Scripture:
Judges 6:11-16 NKJV
[11] Now the Angel of the Lord came and sat under the terebinth tree which was in Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, while his son Gideon threshed wheat in the winepress, in order to hide it from the Midianites. [12] And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him, and said to him, “The Lord is with you, you mighty man of valor!” [13] Gideon said to Him, “O my lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has forsaken us and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites.” [14] Then the Lord turned to him and said, “Go in this might of yours, and you shall save Israel from the hand of the Midianites. Have I not sent you?” [15] So he said to Him, “O my Lord, how can I save Israel? Indeed my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house.” [16] And the Lord said to him, “Surely I will be with you, and you shall defeat the Midianites as one man.”
Observation:
I love this story. Probably because I relate to it so much. In fact, I have written about it several times in the last 2 years. I think if we all put ourselves in the place of Gideon, looking at the overwhelming circumstances in his life, we can all see ourselves here. So let’s see what GOD has for us in this story. One thing we have to look at right away, is that Gideon was doing whatever it took to feed his family. That honestly is an admirable quality, and he didn’t even see it. All he saw was a man hiding in a winepress thrashing wheat. Probably the most difficult place to thresh wheat to be honest. You see the process required that the wind carry the chaff away from where the wheat landed. In a winepress, the wind was minimal; however, Gideon had been through it, and he knew he needed to feed his family. Over the last several years the Midianites had made the hard. Every time the Israelites would get something going their way. They would come down the hill and take everything they had. Leading Gideon to believe that the LORD had left Israel. When indeed HE had been shaping Gideon. The circumstances that were in Gideon’s life did not define him. In fact, they did something deeper. Although Gideon was looking at himself as a weak and defeated individual the LORD saw a man who would do what it took. Sitting by the terebinth tree listening to Gideon was the angel of the LORD.
Now let me give you a deeper perspective of who this actually is. As I have said many times before, most biblical scholars believe that anytime you see this phrase in the Old Testament, the angel that is being referred to is Jesus Christ. The situation is called a Christophany. Now I know that it is probably not spelled correctly but let me explain what it means. A Christophany is when Jesus appears in the Old Testament. They believe that it’s Jesus for a few different reasons. The main one is that anytime an angel appears in the bible to bring a message or to do anything, they are usually identified by name, which actually reveals their purpose. This particular one is never truly identified by anything but the angel of the LORD. Leading scholars to think it’s the son of GOD. The truth is I can see it as well. So let’s dive in a little deeper. This angel approaches Gideon, who, for the last several years, has been going through it, and finally had had enough. I picture him in the winepress talking to himself under his breath, “someone needs to do something, this is ridiculous, I cant believe i have to resort to thrashing wheat in this stupid winepress because of these jerks, do you see how hard this is, there is absolutely no wind and I’m really getting nowhere, but my family has to eat, so im here until I get enough to take home and make some bread, GOD please help me.” As the angel sat and listened. Thinking, he doesn’t even know I’m right here, it’s time to show him who he is. As the angel appeared to him, revealing the fact that HE is with him. Gideon referred to his circumstances… “if the LORD is with us then why is it like this, why are we struggling. What happened to all the miracles we heard about?” Gideon saw the deliverance of the LORD and paid no attention to the circumstances that led up to it. The captivity and slavery, all the whip marks and harsh treatment that his people had gone through. All I saw was the result and thought Wow, the LORD was with them then. He had no idea the LORD was with them the whole time and at just the right moment HE sent the right person to bring them out of all that. Just like HE was going to do with Gideon. However, Gideon had thought that just because he had not seen any miraculous deliverance, the LORD had left. Seeing himself as weak and unable. He had to be assured of the fact that the LORD would be with him. Go in your might, I will be with you, the victory is already yours, you just have to take it. As we read on and I hope you do, we find that Gideon still needed to be assured that this was real. Asking the angel for a sign before he moved forward. But the sign was given and Gideon had been prepared for what was ahead. He knew who he was now and the reason he had faced the adversity. It shaped him for what was to come. It made him a man who would do what it takes. He was a man of valor, not some weak, defeated, whimpering idiot for the tribe of Manasseh, who was seen as the weakest of that tribe.
Application:
How many times have you let your circumstances define whether or not you believe GOD is with you? How many times have you looked at what you are facing and begged GOD to show up? Let me ask you a question… what if you are not waiting on HIM, but instead HE is waiting on you? What if the adversity you are facing is meant to shape you so that you are prepared to step into the next level? What I’m asking you is what if you are a warrior and don’t even know it. I’m here to tell you something this morning. GOD does not make mistakes. HE has chosen you, and the life you have lived has prepared you. It’s all part of HIS master plan. The teacher is always silent during the test. In the winepress under the pressure of having to perform is where the true character is seen. Will you rely on yourself or will you turn to GOD? HE had never left you, nor has he forgotten about you. HE is only waiting for you to see who HE has made you to be. Its easy to look at your circumstances and think, this is to much… where did you go…. why am I the only one…. listen GOD is right there, HE is only waiting for you to turn around and see that. Our circumstances do not define who we are GOD does. What I am telling you is you need to know HE has called you for such a time as this. If you need a sign to show you. Look at the empty tomb. That is the victory. There is nothing to fear. GOD has made you to accomplish great things. The only question is are you going to believe what HE says about you or what your circumstances tell you about HIM. Just because you are not seeing miracles does not mean HE is not working. I challenge you to look into the mirror. Do you see the person looking back at you? You are the miracle. The bullet in the LORD’S gun. HE has been waiting to pull the trigger until you were ready. Standing in the winepress doing whatever it took. HE sees you as a man of valor. I hope you see yourself that way too.
Prayer:
Father, your ways are not our ways, and your thoughts are not our thoughts. You have prepared us for things far bigger than ourselves, and although we see the winepress as a sign of you not being with us. You are always right there. Waiting, listening, watching, know when the right time is to reveal that you have been right there the whole time even though we could not see you. The way you strengthen us is beyond our understanding. The pressure you use to shape us we see as a lack of your presence… but it’s not. The pressure is your preparation. You know what you have made us for, and what it will take to prepare us to accomplish the race you have set before us. This morning we can only thank you. You truly are the potter and although we may not like the pressure. The vessel you are making is well worth it. How truly amazing are your ways. I am always in utter amazement when I see it all coming together as we ho through this day we know that you are with us, your rod and your staff comfort us, as you lead us to still waters. Thank you. Its in the mighty name of Jesus I pray amen.