I love the story of Gideon… probably because it is one of the very few uplifting bright spots in the entire book of Judges! I also love it because I think most people will identify with it on some level.

In chapter 6, we will not be surprised to find our four step process repeating yet again:

Step One: Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD…

Step Two: …and for seven years he gave them into the hands of the Midianites. Because the power of Midian was so oppressive, the Israelites prepared shelters for themselves in mountain clefts, caves and strongholds.

Step Three: Midian so impoverished the Israelites that they cried out to the LORD for help. (Judges 6:1-2,6)

So again, step four is coming: God will raise up a deliverer. This time it will be Gideon. Note how God calls Gideon -

Gideon was threshing wheat in a wine press to keep it from the Midianites. When the angel of the LORD appeared to Gideon, he said, “The LORD is with you, mighty warrior.” (6:11b, 12)

Oh, I love this! As my husband says, this is “gentle humor,” but it cracks me up every single time. :) Gideon is threshing wheat. [Now, I have been a suburban/city girl my entire life, so my understanding of the threshing of wheat is admittedly limited. For those of you who are equally agriculturally challenged, I will do my best to explain.] Threshing is removing the wheat berries from the stalk. In order to thresh the wheat, they would beat it out and then toss it into the air to allow the wind to blow away the chaff. What would be the best place to do this? A hillside. Remember – you’re looking for wind. But where do we find Gideon? A wine press! He’s basically hiding underground threshing his wheat in an exceedingly unproductive way (was he tossing it in the air and blowing as hard as he could??) – it had to be pretty humiliating and frustrating to do it this way. So why is he doing this? He’s afraid of the Midianites.

Now notice the address from the Lord (when you see “the angel of the Lord” in the Old Testament, it is usually a preincarnate appearance of Jesus! How do we know? Check verse 14 – suddenly it is the Lord talking to him. Often “the angel of the Lord” and “the Lord” are used interchangeably.) – how does Jesus refer to him? “Mighty warrior.” Seriously, it almost makes me laugh out loud.

It makes me laugh because it is ironic, but God isn’t making fun of Gideon here. God sees Gideon for the man He will make him to be! Oh, let that sink in!

All through chapter 6, “mighty warrior” does not seem to be Gideon’s appropriate title. He’s threshing in a wine press in verse 11. After God calls him to deliver Israel, Gideon answers in verse 15, “how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.” In verse 17-21, Gideon gives the Lord the first test – he prepares a meal and fire comes from a rock and consumes it. That should be fairly convincing, one would think.

Next, he is told to go tear down his father’s altar to Baal and Asherah pole. He does it, but- “because he was afraid of his family and the men of the town, he did it at night rather than in the daytime.” (27)

Next, he prepares to go to war against Midian. Notice what he prays in verse 36: “If you will save Israel by my hand as you have promised…” It’s not that Gideon isn’t sure what God wants here, or that God’s revelation hadn’t been crystal clear. He wants to know if God will really do what He already promised He would do!

In order to “clarify” that God would keep his word, we now have the famous “Gideon’s fleece” accounts. First he wants the fleece to be wet and the ground to be dry. God does it. Then he wants the fleece to be dry and the ground to be wet. God does it again!

[Side note here: I have often heard people talk about "setting out a fleece." Remember, just because it's in a Biblical narrative does not mean that it is a good example. Gideon's fleece was not a request for clarification - it was a lack of faith. In Matthew 12, the Pharisees come to Jesus and ask to see a miraculous sign. He replies, "A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a miraculous sign!"(36) They knew and had seen more than enough - they were simply choosing not to believe. You don't need a fleece! Just believe Him and obey!]

Chapter 7, though, is where we see what God saw in Gideon. He obviously did have the potential to be a brave leader, and he does it with gusto. Gideon starts out with 32,000 men ready to battle against Midian. God whittles the army first to 10,000, then to 300. Three hundred Israelites against the Amalekite and Midianite armies – check out how they are described.

The Midianites, the Amalekites and all the other eastern peoples had settled in the valley, thick as locusts. Their camels could no more be counted than the sand on the seashore. (7:36)

Wow. This does not look like an even battle. God is making it abundantly clear to the Israelites that when they are victorious it is NOT because of them – it is because of their God.

There is one more reference to our old fearful Gideon – I love that God knows him so intimately and reassures him without being asked: the night before the battle, God tells Gideon,

“If you are afraid to attack, go down to the camp with your servant Purah and listen to what they are saying. Afterward, you will be encouraged to attack the camp.” (7:10-11)

I’ll let you read the rest of the story on your own – it’s a good one! Make sure you read it!! [We'll talk more in the next post about the rest of Gideon's life - he's not flawless, either.]

Back to our initial point: God sees Gideon for the man He will make him to be! On his own, Gideon is a wimpy, doubting, fearful man. With God at his side, he does amazing things. God sees past his weaknesses and sees who he will be when He is done with him.

No doubt, God has called each one of us to tasks that seem too big. We’re hiding in the winepress feeling attacked, and there is no way we feel up to doing the giant things God has told us to do! Some days just staying up with the housework seems too big for me, let alone raising and protecting my children in a wicked culture, ministering to my husband when he has hit the wall, teaching God’s Word to women who have twice my years and experience, and sharing the Truth with a lost and hurting world. I want to hide under the afghan on the couch and disengage. Step back from ministry, think about sending the kids to a traditional school, “protect” myself.

What are your challenges? Chronically ill or disabled loved ones? Rifts and conflict in the family or your church body? A difficult marriage? A hostile work environment?

Remember – God sees you for who He will make you to be. He knows who you are without Him. He’s not impressed by us, but He knows His own strength and power to transform us and use us (despite our own failures!). In your weakness, believe in His strength.

As a father has compassion on his children,
so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him;
for he knows how we are formed,
he remembers that we are dust.
Psalm 103:13-14