Thank you, Kurti, for that special number. Take your Bible now. Turn with me to the book of Judges. The book of Judges. I'm glad John Layton over there suggested that I talk a little bit about Gideon. There's more in the Bible about Gideon than probably we remember. And I'm going to start here in Judges, but then I'm going to quickly go into the New Testament in a moment if I have opportunity to do so. Judges chapter 6. You will recall from this morning that we talked about—by the way, where did—oh, there you are. Oh, I did want you to say, Missy, Missy Wall, would you look at the way your husband is dressed? Look at that. We've got stripes, we've got checkers, we've got plaids. There's too much going on. Okay, Missy, too much. Did you tell him that this morning? He's colorblind. He needs help. See, this is why I used to say you had to wear a white shirt. This is exactly why, okay? Give people an inch and they're gonna take a mile. But not everybody can pull this off. I do. No, you do pull it off. You do pull it off. Drop that outfit in the mission barrel on your way out the door. Your Bible is open to judges with me in the book of Judges. And there's a lot more to the story of Gideon sometimes than we think about. So where we left off, the Lord had told Gideon that he was a mighty man of valor, and it sure didn't seem like it. Gideon had some challenges. We talked about four challenges that he was facing that are part of the dialogue that he had with the Lord. Now, by the way, when the Bible uses the expression, the angel of the Lord, that is Jesus Christ in pre-incarnate form. I want to change your thinking about something, if I could, for a moment. Angels that appear in the Bible are often mistaken for human beings. Did you know that? Often mistaken for human beings. Why is that? Well, Pastor Monty, they must hide their wings. Okay, no, no, no. Angels don't have wings. Now, cherubim that are probably a created thing, maybe not necessarily a class of angel, cherubim and seraphim, they have wings. But angels themselves appear like human beings. And so when this angel comes to Gideon, he recognizes an angel of the Lord, or a messenger from the Lord, not because there were wings, there were no wings, but he recognizes this. And then, and I don't have time to get into all this, but I studied this out, John. It's fascinating. In the Hebrew text, there is a progression in Gideon's names that he refers to this angel of the Lord, there's a progression where he finally recognizes that this angel is actually God. And that takes place as you get through the chapter. By the way, the rabbis really struggle with that. They don't know what to do with that. They've not got a clue what to do with it. They try to kind of, you know, slide that away. But it's clear that Gideon comes to this point. And so he's declared a mighty man of valor. But he has all of these issues. So look, if you will, please, at chapter six. We're going to look at chapter six real quick. Verse number 14. Chapter six, verse 14. The Bible says, And the Lord looked upon him, upon Gideon, and said, Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites. Have not I sent thee? Now, continuing on to verse 24, Gideon is open to the idea. Gentlemen, listen to me. open to the idea that he could be something bigger and more for his community and for his nation. He's open to the idea, but he's still trying to figure out who it is that is talking to him. So in verse number 15, he says unto him, Wherewith shall I save Israel? Behold, my family is poor in Manasseh, I am the least in my father's house. The Lord said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and then shalt thou smite the Midianites as one man." Okay, so God said, it's not you Gideon, it's going to be me. And look what it says in verse 17. And he said unto him, this is Gideon speaking to the angel of the Lord, to the Lord Jesus, and he said unto him, If now I have found grace in thy sight, then show me a sign that thou talkest with me." Well, what in the world? That's a little obscure language. But if I found grace in thy sight, show me who you are. Okay, he wants to know who is this. He has a suspicion. He understands this is more than just a mere human being. And so here's what he says to the angel of the Lord. He says, So, the angel's going to wait. What happens? Gideon goes into his tent. he finds some stuff to put together for an appropriate offering. He gets some meat, and he gets some flour, and he gets some broth, and all this stuff. And finally, and that took a little while to put all that together, and he comes out there, and the angel of the Lord, this is Jesus, pre-incarnate appearance of Christ, the angel of the Lord is still there. And the Lord says to him, okay, you've got this meal, now pour this meal out on this rock. And Gideon does that. By the way, he does that by faith. Because remember, they're kind of hungry right now in Israel. The Midianites have been ravaging their crops. He does that by faith. The Bible