Place: Lurgan
Baptist 3:12:2002
Reading: Judges
7:1-25
HEARTS OF IRON, FEET OF CLAY
7. PREPARED FOR VICTORY !
A Frenchman named Emile Coue
flourished in the early part of the 20th century. He claimed to have discovered
and developed an almost infallible method of healing. Basically it was this,
when you were sick, if you kept insisting to yourself that you were really
getting better, you could quite literally talk yourself out of your illness.
You were to repeat a little phrase twenty times in a row on two occasions
daily.
" Every day,
in every way I am getting better and better Every day, in every way, I am
getting better and better."
Coue claimed that he had
seen people cured of heart trouble, ulcers, bronchitis, clubfeet, bad nerves
and a multitude of other problems, by following his method.
Believe you're getting
better, and you will. And often you do. Coue is only one of hundreds of people
in various walks of life who hold that a positive outlook on life and a strong
sense of self-confidence will take care of their problems. " If we believe, we can we can." Convinced of that, an
athlete " psyches himself up," before a big game, a coach inspires
his team with a pep talk, a sales manager conducts a motivation seminar, and a
general tries to convince his troops that they cannot possibly lose. " Men we can do it. We've got what it
takes. Let's go get them." That reminds me of a little melody that
goes like this:
He tackled the
thing that couldn't be done
With a will he went
right to it
He tackled the
thing that couldn't be done
And he found he
couldn't do it.
Now its interesting to see
the way God prepares His men for the battles they will face. The Coues, the
Churchill's of this world seek to prepare us by building up our
self-confidence, but the Lord does something completely different. He does not
build up our self-confidence, but out dependence upon Him. When God wants a man
or woman to do great things for Him, He builds into that man or woman not
self-confidence but God-confidence. Nowhere is this seen more clearly than in (
Judges Ch 7 ) when God prepared Gideon for battle against Midian. Now we're
going to try and summarise the teaching of two chapters this .... and in
seeking to do that I want to use four words.
(1) SUBTRACTION: GOD MUST HAVE THE GLORY
God teaches this lesson, at
the Spring of Harod located at the base of the Gilboa range. Hudson Taylor
pioneer missionary in China believed that God knew his needs and would meet
them. On one occasion when Taylors assets were down to 87 cents he wrote to a
friend.
"
We have this and all the promises of God." You see, God frequently
cuts down our resources in order that we may depend entirely on Him. Sometimes
the Lord allows sickness or financial reverse or difficulty of one kind or
another to put us in fighting trim and
train us to rely solely on His power. For when the Lord finished preparing
Gideon and His army for battle Gideon had no other choice but to trust God.
When the odds are overwhelming God overwhelms the odds. Now look at this
situation. Camped at the Spring of Harod at the foot of Mount Gilboa the
Israelites were keenly aware of the army of the Midianites numbering 135,000 (
7:12 8:10 )
Can't you imagine Gideon
saying, " Lord how can we do it ? We
don't have a chance. There's not enough of us." Then God comes and
says, " Gideon you have too many.
You are to big. We have to cut down your numbers." Subtraction ! Why ? God must the glory !
( 7:2 ) So what did God do ?
(a) GOD TOOK AWAY
FORCES FROM ISRAEL:
Did you that two test were
applied ? There was:
1.
The Test of FEARFULNESS:
In ( Deut 20:1-4 ,8 ) God
gave an order about how Israel was to enter the battle. You see fear is
contagious, it focuses on the problem, not upon the God who is greater than the
problems. Fear and faith can't live together very long in the same heart.
Either fear will conquer faith and we'll quit, or faith will conquer fear and
we'll triumph. John Wesley said on one occasion,
" Give me a hundred men
who fear nothing but sin and love nothing but God, and I will shake the gates
of hell." Can you imagine how Gideon felt when 22,000 left ? He
probably expected a few to go, but two thirds of his army ? My .... by this
time his heart was in his boots. But God was not finished with Gideon yet for
He came to Gideon again and said, "
Gideon, you still have too many men," and then He announced a second
test.
