Fear to Faith

At age three or four, I began dictating stories to my Mom to write down. Once I learned to write myself, I never stopped. Well, that’s not entirely true. I found favor with my college English professors which was exciting. At the same time, I was growing more in my faith and realized that my writing needed to glorify God. I didn’t feel equipped to write about Biblical things, so I quit. I still found outlets in letter writing and small things, but I ceased writing stories and articles. I was afraid to write about God and His Word, and I was afraid of rejection if I seriously pursued writing.

In 2018, my husband encouraged me to turn one of Bible study lessons I’d written into a verse-by-verse devotional on Philippians. We both prayed, and I decided to do it. Since then, God has done incredible things through the writing – God alone things. Journey Through Philippians and Journey Through Colossians are both in print. Journey Through Psalms (Select Psalms) is in the editing phase. Journey Through Prayer is available as a digital download. I started this website with weekly devotionals, and God opened the door for my writing to be translated into Spanish and used throughout several Spanish-speaking countries.

You would think all that God has done these past few years would be enough to squash my fears. Nope. I still regularly worry whether my writing is good enough, am I being faithful to Scripture, how many books have sold, how many followers do I have on my website, how many likes do I have on the weekly devotional, etc.

Previously we looked at David’s anxious heart which he trusted to God. The idea of fear to faith kept poking into my thoughts, so I pondered what other Biblical accounts could encourage us to go from fear to faith in God. My husband suggested Gideon. I dismissed it. I’ve never liked Gideon, but Gideon continued to pop up. So, guess what? We are going to look at Gideon’s journey from fear to faith, and as much as I am still not a fan of Gideon, I was encouraged and convicted reading his account. Plus, Hebrews 11:32 lists Gideon among those having faith. I have a feeling Gideon’s struggle with fear to faith is a lot more like ours than we want to admit.

I would encourage you to read Judges 6 and 7. It’s too long to insert here. We will be referencing different verses, but better for you to read the full story if you can.

The book of Judges is a repeated cycle in the history of Israel. They followed God for a while. Then they did what was right in their own eyes or “did what was evil in the sight of the Lord” (6:1). God would raise up a judge, and the people followed God for a little while until they repeated the cycle again. In Judges 6, we find the Midianites oppressing the Israelites. They have driven them into hiding in the mountains and caves (vs 2) and have devoured their land (vs 4). God, hearing the Israelite’s cry, sends an unnamed prophet to remind them of their disobedience (6:10). Then God calls Gideon.

Judges 6:11 tells us that “the angel of the Lord” appeared to Gideon. This is what is called a theophany – a visible manifestation of God to man, specifically the second person of the Trinity, Jesus. This is important to keep in mind. God didn’t just send an angel as His messenger to Gideon which would be life-changing itself. God sent Jesus. God Himself met with and spoke to Gideon.

The angel of the Lord greets Gideon, “The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valor” (6:12). “The Lord is with you.” That should be the greatest comfort and encouragement our fearful hearts ever need. The Lord was with Gideon. Now, we know that Jesus took on flesh as a baby. He was Immanuel, God with us. For those in Christ, we have the Holy Spirit indwelling us. God is with us.

Already we have a clue that Gideon is a man of fear not of valor. God finds Gideon beating out wheat in the winepress to hide it from the Midianites (6:11). This is our first reminder that God does not look at us from a human standpoint. It is a reminder that God sees those who are in Christ with Christ’s righteousness. God saw something in Gideon that Gideon could not see. Gideon disregarded who God said he was and let his circumstances define him.

What is Gideon’s response? Let’s read the conversation (Judges 6:13-18).

“Please, my lord, 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, saying, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lordhas forsaken us and given us into the hand of Midian.” 14 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?” 15 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.” 16 And the Lord said to him, “But I will be with you, and you shall strike the Midianites as one man.” 17 And he said to him, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, then show me a sign that it is you who speak with me. 18 Please do not depart from here until I come to you and bring out my present and set it before you.” And he said, “I will stay till you return.”[1]

Gideon questioned what God was telling him. This might reveal that Gideon was bothered by the state Israel was in. I would be bothered. I would probably ask the same questions. However, as one commentary pointed out, other judges (Othniel, Ehud, Shamgar and Barak) obeyed without any dissent. It was enough that God instructed them.

God responds with more grace and patience than I would have had. “Go in this might of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian; do not I send you?” This answer reflects God’s original greeting. He reminds Gideon that He is with him, and He affirms Gideon’s might (valor in verse 12). Again, Gideon protests (reminds me of Moses). Gideon still did not see God’s perspective. All Gideon saw were the enemy masses. But again, God responded with grace and patience. “But I will be with you, and you shall strike the Midianites as one man.” Even this was not enough for Gideon. He was still afraid. He asked God to show him a sign and said he would bring out a present. Gideon remained in fear not faith.

