1 00:00:02,000 --> 00:00:07,280 Our sermon title this morning is big or small, few or many. 2 00:00:07,680 --> 00:00:11,320 No problem to us. It can be, and often is, a 3 00:00:11,320 --> 00:00:15,240 problem. Mark Twain is credited with 4 00:00:15,240 --> 00:00:19,960 having come up with this line. It's not the size of the dog in 5 00:00:19,960 --> 00:00:23,120 the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog. 6 00:00:24,480 --> 00:00:27,120 Problems and challenges in life are given. 7 00:00:27,600 --> 00:00:30,840 They just are. There's no one who goes through 8 00:00:30,840 --> 00:00:36,720 life without facing some kind of a challenge, some kind of a 9 00:00:36,720 --> 00:00:40,000 struggle. But the responses from people 10 00:00:40,000 --> 00:00:42,840 are vastly different and how they go through struggles and 11 00:00:42,840 --> 00:00:46,120 challenges. Some people, it takes a very 12 00:00:46,120 --> 00:00:50,600 small problem, a very small struggle, and they give up, they 13 00:00:50,600 --> 00:00:54,520 leave, they just go away. They just turn and run. 14 00:00:55,120 --> 00:00:57,160 Other people. It doesn't seem to matter. 15 00:00:57,360 --> 00:01:00,280 No matter the size of the problem or the size of the 16 00:01:00,280 --> 00:01:02,640 obstacle, they just don't give up. 17 00:01:04,400 --> 00:01:08,400 It all comes down to how a person approaches an issue or a 18 00:01:08,400 --> 00:01:11,360 problem. So when we are up against a 19 00:01:11,360 --> 00:01:15,040 problem, whatever problem we may face, we need to ask this 20 00:01:15,040 --> 00:01:16,800 question. What's our focus? 21 00:01:17,680 --> 00:01:20,600 What is it that keeps us going when we face problems? 22 00:01:20,600 --> 00:01:26,120 Or what keeps us from giving up? Do we focus on the size of the 23 00:01:26,120 --> 00:01:31,040 problem or the size of the end goal that keeps us going? 24 00:01:31,520 --> 00:01:35,480 Is it loyalty to A cause? Is it commitment to a person, to 25 00:01:35,480 --> 00:01:38,240 a principle that keeps us plotting forward? 26 00:01:39,640 --> 00:01:43,480 And at the end of the day, it does come out who we are in 27 00:01:43,480 --> 00:01:47,680 terms of how we approach things. The good thing is every one of 28 00:01:47,680 --> 00:01:50,840 us can grow. We can grow in our commitment, 29 00:01:51,320 --> 00:01:53,720 in our character, in our resolve to maturity. 30 00:01:53,720 --> 00:01:57,120 We can grow and also our perceptions can change. 31 00:01:58,240 --> 00:02:01,840 Do you know that big problems are like big opportunities? 32 00:02:03,880 --> 00:02:07,600 Big rocks can be objects over which we stumble and fall at the 33 00:02:07,600 --> 00:02:10,479 same time. Big rocks can be like stepping 34 00:02:10,479 --> 00:02:14,680 stones to higher ground or get across the stream with dry feet. 35 00:02:15,440 --> 00:02:17,840 So next time we get stuck in traffic, instead of getting 36 00:02:17,840 --> 00:02:20,640 upset and angry, rather think, what kind of opportunity is 37 00:02:20,640 --> 00:02:22,360 this? I'm talking to me here too. 38 00:02:24,320 --> 00:02:27,520 Or next time you go through a morning drive through and on the 39 00:02:27,520 --> 00:02:29,360 way to work in the mess up your order, instead of getting 40 00:02:29,360 --> 00:02:33,200 impatient, rather think, OK, what is this person going 41 00:02:33,200 --> 00:02:36,000 through? The list of opportunities is 42 00:02:36,000 --> 00:02:37,320 endless. It's infinite. 43 00:02:38,640 --> 00:02:42,880 Our attitude toward problems influences how we move forward. 44 00:02:44,360 --> 00:02:48,800 Too often people have fear when challenges come and difficulties 45 00:02:48,800 --> 00:02:53,280 arise. And they respond negatively. 46 00:02:54,160 --> 00:02:57,960 If fear in a person's life qualified a person for 47 00:02:57,960 --> 00:03:01,480 disability, many people would qualify for disability. 48 00:03:02,640 --> 00:03:05,480 So often it is not the circumstances to stop people. 49 00:03:05,480 --> 00:03:09,400 It's their own fears and their worries that prevent them from 50 00:03:09,400 --> 00:03:13,640 doing what they should be doing. Today we want to go again into 51 00:03:13,640 --> 00:03:16,560 the book of Judges. Continue our sermon series in 52 00:03:16,560 --> 00:03:20,960 this book and we will see how God can do big things with 53 00:03:20,960 --> 00:03:24,240 little things. When fear is eliminated, when 54 00:03:24,240 --> 00:03:28,120 fear is removed from the equation, everything changes. 55 00:03:30,600 --> 00:03:33,520 We will see where the problems are, big or small, it doesn't 56 00:03:33,640 --> 00:03:36,920 matter. You see, with God, small does 57 00:03:36,920 --> 00:03:43,520 not mean little, weak does not mean powerless, and many does 58 00:03:43,520 --> 00:03:47,560 not mean strong. I find it inspiring to read 59 00:03:47,560 --> 00:03:51,320 stories where the little guy wins, where the week comes out 60 00:03:51,320 --> 00:03:55,480 on top, where the proud have to concede and be humbled. 61 00:03:56,200 --> 00:03:58,840 There are many, many stories in history where this has happened, 62 00:03:58,960 --> 00:04:02,080 where the underdog comes up against impossible odds and 63 00:04:02,080 --> 00:04:03,760 wins. I know you've watched sports 64 00:04:03,760 --> 00:04:07,360 games where that happens. There are many stories of people 65 00:04:07,360 --> 00:04:10,440 in life who are dismissed and passed off as insignificant. 66 00:04:10,440 --> 00:04:12,520 There's no consequence. They don't matter. 67 00:04:12,640 --> 00:04:16,120 Only later in life to come back and become key players in the 68 00:04:16,120 --> 00:04:20,000 stage of life we can. There's many, many history 69 00:04:20,000 --> 00:04:22,680 stories like that. I won't mention them, but could 70 00:04:22,760 --> 00:04:26,760 mention many in our scripture passage today. 71 00:04:27,240 --> 00:04:31,600 In the book of Judges, we will see how one tiny little army 72 00:04:32,080 --> 00:04:35,800 conquered a massive horde. A huge army of soldiers. 73 00:04:36,120 --> 00:04:37,920 The odds could not have been greater. 74 00:04:38,800 --> 00:04:42,360 The Midianites had taken control over the people of Israel. 75 00:04:42,600 --> 00:04:45,320 Now, of course, Israel had sinned and disobeyed God and 76 00:04:45,320 --> 00:04:47,480 followed after idols and abandoned God. 77 00:04:47,760 --> 00:04:50,960 God gave them over to be oppressed by these evil 78 00:04:50,960 --> 00:04:54,440 Midianites, and they have pressed Israel for seven years. 