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Principles of Deliverance - 4

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• The message you are about to hear was produced by Dominion Ministry. If you would like to support this ministry by becoming a sermon partner or obtain additional high-resolution CDs, DVDs, or MP3s featuring the teaching of Pastor John Weaver, please visit the Dominion Ministry website at www.dominion.org, www.dominionministry.com. This ministry is completely supported by donations, and it is through those donations that we are able to provide sermons for sermonaudio.com. Please visit our website at www.dominionministry.com to subscribe or make your donation today. Thank you. We're coming today to part four on principles of deliverance. And I will take just a few moments to review, but today we're going to read from Judges chapter 6 and verses 16 through 23. Judges chapter 6, verses 16 through 23.

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• Here's the story of Gideon. "And the Lord said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man. And he said unto him, If now I have found grace in thy sight, then show me a sign that thou talkest with me. Depart not hence, I pray thee, until I come unto thee, and bring forth my present, and set it before thee. And he said, I will tarry until thou come again."

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• "And Gideon went in, and made ready a kid, and unleavened cakes of an ephah of flour: the flesh he put in a basket, and he put the broth in a pot, and brought it out unto him under the oak, and presented it. And the angel of God said unto him, Take the flesh and the unleavened cakes, and lay them upon this rock, and pour out the broth. And he did so. Then the angel of the Lord put forth the end of the staff that was in his hand, and touched the flesh and the unleavened cakes. And there rose up fire out of the rock, and consumed the flesh and the unleavened cakes. Then the angel of the Lord departed out of his sight. And when Gideon perceived that he was an angel of the Lord, Gideon said, Alas, O Lord God! for because I have seen an angel of the Lord face to face."

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• "And the Lord said unto him, Peace be unto thee; fear not: thou shalt not die. Then Gideon built an altar there unto the Lord, and called it Jehovah-shalom: unto this day it is yet in Ophrah of the Abiezrites." Let's stop right there. We've been talking about the principles of judgment, and the very first message I brought to you was on the preparation or the principles of deliverance. The first message was the preparation for deliverance and how God prepares the people by stripping them from their self-ability, their self-confidence, and the trust in themselves. And then secondly, I shared with you the procedure in deliverance, how God then sent a preacher, and that preacher then declared unto the people the goodness and the greatness of God, and at the same time, their own sin and their own rebellion and their own wickedness. And there's a reason for that, very obviously, and that is you are never ever going to turn to God until you see your own wickedness and your own inability to save or deliver yourself.

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• And then the third message I brought to you was on the person of deliverance, and I began showing you some characteristics or some virtues that would be in the life of the man that God chose to use as a deliverer. Now, that is where we ended. I'm going to continue that thought today. Whenever you read about Gideon, I cannot help but think of the passage in John 1 and verse 6, where God said concerning John the Baptist, "There was a man sent from God, whose name was John." And when you read that verse and you just pause and you think about what God said, "There was a man." In other words, God looked at John the Baptist and said, "There was a man." And that is the same concept that you can use when you talk about Gideon. There was a man. When God found Gideon, He found a man. Remember now, last week when we looked at these characteristics, I pointed out at least four things. I said, first of all, Gideon was prudent and practical.

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• When God came to him, he was beating out the grain behind the winepress. He was trying to preserve everything that he could and protect everything that he had.

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• Second, I pointed out that he was perceptive and discerning, because I showed you he understood the mess that the country was in was because of their sins and their rebellion and that God had sold them into the hands of their enemies. In other words, he understood that the problem down at its very root was spiritual.

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• Thirdly, we found out that Gideon was called and sent. God specifically called him for a task and sent him to accomplish it. And then fourthly, as I pointed out in verse 15, he was meek and humble. And all through the Bible, it's amazing the men that God uses, how meek they really are. For instance, I pointed out Moses, how Moses was called the meekest man on earth. How David, although he had slain his thousands and ten thousands, yet when it came to God building him a house, he asked, "Who am I, and what is my father's house?" And then I pointed out the apostle Paul, where he said he was not even worthy to be called an apostle.

