The Book of Judges #13

WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.040 --> 00:00:04.040 Looking at the book of judges. We are in Chapter Eight. We finished 2 00:00:04.040 --> 00:00:08.279 with verse three, so I'll be reading beginning with verse four and going through 3 00:00:08.359 --> 00:00:13.640 Verse Twenty Eight, reminding you this is God's word. And Gideon came to 4 00:00:13.679 --> 00:00:16.719 the Jordan and crossed over, he and the three hundred men who were with 5 00:00:16.839 --> 00:00:21.440 him, exhausted, yet pursuing. So he said to the men of Saca, 6 00:00:21.559 --> 00:00:25.000 please give loaves of bread to the people who follow me, for they 7 00:00:25.000 --> 00:00:30.120 are exhausted and I'm pursuing after Zeban Zalmona. The kings of Midian and the 8 00:00:30.199 --> 00:00:34.000 officials of Saka said, are the hands of Zeba and Zalmana already in your 9 00:00:34.000 --> 00:00:37.679 hand, that we should get bread to your army. So Gideon said, 10 00:00:37.719 --> 00:00:41.679 well then, when the Lord has given Zeban Zalmana into my hand, I 11 00:00:41.719 --> 00:00:46.039 will flail your flesh with the thorns of the Wilderness and the BRIARS. And 12 00:00:46.079 --> 00:00:49.159 from there he went up to Paneua and spoke to them in the same way, 13 00:00:49.159 --> 00:00:52.679 and the Menipanneua answered him as the men of Sacca answered. And he 14 00:00:52.719 --> 00:00:56.039 said to the Menapeneua, when I come again in peace, I'll break down 15 00:00:56.039 --> 00:01:00.960 this tower. Now zeban's Almana were in carcer with their are me about about 16 00:01:00.000 --> 00:01:03.480 fifteen thousand men, all who were left of all the army of the people 17 00:01:03.519 --> 00:01:07.599 in the east, for there had fallen a hundred and twenty thousand men who 18 00:01:07.680 --> 00:01:11.280 drew the sword, and Getteon went up by the way of the tent dwellers 19 00:01:11.319 --> 00:01:15.599 east of Noba and Jog Biha and attacked the army, for the army felt 20 00:01:15.599 --> 00:01:22.319 secure and Zeben Zelmanna fled and he pursued them and he captured the two kings 21 00:01:22.319 --> 00:01:26.200 of met Midian, Zeba and Zelmanna, and he threw all the army into 22 00:01:26.200 --> 00:01:29.719 a panic. Then Getteon, the son of Joe Ash, returned from the 23 00:01:29.719 --> 00:01:32.959 battle by the ascent of Harris, and he captured a young man of Sarka 24 00:01:33.079 --> 00:01:36.959 and questioned him and he wrote down for him the officials and elders of Sarka, 25 00:01:37.519 --> 00:01:41.120 seven men or seventy seven men, and he came to the men of 26 00:01:41.159 --> 00:01:44.599 Sarka and said, behold Zeba and Zimana, about whom you taunted me, 27 00:01:44.719 --> 00:01:48.560 saying are the hands of Zeben Zelmanna already in your hand, that we should 28 00:01:48.599 --> 00:01:52.480 give bread to your men who are exhausted, and he took the elders of 29 00:01:52.519 --> 00:01:56.439 the city, and he took thorns of the Wilderness and Briars with them Uh 30 00:01:56.480 --> 00:02:00.200 and taught the men of Sarca the lesson, and he broke down the hour 31 00:02:00.239 --> 00:02:02.760 a penuel and killed the men at the city. Then he said to Zeeben 32 00:02:02.879 --> 00:02:07.120 Zelmanna, where are the men whom you killed at Tabor? They answered, 33 00:02:07.159 --> 00:02:09.800 as you are, so were they. Every one of them resembled the son 34 00:02:09.840 --> 00:02:15.199 of a king, and he said they were my brothers, the sons of 35 00:02:15.240 --> 00:02:17.360 my mother, as the Lord Lives. If you had saved them alive, 36 00:02:17.479 --> 00:02:22.240 I would not kill you. So he said to Jetha is firstborn, rise 37 00:02:22.360 --> 00:02:25.000 and killed them, but the young man did not draw his sword, for 38 00:02:25.080 --> 00:02:30.120 he was afraid because he was still a young man. Then Zeb and Zelmanna 39 00:02:30.199 --> 00:02:32.520 said, rise yourself and fall upon us, for as a man is, 40 00:02:32.599 --> 00:02:37.280 so is his strength, and get in a rose and killed Zieban Zelmanna, 41 00:02:37.759 --> 00:02:40.800 and he took the crescent ornaments around the necks of the camels. Then the 42 00:02:40.840 --> 00:02:45.120 many men of Israel said to Gideon, rule over us, you and your 43 00:02:45.159 --> 00:02:47.319 son and your grandson also, for you've saved us from the hand of Midean. 44 00:02:49.120 --> 00:02:51.599 Gideon said to them, I will not rule over you, and my 45 00:02:51.639 --> 00:02:54.240 son will not rule over you, the Lord will rule over you. And 46 00:02:54.280 --> 00:02:58.360 Gideon said to them, let us make or let me make a request of 47 00:02:58.400 --> 00:03:00.280 you. Every one of you, give me the ear rings from a spoil, 48 00:03:00.479 --> 00:03:05.719 for they had golden earrings because their ISRAAELITES. And they answered, we 49 00:03:05.800 --> 00:03:07.840 will willingly give them, and they spread a cloak and every man threw in 50 00:03:07.879 --> 00:03:12.960 the ear rings of a spoil. No weight of the golden earings requested was 51 00:03:13.120 --> 00:03:17.280 seventeen shekels of gold, besides the crescent ornaments independence and the purple garments worn 52 00:03:17.360 --> 00:03:21.960 by the Kings of medium and beside the collars that were around the necks of 53 00:03:22.000 --> 00:03:24.199 their camels. And Gideon made an ef out of it and put it in 54 00:03:24.280 --> 00:03:29.199 a city in Oprah, and all Israel horde after it there and it became 55 00:03:29.199 --> 00:03:32.599 a snare to Gideon and his family. So midian was subdued before the people 56 00:03:32.639 --> 00:03:38.000 of Israel and they