Amen. You may be seated. And we'll dismiss the little ones. We'll go with Mrs. Shore to her class, if you'd like. 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, and 1. There's a crush if you're interested. And the rest of us, please, can open up our Bibles to Judges, Chapter 7. Or in your black Bible, church Bible, it is page 288, all right? And Gideon this morning. What an interesting character. Several interesting characters. I've been reading through the book of Judges. And Judges is a shocking book. You read what man did. Every man did that which is right in his own eyes. And God kept raising up very interesting characters like Samson and others that would fight for the Lord and take a stand for God. But yet, imperfect people. I mean, they looked at it and thought, wow, you know, God grabbed ahold of somebody here and used somebody. that you wouldn't necessarily think maybe God could use, or in the way that God would use them. And so Gideon is interesting like that. His calling took place in David's chapter 6. If you want to look at chapter 6 and verse 11, it says, And there came an angel of war and sat under an oak that was in Ophrah, that pertained unto Josh the Abiezrite, and his son Gideon threshed wheat by the winepress to hide it from the Midianites. And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him, and said unto him, The Lord is with thee, thou mighty man of thou. And that's a great statement that Jehovah God gives to His servant, because you and I, when we look at Gideon, we're going to see that Gideon doesn't strike us as a very courageous man. And Gideon said unto him, O my Lord, if the Lord be with us, Why then has all this befallen us, and where be all its miracles, which our fathers told us of, saying, did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt? But now the Lord hath forsaken us, and delivered us into the hand of the Midianites." And you can see the heart of Gideon. I like this. Gideon looked around and he thought, you know, okay, I get it, you're telling me that God is for us, but I don't see that. I've heard the stories. I mean, I grew up as an Israelite, hearing stories my dad had told me about what took place when, you know, and how the Red Sea parted, and how the plagues came, and all those testimonies have been passed down, but as a young man, getting to say, God, I've not seen it, in fact, it's the opposite of that. I mean, I just see us oppressed by the enemy. If the Lord be with us, why then is all this befalling us? Verse 14. And the Lord looked upon him and said, Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites. Have not I sent thee? And he said unto him, O my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? Behold, my family is poor in Manasseh. I am the least in my father's house. And the Lord said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man. I love those three phrases that God gives to Gideon. He says, Go in this thy might. Have not I sent thee? I will be with thee. I mean, those are great statements that God gives to us as well. But he was a mighty man of valor, and yet we look at him and we say about Gideon, at the very least, he's a very cautious individual. At the most, he's a fearful individual that always struggles with fear. And so even as God appears to him and God says, going this way, I might have not, I simply, I will be with thee. Gideon says to God, in a sense, God, prove it that it's you talking to me. And so he brings out an offering to God. And he sets it before the Lord on a rock and a fire consumes it from that rock as a testimony to Gideon that it's indeed God speaking to him. Then he's told to go destroy an idol grove, okay, by God. And the Bible says he does it at night because he's afraid. In Genesis 6.27, 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 and the men of the city, that he could not do it by day, that he did it by night. And so again, I mean, you see, a man, he wants to serve God, he wants to do something for God. God said he'll do this, but he can't do it during the day. Not that he couldn't, because he could have, but he couldn't do it because of his fear. And so because of that, he still does it, but he goes up by night and takes care of it. then after that he needs confirmation from God that he's the chosen leader or the judge that God is indeed going to use and so verse 36 of chapter six, and Gideon said unto God, if thou wilt save Israel by my hand, as thou hast said, okay, God, you've said this, but if, I mean, it's almost unbelief there as well, behold, I put a fleece of wool in the floor, and if the dew be on the fleece only, and if it be dry upon the earth beside, then shall I know that thou wilt save Israel by my hand, as thou hast said. And so he's asked God, God, as a dew falls, apparently a very heavy dew, Let it fall on the fleece, but let the ground be dry. And God did so, and he wrung out the fleece, a bowl full of water. But that wasn't enough. And so, verse 39, Gideon said to God, let not thine anger be hot against me. And I will speak but this once. Let me prove, I pray thee, but this once with the fleece. Let it now be dry only upon the fleece. And upon all the ground let there be dew." And I suppose Gideon thought, well, maybe that's just the way it happened that night, and that's the way the dew came down. He said, all right, prove it again. And God does the opposite to prove to Gideon that He had indeed called him. So the Bible says in verse 40, God did so that night. For it was dry upon the fleece only, and there was dew on all the ground. Gideon is one of the 300 men that we know, and the leader obviously of the 300 that went into battle against the Midianites. There's one other man that we know that was part of that, and he's a servant of Gideon. His name is Phura. And his name is the only other recorded person that we see in this text, is this man. God used him to encourage Gideon as he goes down with them to hear the Midianite dream. We'll get to that in the story as we study it this morning. So, however unlikely, so the servant of Gideon, and Gideon and all his fears and everything, however unlikely, God looked at these men and said, ah, you know, here is somebody that could be used to go fight against the Midianites and deliver Israel from the enemy of God. And, you know, my message this morning is that God is still looking for men to fight in His army. Paul said in 2 Timothy 2 verse 3, Thou therefore endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. See, the cross wasn't the end