Fear No Fear

(All scripture from the World English Bible, ebible.org, all rights reserved)

“Then Jerubbaal, who is Gideon, and all the people who were with him, rose up early and encamped beside the spring of Harod. Midian’s camp was on the north side of them, by the hill of Moreh, in the valley. Yahweh said to Gideon, “The people who are with you are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hand, lest Israel brag against me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’ Now therefore proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, ‘Whoever is fearful and trembling, let him return and depart from Mount Gilead.’” So twenty-two thousand of the people returned, and ten thousand remained.“
(Judges 7:1-3)

“Do to them as you did to Midian,
    as to Sisera, as to Jabin, at the river Kishon;
who perished at Endor,
    who became as dung for the earth.
Make their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb,
    yes, all their princes like Zebah and Zalmunna,
   who said, “Let’s take possession of God’s pasture lands.”
My God, make them like tumbleweed,
    like chaff before the wind.
As the fire that burns the forest,
    as the flame that sets the mountains on fire,
    so pursue them with your tempest,
    and terrify them with your storm.
Fill their faces with confusion,
    that they may seek your name, Yahweh.
Let them be disappointed and dismayed forever.
    Yes, let them be confounded and perish;
that they may know that you alone, whose name is Yahweh,
    are the Most High over all the earth.”
(Psalm 83:9-18)

An angel appeared to deliver Gideon’s call from God. God honoured his fleece request clarifying that call. God directed Gideon to reduce his army. God led Gideon to overhear a dream God sent to an enemy soldier. And God confused the Midian army, bringing victory over 135,000 men from 300 men. These were all miraculous interventions by God. Through them Gideon went from being afraid and hiding to being full of trust in God and action. Gideon followed God even though he wasn’t perfect. Even though he had a temper. Even though the instructions he was being given made NO HUMAN SENSE. And his men followed Gideon. They weren’t trusting in Gideon. They were trusting that Gideon had heard from God and that God had a plan. There had been other victories that had come from nonsensical circumstances. They believed that God could use these ones in the same way.

We need to remember what came before when we face what is before us. When the enemies of God stand up and surround His people (His children the Jews or His adopted children the Gentiles), His people need to remember what God has done in the past. For them. For other children of God. For those He has covenanted with. These things that seem so huge and deadly and insurmountable not so huge and deadly and insurmountable to Him. They are the opposite. We need to put our trust in Him. One of the most effective ways we do that is to lean into who He has been and recognise that He has not changed, does not change, and is not going to change. God protects those who take shelter in Him. It’s available to us all. We can ALL move from being fearful to being trusting.

Summary

Trusting takes relationship. It takes a track record. It takes experiential knowledge of the character of the other party. Gideon experienced intervention by God. We can look at that and know that WE can experience intervention by God as well. We can remember what God has done in the lives of those who love and seek Him as well as those things in our own lives. We can take hold of that and refuse to get off His Word. The Word that says He is trustworthy. The Word that says He doesn’t play favourites. The Word that proves He is faithful and true. The Word that defeats the enemy. When we move off of fear and embrace trusting in Jesus – no matter what the circumstances and no matter what the instructions from God – we will walk in the overcoming victory that Jesus wrought for ALL His children.