MANIFESTED LIGHT OF RESURRECTION TRUTH TO DEFEAT THE ENEMY

May 23, 2010 pm
MF Blume


(Judges 6:1-6) And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD: and the LORD delivered them into the hand of Midian seven years. And the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel: and because of the Midianites the children of Israel made them the dens which are in the mountains, and caves, and strongholds. And so it was, when Israel had sown, that the Midianites came up, and the Amalekites, and the children of the east, even they came up against them; And they encamped against them, and destroyed the increase of the earth, till thou come unto Gaza, and left no sustenance for Israel, neither sheep, nor ox, nor ass. For they came up with their cattle and their tents, and they came as grasshoppers for multitude; for both they and their camels were without number: and they entered into the land to destroy it. And Israel was greatly impoverished because of the Midianites; and the children of Israel cried unto the LORD.


(Judges 6:11-12) And there came an angel of the LORD, and sat under an oak which was in Ophrah, that pertained unto Joash the Abi-ezrite: and his son Gideon threshed wheat by the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites. And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him, and said unto him, The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valor.




The beginning of VICTORY in a defeated life is when people get under the shadow OF THE tree of the cross, like this bog oak, and desire BREAD AND WINE.
Judges 6:6 KJV  And Israel was greatly impoverished because of the Midianites; and the children of Israel cried unto the LORD.

Impoverished means everything was stripped from them.

Gideon was HIDING.


Judges 6:12 KJV  And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him, and said unto him, The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valour.

God was with Him.

Judges 6:13-14 KJV  And Gideon said unto him, Oh my Lord, if the LORD be with us, why then is all this befallen us? and where be all his miracles which our fathers told us of, saying, Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt? but now the LORD hath forsaken us, and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites.  (14)  And the LORD looked upon him, and said, Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites: have not I sent thee?

The might in which Gideon was to go was GOD WHO WAS WITH HIM.

Judges 6:15-16 KJV  And he said unto him, Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? behold, my family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house.  (16)  And the LORD said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man.

Gideon looks down on himself showing his inferiority, and God confirms it over again (!) that God is with Him, and Gideon will slay the Midianites as though they were one single man.

Believers learn to live with their troubles, and hide away in a corner to survive.

Gideon asks for a sign.

Watch Gideon’s FIRST ACTIONS.

Jdg 6:25-26 (25)  And it came to pass the same night, that the LORD said unto him, Take thy father's young bullock, even the second bullock of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that thy father hath, and cut down the grove that is by it: (26)  And build an altar unto the LORD thy God upon the top of this rock, in the ordered place, and take the second bullock, and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the grove which thou shalt cut down.

An idol is destroyed.
Jdg 6:30-32  (30)  Then the men of the city said unto Joash, Bring out thy son, that he may die: because he hath cast down the altar of Baal, and because he hath cut down the grove that was by it.  (31)  And Joash said unto all that stood against him, Will ye plead for Baal? will ye save him? he that will plead for him, let him be put to death whilst it is yet morning: if he be a god, let him plead for himself, because one hath cast down his altar.  (32)  Therefore on that day he called him Jerubbaal, saying, Let Baal plead against him, because he hath thrown down his altar.

His father stands up for Gideon and says Baal should stand up for himself if he is god.

DAY TWO.

Jdg 6:36-38  And Gideon said unto God, If thou wilt save Israel by mine hand, as thou hast said, (37)  Behold, I will put a fleece of wool in the floor; and if the dew be on the fleece only, and it be dry upon all the earth beside, then shall I know that thou wilt save Israel by mine hand, as thou hast said. (38)  And it was so: for he rose up early on the morrow, and thrust the fleece together, and wrung the dew out of the fleece, a bowl full of water.

Gideon prayed for a sign that the fleece would receive dew and there be no dew anywhere else on the ground.
DAY THREE:

Judg 6:39-40  And Gideon said unto God, Let not thine anger be hot against me, and I will speak but this once: let me prove, I pray thee, but this once with the fleece; let it now be dry only upon the fleece, and upon all the ground let there be dew. (40)  And God did so that night: for it was dry upon the fleece only, and there was dew on all the ground.

Another test.