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• He was the least of all the apostles. Why? Because he had persecuted the church of God. Then I pointed out how God used these men and every one of them were meek and humble.

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• Now, today we're going to continue. And let me show you at least two more virtues under one point concerning Gideon. And that is that Gideon was believing and bold.

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• Now, let me lay this truth out for you very closely. Whenever God uses men, listen carefully, you can mark it down that those men will have the same virtues or the same characteristics in their lives. Why? Because God is immutable. God does not change. And what He sees in one man and what He gives one man in order to prepare him to be a deliverer, He does for any other man that He chooses and calls for the same task.

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• And so we're going to look particularly now at verses 16 through 23 at how Gideon was believing and bold. And let me ask you this question: Why should he not be believing and bold?

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• Now, just stop and think about this. Had not the angel approached him and said to him, "Hail, thou mighty man of valor"? Was Gideon not specifically told by the angel, "The Lord is with thee"? He's already been informed by the angel that he is a man of might, and that he is particularly sent and called by God. And finally, he is told that he would smite the Midianites as one man.

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• Now look in verse 17. After he's been told all of that, in light of these truths, in verse 17 he said unto the angel, "If now I have found grace in thy sight, then show me a sign that thou talkest with me."

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• Now, you've got to understand that Gideon was not yet clear exactly as to who this messenger was. He did not know if he was just simply a messenger of God or an angel or a man. He certainly believed everything that the angel had said to him, especially concerning his call and concerning his mission. But yet now he asks for a confirmation. And listen to me, because the confirmation was not so much for Gideon's sake, but also that he might be able to satisfy others. For instance, do you remember when God called Moses? Moses was on the backside of the desert. And God said, "Art thou, Moses, I want you to go back to Egypt and I want you to tell them that I AM has sent you to deliver them." And what did Moses ask? "Who shall I say sent me? How will they believe? How can I make them believe?" I mean, there's got to be some authentication. There's got to be some validation. And so Gideon here has the same concern that Moses had.

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• It's not just that Gideon wants proof that God has called him. Gideon knows that. But how is he going to convey that to those other individuals that he's going to need as well? So Gideon then is seeking a sign, but he's not seeking the sign as the Pharisees sought out of curiosity or out of unbelief. Rather, what Gideon is seeking is a further confirmation concerning the call to his work and that that call was from God.

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• Here it is pointed out very clearly. A good cause, a good calling, and a good conscience will always make a good courage, which all of them are absolutely essential in the life of a good soldier. So Gideon then wanted not just a good cause and a good calling and a good conscience, but he wanted good courage. He wanted to be able to say, "Here I know that God has sent me."

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• Now a remarkable thing happens in verse 18. Gideon looks at the angel and he says in verse 18, "Depart not hence, I pray thee, until I come unto thee, and bring forth my present, and set it before thee. And he said, I will tarry until thou come again."

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• Now, to me, as I read this passage, I'm absolutely struck, dumbfounded in one sense of the word. Gideon did not really yet perceive who this angel really was. And yet he asked him to wait until he comes and brings a present and sets it before him.

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• Now, you've got to remember these were trying times. And Gideon was hiding what little bit he had so that it would not be stolen from him. And yet, although Gideon probably had very little, yet he was not a selfish man. He was willing to be hospitable and he was willing to share with this stranger. But the remarkable thing to me in this verse is this: not that Gideon was willing to be hospitable, and not that Gideon was willing to share, but that he asked the angel of the Lord, "I pray thee, do not depart hence until I come and set my present before thee." And the angel of the Lord said to him, "I will wait. I'll tarry until thou come again." Now, who was the angel of the Lord? This was a Christophany. And remember, a Christophany is the pre-incarnate appearing of Christ in the Old Testament before He was ever made flesh in the New Testament. This is the same Christ who appeared to Joshua. This is the same Christ who appeared to Moses.

