Judges 6:25-40 - Am I Too Much?

Series: Gideon - 4 Questions of Insecurity and Idolatry
Speaker: Rev. Brandon Farquhar
Date Preached: 2026-08-09
Scripture: Judges 6:25-40

In this sermon we examine the second question of insecurity and idolatry from the story of Gideon: Am I Too Much? The insecurity of idolatry would leave us in fear of messing up or asking too much. But God sees our weakness in light of the strength He will grow in us.

Transcript

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We're going to be in the book of Judges this morning. And so Judges chapter 6. We're in the middle of a four-part uh series in looking at the story of one particular judge, Gideon. And so remember that the Old Testament judges, they're not the courtroom judges. They're more like the Western, kind of the Western lawman, in the sense that they were heroes. They were kind of judge, jury, and executioner. And so they were figures that God raised up to be saviors for the people at a time when the Israelites were being oppressed by their neighbors and their community. And so the story of Gideon, it's a story of a hero, but an unexpected one. It's a time when the Israelites are being oppressed, in this case by Midian. They're really being terrorized, at each harvest time Midian would come in and they would steal everything of note that the Israelites needed to survive. So much so that Gideon, just like the rest of the Israelites, they were oppressed, even to the point where they felt like they needed to serve the Midianite gods, that they had turned away from the Lord God and were serving idols instead. And so last week the angel of the Lord shows up and he finds Gideon hiding out in a wine press, and he calls him a mighty man of valor, and he promises that God would be with him to rescue the Israelites. And Gideon's response is insecurity and doubt. Where is God in his wonderful deeds? I am the weakest and the smallest. And so that was the first question of insecurity, the really the first question of idolatry that our idols would make us wonder am I accepted? Am I accepted? Well, today we have our next question. As God persists with Gideon, we get to see more of this story, how God would use a weak and unexpected hero to do something extraordinary. And so before we read together, let me pray and ask for God's help that we would be able to hear Him speaking. Heavenly Father, we pray that you would be with us by your Spirit. Lord Jesus, would you speak to us, that we could hear your work and your redemption even in the story of Gideon? And may you help us to receive it each individually as your grace for us, but then as a community, that we would be those who would rally around you, our Savior. And we pray this in Jesus' name. Amen. So we're reading Judges chapter six. We're going to begin reading in verse 19, picking up a bit of what we covered last time, and then we'll read through verse 40. And so Judges chapter 6, beginning in verse 19. So Gideon went into his house and prepared a young goat and unleavened cakes from an epha of flour. The meat he put in a basket, and the broth he put in a pot, and he brought them to him underneath the terabinth, and presented them. And the angel of God said to him, Take the meat and the unleavened cakes, and put them on this rock, and pour the broth over them, and he did so. Then the angel of the Lord reached out the tip of the staff that was in his hand, and he touched the meat and the unleavened cakes, and fire sprang from the rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened cakes, and the angel of the Lord vanished from his sight. Then Gideon perceived that he was the angel of the Lord, and Gideon said, Alas, O Lord God, for now I have seen the angel of the Lord face to face. And the Lord said to him, Peace be to you. Do not fear, you shall not die. Then Gideon built an altar there to the Lord and called it the Lord is peace. To this day it still stands at Orphrah, which belongs to the Abizarites. That night the Lord said to him, Take your father's bull, and the second bowl seven years old, and pull down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the asherah that is beside it, and build an altar to the Lord your God on top of the stronghold here, with stones laid in due order. Then take the second bowl and offer it as a burnt offering with the wood of the asherah that you shall cut down. And so Gideon took ten men of his servants and did as the Lord had told him, 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. And when the men of the town rose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was broken down, and the asherah beside it was cut down, and a second bull was offered on the altar that had been built. And they said to one another, Who has done this thing? And after they had searched and inquired, they said, Gideon, son of Joash, has done this thing. Then the men of the town said to Joash, Bring out your son that he may die, for he has broken down the altar of Baal, and cut down the asherah beside it. But Joash said to all who stood against him, Will you contend for Baal? Or will you save him? Whoever contends for him shall be put to death by mourning. If he is a god, let him contend for himself, because his altar has been broken down. Therefore on that day Gideon was called Jerubabul, that is to say, let Baal contend against him, because he broke down his altar. Now all