says that the angel of the Lord took the staff that was in his hand and touched that offering and poof! It exploded into a flame of fire. At that moment, Gideon understood that he was speaking with God. And Gideon even feared that he was speaking with God, because no man can see God and live. And so he was fearful about that. But I want you to notice something. He asked for assurance, note this, Gideon asked for assurance from the Lord, and the Lord gave him that assurance when he ignited the offering. There's a second time that you're more familiar with. You can read about that in chapter 6, verses 33 through 40, and that is the fleece, the putting out of the fleece. How many have heard of that? Basically, the putting out of the fleece, if there's dew on the fleece but not on the ground, then I know that you're directing me. And then the other one, if there's dew on the ground and not on the fleece, then I know you're directing me. And a lot of people do this. We call it laying out a fleece. Have you all heard of that? Like if you want to make a decision, About what you should do, you make a deal with God. If God does this, then you do that. If God does the other, then you do that. Okay, that's unnecessary. Ladies and gentlemen, unnecessary. Okay, you might as well flip a coin and pray over it before you flip the coin. Okay, that's unnecessary. By the way, that's not what he was doing. Gideon was simply looking, he already knew the will of God. He already knew what he was supposed to do. He was supposed to go after the Midianites. He already knew that, okay? He wasn't looking for what to do, but he wanted a little bit of assurance that God's going to be with him. Now listen carefully to what I'm about to say. It is okay to ask God to show himself in assurance in your life. It is not a good idea to pray and flip a coin and make decisions based on that. That's not a good idea, okay? We don't have the ummum and the thummum. We don't have those things. We don't cast lots, okay? You say, Pastor Monty, how do I know what to do? The Holy Spirit lives inside you. Well, Pastor Monty, I just don't know what he's directing me to do. Maybe you shouldn't do anything. You know, some people are so bent on having to make a decision about something, it's okay sometimes to wait. There's a principle in the Bible that says we're to wait on God. So, but all he wanted, and this is my point, all he wanted was assurance. He wasn't looking for particular direction. I don't know if I've shared this story here many, many years ago in a former ministry in a state far, far away, people you do not know. The lady of the family lived in a very ramshackle house. It was a very large two-story home, older home, very ramshackle and kind of a ghetto neighborhood. And she called me one day and she said, I need your advice on something. She said, I've been seeking guidance from the Lord. And I said, okay, well, I thought she was gonna tell me the issue. She wasn't gonna tell me the issue. She said, I was seeking guidance from the Lord, and she said, we have a toilet. Now, folks, I'm not making this up. She said, we have a toilet in the upstairs part of the house and it hasn't worked in months. It hasn't flushed. The kids have kind of used it, but it hasn't flushed. So we keep the lid down on it. It hadn't worked in months. And she said, I've been praying about something. And she said, I told the Lord that if I go up there and flush the toilet, now this is, I'm not making this up. She said, if I go up there and flush the toilet and everything goes down, then it's a yes from the Lord. But if I flush and it doesn't go down, then it's a no. I seriously got a phone call about this, folks. I wish you'd pray for your pastor. You do not understand the crazy that I deal with on almost a weekly basis. And I said, well, I said, now I'm too curious to stop the conversation. I said, well, I said, what did you do? And she said, well, she said, I went up and I flushed. And I said, well, what happened? And she said, here's the problem. She said, it swirled ever so slowly in the bowl. And then she said it went partially down. Now you see her conundrum. And she said, Pastor, does that mean that I should proceed with caution? I don't even know how to answer stuff like that. Okay, stop doing that, okay? But it's okay to ask God for assurance. This is a good thing. Now, why am I saying this? Because Gideon went from a place of fear and doubt to a place of strong assurance in God because he actually asked God to show himself. Probably one of the most striking times in my life for this, and pardon the personal illustration, but it's better than the toilet illustration, but one of the most striking times in my life for this, 26 years ago. I prayed and asked the Lord about coming to this church. And I said, Lord, if you'll keep the door open, if you just open the door, I'll come. I will come. I'm not going to, I'll just come. Open every door and I'll walk through every door. Well, guess what? Every door opened. Garmin