How God uses those who are willing! -- Judges 7:1-9
How God uses those who are willing! -- Judges 7:1-9
By Pastor Lee Hemen
January 12, 2020
We all want God to do mighty things just like those described in the Scriptures but there are few of us that truly want God to do those mighty things through us! When the rubber meets the road in our spiritual walk with God the rubber often turns to gravel. The pavement comes up to meet us in the face, so-to-speak. But it is here where we discover the power and strength of God when we are willing to be used of God! And how he chooses to use us depends on how willing we are!
Gideon, that “Mighty Warrior” of God not only had to learn this lesson for himself but he had to try and teach it to an entire nation! As we begin the process of looking for our future pastor we must be willing to go where God leads us. It can be a scary prospect but it is also a rewarding one as well. Here in Judges we discover how God uses those who are willing…
READ: Judges 7:1-9
Letting go and allowing God to work in one’s life can be scary but also extremely rewarding. Here we learn that…
I. Willing people allow God to work! (Vv. 1-4)
Early in the morning, Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) and all his men camped at the spring of Harod. The camp of Midian was north of them in the valley near the hill of Moreh. The LORD said to Gideon, “You have too many men for me to deliver Midian into their hands. In order that Israel may not boast against me that her own strength has saved her, announce now to the people, ‘Anyone who trembles with fear may turn back and leave Mount Gilead.’” So twenty-two thousand men left, while ten thousand remained. But the LORD said to Gideon, “There are still too many men. Take them down to the water, and I will sift them for you there. If I say, ‘This one shall go with you,’ he shall go; but if I say, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ he shall not go.”
1. I do not know about you but I do not want to speak with let alone be with other people in the morning until I have showered, shaved, brushed my teeth, and have had something to eat. Now do not get me wrong, I am a “morning person” (just ask my wife) because I usually wake up feeling happy and ready for the day but that does not mean I want to face others without first being prepared! Here we discover that it was “Early in the morning” and Gideon and “all his men camped at the spring of Harod. The camp of Midian was north of them in the valley near the hill of Moreh.” Now realize that these guys were a citizen’s army of untrained men who had marched, camped out sleeping under makeshift shelters and cloaks, and were now expected to get up and get ready for battle. And before Gideon could collect his thoughts or even strategize God tells him: “You have too many men for me to deliver Midian into their hands.” Gideon probably thought: “What do you mean too many men? Didn’t God realize that they were going up against land pirates and thugs who made a living at terrorizing villages and towns for the spoils they could gain?” But Gideon did not realize what God was going to do! “In order that Israel may not boast against me that her own strength has saved her, announce now to the people, ‘Anyone who trembles with fear may turn back and leave Mount Gilead.’” God did not want Weak Willies nor did he want Israel to think they could win without his help “So twenty-two thousand men left, while ten thousand remained.” Still a sizable respectable army and yet God tells Gideon, “There are still too many men. Take them down to the water, and I will sift them for you there. If I say, ‘This one shall go with you,’ he shall go; but if I say, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ he shall not go.” We can think we are the ones that are in control of what God desires but this isn’t the case at all. God desired that the Israelites renew their faith in him and learn that he can do anything if they were willing. In fact we learn from Gideon that willing people allow God to work!
EXAMPLE: I find it comforting to realize that all the while Gideon grew up, learned to be a farmer at his father’s knee, and then on that fateful day when he went out to his winepress to hide while threshing wheat God was in control! God was maturing the one person who could lead Israel at that time just as he has been working in the life of the man he will chose for us as Pastor! And how he has worked right up until now to find just the right folks to use to help us discover the one he has chosen for us! Never forget that willing people allow God to work!
It’s more than the pithy phrase of “Let go and let God!” There is also an obedience factor involved and we learn that…
II. Willing people do what God asks! (Vv. 5-9)
So Gideon took the men down to the water. There the LORD told him, “Separate those who lap the water with their tongues like a dog from those who kneel down to drink.” Three hundred men lapped with their hands to their mouths. All the rest got down on their knees to drink. The LORD said to Gideon, “With the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands. Let all the other men go, each to his own place.” So Gideon sent the rest of the Israelites to their tents but kept the three hundred, who took over the provisions and trumpets of the others. Now the camp of Midian lay below him in the valley. During that night the LORD said to Gideon, “Get up, go down against the camp, because I am going to give it into your hands.”