the Midianites and the Amalekites and the people of the east came together, and they crossed the Jordan and encamped in the valley of Jezreel. But the Spirit of the Lord clothed Gideon, and he sounded the trumpet, and the Abizarites were called down to follow him. And he sent messengers throughout all Manasseh, and they too were called out to follow him. And he sent messengers to Asher and Zebulum and Naphtali, and they all went up to meet him. Then Gideon said to God, If you will save Israel by my hand, as you have said, behold, I am laying a fleece of wool on the threshing floor. If there is dew on the fleece alone, and it is dry on all the ground, then I shall know that you will save Israel by my hand, as you have said. And it was so. When he rose early the next morning and squeezed the fleece, he wrung enough dew from the fleece to fill the bowl with water. And then Gideon said to God, Let not your anger burn against me. Let me speak just one once more. Please let me test just once more with the fleece. Please let it be dry on the fleece only, and on all the ground let there be dew. And God did so that night, and it was dry on the fleece only, and on all the ground there was dew. This is the word of the Lord. So I wonder if you ever struggle with the fear that your weakness or your struggles will be too much. Too much. Like God couldn't possibly work through you or be pleased with your life of faith. I know some of us have probably felt the sting of being too much in a relationship, having a friend or a partner unwilling or unable to deal with everything we have going on, whether it's struggle or maybe even just drama. And what do they say? He or she was just too much. Maybe you've been the one to say it. And in a relationship, we can kind of salvage that experience by talking about maybe we just need to find the right person who can handle us. But in reality, being too much is an incredibly lonely and insecure position. When will the other shoe drop? When will they have had too much? I think this fear of being too much is what we see in Gideon this morning. God had come to Gideon and had commissioned him to be a mighty man of valor who would save Israel, but it had taken Gideon a good bit of convincing to get on board. A good bit and back and forth. You can probably relate to that. Have you ever had a lot of back and forth with God? Weak faith that needs more, more care or more patience from God. And even then, once Gideon had been convinced that God was calling him to be the guy, we see him acting and leading in ways that seem less mighty and strong than we might prefer. And yet, despite all that, God continues to work in and through Gideon, so much so that when we get to the New Testament in Hebrews chapter 11, which we read earlier, Gideon is listed in the hall of faith. Why? Because he was one who was made strong out of weakness. Made strong out of weakness. That apparently this is a feature of faith, not a flaw. Not a limited time act just for Gideon, but apparently this was true of all of those who would enter the hall of faith. But here's the reality that through faith, God makes us strong in weakness. That is how God works, how he has planned to do his work through faith. As we trust that God can do more than, or even in contrast to, what we could do ourselves. That we might be weak, but God is in the business of making strong out of weakness. And so here's kind of the big point this morning. If you hear nothing else, this is what you need to go away with that your weak faith is not too much for God. Your weak faith is not too much for God. And so, in light of that, we want to grow to trust God's strength over or even especially in our weakness. And so, to help us go through this story we have this morning, we just have two points for us. And if you want to take notes, there's an outline on the back of the program. And so we're going to look at a strong allegiance for a weak faith. And so, first, a strong allegiance that God he makes us strong, not on our own, but through our allegiance to him. And so the goal of faith is not to grow independent, not to grow in faith to the point where we could do things for God, but rather to grow in dependence to where we could trust what God is doing in and for us. That is the strong allegiance. And so in the first part of Gideon's story, where we ended last week, Gideon had built an altar to the Lord and he had named it the Lord is peace. It is really the testimony of Gideon for all those around him that his relationship with God had brought peace into his life. But do you notice that God's peace for Gideon, affirmed by this sacrifice of acceptance, it did not mean that God was just like a pushover, you know, like a hippie putting up the peace signs, as if peace were only everyone getting along. Did you notice that this renewed peace from God had a very clear application? And that was conflict with the idols in Gideon's life. God was a source of life and peace, and so that required dealing with the source of death and oppression. And so just a note, don't be surprised if this is your experience in the Christian life as well. That when we become a Christian, we do have a new source of peace, but it is not a stagnant peace. It is not simply getting along. Instead, it is a peace that would drive us into conflict with anything else that would bring life destruction. And so look down in verse 