Acts 2:38 KJV  Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

A FOURTH NIGHT OCCURRED.

In Chapter 7 Gideon is told to bring all the men with him that volunteered to fight to the riverbanks.

Jdg 7:10-15  But if thou fear to go down, go thou with Phurah thy servant down to the host: (11)  And thou shalt hear what they say; and afterward shall thine hands be strengthened to go down unto the host. Then went he down with Phurah his servant unto the outside of the armed men that were in the host. (12)  And the Midianites and the Amalekites and all the children of the east lay along in the valley like grasshoppers for multitude; and their camels were without number, as the sand by the sea side for multitude. (13)  And when Gideon was come, behold, there was a man that told a dream unto his fellow, and said, Behold, I dreamed a dream, and, lo, a cake of barley bread tumbled into the host of Midian, and came unto a tent, and smote it that it fell, and overturned it, that the tent lay along. (14)  And his fellow answered and said, This is nothing else save the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel: for into his hand hath God delivered Midian, and all the host. (15)  And it was so, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream, and the interpretation thereof, that he worshipped, and returned into the host of Israel, and said, Arise; for the LORD hath delivered into your hand the host of Midian.

Once we experience a revelation of RESURRECTION WITH CHRIST, we need to recognize the KINGDOM POWER we have with Jesus.
Romans 6:4-5 KJV  Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.  (5)  For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:

Live a resurrection life!

Gideon heard all this as he went with PHURAH, probable his armour bearer.

Gideon knew the devil was afraid of him.

GIDEON STANDS FOR JESUS here.


Jdg 7:16-25  And he divided the three hundred men into three companies, and he put a trumpet in every man's hand, with empty pitchers, and lamps within the pitchers.  (17)  And he said unto them, Look on me, and do likewise: and, behold, when I come to the outside of the camp, it shall be that, as I do, so shall ye do.  (18)  When I blow with a trumpet, I and all that are with me, then blow ye the trumpets also on every side of all the camp, and say, The sword of the LORD, and of Gideon.

It is important to note that Gideon commanded them to watch what he did and repeat it.

 (19)  So Gideon, and the hundred men that were with him, came unto the outside of the camp in the beginning of the middle watch; and they had but newly set the watch: and they blew the trumpets, and brake the pitchers that were in their hands.  (20)  And the three companies blew the trumpets, and brake the pitchers, and held the lamps in their left hands, and the trumpets in their right hands to blow withal: and they cried, The sword of the LORD, and of Gideon.

Seeing what Gideon did and repeating it in ourselves, stands for learning the truths of HIS DEATH OF THE CROSS AND RESURRECTION, and realizing that IS TRUE FOR OURSELVES AS WELL.

 (21)  And they stood every man in his place round about the camp: and all the host ran, and cried, and fled.  (22)  And the three hundred blew the trumpets, and the LORD set every man's sword against his fellow, even throughout all the host: and the host fled to Bethshittah in Zererath, and to the border of Abelmeholah, unto Tabbath.  (23)  And the men of Israel gathered themselves together out of Naphtali, and out of Asher, and out of all Manasseh, and pursued after the Midianites.  (24)  And Gideon sent messengers throughout all mount Ephraim, saying, Come down against the Midianites, and take before them the waters unto Bethbarah and Jordan. Then all the men of Ephraim gathered themselves together, and took the waters unto Bethbarah and Jordan.  (25)  And they took two princes of the Midianites, Oreb and Zeeb; and they slew Oreb upon the rock Oreb, and Zeeb they slew at the winepress of Zeeb, and pursued Midian, and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon on the other side Jordan.

Blowing a trumpet and then breaking the pitchers so light can shine out is DECLARING WE DIED WITH JESUS, like the pitchers were broken, SO THE GLORY OF GOD CAN SHINE OUT FROM US IN POWER TO CONQUER DARKNESS.

It is MANIFESTED MINISTRY OF GOD.

2Co 4:6-13   For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.  (7)  But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us. (8)  We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; (9)  Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; (10)  Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. (11)  For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh. (12)  So then death worketh in us, but life in you. (13)  We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak;

Paul said the ANOINTING POWER would pour out through him in ministry the more he was broken.

Light shining forth stands for MANIFESTED TRUTH.