1. In the next few verse we are surprised at what God asks Gideon and his army to do. What began as an army of 32,000 men was whittled down to 20,000 but God is not finished. “So Gideon took the men down to the water. There the LORD told him, ‘Separate those who lap the water with their tongues like a dog from those who kneel down to drink.’” Now I’ve heard a lot of sermons that kind of stretch, skew, or manipulate the reasons why God separated the men from those who knelt down to drink and those who lapped the water up like a dog but none of them truly make any sense whatsoever. And no there is no good fighting or readiness reason to separate one from the other. In fact, stretching down to lap water up even out of one’s hand puts one in a position whereby the person is easily pushed over and cannot readily get up to confront danger. I know because I’ve knelt by a stream, bent down to drink from it, and nearly fell into the water when a deer bolted from the underbrush nearby and scared the living daylights out of me! I ended up on my bottom disoriented. Sure kneeling down does put you into a more dangerous position but I do not think this was God’s reasoning. The real reason is what we learn next: “Three hundred men lapped with their hands to their mouths. All the rest got down on their knees to drink. The LORD said to Gideon, ‘With the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands. Let all the other men go, each to his own place.’” God wasn’t going to use 32,000 men nor was he going to use 20,000 men, he was going to use a mere 300 men to win a tremendous victory! Gideon had to remain faithful, “So Gideon sent the rest of the Israelites to their tents but kept the three hundred, who took over the provisions and trumpets of the others.” Certainly 300 men can move a lot more quietly than 20,000 but God is in the details and he could have used as many men as he wanted! “Now the camp of Midian lay below him in the valley. During that night the LORD said to Gideon, ‘Get up, go down against the camp, because I am going to give it into your hands.’” Willing people do what God asks!
EXAMPLE: When we continually say “I do not want to!” or “I refuse!” where the Lord is concerned, he will find others who are willing. And when he does those who refused do not receive the blessing that follows in submitting to him. I have learned that willing people do what God asks!
Conclusion:
Willing people allow God to work! Willing people do what God asks!
---
This article is copyrighted © 2020 by Lee Hemen and is the sole property of Lee Hemen, and may not be used unless you quote the entire article and have my permission.
By Pastor Lee Hemen
January 12, 2020
We all want God to do mighty things just like those described in the Scriptures but there are few of us that truly want God to do those mighty things through us! When the rubber meets the road in our spiritual walk with God the rubber often turns to gravel. The pavement comes up to meet us in the face, so-to-speak. But it is here where we discover the power and strength of God when we are willing to be used of God! And how he chooses to use us depends on how willing we are!
Gideon, that “Mighty Warrior” of God not only had to learn this lesson for himself but he had to try and teach it to an entire nation! As we begin the process of looking for our future pastor we must be willing to go where God leads us. It can be a scary prospect but it is also a rewarding one as well. Here in Judges we discover how God uses those who are willing…
READ: Judges 7:1-9
Letting go and allowing God to work in one’s life can be scary but also extremely rewarding. Here we learn that…
I. Willing people allow God to work! (Vv. 1-4)
Early in the morning, Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) and all his men camped at the spring of Harod. The camp of Midian was north of them in the valley near the hill of Moreh. The LORD said to Gideon, “You have too many men for me to deliver Midian into their hands. In order that Israel may not boast against me that her own strength has saved her, announce now to the people, ‘Anyone who trembles with fear may turn back and leave Mount Gilead.’” So twenty-two thousand men left, while ten thousand remained. But the LORD said to Gideon, “There are still too many men. Take them down to the water, and I will sift them for you there. If I say, ‘This one shall go with you,’ he shall go; but if I say, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ he shall not go.”