2.
The Test of FERVENCY:
For Gideon was to test the
remaining 10,000 men at the nearby Spring of Harod by observing how each drank.
You see, the way they drank
revealed their attitude to the enemy. Most of the soldiers had their mind only
on drinking. They forgot all about Midian. But there were 300 men, 3 percent of
the 10,000 who had a different perspective. There were the lappers and the
kneelers, and God chose the lappers, who would not take their eyes off the
enemy even to satisfy their thirst. There were 32,000 Faithful men, who were willing to fight. There were 10,000 Fearless men, but there were only
300 Fervent Men, who were committed
wholeheartedly to engaging the enemy in battle. Imagine, 300 men going out to
do battle with 135,000, outnumbered 450 to 1 ! It was either trust God or perish ! You see, God frequently cuts
down on our resources in order that we might depend entirely on Him and give
Him the glory.
You see, you cannot be too
small for God to use, but you can be too big. If you want the credit for what
God is doing, God will not use you. "
I am the Lord that is my name, and my glory will I not give to another."
( Is 42:8 ) This is why, as
you look around, you will see God working in a powerful way in the lives of
some very weak people. Why ? They are careful to give God the glory. (a)
(b) GOD TOOK AWAY
FEAR FROM GIDEON:
I don't imagine that Gideon
was sleeping very well that night. I certainly wouldn't be. Only 300 men left !
Then in the middle of the night God came again to Gideon. Gideon's first
thought was probably, " Oh, no not
again." But this time the Lord's message was different.
Look at ( 7:9-11 ) You see,
Gideon needed to have his courage strengthened so the Lord says, " Take your right hand man with you and
do a little eavesdropping and what you hear will strengthen your heart."
What did they hear ? One man relating a dream to another.
( 7:13-14 ) Now barley was a
food very poor people ate. It was a picture of Israel. The tent was a
symbol of the nomadic Midianites. God
had given Midian into Gideon's hand. Isn't this a beautiful picture of the sovereignty
of God ?
You see, the Lord directed
Gideon and Phurah to exactly the right tent at the right time. God protected
Gideon so he would not be noticed. God planted that dream in that Midianite's
head and God led the other Midianite to interpret it precisely, even using
Gideon's name. My .... what a God we have, a God who is in control of the world
of men. " A God who doeth according
to His will in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth and
none can stay His hand or say unto Him, what doest thou ?" ( Dan 4:35
) (a) (b)
(c) GOD TOOK
FORTITUDE FROM MIDIAN:
You see, the Lord was not
only preparing Gideon and the Israelites he was also conditioning Midian for
defeat. How else can you explain ( 7:13-14 ) ? I mean why should an army of 135,000
men be afraid of an army of 300 soldiers led by a man with no military
experience ? I don't think the Prime Minister lies awake at night worrying
about an invasion from the Republic of Ireland ? Why this strange anxiety in
Midian ? Because God planted fear in their hearts. When God calls us to do
battle for Him, He always goes before us.
Thats why Paul says in ( 2
Cor 2:14 ) " Now thanks be to God
which always causeth us to triumph in Christ."
He does not lead us into our
triumph, its is His victory and we enter into that victory when we learn the
lesson of absolute dependence on Him. (1)
Few would have suspected
William McCulloch of kindling a revival. He was parish minister in Cambuslang
Scotland about 1740. A scholarly pastor excelling in languages, especially
Hebrew he had, little gift for the pulpit. His own son described him as " not a very ready speaker not eloquent
.... his manner was slow and cautious." In fact he was called an " Ale-minister," which meant
that when he rose to speak, a number in the congregation left to quench their
thirst at the local tavern. Yet God chose to use William McCulloch's ministry
as the means of revival at Cambuslang, some time before George Whitefield
visited there.
