5 Takeaways from Judges 6

As we journey through the Chronological Bible, our text this week for the sermon was from Judges 6. The text introduces us to a familiar family character of the Bible, Gideon.

I have talked about Gideon numerous times in my ministry, but I saw a few things differently this week. Israel has abandoned God and experienced abuse from the Midianites. God calls Gideon to lead the fight to set them free. Here are five of my takeaways from the sermon Sunday.

Practice Daily Steps of Faith

The Lord tells Gideon at their introduction that he will set Israel free. Gideon is not quite ready to believe. Gideon asks for a sign, and God delivers by consuming the offering of food on the rock. He then gives Gideon a smaller step to take. He asks Gideon to tear down the altars to the false gods and build an altar to the true God. Gideon does what the Lord asks. It was a small step, but steps of faith are what He asks us to take.

God Sees The End While We Can Only See The Present

Gideon saw himself as weak and young and his family as the weakest of the tribe. He saw Mideon as this great army. God addresses Gideon as a mighty hero, but Gideon could only see his present circumstances. God could see how things were going to turn out in the end. God speaks to us, knowing what we shall be, not necessarily what we are.

Fear Can Cloud Every Decision

The assigned tasks riddled Gideon with fear. He didn’t trust himself or his abilities, nor was he sure about God and His promises. When the Lord came to him, he was hiding in the bottom of a winepress threshing grain. He needed multiple signs to act. Fear dictated almost everything he did. When fear overtakes our lives, it affects nearly every decision we make. It will often keep us from deciding because it has paralyzed us. “Do not fear” is repeated hundreds of times in scripture because God knows we tend to be fearful.

We Want Relief From The Consequences But Not Repentance From The Sin

The people of Israel wanted relief from the Midianites, but they did not want to change their ways. When Gideon destroyed the altars of Baal and Ashteroth, they wanted to kill him. The entire reason they were in bondage is that they had turned their backs on God. They wanted relief from the consequences of sin, but they did not want to repent and turn from their sin. We are much the same way. We want to repeat the actions while removing the consequences. Repentance is our only relief.

Don’t Require A Sign, But Don’t Ignore Them Either

Gideon asked for three signs, and the Lord was gracious and granted all three requests. There is a real tension here. The New Testament tells us to walk by faith and not by sight. I do believe God gives us signs at times. I also believe that most of our walk is by faith and not by sight. We cannot require a sign every time we need to move, but we cannot ignore signs when God presents them. Requiring signs is a lack of faith. Ignoring signs is ignorant. We do not want to be guilty of either.

How have you thought about Gideon previously? We should learn to take daily steps of faith that allow us to grow and trust God more.