raised their heads no more and the land had rest forty 57 00:03:38.080 --> 00:03:40.520 years in the days of Gideon. As will end the reading of God's word, 58 00:03:40.520 --> 00:03:46.840 you may be seated. So we are picking up the story of judges 59 00:03:47.400 --> 00:03:53.240 here. We already had the battle of Gideon with his three hundred men in 60 00:03:53.280 --> 00:03:58.199 an army against the median knights and the amalekites and after the victory of Gideon, 61 00:03:58.280 --> 00:04:02.039 we saw in the beginning of chapter eight here the great diplomacy that Gideon 62 00:04:02.159 --> 00:04:08.960 used in regards to the Ephromute in in Uh matter that could have become very 63 00:04:09.000 --> 00:04:13.400 serious and could have been a great division, but Gideon handled it with great 64 00:04:13.400 --> 00:04:18.120 diplomacy. Today we're gonna see him in a couple more sticky situations and this 65 00:04:18.240 --> 00:04:24.839 time diplomacy isn't going to be the order of the day and we're going to 66 00:04:24.959 --> 00:04:29.399 end with a very sad episode in the career of Gideon. So it will 67 00:04:29.439 --> 00:04:33.199 begin by looking at verses four through twelve. Gideon is one of those Bible 68 00:04:33.279 --> 00:04:38.920 characters that it's hard for us to get a handle on because, despite an 69 00:04:38.959 --> 00:04:44.360 amazing beginning, like many other Bible characters, he has a terrible ending. 70 00:04:45.439 --> 00:04:48.399 And we could think of some other biblical characters who took the same journey. 71 00:04:48.439 --> 00:04:53.839 We could think of Solomon or Saul or from this book, we could think 72 00:04:53.839 --> 00:04:58.680 of Samson. Like Solomon, were told in this chapter that Gideon had many 73 00:04:58.759 --> 00:05:03.040 wives and least one concubine. Like Sampson, he was able, by God's 74 00:05:03.040 --> 00:05:08.839 grace, to perform deeds way beyond a normal human being. And like Saul, 75 00:05:08.959 --> 00:05:12.519 he begins as a great leader of the Army of Israel, but ends 76 00:05:12.879 --> 00:05:17.040 by going after false gods, even as Saul did. So the question we 77 00:05:17.079 --> 00:05:19.839 have to ask, and I don't know if I can totally answer it today, 78 00:05:19.879 --> 00:05:23.879 but the question is, I mean I think I can. I think 79 00:05:23.920 --> 00:05:27.040 I can go by Hebrews Eleven, but the question is, is he a 80 00:05:27.160 --> 00:05:30.680 Judas or is he a Peter? I think of the words of the Apostle 81 00:05:30.720 --> 00:05:33.480 Paul. When I think of Gideon, I think of what he wrote to 82 00:05:33.519 --> 00:05:38.040 the Galatians in chapter five and verse seven. He said you were running well. 83 00:05:39.199 --> 00:05:43.439 Who hindered you from obeying the truth? Gideon, you have been running 84 00:05:43.439 --> 00:05:48.839 well, you've been doing good things. Who hindered you? Why have you 85 00:05:48.920 --> 00:05:55.639 failed? Here and preparing the message for tonight, I tried to consult several 86 00:05:56.079 --> 00:06:00.279 sources to try to find somebody that might put a better spin on the end 87 00:06:00.639 --> 00:06:02.439 of Gideon's life. I was hoping there'd be somebody out there, but I 88 00:06:02.480 --> 00:06:05.680 didn't find him. Doesn't mean there's not somebody out there, just didn't mean 89 00:06:05.879 --> 00:06:10.879 this means that I didn't find him. In verse four we know a couple 90 00:06:10.959 --> 00:06:14.920 of things. We see another crossing of the Jordan's of course there's a very 91 00:06:14.959 --> 00:06:19.439 famous crossing of Israel under Jordan with Joshua, over the Jordan with Joshua, 92 00:06:19.759 --> 00:06:24.480 but this is going across Jordan the other way. This is actually leaving the 93 00:06:24.480 --> 00:06:28.800 promised land and going over Jordan that way. And the secondly we see that 94 00:06:28.879 --> 00:06:31.319 Gideon is back to his army. Remember, he called the other troops out 95 00:06:31.319 --> 00:06:34.199 and had them go after the media nights, but now he's back to his 96 00:06:34.319 --> 00:06:39.680 army, a three hundred. And then there's this phrase that has been the 97 00:06:39.680 --> 00:06:44.000 title of many a sermon on judge's aid, I would guess, exhausted or 98 00:06:44.120 --> 00:06:48.000 fainting yet pursuing. I think probably one of the more famous ones like that 99 00:06:48.079 --> 00:06:54.959 was Charles spurgeon's sermon called fainting yet pursuing. Uh King James, as I 100 00:06:55.000 --> 00:06:57.560 said, says faint yet pursuing. But I'm not going to make a big 101 00:06:57.600 --> 00:07:00.319 point. I'm not going to preach on that particular thing tonight. That's been 102 00:07:00.360 --> 00:07:02.800 done already quite enough, so I'm going to leave it. But Gideon's army 103 00:07:02.879 --> 00:07:06.519 is tired, but yet they're ready to pursue the rest of the median nights. 104 00:07:08.079 --> 00:07:12.600 Now, the debate among the writers on this that has had is, 105 00:07:12.879 --> 00:07:17.079 was there really a need for Gideon to pursue the army of the median nights 106 00:07:17.120 --> 00:07:20.839 any longer? Now? You might think about that for a moment and decide 107 00:07:20.879 --> 00:07:26.360 where you might stand in that. He had driven the median nights out of 108 00:07:26.399 --> 00:07:30.879 Israel, which was his commission in the beginning, and he has performed his 109 00:07:30.959 --> 00:07:33.439 commission. As we see in verse five, though, a couple of the 110 00:07:33.439 --> 00:07:39.160 million night kings have escaped and there's always a possibility, of course, that 111 00:07:39.240 --> 00:07:44.399 those kings could rally the rest of the MIDIANITE troops for another foray into Israel. 