I wonder was God pleased to
use William McCulloch in order to make clear, that He takes weak vessels, so
that the Glory might be His. (1)
(2) ACTION: MAN CAN SHARE THE VICTORY
Now how would you have felt
if you were about to enter into this battle ? You realise that you are
outnumbered 450 to 1. But you are in the queue to get your weapons and what are
they ? A trumpet ( ram's horn ) to blow, a pitcher ( earthen jar ) to shatter,
a torch to shine, and a voice to shout. Now that was it.
I think if I had managed to
get into the last 300 I would have traded these things and headed home.
However, these men knew what it was to trust God. They had:
(a) FAITH IN
GOD'S PROMISE:
Look at ( 7:9, 15 ) Now in
those days there were three periods of sentry duty each night. The first watch
was from 6pm until 10pm. The middle watch was from 10pm till 2am, and the last
watch was from 2am until
6 am. Now according to (
7:19 ) it was about 10pm and suddenly out of the darkness came the noise of 300
pitchers smashed to the ground, the sight of 300 torches, the sound of 300
horns and the shout of 300 voices,
"
the sword of the Lord and of Gideon." ( 7:18 ) To men that were
half asleep everything that moved was an enemy. Confusion broke out as the
Midianites began to slay one another, and the loaf of barley flattened the
tents of Midian. (a) Do you recall the words of John ?
"
This is the victory that overcometh .... even our faith."
( 1 Jn 5:4 ) Oh, that we
would trust God in all our weakness to work through us for His glory. (a)
(b) FELLOWSHIP
WITH GOD'S PEOPLE:
Look at ( 7:23 ) How do you
defeat Midian, strife among the people of God ? You defeat it when God's people
" gather themselves together."
When they stand together, "
endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace." (
Eph 4:3 ) Think again of
( Phil 2 ) which describe
the relationships among the people of God. "
Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory but in lowliness of mind let
each esteem other better than themselves .... let this mind be in you which was
also in Christ Jesus who being in the form of God thought it not robbery to be
equal with God .... " What a stoop as the Lord Jesus came down ? Down
from 32,000 to 300 that's coming down is it not ? Not puffing up ourselves
saying " we've done it."
The Lord Jesus came down so low. Paul came down so low. What about Timothy and
Epaphroditus ? Was this not the problem with Euodias and Syntyche ?
They must come down and
humble themselves if unity was to prevail in the Philippian church ! My .... is
this not the message of Gideon ? Coming down, getting smaller, more humble. For
it's when we learn to take that humble place that we'll have hope of getting
unity among the people of God ! (a) (b)
(c) FAITHFULNESS
TO GOD'S PURPOSE:
What was God's purpose ? That
they defeat Midian by the weapons they had. There was:
1.
The BLOWING of the Trumpet:
( 7:20 ) Trumpets speak of
the Word of God. Do you recall what Paul said to the Thessalonians ?
"
For from you sounded out ( trumpeted out ) the Word of the Lord not only in
Macedonia and Achaia but also in every place " ( 1 Thes 1:8 ) Did you
notice that Gideon alone was not to blow the trumpet ? You see, every believer
has a part in this ministry. My .... are you blowing the trumpet of God's Word
?
2.
The BREAKING of the Pitcher:
( 7:19 ) Now if the trumpet
speaks of the Word of God, the pitcher or vessel speaks of the servant of God.
Are you a clean, broken vessel ready for God to use ?
( 2 Tim 2:21 )
3.
The BEAMING of the Light:
( 7:20 ) The Word of God, the
Servant of God, and now the Christ of God. ( Jn 8:12 ) Did you notice that as
long as the vessel was unbroken the light was
concealed ? But when the
vessel was broken the light was revealed ? Is Christ being revealed through you
?