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• And the amazing thing to me is this, and this is what is so remarkable: not that Gideon was willing to share, but that the Lord was willing to wait. You stop and think about what a remarkable condescension that was. The sovereign Lord of heaven and earth waiting upon a man. He already knew what Gideon was going to do. He already knew what Gideon was going to bring. He already knew what Gideon's motives were and what was in his heart. And yet, He waited. He said, "I'll wait for you." Gideon brought his offering, and his offering undoubtedly had been roasted. The Bible says that he went in and he made ready a kid, in verse 19, and unleavened cakes of an ephah of flour; the flesh he put in a basket, like I say, probably roasted, and he put the broth in a pot, and he brought it out unto him under the oak and presented it to him. Now, when you say roasted flesh, you know, we talk about shish kebabs. That's probably what it was.

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• He had a broth for him to drink, and then he mentioned about some in a basket. Probably what Gideon had in mind was, "I'll give him something to eat now and to drink now, and here's some in a basket. Here's some that he can take with him." So he was being more than hospitable. I mean, he was willing to take care of this stranger's needs. But when he brings the offering out, the angel then instructs him to put it on the rock.

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• Look at it in verse 20. "And the angel of God said unto him, Take the flesh and the unleavened cakes, and lay them upon this rock, and pour out the broth. And he did so. Then the angel of the Lord put forth the end of the staff that was in his hand, and touched the flesh and the unleavened cakes. And there rose up fire out of the rock, and consumed the flesh and the unleavened cakes. Then the angel of the Lord departed out of his sight."

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• Now, instead then of this offering being eaten as Gideon would suppose that it would be, it's laid out on a rock. And when the angel just touches it with the end of the staff, it is immediately consumed, and then the angel disappears.

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• Now, stop with me and think about something. The Bible tells us in verse 20, "And the angel of God said unto him, Take the flesh and the unleavened cakes, and lay them upon what? This rock." What is significant about the rock? By the way, I hope you know that the rock is one of the names of God in the Bible. He is the rock. The Bible says in Deuteronomy 32, "His ways are perfect, just and right is He." But if you will hold Judges chapter 6 and turn over in your Bibles to 1 Corinthians chapter 10, I want you to notice verse 4. 1 Corinthians 10 and verse 4. You remember how the Bible teaches that Moses smote the rock and water came out of it to give water and drink to those Israelites in the desert? Notice, if you would please, verse 4, 1 Corinthians 10: "And they did all drink that same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ."

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• Now, let me show you what happens. Gideon brings his offering. The angel says, "Put it on the rock." He lays it out. The angel touches it and fire comes out of the rock and consumes the offering. When Moses touched the rock, water came out for his people. Here's a picture of Jesus Christ and His relationship to His people and to His enemies. To His people, He is our sustainer, our nourisher, our water, our life. He's the water out of the rock. To His enemies, He's the fire out of the rock. You remember what the Bible says in Hebrews 12 and verse 29 concerning God? "Our God is a consuming fire." So to the one, His people, He is the deliverer. To His enemies, He is the destroyer. Now, what happens when Gideon sees that this meat and broth is consumed instantaneously and the angel then disappears?

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• A consciousness of sin, helplessness, and unworthiness fills his heart. Look what happens. The Bible says in verse 22, "And when Gideon perceived that it was an angel of the Lord, Gideon said, Alas, O Lord God! for because I have seen an angel of the Lord face to face." In other words, Gideon says, "I want to die. I've talked to an angel of God. I've seen him face to face. Alas, O Lord God!"

