This is a part of a sermon series on the book of Judges. You can watch more here.
I came to faith in Jesus when I was 18-years old. I didn’t grow up going to church. I didn’t grow up knowing anything about the Bible. I genuinely thought Easter was about chocolate bunnies and dying eggs.
I remember watching football games where you would see someone holding up the sign John 3:16 and literally thought his name was John and he was trying to predict the score of the game; 3 to 16.
But then I made friends with this guy named Lenny who comes to faith in Jesus and Lenny started talking to me about becoming a follower of Jesus and I thought Lenny was stupid.
I had heard people talk about going to church and I saw those people at the same parties, and I thought, “I get to sleep in on Sunday morning.” This was a no brainer.
But, Lenny kept talking to me about Jesus and I kept making fun of Lenny for being a follower of Jesus until one day I was by myself and this thought entered my head that I had never had, “What if I became a follower of Jesus?” (Pause)
That question led me down a road of asking questions, seeking answers until one day I committed myself to believe in Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. I believed Jesus died on the cross for my sin. I believed that Jesus rose from the dead, so that I might have eternal life in Him.
I started to attend a worship service. I started to sing worship songs. I started to clap. I had never clapped in a song in my life and out of nowhere I found myself wanting to be with other followers of Jesus and wanting to learn about God. That was over 30 years ago!
I remember early on someone asking me the question, “Is there anyone in your life that you want to pray for? Is there anyone in your life that you want God to show up in their life also?”
And I had never thought about what I had to offer to other people in my life. I had never thought about what God could do through me, but in those moments, I started the journey of thinking about, not only what God had done in me but what God could through me.
Obviously, I’ve started the tiniest church in existence, so it wasn’t about doing big, flashy things for God’s glory but I became captivated by the idea that we can help one another grow in our relationship with God. I still think that is amazing today!
It’s possible there are many of us in here who resonate with that story and you also want to do great things for the Lord but it’s also possible there are some of us just trying to get out of the bed in the morning.
It’s possible there are some of us who love God, but we’re just trying to figure your own faith. Or maybe there is a part of us that wants to do great things for the glory of God but we look at our schedules, or our character, or our understanding of the Bible and it just feels too far out of reach.
In our passage this morning we are going to see we never want to underestimate what the Lord might do in us and through us. In fact, He loves to move in the life of ordinary people to make sure He gets all the glory. look at verse 1:
Judges 7:1, “1 Then Jerubbaal (that is, Gideon) and all the people who were with him got up early, and camped beside the spring of Harod; and the camp of Midian was on the north side of them by the hill of Moreh in the valley.”
If you are new this morning, we are teaching through Judges in the Old Testament. In Judges chapter 1-2 we see the introduction, chapter 3 we see Ehud, chapter 4 we see Deborah, and in chapter 5 we see a song.
In the context of Judges 6-7 we see Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord (#1), so that the Lord raised up a people group known as Midianites who were descending upon Israel like a swarm of locusts.
The people of Israel were leaving their homes, fleeing to the mountains, hiding in caves and simply just trying to survive (#2) until the people of Israel cry out in repentance (#3) and in response the Lord raises up Gideon (#4), so that in verse 1 we see a huge battle is coming and Gideon must be thinking, “God’s about do something amazing!”
In Judges 6 the Lord tells Gideon that he will be victorious in this battle and Gideon knows the stories of Israel so he must be thinking about the walls of Jericho falling or hail stones falling from the sky, because that is the only way Israel could defeat the Midianites. Let’s see what happen. Look at verses 2-3:
Judges 7:2-3, “2 And the Lord said to Gideon, “The people who are with you are too many for Me to hand Midian over to them, otherwise Israel would become boastful, saying, ‘My own power has saved me.’ 3 Now therefore come, proclaim in the hearing of the people, saying, ‘Whoever is afraid and worried, is to return and leave Mount Gilead.’” So twenty-two thousand from the people returned, but ten thousand remained.”
