More Reassurance Needed
Judges 7:8-15
“When Gideon heard the dream and its interpretation, he bowed down and worshiped.” vs. 15
Mileage Markers
Claudia and I had the opportunity to get away this week and spend the week at Lake Tahoe (BTW Thank you to Mike Laughlin for filling in last week in the pulpit). As many of you know it is one of the most beautiful places on earth. It is particularly beautiful right now as the leaves change color and the snow is just about to come to that area. One of the things that we love to do is hike and we were able to get some great hikes in. Tuesday Claudia felt more like reading and relaxing at the condo so I decided to take a hike on my own. I drove up to a place on the north side of Tahoe where highway 28 and 50 meet called Spooner Lake. There is a trail that goes up to Marlette Lake and I decided that was the hike for me. As I started out there was something pretty cool on this trail, the Eagle Scouts had raised some money and put these mileage markers on the trail so you would know how far you have gone and just in case anyone gets lost or confused they are a good thing for rescue teams as well. All in all it was a great hike and when I made it up to Marlette Lake it was just beautiful. I took some pictures along the way and when I got back to the condo I showed them to Claudia and Frank and Lois because the colors were so vibrant and stunning.
That night I was watching the 11’oclock news (KOLO 8) and the weather man Jeff Thompson. He showed some pictures people had sent in. So, the next day I decided to send him one of mine. Although I remembered I sent it to him I wasn’t really expecting to see it on the news. All the sudden, as I am looking at my Ipad, I hear “And this picture was sent in by Ron Bowman from Antioch California who is at Incline Village for the week. Look at the aspens and color in this picture. Thanks Ron!” I am like, whoa, that’s me! Now everyone has gone to bed but get these perspectives of what happens next.
Me – I go running, I mean running, down stairs and I slip half way down the stairs I am so excited. All I can think of is telling her and hoping she might be able to turn on the TV and see it.
Claudia- She hears me slip and thinks maybe Lois has fallen down the stairs and becomes kind of worried, especially as I burst through the door.
Frank and Lois – They hear me fall and they are thinking, “What in the world are Ron and Claudia doing out there!
We all have different perspectives of the situation in life and sometimes all we can see is our own. This happens to Gideon in our story today and God works in some pretty unique ways in this story found in Judges 7:8-15. If you are able, p;ease stand as we read God’s Word.
Read Passage – Judges 7:8-15
Now the camp of Midian lay below him in the valley. 9 During that night the Lord said to Gideon, “Get up, go down against the camp, because I am going to give it into your hands. 10 If you are afraid to attack, go down to the camp with your servant Purah 11 and listen to what they are saying. Afterward, you will be encouraged to attack the camp.” So he and Purah his servant went down to the outposts of the camp. 12 The Midianites, the Amalekites and all the other eastern peoples had settled in the valley, thick as locusts. Their camels could no more be counted than the sand on the seashore.
13 Gideon arrived just as a man was telling a friend his dream. “I had a dream,” he was saying. “A round loaf of barley bread came tumbling into the Midianite camp. It struck the tent with such force that the tent overturned and collapsed.” 14 His friend responded, “This can be nothing other than the sword of Gideon son of Joash, the Israelite. God has given the Midianites and the whole camp into his hands.” 15 When Gideon heard the dream and its interpretation, he bowed down and worshiped. He returned to the camp of Israel and called out, “Get up! The Lord has given the Midianite camp into your hands.”
Outnumbered
A quick review of Gideon is that he has been called upon by God to lead the Israelites to take back their land and homes from neighboring people who are attacking and ravaging their homes , animals and stealing their crops. Gideon is a man who doesn’t have a lot of trust in God and keeps asking for reassurances that God will do what he said he would do and last week we saw how he asked for a sign by putting out a fleece. Part of that story is that God whittled down his army of 32,000 men. We saw in Judges 7:7:
“The Lord said to Gideon, “With the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands.” Judges 7:7
So this army of 32,000 gets taken down from 32,000 to 10,000 then to 300. At 32,000 they were probably outnumbered 4 to 1 and now, with 300, it’s more like 450 to 1. That is a pretty staggering number.