79 00:04:55,000 --> 00:04:58,560 God had removed his protection and given them over to these 80 00:04:58,560 --> 00:05:01,680 Midianites. But then the people of Israel 81 00:05:01,680 --> 00:05:03,920 repented, or they cried out to God. 82 00:05:04,160 --> 00:05:06,440 They, they, they were not very good at repenting by the way, 83 00:05:06,440 --> 00:05:10,680 but they did in some ways. And then they cried out to God 84 00:05:10,680 --> 00:05:12,160 for rescue. And God listened. 85 00:05:12,160 --> 00:05:14,880 He was merciful. He chose a man to rescue his 86 00:05:14,880 --> 00:05:18,400 people and he chose this man Gideon, who didn't think he 87 00:05:18,400 --> 00:05:20,440 qualified. He didn't measure up. 88 00:05:20,440 --> 00:05:23,760 He came from the wrong crowd or from the wrong tribe and so on. 89 00:05:24,360 --> 00:05:27,360 And God was firm. No, you're going to do the job. 90 00:05:27,920 --> 00:05:30,880 And God did the impossible with the impossible. 91 00:05:31,160 --> 00:05:35,320 Let's read Judges chapter 6, beginning verse 33 in your 92 00:05:35,320 --> 00:05:38,920 Bibles or your devices. Judges chapter 6, beginning 93 00:05:38,920 --> 00:05:42,840 verse 33 to 7, verse 8. We'll go through these passages 94 00:05:43,400 --> 00:05:46,120 one at a time. Then all the Midianites and 95 00:05:46,120 --> 00:05:49,000 Amalekites, the people of the East, gathered together, and 96 00:05:49,000 --> 00:05:52,040 they crossed over and camped in the valley of Jezreel. 97 00:05:52,760 --> 00:05:55,320 But the spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon. 98 00:05:55,960 --> 00:05:59,360 Then he blew the trumpet. Nearby Azerites gathered behind 99 00:05:59,360 --> 00:06:03,760 him and he sent messengers through all Manasseh who also 100 00:06:03,760 --> 00:06:06,640 gathered behind him. He also sent messengers to Asher 101 00:06:06,880 --> 00:06:09,760 Zebulun, Naftali and they came up to meet him. 102 00:06:09,840 --> 00:06:13,360 So far so good, things are working out, but he's not ready 103 00:06:13,360 --> 00:06:14,600 yet. Let's read verse 36. 104 00:06:15,160 --> 00:06:19,520 So Gideon said to God, if you will save Israel by my hands, as 105 00:06:19,520 --> 00:06:23,640 you have said, look, I shall put a fleece of wool on the 106 00:06:23,640 --> 00:06:26,840 threshing floor. If there is due on the fleece 107 00:06:26,840 --> 00:06:31,240 only and it's dry on all the ground, then I shall know that 108 00:06:31,240 --> 00:06:34,160 you will save Israel by my hand, as you have said. 109 00:06:34,560 --> 00:06:38,840 And it was so when he arose early in the next morning and 110 00:06:38,840 --> 00:06:41,480 squeeze the fleece together. He rung the dew out of the 111 00:06:41,480 --> 00:06:45,360 fleece, a bowl full of water. Then Gideon said to God, do not 112 00:06:45,360 --> 00:06:48,680 be angry with me, but let me speak just once more. 113 00:06:48,840 --> 00:06:51,680 Let me test, I pray just once more with the fleece. 114 00:06:51,960 --> 00:06:55,480 Let it now be dry only on the fleece, but on all the ground 115 00:06:55,480 --> 00:06:58,560 let there be dew, and God did so that night. 116 00:06:58,840 --> 00:07:03,000 It was dry on the fleece only, but there was dew on all the 117 00:07:03,000 --> 00:07:05,440 ground. Let's begin verse Chapter 7. 118 00:07:05,440 --> 00:07:07,680 Now verse one. Then Gerald Bail, that is, 119 00:07:07,680 --> 00:07:11,440 Gideon, and all the people who were with him, rose early, and 120 00:07:11,440 --> 00:07:14,840 encamped beside the well of hard, so that the camp of the 121 00:07:14,840 --> 00:07:18,200 Midianites was on the north side of them by the hill of Mora in 122 00:07:18,200 --> 00:07:21,120 the valley. And the Lord said to Gideon, The 123 00:07:21,120 --> 00:07:23,640 people who are with you are too many for me to give the 124 00:07:23,640 --> 00:07:27,160 Midianites into their hands, lest Israel claimed glory for 125 00:07:27,160 --> 00:07:30,000 itself against me, saying, My own hand has saved me. 126 00:07:30,560 --> 00:07:33,440 Now therefore proclaim in the hearing of the people, saying, 127 00:07:33,680 --> 00:07:36,720 Whoever is fearful and afraid, let him turn. 128 00:07:36,720 --> 00:07:39,200 And departed once from Mount Gilead. 129 00:07:39,640 --> 00:07:40,680 That's where they were stationed. 130 00:07:41,040 --> 00:07:45,160 And 22,000 of the people returned, and 10,000 remained. 131 00:07:45,840 --> 00:07:48,960 But the Lord said to Gideon, The people are still too many. 132 00:07:49,280 --> 00:07:51,760 Bring them down to the water, and I will test them for you 133 00:07:51,760 --> 00:07:54,120 there. Then it will be that of whom I 134 00:07:54,120 --> 00:07:57,240 say to you, This one shall go with you, the same shall go with 135 00:07:57,240 --> 00:07:59,680 you. And of whomever I say to you, 136 00:07:59,960 --> 00:08:03,000 this one shall not go, with you the same shall not go. 137 00:08:03,480 --> 00:08:05,600 So he brought the people down to the water. 138 00:08:05,840 --> 00:08:09,400 And the Lord said to Gideon, Everyone who laps from the water 139 00:08:09,400 --> 00:08:13,640 with his tongue, as a dog laps you, shall set apart by himself. 140 00:08:13,880 --> 00:08:16,640 Likewise everyone who gets down on his knees to drink. 141 00:08:17,080 --> 00:08:19,560 And the number of those who lapped, putting their hand to 142 00:08:19,560 --> 00:08:23,400 their mouth was 300 men. But all the rest of the people 143 00:08:23,760 --> 00:08:25,760 got down on their knees to drink water. 144 00:08:26,280 --> 00:08:30,880 Then the Lord said to Gideon, by the 300 men who lapped, I will 145 00:08:30,880 --> 00:08:34,039 save you and deliver the Midianites into your hand. 146 00:08:34,400 --> 00:08:38,120 Let all the other people go, every man to his place. 147 00:08:38,720 --> 00:08:41,799 So the people took provisions and their trumpets in their 148 00:08:41,799 --> 00:08:45,240 hands, and he sent that all. He sent all away, all the rest 149 00:08:45,240 --> 00:08:49,080 of Israel, every man to his tent and retain those 300 men. 150 00:08:49,360 --> 00:08:52,960 Now the camp of Midian was below him in the valley. 