Is Christ increasing because
self is decreasing ? (1) (2)
(3) REACTION: SATAN WILL THE UNITY
Is it not invariably so that
when the work of God is going forward some kind of opposition begins to show
itself ? When God was blessing the
early church, and thousands of people were coming to know the Lord, and the
Jewish leaders were in total confusion, Satan counterattacked. ( Acts 6:1 ) And
he still counterattacks today from exactly the same direction as he did in
Gideon's day. Can you see here:
(a) THE WILES OF
THE DEVIL:
This is the Greek word for " schemes," carrying the idea
of cleverness, crafty methods, cunning and deception. Do you see the first
device of the devil ?
1.
RESENTMENT:
Look at ( 8:1-3 ) Here is a
tribe that is angry because their importance has not been recognised. Do you
remember when Joshua allotted to them their portion, how they responded ? (
Joshua 17:14-18 ) Can you see them better now ? They would be the first to tell
you how important they were. They were filled with a sense of their own self importance.
Gideon did not make enough of them and there was resentment. Do you know any
saints like that ? I tell you they are still alive. The Ephraimites. Full of
their own importance, full of their own greatness. Their complaint was, " nobody asked me." Do you
know anybody like that ? God blessed, and they were not in it and they
complained they were not
consulted.
Someone in the church has an
exercise, and God blesses it and instead of saying, " Praise the Lord," they say,
"
you should not have done it without asking us first." " Why was I not
asked ? Why was I not included ? Why was I not made of ?" Oft times I feel
that the role of the pastor/elders has been reduced to that of humouring
people. 1. But then there was:
2.
DISCOURAGEMENT:
Look at ( 8:4 ) Here were
300 tired, exhausted men seeking refreshment in the town of Succoth, one of the
Israelite towns on the other side of the Jordan. I tell you they should have
been excited about what God had done through Gideon. He had liberated them from
Midian, but instead of refreshment there was discouragement.
Ruth Paxon says, " the believer has a very subtle
adversary whose three fold aim is to despoil him of his wealth, decoy him from
his walk, amd disable him for his warfare, and what better weapon can he use
for this purpose than discouragement ?" And what better people than
Christians to heap buckets of discouragement on you ? How did Gideon handle all
this ? Well, look at;
(b) THE WISDOM OF
THE LORD:
In Gideon !
1.
For the Problem of Resentment there was Gentleness:
( 8:2-3 ) Now do you really
think that makes sense ? Was it really greater for Ephraim to kill two kings
than for Gideon to attack 135,000 men with 300, and to conquer them ? Of course
not ! But you see, to Gideon the unity of
God's people was more important than personal pride. So what if he was
wronged, mistreated, criticised ? It was more important for God's people to be
one than for Gideon to be vindicated. My .... none of us likes to be wronged,
or to be misrepresented the way Gideon was. But how much better to take that
hurt to the Lord and let him deal with it, than to be in discord with my
brother. Do you know what Proverbs says, "
A soft answer turneth away wrath." ( Prov 15:1 ) 1.
2.
For the Problem of Discouragement there was Steadfastness:
There's a telling phrase in
( 7:4 ) " Faint yet pursuing
them." Its so easy to get our eyes off the enemy, but here was a man
who refused to be deflected from God's call in his life. Often people who find
lots to criticise in the lives of others are people who have no sense of
urgency about God's call for their lives. Satan has got them so confused that
they are fighting with God's people rather than with him. But Gideon persisted
!
D.L.Moody once said " Give me a man who says, this one thing
I do and not, these fifty things I dabble with."
Benjamin Disraeli declared, "
the secret of success is constancy of purpose." My .... Gideon
knew that kind of constancy. Do you ? Make no mistake about it. Satan
counterattacks. The devil does not give up easily.
Satan often tries to draw us
into division where there ought to be unity, ( Acts 6:1 ) and sometimes he
tries to draw us into unity where there ought to be division. ( Ezra 4:2 )
(4) DEFECTION: LEADERS SHOULD FULFIL THEIR MINISTRY:
How often it is true that on
the heels of victory there comes the moment of temptation. Andrew Bonar was
right when he said, " Let us be as
watchful after the victory as before the battle." Did you notice here
that was defection on two fronts. There was defection in:
(a) The PEOPLE'S
Request to Gideon:
Look at ( 7:22 ) Why did God
not allow Gideon to attack Midian with 32,000 men ? Because Israel would say, " Mine own hand hath saved me."