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• Now, what in the world is happening? Well, let me explain it like this. The truth is really very simple. Whenever any fallen man sees the greatness, the majesty, and the power of Almighty God, our own hearts are filled with a sense of awe, our own sinfulness, our own helplessness, our own unworthiness. Do you remember, just to give you an illustration, in Isaiah chapter 6, Isaiah said, "In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord high and lifted up." You remember, he said, "and his train filled the temple." And there's where he talked about the seraphim with six wings: with twain they covered their eyes, with twain they covered their feet, and with twain they did fly, and they ceased not saying, "Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty." Remember now, Isaiah is seeing this vision of God in His holiness and His righteousness.

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• And when you get down to verse 5, he says this: "Woe is me! for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell among a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts." Please listen, if God ever shows us even a smidgen of His glory, it will knock us to our faces. We cannot stand a sight of the majesty of God in all of our sinfulness and wickedness.

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• Do you remember the same thing occurred in the New Testament? After the miracle of the fishes, when our Lord told those disciples in Luke chapter 5, they had toiled all night and caught nothing. And He says, "Cast your net on the right side." And they cast the net and they encircled this great multitude of fishes, so much so that their nets were breaking and the other boats had to come in.

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• And what did Peter do? Peter, when he saw it, the Bible says, Luke 5 and verse 8, he fell down on his knees and said to Jesus, "Depart from me, Lord; for I am a sinful man." What was he doing? He had caught a glimpse of the majesty of God, and he realized his own wickedness. This is exactly what happened to Gideon. Gideon saw in some fashion a glimpse of God's power, God's majesty, and God's righteousness. And he says, "Alas, O Lord, I've seen an angel of the Lord face to face," which means he thought that he was going to die. By the way, let me point out the fact again, and I'll quote the verse for you.

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• God does not use proud, arrogant, haughty, heady, high-minded men. It was necessary that Gideon be humbled. Do you know what the Bible says in James 4 and verse 6? Listen to this verse. Now listen. "God resisteth the proud, but he giveth grace to the humble." And the word "resisteth" means to fight against. God fights against the proud, but He gives grace to the humble. So if God's grace is going to assist us, we must be humbled.

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• And that's exactly what happened in Judges chapter 6. Gideon is humble.

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• Now, look if you would please back to verse 22. "And when Gideon perceived that he was an angel of the Lord, Gideon said, Alas, O Lord God! for I have seen an angel of the Lord face to face." And what does God do now? God speaks peace to him. "And the Lord said unto him, Peace be unto thee; fear not: thou shalt not die." Gideon, I didn't bring you here. I didn't show you My might and My power. I didn't accept your offering in order to kill you. No. God said, when I accepted your offering, it was an express assurance that I was accepting your person. And so now God is restoring the comfort and assurance to Gideon in saying, "Look, you're not going to die. Peace be unto thee." So Gideon now is assured of his acceptance before God. He's assured of his mission and its accomplishment.

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• So he is indeed now believing and bold. I mean, why should he not be? The angel has told him all of these things. And now he's seen the angel of the Lord face to face. God's accepted his offering. He's not going to die. So what did he do in verse 24? He erects there a memorial altar to the Lord, "and Gideon built an altar there unto the Lord, and called it Jehovah-shalom."

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• "And to this day it is yet in Ophrah of the Abiezrites." Now, the altar was not necessarily something to sacrifice upon. The sacrifice had already been made upon the rock. But it was indeed a memorial altar. The important thing is that he names this altar Jehovah-shalom. What does that mean? The Lord our peace.

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• Now, I want you to stop and think with me. Gideon has offered his offering. It has been accepted. The Lord has expressly said, "Peace be unto thee; fear not: thou shalt not die." OK, there has been reconciliation and now there is peace. By the way, the Bible tells us that God the Father has spoken peace to us through Jesus Christ our Lord. In fact, in Ephesians 2 and verse 14, Jesus Christ is explicitly called our peace. In 2 Thessalonians chapter 3 and verse 16, the Bible says, "Now the Lord of peace himself give you peace always by all means."

