Growing in God: The Humility of Gideon

Series: Growing in God
Message: The Humility of Gideon
2/28/10
• The process of God with the Israelites is the same process we find ourselves in today
• God would deliver them, the people would follow God for a while then drift from God
• As their relationship would drift from God, they would fall into idolatry, sin, and find themselves overtaken and devastated by the pagan people of the land.
• It would not only affect their spiritual life, but their crops, cattle, food, shelter, and relationships with others.
• The favor of God would pass over them until they would repent.
• It took the enemies of the land to totally impoverish them until the Hebrew children would cry out to God again in humility.
• In order to grow in God we must remain in a spirit of Humility
Humility- the quality or condition of being humble; modest opinion or estimate of one's own importance, rank, etc
• I’m proud of my humility
• "Humility does not mean thinking less of yourself than of other people, nor does it mean having a low opinion of your own gifts. It means freedom from thinking about yourself at all." Source: William Temple
• "Humility is like underwear; essential, but indecent if it shows."
Source: Helen Nielsen
• "If I only had a little humility, I'd be perfect."
Source: Ted Turner
1. Matthew 5:5
God blesses those who are humble,for they will inherit the whole earth.

2. Matthew 11:29
Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

3. Matthew 18:4
So anyone who becomes as humble as this little child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven.

4. Matthew 23:12
But those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.

5. Luke 1:52
He has brought down princes from their thrones and exalted the humble.

6. Luke 14:11
For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

7. Luke 18:14
For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

8. Ephesians 4:2
Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love.

9. Philippians 2:3
Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves.

10. Philippians 2:7
Instead, he gave up his divine privileges ;he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being.When he appeared in human form,

11. James 4:6
But he gives us even more grace to stand against such evil desires. As the Scriptures say,“God opposes the proud but favors the humble.”

12. James 4:7
So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

13. James 4:10
Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honor.

14. 1 Peter 3:8
[ All Christians ] Finally, all of you should be of one mind. Sympathize with each other. Love each other as brothers and sisters. Be tenderhearted, and keep a humble attitude.

15. 1 Peter 5:5-7
In the same way, you younger men must accept the authority of the elders. And all of you, serve each other in humility, for “God opposes the proud but favors the humble.” So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. 7 Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.