( 7:2 ) Now God had prevented them from doing that, but they still had not
grasp the lesson. True, they did not take the credit for themselves, but
neither did they give to God. As
( 8:22 ) tells us they tried
to give it to Gideon. Sometimes we can learn more from what is not recorded in
Scripture than from what we actually read. Thats certainly true of this
chapter. For as you read this passage there is not one word of spontaneous
praise, gratitude or thanksgiving to God. My .... before they approached
Gideon, they should have been pouring out their hearts in praise to God who
gave them the victory, but that never occurred to them. They did not have the
singing faith of Moses, or Joshua or Deborah. Their hearts did not ring with
praise to their God. What about us ? Are we guilty of spiritual ingratitude ?
Do you ever spontaneously praise God and acknowledge what He has done in your
life ? What victories He has wrought for us ? ( Deut 33:5 ) Or is there
defection in our worship ? (a)
(b) The LEADER'S
Request to the People:
Look at ( 8:24-27 ) Why is
it that so many great and useful men, before finishing their course on earth,
will write or say or do something that, if it does not undo all their previous
work, leaves some kind of blemish on their good name, causing the wicked to
laugh, and the righteous to grieve ? My .... the lesson we need to grasp from
this passage is that awful moral lapses and falls may take place after years of
remarkable service and faithful living. Look at Gideon's sad ending ! Notice:
1.
The Request he Makes:
( 8:24 ) It was the custom
for Midianite men to wear an earring, and that meant the Israelites had
collected 135,000 earrings, and a great deal of other war booty. It amounted to
1700 shekels about 15,000 dollars. 1.
2.
The Idolatry he Establishes:
He took the gold and made an
ephod " and all Israel went thither
a whoring after it, which thing became a snare unto Gideon, and to his
house." ( 8:27 ) After this, on the death of Gideon, the people
worshipped Baal, one wrong step leading to others, deeper, darker and more
depraved.
My .... do you recall his
first victory ? In destroying the altar of Baal ? His final tragedy is to lead
the people back to idolatry ! How diligent we need to be lest when we are old
we undo the very work that we did for God when we were young. 1. 2.
3.
The Lifestyle he Enjoys:
There was Polygamy: ( 8:30 ) Gideon adopted not
only the Canaanite's idea of having a harem but apparently their moral
standards as well, because he had a concubine in Shechem.
There was Luxury: He began his career by
describing himself as " least in
Manasseh," ( 6:13 ) but he ended his life enjoying great luxury. (
Deut 17:17 )
There was Hypocrisy: For do you see the name he
gave his son ? ( 8:31 ) Abimelech means "
My father is king."
Oh, he refused the kingship
but he adopted a very kingly lifestyle. What a sad ending ! Its
good to start well, its better to go on well, its best to finish well.
We have all known men who not only thought they stood, but really did stand and
were used of God, and yet we have seen them sour, grow bitter, become envious,
backslide in heart, backslide in life, lie around for years as helpless, and
useless, sad in appearance as the wrecks of ships thrown by a storm on the
beach and left after that to whiten and fall to pieces as the days and months
rolled by.
My .... over the life of
Gideon we can write the words
"
Let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall." ( 1 Cor 10:12 )
The most spiritual Christian may fail. Thats why we need to keep our eyes on
the Unfailing Example, Christ Himself. In the course of his final series of
Bible lectures at Dallas Theological Seminary Harry Ironside said he often
prayed, " O God keep me from
becoming a foolish old man."
When Dr. Culbertson retired
as President of Moody Bible Institute he heard the trustees planned to name a
building in his honour. He protested, "
Men you do not know how I will end." May God give us the grace to end
like Paul, " I have fought a good
fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith." ( 2 Tim 4:7
)