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• Now, here's the point I'm trying to make. Gideon has effectively been reconciled to God and peace has been instituted. And what does that mean? That means reformation must start immediately. You cannot have reformation until there is reconciliation, until there is peace. Now, God is expecting Gideon to be believing and bold. Now, listen to me. Ask yourself this question: Why must Gideon be believing and bold? You can understand prudent and practical. You can understand discerning and perceptive. You can understand called and sent. And you can understand being meek and humble. But why must he be believing and bold?

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• Let me tell you why. Because you're going to see the work that God has him cut out to accomplish. And it's going to take faith, and it's going to require boldness. And may I remind you of what the Scripture says in Hebrews 11 and verse 6: "Without faith it is impossible to please him." May I also remind you what the Bible says in Romans 14 and verse 23: "Whatsoever is not of faith is sin." So God then requires Gideon to be believing and bold. He is not going to use a man who has no faith. He is not going to use a man who is not willing to step out in boldness upon His word. Now, let me show you why God requires them to be believing and bold, because God is going to ask Gideon to do two very important things. What are they? Well, skip down, if you would, to verse 25.

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• "And it came to pass the same night, that the Lord said unto him, Take thy father's young bullock, even the second bullock of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that thy father hath, and cut down the grove that is by it: and build an altar unto the Lord thy God upon the top of this rock in the ordered place, and take the second bullock, and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the grove which thou shalt cut down."

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• Now let me just stop right there. Here are the two things that God is requiring Gideon to do. The first is he must overthrow idolatry. Wow. He must destroy the established religion of the people. The second thing God asked him to do is to restore the true worship of Jehovah. He says, "You build an altar upon this rock"—the one that he laid the sacrifice out on earlier in the angelic visitation—"you build an altar here," says God, "and then you take that bullock that pulled down the altar of Baal, and you offer him on My altar." An interesting thing is this: stop and think. The altar of Baal must be destroyed before the altar of the Lord could be built. Isn't that amazing? Why? Are you listening? God is absolutely sovereign.

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• He is not equal to other gods. He is not on par with other gods. He is unique. There is no other god. There are no other gods. And He will not brook any rivals. What did He say in Isaiah 42 and verse 8? "I am the Lord: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images." God says, "Before you build My altar, you tear down Baal's."

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• Listen carefully, hopefully I won't preach upon this in the not too distant future. But one of the errors of multiculturalism is the reduction or the leveling of Christ and Christianity and thus placing them on an equal footing with other religions. Christianity is not equal to other religions. It is above other religions. Christ is not equal to other gods. He is above other gods. You cannot compare the pagan religions with Christ, nor can you compare the pagan gods with Christ.

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• And God says, "You've got to tear down the idol of Baal and the altar of Baal before you build My altar." Now, let me tell you, there is a principle of Scripture that is being followed here. Ask yourself this question: Why must Gideon first tear down the altar of Baal before he can build the altar of the Lord? Well, at the same time, let me just quote the Scriptures.

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• You write them down, OK? Amos 5 and verse 15. Here's what God says: "Hate the evil, and love the good." Now notice how God said that. "Hate the evil, and love the good." You will never love the good until you first hate the evil. Evil must be hated before good can be loved. In the book of Isaiah, chapter 1, verses 16 and 17, listen to what God says: "Cease to do evil; learn to do well." Are you listening? You can't learn to do well until you cease to do evil. How can you learn to be sober until you cease being a drunkard? How can you learn to be righteous until you cease being unrighteous? How can you learn to be holy until you cease being unholy? That's what He means when He says, "Cease to do evil, and learn to do well." That's why in Psalm 97 in verse 10, He says it like this: "Ye that love the Lord, hate evil." Yes, once you find out what the true love of God is, you will hate evil.