Sowers, he's now in heaven with the Lord, he called me and he said, he said, you got the vote? He said, will you come? Well, I told the Lord I would. So I said, yes, yes, I will come. That meant I needed to put my house on the market in February in Minnesota with two feet of snow on the ground covering everything, icicles three feet long hanging off of the eaves of a Dutch colonial home. Dutch colonial. Like, remember the Amityville Horror House? Do you remember that? Okay, same style house. Not as nice as that one, but it didn't have demons. But same style. Same style house, okay? And I'm thinking, I got it on the market very quickly. No one was looking at it. No one. A week passed. Two weeks passed. No one's looking. I'm getting very discouraged. Early one morning, I just prayed quietly. I said, Lord, I said, I know you want me in Indiana, but I said, encourage me today. I said, Lord, I want an offer on my house that I can accept before the day's out. Pretty specific. Now, I knew what I was going to do. I was coming to Indiana, but I wanted God to show me something. About 10 o'clock in the morning, I got a call from the realtor. He said, hey, he said, I've got someone coming to view the house. Yes! I'm thinking, this is good. Two hours later, he calls again. He says, actually, I've got two people coming to view the house. We won't look at their offers. We're gonna pit them against each other. If they make offers, we're gonna pit them and get them in a bidding war against each other. I said, yes! Do whatever you need to do. Long story short, At 11.30 that night, I signed a purchase agreement for full asking price with no inspection on a 1923 Fixer Upper and sold the property. Now can I tell you something? I knew I was coming to Indiana. Do you know what God did? God said, I'm just going to show you. I'm in this. I'm going to show you a little bit of assurance. There is nothing wrong with that. This happened again, not only in the offering catching on fire, the offering consumed by heavenly fire, the fleece, but it happened again in chapter 7. In chapter 7, you can look at verses 9-15, but you don't have to. I'll tell you the story for sake of brevity. In chapter 7, All of a sudden, we're getting the Midianites have gathered with the Amalekites, these heathen tribes. They've all gathered together against the Israelites. Very effectively, Gideon raises a 32,000 strong army. Very effective army. He raises that. Then God says this, Gideon, you got too many guys. Gideon's excited, he's very good at bringing an army together. And the Lord says, you've got too many guys. Go down, we're gonna tell everybody that's scared and nervous and upset and fearful, tell them all to go home. 22,000 people went home. What a bunch of weenies. 22,000. By the way, this is why their nation was in such trouble. They didn't have any men. 22,000 went home. Well, we've got 10,000. The Lord said, Gideon, that's way too many. Go down by the river. And by the way, all of them had to kneel to drink water at the river, but there was a difference. There were some of them that picked it up in their hands and kind of lapped it like a dog looking. The others put their face down in the water. He said, you'll choose the ones who lapped it like a dog with their hands. You're going to choose those. Those are going to be, how many did that? Do you know? 300. Out of 10,000, only 300. And God said, this is the group by which you're going to deliver your people from the Midianites and from a combined army that they had put together. Now look, if you will, at verse number 15. Oh, pardon, no, no, don't look there. Because here's the part of the story. You know what the Lord knew about Gideon? Gideon was nervous. He was nervous about the whole thing. So the Lord, understanding that, said, hey, if you go down, disguise yourself, go down to the camp of the Midianites, or if you want, send one of your associates. Go down to the camp of the Midianites and listen to something. You're going to hear something that will encourage your heart. We went down there. Guess what he overheard? He overheard some men talking. The one man said, he said, I had a dream last night. Strangest dream ever. The other guy said, what was your dream? The one guy said, well, it made me really nervous. My dream made me nervous. There was this barley cake. Let's, for sake of modernizing, call it a donut. There was this donut. and there was the camp of the Midianites and the Amalekites and all of these ites, they're all there. It said, I saw this donut come out of heaven and boom, it smashed the camp of the Midianites and we were all killed by the donut. What does it mean? Can I tell you what it means? Don't eat carbs. Carbohydrates are very, very bad for you. So what does it mean? And the other guy said, well, it can only mean one thing. It means Gideon, the son of Joash, is the donut. Of course it means that. Gideon, and he's going to come and he's going to wipe us all out. You know what happened? That crazy dream sent