151 00:08:53,360 --> 00:08:57,200 Let's stop there. It seems to me if I had been 152 00:08:57,200 --> 00:09:00,280 Gideon and God had said he was going to do that, maybe we would 153 00:09:00,280 --> 00:09:02,200 one of a third test or a fourth or a fifth. 154 00:09:02,200 --> 00:09:04,080 Maybe I said I would have said, OK, I'm not doing it. 155 00:09:04,080 --> 00:09:07,920 That's just not possible. Anyway, that was the case. 156 00:09:08,880 --> 00:09:11,360 The first thing we want to notice here is that God used an 157 00:09:11,400 --> 00:09:14,840 insignificant man who had a small faith. 158 00:09:14,840 --> 00:09:16,400 We talked about that last Sunday already. 159 00:09:16,840 --> 00:09:20,720 So here are the Midianites, vast a number beyond belief. 160 00:09:21,200 --> 00:09:24,440 Size was on their side. We've all heard the phrase 161 00:09:24,440 --> 00:09:26,880 bigger is better. We're born with it. 162 00:09:27,080 --> 00:09:29,760 We inherit this from birth. Just look at 2 little children 163 00:09:29,760 --> 00:09:32,600 playing and you put 2 toys on the floor, one large toy and one 164 00:09:32,600 --> 00:09:34,160 small one. They both want the large one. 165 00:09:35,080 --> 00:09:39,400 That's how we're wired. This mindset goes through life. 166 00:09:39,960 --> 00:09:45,280 We trust in size, we trust in strong, we trust in big and God 167 00:09:45,280 --> 00:09:49,960 took that away. God does not work that way. 168 00:09:50,440 --> 00:09:53,800 With God, size and numbers don't matter. 169 00:09:54,520 --> 00:09:59,440 What is relevant with God is faith, trust, courage, 170 00:09:59,800 --> 00:10:03,760 commitment and loyalty. We see in getting He now 171 00:10:03,760 --> 00:10:06,440 believes God. Twice God has answered him. 172 00:10:08,200 --> 00:10:10,600 He's he was hesitant. He he was reluctant. 173 00:10:10,600 --> 00:10:15,440 He wasn't sure. And when he did trust, God said, 174 00:10:15,440 --> 00:10:19,240 OK, we got you in line now. OK, but your army's not right. 175 00:10:19,280 --> 00:10:22,120 It's too many. Since when's an army too big? 176 00:10:22,160 --> 00:10:26,320 Every general, every president, every dictator, every king one 177 00:10:26,320 --> 00:10:29,240 size. And God says no, no, no, we're 178 00:10:29,240 --> 00:10:34,280 not going to do it that way. He knows God has chosen him to 179 00:10:34,280 --> 00:10:36,880 lead the battle. He's been commanded to take on 180 00:10:36,880 --> 00:10:39,200 the Midianites. So he asked for a sign. 181 00:10:39,200 --> 00:10:42,800 He gets the sign. Remember where Gideon was 182 00:10:42,800 --> 00:10:45,880 threshing wheat last Sunday? We talked about it. 183 00:10:46,000 --> 00:10:48,200 He was threshing wheat in the wine press. 184 00:10:49,040 --> 00:10:50,880 Where is he putting the wool out to? 185 00:10:50,880 --> 00:10:53,840 See if God's going to answer. He's putting the wool out on the 186 00:10:53,840 --> 00:10:55,440 threshing floor. He had a threshing floor. 187 00:10:56,080 --> 00:10:57,920 He's got a wine press and a threshing floor. 188 00:10:58,480 --> 00:11:01,440 The threshing floor is in the wide open space, and he wasn't 189 00:11:01,440 --> 00:11:03,720 threshing wheat on the threshing floor because it was a wide open 190 00:11:03,720 --> 00:11:07,120 space and the Midianites would see him and might come steal. 191 00:11:07,320 --> 00:11:09,600 The wine press was obviously kind of secluded or hidden. 192 00:11:09,600 --> 00:11:12,960 It was small, and there he was thrashing out his grain, hoping 193 00:11:12,960 --> 00:11:15,440 it wouldn't be stolen. But he's putting this fleece out 194 00:11:15,440 --> 00:11:17,120 where? OK, God's going to answer this 195 00:11:17,120 --> 00:11:18,720 way. And God did. 196 00:11:19,480 --> 00:11:22,960 If God, God, if you're going to be with me and conquering this 197 00:11:22,960 --> 00:11:26,120 vast army, let the fleece be wet and the ground dry. 198 00:11:26,120 --> 00:11:28,560 And it was. So a bowl of water came out of 199 00:11:28,560 --> 00:11:35,680 that fleece and getting it twice, the fleece wet and the 200 00:11:35,680 --> 00:11:38,000 ground dry, and then the ground went and the fleece dry. 201 00:11:39,000 --> 00:11:43,920 And he had a good army, not bad a 32,000 men, but it was small 202 00:11:43,920 --> 00:11:45,760 in comparison to what the Midianites had. 203 00:11:47,040 --> 00:11:50,360 And for Gideon, he would have to make do with his small little 204 00:11:50,360 --> 00:11:57,480 army. It was about 4:00 to 1:00. 205 00:11:57,480 --> 00:12:01,040 Not quite, just a bit different in Chapter 8. 206 00:12:01,040 --> 00:12:03,760 Next time. By the way, next Sunday we won't 207 00:12:03,760 --> 00:12:06,080 be preaching on this topic. We have a guest speaker coming 208 00:12:06,080 --> 00:12:08,800 next Sunday. So next Sunday will be one off 209 00:12:08,800 --> 00:12:11,560 sermon on something else. But when we go through chapter 210 00:12:11,560 --> 00:12:16,520 8, verse 10, we'll find out that the Midianites had a standing 211 00:12:16,520 --> 00:12:22,640 army of 120 thousand soldiers, almost 4, four times the size of 212 00:12:22,640 --> 00:12:25,680 Gideon's army. So Gideon had a very tiny little 213 00:12:25,680 --> 00:12:27,520 army and God says that's too big. 214 00:12:27,520 --> 00:12:32,400 And it seems to me I would have argued with God and said, no 215 00:12:32,400 --> 00:12:37,320 God, I need more men, not fewer. His army was 32,000 men. 216 00:12:38,200 --> 00:12:41,000 But then God starts chiseling away what he has. 217 00:12:42,320 --> 00:12:48,120 First they the idea is OK, if anyone of you scared to go into 218 00:12:48,120 --> 00:12:54,160 battle here, just go home. A lot of guys breathe a sigh of 219 00:12:54,160 --> 00:12:55,360 relief. OK, good. 220 00:12:55,720 --> 00:13:00,920 We don't have to fight. And only 10,000 remain. 22,000 221 00:13:00,920 --> 00:13:04,600 left. I think if I had been Gideon, I 222 00:13:04,600 --> 00:13:10,200 might have wanted to leave too. Gideon does not want those who 223 00:13:10,200 --> 00:13:13,120 God does not want, those who fear to go into battle. 224 00:13:13,880 --> 00:13:17,080 God did not want Israel to get the idea that these 32,000 had 225 00:13:17,080 --> 00:13:22,320 won a great victory. There's another principle at 226 00:13:22,320 --> 00:13:24,720 work here as well. And we often don't read this and 227 00:13:24,720 --> 00:13:26,080 I think it's important that we do. 228 00:13:26,080 --> 00:13:28,600 So this morning I'll read another passage out of the book 229 00:13:28,600 --> 00:13:31,320 of Deuteronomy, chapter 20, verse 1 to 8. 