 God cares about you
 God judges you not on how much you accomplish, but on whether you do things God’s way.
 Gideon-the cutter down
Judges 6:1 did evil in the sight of the Lord
1. Dwelt among the people when they should of destroyed them like God wanted
2. They intermarried with spouses of pagan nations that God despised
3. They served other god’s in idolatry, when God told them in the 10 Commandments , thou shalt not have any god’s before me.
Judges 6:1-10
Gideon-farmer, being called to deliver Israel from the Midianites
Vs 11-12 Gideon is threshing wheat at a winepress, in order to keep it hidden from the Midianites and God says, The Lord is with you, mighty man of valor
 When God titles anything He is prophesying his commitment to change it into that thing that He said.
 Gideon didn’t seem to valiant hiding wheat in a winepress, but he did what he had to do to make it happen
 Most of us want to know God’s plan for our lives, but we are not always sure how to find it.
 One common misunderstanding is that His plan will just fall out of the sky to us, like what we are doing now has no barring on what will happen in the future.
 If you are always looking around for the next assignment, we run the risk of ruining whatever we’re working on right now.
 God’s call comes while you are completely immersed in the challenge of the moment
 Gideon’s vision may have been limited at the moment, but he was committed to it.
Gideon’s Challenge: obtaining food and providing for the family in spite of raiders in his land, that were making the growing gathering, and preparation of food almost impossible.
Gideon’s Humility
1. He doubted that God was calling him and questioned where God and His mighty miracles were in all of this.
• He prepares the Angel of the Lord a meal, and the Angel waits, prepare ourselves
• The fleece: Wet and Dry
• A dream about a loaf of barley bread, and what others were saying… Judges 7:9-15
2. His feelings of inadequacy for the job-(par for the course when God called most men)
 Jud 6:15 I am the least in my father’s house and our family is the weakest of the tribe of Manassah
 Vs 16 surely I will be with you and you will defeat the Midianites as 1 man
Angel’s food-prepare ourselves
Gideon’s first assignment-tear down the altar of Baal that your father has set up and cut down the wooden image beside it.
 Stealth mission at night…didn’t want to be seen by his father’s house
 Next morning validated Gideon as he blew a trumpet as a call to arms, and the Spirit of God took possession of Gideon, and 5 tribes responded to the call as Midian moved into the valley of Jezreel.
Gideon now has 32,000 troops, but still is doubting and asks God to prove Himself
Gideon and the fleece, wet and dry… jud 6:36-40
The Great Church Split
Jud 7:1-8
 32,000- too many, lest you say you defeated Midian by your own strength
 God said tell them whoever is weak fearful timid, unwilling to fight and afraid to return home, 22,000 men left.
 10,000 remain but still too many, and God said bring them to the spring and let’s see how they drink and I will sort them out
 10,000 men drinking out of a spring, those that drink putting their face in the water, I don’t want, but those that cup the water in their hands and lap it like dogs…I’ll use that group.
Ok, but the only problem that presented itself was the fact that only 300 cupped the water in their hands and lapped it like dogs
 Gideon was supposed to go up against Midian armies that were too numerous like the sand of the sea, with 300?
 God was saying Zech 4:6 Not by might nor by your own power, but by MY Spirit says the Lord.
Another stealth mission
Judges 7:10-15,16-18, 19-22 NLT
The reason Gideon was a great leader was based on his low self-esteem of himself and letting God get the glory, he knew he needed the Master every step of the way.
1. He declined to lead until he was sure of God’s call through proof, (meals, fleeces, dreams of others)
2. depended on God at every turn (church split)
3. Turned from fear to faith in action
4. Used his God given gifts to lead others and said, Watch my example, 7:17
5. He humbly gives others credit that belongs to him 8:1-3,(what have I done compared to you?)
6. He gives God glory before and after victory and in the face of opposition 7:15, 8:3
7. He refused to establish a dynasty after fulfilling God’s charge 8:22-23 I will not rule over you and neither will my son, the Lord will rule over you. Just give me a gold earring out of the treasures you collected!= 43 lbs of gold-just give me some money!
Judges 8:28
 Gideon was a very humble man, for many different reasons, but God used him, and he grew in God because he trusted God’s word over his own,
 What seems like Gideon’s weakness, a low self esteem and a lack of courage, God used as a strength to be glorified by possessing the weak,
 2 Cor 12:9 now makes sense, my grace is sufficient for you, and my strength is made perfect in weakness.
 He created you in weakness, that He might be revealed strong.
1 Peter 5:5-7
for“God opposes the proud but favors the humble.”
If you have been opposed to Humility, then I want to respectfully encourage you to humble yourselves
So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. 7 Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.