fear through the Midianite camp Gideon went back and said, wow, we've got this. Now look at verse 15. Look at verse 15, chapter seven, verse 15. The Bible says this, and it was so when Gideon heard the telling of the dream and the interpretation thereof, look at the next words, that he worshiped. Everything now has changed. This is the verse. This is the point at which Gideon changes as a man. He went from very fearful, now to becoming the man of valor when he worshiped. What does it mean to worship? To worship means to bow down in full surrender to God. To ascribe to God absolute authority in my life. Now listen, I want everyone to hear this. You become a mighty man of valor, or I'll put it this way, a mighty woman of valor, when you say that whatever it is that God is doing in my life, I will submit to that, even if it causes me fear." It is really obvious that Gideon was facing a lot of fear challenges over and over again. God brought these little assurances, really big assurances into his life, but he was facing these fear challenges. And God said to him, look, just go down, listen to this crazy dream, listen to the interpretation, you're going to like what you hear. And Gideon does that, and he finally recognizes, after three separate incidences of being assured by God, he finally realizes, I can trust God whatever He brings. And so in verse 15, and it was so when Gideon heard the telling of the dream and the interpretation thereof, that he worshiped and returned into the host of Israel, the camp, the army encampment of Israel, and said, arise, for the Lord hath delivered into your hand the host of Midian. What did you think with me for a minute? We went from the fella hiding in the wine press, threshing the wheat, hiding from the Midianites. A middle-aged guy, losing his hair, balding. He had a little bit of attire around the midsection. You say, Pastor Monty, how do you know? Because this is just how I picture Gideon. You know, you all picture Gideon as some sleek. No, he wasn't. He was middle-aged. He was worn out. He was tired. He was hiding in the wine press and he was really sweating it because he didn't think he'd have enough wheat to make the bread. He's working on all this stuff. He's afraid of the Midianites! that angel announces and calls him a mighty man of valor. And it took God's assurance in his life, listen, step by step by step, for Gideon to finally get shed of his fear and embrace whom God called him to be. Gentlemen, listen to me. God's not done with you. I'm absolutely convinced. Well, Pastor Monty, you know, I've reached a certain stage in life. You have. and God's got tomorrow. There's something more for you beyond the stage right now. There's something to be hopeful about and something to be gained. And by the way, there is a community and a family and a church and a spouse that needs you to not just stay where you are, but to continue growing and becoming better and turning things around for everything within the sphere of your influence. The world is crying for this. Be honest, we're a little scared of it. Oh, guys don't like to admit they're fearful. Well, we saw that all over Gideon. Pastor Monty, how can I overcome that? I'm so glad you asked. In the next few moments, take your Bible, turn to 2 Timothy, please. The reason I'm going to the New Testament is this. that in the New Testament, Gideon is actually mentioned. Gideon is mentioned in the Hall of Faith, Hebrews chapter 11, with a couple of the other judges. Gideon likely the most notable among them. Well, Pastor Matty, was Gideon a man of faith? Listen carefully. Initially, not so much. We saw that this morning. But when finally, after God assures him over and over again, Gideon embraces faith, and he worships God, and he comes to believe in certain things that set him free to be the man that God wants him to be. Now, gentlemen, listen. What I'm talking to you about right now is not pie in the sky. It is incredibly practical. Look at 2 Timothy chapter 2, verse number 7. Second, where am I? Second Timothy, yeah, two verse seven. Consider what I say, and the Lord give thee understanding. I think I'm in the wrong place. Oh, no, no, no, I'm in the right place. Endure hard, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Turn to First Timothy. I think that's a better choice. I've written down the wrong reference. Someone give me the reference where the Bible says, God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. Jay? What's that? Second Timothy 1.7. Thank you. Thank you. And Pastor Ryan, I didn't even have a paperclip to mess me up. Do you see how the Lord gives me paybacks when I make fun of other people? This was payback time, Pastor Ryan. Okay, chapter 1, verse number 7. I'm going to change that in my outline right now so I don't make this mistake somewhere else in public with an audience that wouldn't be as happy as you. Look what chapter 1, verse 7 says. For God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. What does that mean? Why would