Dave and I had an amazing weekend at the Grand Canyon. The beauty of the Lord’s creation is breath taking. It definitely reveals God’s greatness.
This morning, we will go back to Judges 6 and look at how the Lord revealed His greatness to Gideon.
“Gideon,” the Lord answered, ‘you can rescue Israel because I am going to help you! Defeating the Midianites will be as easy as beating up one man.’
17 Gideon said, ‘It’s hard to believe that I’m actually talking to the Lord. Please do something so I’ll know that you really are the Lord. 18 And wait here until I bring you an offering.’
‘All right, I’ll wait,’ the Lord answered.” Judges 6:16-18 CEV
Gideon was sincere in his questions to the Lord. The Lord was patient and reassured Gideon that He would be his help.
Gideon went to make a meal for the Lord. He killed a goat, boiled it, made bread, baked it, then brought a bowl of broth, goat’s meat and a cake to offer to the Lord. I don’t know how long all this took but there was no microwave oven or air fryer so it took a while and the Lord waited.
When Gideon returned with the meal an angel had him put it on a rock and then the angel touched it with a staff and fire consumed it.
“Gideon realized that he had seen one of the Lord’s angels. ‘Oh!” he moaned. ‘Now I’m going to die.’ 23 ‘Calm down!’ the Lord told Gideon. ‘There’s nothing to be afraid of. You’re not going to die.’” Judges 6:22-23 CEV
Gideon was face to face with the Lord and saw His greatness. Remember, this is the same man who was threshing the wheat in a pit so he wouldn’t be seen by the Midianites who had been raiding his village. Fear was his middle name.
His people had been serving Baal and other gods for years. They had been rebellious, self-willed and had ignored God’s instructions. And now, the Lord had chosen this village, this man with his low self-esteem to be their delivered.
As the Lord’s instruction, Gideon went out that night with ten servants and his father’s second best bull and destroyed the altar of Baal. He used the wood to reconstruct an altar on the highest hill in town and then sacrificed the bull to the Lord.
“Gideon chose ten of his servants to help him, and they did everything God had said. But since Gideon was afraid of his family and the other people in Ophrah, he did it all at night.” verse 27 CEV
The next morning the town’s people and his father saw what he had done. The town’s people wanted to kill him, but his father stopped them by saying that Baal could defend himself if he really was a god. Gideon’s father changed his son’s name to Jerubbaal.
“That same day, Joash changed Gideon’s name to Jerubbaal, explaining, “He tore down Baal’s altar, so let Baal take revenge himself.” verse 32
Gideon’s story is one of conversion. His encounter with the Lord took him from serving Baal to honoring and obeying the Lord. The Lord’s words, “There’s nothing to be afraid of.” are also for us today.
When we depend on the Lord we will hear Him, “Fear not, I am with you”. Claim this day to be fear-free and trust in the Lord.