112 00:07:45.279 --> 00:07:47.079 According to verse ten, they had a pretty good force. They had 113 00:07:47.120 --> 00:07:51.279 about fifteen thousand men, which is a lot bigger than the three hundred that 114 00:07:51.360 --> 00:07:57.439 Gideon had. But I find the ones, at least the commentaries that I 115 00:07:57.519 --> 00:08:01.800 consulted, were pretty much divided. Uh some believe that Gideon was doing the 116 00:08:01.920 --> 00:08:05.120 right thing by pursuing the media nights, because of course they would have come 117 00:08:05.160 --> 00:08:09.279 back and went into Israel, and others felt that no, he had no 118 00:08:09.360 --> 00:08:13.040 divine warrant to go any further, and so you can choose whichever one you 119 00:08:13.040 --> 00:08:18.240 would particularly like. Um, but before he comes to the media nights, 120 00:08:18.319 --> 00:08:24.480 he has a couple of other encounters with people of Israel. Now, again, 121 00:08:24.600 --> 00:08:26.680 I said in the beginning of the chapter of the affirmtes were angry because 122 00:08:26.839 --> 00:08:31.519 Gideon had a massed the army and not invited them to join. And uh, 123 00:08:31.559 --> 00:08:37.360 but the FRA Mites were not the only ones, the only Israelites that 124 00:08:37.399 --> 00:08:41.960 Gideon had not called. So in verses five through nine, Gideon comes to 125 00:08:41.080 --> 00:08:46.759 his countrymen in the areas of Sakath and Panua, which were areas that were 126 00:08:46.799 --> 00:08:52.360 inhabited by the tribe of God. So they were Israelites were there. And 127 00:08:52.559 --> 00:08:56.159 UH, Gideon also, if you go back to chapter six and seven, 128 00:08:56.200 --> 00:09:01.000 you see that Gideon also did not call the tribe of God to buy to 129 00:09:01.120 --> 00:09:05.039 battle. But we have given no information that. Uh, they are angry 130 00:09:05.080 --> 00:09:07.120 about that. They don't say anything, like the AFFIRMITES had said that they 131 00:09:07.120 --> 00:09:11.279 were angry about it. So gideons just couldn't ask their help. In a 132 00:09:11.399 --> 00:09:16.600 very simple way. He's got three hundred men, they're hungry. Would you 133 00:09:16.679 --> 00:09:22.399 give them some bread? But both the man of Sathan the man of Paneuo 134 00:09:22.559 --> 00:09:26.720 are going to deny this request, and the reason is because they know there's 135 00:09:26.759 --> 00:09:31.759 a large force of media nights out there, still, fifteen thousands strong, 136 00:09:31.360 --> 00:09:37.440 and they know that if Gideon doesn't uh conquer them, and he hasn't done 137 00:09:37.440 --> 00:09:41.000 it then, and they'll make that point, that they're you know, they're 138 00:09:41.039 --> 00:09:43.519 not in your hand yet, Gideon. You can't talk about it yet, 139 00:09:45.399 --> 00:09:48.279 and so they're afraid that if they were to help Gideon in this that they 140 00:09:48.320 --> 00:09:54.720 would suffer punishment by the media nights when they come to get them. Now 141 00:09:56.120 --> 00:10:01.720 I want to say here that these men were under covenant obligation to help their 142 00:10:01.759 --> 00:10:07.759 brothers. They should have been helping Gideon and not being afraid of the media 143 00:10:07.840 --> 00:10:11.840 nights, for they were covenant brothers. They were all part of God's covenant 144 00:10:11.080 --> 00:10:16.519 with Israel. Paul says in Romans twelve twenty. To the contrary, if 145 00:10:16.559 --> 00:10:22.440 your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he's thirsty, give him something 146 00:10:22.440 --> 00:10:26.840 to drink, for in so doing you will heat burning coals on his head. 147 00:10:26.240 --> 00:10:31.320 So, if believers are supposed to feed their enemies, I would think 148 00:10:31.360 --> 00:10:35.600 you should be feeding your covenant brothers right that. That only makes sense to 149 00:10:35.679 --> 00:10:43.000 me. So I told you Gideon illustrated great diplomacy and humble diplomacy when he 150 00:10:43.039 --> 00:10:48.039 dealt with the EPHROMITES. So of course we're going to see the same kind 151 00:10:48.039 --> 00:10:52.759 of diplomacy here right. Well, this is a new Gideon in his response 152 00:10:52.799 --> 00:10:56.320 to the men of so conthan. He says, therefore, when the Lord 153 00:10:56.320 --> 00:11:01.440 has delivered Zeman's Almana into my hand, I will tear your flesh with the 154 00:11:01.519 --> 00:11:05.879 thorns of the Wilderness and with Briars. Now that's a different kind of diplomacy, 155 00:11:05.960 --> 00:11:11.559 isn't it? The same basic thing happens at Pinewo, and if that 156 00:11:11.600 --> 00:11:15.720 place sounds familiar to you, you might remember that is where God appeared to 157 00:11:15.840 --> 00:11:20.480 Jacob and where Jacob wrestled with God, or an angel or a man, 158 00:11:20.600 --> 00:11:24.080 depending upon what scripture you want to quote, because all three are said, 159 00:11:24.559 --> 00:11:28.399 or you might want to combine them into one personage, the son of God. 160 00:11:28.279 --> 00:11:31.360 But instead of tearing the flesh of the inhabitants of CANEA, he now 161 00:11:31.840 --> 00:11:37.879 um threatens to tear down their tower. Again, not really a great diplomatic 162 00:11:37.919 --> 00:11:41.039 approach. And so we learned verse ten that those who had either been killed 163 00:11:41.080 --> 00:11:46.080 by each other or Gideon's army numbered a hundred and twenty thousand men. That's 164 00:11:46.120 --> 00:11:50.840 an amazing number thing about that. It