Paul say that? Now track with me, track with me right now. Why would Paul say that? If God has not given you the spirit of fear, then yeah, I'm not afraid of anything. No, no, no. Some people are fearful who are Christians. Why is Paul saying that? Because he wants you to believe something. He wants to remind you that the spirit of fear does not come from God, number one. And then he wants to remind you that you have to believe that God has given you power, love, and a sound mind. The whole reason these things are stated is because these are things we believe. Timothy, remind yourself so you're not intimidated. Gideon, remind yourself so you're not intimidated. that the spirit of fear does not come from God, but He has given us the spirit of power and of love and of a sound mind. In other words, believe in what God has given. Now, by the way, this principle of faith is throughout the entire Bible. You say, Pastor Monty, what do you mean? Okay, what did Paul say? If I'm to have victory over sin, what do I have to do? Reckon myself dead to sin. Believe in that. Believe in that. Well, Pastor, the moment I got saved, I stopped sinning. Really? No, you didn't. It wouldn't take me five minutes with you to figure out you didn't. But what do you do? Reckon yourself, believe yourself dead to sin. Okay, this principle is throughout the entire New Testament. Faith is the victory. It overcomes the world. Okay, faith in the spirit of power. What is that? The power there is speaking of the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit. It is an energizing force that pushes us through, but it is a personal force because the Holy Spirit lives in me. It is the word dunamis. It is the idea of the power of God. It is the Holy Spirit who lives in me. I am His temple. Listen to this. I am untouchable. I am the Teflon man. Now, did Gideon experience this? Yes. We won't turn back there. But in part of the passage where Gideon was coming to understand that he shouldn't be fearful, but that he could be a mighty man of valor, in one part of that passage, the Bible says the Holy Spirit came upon Gideon. Now, that phraseology is used a lot in the Old Testament. However, in the particular passage in Gideon's case, it's a little bit different. It's not the exact same wording. In fact, it's unique. Hebrew scholars say this, that in Gideon's case, it meant not just the Holy Spirit coming upon him in power, but clothing him in protection. I want you to understand something. If you believe that the Holy Spirit of God lives inside of you, you should not fear. Gideon's hesitation to be what he should have been for his community, for his family, for his nation, it all stemmed from a sense of fear. If we believe that the Holy Spirit lives in me, then I'm untouchable. I'm the Teflon man. God himself walks beside me. He is in me. David, the psalmist, said in Psalm 27.1, the Lord is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life. Of whom shall I be afraid? Why? He lives in me. Do you see the difference this can make? Isaiah 41, verse 10. Fear thou not, God said, for I am with thee. Be not dismayed, for I am thy God. I will strengthen thee, yea, I will help thee, yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power. But notice there's something else. 2 Timothy 1.7. God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power. Note this. And of love. What do you mean love? Paul says, Timothy, remember, I'm the God of love. Paul is reminding Timothy of these things. It is up to Timothy to believe. Well, Pastor Motti, why is it important for Timothy to believe that God loves him? Take your Bible and turn to 1 John 4. 1 John chapter 4. Very important passage. 1 John 4, verse number 15. 1 John 4, verse 15. Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God. And we have known and believed the love that God, I'm in verse 16 now, we have known and believed the love that God hath to us, God is love, and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment. Stop. If I believe in the love of God, I can be incredibly bold for God. Understand this. Fear can be extinguished when I, by faith, recognize God's love. Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment, because as He is, so are we in this world. There is no fear in love. Did you see that? How many of you see those bumper stickers? They were popular for a nanosecond that said, no fear. I never understood from the popular culture and what that was all about. If you understood that, maybe later come talk to me about it. But I do know this. There is no fear in love. But perfect love casteth out fear. Why? Because fear hath torment. Stop. God never wants his children tormented. Ever. ever. And fear has torment. And when I acknowledge the love of God, it makes all the difference in the world. He that feareth is not made perfect in love. In other words, somehow we're not believing in the love of God if we are driven by our fears. So I need to believe in the power of the Holy Spirit who lives inside of me. I need