230 00:13:31,440 --> 00:13:35,600 And this gives us gives us a perspective of how Israel was 231 00:13:35,600 --> 00:13:38,120 supposed to conduct warfare, which they were commanded, 232 00:13:38,160 --> 00:13:40,840 commanded to do in those days. If you want to turn in your 233 00:13:40,840 --> 00:13:44,520 devices to your Bibles to Deuteronomy chapter 20, verse 1 234 00:13:44,520 --> 00:13:49,120 to 8, and I'll just read this. This is these are the words of 235 00:13:49,120 --> 00:13:53,320 Moses when you go out to battle against your enemies and see 236 00:13:53,320 --> 00:13:56,400 horses and Chariots and people more numerous than you, do not 237 00:13:56,400 --> 00:13:59,040 be afraid of them. For the Lord your God is with 238 00:13:59,040 --> 00:14:01,800 you, you who brought you up from the land of Egypt. 239 00:14:01,880 --> 00:14:04,360 You know there's a history part again, verse 2. 240 00:14:04,440 --> 00:14:08,400 So it shall be when you are on the verge of battle that the 241 00:14:08,400 --> 00:14:10,680 priest shall come, shall approach and speak to the 242 00:14:10,680 --> 00:14:13,160 people. There's the pastor involved and 243 00:14:13,160 --> 00:14:16,800 he shall say to the people here, O Israel, today you're on the 244 00:14:16,800 --> 00:14:18,400 verge of battle with your enemies. 245 00:14:18,560 --> 00:14:22,880 Do not let your heart faint, do not be afraid and do not tremble 246 00:14:22,880 --> 00:14:27,160 or be terrified. Notice those 4 qualifying words, 247 00:14:27,320 --> 00:14:29,840 faint, frayed, tremble, terror. Don't be that. 248 00:14:30,880 --> 00:14:32,680 Verse 4. For the Lord your God is he who 249 00:14:32,680 --> 00:14:35,960 goes with you to fight for you against your enemies, to save 250 00:14:35,960 --> 00:14:38,240 you. Then the officers, the general, 251 00:14:38,240 --> 00:14:41,520 so to speak, they shall speak to the people saying, what man is 252 00:14:41,520 --> 00:14:44,080 there who's built a new house and has not dedicated it? 253 00:14:44,400 --> 00:14:46,720 Let him go and return to his house, lest he die in the 254 00:14:46,720 --> 00:14:48,280 battle. Another man dedicated. 255 00:14:48,880 --> 00:14:51,880 Also, what man is there who's planted a vineyard and has not 256 00:14:51,880 --> 00:14:53,800 eaten of it? Let him go and return to his 257 00:14:53,800 --> 00:14:55,160 house, lest he die in the battle. 258 00:14:55,160 --> 00:14:58,480 And another man eat of it. And what man is there who has 259 00:14:58,480 --> 00:15:00,640 betrothed to a woman who's not married her? 260 00:15:01,160 --> 00:15:03,280 Let him go and return to his house, lest he die in the 261 00:15:03,280 --> 00:15:05,120 battle. And another man marry her. 262 00:15:06,080 --> 00:15:08,080 These are just physical things. Then there's there's one more. 263 00:15:08,080 --> 00:15:11,160 This is the big one, the verse 8, the officers shall speak 264 00:15:11,160 --> 00:15:14,360 further to the people and say, what man is there who's fearful 265 00:15:14,360 --> 00:15:17,280 and faint hearted? Let him go and return to his 266 00:15:17,280 --> 00:15:20,640 house lest the heart of his brethren faint like his heart. 267 00:15:21,400 --> 00:15:25,120 If you're scared, don't go. There's other reasons not to go. 268 00:15:25,320 --> 00:15:27,800 If you just if you just got married or you want to get 269 00:15:27,800 --> 00:15:31,920 married, you just have a built a house, just planted a vineyard, 270 00:15:32,120 --> 00:15:33,600 OK, You don't have to go to battle. 271 00:15:33,600 --> 00:15:36,640 You can go and eat the fruit of it first, get married first, or 272 00:15:37,000 --> 00:15:40,200 dedicate your house. If you're afraid, then don't go. 273 00:15:41,440 --> 00:15:45,160 These were instructions. Serving the army was important, 274 00:15:45,160 --> 00:15:47,440 but it was not the priority. Number one thing. 275 00:15:47,680 --> 00:15:51,520 You see, fear is contagious. It's like a virus. 276 00:15:51,520 --> 00:15:56,520 You can catch it. You know how sometimes people 277 00:15:56,520 --> 00:15:58,560 are afraid and they need others to be afraid to? 278 00:15:58,560 --> 00:16:00,000 You know, I'm scared. You scared too. 279 00:16:01,800 --> 00:16:04,480 It's terrible. And pretty soon it spreads. 280 00:16:05,280 --> 00:16:07,400 Remember the story of the 1012 spies? 281 00:16:08,280 --> 00:16:09,640 Ten were scared and two were not. 282 00:16:10,120 --> 00:16:13,200 Those 10 scared spies scare the whole congregation of Israel. 283 00:16:15,080 --> 00:16:16,880 The end result? 40 years more wandering in the 284 00:16:16,880 --> 00:16:20,520 desert. People who are afraid are often 285 00:16:20,520 --> 00:16:23,120 a hindrance not just to themselves, but to everybody 286 00:16:23,120 --> 00:16:27,120 else too. God is not a God of fear, and we 287 00:16:27,120 --> 00:16:31,200 never find God focus on size or numbers or strength to get the 288 00:16:31,200 --> 00:16:34,760 job done. It's always about faith and 289 00:16:34,760 --> 00:16:36,640 courage. And here is a case in point. 290 00:16:37,720 --> 00:16:40,280 So Gideon's army, he starts with 32,000 men. 291 00:16:41,040 --> 00:16:45,680 Gideon says everybody who's afraid can go home, 22,000 292 00:16:45,680 --> 00:16:48,920 leave. Now it's 10,000 against this 293 00:16:48,920 --> 00:16:52,720 massive army of 120. God still not satisfied. 294 00:16:53,520 --> 00:16:57,440 So he chisels away more down to 300 men. 295 00:16:58,640 --> 00:17:01,680 This is unbelievable. Think about it. 296 00:17:01,840 --> 00:17:04,720 And now it's a ratio of 400 to 1. 297 00:17:06,480 --> 00:17:08,880 From a military standpoint, this is suicide. 298 00:17:09,960 --> 00:17:14,240 What chance of victory do 300 men have against an army of 299 00:17:14,240 --> 00:17:18,599 120,000? It would literally take a huge 300 00:17:18,599 --> 00:17:23,680 miracle to pull this off. Let's just pause for a moment. 301 00:17:24,119 --> 00:17:27,520 Do you sometimes face 400 to one odds it's not going to work. 302 00:17:28,560 --> 00:17:30,320 A chance of 400 to one it's going to fail. 303 00:17:32,960 --> 00:17:36,640 Remember, with God's size doesn't matter, numbers don't 304 00:17:36,640 --> 00:17:39,080 matter. Maybe you feel like Gideon. 