Mighty man of valor

Mighty man of valor

The angel of the LORD appeared to him and said to him, “The LORD is with you, O mighty man of valor.” – Judges 6:12

Judges 6:1-40

 1 The Israelites did evil in the LORD’s sight. So the LORD handed them over to the Midianites for seven years.

 6 So Israel was reduced to starvation by the Midianites. Then the Israelites cried out to the LORD for help.

 8 The LORD sent a prophet to the Israelites. He said, “This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: I brought you up out of slavery in Egypt.

 9 I rescued you from the Egyptians and from all who oppressed you. I drove out your enemies and gave you their land.

 10 I told you, “I am the LORD your God. You must not worship the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you now live.” But you have not listened to me.

 11 Then the angel of the LORD came and sat beneath the great tree at Ophrah . . .. Gideon son of Joash was threshing wheat at the bottom of a winepress to hide the grain from the Midianites.

 12 The angel of the LORD appeared to him and said, “Mighty hero, the LORD is with you!”

 13 Gideon replied, “If the LORD is with us, why has all this happened to us? And where are all the miracles our ancestors told us about? Didn’t they say, ‘The LORD brought us up out of Egypt’? But now the LORD has abandoned us and handed us over to the Midianites.”

 14 Then the LORD turned to him and said, “Go with the strength you have and rescue Israel from the Midianites. I am sending you!”

 15 “But Lord,” Gideon replied, “how can I rescue Israel? My clan is the weakest in the whole tribe of Manasseh, and I am the least in my entire family!”

 16 The LORD said to him, “I will be with you. And you will destroy the Midianites as if you were fighting against one man.”

 17 Gideon replied, “If you are truly going to help me, show me a sign to prove that it is really the LORD speaking to me.

 22 When Gideon realized that it was the angel of the LORD, he cried out, “Oh, Sovereign LORD, I’m doomed! I have seen the angel of the LORD face to face!”

 23 “It is all right,” the LORD replied. “Do not be afraid. You will not die.”

 27 So Gideon took ten of his servants and did as the LORD had commanded. But he did it at night because he was afraid of the other members of his father’s household and the people of the town.

 28 Early the next morning, as the people of the town began to stir, someone discovered that the altar of Baal had been broken down and that the Asherah pole beside it had been cut down. In their place a new altar had been built, and on it were the remains of the bull that had been sacrificed.

 31 But Joash shouted to the mob that confronted him, “Why are you defending Baal? Will you argue his case? Whoever pleads his case will be put to death by morning! If Baal truly is a god, let him defend himself and destroy the one who broke down his altar!”

 32 From then on Gideon was called Jerub-baal, which means “Let Baal defend himself,” because he broke down Baal’s altar.

 34 Then the Spirit of the LORD took possession of Gideon . . ..

 36 Then Gideon said to God, “If you are truly going to use me to rescue Israel as you promised,

 37 prove it to me in this way. I will put a wool fleece on the threshing floor tonight. If the fleece is wet with dew in the morning but the ground is dry, then I will know that you are going to help me rescue Israel as you promised.”

 38 And that is just what happened. When Gideon got up early the next morning, he squeezed the fleece and wrung out a whole bowlful of water.

 39 Then Gideon said to God, “Please don’t be angry with me, but let me make one more request. Let me use the fleece for one more test. This time let the fleece remain dry while the ground around it is wet with dew.”

 40 So that night God did as Gideon asked. The fleece was dry in the morning, but the ground was covered with dew.

Low self-esteem is characterized by an individual’s negative perception of self-worth and value. This can manifest as a general lack of confidence, low self-image, and feelings of inadequacy across various aspects of life, including one’s sense of identity, self-assurance, capability, and sense of belonging.

Self-esteem encompasses more than just having positive feelings about oneself. It involves recognizing one’s own worth, as well as valuing one’s own thoughts, feelings, opinions, interests, and goals.

Gideon lacked self-esteem and confidence in his abilities. He exhibited several symptoms of low self-esteem, including a lack of confidence, external locus of control, worry and doubt, difficulty accepting compliments, negative self-talk, fear of failure, and a poor outlook on the future (verywellmind.com).

REFLECT & PRAY

As children of the King, our strength comes from the Father, not ourselves. When we depend upon Him, we tap into His boundless power and wisdom. “When we believe God and not ourselves, we become what He says we are” (Stanley).

Father thank You for being present with me. Thank You that when I am weak, I become strong (2 Corinthians 12:10).

INSIGHT

In the Book of Judges, we observe Israel’s repeated cycle of sinning and drifting away from their devotion to God. Despite the Father’s deep love for them, Israel continued to worship Baal, ignoring their relationship with God. As a result, God allowed them to go through periods of testing. Israel was in great poverty due to the Midianites, and they cried for the Father’s help (Judges 6). He responds and sends the angel of the Lord for a close encounter with Gideon of the third kind.

When the angel of the Lord appears to Gideon, he is hiding and quite fearful. The angel complements Gideon, calling him a mighty man of valor. Gideon responds. “Who me?”

Judges 6:12 The angel of the LORD appeared to him and said to him, “The LORD is with you, O mighty man of valor.”

This encounter is at once embarrassing and humorous. He was no man of valor. He was a coward struggling with an inferiority complex. Gideon was skeptical and cynical. For all practical purposes, Gideon was the last man in Israel that the Father should have called to deliver the people.

Judges 6:13 Gideon replied, “If the LORD is with us, why has all this happened to us? And where are all the miracles our ancestors told us about? Didn’t they say, ‘The LORD brought us up out of Egypt’? But now the LORD has abandoned us and handed us over to the Midianites.”

Gideon had heard the stories of the miracles the Father had performed for His people. But he had never experienced one. He needed “proof.” He is saying to the angel of the Lord, “show me a miracle, and I will believe.” Pause for a moment and put yourself in Gideon’s place. He has not experienced the presence of the living God, and suddenly the angel of the Lord appears and commissions him to be a man of courage to deliver the people from the oppression of the Midianites.

The Father’s evaluation of us is often in stark contrast to our own. The Father saw Gideon as a “mighty man of valor.” Gideon saw himself as weak and little (Judges 6:15). Apart from faith, the Father’s perspective differs from ours. We see ourselves in our own strength, which is inadequate. The Father sees us infused with His strength, and our adequacy is of God.

And that is the point of the story. God uses inadequate be accomplish impossible tasks.

1 Corinthians 1:27 God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful.

More than conventional capacities, such as physical strength and power, are required. Instead, our resources come from the Spirit of God.

Zechariah 4:6 It is not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.

For children of the King, success comes by being in God’s presence and depending on Him. “When the Spirit of the living God fills us, ‘impossibilities’ become possible” (Stanley).

A word about fleece.

Children of the King often misunderstand the significance of Gideon’s fleece. It’s important to remember two key points about this incident. Firstly, Gideon was not seeking guidance from the fleece, as God had already instructed him on what to do. Instead, he was looking for confirmation and assurance of success. Hence, those who use the “putting out a fleece” phrase to seek the will of God in a particular matter are misinterpreting the passage. Secondly, Gideon had asked for a supernatural sign, which could not have occurred without God’s direct intervention. Nowadays, people use everyday occurrences as their “fleece,” which can happen naturally without any divine intervention (MacDonald).

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© Dr. H 2023