Here’s one thing that I think is important to remember about this story. From Gideon’s perspective they are badly outnumbered. But…I would contend that though they are outnumbered, they are not over powered. They have Almighty God on their side.
That Old Doubt Thing Is Back
Now as I said a moment ago, Gideon is a man who lacks trust in God and is pretty fearful that God might not do what he said he would do and that old doubt thing is back again. He has asked God for a sign at least 5 times to reassure him that God is really going to do what he says. You would think that would be more than enough. But look again at verse 10-11a:
“If you are afraid to attack, go down to the camp with your servant Purah and listen to what they are saying.” vss. 10-11a
Notice that God still sees his lack of faith and trust. He says “If you are afraid…” not because he is not sure Gideon is afraid but because he knows that Gideon still is afraid that all this is going to happen as God said it would. Gideon could have tried to fake it here and said “I’m not afraid!” He would only be fooling himself. God knew he still was afraid. We want to come across as being strong and we want to trust God and His word yet doubt is there, and God knows it. A healthy thing is to admit our fear, our doubt, our struggle. We have to own up to who we really are. Doubt doesn’t stop God, it stops us. God is patient and he keeps reassuring Gideon. He keeps reassuring us too.
Note this: Though Gideon doubts, he calls him to action. He says, “…go down to the camp…” Don’t think that because you doubt you won’t have to do anything. Sometimes the only thing that will remove our doubt and build our confidence is to move forward. And don’t get me wrong, this is not easy. It’s hard to move when you’re not feeling it. Like Gideon, you might be aske d to move despite your doubt, fear, or struggle.
God Works In the Details
So in our story today, we have talked about perspectives and how sometimes our perspective may not be the only perspective. Something that may help us is to realize that God works in the details and if we take a moment, realize how God is working, we may be able to move forward in confidence. I see three ways that God was working in the details of this story.
- God Provides Support
The first way God was working was to provide support for Gideon. Look at vs. 10:
“If you are afraid to attack, go down to the camp with your servant Purah…” vs. 10
Notice who Gideon has with him, Purah his servant. We don’t know really anything about Purah. And I think that many times we discount him because he was his servant. But don’t do that.
Why Purah? Purah was probably there helping him when he broke down the altar of Baal in chapter 6. Purah is by his side the whole way. He was probably someone Gideon confided in and had to trust with his life. He might have even known what Gideon would repson better to and how to encourage him. Just because he is a hired hand doesn’t make him any less important and less of a support to Gideon.
Ill. Our jobs. If you are a boss you depend on those working for you to provide the support and encouragement we need. Also they probably know how you work and what you need to be successful and more confident.
I know for me, I am more confident and stay on track better when I have someone to support me and encourage men.
Ex. Think about groups like Weight Watchers, AA, etc. They try to pair you up so you have support and someone to lean on. A lot of times we do this in our own life like with exercise. It’s better when we have support.
This is a theme that God stresses throughout the Bible. We were not made to go through everything alone. We are called time and time again to encourage and build up each other. 1 Thess. 5:11:
“Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.”
1 Thess. 5:11
Too many people are trying to do it all on their own.
Challenge: Do you have someone who supports you? Or, someone who needs your support? What area do yo need help in and you just can’t seem to move forward? That might be a sign you need support. If you don’t have that support, who can you ask?
- God’s Timing Is Precise
A second perspective of God working in the details comes in the timing. There is a really cool thing that happens in this story. God tells Gideon to sneak into the Midianite camp and listen to what the Midianite army is talking about. Verse 13:
“Gideon arrived just as a man was telling a friend his dream.” vs. 13
So get this, at the precise moment that Gideon is close enough to hear the Midianite men, they are talking about him. Whoa! Many people may chalk this up to coincidence, luck, or karma (in today’s world). No, this is god’s perfect and precise timing. This is no coincidence. When God is at work and in the details, his timing is precise. We have to take this out of the “luck” or “karma” category and be aware, recognize, and know that God’s timing is perfect.