of the battle. It did it in there. It was one there, but it did it in there. You know, we look at the Old Testament. I don't know about you, but you look at what God did is He judged those heathen nations with Israel. And send to Israel, by the way. Israel, if you follow after them, you're going to get the same judgment. Because God was judging the wickedness of those heathen nations. They were the enemy of God. They went physically into battle. And you read all those bad stories like we read today. And it's a picture of what we, in the spiritual world, face as we seek to carry the Gospel, as we seek to live for God, as we seek to identify with Christ. We were in it in Sunday School this morning, that man is at enmity with God before he gets saved. They're at enmity with God. And if they are the enemy of God, then if we identify with God as we ought, and we take a stand for God as we ought, and we look like we ought, and talk like we ought, and are like we ought, then they are going to be the enemy of us. And so we've got to be ready to fight for God. Even as we've just sung that great hymn by Isaac Watts, which says, as we've sung, am I a soldier of the cross, a follower of the Lamb? And shall I fear to own his cause, or blush to speak his name? Must I be carried to the skies on flowery beds of ease, while others fought to mend the prize, and sailed through bloody seas? Are there no foes for me to face? Must I not stem the flood? Is this vile world a friend of grace to help me unto God? Sure, I must fight if I will reign. Increase my courage, Lord. I'll bear the toil, endure the pain, supported by thy Word. There comes a day in a man's life when he's called up for duty in the military where he has to report. He has to report for duty and his desire is to report for duty and be a good soldier in the military. This morning again, we need to report for duty as a good soldier for God's army. Are you desirous of fighting? I mean, are we content as churches today to just sit down, be still, let God's enemy win, and act as if God, why don't you do something and not get involved? Or is there something in our hearts that cries out and says, God, the enemy is great, and I kind of see it like Gideon thought, if God before us, where be all the miracles, where's the things that God's done in the past? God, you are Jehovah God, just like you were in the Old Testament. God, you're the same God today, you can do the same things today, God, you're not limited. And so by the grace of God, in your heart, you say, God, I'll be a soldier for you. A good soldier. And that's what we see in this text this morning, is what a good soldier is, that God can use as He used those 300 men. So let's pray and ask God's Spirit to speak to our hearts this morning, as we say the word of God. Father, I pray that the Holy Spirit would give us grace to take in the truth that is here before us this morning. Father, I don't want to speak. I want you to speak. Father, I pray that the Spirit of God would get face to face with us in our hearts. Father, I pray that the battle would not be lost because there's no soldiers standing for the Lord Jesus Christ. But it may not be that nobody qualifies, nobody takes these things upon them. We've seen this story and understand that if we're going to be a good soldier, there's things that ought to be in our life that need to be there so that we can fight for the Lord and really accomplish something. And so I pray for that today. God, I can't speak without your help. I don't want to speak without your help. And Father, I pray that the Spirit of God would give my lips liberty to proclaim the truth of the Word of God. And I pray, Father, would you give us ears to hear? Father, give us grace to let you speak to us this morning. Father, I pray that not one person would be in a position of battle against God, of defensiveness against God, of arguing against God, not letting the Spirit of God have its way. Father, there's doubtless decisions that you want us to make today. The only thing that will keep us from that is our will anchored against you. It's not a fun place to be. Father, I pray that you break us of our pride, and our conceit, and our arrogance, and our hearts against you, and God get us on your side fully, 100%, so that we can accomplish something for you. And so, Lord, we give this service to you. We pray it will be done. It's in Christ's name we pray. Amen. Alright, if you want to be a good soldier for God, give God all the glory for every victory. Every time that God does something, give God all the glory for what God has done. In verse 1, it says, and all the people that were with him, rose up early and pitched beside the well of Herod, so that the hosts of the Midianites were on the north side of them, by the hill of Morah in the valley. And the Lord said unto Gideon, the people that are with thee are too many for thee to give the Midianites into their hand, lest they revolt themselves against me, saying, my own hand hath saved me. It's interesting, as you read that, you think, God could have given them the victory. They had 32,000 men. Not a great host, because the Midianites were so much larger than that. But here they are, 32,000. God's able. But the Bible says, man's pride is so great and so conceited that if they won the battle, 32,000 against the host of the Midianites, they would look at themselves and say, we did it. That's what Pride is. We saw it on Thursday night as we looked at the story of Rachel and Leah and the fertility of Jacob's house. Leah's had four kids at this point in the story when Rachel gives her handmaid I don't remember if it's Bilhud or Zilpah, to Jacob to be his wife. And that baby is born, and then a second baby is born. And so she's got two children by a candidate that she's given to Jacob. Leah has four children, and she boasts and says, basically, the idea is now I'm winning. Now I'm victorious. That's what pride is. Pride is conceited. Pride looks at self and says, yeah, I'm so good, I'm getting it done. There's in our hearts, since we seek to serve or do anything for God, there's a lot of pride that kicks in. We read this morning in the psalm that we studied, Psalm 30, before our prayer time this morning, Psalm 30, David says, God, thank you for the victory. Thank you for the victory. Thank you for the victory. Gets down to verse six or seven, and all of a sudden he says, but he takes his eyes and he puts it on himself and he fails. And then you have to cry out to God and ask God for victory, and God gives