Gtoctr/ss012509
One cannot deny that there is a true mystical quality about God and His dealings. Something which man cannot manufacture … something mysterious … God is a Spirit and He interacts with mankind on a spiritual level, often behind the scenes.
God divinely intervenes in the lives of His children … however …
Divine intervention is designed to facilitate divine purpose.
In about the year 1200 B.C., give or take a few years, near 200 years before King David reigned in Jerusalem, the Children of Israel had no governmental leadership, no army and no elected officials to protect them and their lands. Rather, each time a crisis occurred which necessitated a military response, God chose a person who then gathered men from various tribes, fought the war and restored peace to the land. These periodic chosen leaders were called Judges.
Samson was a Judge, Deborah was a Judge, Samuel was a Judge … by some accounts there were fifteen Judges in all. This period of the Judges ended when Samuel anointed Saul to be the first King of Israel in about the year 1050 B.C. Some of the greatest bible stories occur during the times of the Judges as the Children of Israel learned to walk with God. One such story we are going to study today will give us insight into God’s willingness to mysteriously intervene in the lives of His Children.
Ok, so in about the year 1200 B.C. the Children of Israel were being overrun and robbed from by an army from the neighboring country of Midian. It seems every time Israel would harvest a crop the Midianite army would ride through the land and take the harvested fruits and grains for themselves, leaving the Israelites poor and without supply. This continued year after year for seven years in a row.
The Children of Israel grew weary with these continual raids but what could they do … they had no leader, no army and no way to resist. It seemed they were doomed to remain at the mercy of their enemies.
However, not only were the Children of Israel wearied by these raids, but God in heaven, Who watches over His Children on earth, had also grown tired of seeing His Children robbed and mistreated. You can read this story beginning in Judges, chapter six. In fact, why not turn there now as we will be reading some verses from that chapter in a moment.
The story continues by telling us that one day the Angel of the Lord came to a certain city in Israel and sat under an oak tree. Nearby there was a young man named Gideon threshing wheat beside a winepress. Gideon was hiding so that the Midianites might not discover his wheat and take it from him.
The Angel of the Lord spoke to Gideon and told him that the Lord was with Him and the angel called him a mighty man of valor. As the story unfolds we learn that God chose Gideon to save Israel from the hands of the Midianites. But what could Gideon do … he was only one young man and the Midianites had a very large army?
God never points to where He will not also provide.
Gideon saw himself as he was while God saw Gideon as he could be if he would only trust God and let the process of God’s will unfold in his life. God is in the business of making more out of people than what they or others might imagine possible. We see what is while God sees what can be.
Gideon was initially inspired by this angelic visitation and did some great things. God was truly with Gideon and protected him. However, in the process of time Gideon was faced with making a truly difficult decision. Should he risk everything to go and fight against the Midianites and their other allied armies?
How can Gideon gain the confidence and direction he needs to be sure before he commits himself and his followers to the fight? Let’s begin reading at verse 33 in Judges 6 and see what truths we can glean from this account.
Judges 6 NKJV
33 ¶ Then all the Midianites and Amalekites, the people of the East, gathered together; and they crossed over and encamped in the Valley of Jezreel.
34 But the Spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon; then he blew the trumpet, and the Abiezrites gathered behind him.
35 And he sent messengers throughout all Manasseh, who also gathered behind him. He also sent messengers to Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali; and they came up to meet them.
36 So Gideon said to God, "If You will save Israel by my hand as You have said—
37 "look, I shall put a fleece of wool on the threshing floor; if there is dew on the fleece only, and it is dry on all the ground, then I shall know that You will save Israel by my hand, as You have said."
38 And it was so. When he rose early the next morning and squeezed the fleece together, he wrung the dew out of the fleece, a bowlful of water.
39 Then Gideon said to God, "Do not be angry with me, but let me speak just once more: Let me test, I pray, just once more with the fleece; let it now be dry only on the fleece, but on all the ground let there be dew."
40 And God did so that night. It was dry on the fleece only, but there was dew on all the ground.
Wow! A Fleece! This seems inherently dangerous … and it is if not understood and approached with sincerity and purpose.
