.
Israelites: hiding like animals in caves. Midianites and Amalekites:
like animals as well, would come like locusts and devour with wave
after wave of pillage and destruction. Plant and not eat! Serious
curse.
They cry out for God: the key! God, be with us!
J: God sends a prophet to remind his people who he is and what he
has done and calls them to repent of rejecting him. Covid. Can you
still see God?
Jdgs 6:11-12: A threshing floor: a large hard area made out of stones
that is in the open air. Separate grain from chaff (lighter) with wind.
Winepress: small, narrow trough-like structure built into the
ground. Worthless for threshing. No wind. Small of grain being
threshed. Nearly inedible grain b/c mixed with chaff.
Pathetic and hilarious: Gideon, fearful, soaked in sweat, covered in
chaff, the angel of the Lord checking him out from under the oak.
Personal story: belief of weakness. “I’m weak.” Lifting in Jr. High.
G: Jdgs 6:13: The Lord has forsaken you?? Where do we
misattribute God’s discipline for him failing us? Prosperity gospel:
God is with me when things are good.
Jdgs 6:14: Go! I am sending you! I am with you!
J: Jdgs 6:15-16: Like Moses. But I will be with you!
He asks for a sign… The Lord consumes the offering. We think we
need a sign when we need God’s Word. We want God to write in
the sky for us and he has already written to us. Gideon gets this
right!
G: Jdgs 6:22-24: God is with him. God brings peace in turmoil. Huge
for Gideon: he gets it! God is with me and God is peace! A mustard
seed of trust. Personal story.
J: Jdgs 6:25-27: God being with us means that we have to cut out
every other crutch. Still walking in fear. Gideon means “cutter” or
“hacker.” Gideon’s name is played off of several times in the text.
Baal: a bull god. Bulls used to tear it down. Then sacrificed on top of
the altar. Mockery. What bulls does God want to tear down and
then sacrifice in your own life?
Gideon gets this right! Idols exist so we can rationalize our sin. The
world: don’t worry about it. Leave them up.
How are you leaving up altars? Personal story: halfway measures.
G: Jdgs 6:28-29: They weren’t angry when Gideon built an altar to
the Lord. They were angry when Gideon tore down their altars.
Okay, fine, God is with me… as long as I can keep my other gods. No,
God is with us alone.
The idols of our hearts are okay with us worshiping Jesus, so long as
it doesn’t threaten their existence (political, sexual, financial,
comfort, etc).
J: Application
1. Know that God promises he is with you. Matt 28:20 “I am
with you always…” Hear it. Read it. Believe it. Remind
yourself of it. Feel it. Where are you threshing wheat in a
winepress and God is saying, “I am with you.” John Wesley’s
death bed: losing voice and energy. “The best of all is, God
is with us!”
1/23/21
Right in My Own Eyes: Gideon
Judges 6
G: God is with you. Jesus. The Spirit.
2. God demands that we eradicate other gods in our lives.
Where are there strongholds? What is in your life that is helping you
rationalize away your sin? What the areas you are most sensitive to
criticism? What do you fight to hold onto? Greed, addiction,
comfort, respect, lust, power?
J: Communion: bread. Reflect and repent.
G: Communion: cup.
1/23/21
Judges is a book concluding with the words, Judges 21:25: “In those days, Israel had no king. Everyone did what was right in their own eyes.” Gideon was an unlikely hero that God chose to use to conquer Israel’s enemies. Sermon begins at 35:00 minutes.