The Doubt of Gideon

Now most people refer to Judges 6 as “the call of Gideon,” I completely agree with that title. But I also believe that it could just as easily be referred to as “the doubt of Gideon.” Let me explain.

Judges 6:11-12 says, “And the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, ‘The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valor.’ And Gideon said to him, ‘Please sir, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our fathers recounted to us.’”

Now it says quite clearly here that ‘the angel of the Lord appeared’ and spoke to Gideon, yet his first response was full of doubt, “If the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us?” How often can that be our response to anything bad that happens to us humans? How can God be with us if our friend has cancer? How can God be with us if I just lost my job? Good news, you aren’t the first person to doubt the goodness of God amidst a trial or hard time. It has been happening since the beginning of time.

It continues in verses 14-15, “And the Lord turned to him and said, ‘Go in this might of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian; do not I send you?’ And he said to him, ‘Please, Lord, how can I save Israel? Behold, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house.’“

The Lord continues talking to Gideon by saying, ‘I am sending you to save the people of Israel out of the hands of Midian.’ A little historical background here, Israel for the past 7 years had been oppressed by the Midianites and were at this point starving from the Midianites stealing all of their crops and livestock. So even though Gideon was talking directly to the Lord, he was having doubts due to the circumstances surrounding his human life.  Gideon’s response, “Please Lord, how can I save Israel?”

Verse 16 and 17, “And the Lord said to him, ‘But I will be with you, and you shall strike the Midianites as one man.’  And he said to him, ‘If now I have found favor in your eyes, then show me a sign that is you who speak with me.’

So the Lord reassures Gideon once again, “I will be with you,” (vs. 16) yet that still isn’t good enough for Gideon. He needs a sign, not that it’s truly the Lord speaking to him. But that ‘I have found favor in your eyes.’ Gideon’s doubt is stemming from thinking he is too weak and that he has not found favor in the sight of the Lord.  Gideon wants a sign the Lord is truly speaking to him.

And God was faithful to show Himself to Gideon by giving Him a sign. He sent fire to consume meat and unleavened cakes that Gideon put on a stone. Yet, Gideon still wasn’t done doubting. Oh, nothing has changed over the years of humans existing.

Let’s skip ahead to verse 36, “Then Gideon said to God, ‘If you will save Israel by my hand, as you have said, behold, I am laying a fleece of wool on the threshing floor.  If there is dew on the fleece alone, and it is dry on all the ground, then I shall know that you will save Israel by my hand, as you have said.’ And it was so. When he rose early next morning and squeezed the fleece, he wrung enough dew from the fleece to fill a bowl of water. Then Gideon said to God, ‘Let not your anger burn against me; let me speak just once more.  Please let me test just once more with the fleece.  Please let it be dry on the fleece only, and on all the ground let there be dew.’ And God did so that night; and it was dry on the fleece only, and on all the ground there was dew.”

Fire came from nowhere to burn up bread and meat in an instant. Yet, this was not a big enough sign for Gideon. He wanted a more specific sign that God was going to “save Israel by my hand.” (vs. 36) How often can we think because of past sins or because of what family we come from that the Lord isn’t going to use us. No matter who you are, if you are in the Lord. He wants to use you for His glory and for the advancement of His kingdom. Don’t let doubt rule your life, God has given us his Word to fight that doubt with. We have so many stories like Gideon’s to learn from.

Mark 11:22-23, “And Jesus answered them, ‘Have faith in God. Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him.’”

Jesus very own words to us, if we do not doubt, our prayers will be answered! I’m praying that our generation will be one that rises up to these words; that we will study the Bible hard and pray to the Lord without doubting in our hearts!

Proverbs 3:5-6, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him and he will make straight your paths.”