was just an army of three hundred 165 00:11:50.960 --> 00:11:56.279 and they had this other army now had lost a hundred and twenty thousand men, 166 00:11:56.919 --> 00:12:01.120 and that certainly proves that God had won his battle. And in Verse 167 00:12:01.159 --> 00:12:05.039 Eleven and twelve it appears that God is still with Gideon, for this Army 168 00:12:05.080 --> 00:12:11.320 of three hundred is able indeed to conquer the army of fifteen thousand. Not 169 00:12:11.440 --> 00:12:15.879 nearly as bad at odds as the original battle, but it's still fifty to 170 00:12:15.960 --> 00:12:20.000 one against, and that's uh, that does are tough odds. Now there 171 00:12:20.039 --> 00:12:22.080 is one ominous note in verse twelve that we need to take note of. 172 00:12:24.039 --> 00:12:28.000 It says in the original battle, we read this in Chapter Seven, Verse 173 00:12:28.000 --> 00:12:31.720 Twenty Two, when they blew to three into trumpet's a Lord set every man 174 00:12:31.840 --> 00:12:35.360 stored against his comrade and against all the army. I want you to notice 175 00:12:35.360 --> 00:12:39.240 what it says there. The Lord capital L O ard in your Bible's Mining 176 00:12:39.360 --> 00:12:41.679 Yah, where the Covenant God had done that. But when we compare verse 177 00:12:41.720 --> 00:12:46.600 twelve, it says he gideon through all the army into a panic, not 178 00:12:46.840 --> 00:12:52.639 the Lord Verry web notes here the author himself doesn't attribute anything that happens in 179 00:12:52.679 --> 00:12:58.799 this phase of Gideon's life to God. An ominous note that something's going on 180 00:13:00.200 --> 00:13:03.720 isn't good in the life and Heart Gideon. Well, let's move to verses 181 00:13:03.799 --> 00:13:09.039 thirteen to twenty. One in verses thirteen through seventeen. I guess the best 182 00:13:09.039 --> 00:13:13.120 thing we can say about Getton is he's a man of his word. There 183 00:13:13.200 --> 00:13:16.080 was an old johnny cash song I had never heard. One of your own 184 00:13:16.120 --> 00:13:20.039 people here made me aware of this johnny cash long I never remember hearing it 185 00:13:20.120 --> 00:13:26.039 before, but the song is about Jesus and the songs titled. Mainline is 186 00:13:26.399 --> 00:13:31.639 there's a man going around taking names. Well, Gideon in this story is 187 00:13:31.679 --> 00:13:35.759 the man going around taking names. Captures a man of sin, says give 188 00:13:35.840 --> 00:13:41.759 me the names, I want the names of the and he takes that. 189 00:13:43.320 --> 00:13:46.679 I heard a man Um many years ago speaking about when he was a kid 190 00:13:46.720 --> 00:13:50.679 and he said that he had done something wrong and his dad came home and 191 00:13:50.720 --> 00:13:56.080 saw what he had done and his Dad said those famous dad words that maybe 192 00:13:56.120 --> 00:14:00.919 all of us heard at one time or another. While you asked for it 193 00:14:01.600 --> 00:14:05.679 and he responded. Well, I changed my mind so I don't I wouldn't 194 00:14:05.679 --> 00:14:09.120 have got back by with that, I don't think when I was a kid. 195 00:14:09.159 --> 00:14:11.759 But but Gideon basically says to the men of Sarka, you asked for 196 00:14:11.879 --> 00:14:16.639 it, this is what you asked for. Remember when you taunted me about 197 00:14:16.639 --> 00:14:18.759 not having Zeben Zelmana in my hands? Well, I told you what I 198 00:14:18.840 --> 00:14:22.919 was going to do. In the old days again, we used to talk 199 00:14:22.919 --> 00:14:24.840 about when a kid got in trouble that the dad would take him out to 200 00:14:24.879 --> 00:14:30.000 the wood shed. I don't think that's too applicable anymore. But Gideon takes 201 00:14:30.039 --> 00:14:33.000 these men out to the Wilderness and teaches them a lesson with thorns and briars. 202 00:14:33.480 --> 00:14:37.840 We don't know exactly. The text isn't clear whether Gideon actually kills them 203 00:14:37.919 --> 00:14:43.240 or just severely wounds that we're not sure because of what the text says. 204 00:14:43.279 --> 00:14:46.519 But of course he does greatly punish them. And they should have helped Gideon. 205 00:14:46.639 --> 00:15:11.080 That's true. He was their covenant brother. He was there. Yeah, 206 00:15:13.320 --> 00:15:16.159 and I've told you before I've never been in combat, but I know 207 00:15:16.279 --> 00:15:20.440 from those who have. They will say that combat can really change a person 208 00:15:20.639 --> 00:15:26.039 and as a change happened to Gideon and it seems like it has not in 209 00:15:26.039 --> 00:15:30.799 a good way. And whether we want to justify Gideon or not in what 210 00:15:30.879 --> 00:15:35.679 he does, we could certainly say he doesn't seem to be doing things to 211 00:15:35.879 --> 00:15:39.480 heal Israel, does he? It doesn't seem like what he's doing is leading 212 00:15:39.480 --> 00:15:45.960 to the unification of the people. Many years ago I was at an amusement 213 00:15:46.000 --> 00:15:48.320 park with my children and I saw a girl wearing a t shirt that has 214 00:15:48.360 --> 00:15:52.639 stuck with me ever since, and it said on this t shirt I was 215 00:15:52.759 --> 00:15:56.039 born, and then there's a little break and it said wait, it gets 216 00:15:56.039 --> 00:16:02.279 worse. Well, that's what we're to say about the Gideon Story. Wait 217 00:16:02.720 --> 00:16:07.000 it gets worse. So in verses eighteen or twenty one, we have the 218 00:16:07.080 --> 00:16:10.879 confrontation between Gideon and the two kings of the Median Knights, Zeben Zelmana. 