We will see there are 32K Israelites who are prepared to go into battle which sounds like a lot until we get to Judges 8 and see there are 135K Midianites on the other side, so that in verses 2-3 we are looking at a 4:1 ratio. Does that make sense?
But, in verse 2 the Lord says to Gideon, “You have too many soldiers.” Did you see that? In verse 3, “See if anyone wants to leave!!” What? Why? Is the Lord trying to make this battle even more difficult? Yes!
At the end of verse 3 we see 22K leave so that there are only 10K Israelites remaining, which is like 13:1 ratio. (10,000 vs. 135,000) I know it’s early for math but the point is that we are supposed to read verses 2-3 and think to ourselves, “This is impossible!”
Right now, our church in Austin is in a place where we could feel like we are having our very own Gideon type of experience. Little history for you…over the years our church family keeps getting smaller and smaller. Before the pandemic our church in Austin was around 125 people, which I thought was too small at the time and the Lord is like, “Nope, let’s get smaller!”
After the pandemic our church family was cut in half because some people moved, some people had a shift in their beliefs, and some people got upset with us either being too cautious or not cautious enough with Covid. Wild times!
It’s okay, we have pressed forward trusting the Lord but over the last two years we are still seeing people transition out of our church family, so that new people are coming into our non-denominational church but it’s just keeping us at a nice plateau to decline, so that it could feel like Gideon.
What do we do when we go through Gideon types of moments in life? It might be our finances getting smaller. It might be our capacity getting smaller. It might be your political party not winning. It is any area of life where we feel like the odds are not in our favor and victory feels impossible.
What do we start thinking in those moments? We get scared. We feel anxious. We become greedy with money, time and relationships. We feel hopeless. We get mad at the Lord, “Why aren’t you doing something?”
It’s because in those types of moments we start looking at the surface level of how things work. In those moments of life where we feel squeezed; emotionally, mentally, spiritually, financially we start to look at life through human resources and we think to ourselves, “This isn’t going to work!”
It’s because through a human perspective, “Those things won’t work.” 13:1 odds in battle are going to lose every time, but I got some really bad news for you this morning if you are a follower of Jesus. The God of Scripture loves these types of odds for us.
I don’t like it but over and over throughout Scripture He loves for His people to be in a place in life where we think to ourselves, “This is impossible.”
He loves for us to be in those types of moments where our hearts and minds are crying out to the Lord, “This isn’t going to work” because it’s in those types of moments where He gets all the glory.
Listen to me, I am not telling you He shows up every time with a red bow and everything works out the way you want. It has nothing with us getting what we want but it has everything to do with His people being in a place emotionally, physically, mentally and spiritually where our heart says, “Whatever happens, Lord, I trust you!” Look at verses 4-5:
Judges 7:4-5, “4 Then the Lord said to Gideon, “The people are still too many; bring them down to the water and I will test them for you there. So it shall be that he of whom I say to you, ‘This one shall go with you,’ he shall go with you; but everyone of whom I say to you, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ he shall not go.” 5 So he brought the people down to the water. Then the Lord said to Gideon, “You shall put everyone who laps the water with his tongue as a dog laps in one group, and everyone who kneels down to drink in another.”
This might be obvious but in the next verse we will see the ones who lap the water like a dog will be sent home and those who cup the water will stay. Does that make sense?
Now, we’ve talked about being on guard against metaphorical application but this is a part of Scripture people love to get very metaphorical.
There are people who will say, “kneeling to the water” is a sign of weakness and “cupping the water” was a skill of a warrior.
There are people who say, “Technically, kneeling to the water” was similar to Baal worship. I don’t know. The text doesn’t say. Who cares?
The thrust of the passage is that the Lord wants Israel in a place where He gets all the glory. Back in verse 2 it’s clear Israel is prone to “boast” in their own strength, so that the Lord leads Gideon through a process to have even fewer soldiers.
Listen, it might be difficult for some of us to think about God being all about His glory but we have to remember He is God. He is the only One who is worthy of glory.
I know there are people on social media who will tell you that God is all about your plans, purposes, dreams, success, but that’s not what we see throughout Scripture.