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• But until then, says God, you've got to understand you must hate the evil and then you love the good. You must cease to do evil. Then you learn to do what's right. Therefore, Baal's altar must be torn down first. Now, look back, if you would please, in verse 25. I like this. I tell Alice, there are some things that cannot wait. You have to have priorities. Well, here it is: "And it came to pass the same night." God dealt with Gideon that day, and then God came to him that night and said, "You take your father's young bullock, even the second bullock of seven years old, and you throw down the altar of Baal." There are some things that cannot wait. And one of those things that cannot wait is the destruction of false religion and the establishment of the true religion of Jesus Christ. Now, look what he said, and I'm going to cover this just for a moment, but he said in verse 25, "And it came to pass the same night, that the Lord said unto him, Take thy father's young bullock, even the second bullock of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal

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• that thy—help me out—that thy what? Thy father hath, and cut down the grove that is by it."

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• Now, God had appeared to Gideon earlier that day. Now that same night, God says, "Look, let's get on with the business at hand." His first mission was to get his own house in order. How could he be a Baal fighter if he allowed Baal in his own home and in his own family? He was sent to destroy the altar of Baal and the idol of Asherah—that's the grove—that belonged to his father. Evidently now, the altar of Baal and the grove were on the father's property, but it had undoubtedly become a public place of worship, because if you'll skip down to verse 28, "And when the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was cast down, and the grove was cut down that was by it, and the second bullock was offered upon the altar that was built." So it was on his father's property, and his father probably owned it, but evidently there were a multitude of people that came there and worshipped. Here's a simple truth.

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• Are you listening? God will never use us to get others right until we're willing to get right ourselves. He will never use us to help other families until we straighten out our own families. Our first priority is to ourselves, then to our families, then onward to others.

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• Now, I don't know if you thought about this when I read that verse, but it hit my mind immediately. In verse 25, "And it came to pass the same night, that the Lord said unto him, Take thy father's young bullock, even the second bullock of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that thy father hath, and cut down the grove that is by it." Here's my question: How can God command Gideon and direct Gideon to take his father's property and destroy his father's property? What about the right to private property? I'm going to tell you folks, there's a lot in the Bible on private property. And there is a right to private property.

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• In fact, the very word "property" comes from the Latin word proprius, which means literally "belonging to one's own self" or "peculiar to one." So how could God do that? How could God tell Gideon, "You take your father's bullock, and you cut down your father's altar"? Well, let me give you three answers. In fact, if you'll hold Judges 6, I want you to turn to Psalm 50. Here's my first answer. I want to answer that in three ways. So turn to Psalm 50 and get ready to look, beginning there in verse 10. Here's the first answer.

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• In reality, everything that we have belongs to our Heavenly Father, period. It is only given to us as stewards. Look what God says in Psalm 50, beginning there with verse 10: "For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell thee: for the world is mine, and the fulness thereof." How much in this world actually belongs to God? Every bit of it. What does Psalm 24 tell us? "The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein." Everything belongs to God. God is the creator, the sustainer, the provider, the protector.

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• Without Him, all would perish. He alone—are you listening—has absolute title to any and everything in this world. So in reality, the property belonged to God.

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• Secondly, you could answer it like this: Since Gideon was the son and would inherit all things anyhow, practically speaking, the bullock would have belonged to him sooner or later.

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• Thirdly, we'll see a little bit later, that God worked on the father's heart anyhow, so the father agreed with the son, so there was no problem. But you have to understand that God is the absolute ruler of all things in this earth.

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• Now, Gideon, if you'll look back to verse 25, he was specifically commanded to take the second bullock of seven years old. Why that bullock? Why the second bullock of seven years old? Look back in your Bibles to Judges chapter 6 and verse 1: "And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord: and the Lord delivered them into the hand of Midian how long? Seven years." So this bullock that is seven years old is now to be the sacrifice for their sins. And by the way, if you were to take the time to read Leviticus 4, verses 13 through 21, it was a bullock that God demanded that was to be sacrificed for national sins.