Growing in God: Dedicated to God

Series: Growing in God
Message: Dedicated to God
2/14/10
 God is able to bring you through and it takes a man or woman of God to hear from God
 Yes God is always speaking
 Not always easy to hear, let alone do what He said.
 So God just doesn’t speak to any joe blow, but to people that are seeking Him
 Try speaking to someone who isn’t listening
Ex: I used to hate it when I would be on the phone with a girlfriend, and her family was around, and she would be with family and everyone else, but not listening to me…
 God doesn’t let great pearls of truth who aren’t listening to Him
 It’s hard enough to hear when you are trying to, let alone when your not listening at all.
 We must evaluate the type of individuals we are
 Lets not begin to think that a lack of relationship with God gets us somewhere…
 I talked last week about possessing our land, it takes work energy money and lots of prayer
Ex: Constant Communication: I used to co-pilot small 6 seater Cherokee, single engine plane, and the entire time you have the headset on listening to different control towers for weather, traffic, but you are also physically looking out the window for air traffic, weather etc…
 To be a man/woman of God will take action, dedication, commitment.
 All of us have areas that need to be sacrificed to allow God to have His Lordship over our lives
 We need to dedicate our selves to God for His service.
Enoch was dedicated to God, had an incredible ministry, but never died, because He pleased God.
Enoch=Dedicated One
 Only 3 instances in Scripture where he is talked about
3 “must haves” to receive from God the directions and promises that you are seeking.
1. Enoch Walked With God
 History
 Gen 5:5,8,11,14,17-24,27-29,31-32 KJV
 Over 10 generations between Adam and Noah
 What did people do for 900 years at a time?
Gen 6:3 men’s years limited to 120 years
Psa 90:10 70-80 years
Gen 5:24- Enoch walked with God and was not for God took him.
 Enoch had a family, the stress of life, he had the same 24 hrs in a day like everyone else.
 He kept different time schedule with the Lord than many others, he made time
*your power to reign in life will only extend as far as your faithfulness to obey God’s law
 One day Enoch was in the field spending time with God and God said c’mon up here and walk around with me for a while,
 They knew eachother…he was only into 1/3 of his life too
2. Enoch Pleased God
Heb 11:5-6 KJV
 Enoch pleased God by believing God, diligently seeking God
 Can’t just say you looked for God, and dropped the ball and blamed God for not coming through…
 Seeking diligently brings reward
Proverbs 8:21 (King James Version)
21That I may cause those that love me to inherit substance; and I will fill their treasures.
Hebrews 11:1-3 (King James Version)
1Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. 2For by it the elders obtained a good report. 3Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.
Where should you go to Church?
Deuteronomy 12:5
Rather, you must seek the Lord your God at the place of worship he himself will choose from among all the tribes—the place where his name will be honored.
Deut 4:29 NLT search again for the LORD your God. And if you search for him with all your heart and soul, you will find him.
Matthew 7:7-8 (New Living Translation)
7 “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.
Finances
Luke 6:38 (New Living Translation)
38 Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full—pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back.[a]”
All these things please God, be diligent with them.
Enoch Pleased God by diligently believing God.
3. Enoch Spoke for God
Jude 14-15 KJV
When God knows He can trust the relationship with you, He will have you start speaking for Him
 Speaking for God is the most humbling experience knowing that He wants to use you to communicate to His people through you-
 You are a vessel and channel for Him
 Enoch spoke into a perverse generation
o Jude wrote to motivate Christians to action against false teaching that was creeping into the church.
o He was against the godless teaching that said Christians could do as they pleased without fear of God’s punichment,
o Few may teach that today, but many act as though this were true.
Enoch was prophesying against nominal Christian life, but was putting a spark under their seat proclaiming the return of Christ.
 Only a man that lived in Gen 5, 6000 years ago, would only be able to understand that Christ would be returning, only if he walked in close relationship with his creator
 Jesus didn’t even know when He would be returning while He walked on earth,
Mark 13:32 (New Living Translation)
32 “However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows.
 What is most valuable to you?
 How much do you value Holy teaching?
 Do you value the Word, The Church, Obedience to Jesus Christ?
 The last days will separate the men from the boys and God draws lines in the sand of who are on the Lord’s side.
Conclusion
Enoch was dedicated to God because…
1. He walked with God
2. He pleased God
3. He spoke for God
Acts 3:19-20 (King James Version) 19Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord. 20And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you:

Growing in God: God is Able

Series: Growing in God
Message: God is Able
2-7-10
Intro
 Last week we discussed doing things God’s way.
 His way is still the right way today and we are seeking Him for It.
 God calls us to serve those whom we are in relationship with
 Sometimes we get this idea that serving is only 1 time per month at the homeless shelter
 That is part of it, but real serving is less about serving people that you don’t know, but more genuinely serving those that you have a direct relationship with.
 Either way, God honors those with a servants heart.
 Mat 20:28, Mark 10:45 Jesus came not to be served but to serve and give His life a ransom for many
 I want to encourage you to continue to choose faith over the familiar, and remain steadfast in your loyalty to the Lord
 Do not turn back to the familiar things of this world
 In choosing God and His ways we can rest in knowing that He will provide for us, cover us, He will redeem us
 The way of faith and blessing is seldom comfortable, but God’s presence is its worthy reward
Body
 The Hebrew children had been in bondage for over 400 years after Joseph brought only 70 people to Egypt in Gen 50.
 Now they had grown to 2-3 million, and they were helping build the pyramids for Ramses in Egypt.
 They cried out for a deliverer and God sent Moses who delivered them after 400 years in slavery, they finally leave Egypt with everything…
Ex: being single moving with the back of a little ford ranger pickup to 2 26ft trucks, cars, vans, and pickups.
This is just after they have moved once after camping on the other side of the Red Sea, they are complaining because they haven’t eaten any meat for a few weeks, and God sent a plague, a few thousand died, however they are still complaining…against Moses their leader, and God, and where they are…
Numbers 13:1-2, 16-33, KJV
The Obstacle to Believe
1. The people are strong- Giants in the Land, 8-9ft tall
2. The cities are fortified, and very large, by the way did we tell you there are giants there, descend. Of Anak\
3. Amalakites in the South, Hittites, Jebusites and the Amorites dwell in Mtns,
4. Canaanites dwell by the sea and along the banks of Jordan
Quiet!!! Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it!!!!!
 We have the capacity to prevail and succeed because Romans 8:31 God is for us, who can be against us?
The victory is ours and the battle is the Lord’s 1 Sam 17:47
1 Corinthians 15:57
But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ
Caleb saw the same things that the other 10 spies saw but he had a different perspective
 Even though others brought back an evil report of unbelief his words declared a conviction, a confession- we are well able…
 He surveyed the land, so faith is not blind
 Faith does not deny the reality of difficulty
 But faith declares the power of God in the face of the problem
 The other 10 used their confession to cultivate division, while Caleb stood his ground in faith, and moved in partnership and support of Moses leadership for 40 years.
 Because of others unbelief it even delayed his own experience of the promise land 40 years, so he also gained a sense of patience.
 Even though your patience gets frustrated with time, delays come, a strong confession of faith will bring victory to you.
 Psalm 116:10
I believed, therefore have I spoken
 Romans 4:17
even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were
 2 Corinthians 4:13
We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak
1 John 5:4
For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith
Numbers 14: 1-10 KJV
Vs 9 the heathen are our bread-
Psalm 2:8
Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession.
 The reason why the heathen are your inheritance is because everything they have is going to you.
 The can be conquered as easily as bread is eaten, and their protection is gone
 The heathen can’t receive anything from God, and they can’t they won’t,
Joshua was Moses assistant until Moses died, and then Joshua took over later, but he learned some valuable lessons under Moses
 Moses was a great prophet of God, Num 12:3 the man Moses was very humble more than all men who were on the face of the earth
 Joshua had a great leader to model after, or great Godly example
 Many of Joshua’s decisions went against popular opinion
 Joshua in each instance, encouraged the people to increase their faith in God’s promises rather than look at the impossible circumstances
You cannot condition your appeal to the sentiment or mood of the times, you must consult God.
Prov 3:5-6 in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths.
 Spiritual advance requires faith, and unbelief will never see beyond the difficulties
 Unbelief sees walled cities, giants, debts, lack, rather than the power of God
 Unbelief looks at obstacles, while faith looks at God
 God will call you to do the unpopular thing to position you to use your faith
 Eph 6:16 take the shield of faith where by you shall quench all the fiery darts of the wicked
You grow in God by recognizing through Christ all things are possible
Mark 9:23
Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.
Philippians 4:13
I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.
You can do it!!! You can make it, you will make it!!!
John 11:40
Jesus saith unto her, Said I not unto thee, that, if thou wouldest believe, thou shouldest see the glory of God?
 You were made for the battle,
 You don’t know how much faith you have until you are in a good fight
Galatians 6:9
And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
Proverbs 24:10
If thou faint in the day of adversity, thy strength is small.
Joshua and Caleb led the way into the future by confronting a negative report and helping a new generation rise to serve God by faith.
The key to growing in God is, “FAITH’.
Hebrews 11:6 (King James Version)
6But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
Num 14:11, 29-38
Num 13:30
Let us go up at once and take possession for we are well able to overcome it.