25. Gideon, he is commanded to pull down his father's altar to Baal, and then to replace it with an altar to God. So you notice there's not room for two altars in Gideon's life, nor in the life of the Israelites. You could not have an altar to the Lord, who is our peace, right next to an altar of Baal, who is the oppression. No halfway in, halfway out. In verse 27, Gideon obeys. And so Gideon took ten of his men and did as the Lord had told him. And so we start to see that maybe Gideon's expression that he was the least and the weakest, it may not be so bad. Obviously, he comes from a family of some means and privilege. He has ten servants who can help him on this nighttime raid. And yet, we still see the insecurity. Because Gideon, he's too afraid of his family and the men of the city to do it by day, and so he does it by night. He obeys, but he does it at night out of fear for his family and his community. You know, Gideon, he's so relatable. He's chosen to follow God, yes, but fear and the influence of his family still plays such a role. I think this is how many of us feel. Yes, God, we want to follow you, but everything else seems so close and so dangerous. And so, Gideon, he's following God, but he's still doing it in weakness. And so one commentator says it this way of Gideon destroying the altar by night. He says, evidently obedience was essential and heroism was optional. And as we read on, you notice that Gideon, he wasn't just creating threats in his mind. He's not just fearing the worst, and said in verse 28, as the men of the town, they rise early, and then when in apparent shock, behold, they see that their altar was destroyed, they're out for blood. Verse 30, the men of the town said to Joash, Bring out your son that he may die. For he has broken down the altar of Baal. It's kind of interesting to notice at this point in the story, despite that critical action of Gideon overnight, here in the morning, he's nowhere to be found. Here in the morning, you might expect some type of sermon where Gideon, this brave hero who has found the peace of God, where now he would call everyone to follow, except Gideon, is strangely absent. Instead, we have to learn the story, the wisdom from this unexpected source, Joash, his dad. Joash, kind of the chief idolater, the one who owned the idol. Look down, verse 31. Joash said to all who stood against him, Will you contend for Baal, or will you save him? Whoever contends for him will be put to death by mourning. And so Joash here, he's probably driven by loyalty to his son, which in a way is commendable and yet a little bit inconsistent. He's the one who has put up the altar to Baal, and yet he doesn't really have full allegiance to him. And so, verse 31, if Baal is God, let him contend for himself, because the altar has been broken down. And so Joash, he seems to understand something of the reality. A real God doesn't need us to fight for them. Instead, they would fight for us. And in verse 32, Gideon gets renamed to embody the spiritual truth. Therefore, on that day, Gideon was called Jerubable. That is to say, let Baal contend against him. And so you have the key question of this morning's story. Will Baal contend? You have battle lines drawn, but note it is not between the hero Gideon. No, it is between Baal the idol and the Lord of peace. And so a couple points of application before we move on. You know, here is the truth about idols. They won't fight for us. Instead, we will end up fighting for them. This is the truth about idolatry, that will not fight for us, instead, we will end up fighting for them. And so last week we kind of saw how the true identity of idolatry is the devil, and so he is behind the curtain working to separate us from God, to keep us in spiritual oppression. You know, the other side of the coin that the Bible often brings down is that our idols actually have no spiritual power on their own. Rather, the power of the idol is found in what we sacrifice and what we serve on their behalf. You see, our idols, they live on the resources we give. If the devil is behind the curtain, here's the shock: you are the engine. It's part of what makes idolatry so destructive. It's not an impersonal transaction. Instead, it is one that costs everything you would give. Our idols, they do not fight for you, but they'll be happy to have you fight for them. So, do you want to know what your idols are? Not a bad strategy to look at what you're willing to fight for. When our idols get threatened, we often respond with conflict. You notice early in the morning, the men of the town, they got up to take up the fight for bail. What gets you up early in the morning? What are the worries and the fears that will drive you to action? That would make you willing to sacrifice almost everything to achieve. This is the truth about idolatry. They don't fight for us, they will end up requiring us to fight for them. But here's the truth about God: He will contend for those he loves. It's a story of Gideon that he will not leave the Israelites nor us to be oppressed and exploited by the idols in our lives. Before God called Gideon to tear down the altar, what had God done? He had created the altar of peace. Before God had thrown down the challenge, choose today who you will serve, what he had done, he had come to Gideon, seeing him as a mighty man of valor, that he would make him. This is the truth about God: that he will contend and fight for those he loves. You've probably heard this expression that God doesn't call the qualified, but he qualifies those he calls. And what we see in the story is that God is, he is so gentle and patient with Gideon, seeing him not in the strength that he has on his own, but rather in his strong allegiance that he has with God. You see, God would make us strong, not according to what we can do for him, but by our strong allegiance to him. That is what true faith is. The strength of our faith is not determined by us, but by the strength of who we're aligned with. Pastor Tim Keller from New York City, he used to give this illustration of what faith looks like in a situation. Imagine you're like falling off a cliff, and at the last minute you you grab on quickly to a root or to a branch. What is the key question there? How much faith you have? That doesn't really matter that much. All that matters is the strength of the anchor that you're holding on to. Even weak faith in a strong anchor can hold. And so I think the question for us is: does the strength of our allegiance with God need to be clarified? You know, if we're not yet a Christian or if we're not sure, then perhaps one of the things God would do in our life is he might bring us to the point of needing to choose. Bring us to the point of this way or that way. Continue to give everything to things in our life that will not give us what we need, or would we give ourselves to God who would fight for us? You know, even for those of us who are Christians, we might need this critical moment of believing the promises of God and then taking a drastic step, even if great fear, even if at night, of destroying the idols that would seek to oppress us. You see, God would not leave us in oppression. He would seek to give us his peace, but his peace will often look like conflict, requiring not so much strength on your part. Remember, heroism is optional, obedience is critical. So maybe consider if there is an idol in your life that God is calling you to be done with. Something in your life that is stealing from you, would you be willing to obey, even if it's with great fear? You see, there's no shame in being visited by the presence of God in such a way that the choices that have oppressed you in the past can get redeemed in the present. You see, Gideon's past track record doesn't seem to be a hindrance to God's present plan. The foolishness of his past, it pales in comparison to the strength of his presence when he's aligned with the living God. You see, the key thing that makes Gideon a hero is God's allegiance to him. And notice where it connects to Gideon. This is our second point. It connects to Gideon in his weakness. That we have a strong allegiance for a weak faith. You see, with our allegiance to God, with our relationship with God, your weak faith is not too much for him. And so remember, let's replay the story of Gideon so far. So God has come to call Gideon to save his people, but Gideon wasn't so sure. God reassured him, the angel of the Lord, he called him a mighty man of valor, and what did Gideon respond with? How can I save Israel? I'm the weakest, I'm the least. God had accepted Gideon's sacrifice, a symbol that he had accepted Gideon. He called Gideon to tear down the altar, and Gideon had done it, but with fear in the dead of night. In the morning, when it was time to actually stand up for himself, Gideon was nowhere to be found. It was actually Gideon's father who steps in. If Baal has a problem with this, then let Baal deal with it. And so we're left with a question: who will contend? Notice that's where we end. And so look down at verse 33. Now all the Midianites and the Amalekites and the people of the East came together and they crossed the Jordan and encamped in the valley of Jezreel. And so we have this critical moment. We don't really know how much time has passed between verse 32 and verse 33. Probably at least some time. Because we have this hanging question: who will contend? There is going to be a battle. And what happens in verse 33? The same thing. Seven years the same. The Midianites have once again shown up for their annual ravaging. And the Israelites, they must have been thinking, not again. Not again. Do you know that dread? That dread of not again. With your struggles with the things that keep you oppressed. But this time something was different. What's the question? Who will contend? Verse 34. But the Spirit of the Lord clothed Gideon, and he sounded a trumpet, and the Abbezirites were called out to follow him. And he said, Messengers throughout Manasseh, and they too were called out to follow him. And he sent messengers to Asher, to Zebulim, and to Naphtali, and they went up to meet him. In Gideon, we do have an unexpected hero, but really what we have is the unexpected graciousness of God, that Gideon here, who is, as far as we know, hiding out what happens to him in his weakness. He is clothed or wrapped by the Spirit of God. You see, the God who had called Gideon has now come to qualify him. I hope you notice the connection here. It is an amazing thing that God would wrap himself in the weakness of human flesh. And so God comes down and he qualifies Gideon, wrapping him in his spirit, giving him the strength that he needs. And as Gideon blows a trumpet, we're meant to imagine and experience, it's almost like a scene from Braveheart, or