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• Now, let me ask you this question: Why was the same bullock to be used to pull down the altar of Baal and then to be sacrificed on God's altar? Because the bullock is a picture of Jesus Christ. What does Jesus Christ do? He destroys the enemy, and He brings praise and worship to the one true and the living God. So it is Jesus Christ that redeems and Jesus Christ that destroys enemies. Let me show you. Look in your Bibles to the book of Hebrews chapter 2. Let me show you how these two things are specifically stated in Hebrews chapter 2, beginning there with verse 14. Hebrews 2 verse 14.

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• What does the Bible say? "Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same;"

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• Now look, "that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; and deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage." So what did the bullock do? He pulled down the altar of Baal. He destroyed the enemy. And then he delivered by being a sacrifice to God, which, of course, pictures the person and work of Jesus Christ. Christ delivers His own and destroys His enemies. Now look in verse 27.

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• "Then Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as the Lord had said unto him: and so it was, because he feared his father's household and the men of the city, that he could not do it by day, that he did it by night." Huh. Now, Gideon takes ten men of his father's servants or of his servants, and he accomplishes the job at night. Now, why would Gideon do this at night? Well, I think the answer is very explicit. Verse 25, "And it came to pass the same night." God told him to do it at night, and he went ahead and did it at night. You've got to remember, ten of his servants plus one man himself, that's eleven. Eleven people are not very many to fight against an entire household or an entire city.

  #60 | 42:28 to 43:35 | cleaned

• Let me just say it plainly. A brave man is not a foolish man. And just because Gideon had been called by God and sent by God did not mean that he's going to run out and act like a fool. God instructs us that even when we're duly called and sent and empowered by God, we must use wisdom and discernment. Incidentally, when you look at verse 27, "Then Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as the Lord had said unto him: and so it was, because he feared his father's household." The word "feared" there does not necessarily imply being afraid the way you and I think it does. Now, it can mean that. And certainly, I don't doubt one little bit, there had to be some trepidation in Gideon's heart. I mean, come on, he had never done this before.

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• And he knew that he was initiating a war. There had to be some trepidation. But this same word, "feared," the Hebrew word is yare, which can also mean to be afraid, to fear. It can also mean to reverence, to honor, respect. So it could have been out of respect and reverence and in honor of his father that he would not take his father's property in front of him and then turn around and destroy that property in front of him. It could indicate that as well as being fearful. Now, whatever the word "fear" means here, the job was accomplished. What was the result?

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• Let me show you something. This is so funny to me in one sense of the word. Verse 28, "And when the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was cast down, and the grove was cut down that was by it, and the second bullock was offered upon the altar that was built. And they said one to another, Who hath done this thing? And when they inquired and asked, they said, Gideon the son of Joash hath done this thing. Then the men of the city said unto Joash, Bring out thy son, that he may die: because he hath cast down the altar of Baal, and because he hath cut down the grove that was by it. And Joash said unto all that stood against him, Will ye plead for Baal? will ye save him? he that will plead for him, let him be put to death whilst it is yet morning: if he be a god, let him plead for himself, because one hath cast down his altar. Therefore on that day he called him Jerubbaal, saying, Let Baal plead against him, because he hath thrown down his altar."

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• Now, let's stop there, and that's where I'm going to end today, but let me just show you something. What happens after Gideon pulls down the altar of Baal, cuts down the grove, builds the altar of God, and establishes the true worship of God once again?

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• Now, naivete would lead us to believe that joy would be in the city. The people should be rejoicing and jumping up and down. The enemy has been destroyed. The true worship of Jehovah is restored. How wonderful! Isn't Gideon a marvelous deliverer? Let's praise him. Let's put him up on our shoulders. Give us three cheers for Gideon. Is that what happened? No. You know, I still remember it. I've been preaching for over 40 years, but I still remember when I first started preaching that I thought everybody would be so happy to hear what I had to say.

