Man Appointed Leadership
Paula Coffman Leadership Professor Smith: Oct. 25, 2012
Man Appointed Leadership Children often ask their parents: “Everyone else is allowed to do this, why can’t I ?”And parents usually reply: “ Well, if everyone else jumped off a cliff would you want to as well?” Sadly, most children desire to be like their peers, regardless of the con-sequences. The children of Israel proved to be no different than most modern day children, in their desire to imitate their pagan neighbors. For 400 years, after the death of Joshua and Caleb the Israelites had been in a cycle of rebellion against God. They would follow God for a season, and then drift into pagan worship. God would then allow them to be overtaken and severely oppressed by their neighbors. In their distress, they would cry out to God and He would send judges, political and military figures, to rule and rescue them. Gideon was an example of such a judge. The people had done evil in God’s sight and he gave them over to the hands of the Midianites. ( see Judges 6:1) Gideon was hiding from the Midianites, threshing grain in a wine press when the angel of the Lord appeared to him with a commission: “The angel of the Lord came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite , where his son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress to keep it from the Midianites.”Judges 6:11 (NIV) “When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, ‘The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.’ “ But sir, Gideon replied, “if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our fathers told us about when they said: ‘Did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt?’ ” “But now the Lord has abandoned us into the hand of Midian.” Judges 6:12-13. (NIV) Gideon highlighted his weaknesses, and told the Angel that he was from the smallest tribe of Israel, and the least member of his family. However, Gideon eventually accepted his commission and lead Israel to defeat their
Man Appointed Leadership Children often ask their parents: “Everyone else is allowed to do this, why can’t I ?”And parents usually reply: “ Well, if everyone else jumped off a cliff would you want to as well?” Sadly, most children desire to be like their peers, regardless of the con-sequences. The children of Israel proved to be no different than most modern day children, in their desire to imitate their pagan neighbors. For 400 years, after the death of Joshua and Caleb the Israelites had been in a cycle of rebellion against God. They would follow God for a season, and then drift into pagan worship. God would then allow them to be overtaken and severely oppressed by their neighbors. In their distress, they would cry out to God and He would send judges, political and military figures, to rule and rescue them. Gideon was an example of such a judge. The people had done evil in God’s sight and he gave them over to the hands of the Midianites. ( see Judges 6:1) Gideon was hiding from the Midianites, threshing grain in a wine press when the angel of the Lord appeared to him with a commission: “The angel of the Lord came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite , where his son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress to keep it from the Midianites.”Judges 6:11 (NIV) “When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, ‘The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.’ “ But sir, Gideon replied, “if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our fathers told us about when they said: ‘Did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt?’ ” “But now the Lord has abandoned us into the hand of Midian.” Judges 6:12-13. (NIV) Gideon highlighted his weaknesses, and told the Angel that he was from the smallest tribe of Israel, and the least member of his family. However, Gideon eventually accepted his commission and lead Israel to defeat their