219 00:16:11.720 --> 00:16:15.600 And again, to be fair to Gideon, these men had killed Gideon's brothers, 220 00:16:15.679 --> 00:16:18.559 his own family, and we could certainly say that the Old Testament law, 221 00:16:18.639 --> 00:16:22.879 the lex Talian us, was in effect lex Talian US meaning the law 222 00:16:23.000 --> 00:16:26.639 that we know as an eye for an eye and tooth for a tooth, 223 00:16:26.639 --> 00:16:30.759 and so that was an effect. So it's easy to justify Gideon in the 224 00:16:30.879 --> 00:16:37.799 slaying of these men. But he does something really foolish here. For whatever 225 00:16:37.919 --> 00:16:41.399 reason, instead of rising and killing the men himself, he looks at his 226 00:16:41.519 --> 00:16:48.039 young son and says you kill them now. We don't know exactly how old 227 00:16:48.120 --> 00:16:51.559 jether is at this time, but he has a sword, so presumably he's 228 00:16:51.559 --> 00:16:56.360 in battle, but he's young enough that he doesn't want to come forward and 229 00:16:56.480 --> 00:17:00.080 just kill these two men with the sword. And why Gideon does this, 230 00:17:00.399 --> 00:17:04.119 if he's trying to teach his child to be a man in his estimation, 231 00:17:04.720 --> 00:17:10.559 or whether he's trying to humiliate these two leaders by having them killed by a 232 00:17:10.720 --> 00:17:15.799 child, we're not sure. But in a FI and zebe and Zelmanna taunt 233 00:17:15.839 --> 00:17:21.480 Gideon and say rise yourself and fall upon us, for as the man is, 234 00:17:21.640 --> 00:17:25.519 so is his strength. Well, whatever they thought that taunt would do, 235 00:17:26.319 --> 00:17:30.000 it did make Gideon do exactly what they asked for. And so it 236 00:17:30.079 --> 00:17:33.559 appears to us that the Gideon of chapter six is no more and the new 237 00:17:33.640 --> 00:17:38.880 Gideon has taken his place. Perhaps his son, jeth is very much like 238 00:17:38.960 --> 00:17:44.640 the Gideon we saw back in chapter six. But, as I said, 239 00:17:45.039 --> 00:17:52.599 wait it gets worse verses, because the Gideon of this chapter is no longer 240 00:17:52.680 --> 00:17:57.119 the Gideon of chapter six, the people of Israel wreckor a warrior who would 241 00:17:57.160 --> 00:18:03.079 be well suited to rule over them. And here again we have to recognize 242 00:18:03.599 --> 00:18:07.200 what's absent from this account. Oftentimes, what's missing from the Bible is just 243 00:18:07.359 --> 00:18:11.920 as important as what's there. And what is absent. Back in Chapter Seven, 244 00:18:12.039 --> 00:18:15.880 Verse Fifteen, when Gideon had heard the median nights in the camp talking 245 00:18:15.920 --> 00:18:27.119 about the dream that they had had, it says that is responsible the worshiping 246 00:18:27.240 --> 00:18:32.359 God or giving him praise for the battle they had just won. And so 247 00:18:32.599 --> 00:18:37.079 that is also an ominous sign, and there are to have been rejoicing. 248 00:18:37.359 --> 00:18:40.359 There's been a great battle, there's been a great victory. That is one. 249 00:18:40.440 --> 00:18:44.559 Now the median nights are decimated, they are no threat anymore to Israel, 250 00:18:44.960 --> 00:18:48.000 and it's just like the people of of Israel and the Sea of the 251 00:18:48.079 --> 00:18:52.160 Red Sea after the army of Pharaoh has been drowned. They should be singing 252 00:18:52.279 --> 00:18:55.960 like the children of Israel were singing on that day. But there is no 253 00:18:56.119 --> 00:19:00.119 mention of any worship or any singing or praising God. And what they say 254 00:19:00.160 --> 00:19:03.119 in verse twenty two is rule over us, you and your son and your 255 00:19:03.160 --> 00:19:10.079 grandson, for you have saved us in the hand of Midian. They didn't 256 00:19:10.119 --> 00:19:15.240 say God has saved us, they said Gideon, you have saved us. 257 00:19:15.359 --> 00:19:22.279 So again things are going very wrong. They want Gideon to start a dynasty, 258 00:19:22.960 --> 00:19:27.079 they want him to rule that his son and his grandson. But in 259 00:19:27.279 --> 00:19:36.599 Verse Twenty One. Well, so Gideon does the right thing, he says 260 00:19:36.759 --> 00:19:41.079 he refuses the request and instead replies to them they should just allow the lord 261 00:19:41.759 --> 00:19:45.880 to rule over them, which seems like a really good thing to say at 262 00:19:45.920 --> 00:19:48.519 this time, and certainly the offer of being a king would have been very 263 00:19:48.599 --> 00:20:00.119 tempting to Gideon. Uh Gay. Gideon's on the right track again, but 264 00:20:00.200 --> 00:20:08.279 then in verses the pendulum swings back to a very opposite end in the worst 265 00:20:08.319 --> 00:20:15.359 way possible. And I would say for me it's really hard to understand what 266 00:20:15.480 --> 00:20:18.880 Gideon does right here. It doesn't seem to make sense. It doesn't seem 267 00:20:18.960 --> 00:20:23.599 like there's anything in the account to lead us to this point. It's like 268 00:20:23.759 --> 00:20:26.400 if you were reading a novel, and maybe this has happened to you, 269 00:20:26.519 --> 00:20:30.839 and you get to a picular a particular point in the book and you go, 270 00:20:30.960 --> 00:20:33.240 Oh, we'll wait a minute. Now you know the author hasn't given 271 00:20:33.319 --> 00:20:37.960 any indication and something like this was going to happen, and it's almost like 272 00:20:37.119 --> 00:20:41.799 that as we come to this place and sink. Wait a minute, this 273 00:20:41.960 --> 00:20:45.079 makes no sense. What's going on here? What's happened? But I've tried 274 00:20:45.119 --> 00:20:51.079 to give you some clues as to what's been going on. And so he 275 00:20:51.240 --> 00:20:53.480 asked the men to give him the spoil of the Golden Ear Rings from the 276 00:20:53.559 --> 00:20:57.279 battle, because the ishmaelites all, I. Had Golden Ear Rings. And 277 00:20:57.359 --> 00:21:00.000 so they threw a cloak on the ground and they all said, well, 278 00:21:00.039 --> 00:21:03.720 gladly give you our earrings, and they all did. They threw him on 279 00:21:03.799 --> 00:21:08.599 the cloak and we're told that the amount of the gold was seventeen thousand shekels. 