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• I mean, they'd just fall at my feet. Well, I found out different. In fact, I've been cussed at and fussed at and run off and I hate—what happened when they found that their Baal had been destroyed? They were outraged. They were insulted. They were ready to put Gideon to death. Let's learn one truth very well this morning. Here it is: You will never please everybody by doing what is right. You won't. You will never please everyone by doing what is right and holy. Oftentimes, you will incur the wrath and indignation of the populace for doing that which is right and holy.

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• How far do you think I'd get on a talk show by saying, "God says the sodomites will be put to death"? Can you hear the audience out there? "That-a-way-to-go preacher. Yes, sir. Tell them, preach." Is that what they're going to say? Well, of course not. They don't want to hear the truth. The unconverted, the hypocrites, the reprobates will never, ever be satisfied with the pure, unadulterated worship of Jesus Christ.

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• They will howl and scream and defy that which is right. So what did the city do? They came together and said, "Who has done this? This was our god. This was our place of worship." It was inquired. "Gideon has done it. The son of Joash." Let me tell you something. The attack of Gideon upon the altar of Baal had a good side to it. It united the family.

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• And it even gave the father courage. Joash stepped out and he said, "Whoever fights for Baal, let him be put to death. If Baal is a god, let him fight for himself." Oh, what kind of god is he that cannot take care of my son? I mean, if he is a god, let him fight against Gideon. You need to be put to death if you're going to defend him. And so he called his name Jerubbaal. "Let Baal contend." In other words, fight with Gideon, Baal, if you're going to fight.

  #69 | 50:03 to 50:40 | cleaned

• I got news for you folks. I don't mind fighting against a dumb idol. What can a dumb idol do? Nothing. But I do want you to turn in your Bibles to Matthew 10, because I want to show you this. You see, it's not the fighting against the dumb idol that upsets people. Oh, that will to a certain extent. But what really upsets people is the establishment of the sovereignty and the supremacy of Jesus Christ. And you've got to understand something, folks. Jesus Christ Himself taught that His truth would separate and divide and even mystify. Look what He says in Matthew 10, beginning there, verse 34. Matthew 10, verse 34. Look what our Lord says.

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• "Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. What does a sword do? It divides. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. And a man's foes shall be they of his own household."

  #71 | 51:50 to 52:11 | cleaned

• Now, Jesus did not come to purposely create strife and unrest. That's not what He's saying. But what He is saying is this: when My truth is preached and proclaimed, and when someone believes My truth and embraces it, inevitably there is going to be a separation. There is going to be a division. May I remind you, the gospel of Jesus Christ will always separate the wheat from the chaff and the wheat from the tares.

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• The man that God uses to deliver His people has to be believing and bold. Why? Because once he takes on the work of being a deliverer, he's going to have a multitude of people dead set against him and everything that he does. Because you cannot please some people by doing what's right. And the unbelievers, and the reprobates, and the hypocrites will always howl, and they will scream, and they will fight revival, and they will fight restitution, and they will fight renewal. They don't want it. They want the status quo. Mark her down. I don't care if you study the life of Moses, David, Samuel, Jephthah, I don't care who you study. You'll find the men that God used, all of them, were practical and prudent, discerning and perceptive, called and sent, humble and meek, and believing and bold. Because inevitably, that man that God uses to deliver his people will be shot at from every corner. That makes you want to run out and be a deliverer, doesn't it? Can you imagine? Can you imagine what these men went through?

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• And I'm going to set you up for next Sunday. Can you imagine the grace and the power that God gave them to enable them to endure what they endured to do the job that God called them to? May God make us with all of these characteristics and these virtues in our lives so that God can use us to be His deliverers. Let's pray. Father, we do ask in the name of Jesus Christ today that You would help us.

  #74 | 54:50 to 55:35 | cleaned

• Lord, that You would teach us. Lord, that You would indeed fill us with Thy Spirit. Grant us faith and holy boldness. Grant us, Lord, that these virtues and these characteristics may be in our lives, that we may be used of Thee. We ask for Your mercy and Your grace. In Christ's name we pray, Amen.

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deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-05T13:44:11Z