Repentance - Changing Frequencies! The Lord is always waiting for us to turn to Him! By Richard Crisco Lam 3:22 Through the LORD's mercies we are not Judges 6:1 Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of consumed, Because His compassions fail not. 23 They the LORD, and for seven years he gave them into the are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness. hands of the Midianites. 2 Because the power of Midian was so oppressive, the Israelites prepared shelters for 11 The angel of the LORD came and sat down under themselves in mountain clefts, caves and strongholds. the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, where his son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress Instead of Repenting to their ROCK, to keep it from the Midianites. they built shelters in natural rock! 12 When the angel of the LORD appeared to Gideon, he said, "The LORD is with you, mighty warrior." 13 3 Whenever the Israelites planted their crops, the "But sir," Gideon replied, "if the LORD is with us, why Midianites, Amalekites and other eastern peoples has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders invaded the country. 4 They camped on the land and that our fathers told us about when they said, 'Did not the ruined the crops all the way to Gaza and did not spare a LORD bring us up out of Egypt?' But now the LORD living thing for Israel, neither sheep nor cattle nor has abandoned us and put us into the hand of Midian." donkeys. 5 They came up with their livestock and their tents like 1. A God encounter: swarms of locusts. It was impossible to count the men and their camels; they invaded the land to ravage it. 6 God will meet you where you are! Midian so impoverished the Israelites that they cried out Gideon was confused because he had succumbed to the to the LORD for help. circumstances of his surroundings. 7 When the Israelites cried to the LORD because of Midian, 8 he sent them a prophet, who said, "This is It is easier to feed fear than it is to feed faith; what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: I brought you because lies are more prevalent than truth. up out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. 9 I snatched you from the power of Egypt and from the hand of all Fallen man can believe a lie much easier your oppressors. I drove them from before you and gave than he can believe truth. you their land. 10 I said to you, 'I am the LORD your God; do not It takes discipline and discernment to find truth! worship the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you live.' But you have not listened to me." Gideon had a bad theology: Rochester Christian Church’s Core Values: Excellence, Integrity, Family, Worship/Prayer, Servanthood, Outreach/Missions “If the Lord is with me 2. God’s Commission: then only good things will happen.” Go in the strength you have! Gideon asked the wrong questions; Gideon is still tuned in to the wrong frequency: Therefore he comes to the wrong conclusion! How can I… My clan is the weakest… Conclusion: God has abandoned us! I am the least… Right Answer: We have abandoned God! The Angel was still trying to alter the frequency of We do not have to know the right answers, Gideon’s thinking! We have to ask the right questions! 18 Please do not go away until I come back and bring Gideon was tuned in to the wrong frequency! my offering and set it before you." And the LORD said, The Angel was trying to alter the frequency of "I will wait until you return." Gideon’s thinking! 19 Gideon went in, prepared a young goat, and from an We have to change our perspective (Frequency)! ephah of flour he made bread without yeast. Putting the (Repentance) meat in a basket and its broth in a pot, he brought them out and offered them to him under the oak. Faith (or fear) is based upon what one is hearing! 20 The angel of God said to him, "Take the meat and the unleavened bread, place them on this rock, and pour So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the out the broth." And Gideon did so. word of God. (Ro 10:17) 21 With the tip of the staff that was in his hand, the angel of the LORD touched the meat and the unleavened 14 The LORD turned to him and said, "Go in the bread. Fire flared from the rock, consuming the meat strength you have and save Israel out of Midian's hand. and the bread. And the angel of the LORD disappeared. Am I not sending you?" 15 "But Lord," Gideon asked, 22 When Gideon realized that it was the angel of the "how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in LORD, he exclaimed, "Ah, Sovereign LORD! I have Manasseh, and I am the least in my family." seen the angel of the LORD face to face!" 23 But the 16 The LORD answered, "I will be with you, and you LORD said to him, "Peace! Do not be afraid. You are will strike down all the Midianites together." 17 Gideon not going to die." replied, "If now I have found favor in your eyes, give 24 So Gideon built an altar to the LORD there and me a sign that it is really you talking to me. called it The LORD is Peace. To this day it stands in Ophrah of the Abiezrites. Rochester Christian Church’s Core Values: Excellence, Integrity, Family, Worship/Prayer, Servanthood, Outreach/Missions 25 That same night the LORD said to him, "Take the Courage is not the absence of fear but the second bull from your father's herd, the one seven years determination to face our fears! old. Tear down your father's altar to Baal and cut down the Asherah pole beside it. We will continue to struggle with fear 26 Then build a proper kind of altar to the LORD until we repent and walk in obedience with God! your God on the top of this height. Using the wood of the Asherah pole that you cut down, offer the second bull as Amos 3:3 Can two walk together, unless they are agreed? a burnt offering." 28 In the morning when the men of the town got up, 3. The Assignment: there was Baal's altar, demolished, with the Asherah pole beside it cut down and the second bull sacrificed on the a. Tear Down: newly built altar! 29 They asked each other, "Who did this?" When they “Tear down your father’s altar to Baal carefully investigated, they were told, "Gideon son of and cut down the Asherah pole beside it.” v. 25 Joash did it." 30 The men of the town demanded of Joash, "Bring out your son. He must die, because he has b. Build Up: broken down Baal's altar and cut down the Asherah pole beside it." “Then build a proper kind of altar to the Lord your 31 But Joash replied to the hostile crowd around him, God.” v. 26. "Are you going to plead Baal's cause? Are you trying to save him? Whoever fights for him shall be put to death by 27 So Gideon took ten of his servants and did as the morning! If Baal really is a god, he can defend himself LORD told him. But because he was afraid of his family when someone breaks down his altar." and the men of the town, he did it at night rather than 32 So that day they called Gideon "Jerub-Baal," in the daytime. saying, "Let Baal contend with him," because he broke down Baal's altar. 4. Obedience in the face of fear! 33 Now all the Midianites, Amalekites and other Who did Gideon fear? eastern peoples joined forces and crossed over the Jordan (1) His family. and camped in the Valley of Jezreel. 34 Then the Spirit (2) His neighbors. of the LORD came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet, summoning the Abiezrites to follow him. We will always have to face fear when we obey God! Rochester Christian Church’s Core Values: Excellence, Integrity, Family, Worship/Prayer, Servanthood, Outreach/Missions 35 He sent messengers throughout Manasseh, calling 36 Gideon said to God, "If you will save Israel by my them to arms, and also into Asher, Zebulun and hand as you have promised-- 37 look, I will place a wool Naphtali, so that they too went up to meet them. fleece on the threshing floor. If there is dew only on the fleece and all the ground is dry, then I will know that you 5. Empowerment of the Holy Ghost! will save Israel by my hand, as you said." 38 And that is what happened. Gideon rose early the Many misinterpret an encounter with God next day; he squeezed the fleece and wrung out the dew-- as an empowerment of God. a bowlful of water. What happened to this simple farmer’s son that made 39 Then Gideon said to God, "Do not be angry with me. him into a mighty warrior and he simply blows a Let me make just one more request. Allow me one more trumpet, commission’s messengers and entire nations test with the fleece. This time make the fleece dry and the obey his call! ground covered with dew." 40 That night God did so.