you victory. We walk through life and we think, you know what, I'm doing pretty good at this Christian thing, and I'm getting, you know, my Bible time, and I'm getting my witnessing, and I'm getting, you know, the discipline in my life that I need, and sanctified living, and I have arrived, and then we fail. There's a pride that's always lurking there. King Nebuchadnezzar illustrates it so well in Daniel 4 verse 37. It says, Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the king of heaven, all whose works are true, and his ways judgment, and those that walk in pride he is able to evade. And sometimes you read that verse and think, what a humble man that this man could acknowledge that everything's from God. But he acknowledges that. after spending the last seven years as a beast in the field because of his pride. Daniel 4 verse 33, the same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar, and he was driven from men, and beneath grasses oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hairs were grown like eagle's feathers and his nails like bird's claws. God took a man in his pride that had thought, I'm a self-made man, and God took him and put him as a beast in the field for seven years to learn that it's God and God alone that is getting that position of authority. King Herod, the Bible says in Acts 12 verse 21, upon a set day Herod, arrayed in royal chariot, sat upon his throne and made an oration unto him. And the people gave a shout saying, it's the voice of a God and not of a man. And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him because he gave not God the glory. And he was eaten of worms and gave up the ghost. Now God is able to take man into pride and God is able to take them down. Because God can't use pride. Pride says to God, God I don't need you. We have a prayer time in the morning at 9.40 as a church because we acknowledge before God, God it's not about us, it's not anything that we can do. We have a minute's prayer time that we enjoy at 5.15 to 5.45. Why do we pray? Because again, we're acknowledging to God that it's not a thing that we can do. God, the battle is up to you. Isaiah 2 verse 11. So as the lofty looks of man shall be humble, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day. For the day of the Lord of hosts shall be upon everyone that is proud and lofty, and upon everyone that is lifted up, and he shall be brought low. James 4 verse 6 says, When he giveth more grace, wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. You know, the warnings that God gives as we see God raise up men in our ministry, we seek to get men involved in ministry. One of the warnings that God gives to us as a church in 1 Timothy 3 verse 6, the pastoral epistle, is that as we encourage guys to serve God, specifically in ministry, as a pastor, the Bible says, not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride, he fall into the condemnation of the devil. And so if you want to be a good soldier for the Lord Jesus Christ, start with a humble dependence upon God. And acknowledging that God, if there's a victory that, anything that we see, anything that you do, that God, you get all the glory for. It's what the Lord said, and it's terrible. about the servant that comes back and the Master has him feed him after he's been working out all day long. He comes back and the Master demands that he be fed and he feeds him. And he says about that servant, so likewise ye, when ye have done all that is commanded you, save your improper servants. We have done that which is our duty to do. And so as a church this morning, as we look to God, we begin to pray and we ask God, God, there are things that we desire to see you do. I mean, there is, and as a church we've been praying about, asking God, God, work in our families, God, work in our ministry. There has to be a determination on our heart that says, God, when it is accomplished that, God, we're going to give you the glory. And so, A good soldier gives God all the glory for every victory. Then a good soldier refuses to draw back in fear. Verse 3. It says, Now therefore, go to proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, Whosoever is fearful and afraid, let him return and depart early from Mount Gilead. And there returned to the people twenty and two thousand, and there remained ten thousand. And so you see, I mean, that's an opportunity, isn't it? If you're there getting ready to go into battle, you've got 32,000 men about ready to go against a minion, there would naturally be in your heart a sense of fear. And God says, OK, if you're afraid and you want to depart, go ahead. And it's an opportunity that a lot of guys stay. Only 30% of the men stay. You might look at that and think, well, they must not be afraid. God asked us this morning, as we think about the story, to consider that there were some men there that stayed even though they were afraid. Even though in their hearts there was an acknowledgment that that's a great army and that's a great battle, that there's a desire in their heart to fight for the Lord. Some of God's greatest servants that God has used, we know they had fear. Elijah. 1 Kings 19 verse 1, it says, And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and withal how he had slain all the prophets with the sword. Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them, by tomorrow about this time. And when he saw that, he arose and went for his life. Just hours before he'd been standing on top of Mount Carmel looking down into that valley where these and the fire of God has fallen in the minute the prophets of Baal have been slain by the authority of God. And yet, as this wicked queen calls out and says, I'm going to make your life like the life of them, the Bible says that this man of God arose and fled for his life. Why? Because he was afraid. Great man of God saw it. And when he called down fire from heaven, he's going to go to heaven in a fiery chariot. And yet, he struggled with fear. Joshua was told to be courageous. Joshua chapter 1, verse 7. As he took the reins of the leadership of Israel, And it said, Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law which Moses my servant commanded thee. Turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper whithersoever thou goest. This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth, but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein. For then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. Have not I commanded thee to be strong? and of a good