305 00:17:40,080 --> 00:17:41,840 You don't have the faith you should have. 306 00:17:42,240 --> 00:17:44,400 You doubt and you've asked God for signs. 307 00:17:45,000 --> 00:17:46,680 He's giving you signs and you still doubt. 308 00:17:47,360 --> 00:17:50,640 Maybe you know what you should do according to scriptural 309 00:17:50,640 --> 00:17:54,200 principles. You don't question that, but you 310 00:17:54,200 --> 00:17:56,840 just have no idea how this is going to work. 311 00:17:57,600 --> 00:18:02,000 You need more than you have. You don't have what it takes and 312 00:18:02,000 --> 00:18:05,760 you're scared. Let's remember this. 313 00:18:06,360 --> 00:18:08,600 The God of Gideon is still our God today. 314 00:18:08,600 --> 00:18:10,680 He hasn't changed. He's not gotten old and he's not 315 00:18:10,680 --> 00:18:12,560 slowed down. He's not run out of ideas. 316 00:18:13,200 --> 00:18:16,840 He's got resources. What he wants us to do is give 317 00:18:16,840 --> 00:18:20,040 ourselves to him to be his vessel, and he's going to use us 318 00:18:20,040 --> 00:18:22,400 for his glory. However that works out, it's not 319 00:18:22,400 --> 00:18:27,360 for us to decide. If we know what God wants, then 320 00:18:27,360 --> 00:18:29,400 the best we can do is simply surrender. 321 00:18:29,800 --> 00:18:32,920 Trust him. So Gideon now has the small 322 00:18:32,920 --> 00:18:37,280 little army. Just 300 men is told to get the 323 00:18:37,280 --> 00:18:39,440 job done. You know how many 300 people is 324 00:18:40,760 --> 00:18:44,240 what fits in this sanctuary? We have 330 chairs. 325 00:18:45,000 --> 00:18:48,240 You know how big the city of Windsor is, but 230,000 give or 326 00:18:48,240 --> 00:18:51,400 take, but half the size of the city of Windsor. 327 00:18:51,640 --> 00:18:54,320 Imagine army the size of half the city of Windsor and the army 328 00:18:54,320 --> 00:18:55,640 the size that fits in this congregation. 329 00:18:55,800 --> 00:18:57,120 OK, you now go and take him down. 330 00:18:58,280 --> 00:19:04,600 Would we not be scared? Well, we read how God did it. 331 00:19:04,680 --> 00:19:08,560 Let's look at what God does with this tiny little army equipped 332 00:19:08,560 --> 00:19:11,720 with the strangest of equipment. They take on and fight this 333 00:19:11,720 --> 00:19:13,640 massive army. Well, actually they don't fight 334 00:19:13,640 --> 00:19:16,000 as you know the story. Let's continue reading Judges 335 00:19:16,000 --> 00:19:21,000 Chapter 7 verse verse 9 and on the the scripture passage. 336 00:19:21,120 --> 00:19:22,520 Well, and there it's correct in my notes. 337 00:19:22,520 --> 00:19:25,360 It's wrong. It happened on the same night 338 00:19:25,960 --> 00:19:29,600 that the Lord said to Gideon to him, Arise, go down against the 339 00:19:29,600 --> 00:19:31,600 camp, for I've delivered it into your hand. 340 00:19:31,600 --> 00:19:35,600 But if you are afraid to go down, go down to the camp with 341 00:19:35,640 --> 00:19:38,760 Pura your servant, and you shall hear what they say, and 342 00:19:38,760 --> 00:19:41,880 afterward your hands shall be strengthened to go down against 343 00:19:41,880 --> 00:19:44,080 the camp. Then he went down with Pura his 344 00:19:44,080 --> 00:19:47,600 servant, to the outpost of the armed men who were in the camp. 345 00:19:48,440 --> 00:19:50,480 Now the mediates, the Amalekites, all the people of 346 00:19:50,480 --> 00:19:54,080 the East were lying in the valley as numerous as locusts. 347 00:19:55,120 --> 00:19:58,080 Locus is the verb is the word to describe this size. 348 00:19:58,400 --> 00:20:01,040 And their cameras were without number as the sand by the 349 00:20:01,040 --> 00:20:04,720 seashore in multitude. And when Gideon had come, there 350 00:20:04,720 --> 00:20:06,760 was a man telling a dream to his companion. 351 00:20:06,760 --> 00:20:10,720 He said, I've had a dream. To my surprise, a loaf of barley 352 00:20:10,720 --> 00:20:14,000 bread tumbled into the camp of Midian, and it came to a tent 353 00:20:14,000 --> 00:20:16,680 and struck it so that it fell and overturned, and the tent 354 00:20:16,680 --> 00:20:19,240 collapsed. Then his companion answered and 355 00:20:19,240 --> 00:20:22,080 said, This is nothing else but the sword of Gideon, the son of 356 00:20:22,080 --> 00:20:25,440 Joash, a man of Israel. Into his hand God has delivered 357 00:20:25,440 --> 00:20:29,120 Midian and the whole camp. And so it was when Gideon heard 358 00:20:29,120 --> 00:20:31,240 the telling of the dream and its interpretation that he 359 00:20:31,240 --> 00:20:35,240 worshipped, He returned to the camp of Israel and said, Arise, 360 00:20:35,480 --> 00:20:38,880 for the Lord has delivered the camp of Midian into your hand. 361 00:20:39,640 --> 00:20:43,440 Then he divided the 300 men into three companies, and he put a 362 00:20:43,440 --> 00:20:47,240 trumpet into every man's hand, with empty pictures and torches 363 00:20:47,240 --> 00:20:50,360 inside the pictures. And he said to them, Look at me 364 00:20:50,360 --> 00:20:53,160 and do likewise, watch. And when I come to the edge of 365 00:20:53,160 --> 00:20:57,760 the camp, you shall do as I do when I blow the trumpet, I and 366 00:20:57,760 --> 00:21:00,640 all who are with me. Then you also blow the trumpets 367 00:21:00,640 --> 00:21:03,960 on every side of the whole camp and say the sword of the Lord 368 00:21:03,960 --> 00:21:07,160 and of Gideon. So Gideon and the 100 men who 369 00:21:07,160 --> 00:21:09,360 were with him came to the outpost of the camp at the 370 00:21:09,360 --> 00:21:12,080 beginning of the middle watch just as they had posted the 371 00:21:12,080 --> 00:21:14,160 watch. And they blew the trumpets and 372 00:21:14,160 --> 00:21:16,240 broke the pictures that were in their hands. 373 00:21:16,800 --> 00:21:19,440 And the three companies blew the trumpets and broke the pictures. 