1. I do not know about you but I do not want to speak with let alone be with other people in the morning until I have showered, shaved, brushed my teeth, and have had something to eat. Now do not get me wrong, I am a “morning person” (just ask my wife) because I usually wake up feeling happy and ready for the day but that does not mean I want to face others without first being prepared! Here we discover that it was “Early in the morning” and Gideon and “all his men camped at the spring of Harod. The camp of Midian was north of them in the valley near the hill of Moreh.” Now realize that these guys were a citizen’s army of untrained men who had marched, camped out sleeping under makeshift shelters and cloaks, and were now expected to get up and get ready for battle. And before Gideon could collect his thoughts or even strategize God tells him: “You have too many men for me to deliver Midian into their hands.” Gideon probably thought: “What do you mean too many men? Didn’t God realize that they were going up against land pirates and thugs who made a living at terrorizing villages and towns for the spoils they could gain?” But Gideon did not realize what God was going to do! “In order that Israel may not boast against me that her own strength has saved her, announce now to the people, ‘Anyone who trembles with fear may turn back and leave Mount Gilead.’” God did not want Weak Willies nor did he want Israel to think they could win without his help “So twenty-two thousand men left, while ten thousand remained.” Still a sizable respectable army and yet God tells Gideon, “There are still too many men. Take them down to the water, and I will sift them for you there. If I say, ‘This one shall go with you,’ he shall go; but if I say, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ he shall not go.” We can think we are the ones that are in control of what God desires but this isn’t the case at all. God desired that the Israelites renew their faith in him and learn that he can do anything if they were willing. In fact we learn from Gideon that willing people allow God to work!
EXAMPLE: I find it comforting to realize that all the while Gideon grew up, learned to be a farmer at his father’s knee, and then on that fateful day when he went out to his winepress to hide while threshing wheat God was in control! God was maturing the one person who could lead Israel at that time just as he has been working in the life of the man he will chose for us as Pastor! And how he has worked right up until now to find just the right folks to use to help us discover the one he has chosen for us! Never forget that willing people allow God to work!
It’s more than the pithy phrase of “Let go and let God!” There is also an obedience factor involved and we learn that…
II. Willing people do what God asks! (Vv. 5-9)
So Gideon took the men down to the water. There the LORD told him, “Separate those who lap the water with their tongues like a dog from those who kneel down to drink.” Three hundred men lapped with their hands to their mouths. All the rest got down on their knees to drink. The LORD said to Gideon, “With the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands. Let all the other men go, each to his own place.” So Gideon sent the rest of the Israelites to their tents but kept the three hundred, who took over the provisions and trumpets of the others. Now the camp of Midian lay below him in the valley. During that night the LORD said to Gideon, “Get up, go down against the camp, because I am going to give it into your hands.”
1. In the next few verse we are surprised at what God asks Gideon and his army to do. What began as an army of 32,000 men was whittled down to 20,000 but God is not finished. “So Gideon took the men down to the water. There the LORD told him, ‘Separate those who lap the water with their tongues like a dog from those who kneel down to drink.’” Now I’ve heard a lot of sermons that kind of stretch, skew, or manipulate the reasons why God separated the men from those who knelt down to drink and those who lapped the water up like a dog but none of them truly make any sense whatsoever. And no there is no good fighting or readiness reason to separate one from the other. In fact, stretching down to lap water up even out of one’s hand puts one in a position whereby the person is easily pushed over and cannot readily get up to confront danger. I know because I’ve knelt by a stream, bent down to drink from it, and nearly fell into the water when a deer bolted from the underbrush nearby and scared the living daylights out of me! I ended up on my bottom disoriented. Sure kneeling down does put you into a more dangerous position but I do not think this was God’s reasoning. The real reason is what we learn next: “Three hundred men lapped with their hands to their mouths. All the rest got down on their knees to drink. The LORD said to Gideon, ‘With the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands. Let all the other men go, each to his own place.’” God wasn’t going to use 32,000 men nor was he going to use 20,000 men, he was going to use a mere 300 men to win a tremendous victory! Gideon had to remain faithful, “So Gideon sent the rest of the Israelites to their tents but kept the three hundred, who took over the provisions and trumpets of the others.” Certainly 300 men can move a lot more quietly than 20,000 but God is in the details and he could have used as many men as he wanted! “Now the camp of Midian lay below him in the valley. During that night the LORD said to Gideon, ‘Get up, go down against the camp, because I am going to give it into your hands.’” Willing people do what God asks!
EXAMPLE: When we continually say “I do not want to!” or “I refuse!” where the Lord is concerned, he will find others who are willing. And when he does those who refused do not receive the blessing that follows in submitting to him. I have learned that willing people do what God asks!
Conclusion:
Willing people allow God to work! Willing people do what God asks!
---
This article is copyrighted © 2020 by Lee Hemen and is the sole property of Lee Hemen, and may not be used unless you quote the entire article and have my permission.
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