courage, be not afraid, neither be thou disdained. For the Lord thy God is with thee, whithersoever thou goest. And so God, as Joshua took that command, and Joshua's a brave man, he went in to spy out the land with Caleb. He said, he's a man that's experienced the power of God, and God has to come to him and say, hey, be of a good courage, be strong, be afraid, because I'm with thee. For the Lord thy God is with thee, whithersoever thou goest. The disciples, we know they panicked with fear in the boat. Matthew 8 verse 26, And he said unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of low faith? Then he arose and rebuked the winds, and the sea, and there was a great calm. They had seen the Lord do so many things, and they're in the boat with Jesus, and if the boat sinks, they're going to perish, but Jesus is going to perish. But there's a panic in your heart and there's fear. Timothy was told not to fear because he had fear. 2 Timothy 1.7 For God hath not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. Peter, when he betrayed Jesus, why did he say, I know not the man, I know not the man, I know not the man? Because he's afraid. But he's graciously restored by God, and after Pentecost, the Holy Spirit comes. He's the bold preacher that is preaching when they tell him, hey, don't preach anymore. He's preaching in places they say not to preach anymore. He is preaching despite being put in prison, despite being whipped. Why? Because he is serving God despite his fear. The saying is, the test of your character is what it takes to stop you. Are you letting anything stop you as you seek to serve God? Are you letting fear step in? Paul even battled this weakness of his flesh in Acts 27 verse 24 saying, Fear not Paul, thou must be brought before Caesar, the Lord God hath given thee all them that sail with thee. Is there today in your life something that God wants you to do that you're letting fears keep you from doing? So a lot of people don't get baptized because they're afraid. They're afraid of water, they're afraid of people, they're afraid of something. They let fear keep them from doing that. Some people are afraid to attend church regularly because of what people will say. Some people are afraid of their families. Some people are afraid to knock on a door and invite somebody to come to Christ, you know, or come to church. See, some of you young people, God may work in your heart, God may call you a priest. That may be a scary thing for you. I don't know, if I had a show of hands here, how many of you would like to trade places with me right now, come stand up here and finish the rest of the service. Some of you, because of fear, would say, I don't want to do that, because that's the last thing I want to do. There's been a lot of people that God has used in significant ways, and you look at them and say, you know, that's a fearless person. No, it's a person that despite their fear, they serve God. And that's, I really, it'll come out in this text later as we study it. It is not that these are fearless people. We've already looked at getting them. It's that they're not going to take it easy out. They're not going to say, well, God says it's OK. He said if you're afraid, then you can leave. And so I'll take that. There are some that, despite their fear, they exhibited faith and they stayed in it, because that's what a good children does. And so are you a good soldier or are you letting fear stop you? Be a good soldier, be alert for the enemy. You know, if you ask Gideon at this point in the story, Gideon, has God taken your army down to the faith level yet? You know, you've got 10,000 guys against a whole civilian. Is that the faith level? I think Gideon would testify and say that's the faith level. Anybody would be kind of an idiot without God to go into battle with 10,000 men against a civilian. It's at the faith level, but God says it's got to go even lower than that. And so he's going to test them and see who's really alert to the enemy. And so verse 4 says, the Lord said unto Gideon, The people are yet too many. Bring them down unto the water, and I will try them for thee there. And it shall be that of whom I say unto thee, this shall go with thee, the same shall go with thee. And of whomsoever I say unto thee, this shall not go with thee, the same shall not go. So he brought down the people unto the water, and the Lord said unto Gideon, every one that lappeth of the water with his tongue, as a dog lappeth, him shalt thou set by himself. Likewise, everyone that bowed down upon his knees to drink. And the number of them that laughed, putting their hand to their mouth, were 300 men. But all the rest of the people bowed down upon their knees to drink water. And the Lord said unto Gideon, by the 300 men that laughed will I save you. So the test was this. Go down to the water, 10,000 men. Everyone's going to get a drink. But when they drink, they get down on their knees, and they stick their face down in the water. And they suck the water up. or if they lift their hand to their mouth and lap the water up. I want you to set those men aside, okay? And so, you got guys alert, licking the water out of their hands like a dog laps water, or the guys with their face down. And so, they did that. And the Lord said in the beginning, verse 7, By the three hundred men that lapped will I save you and deliver the Midianites into thy hand. and let all the other people go, every man unto his place. So the people took victuals in their hand and their trumpets, and he sent all the rest of Israel, every man unto his tent, and retained those 300 men. And the host of men was beneath him in the valley." Okay, as God did that task, where was the enemy? Answer's in the last verse, at the end of the verse. They're in Valley. And so they're very close in proximity. And so this test took place in an area where the enemy could have attacked. And so as it takes place, there's some in there alert. They're watching it. And so they're very cautious as they go to get a drink. Other guys are kind of, OK, they get their drink. And so what's the picture to us this morning? It's that as God looks for people to serve Him, God is looking for people that aren't naive to the fact that there is an enemy, an adversary that is around them, and that there is danger, and that it takes people that are alert to be a good soldier for the Lord. I was shocked a few years ago by some young men that were in seminary or Bible college in the United States. I was speaking with them in my car, we