374 00:21:19,440 --> 00:21:22,160 They held the torches in their left hands, the trumpets in the 375 00:21:22,160 --> 00:21:24,800 right hands for blowing, and they cried the sword of the Lord 376 00:21:25,120 --> 00:21:28,360 and of Gideon, and every man stood in this place all around 377 00:21:28,360 --> 00:21:32,240 the camp, and the whole army ran and cried out and fled. 378 00:21:33,440 --> 00:21:37,080 When the 300 blew the trumpets, the Lord set every man's sword 379 00:21:37,080 --> 00:21:40,840 against his companion throughout the whole camp, and the army 380 00:21:40,840 --> 00:21:44,560 fled to death. Acacia towards Zerira, as far as 381 00:21:44,560 --> 00:21:47,920 the border of Abel, Mahola and Tabith, and the men of Israel 382 00:21:47,920 --> 00:21:52,000 gathered together from the NAFTA lie Asher and all Manasse and 383 00:21:52,000 --> 00:21:55,640 pursued the Midianites. Then Gideon sent messengers 384 00:21:55,640 --> 00:21:57,960 throughout all the mountains of Ephraim, saying, Come down 385 00:21:57,960 --> 00:22:01,160 against the Midianites and seize from them the watering places as 386 00:22:01,160 --> 00:22:03,040 far as Beth, Barra and the Jordan. 387 00:22:03,320 --> 00:22:05,760 Then all the men of Ephraim gathered together and seize the 388 00:22:05,760 --> 00:22:08,240 watering places as far as Beth, Barra and the Jordan. 389 00:22:08,560 --> 00:22:12,000 And they captured 2 Princess of the Midianites, Orab and Zeb. 390 00:22:12,360 --> 00:22:15,000 They killed Orab at the rock of Orab and Zeb. 391 00:22:15,080 --> 00:22:16,600 They killed at the winepress of Zeb. 392 00:22:17,360 --> 00:22:20,040 They pursued Midian and brought the heads of Orb and Zeb to 393 00:22:20,040 --> 00:22:23,040 Gideon on the other side of the Jordan. 394 00:22:23,760 --> 00:22:27,920 The Midianites were subdued. They would no longer oppress 395 00:22:27,920 --> 00:22:30,080 Israel. They would no longer come and 396 00:22:30,080 --> 00:22:34,320 steal everything from them. They had been beaten. 397 00:22:35,560 --> 00:22:40,720 Big victories come through small ways. 398 00:22:42,320 --> 00:22:45,520 If it had depended on Gideon's little army each taking a sword 399 00:22:45,520 --> 00:22:48,840 and shield and going against the Midianites and with a 400 to one 400 00:22:48,840 --> 00:22:51,760 ratio, yes, that would have been a challenge. 401 00:22:51,960 --> 00:22:53,720 Difficult and possible, we could say. 402 00:22:54,360 --> 00:22:57,200 Again, God does not always operate in normal ways. 403 00:22:57,480 --> 00:23:01,680 We see in the story that God actually made it very easy for 404 00:23:01,680 --> 00:23:05,520 Gideon's 300 men. God used the different strategy 405 00:23:05,800 --> 00:23:10,160 to overthrow the Midianite army. God used the Midianites 406 00:23:10,160 --> 00:23:15,640 themselves to self destruct. God used panic, fear and 407 00:23:15,640 --> 00:23:19,280 confusion. If there's one thing nobody 408 00:23:19,280 --> 00:23:22,520 wants, it is panic, fear and confusion. 409 00:23:22,800 --> 00:23:24,920 And that is what was on the battlefield. 410 00:23:25,960 --> 00:23:28,520 On the battlefield, people need confidence, courage and boldness 411 00:23:28,520 --> 00:23:31,400 and strength. Those are the qualities that you 412 00:23:31,400 --> 00:23:34,880 have to have. But these guys, they're now had 413 00:23:34,880 --> 00:23:36,400 fear. There was no confidence. 414 00:23:39,280 --> 00:23:44,320 Gideon had his share of fear before, but through the signs 415 00:23:44,320 --> 00:23:48,320 and things that God revealed himself to him, he now with only 416 00:23:48,320 --> 00:23:54,000 300 men did the impossible. When he went down to the camp, 417 00:23:54,000 --> 00:23:58,720 that was the final stamp of proof that he needed. 418 00:23:59,400 --> 00:24:02,200 He'd come in secret and listen to them and they one guy is 419 00:24:02,200 --> 00:24:05,680 telling the other how he had a dream and get seen a barley loaf 420 00:24:06,040 --> 00:24:07,960 tumble into the camp and knock a tent over. 421 00:24:07,960 --> 00:24:12,000 And the other guy says, oh, that's this guy, Midian, son of 422 00:24:12,200 --> 00:24:14,520 Joash. God's given this whole camp into 423 00:24:14,520 --> 00:24:16,800 his hand. So Gideon had become actually a 424 00:24:16,800 --> 00:24:20,640 bit bit famous by now. Gideon had become well known. 425 00:24:20,920 --> 00:24:22,920 We don't know all the activities, how much time 426 00:24:22,920 --> 00:24:28,840 elapsed between tearing down his dad's altar to bail and getting 427 00:24:28,840 --> 00:24:30,560 together the armies. We don't know how much time 428 00:24:30,560 --> 00:24:34,960 elapsed, but word got around and so he was known. 429 00:24:36,720 --> 00:24:38,000 Even the Midianites had heard about him. 430 00:24:38,080 --> 00:24:41,680 We don't know all the details, but now Gideon knew. 431 00:24:41,680 --> 00:24:45,480 And it says he worshipped. Now he trusted, now he had 432 00:24:45,480 --> 00:24:48,560 confidence, now he believed. And God used it. 433 00:24:49,880 --> 00:24:54,480 And God was going to use Gideon, his simple means of going around 434 00:24:54,480 --> 00:24:58,000 the camp, standing guard, blowing trumpets, smashing the 435 00:24:58,000 --> 00:25:02,120 pictures, lighting the sky up. God was going to use fear in the 436 00:25:02,120 --> 00:25:04,240 hearts of the Midianites to self destruct them. 437 00:25:04,640 --> 00:25:08,560 So Gideon now was the fear generator for the Midianites. 438 00:25:09,280 --> 00:25:13,840 Fear has amazing power once people allow it into their 439 00:25:13,840 --> 00:25:17,000 lives. First Gideon had it, a lot of 440 00:25:17,000 --> 00:25:19,640 his soldiers had it, but the ones who were with him, they 441 00:25:19,640 --> 00:25:25,800 were now confident. Now the Midianites had it, they 442 00:25:25,800 --> 00:25:28,160 were scared and they fought each other. 443 00:25:30,680 --> 00:25:34,880 Just imagine it, one commentator mentions that this would have 444 00:25:34,880 --> 00:25:37,960 happened about maybe the the watch that they talked about 445 00:25:37,960 --> 00:25:40,640 that would have happened about 10 A 10:00 PM at night. 446 00:25:41,200 --> 00:25:45,320 Maybe the Midianite soldiers and their overconfidence, this mass 447 00:25:45,320 --> 00:25:48,720 army and only Israelites small little army. 448 00:25:49,320 --> 00:25:51,320 We got this. It's only a matter of cleanup. 449 00:25:51,320 --> 00:25:54,600 That's basically what this amounts to and have no idea 450 00:25:54,600 --> 00:25:57,920 what's going to happen in a little while. 