Brothers and sisters, beloved in Christ, let us turn our hearts and minds to the enduring Word of God, a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. Today, we find ourselves reflecting on a powerful story from the Old Testament, a testament to the boundless grace of our Lord, a story etched in the book of Judges, chapters six through eight: the story of Gideon.
Imagine, if you will, the land of Israel, groaning under the heavy hand of oppression. For seven long years, the Midianites, like a swarm of locusts, had descended upon the land, devouring the fruits of their labor, stealing their livestock, and leaving them impoverished and fearful. The children of Israel cried out to the Lord, their voices rising in desperation from the depths of their suffering.
And in His infinite wisdom and unwavering love, the Lord heard their cry. He saw their plight, their fear, and their helplessness. And in His perfect timing, He chose a man, a humble man, named Gideon, to be His instrument of deliverance.
Let us open our hearts to the very words of Scripture. In Judges 6:11, we read: “Now the angel of the Lord came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, where his son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress to keep it from the Midianites.”
Consider this scene, my brothers and sisters. Gideon, a man from a seemingly insignificant clan, the least in his father’s house, was not boldly preparing for battle on a hilltop. No, he was hiding, working in secret, in the confined space of a winepress, trying to salvage a meager portion of the harvest from the clutches of the enemy. He was filled with fear, a reflection of the nation’s despair.
But the grace of God, my friends, does not wait for us to be strong, to be confident, to be in a place of power. It finds us where we are, In our weakness, in our fear, in our hidden places. As the Apostle Paul would later write in the New Testament, in 2 Corinthians 12:9: “But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.”
And then, the angel of the Lord speaks to Gideon, words that must have resonated like thunder in his fearful heart. Judges 6:12 records: “When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, ‘The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.’”
“Mighty warrior”? Gideon, hiding in a winepress, filled with fear? This, my friends, is the transformative power of God’s grace. God sees us not as we are in our present state of weakness, but as we can be through His strength. He calls us by our potential, by the destiny He has purposed for us.
Gideon, understandably, was bewildered. He responded in Judges 6:13: “Pardon me, my lord,’ Gideon replied, ‘but if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our ancestors told us about, saying, “Did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt?” But now the Lord has abandoned us and given us into the hands of Midian.’”
His words echo the cries of many who face hardship and suffering. Where is God in the midst of our trials? Why do we face such overwhelming challenges? Gideon’s honest doubt and questioning are a reminder that it is okay to bring our fears and uncertainties before the Lord. He is not intimidated by our questions; rather, He meets us in our vulnerability.
And what was the Lord’s response? Judges 6:14 tells us: “The Lord turned to him and said, ‘Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?’”
“Go in the strength you have.” This might seem paradoxical. Gideon felt weak and insignificant. But the strength God was referring to was not Gideon’s own Inherent power, but the potential that lay within him, empowered by God’s presence and His command. It is a reminder that even when we feel we have nothing to offer, God can use our seemingly small resources and abilities for His great purposes.
Gideon, still hesitant, sought a sign. In Judges 6:17, he pleaded: “If now I have found favor in your eyes, give me a sign that it is really you talking to me.” And the Lord, in His patient grace, provided not one, but multiple signs, including the miraculous consumption of the offering by fire.
Even after this powerful encounter, Gideon’s journey was marked by further tests of faith. When God instructed him to tear down the altar of Baal and build an altar to the Lord, Gideon obeyed, but he did it at night, out of fear of his family and the men of the town (read Judges 6:27). This shows us that even those chosen by God can struggle with fear and take tentative steps of obedience.
Then, as Gideon gathered an army to face the vast Midianite forces, the Lord, in a display of His absolute sovereignty and the fact that victory comes from Him alone, instructed Gideon to reduce his army from thousands to a mere three hundred men (read Judges 7:2-7). This must have seemed utterly illogical to Gideon and his men. How could such a small force possibly defeat an enemy that numbered like sand on the seashore?
But God’s ways are not our ways, and His thoughts are not our thoughts (read Isaiah 55:8-9). He wanted Israel to know, and for us to know, that the victory would not be won by human might or power, but by His Spirit (read Zechariah 4:6).
And so, with these three hundred men, armed not with swords and shields, but with trumpets, empty jars, and torches hidden within them, Gideon followed God’s instructions. In the dead of night, they surrounded the Midianite camp, and at Gideon’s signal, they blew the trumpets, smashed the jars, and shouted, “A sword for the Lord and for Gideon!” (Judges 7:20).
The result was chaos and confusion in the enemy camp. The Midianites, thinking they were surrounded by a vast army, turned their swords against each other, and they fled in terror. The Lord delivered Israel that day through the unlikely leadership of a fearful man and a ridiculously small army.
What can we learn from this incredible story? We learn that the grace of God seeks us out, even in our hidden places of fear and inadequacy. We learn that God sees potential in us that we ourselves may not recognize. We learn that His strength is made perfect in our weakness. We learn that victory belongs to the Lord, and He often chooses the most unlikely instruments to accomplish His will, so that the glory belongs to Him alone.
In the New Testament, we see this same theme echoed throughout the life and ministry of Jesus Christ. He chose fishermen, tax collectors, and even a former persecutor like Paul to be His apostles, men who were far from perfect but were transformed by His grace. As Paul himself declared in 1 Corinthians 1:27-29: “But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before God.”
Just as God’s grace found Gideon in the winepress, His grace finds us today, wherever we may be, whatever our circumstances. We may feel overwhelmed by the challenges we face, besieged by our own “Midianites” – our fears, our doubts, our struggles. But the story of Gideon reminds us that God is with us, and He can use even our weaknesses for His glory.
Therefore, let us take heart. Let us not be discouraged by our limitations, but let us trust in the boundless grace of our Lord. Let us be willing to step out in faith, even when we feel afraid, knowing that God’s power will be our strength. Let us be obedient to His commands, even when they seem illogical, knowing that His ways are higher than our ways.
Just as Gideon, through faith and obedience, became a mighty deliverer of his people, so too can we, through the grace of God, overcome the challenges we face and become instruments of His love and purpose in this world.
Let us pray: Heavenly Father, we thank You for the powerful reminder of Your grace in the story of Gideon. We thank You that You see us not as we are, but as we can be through Your strength. We ask for Your grace to empower us in our weaknesses, to give us courage in our fear, and to grant us the faith to trust in Your unfailing love. May we, like Gideon, be willing to be used by You, for Your glory and for the good of Your people. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
Stay in health and favour
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