were driving, and they said to me, Pastor Brandon, they said, do you really believe that we wrestle against the devil? They said it in such a way that I could understand that by the way they're asking, they didn't think so. They thought, you know, that's just the way it's phrased. But let me give you some scripture and what the Word of God says. Ephesians 6 verse 10. It says, Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. John M. Gellman brought out when he was here the idea that you're kind of having a normal day, everything's going really well, and then all of a sudden there's a huge unexpected, like, ah! You know? There's a spiritual adversary. We wrestle not against flesh and blood. If you and I are struggling with unity, there is something behind that, okay? We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against rulers of the darkness of this world. Satan is active and he's got, he's wily, and he's got tricks that he will seek to deceive with. 1 Peter 5 verse 8. says be sober, be vigilant, because your adversary, the devil, has a roaring mind and walketh about seeking whom he may devour. I mean, that's a pretty clear scripture. Your adversary, the devil, Ephesians 4.27, neither give place to the devil. And again, all these scriptures, you can kind of think, well, if it's not saying, be careful of Satan, what is it saying? That's what it says. So who's it speaking to? It's speaking to us. James 4 verse 7 says, Submit yourselves therefore to God, resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Jesus said in Matthew 16 verse point 3, but he turned and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan, because Peter made a statement That was a satanic statement. Thou shalt not go to the cross. He was being a spokesperson for the devil. And so get thee behind me, Satan. Thou art an offence unto me, for thou savest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men. Luke 8, verse 12. Those by wayside, are they that hear? Then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their heart, lest they should believe and be saved. That's what the Lord said. The Lord said also, in Luke 22, verse 31, The Lord said, Simon, Simon, the old Satan hath desire to have you, that he may sick you as we. Right now, in our society, we are terrorists. And we've seen the news reels where it's just a normal day, people are going about their business, and all of a sudden, there's a terrorist attack that takes place. To combat that, the police have come up with a new advertisement, I guess it's in the cinemas, where it's called, Look Again. And so they show a video of something, and then they rewind it. And they go back, and then they circle something. And you see somebody going and setting something down, or somebody doing something untoward. And you don't really see it the first time. And what's it trying to do? It's trying to get the populace to be aware of what's taking place around them, in the hope that by doing so, they'll see the enemy before the enemy has a chance to impact society. Do you know what God would have us do with regard to the devil? Is to be aware of the fact that he is actively at work, so we are protecting our families, so that we're protecting our home, so that we have defenses up. Because the Bible says in 2 Corinthians 2 verse 11, "...lest Satan should get an advantage of us, for we are not ignorant of his devices." And so Paul is saying, I mean, if we fault his devices, he's got the advantage. Let's keep the advantage by not being ignorant of the fact that he's attacking, that he's involved in subversive things against our house, against our church, against our communities. And so let's be aware of the enemy. And then be a good soldier. go with his humble servant Jesus. Verse 9 says they came to pass the same night that the Lord said unto him arise get thee down unto the host for i delivered it into thy hand but if thou fear to go down go thou with fear of thy servant down to the host And thou shalt hear what they say, and afterward shall thy hands be strengthened to go down unto the host. Then went he down with fear like his servant unto the outside of the armed men that were in the host." Let me ask you this morning, was Gideon afraid? How do I know he's afraid? Because he went with Fira, right? If you're afraid, go with Fira. Okay, go down, I'm giving you the victory, but if you're afraid, go down with Fira. And I like that statement, I wrote it in my Bible, go down with Fira. I'm just gonna think about that, when I'm scared and I'm serving God, go down with Fira. Why? Because God has somebody for me and God has somebody for you to go down with to get some encouragement from the revelation that God will give. That's what takes place. See, the servant is a companion for Gideon in his fear to go down with him to a place where God's going to reveal something of the victory that Gideon has, so that Gideon's going to come out with confidence because he went down with fear, right? And so, the Bible tells us in the story, Have you ever been alone and afraid? Kids, I mean, kids probably could come up with this quicker than us as adults. But when we're afraid, we want something to be with us. Back when I was 5 or 6 years old. It was my birthday and we're out to eat on our trip out west. We go out to Colorado every summer when I was growing up to my grandparents for the 4th of July. And so we're out there. My birthday is the 2nd of July. And we're in a restaurant and I went into the toilet. And when I went to come out of the toilet, I mean, I couldn't get the door open. And kids know what this is like. It's happened here. I told Benjamin, he's not here. It's happened to me. And so, I mean, I couldn't get the door open, so I'm screaming, I'm yelling, you know, pounding on the door. My dad used to come, calm me down, tell me how to unlock the door. And I mean, I came out, and you think, well, you were scared that day. No, I was scared for the next seven years. Every time I go to the toilet, my brother, my brother Jonathan, he's twice the man I am, but he's only a year or two less over me. He's always been bigger than me. And he would have to go with me. Every time. I mean, I can tell you, I was probably 13, 14. He'd go, come on, Jonathan. Here we go. And all because. When I'm afraid, I don't want to be by myself. Right? And that's the way our heart is. And God knows that. You know what God says to us today? He wants to know that we're never alone. But there's never a time, never a situation that we're in where we're