Gideon brought back meat from a young goat, the broth, and unleavened cakes (Note: this was characteristic of an offering to God not normal human hospitality which might be an indication that Gideon had some idea he was talking to God not just an angel). God directed Gideon to place the meat and cakes on a rock and pour the broth over it. Gideon did. God touched the meat with His staff, fire sprang up from the rock, and the meat and cakes were consumed (6:19-21). This was an indication that God could destroy the Midianites without man’s power just as He miraculously consumed the meat and cakes.

The angel of the Lord vanishes, and Gideon knows for sure that he saw God. However, this is not the end of the encounter. God continues to speak to and reassure Gideon, “Peace be to you. Do not fear; you shall not die” (6:23). God knew Gideon was still living in fear, and He addressed Gideon’s fear directly but with compassion.

Next God instructs Gideon to tear down his father’s altar of Baal and the Asherah beside it, build a new alter to God, and offer a bull as a burnt offering to God. God wants Gideon to get his own house in order before fighting the Midianites. Gideon obeys, but we read “But because he was too afraid of his family and the men of the town to do it by day, he did it by night” (6:27). Gideon was fearful even now. The next day, the men of the town wanted to kill Gideon for his actions revealing just how devoted they were to idol worship. Gideon’s father stood up for him saying, “If he [Baal] is a god, let him contend for himself.” God had other purposes for Gideon.

Our account continues with 135,000 Midianites, the Amalekites and the people of the East coming together, crossing the Jordan, and encamping in the Valley of Jezreel (8:10). Gideon receives another reassurance from God, “But the Spirit of the Lord clothed Gideon.” God’s Spirit was on Gideon. Gideon doesn’t just have a visit from God, but the Spirit of God is on him. Gideon called on some of the surrounding Israelite tribes to help fight. It sounds like Gideon has gone from fear to faith. But wait.

Gideon once more asks for a sign by way of laying out a fleece. This demonstrates Gideon’s weak faith. Gideon says that if God does this sign, then he would know that God would save Israel by his hand, as God said. Once again, God is gracious, merciful, and patient with Gideon. He gives him the sign with the fleece. But Gideon goes back on his word and asks for another sign with the fleece. Zechariah asked for a sign from Gabriel, and God caused Zechariah to be mute until the birth of his son, John the Baptist (Luke 1:18-20). When Thomas wanted to see and touch Jesus for himself in order to believe, Jesus later offered to Thomas to touch his side, but He also said, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

Gideon’s testing of God with the fleece is not an example for us to follow. Yes, God was gracious, merciful, and patient in giving Gideon the sign, but remember that Gideon had already had many signs from God. God had spoken directly to Gideon. He had placed His Spirit on Gideon. Gideon’s testing equates to declaring that God’s Word and presence are not enough. It is not wrong to look for confirmation when something is not specifically in God’s word (applying general principles and there is not necessarily one right or wrong answer). But here, God has spoken multiple times directly to Gideon in very clear ways. Gideon didn’t need further signs. Likewise, God has given clear commands in His Word to us. We should follow these and not ask God to give us signs for us to obey what He has already clearly commanded.

Let’s continue. Gideon and his group of 32,000 men camp beside the spring of Harod (7:1). Interesting to note, that this was known as the spring of trembling. Now we begin to see Gideon’s faith growing. God told Gideon that he had too many people. He didn’t want Israel to boast that the defeat of the Midianites was their own doing, so he instructed Gideon to proclaim, “Whoever is fearful and trembling, let him return home and hurry away from Mount Gilead” (7:3). 22,000 leave. Gideon stayed. He is moving from fear to faith.

But this is still too many men. God wanted it to be clear to all that He is the One who will defeat the Midianites (Psalm 30:7; Zechariah 4:6; 2 Corinthians 12:7-10). God directed Gideon to take the men to the water to drink. Those that lapped the water like a dog remain with Gideon. Those that cupped the water to their mouth were sent away. There are some different theories on the lapping vs cupping the water, but I’ll let you look that up on your own. Bottom line: 300 men remained. The odds were 400 Midianites/Amalekites to 1 Israelite, but Gideon presses on.

That same night, God said to Gideon, “Arise, go down against the camp, for I have given it into your hand. But if you are afraid to go down, go down to the camp with Purah your servant. And you shall hear what they say, and afterward your hands shall be strengthened to go down against the camp” (7:9-11). Guess what? Gideon was still afraid even if faith was beginning to grow.