280 00:21:08.680 --> 00:21:12.599 Now we're not exactly sure how to put that into today's dollars, but 281 00:21:12.920 --> 00:21:18.640 very well could be over one million dollars. And so Gideon takes it and 282 00:21:18.720 --> 00:21:22.359 he fashions it into an ipod, which was a priestly garment, the garment 283 00:21:22.400 --> 00:21:27.000 of the high priest, and to make things worse, he puts it up 284 00:21:27.039 --> 00:21:32.839 in his own hometown, which God had never given any kind of command that 285 00:21:33.039 --> 00:21:40.119 God should be worshiped there. And so he's actually starting another kind of a 286 00:21:40.359 --> 00:21:44.039 place to worship God. That is a false place, much like we we 287 00:21:44.200 --> 00:21:48.160 find in the division under real Bo him later on, where there is the 288 00:21:48.240 --> 00:21:52.759 two centers of worship and the one is certainly not right. And and this 289 00:21:52.079 --> 00:21:56.599 is wrong. What what he is doing? The but the the Tabernacle, 290 00:21:56.200 --> 00:22:02.279 should have been an erom's territory. And again there we that Manhissa from gideons 291 00:22:02.279 --> 00:22:06.240 of the tribe of Manassa, and then and the brother is from and Efraim 292 00:22:06.319 --> 00:22:11.720 had the superiority according to the prophecy. And so again there's idolatry. So 293 00:22:11.880 --> 00:22:15.279 Gideon, who began his career, you remember, back in chapter six, 294 00:22:15.519 --> 00:22:19.680 he began by leading Israel out of idolatry and he ends his life by leading 295 00:22:19.799 --> 00:22:26.519 him back into idolatry. And that's what is very, very sad about this 296 00:22:26.640 --> 00:22:32.319 story. Another land, according to Verse Twenty Eight, does have rest for 297 00:22:32.440 --> 00:22:37.799 forty years under Gideon. And many people would defend Gideon here saying, well, 298 00:22:37.920 --> 00:22:40.279 you know, his heart was in the right place, he was trying 299 00:22:40.359 --> 00:22:42.559 to do what was the right thing, he was trying to restore religion to 300 00:22:42.720 --> 00:22:52.119 Israel, and all of that just was to show himself thankful for his victory 301 00:22:52.359 --> 00:22:56.839 by the restoring of religion which, deed, because it was not according as 302 00:22:56.920 --> 00:23:03.480 God had commanded, turned to their destruction. When I read this account again, 303 00:23:03.799 --> 00:23:07.319 my mind went, and maybe ears did too, to David, who 304 00:23:07.400 --> 00:23:12.880 wanted to bring the Ark back to Jerusalem. Very good desire, but he 305 00:23:12.960 --> 00:23:18.240 did it the wrong way. He didn't go back and read who was supposed 306 00:23:18.279 --> 00:23:22.240 to carry the Ark, and so, as a dies in that bringing back. 307 00:23:22.119 --> 00:23:26.079 And it seems like Gideon might be the same way. He wants to 308 00:23:26.200 --> 00:23:30.400 restore religion, but he's doing it in a very wrong way. That can 309 00:23:30.480 --> 00:23:36.880 never lead to the true worship of God. So how do we make application 310 00:23:37.039 --> 00:23:41.240 from this story? The first thing I want to say is how careful we 311 00:23:41.359 --> 00:23:47.480 must be in the worship of God, or even what seems the smallest digression 312 00:23:47.559 --> 00:23:52.839 from God's commandments can lead to disastrous results. We are living in a day 313 00:23:52.920 --> 00:23:59.839 where we are seeing this constantly. Gideon didn't make an idol per se, 314 00:24:00.839 --> 00:24:06.039 he made an epod. He didn't claim theod to be a false god, 315 00:24:06.839 --> 00:24:10.599 nor did he even say, has Aaron said in the Wilderness, these are 316 00:24:10.680 --> 00:24:15.200 your Gods, o Israel, which lead you out of Egypt. If you 317 00:24:15.279 --> 00:24:21.599 remember the brazen serpent that Moses erected in the wilderness when everyone was being bitten 318 00:24:21.640 --> 00:24:26.279 by the snakes and they would look on that serpent and they would be healed. 319 00:24:26.920 --> 00:24:29.119 Beautiful type of Christ by the way, but I don't have time to 320 00:24:29.160 --> 00:24:33.720 go into that tonight. But nonetheless we might wonder. Some of you probably 321 00:24:33.799 --> 00:24:36.960 know, but you might wonder, whatever happened to that serpent? Where is 322 00:24:37.039 --> 00:24:40.480 that serpent? where? What? What? Where did it go? In 323 00:24:40.640 --> 00:24:45.240 second kings, eighteen four, many years after this, we read he removed 324 00:24:45.279 --> 00:24:51.319 the high places and broke the pillars and cut down the Astra and he broken 325 00:24:51.480 --> 00:24:56.720 pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the people 326 00:24:56.799 --> 00:25:03.720 of Israel had made offerings to it. It was called Nahashton. Now again 327 00:25:03.720 --> 00:25:07.880 God commanded the brazen serpent to be made. That wasn't Moses idea, that 328 00:25:08.039 --> 00:25:14.640 was God's command, and one could make a good case that this could have 329 00:25:14.680 --> 00:25:18.079 been, and maybe should have been kept in Israel as a reminder of