isolated if we're believers. If we're saved, if we have the Lord Jesus Christ, he is with us, he says it over and over again in his word, and he combines it with this idea of not being afraid. Jacob, Genesis 26 verse 24, the Lord appeared unto him the same night and said, I am the God of Abraham thy father. Fear not, for I am with thee. Jeremiah, Jeremiah 1.8, be not afraid of their faces, for I am with thee, to the liberty, saith the Lord. Paul, then spake the word to Paul in the night by vision, be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace, for I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt thee, for I have much people in this city. And so, I mean, God said again and again to his servant, hey, don't be afraid, why? Because I'm with you. Has God ever said to us, in New Testament Christianity, has he ever said to us, be not afraid, for I am with thee? Yes. Doesn't that put a different perspective on the Great Commission, where God says in Matthew 20, verse 20, Jesus said, Lo, I am with thee always, even unto the end of the world, even unto the end of the age. Hebrews 13, verse 5, For he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. John 14 verse 23, Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words, and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him and make our abode with him. You know, if you're saved, you not only have the Holy Spirit, you've got the Trinity. We will come unto Him and make our abode with Him. We've got the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. And Jesus, remember Jesus' prayer, Father, I pray that they could be one as You and I are one. Perfectly united with God. You know, praise God, we're talking about the blessing of being saved this morning at Sunday School and justified. Here is another blessing, the fact that I don't have to be afraid. Why? Because God is with me. Goes out with fear. I mean, if you need that as a slogan, take it. God is there. And so, Let God's presence encourage you. Go down with the great servant of the Lord and get some encouragement. And then be a good soldier. Let God's revelation strengthen your hands. It says in verse 12, The Midianites and the Enalkites and all the children of the East lay along in the valley like grasshoppers for multitude, and their camels flew without number as the sand by the seed site for multitude." You get the picture now. 32,000 against a host like that. 10,000 against a host like that. 300 against a host like that. And when Gideon was come, you can understand why he's afraid. Behold, there was a man that told a dream unto his fellow, and said, Behold, I dreamed a dream, and lo, a cake of barley bread tumbled into the host of Midian, and came unto a tent, and smote it that it fell, and overturned it that the tent lay alone. And his fellow answered and said, This is nothing else save the sword of Gideon, the son of Joash, a man of Israel. For into his hand hath God delivered Midian, and all the host. And it was so, when Gedi had heard the telling of the dream, and the interpretation thereof, that he worshipped, and returned into the host of Israel, and said, Arise, for the Lord hath delivered into your hand the host of Midian." That's a man refreshed. That's a man encouraged. That's a man full of faith. I mean, he's got the pre-battle jitters as he's there getting ready to go into battle. And God says, hey, if you're afraid, here's some revelation for you. Some of you have played sports and maybe competitive sports growing up. And you know what it's like to have your coach come and say, hey, it's OK. I've got confidence in you. It's like that, except it's more sure. It's you will have the victory. Has God given us verses like that in the Word of God? Romans 8.37. By the way, we look at the world, the enemy of God, and the fact that they are contrapised, and everybody thinks like the world. You knock on the door, or you talk to somebody, and what you're going to hear is a mind that is completely against God. It's a great army that's out there. We look at it and say, it's like a host of the Midianites. I mean, there's so many. How could it be possible that in our generation, God could give the victory? But we go to Scripture and the Word of God says, in Romans 8.37, Nate, in all these things, we are more than conquerors. You're a kid that loved us. 1 Corinthians 15.57, the thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory for our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 John 4, 4, Year of God, little children, and have overcome them, because greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world. Psalm 1, verse 3, And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water that bringeth forth his fruit in his season. His leaf also shall not wither, and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. Joshua 1.8, this book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth, but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein. For then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. It is right for us today as the soldiers of the Lord to look at the battle and say, my God is greater than that. Whether it's a battle without flesh and sin, whether it's a battle with the enemy and evangelism, whether it's a battle as a church seeking to see the church established for the glory of God, seeking to provide buildings and build it up and establish it with deacons and with everything that God intends. God is evil. It's always our position this morning. Our position ought to be faith because of the revelation of the Word of God that God gives us. Why? To strengthen our hands so that we don't despair. And so that we do know that God's going to give us the victory. And so be a good soldier. Let God's revelation strengthen your hands. And then lastly, this morning, Big as Soldier, or almost lastly, there's two more points, use what's in your hands. Use what's in your hands. And he divided the 300 men into three companies and he put a trumpet in every man's hand with empty pitchers and lamps within the pitchers. And he says to them, look on me, and do likewise. And behold, when I come to the outside of the camp, it shall be that as I do, so shall ye do. When I blow out the trumpet, I and all that are with me, then blow ye the trumpets also on every side of the camp, and say the sword of the Lord, and of Gideon. Now, it's the captain of God's army speaking to them. And what he says is, I'm going to give you three tools, three weapons to use. You get a trumpet, ransomware. You get