451 00:25:58,720 --> 00:26:00,480 Maybe they were fast asleep, we don't know. 452 00:26:00,520 --> 00:26:04,480 But then suddenly with no warning none whatsoever, there's 453 00:26:04,480 --> 00:26:08,760 this loud blast of trumpets, 300 trumpets all blowing at the same 454 00:26:08,760 --> 00:26:11,320 time. Then these torches appearing out 455 00:26:11,320 --> 00:26:15,320 of nowhere lighting up the sky and then this loud shout the 456 00:26:15,320 --> 00:26:19,160 sword of the Lord and of Gideon. If you and your bed sleeping and 457 00:26:19,160 --> 00:26:22,800 that happened outside your on your street somewhere, we would 458 00:26:22,800 --> 00:26:28,640 be scared to imagine it quiet peace and the next thing bedlam 459 00:26:29,680 --> 00:26:33,800 the sharp piercing blast. Soldiers startled, jumping off 460 00:26:33,800 --> 00:26:36,800 their cots, grabbing for a weapon, stumbling out of tents, 461 00:26:36,800 --> 00:26:39,280 frantically trying to make sense of things, fear in their faces. 462 00:26:39,400 --> 00:26:40,920 We're under attack. We're under attack. 463 00:26:41,360 --> 00:26:45,560 Verse 22 reads the Lord said every man's sword against his 464 00:26:45,560 --> 00:26:50,760 companion throughout the whole camp King was doing nothing 465 00:26:50,760 --> 00:26:53,280 except blowing, shining his torch and blowing his trumpet. 466 00:26:53,600 --> 00:26:55,000 The sword of the Lord and of Gideon. 467 00:26:55,160 --> 00:26:58,000 It's all he had to do. God was doing the work. 468 00:27:00,680 --> 00:27:02,920 All that he had to do was make noise, shine lights. 469 00:27:02,920 --> 00:27:05,080 That was it. God took care of the rest. 470 00:27:07,600 --> 00:27:11,520 What difference does this story make for us today? 471 00:27:12,520 --> 00:27:16,760 Maybe you're facing a situation that is impossible, living under 472 00:27:16,760 --> 00:27:20,320 circumstances that feel like Midianite oppression. 473 00:27:20,720 --> 00:27:23,120 You've cried out. You need help and you're afraid. 474 00:27:25,120 --> 00:27:27,920 The best thing we can do is learn from these stories. 475 00:27:28,440 --> 00:27:32,160 Totally give ourselves to God. Keep doing what we know is 476 00:27:32,160 --> 00:27:37,200 right, but do not let ourselves be guided by fear or worry. 477 00:27:38,040 --> 00:27:41,440 God will bring His will to pass, and yes, we may suffer, but in 478 00:27:41,440 --> 00:27:45,920 the end God will work His will. There's many countless stories 479 00:27:45,920 --> 00:27:50,680 through time where things looked hopeless only for the tide to 480 00:27:50,680 --> 00:27:53,080 turn. Maybe at the last moment the 481 00:27:53,080 --> 00:27:56,640 weak overcame the strong and the strong were even self 482 00:27:56,640 --> 00:28:00,760 annihilated. God does not need size or 483 00:28:00,760 --> 00:28:03,280 numbers or power to work as victory. 484 00:28:03,760 --> 00:28:08,760 God can use the small, the insignificant, the weak and the 485 00:28:08,760 --> 00:28:12,000 powerless. We see in this passage how God 486 00:28:12,000 --> 00:28:17,840 used a small, simple little army of 300 to throw this massive 487 00:28:17,840 --> 00:28:22,480 Midianite army to confusion, to fear and self destruction. 488 00:28:23,960 --> 00:28:27,320 And after that initial shock alarm, there was panic and fear 489 00:28:27,320 --> 00:28:29,200 and killing each other off and they start to flee. 490 00:28:30,880 --> 00:28:33,280 And we don't know how much time elapsed and all of this of 491 00:28:33,280 --> 00:28:37,400 obviously the night wore on, the sun rose in the morning and the 492 00:28:37,400 --> 00:28:39,960 army's taking flight and heading off away from Israel. 493 00:28:40,200 --> 00:28:42,000 Gideon sends word out to all these tribes. 494 00:28:42,000 --> 00:28:46,760 Come on guys, they're running, they're fleeing and they went on 495 00:28:46,760 --> 00:28:53,440 the pursuit and took them down. It tells us verse 32 and 23 496 00:28:53,440 --> 00:28:57,520 rather that men of Israel, NAFTA and Asher, all, they came and 497 00:28:57,520 --> 00:29:04,480 they pursued the Midianites and they even capture some of the 498 00:29:04,480 --> 00:29:06,840 Princess, and they killed them and brought their heads as proof 499 00:29:06,840 --> 00:29:11,200 of accomplishment. You see, courage begets courage. 500 00:29:11,680 --> 00:29:14,960 Dictators know that. Dictators know that courage 501 00:29:14,960 --> 00:29:17,840 begets courage, but they also know fear begets fear. 502 00:29:18,440 --> 00:29:21,560 That's one reason why dictators try to keep their people in 503 00:29:21,560 --> 00:29:24,360 fear, under oppression and control. 504 00:29:24,720 --> 00:29:29,120 Nothing scares dictators more than the idea that the people 505 00:29:29,120 --> 00:29:32,080 under their control might one day refuse to bow to their 506 00:29:32,080 --> 00:29:35,640 demands. And the dictator is never 507 00:29:35,640 --> 00:29:38,200 stronger than the oppressed people allow him to be, because 508 00:29:38,200 --> 00:29:40,520 once they say no, his power is gone. 509 00:29:40,600 --> 00:29:43,720 He can kill his oppressed people, but he cannot control 510 00:29:43,720 --> 00:29:45,080 them if they refuse to be controlled. 511 00:29:45,280 --> 00:29:48,560 There's many, many stories through history where people 512 00:29:48,560 --> 00:29:50,360 have simply refused to bow the evil. 513 00:29:50,360 --> 00:29:55,320 Not violently, just refused. One story that I know of, I know 514 00:29:55,320 --> 00:29:58,680 many, but the story of the nation of India, its 515 00:29:58,680 --> 00:30:00,880 independence from Britain under the leadership of Mahatma 516 00:30:00,880 --> 00:30:04,160 Gandhi. He was a non violent man, used 517 00:30:04,160 --> 00:30:06,600 the non violent approach to bring about independence for 518 00:30:06,600 --> 00:30:09,440 India. The means he used not killing, 519 00:30:09,960 --> 00:30:13,520 just refusing to bow to unjust laws. 520 00:30:15,440 --> 00:30:18,400 It's an interesting story to follow if you read it and 521 00:30:18,400 --> 00:30:21,400 there's many, many stories I could talk about something 522 00:30:21,400 --> 00:30:23,480 that's much closer to home in the in the US. 523 00:30:23,480 --> 00:30:25,960 Remember in the 50s or 60s I believe it was the story of Rosa 524 00:30:25,960 --> 00:30:28,040 Parks and the Montgomery boycott of the buses. 