I think there's even one like this in Brave. And it's like ripples of a pond, one small stone has dropped, and then the ripples start to go out in this crescendo of affirmation that Gideon being the least and the weakest, the tribes start to gather to him. First it's his family, then it's his tribe, then it's the neighboring tribes. They're all coming together. And you would think that the moment of salvation is here. God has given Gideon everything he needs. But not yet. Gideon has a problem. Do you notice what the problem is? Himself. The problem is still Gideon and the weakness of his faith. Look down in verse 36. Then Gideon said to God, If you will save Israel by my hand, as you have said, behold, I am laying a fleece of wool on the threshing floor. If there is dew on the fleece alone, and it's dry on all the ground, then I shall know that you will save Israel by my hand, as you have said. You notice the repetition of the phrases here. Gideon knows what God has said. He is not forgetful. He is just unfaithful. I just want to say we're not really meant to overanalyze the sign of the fleece, and so that's a question we often get, and it's one we could chat about after the service. But the passage doesn't really do that. We're not told about the wisdom or necessity of this test. And notice that it really isn't a test about Gideon making a decision. That's usually how we want to use the fleece. All right, should I choose A or B? That's not what's going on here. Instead, it's a test of God's decision. Will you really save Israel by my hand, as you have said? It is the test of weak faith. Gideon has gathered the army, but he wants to double check. And amazingly, God answers. And it's so matter of fact, look in verse 38, and it was so. When he rose early the next morning and squeezed the fleece, he had wrung enough dew from the fleece to fill a bowl with water. You would think it's time to go. Call the trumpets, let's move. But still, Gideon is unsure. And in this second test, we get to see the dilemma of Gideon. You see, he needs more. His faith is still struggling. He needs more assurance, but he fears that God would have had enough with him. He fears that he's been too much. That his weak faith would be too much for God. God had already put up with a lot. You can imagine Gideon's whole life has been like this. It's really just getting to be too much, pushing a little bit too far. And so look in verse 39, when Gideon says to God, Let not your anger burn against me. Don't be angry with me. Let me just speak once more, one more time. Please let me just test once more with the fleece. Please let it be dry on the fleece only, and on all the ground let there be dew. You see, it's a even though Gideon he knows God might rightly be angry. Gideon asks anyway. He can't help himself. He wants to believe, but he still needs more. Just one more. Please, please, please, one more. I wonder if you can relate to Gideon. The times where you want to believe, but you're not quite there. You want to say no to the idol and yes to God, but you need more help. One more time. You see, you want to follow God with your life, but in reality, it's so hard to pull it off. Execution is so difficult. Maybe you have so many reasons to be thankful, and yet you just can't kick the blues. You have so many reasons, the trust, and yet you can't get rid of the anxiety. Would you allow your weakness to take you to God? That's really what repentance is. You know, we don't always have to know the perfect breakdown between what is sin and what is just being human. The key is where we go with it. I imagine that was a bit like the experience of the Israelites that remember, God had rescued them from Egypt, He had planted them in this good land, but when it came off to actually living in God's way, trusting that his ways were good, it was just so hard to pull off. And what did they do? Unlike Gideon, instead of asking God for help, they turned to Baal. You see, it must have been just a bit easier than weak faith. So to give you a little bit of a feel of it, Baal, idolatry with Baal was less of a relationship that required trust and more of a transaction that required payment. And so the idea is that you would do this or that for Baal, the god of the Canaanite land, and Baal would do this or that for you. And in particular, Baal was the storm god, and Asherah, together with Asherah, they were the gods of fertility and produce. And so the idea is that you would serve these gods of the Canaanite land, and they would give you what you need to survive. This is probably why Gideon chooses the test about dew. Because the kind of moisture from the air, that was Baal's area. And so the question is whether God can infringe upon the territory of Baal. It's really the picture of weak faith. God, I know you can do this. I know you could pull off the whole Egypt thing, but can you do that? I know you can do the church stuff, but can you do the real life stuff? You see, this was the possession of the Israelites. They probably didn't outright reject Yahweh. Remember, Gideon, he had known the stories of old. He probably learned them from his dad, but what did his dad do? He had set up the altar to Baal. They probably just found Baal to be a bit easier to work with. An altar that was close by, a promise quickly made, just a bit of a shortcut, just a little bit of dabble to play the game. But