a picture, and you get a torch. And you can kind of imagine what's taking place. And we're not there, and I understand these men are full of faith and confidence in God. But in our natural mind, we think they're looking at each other and saying, God's saying the same thing about swords. Pitcher? Trumpet? Lamp? There's 300 already against the host that is innumerable. And you're kidding. Trumpet? Pitcher? Lamp? I mean, there's probably some precious pictures I can pull out of this, and a wiser man than me probably have, as to what that could intend, right? It's just a battle that they're going to take on by faith, just with what's in their hands. I like the story of David and Goliath, another great story of a battle that takes place in the Bible where it's greatly uneven, unfair, but God wins. And David, as he's getting ready to go to battle, he says to King Saul, King Saul, a lion came out against thy servant as a shepherd, and a bear came out against thy servant as a shepherd, and I slew them both. And the God that delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear is the same God that's going to deliver me from this uncircumcised Philistine. He goes into battle, and he says, you come to me with your sword, you come with me with your weapons, I come to you in the name of the Lord, the God of Israel, whom thou hast to find! Right? And King Saul had said to him, here, put on my armor. You can picture King Saul, a big guy. And David, a little shepherd man. And he puts on this heavy armor and this sword. And he had saved to go, but he could not. You know, I didn't want to be stuck or what. He couldn't go because he hadn't tried them. He hadn't proved them. and he put him off and he took his shepherd's sling and he took his little satchel to put his stones in and he went out against the big giant and he killed the giant and he cut off his head as a little shepherd boy. You know sometimes I think, you might think this, I think this, God if I had those abilities, I love Dr. Steadman, he's coming, he's one of the most capable men I know in ministry. He'd probably say he's not. And that's the way it is a lot of times. It's probably the God of David behind the man that you see. But you look at the man and think, if I was that man, then I could do something for God. But pastor, I'm just a church person. I may have not been saved that long. I'm just kind of, you know, God can't use me. Listen, why can't God use you like He used George Mueller? Why can't He use you like He used Spurgeon? Why can't He use you like He used anybody? I'm talking about like this. Just be the person that God wants you to be with what's in your hands and the glory of God and all up for God, right? Because God does not need today somebody that's greater. He is not despairing in heaven and saying, oh, if I only had a Spurgeon, oh, if I only had a Mueller, oh, if I only had a Moody, then I could do something. Why does God need us? He doesn't. All those guys needed to do was take what's in their hands and say, I'm going to take it by faith. I'm going to use it for God. God, use it for your glory. And you read some biographies, you'll read about some people that you look at. You know, they said, I mentioned Moody. God gave us a Moody. You know what Moody was? Moody was a man that couldn't speak. They laughed at him. They go by him in the paper and said, he writes illustrations and all these things. He's shallow. He shook Scotland. Moody became famous. He's an American evangelist. But he became famous here in Scotland in the late 1800s when God was doing some wonderful things in this country. Because God is greater than all. See, it's never been about great men. It's been about men that, what that was in their hands, said, well, God's so much, but you can use it. Hey, it's two fishes, or what is it, five loaves and two fishes. But God can have it. God's a little crucible of oil, but God, he can have it. God, it's the widow's might, but God, you can have it, and God, it's for your glory. We ought to look to God and say, God, you gave me these hands, you gave me this field, you are God, and God, you can do it. Right? Because God does not need us. And so what do we need to do? Use what's in our hands. And then stand in your place in time of battle. Verse 19. So Gideon and the hundred men that were with him, okay, they split up into three companies, came onto the outside of the camp in the beginning of the middle watch, and they had newly set the watch and they blew the trumpets and break the pitchers that were in their hands. And the three companies blew the trumpets and break the pitchers and held their lamps in their left hands and the trumpets in their right hand to blow it off. And they cried the sword of the Lord and of Gideon. And I like this next statement. And they stood every man in his place right about the camp. And all the hosts ran and cried and fled. And the three hundred blew the trumpets. And the Lord said, every man swore against his fellow, even throughout all the hosts. And the hosts fled to Beth-shittah and Zerareth and to the border of Abel-meholah unto Tabith. And the thing is, the Midianite army disintegrated. Why? Because they had such sharp swords. They had such a mighty army. No. They had such a great God. And they stood in their place. If we don't stand in our place, the enemy breaks through, breaks ring, you know, we break ring, the enemy breaks through, that's it. But when at church, think about it, just at church, we stand in our place. God, I'm just going to stand in my place. I'm just going to be as faithful as can be, alright? I'm going to do my bit. I've got my hands, I'm going to stand in my place. God will do that. Think what God will do. I'll tell you this, one of the greatest burdens of a church plan is hard, is to see people stand in their place. Just to take that stand and say, here I stand, I can do nothing else. You read about, by the way, the man defending Lentil Patch, the Lentil Patch. I mean, that was his patch of ground. The man fought for his life against, what, 300 men or whatever it was he slew in that Lentil Patch, one of the mighty men of David. Because he wasn't going to give up ground. See, what are you fighting for, again? What does it cost you to stand? Or have you not stood? Standing is important in the Word of God. Ephesians 6 verse 13. Wherefore, take unto you the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand an evil day, and, having done all, to stand. Stand, therefore, having your loins fed