525 00:30:28,560 --> 00:30:32,960 Powerful story. Yes, sometimes people die in the 526 00:30:32,960 --> 00:30:36,000 process simply by saying no I won't do this and they can get 527 00:30:36,000 --> 00:30:39,360 killed. But in the end, evil always self 528 00:30:39,360 --> 00:30:42,960 destructs, and the oppressed may not even see it, to live to see 529 00:30:42,960 --> 00:30:46,560 it, but the records show it. A story in the Bible that I know 530 00:30:46,560 --> 00:30:49,640 of that comes to mind is the story of Daniel, his three 531 00:30:49,640 --> 00:30:52,600 friends in Babylon, prisoners of war, young, full of life, but 532 00:30:52,600 --> 00:30:56,400 taken prisoner. Their lives meant only very 533 00:30:56,400 --> 00:31:00,320 little in the King's big scheme of things, but he liked them. 534 00:31:00,320 --> 00:31:03,040 God give him, gave them favor in the King's eyes. 535 00:31:03,680 --> 00:31:05,760 And repeatedly they were promoted, but through very 536 00:31:05,760 --> 00:31:07,800 difficult challenges where they stood faithful. 537 00:31:08,320 --> 00:31:12,080 Toward the end of Daniel's life under King Darius, he was 538 00:31:12,080 --> 00:31:14,360 promoted. His fellow government employees 539 00:31:14,360 --> 00:31:17,240 or workers were jealous. They came up with a foolish law 540 00:31:17,240 --> 00:31:19,440 that, well, we want to get rid of Daniel. 541 00:31:19,440 --> 00:31:21,920 The only way to get rid of Daniel is if we can get the king 542 00:31:21,920 --> 00:31:24,480 to sign a law. Nobody can pray except to the 543 00:31:24,480 --> 00:31:25,640 king. And knowing that Daniel would 544 00:31:25,640 --> 00:31:28,840 not obey that law, well, Daniel refused to obey that law. 545 00:31:29,320 --> 00:31:30,720 They got him thrown the lion's den. 546 00:31:32,120 --> 00:31:34,680 Daniel's faith held strong even though he ended up among the 547 00:31:34,680 --> 00:31:37,080 lions. King was very sorry and been 548 00:31:37,080 --> 00:31:39,880 disappointed what he had allowed himself to be tricked into 549 00:31:40,400 --> 00:31:42,240 couldn't sleep. The next morning he goes to the 550 00:31:42,240 --> 00:31:46,080 lions, then calls out Daniel's alive, he hasn't taken out. 551 00:31:46,480 --> 00:31:50,360 Then this very king who made that law says, OK, you guys, you 552 00:31:50,360 --> 00:31:52,320 tricked me. You wanted Daniel dead and in 553 00:31:52,320 --> 00:31:54,600 you go. And they all died by the lions 554 00:31:55,680 --> 00:31:58,200 with God. Evil always loses. 555 00:31:58,200 --> 00:32:02,280 Maybe not today, but it loses. It will not stand. 556 00:32:02,960 --> 00:32:06,800 Evil has a limited lifespan. Holiness is eternal. 557 00:32:08,000 --> 00:32:11,280 Here in today's story of the story of Gideon, Gideon has now 558 00:32:11,280 --> 00:32:12,880 become the deliverer of his people. 559 00:32:13,520 --> 00:32:16,800 Of course, it was God who did it, but it was Gideon who was 560 00:32:16,800 --> 00:32:18,600 the vessel. Not perfect. 561 00:32:19,640 --> 00:32:23,240 He struggled with his faith, but he learned to rely on God. 562 00:32:23,920 --> 00:32:26,880 And God proved faithful. You see, God does not look at 563 00:32:26,880 --> 00:32:29,840 the size of the problem, the number of people. 564 00:32:30,640 --> 00:32:33,560 God is looking for men and women who are surrendered. 565 00:32:33,880 --> 00:32:37,120 We're all in for him. So let's look at our lives 566 00:32:37,120 --> 00:32:41,040 today. I don't know all of your 567 00:32:41,040 --> 00:32:43,920 personal struggles that you may be facing. 568 00:32:44,320 --> 00:32:46,520 What I do know is where I can point you to, and that's to 569 00:32:46,520 --> 00:32:48,320 Christ. Maybe there's some Midianites in 570 00:32:48,320 --> 00:32:50,960 your life you can't dislodge and get rid of. 571 00:32:52,040 --> 00:32:54,920 Maybe you have lived a life of fear for so many years and 572 00:32:54,920 --> 00:32:58,200 you're bowing to the pressure of fear and control. 573 00:32:59,400 --> 00:33:03,800 The same God that rescued the people of Israel can rescue us, 574 00:33:04,200 --> 00:33:07,160 can rescue you. The first thing we need to do is 575 00:33:07,160 --> 00:33:10,440 let go of fear. We need to be rescued from the 576 00:33:10,440 --> 00:33:13,920 fear of our enemies, fear of what people may think of us if 577 00:33:13,920 --> 00:33:16,480 we follow Jesus. Fear of what people will do if 578 00:33:16,480 --> 00:33:20,080 we don't go along with them, free from the fear of what 579 00:33:20,080 --> 00:33:22,360 others will do, even if we do the right thing. 580 00:33:23,840 --> 00:33:26,840 We do not know what all the struggles are that God will 581 00:33:26,840 --> 00:33:32,160 allow into our lives, but we do know how it will end, that we're 582 00:33:32,160 --> 00:33:35,280 promised. In Zechariah chapter 4, verse 6, 583 00:33:35,280 --> 00:33:39,240 we read This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel. 584 00:33:39,680 --> 00:33:45,680 Not by might nor by power, but by my spirit says the Lord of 585 00:33:45,680 --> 00:33:48,120 hosts. With God, it does not matter 586 00:33:48,120 --> 00:33:52,800 whether big or small, fewer many to God it's no problem. 587 00:33:53,760 --> 00:33:55,160 With God, all things are possible. 588 00:33:55,320 --> 00:33:58,760 So I want to encourage us this morning, today, not to give way 589 00:33:58,760 --> 00:34:00,200 to fear. Have courage. 590 00:34:00,480 --> 00:34:03,720 Face the circumstances of life with courage, with boldness and 591 00:34:03,720 --> 00:34:07,640 strength. You and I, we serve an eternal 592 00:34:07,640 --> 00:34:12,080 living God who will reign in eternity, and we with him, let's 593 00:34:12,080 --> 00:34:17,400 pray. Lord, thank you that you saved 594 00:34:17,400 --> 00:34:19,360 us. You sent your Son to die on the 595 00:34:19,360 --> 00:34:22,520 cross for our sins. For all who repent and believe 596 00:34:22,840 --> 00:34:26,120 you are their Lord and Savior. Our destiny is sure. 597 00:34:26,600 --> 00:34:30,280 We may struggle here now for a time, but we rest assured that 598 00:34:30,280 --> 00:34:32,920 you're with you. There's no turning, there's no 599 00:34:32,920 --> 00:34:34,159 night. We're secure. 600 00:34:34,840 --> 00:34:38,080 We ask the Lord that you'll help us to seek you, worship you, and 601 00:34:38,080 --> 00:34:40,280 serve you. You call us the faithfulness. 602 00:34:40,679 --> 00:34:43,360 The outcome is in your hands and in your hands alone. 603 00:34:43,520 --> 00:34:45,600 We thank you, Jesus. In your name we pray. 604 00:34:45,600 --> 00:34:45,840 Amen.