Gideon Mighty Warrior

Read Judges 6-8
 
Judges 6:12-15 When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.” 13 “But sir,” Gideon replied, “if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? …15 “But Lord,” Gideon asked, “how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.”
 
GIDEON and the apostle Peter are two men I often connect with emotionally and spiritually. They are very much alike. For instance, the angel of the Lord – perhaps the preincarnate Jesus Christ – called Gideon “Mighty Warrior”. Jesus labeled Peter “the rock”. Gideon says, “But, Lord (sir).” twice here and later tests the Lord’s call three times, once with a food offering and twice with a fleece. “But, Lord.”  was Peter’s common response to Jesus’ teachings in addition to his tragic three-time denial.
    But as God had “rock” plans for Peter, he had “Mighty Warrior” plans for Gideon. He will not allow Gideon’s small faith to stop his redemptive work in Israel. In fact, faith is so powerful, we need only a little to do God’s mighty work. Jesus said so in Luke 17:6 “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you.” In other words, God will use any bit of faith we have to do life-changing work.
    Gideon needed faith. He saw himself as a scared farmer, hiding in a cave. His goal was to get through each day, to stay alive against the Mideonites’ oppression. Helplessness created hopelessness.
    Then God set Gideon apart – he sanctified the farmer to become a mighty warrior. God separates Gideon from his fear, doubts and idol worshiping family. Chosen by God, Gideon, like Peter, was born again into a God-empowered life. Step-by-step, the Holy Spirit replaced, “But, Lord.” in Gideon’s heart with a “Yes, Lord!” devotion in his soul. Gideon’s faith grew to fully trust God’s commands. He acted. He became God’s Mighty Warrior. The LORD had spoken it, and Gideon lived it. The physical victories, defeated the pagan power and cleansed Israel for 40 years.
    You know, don’t you, this is your story, too. We can often feel less than able to do God’s will for our lives. “But Lord.” becomes so common in our hearts God stops talking to us. But friend, know this: as you know Christ you need to know who you are. You must know the Spirit has called you to faith to mightily live into your salvation. The Spirit has set you apart from the world to be a witness to God’s power. With “mighty warrior” gifts such as prayer, teaching, administration, hospitality and evangelism, you are to wage war for his kingdom.
    Trust God. Be as the Gideon, the mighty warrior, who obeyed God and claimed the victory for him.
 
Just think, Mighty Warrior, God has given you the same power he gave to Gideon.