God's 330 00:25:18.119 --> 00:25:22.559 deliverance, like the manner in the pot and Aaron's Rod that budded that that 331 00:25:22.759 --> 00:25:27.519 this could have been a good reminder to Israel. But God never commanded such 332 00:25:27.559 --> 00:25:33.119 a thing that the people should bring offerings to it, and it became an 333 00:25:33.200 --> 00:25:37.480 idol in Israel. And this is why the reformed through the years held to 334 00:25:37.559 --> 00:25:42.880 what we call the regulative principle of worship, which means that we are only 335 00:25:44.000 --> 00:25:48.160 to worship God in the way that God himself has commanded that he should be 336 00:25:48.279 --> 00:25:53.319 worshiped. This is an opposition to what people have called the normative principle of 337 00:25:53.440 --> 00:25:59.319 worship, which simply says we can worship God in any way that God does 338 00:25:59.400 --> 00:26:14.480 not forbid. Now that's a problem today that are forsaken the normal order of 339 00:26:14.559 --> 00:26:18.920 worship. And again, I'm not trying to say we've got it all right 340 00:26:18.400 --> 00:26:23.039 and everything's perfect, but we are trying to follow what the Scripture says. 341 00:26:25.000 --> 00:26:29.920 The elements in our worship service this evening and this morning and this church are 342 00:26:30.000 --> 00:26:33.400 not just random things that somebody thought up and said, hey, how about 343 00:26:33.480 --> 00:26:37.640 this? These are things that God has commanded in his word to be a 344 00:26:37.759 --> 00:26:41.880 part of the service. And so the things we do, the prayers, 345 00:26:41.359 --> 00:26:45.200 the reading of Scripture, the exposition of scripture, the singing of Psalms, 346 00:26:45.519 --> 00:26:52.000 the singing of praises to God, the Benedictions the salutations are all things that 347 00:26:52.160 --> 00:26:56.559 God has commanded. But other churches on a Sunday morning service you might go 348 00:26:57.440 --> 00:27:02.839 and you might witness them. is a called presentation by the youth group or 349 00:27:02.920 --> 00:27:07.839 maybe a drama play that somebody has written that will be there instead of a 350 00:27:07.960 --> 00:27:12.079 worship service, or maybe there'll be a Christian comedian who has been brought in 351 00:27:12.400 --> 00:27:18.400 for the day. Or maybe it's one church that was very close to us 352 00:27:18.519 --> 00:27:25.160 in Burnsville, Minnesota Morning Rodeo. That might go well intoucson. I don't 353 00:27:25.200 --> 00:27:30.119 know, but they had a Rodeo and it's Sunday morning, but it's not 354 00:27:30.240 --> 00:27:33.920 a commanded way of worship. Now there are debates among reformed people as to 355 00:27:34.000 --> 00:27:37.440 what is right worship and what is the right of the principle and how do 356 00:27:37.559 --> 00:27:41.400 we obey it. And One church might say, well, we don't think 357 00:27:41.440 --> 00:27:44.720 that's proper, another church might say it is. So one church might have 358 00:27:44.799 --> 00:27:48.400 a choir sing, another church might not. One Church might allow help a 359 00:27:48.480 --> 00:27:51.680 special number and a service, another church might not. And they are all 360 00:27:51.759 --> 00:27:56.519 these kinds of things, but everyone is trying to stay to the word of 361 00:27:56.599 --> 00:28:03.200 God and what God's Word Command ends and again that's why this church has the 362 00:28:03.400 --> 00:28:10.279 order of worship that it has because even the slightest deviation from God's commands can 363 00:28:10.400 --> 00:28:15.960 lead to idolatry. Peter Martyr Vermigli, one of a reformers, said hereby 364 00:28:17.039 --> 00:28:22.200 we gather, that all worshiping of God instituted without his word is unacceptable to 365 00:28:22.359 --> 00:28:29.839 him and is most dangerous to us. John Calvin wrote this in his institutes. 366 00:28:30.400 --> 00:28:36.440 Gideon provides a notable proof of how much God hates what mortals think up 367 00:28:36.559 --> 00:28:41.359 out of themselves to worship him. For Gideon's IPAD brought ruin not only on 368 00:28:41.519 --> 00:28:45.440 himself and his family, but on all the people. In short, every 369 00:28:45.599 --> 00:28:52.799 chance invention by which people seek to worship God is nothing but a pollution of 370 00:28:52.960 --> 00:28:59.200 true holiness. Then, secondly, let me say one of the lessons I 371 00:28:59.279 --> 00:29:03.720 think we need to take away from the story of Gideon is it sometimes the 372 00:29:03.839 --> 00:29:08.440 worst thing that can happen to us is success. We think failure is hard 373 00:29:08.480 --> 00:29:14.960 to deal with, the success can be far harder. When you think of 374 00:29:15.400 --> 00:29:19.400 the biblical characters who are marked with great success, we don't see too many 375 00:29:19.480 --> 00:29:26.279 good results. Solomon had a lot of good success, but a lot of 376 00:29:26.359 --> 00:29:30.920 bad stuff happens after that. Hezekiah is another Bible character who had a lot 377 00:29:30.960 --> 00:29:37.720 of good success but didn't do too well. Samson will come up later in 378 00:29:37.759 --> 00:29:41.799 the book of judges as another one, but this just bears out what happens 379 00:29:42.039 --> 00:29:48.960 in real life. How many church leaders to become famous and popular have ended 380 00:29:49.039 --> 00:29:56.000 up good with a good result? Very, very few. When I came 381 00:29:56.039 --> 00:29:59.759 into the O pc in two thousand five, I was able to bring it 382 00:30:00.279 --> 00:30:03.920 into the into the denomination that came in with me. That was a very 383 