Gideon went down to the camp and heard one man tell another man about his dream. “Behold, I dreamed a dream, and behold, a cake of barley bread tumbled into the camp of Midian and came to the tent and struck it so that it fell and turned it upside down, so that the tent lay flat.” And the other man answered, “This is no other than the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel; God has given into his hand Midian and all the camp” (7:13-14). Barley bread was the food of the poor. This dream meant that the Midianites (the tent) were defeated by lowly, nobody Gideon (barley bread). God reinforced this encouragement to Gideon with the second man’s reply. Apparently, they knew of Gideon and His God, and were afraid. Gideon hadn’t done anything except slowly obey what God commanded. God had already caused the Midianites to be afraid.

Gideon returned to his camp worshipful, embolden, and ready to fight. This appears good on the surface, but what was the final thing that encouraged Gideon to faith? Man’s words. Repeatedly, God spoke to Gideon directly and even gave Gideon signs. It wasn’t enough. It took the enemy speaking to finally bring Gideon to decisive faith. This is God’s grace, mercy, and patience at work one more time. He knows Gideon is still struggling with fear. He provided the additional assurance Gideon thought he needed.

The battle with the Midianites was definitely a God thing. Gideon and his men surrounded the outskirts of the camp armed with trumpets, and jars with torches inside. When Gideon blew his trumpet, the rest blew their trumpets and shouted, “For the Lord and Gideon.” (This is not a matter of pride. This was a wise tactic given the Midianites fear in 7:14.) The night exploded with noise, light, and movement. God caused the Midianites and Amalekites to turn on each other, and then the remaining few fled. God accomplished what he told Gideon He would do.

As I read and re-read the account of Gideon, there were several truths I learned from it that help me move from fear to faith.

• God is with us. Jesus took on flesh, suffered, died, and rose again, so we could be reconciled to God. When Jesus ascended to the right hand of the Father, He sent the Holy Spirit to indwell us. We are never alone. We never face our fears alone. God with us moves us from fear to faith.

• We are who God says we are. There are many voices that try to define us, tell us who we are, and what we can or cannot do. God’s voice is the only one that matters. Especially in Paul’s letters, we see over and over who we are in Christ. When we live according to who God says we are, we move from fear to faith.

• God knows us. He knows our every thought, every motive of our hearts. And guess what? He doesn’t run from us in disgust or look for someone better to use. He meets us where we are, fears and all. Paul encourages us that nothing can separate us from the love of God (Romans 8:38-39). God knows us perfectly, loves us unconditionally, and through Him who loves us, we are more than conquerors (Romans 8:37). Because God knows us and still loves us, we move from fear to faith.

• Gideon seemed to have more fear than faith, and yet he is mentioned in Hebrews 11, the “Hall of Faith.” This reminded me of Jesus words, “For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you” (Matthew 17:20). Not that God is dependent on our faith to act, but as we saw with Gideon, and as we see in Jesus’ words, it only takes a tiny amount of faith on our part and God does big things because it is ultimately about God and His glory. Knowing that it is God who brings about the victory not our own strength or ability moves us from fear to faith.

• As with all of Scripture, this account is not about Gideon or any human. It is about God and His character. I hope you noted the many displays of God’s grace, mercy, patience, power, faithfulness, and love. Like Psalm 23:6, God’s goodness and mercy were following after (hotly pursuing) Gideon even when Gideon continued in fear. God kept speaking to and acting towards Gideon in grace, mercy, patience, power, faithfulness, and love. God and His Word are more than enough to move us from fear to faith.

Reflection

1. What fear are you currently struggling with? Or if you aren’t struggling right now, what fear have you struggled with in the past? How do the above 5 truths specifically move you from fear to faith?

2. Which of the above 5 truths are most difficult for you in moving from fear to faith? Why? Which of the above 5 truths are easier for you in moving from fear to faith? Why?

3. In what ways have you demanded signs from God instead of trusting Him and obeying His Word (a clear command)? Maybe you think demanded is too strong of a word, but I think most of us at one time or another have put forth conditions for God to act before we will trust Him and obey.

4. As I studied Judges 6 and 7, I realized that I am not that different from Gideon. God has spoken to me in His Word. He is with me, and yet I am still tempted to fear in my writing and other areas. For some, the battle with fear, anxiety and worry may be lifelong, but like Gideon, we can still grow in our faith knowing that God will never give up on us. He has promised to complete the work He began in us (Philippians 1:6).

[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Jdg 6:13–18.