GIDEON:
FROM ZERO TO HERO
Judges 6 (NIV)
The Israelites did evil in the eyes of
the Lord, and for seven years he
gave them into the hands of the
Midianites. Because the power of
Midian was so oppressive,
Gideon: From Zero to Hero
the Israelites prepared shelters
for themselves in mountain
clefts, caves and strongholds.
Whenever the Israelites planted
their crops, the Midianites,
Amalekites and other eastern
peoples invaded the country.
Gideon: From Zero to Hero
They camped on the land and
ruined the crops all the way to
Gaza and did not spare a living
thing for Israel, neither sheep
nor cattle nor donkeys.
Gideon: From Zero to Hero
They came up with their
livestock and their tents like
swarms of locusts. It was
impossible to count them or
their camels; they invaded the
land to ravage it.
Gideon: From Zero to Hero
Midian so impoverished the
Israelites that they cried out to
the Lord for help.
When the Israelites cried out to
the Lord because of Midian, he
sent them a prophet, who said,
Gideon: From Zero to Hero
“This is what the Lord, the God of
Israel, says: I brought you up out of
Egypt, out of the land of slavery. I
rescued you from the hand of the
Egyptians. And I delivered you from
the hand of all your oppressors; I
drove them out before you and
gave you their land
Gideon: From Zero to Hero
I said to you, ‘I am the Lord your
God; do not worship the gods of
the Amorites, in whose land you
live.’ But you have not listened
to me.”
Gideon: From Zero to Hero
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.
Gideon: From Zero to Hero
When the angel of the Lord
appeared to Gideon, he said,
“The Lord is with you, mighty
warrior. ” “Pardon me, my lord,”
Gideon replied, “but if the Lord
is with us, why has all this
happened to us?
Gideon: From Zero to Hero
Where are all his wonders that our
ancestors told us about when they
said, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up
out of Egypt?’ But now the Lord has
abandoned us and given us into
the hand of Midian.”
Gideon: From Zero to Hero
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?” “Pardon me, my lord,”
Gideon replied,
Gideon: From Zero to Hero
“but how can I save Israel? My clan
is the weakest in Manasseh, and I
am the least in my family. ”
The Lord answered, “I will be with
you , and you will strike down all
the Midianites, leaving none alive.”
Gideon: From Zero to Hero
4 Things to learn as we look at the
story of Gideon:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Gideon had the Promise of God’s Presence
Gideon saw the Performance of God’s Plan
Gideon saw the Provision of God’s Power
Gideon saw the Proof of God’s Possibilities
Gideon: From Zero to Hero
1. Gideon had the
Promise of God’s
Presence
Gideon: From Zero to Hero
6:16 “The Lord answered,
“I will be with you , and
you will strike down all
the Midianites, leaving
none alive.”
Gideon: From Zero to Hero
However, Gideon began to make
EXCUSES for himself:
•
•
•
•
I am the least in my family.
My family is the least in my clan (tribe)
My tribe is the least in Israel
When the angel said go in the strength
you have, Gideon must have thought what
strength?
Gideon: From Zero to Hero
Many other people in the Bible made excuses:
• Moses asked “Who am I, that I should go
to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the
Children of Israel out of Egypt.” (Ex 3:11)
• Jeremiah said “Ah, Lord God! I cannot
speak, for I am a child.” (Jer 1:6)
• But, God promised that He would be with
them if they put their trust in Him.
Gideon: From Zero to Hero
2. Gideon saw the
Performance of
God’s Plan
Gideon: From Zero to Hero
After reluctantly accepting the challenge to lead
the Israelites against the Midianites,
Gideon then met the army:
•
•
•
•
Midianites: 135,000 Israelites: 32,000
Israelites (fearful): 22,000 = 10,000
Isrealites (at the waterside): 9,700 = 300
135,000 Midianites against 300 Israelites!!!
Gideon: From Zero to Hero
3. Gideon saw the
Provision of
God’s Power
Gideon: From Zero to Hero
Gideon’s army was divided into
three companies of one hundred
each, and they were given
trumpets, jars with torches inside
and told to shout “The sword of the
Lord and of Gideon” when ordered.
Gideon: From Zero to Hero
4. Gideon saw the
Proof of God’s
Possibilities
Gideon: From Zero to Hero
Gideon went from Zero to Hero:
• A timid farmer became a national hero!
• The one who said he was the least
achieved through God a great victory!
• God can work similarly through you
and me as we give our lives to Him
today!
Gideon: From Zero to Hero
2 Corinthians 4:6-7
“For God, who said, “Let light shine out
of darkness,” made his light shine in our
hearts to give us the light of the
knowledge of God’s glory displayed in
the face of Christ. But we have this
treasure in jars of clay to show that this
all-surpassing power is from God and
not from us.”
Gideon: From Zero to Hero