about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness, and your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace, above all attaining the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints. And Paul is saying, hey, get the armor on, and what? Stand! Stand. You know, God wants us to do that today. Because the battle is not won by us, it's won by God. All we gotta do is stand, just like King Jehoshaphat of Judah versus the Ammonites and Moabites in 2 Chronicles 20 verse 17. The Word of God says, you shall not need to fight in this battle. Set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you. O Judah and Jerusalem, fear not, nor be dismayed. Tomorrow go out against them, for the Lord will be with you. See, what if today I told you, hey, revival's coming, revival's coming, God's gonna bless it, it's gonna be an enormous victory that'll be won. What would you change? Would you stand in your devotions this week? Would you stand in your purity this week? Would you stand in your evangelism this week? Would you say, hey, God's gonna do something great, I'm gonna stand, let's stand and see what God does? And I praise God, I do, I rejoice in what God is doing in our church. But by the grace of God, we just need to stand. Are you going to do your duty? You know, look at Gideon and Pura. Good soldiers. I want you that we know of this 300. God's looking today for good soldiers for God. You know, again, to start back at the beginning, as God works, are you going to give God all the glory? Or is God saying, I can't do anything there, because if I do anything there, the pride in that man's heart, the pride in that woman's heart is so great that they'll get the glory, right? Are we saying, dear God, by your grace, all glory to you. There's not anything that we can do. Are you refusing to draw back in fear? Or has fear stopped you? The Spirit of God fills your heart about something, and you're not doing it, and it's because you're afraid. And you're not going to take that stand for the Lord. Are you alert? Are you aware? Or just ignorant of the enemy? Don't really think we're in a battle, don't really know what he's talking about. You know, I kind of see it as, it's just kind of life. Where you realize, you know, there's a huge enemy that we've got to fight against. Are you going with this humble servant Jesus down to the Word of God, getting the revelation that God wants to give you to strengthen your hands? Are you standing in your place? You know, I look at this story and I love getting in because our generation has to look around and you gotta go, gotta be afraid of stories. But if God were for us, where would be the mighty miracles? And you know what's neat about Gideon? God allowed Gideon to participate in one of the great battles that ever took place for God's glory, and he got to see it. And if we'll stand, that'll be our experience as well, because the same God of Gideon is our God today. And so let's bow our heads and pray. And I'm going to ask this, as you bow your head and pray, I'm not going to give a come forward invitation. I just ask you now, in the quietness of your heart, as you have your head bowed, that if the Spirit of God has put His finger on anything, whether it's fear, whether it's not standing in place, whether it is anything that would consider the need to go down with Jesus and be encouraged, Whether it's taking what's in your hands and just putting confidence in God and saying, well God, I've been arguing with you and saying, God, you can't use me because I don't have anything significant. Maybe it's that today. But would you, in the quietness of your heart, just now ask God's forgiveness and make a definite decision to change. If it's baptism, then you decide to be baptized. If it's salvation, then you decide to get saved. If it's church attendance, they decide to attend church. If it's sanctification, they get rid of anything that is holding back from your personal purity and that you commit to God to live a pure life. Father, I just pray that you speak now as we go to some quiet time before you meet the Spirit of God at work. Oh. Father, we greatly need you to work in our hearts. Father, I pray that the Spirit of God help us be the soldiers that we ought to be for the Lord Jesus Christ. Father, there is a battle, and Father Shadley, it seems the enemy is winning. Father, we acknowledge we're not greater than the enemy, but our God is. Greater see that's in you than he is in the world. And Father, we need soldiers for the Lord. We've got to press the battle, or the night shall veil the glowing skies. Against the foe and bales below, let all our strength be hurled. Faith is a victory. Oh Lord, would you give us that victory? Father, I pray that we begin to see the mighty giants fall. I pray that we see the enemy of the God of Israel crumble. Father, I pray for heaven's power. But Father, we need revival, and if we don't want it just now, heaven can't forgive us. I don't know how to pray, Lord, about that. There ought to be in our hearts just now the desire to say, God, come down. Lord, I'm not going to hold this service through the afternoon, but it would be good for us just to stay on our knees before God and say, God, it's too important. There's people dying and going to hell in our communities. They're perishing, and we don't care enough to really go at it for God. Lord, there is blood on our hands. But Lord, if we'll stand, if we'll fight and stand, the battle's yours. Lord, we can't do it without acknowledging that. We acknowledge that God can. And Father, we want to see the victory. But regardless, we pray that you have the victory. And Father, that you get all the glory, all the glory, in all praise to thy name. It's in Christ's name we pray. Amen. Can 373, only one life? 373, let's stand please and we sing. 373. Only one life to offer Jesus, my Lord and King. Stand please and we sing. Only one right to honor Jesus my Lord and King Only one tongue to praise Him And of Thy mercy sing, Only one, our sweet Rosha, Savior only in Thee. Consecrated alone to Thy matchless glory, We'll live fully to Thee. Only this hour is mine, Lord, may it be this for me. May every passing moment count for eternity. Souls around are dying. Light and sin and shame, help me bring them to message of Calvary's redemption in my glorious day. Only one life to offer, Take it, dear Lord, I pray. Nothing from Thee withholds me, Kindle I no way. Thou who hast freely given Amen. Thank you for being here today. Would you mind introducing yourselves back there?