Here is another thing that can stop us from moving forward, failure to recognize that God’s timing is precise. When we chalk it up to luck or karma, or even just good timing, we are not giving God the credit. We’ve taken it out of his hand and put it into some chance category. God is not a God of chance. You know how I know that? Because I know an believe that he has a plan. He has said so. Jer. 29:11:
“’For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord…” Jer. 29:11
God has a plan for you and for me and his plan is good and meant to move us into deeper relationship with him. If you chalk it up to chance, luck or karma you have taken it out of God’s hands and are failing to see his plan; His good, perfect, and precisely timed plan. Sometimes we don’t see God’s timing because it doesn’t fit our plan or our timing.
Challenge: What are you discounting or not giving God credit for and even more so, what are you missing because you are not seeing God’s timing.
Think about what Gideon would have missed if he hadn’t moved when God told him to and had he not listened to God’s timing.
- God’s Working In Other People Too!
And third, God was working way beyond just Gideon, he was working in other people too. And guess what? They were people who didn’t believe in him. Yes it’s true. Verse 14:
“His friend responded, “This can be nothing other than the sword of Gideon son of Joash, the Israelite. God has given the Midianites and the whole camp into his hands.” vs. 14
A lot of times we miss God working in the details because we have limited him to working only through believers, or in the things that we think he should work through. We limit God! I know that sounds crazy but it’s true. In our story the Midianites might not have understood that they understood what was happening because god had revealed it to them but that is what happened. They knew because God put it in their head. That was part of his plan too! Realize that God is moving in people that might not understand who he is but that is part of his plan as well. He is working in them to bring them to a relationship with him too.
I don’t know about you but I was raised with the idea that God only works in those who love him and he only hears the prayers of those who believe in him. I really don’t believe that anymore. Think about it, does God not hear prayers or are the prayers f non-believers just muffled until one day they pray a prayer of confession and then all the sudden god can hear them? That doesn’t sound like the God I know.
Ex. Our kids. You have more than one kid and they may believe or think differently than you. Do you shut them out or not listen to them? No, you love them and listen to them and continue to pursue a deeper relationship with them and hope one day they will believe as you do. God does that to us as well.
Remember Peter tried to shut out the gentiles because he was limiting God to only working in the Jewish believers. God had to use Paul to get to those people because Peter struggled with it.
Let me relate this through a story in the Bible. In Acts 10 there is this centurion from the Italian regiment and he and his family are God-fearing and praying and doing good things for the poor and those in need. God calls Peter to go see him because of Peter’s limitations on how he is working. It’s when peter has the vision of the sheet and eating unclean things. God calls Peter ot go meet and talk with Cornelius but this is way out of Peter’s comfort zone. But when he meets him, talks to him, and sees what he is doing, Peter says in Acts 10:31:
“Cornelius, God has heard your prayer and remembered your gifts to the poor.” Acts 10:31
Peter sees that God is working way beyond whatever he could imagine. Peter’s perspective is limited, every limited. Gods is working in other people.
Challenge: The challenge for us is to not limit God and realizew he is working in other people too.
Our Response to God: Worship and Action
So here is what it boils down to, we need to be more aware of God working in the details. We need to be more in tune to what God is doing and not limit him, not discount what he is doing, and draw into a deeper relationship with him. Let me finish by finishing this story and showing what God did for us here. In the story the Midian army guy talks about this dream, it’s a loaf of bread that comes rolling into camp and destroys the army. Ever had a weird dream? I have them all the time. This sounds weird but it’s really not. See the story explains that Gideon is the loaf of bread. Why bread? God uses everday things to help us understand and see him in new ways. Well, with an army of that size and the needs that need to be met, not everyone would have meat and other things to eat. Everyone understood bread because that was their staple for food. Everyone had bread and it gave then carbs and strength and sustenance. Not only did the Midianites get this but Gideon and Purah would have gotten it as well. When they hear this what do they do? Verse 15:
“When Gideon heard the dream and its interpretation, he bowed down and worshiped.” vs. 15
Let me relate this to us. Christ came to this earth for us, to live, die, and be the sacrifice for our sins. Through his death and resurrection we are forgiven and have new life. One of the terms we use for Christ is “Bread of Life.” Christ is our sustenance. We have the Holy Spirit as a guide and as strength. We have the bread that can roll through the enemy camp and destroy them. You don’t have to go at it on your own. God is there with you providing support, doing things in the right timing, and working way beyond what you might think. And it prompts us to give him glory and to bow down and worship him.