Gideon, he takes a different path here. Insecure and fearing that his weak faith might be just a bit too much for God, trembling with perhaps the right kind of fear, he asks again. One more time. And amazingly, God answers. God is not angry, God is assuring. One more time is not too much for God. And really, that's the answer we need to hear. Our weak faith is not too much for God. You see, our God loves to bring strength out of weakness. That type of faith is a feature, not a flaw. But the key is who we ask, who we call out to. You know, if something in your life is threatening to be an idol to take over, if you ask your idol what it needs, it'll always be the same answer, just a little bit more. Try a little harder, do a little better, just a little bit more. Whatever you make your God will require everything from you. You will have to fight for it, but it will not fight for you. And so, how much more money? Just a little bit more. How much more popularity? Just a few people more. How much success? Just one win more. Instead, when we ask our loving God, we have a God who loves to assure weak faith. Just remember how Jesus interacted with a world of weak faith. Come to me, all who are labor and heavy, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. You see, weak faith is not too much for God. He has a long track record of doing things with weak faith. You see, here's the key. Who will contend? You see, the life of faith is not the question of the great things you could do for God. Instead, it is the allegiance he has made to do great things for you. Made strong out of weakness. A strong alliance for a weak faith. So humanizing. And so notice the story of how Gideon he both represents the people and yet also represents God. He represents the story that would be ultimately fulfilled in Jesus. Also someone who is clothed in weakness and yet in the power of the Spirit. Also someone who would have to face the temptations and trials of his family's past. Also someone who had to trust the plan of God to rescue the people of God. Also, someone who would trust that God could bring strength and a weakness. I've used this illustration before, but it's a great one. It's a scene in The Lord of the Rings, the first book. It really comes out in the first movie as well. When they're gathering together the fellowship of the ring, they're kind of just getting started on this great journey to do this great amazing thing. And all the heroes are stepping up to join the fellowship. And so Aragorn steps up with his sword, and Legolus steps up with his bow, and my uh my spirit animal Gimli steps up with his axe. And oftentimes we're tempted to think that's the type of role required for us. But God has a plan, and it's up to us to step forward in strength and my faith. But in reality, we're much more like the hobbits, small and unimpressive. Stepping forward and making people wonder what difference we could make. But God loves to make strength out of weakness. And one of the great things about Tolkien's writing is that he captures what God could do in weakness. Later on in the story is the hobbits are reflecting why they're there. Like, why are we stuck in this? This is how they describe it. Sam says we shouldn't be here at all if we had known more about it before we started. But I suppose it's often that way. The brave things in the old tales and songs, Mr. Frodo, the adventures, as I used to call them, I used to think that they were the things that wonderful folk of the stories went out and looked for because they wanted them, because they were exciting and life was a bit dull, kind of like a sport, as you might say. But that's not the way of it with the tales that really mattered or the ones that stay in the mind. Folks seem to have just landed in them, usually. Their past were laid out that way, as you would put it. I expect they had a lot of chances, like us, of turning back, only they didn't. And if they had, we shouldn't have known because they would have been forgotten. We hear about them who just went on. I think when we get to heaven and you walk into that hall of faith, you know, the tagline at the bottom will be strength and a weakness. And if you ask Gideon or Samuel or the prophets or the apostles what it was like, what it was like to do the great things, I imagine this would be the expression, I just went on. I just went on. It's like the nameless ones of Hebrews 11. Those who looked forward to what God could do and just went on. This is the encouragement for us this morning. The second question of idolatry are you too much? Is your weakness too much for God to handle? No, no, God loves to make strength out of weakness. And what he requires from us, similar to Gideon, is one more time. One more time to go on and to stay with him. So let's do that together, even as we pray and prepare to one more time come to his table. Heavenly Father, would you be with us this morning? Would you meet us in our weakness? Would you meet us in the temptations and the struggles with idolatry that each of us have? That in this service, even in this moment as we come to your table, we would be turning away from those things that would seal our life and instead giving ourselves once more independence to you. And so give us a moment here to reflect and to hear what you would say to each of us individually. Prepare us to come to your table, we pray. In Jesus' name, amen.