The common pattern over and over in life is humanity constantly, like a toddler reaching for His glory and saying, “Mine, mine, mine” and like a loving parent He says over and over and over, “No touch!” Isaiah 42, “He does not share His glory with another” because He is the only One who is worthy of glory. Look at verses 6-7:
Judges 7:6-7, “6 Now the number of those who lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, was three hundred men; but all the rest of the people kneeled down to drink water. 7 And the Lord said to Gideon, “I will save you with the three hundred men who lapped, and will hand the Midianites over to you; so have all the other people go, each man to his home.”
Can you imagine if you were Gideon? In Judges 6 the Lord tells Gideon, “Victory is sure!” In verse 7, “It is the Lord who is going to save you.” But over and over the Lord is slowly removing every human element that would make Gideon think there is even half a chance of surviving. Right?
It’s like those moments in life where we say to ourselves, “At least I have my health!” The Lord’s like, “Not for long.” Okay, Okay, well at least I have resources to leave my children. Nah! Those are gone also! Yeah, but the equity in my house, that’s secure though, right?
We know from Judges 6 last Sunday that Israel had turned from the Lord and put their hope in the worthless idols of this world, so that over and over the Lord is leading Israel to a place, “Turn to me, trust in me.”
Stop putting your trust in the idols of this world. They won’t sustain you. They won’t provide for you. Turn to the Lord. Trust in the Lord.
We will see in our passage the Lord is very patient. He is very gracious. He knows it is difficult and He demonstrates compassion that is beyond what we can imagine but the end result doesn’t change, “Turn to the Lord, trust in the Lord, so that He gets all the glory!”
This is the common theme I see the Lord teaching me in my life. Did you know our church family in north Austin started with 15 adults in our living room?
I remember when we were committing to start North Village Church it came time to make financial commitments because it takes money to buy speakers, trailers, supplies, mixers, signs, etc., and in one day we had those 15 adults make a commitment of $50K to start North Village Church. Isn’t that awesome? Most of them I had just met in the last year, so that it was clear it is only the Lord who could get all the glory.
Even over the last 15-years of our church family there have been larger churches that have started and ended and God still has us here. There are churches with more money that have started and stopped and the Lord still has us here. There are churches with more talented pastors that have started and stopped, so that when it comes to the life of North Village Church it is the Lord who gets all the glory!
Like Gideon of old, we look around, and say, “This doesn’t work.” We can’t it without those people. We can’t make it with a struggling children’s ministry. We can’t make it through a pandemic.
This is Jas last Sunday to lead us in worship. People have been asking, “Who do we have lined up?” I don’t know. We have a friend coming to lead in November and December, so that we are going to turn to the Lord, we’re going to pray and the Lord is going to get all the glory!
This isn’t just true in our non-denominational church but in our individual lives as well. I wish I could tell you if you follow Jesus you will get everything you want and never have any problems but, in my experience, He loves to lead His people to a place where He gets all the glory. Look at verses 9-11:
Judges 7:9-11, “9 Now on the same night it came about that the Lord said to him, “Arise, go down against the camp, for I have handed it over to you. 10 But if you are afraid to go down, go with Purah your servant down to the camp, 11 so that you will hear what they say; and afterward you will have the courage to go down against the camp.”
Keep in mind the Lord has told Gideon over and over, “Victory is sure” but look at verse 10, ““But, if you are afraid, you can bring a friend.” Do you see that? Underline that phrase!
When we end up in those places where things feel impossible. When we are in those moments where all hope is lost, I want you to remember these two things.
First, the Lord knows we are afraid in those moments. Please, hide this truth in your heart. He knows it’s hard. He knows it’s scary.
In those moments we don’t need to fake it. We don’t need to act like we’re not afraid but instead we want to bring those fears to the Lord.
So many times, people talk about God being mean in the Old Testament and I am like, “Are you reading the Old Testament?” The Lord gives Gideon miracles, promises, overthrows altars, does a few more miracles and still the Lord is like, “You can take a friend.”
