This is Spoken Gospel.

We’re dedicated to seeing 
Jesus in all of scripture.

In each episode, we see what’s 
happening in a Biblical text

and how it sheds light
on Jesus and his gospel.

Let’s jump in.

God sends the Midianite army against Israel 
in response to her evil and disobedience.

Midian is a particularly vicious overlord.

Many Israelites end up living in caves, and it’s
there that Israel finally cries out to God for mercy.

In response, God sends a prophet who rebukes Israel
for how they’ve forgotten their deliverance from Egypt.

Even Gideon, God’s new judge, is cynical and
convinced God has abandoned them.

When an angel tells him otherwise—and that he’s been appointed
as Israel’s new deliverer—Gideon is reluctant and asks for proof.

And when Gideon finally accepts 
the angel’s call, he’s fearful.

When asked to tear down his father’s altar 
to Baal, once again fear governs his actions.

Even though the Spirit of the Lord is with Gideon, he
demands additional signs to confirm God is with him.

After limiting Gideon’s army to 300 
men—and yet mindful of Gideon’s fear—

God gives him another sign the night before
a miraculous victory against the Midianites.

Once Gideon is in power, his fear gives way to brutality.

Two Midianite kings escape 
outside the borders of Canaan  

and he hunts them down, violently 
threatening any who don’t offer support.

Once he captures the king, we learn 
that his true motivation is revenge.

These men had killed his family.

And as final signs of
Gideon’s growing brutality,  

he asks his young son to slaughter 
the enemy kings in front of him.

He then demands gold as
a tribute from his enemies,  

melts it into an idol, and worships 
it over his 40 years in power.

Shortly after Gideon’s death, Israel officially 
installs Baal worship as its national religion.

[music]

When fearful people are given
power,  they stop at nothing to keep it.

And, significantly for our story, they
forget true power comes from God.

On the day Israel’s army of 300 
men defeats the 135,000 Midiantes,  

Gideon tells his soldiers to shout 
“for the Lord, and for Gideon”.

Israel was given the leader they deserved. In Gideon,
they saw the consequences of their own fear and disbelief.

Yes, God used Gideon’s fear and 
violence to destroy Israel’s enemies,  

but that wasn’t to prove
how great Gideon was.

Instead, it demonstrates how great God is.

God is merciful to a forgetful, fearful,
and power-mongering people.

God is within his rights to allow our pride and violence to
slowly destroy us, but instead he uses it to save and humble us.

We see this most clearly in Jesus.

God used the fear, pride, politics, and violence 
of Israel and Rome to hang Jesus on a cross.

But unlike Gideon, Jesus wasn’t afraid of his enemies.
He didn’t demand signs.

He performed them for others!

He didn’t forget God’s power but 
relied upon it regularly in prayer.

Gideon cynically accused God of abandoning 
him, but Jesus is willingly forsaken by God.

And while Gideon’s rise to power mutated his fear into
violence, Jesus’ resurrection from the dead turns the
violence of the cross into a sign of victory and power.

We don’t need a wet fleece to prove 
God’s power and presence will be with us. 

Jesus’ death and resurrection stand as signs forever that
all those who do not forget Jesus will have nothing to fear.

May the Holy Spirit open your eyes 
to see the God who is our only hero.

And may you see Jesus as a sign of 
victory and power to all who remember him.