00:30:04.440 --> 00:30:11.200 strong church and became much stronger as the days went on. And I would 384 00:30:11.240 --> 00:30:15.319 hear about church planners in the OPC that would struggle and weren't able to get 385 00:30:15.359 --> 00:30:19.480 a church to really take off and work, and many church plants were being 386 00:30:19.559 --> 00:30:25.839 closed and appeared that they had failed and all of those things, and I 387 00:30:25.920 --> 00:30:27.880 would sit there and I think, what in the world is wrong with those 388 00:30:27.960 --> 00:30:30.960 guys? I mean anybody should be able to plant the church. I mean, 389 00:30:32.200 --> 00:30:33.920 come on, you know this is easy, this is worked just just 390 00:30:34.119 --> 00:30:38.480 great and and I don't understand why, why anybody would have failure with this. 391 00:30:41.200 --> 00:30:48.279 Since that time I've been involved in three more church plants and in none 392 00:30:48.359 --> 00:30:52.400 of those places where I was involved in planting the church. Is there an 393 00:30:52.440 --> 00:30:56.960 o PC church today? Now? I can give you a list of reasons 394 00:30:57.039 --> 00:31:00.880 why I think that is so, but the simple truth is it didn't. 395 00:31:03.200 --> 00:31:06.480 And I look at them, whether I should or not, as failures. 396 00:31:06.599 --> 00:31:10.000 I know people would say you shouldn't look at them that way and I know 397 00:31:10.160 --> 00:31:15.200 we counsel one another that way, but it's hard not to. But I 398 00:31:15.279 --> 00:31:19.240 can tell you it's an old character on television used to say failure has been 399 00:31:19.599 --> 00:31:25.920 very, very good for me. It's taught me some humility. Of course, 400 00:31:26.079 --> 00:31:30.599 not enough. I need a whole lot more. The proverb writer said, 401 00:31:30.640 --> 00:31:34.480 give me neither poverty nor riches. Feed me with the food that is 402 00:31:34.559 --> 00:31:38.440 needful for me, lest I be full and deny you and say who is 403 00:31:38.519 --> 00:31:44.359 the Lord, or lest I be poor and steel and profane the name of 404 00:31:44.480 --> 00:31:48.319 my God. It's almost a prayer to say, Lord, don't give me 405 00:31:48.400 --> 00:31:55.160 success or failure, keep me from both. But we need to recognize that 406 00:31:55.319 --> 00:32:00.720 we have to be able to deal with the track record of those who have 407 00:32:00.839 --> 00:32:07.400 failed seems to almost be better than those who have succeeded, and it warns 408 00:32:07.480 --> 00:32:14.680 us against the danger of idolizing any church leader pastors or evangelist teachers that are 409 00:32:14.759 --> 00:32:17.519 out there. We need to be very, very careful. I'm sure we've 410 00:32:17.519 --> 00:32:22.039 all known people who have been very hurt by some of the church leader scandals 411 00:32:22.079 --> 00:32:27.519 that have happened through the years. In a few moments, as I close 412 00:32:27.599 --> 00:32:30.880 here, we're going to join together on the table of the Lord. In 413 00:32:30.960 --> 00:32:37.319 Our story we had two instances of brothers who refuse to give bread to their 414 00:32:37.359 --> 00:32:42.960 covenant brothers because they are afraid that they might do so at the risk of 415 00:32:43.000 --> 00:32:47.200 their own lives. But in celebrating the table of the Lord, which we're 416 00:32:47.240 --> 00:32:53.640 going to do, we remember the one who gave bread to his brothers, 417 00:32:54.640 --> 00:33:01.519 which meant he gave his own life. In death, Jesus said this bread 418 00:33:02.559 --> 00:33:08.119 is my body, which is given for you. Folks. We were in 419 00:33:08.319 --> 00:33:15.480 more desperate need of bread than Gideon's army was. We needed the bread that 420 00:33:15.559 --> 00:33:20.559 could save us. We needed the life and death of the Lord, Jesus 421 00:33:20.680 --> 00:33:25.000 Christ, and, as opposed to the man of Sacatampanel, he gave it 422 00:33:25.119 --> 00:33:30.119 to us at the cost of his life. And we look at him and 423 00:33:30.200 --> 00:33:37.200 see what some might say was failure in the cross, but to us tonight 424 00:33:37.440 --> 00:33:43.640 are his we see it is the greatest success that's ever happened in the world 425 00:33:44.799 --> 00:33:50.480 and we think in our minds what a wonderful savior we serve. Can We 426 00:33:50.599 --> 00:33:54.319 pray, Lord, we thank you for your word. We thank you, 427 00:33:54.440 --> 00:34:01.559 God, that even in failure we all can learn. I'm sure there are 428 00:34:01.599 --> 00:34:07.639 many people here to night who have failed in many different ways. But the 429 00:34:07.719 --> 00:34:14.679 Lord teach us to learn from that. Keep us from the kind of success 430 00:34:14.760 --> 00:34:20.400 that would make us haughty and proud and instead, Lord, as you did 431 00:34:20.440 --> 00:34:23.679 to the Apostle Paul, give to us the thorns that we need, not 432 00:34:23.880 --> 00:34:29.360 the thorns at Gideon whip those men with, but the thorns that we need 433 00:34:30.199 --> 00:34:34.639 to keep us humble, for we're all tempted to pride in many, many 434 00:34:34.719 --> 00:34:39.679 ways. I pray, Lord, that it would keep and help us to 435 00:34:39.800 --> 00:34:45.400 trust only in you and the life you gave, the bread of life, 436 00:34:46.159 --> 00:34:51.599 the bread of the world, that you have given for us, your own 437 00:34:51.960 --> 00:34:57.360 life and your own death. And we ask you, Lord, to help 438 00:34:57.480 --> 00:35:02.679 us to stay humble in whatever do. If we pray these things in Christ's 439 00:35:02.760 --> 00:35:06.199 name, Amen. MHM