Second, sometimes we need to hear truth from a friend. Amen? God’s Word is great. We love God’s Word but sometimes our world is getting upended, so that we need to hear God’s Word through a friend. Amen?
We need to be that type of friend to others and we need those types of friends who will speak truth and encouragement into our life. Especially in those moments when our lives are getting upended. Look at verse 12:
Judges 7:12, “12 Now the Midianites, the Amalekites, and all the people of the east were lying in the valley as numerous as locusts; and their camels were without number, as numerous as the sand on the seashore.”
The phrase “sand on the seashore” is a biblical expression to show that there are so many soldiers and camels you can’t even count, so that this isn’t a “David and Goliath” type of story. This is a battle that is impossible! Look at verses 13-14:
Judges 7:13-14, “13 When Gideon came, behold, a man was relating a dream to his friend. And he said, “Behold, I had a dream; a loaf of barley bread was tumbling into the camp of Midian, and it came to the tent and struck it so that it fell, and turned it upside down so that the tent collapsed.” 14 And his friend replied, “This is nothing other than the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel; God has handed over to him Midian and all the camp.”
The Midianites are psyched out! They are convinced they are going to lose this battle! You with me? Look at verse 15:
Judges 7:15, “15 When Gideon heard the account of the dream and its interpretation, he bowed in worship. Then he returned to the camp of Israel and said, “Arise, for the Lord has handed over to you the camp of Midian!”
Just to be clear: These are the same words the Lord spoke to Gideon back in verses 6-7, but in verse 15 Gideon hears about the victory from the Midianite soldier and “bows in worship” to the Lord.
Sometimes people take this story of Gideon as an opportunity to elevate Gideon but it is clear that Gideon is not the hero of this story. In the rest of the passage Israel will surround the Midianite camp. They will use torches and empty pitchers to give the illusion of being larger and more intimidating, so that the Midianite army will surrender, and Israel is victorious!
I wish I could tell you if you keep reading about the life of Gideon you see Gideon live all the days of his life trusting in the Lord and glorying in the Lord, but we will see how Gideon’s story ends next Sunday.
Instead we want to see our passage leading us to a place where we ask ourselves, “Are we putting our trust in the Lord?” Especially in those moments of life where we look around and think, “This is impossible!” It might be our finances. It might be this election. It might be our physical health. It might be our children. It might be our church family.
These are all areas of life where we can find confidence and strength in ourselves but God’s Word is making it clear that He wants our confidence to be in Him.
So much so, that sometimes the Lord puts us in difficult circumstances so that our only option is to trust in Him. It’s possible some of us are in one of those places because of our own doing, but sometimes we are in those places because the Lord wants us in those places, so that our only hope is in the Lord.
Especially when it comes to the Lord not only doing great things in us but great things through us. We might be praying for our children. We might be launching a career. We might be looking for that spouse. We might be meeting with that doctor. We might be praying for that friend to come to faith.
Same thing. In those moments we are going to look at the human possibility on the surface. We are going to doubt. We are going to struggle. We are going to cry out to the Lord, “Is this even possible?” And the Lord is leading us to a place so that our confidence is in Him.
North Village Church
This sermon is brought to you by North Village Church, a non-denominational church in Austin. established in 2009 and built around Jesus and Bible teaching.
Are you looking for a church in Austin? At North Village Church we put Jesus at the center of our church family. We worship together every Sunday at 10:30am, encourage Christ centered fellowship through groups, and host special events such as Bible studies and Theological Training, to ensure that we are rooted in in God’s Word. We also serve our local community in association with several Austin based organizations.
North Village Church is made up of professionals, married couples, singles, and families who are wanting to experience the life-transforming power of Jesus. If you are a family with children or teens, we can support you with either or both our Kids Ministry and Youth Ministry.
You are welcome to contact us if you would like more information.
NVC Online
Unable to attend this Christian Church in Austin? Don’t worry, because, through God’s provision, we have created NVC online, an Online Church streaming a worship service every Sunday from 10:30am Central Time. You can also watch our short, powerful sermons on demand and follow us on Instagram for daily Christ centered content.