Of course there is much more to the story than we will cover here. Please take time to read the whole account and see how God ultimately delivers Israel by the hand of Gideon and only 300 chosen men. It is amazing to read how Gideon’s army started out with 32,000 soldiers before God decided that it was too many men … too many because God did not want anyone to think that man’s might or large numbers won the battle. So God began a weeding process that finally left Gideon with 300.
These 300 men fought against and killed more than 120,000 men who drew the sword plus another 15,000 soldiers who fled the battlefield. (Judges 8:10)
Gideon’s 300 did such a good job that the whole land of Israel had peace for another 40 years after that battle. That’s a great victory!
However, let’s get back to the point of our message … the fleece.
Through the years, although I know I have been called by God and anointed to do His work, I have nonetheless suffered some moments of indecision as to what to do or which way to go. Not that I have doubted God’s general will for my life or His superintending grace over my life … but rather I have been faced with some decisions in which the answer was just not clear enough and yet the decision big enough to demand clarity.
I am not a coin flipper or a dice roller nor do I live my life or pursue ministry by taking pathways of least resistance or being led through open door opportunities. I desperately need a word from God … leadership from the Holy Spirit … confirmation from the scriptures … counsel from my peers … clear instructions from heaven. But, what do I do when I have to make a decision and no decision is yet clear? Much like Gideon, I appeal to God and throw myself on His mercy.
Believers don’t often discuss this subject but for the sake of the word, seeing God included this passage in His account of Gideon, this mighty man of faith and valor, for our benefit … allow me to pose and answer three questions concerning the matter of a fleece.
Three Questions Concerning A Fleece:
1. Does God take time to personally deal with our requests for confirmation and/or clarity of His will?
* Yes
1 Peter 3:12 For the eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, And His ears are open to their prayers; But the face of the LORD is against those who do evil."
2. What instances in life may warrant a fleece?
* Important decisions when no decision is clear and time is of the essence.
Revelation 3:7 ¶ "And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write, ‘These things says He who is holy, He who is true, "He who has the key of David, He who opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens"
* When God’s Word is clear, your instructions are clear.
* Don’t test God when you already know His Word.
* Approach God with nothing to prove, no hidden agenda.
* A fleece is not laid flippantly, in insincerity or to prove God.
* God opens doors when the time, the place and the people are right.
* Open doors do not initiate God’s Will but are rather used for confirmation and never violate God’s Word.
3. When might a Believer lay a fleece before God?
* When the Believer is right with God
* When a Believer is sincerely committed to God’s will and not looking for his own way or a convenient ‘way out’
Luke 22:42 saying, "Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done."
* When the decision is bigger than just you and your stuff
> God is not a personal divining rod supplying stock tips
> God is not a Ouija board to find boyfriends or prom dates
> God wants to help you make a difference
There will be times in life when only God can give you the answer you need and you won’t be able to read about it in the Bible. In these times make sure you are right with Him, committed to His will above your own and willing to be used by Him to make a difference.
To make an important decision without acknowledging God and giving Him every chance to speak, lead or intervene is not the best choice. A fleece is not unscriptural, unless it is …
God has already sent you an invitation to participate in this spiritual dynamic. So …
Do you want to try putting a fleece before God? You want to get into the mystical, mysterious spiritual realm of divine intervention … do you want your life to be more than mere happenstance but rather guided by providence … then start with God’s clear personal invitation He has already given you…
God clearly invites you to lay a fleece before Him in the area tithes and offerings.
Malachi 3 NKJV
10 Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, That there may be food in My house, And try Me now in this," Says the LORD of hosts, "If I will not open for you the windows of heaven And pour out for you such blessing That there will not be room enough to receive it.
11 "And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, So that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground, Nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field," Says the LORD of hosts;
God wants to prove His Word, His Way and His Will by divinely intervening in your life to bring mysterious blessings and increase …
Go ahead, trust Him, try Him and prove Him in this … see if He will not open the windows of heaven and pour out for you … it really is a great place to start the process.