to believe in the love of God. I also need to believe in God's equipping. Back to chapter 1, verse 7 of 2 Timothy, for God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love, and here it is, of a sound mind. Where does fear come from? It originates and shapes our thoughts. It originates in our thoughts and it shapes our thoughts. It becomes a cycle. God has given us absolute control of our thinking. In fact, you're the only person who can control your thinking. Philippians 4 verse 8 is an example of that. We feed our fears by unbiblical thinking And the Bible says God's given us a sound mind or an effective mind. Meaning this, ladies and gentlemen, I don't have to fear. I don't have to be confined to that. I have faith in the Spirit of God, the Spirit of power. I have faith in the love of God. I have faith in God's equipping me. If I keep God in the equation, Satan wants me to believe that I have no control of my thoughts, but if I keep God in the equation, I certainly do. Power, love, sound mind. Drop down to verse number 12, chapter 1, 2 Timothy verse 12. Paul says, for which cause I also suffer these things? Nevertheless, I am not ashamed. Look at these words. For I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day. Do you know what else can keep me from fear? It's faith in the reality of my walk with God. For I know whom I have believed. You get your eyes off God, and you will walk in fear. But I know whom I have believed, and I am persuaded that He is able to keep me." I'm persuaded that God knows what is happening. that He is in control of it all. I am persuaded that as I walk with God, I know Jesus Christ, I know what He is all about, I know His care for me, and that fear should have no place in my life because of who God is. I have faith in the reality of my walk with God, if that walk is real. I have faith in my faith. Look at the same verse again, verse 12. I know whom I have believed and am persuaded. What does that mean? I'm confident, I'm sure, and I'm certain. Pastor Monty, how does this have anything to do with Gideon? It has everything to do with Gideon. Because do you remember Judges 7, 15? He had the third assurance that God was going to be with him. And in that moment, Gideon worshiped. In that moment, he said, I believe. In that moment, he said, I believe, God, that you can get me through whatever it is I will face. I want to say this, folks. It's not going to be easy. Life is hard. Life is problems. Life is struggle. Life is difficulty. Life is often disappointment. It's not going to be easy. But I am persuaded, I have faith and believe that God will see me through. In the moment that that absolute assurance, that we read how Paul described it, in the moment that absolute assurance filled the heart of Gideon, he went back to the camp of the Israelites and he announced, Pastor Monty, how many were there? 300. Now the rest of the army was sort of in their tents, but they weren't coming out. The 300 were going to handle it. You can read the rest of the story. 300. Let's go get them, boys! How could you say that? Because God is God is God. And God is God right now in my life. And God is God regardless of what I'm going through, and He is God. But I just need to kneel. I need to worship. I need to acknowledge. And then I need to do what God has asked me to do, listen, listen, listen, without hesitation, without fear, without holding back. I just need to rise up. I am so convinced, ladies and gentlemen, that we're going to face some things this year that are going to call upon us to rise up. And they're gonna be big things. They're not gonna be small things. They're not gonna be piddly-anty little things about which Christians fuss and feud. None of that. It's gonna be something big. And what we're gonna need to understand, know whom we have believed, what we believe in, where we're going to stand, and then to take that stand as we bow to our God, Jesus Christ. He hath not given us God. God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. Father, I pray that you'll help us to see the importance of belief, the belief that Gideon came to In a moment, after having received assurances, the belief that Paul came to and reminded Timothy of, Father, I pray you'll help us. Lord, it's really hard in a society where we feel like everything's against us and the pressure is on. It's really hard sometimes to man up for Christ the way we ought to. Father, I pray that you'll help us see these things from the word of God tonight. Thank you, Lord, for Gideon, that we saw his weakness. and his struggle, and we also see his faith, and we know a turning point when he worships. God, may all of us know that in our lives. Some of us need a turning point. Things are overwhelming us right now. We're struggling with things. Father, I pray you'll give that to those who need this in this room, and Spirit of God, I pray you'll help us to believe the word of God over the whispering of the world. I pray you'll speak to every heart in Jesus' name.