The story of Gideon from the Bible in the book of Judges, chapter 6 begins by reporting that Israel did evil in the eyes of the Lord and so He gave them seven years of terrorism by the Midianites. Finally, they cried out to the Lord for help. An angel from God came to Gideon who was secretly threshing wheat. God said to him, "The Lord is with you, mighty warrior." Then the angel gave him the command to lead Israel into battle against the Midianites, leaving none alive.
We join the story in verse 25:
“Take the second bull from your father’s herd, the one seven years old. Tear down your father’s altar to Baal and cut down the Asherah pole beside it. Then build a proper kind of altar to the Lord your God on the top of this height. Using the wood of the Asherah pole that you cut down, offer the second bull as a burnt offering.” So Gideon took ten of his servants and did as the LORD told him. But because he was afraid of his family and the townspeople, he did it at night rather than in the daytime.
In the morning, the townspeople were outraged and demanded that whoever cut down the Asherah pole be executed. Gideon's father, Joash replied, “Are you going to plead Baal’s cause? Are you trying to save him? Whoever fights for him shall be put to death by morning! If Baal really is a god, he can defend himself when someone breaks down his altar.”
The Asherah pole must have been rather large for everyone in the town to notice its absence first thing in the morning. Because the Midianites, Amalekites and other eastern people joined forces and crossed the river preparing to fight Israel. Gideon sent messengers to rally Israel's troops to defend Israel.
The story continues in chapter 7:
The story continues in chapter 7:
Early in the morning, Gideon and all his men camped at the spring of Harod. The Lord said to Gideon, “You have too many men. I cannot deliver Midian into their hands, or Israel would boast against me, ‘My own strength has saved me.’
The Lord gave Gideon several ways to weed out those who had no courage by testing them in various ways. And so the army's size went from thirty-two thousand down to three hundred. Gideon divided them into three groups, gave them trumpets and torches. As they descended into the camp, three groups blew the trumpets and smashed the jars. Grasping the torches in their left hands and holding in their right hands the trumpets they were to blow, they shouted, “A sword for the Lord and for Gideon!”
"When the three hundred trumpets sounded, the Lord caused the men throughout the camp to turn on each other with their swords. The army fled..."
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While reading the story of Gideon this morning, it dawned on me how this story is a mirror of what is going on in our nation today.
We have made an idol out of political correctness. While some of political correctness deals with non-moral issues, much of it is the fear of being "judgmental" about God's laws.
No one breathes a word about sin and the grotesque abominations of the twisted ideas of gender and the family. Into the midst of our country that has always had a Christian culture, we have allowed a idol to the god of perversion to be erected and everyone is terrified to go and cut it down.
As far as I can tell, with my limited view, we have only two politicians who have strongly come out against this monolithic idol in a very public way: Dr. Ben Carson and Donald Trump.
Of the two, why has Donald Trump been more successful in stirring the momentum of America against this tower of political correctness? Why not Ben Carson?
Ben Carson : Moral Gravitas
Dr. Carson has a background of moral fiber. He is a resolute, successful man of integrity and honesty. Carson has moral gravitas, but what he lacked was the passion of a great leader. Men want to follow a man of charisma, of visual powerful determination. (Note: While Ted Cruz had this, he came across as a southern preacher rather than a statesman.) Carson is a teacher, not a leader. He did not have the ability to stir an outnumbered few to action as did the real Henry Vth in the battle of St. Crispin's day dramatized in the video above. Carson, personally, has the backbone, the guts; but he has no ability to inspire in others to strive and sacrifice for the same backbone and guts.
Donald Trump: Capitalistic Gravitas
Trump is a hero for those whose god is fame, fortune and promiscuity. He knows how to rally the troops by tickling the ears of his Christian conservative listeners and then maneuvering and leveraging to get what he wants. And make no mistake about it, he will play the conservatives, perhaps throwing us a bone with a few conservative Supreme Court nominations, and Christians across the US, will bow in prostrate servitude to him for throwing us the crumbs off his table. (And I am including myself in this, for I see no way out of having to cast my vote for him in order to prevent a Hillary Clinton presidency.) He has us all under his fist already.
And I fear that most Christians in the US will fall for the Trump charisma that elevates personal rights and freedoms above their duty to God and just assume a president who stands for American capitalism will stand American Christianity. And right now, the distinction between the two that has been blurred for two centuries is becoming clearer. There is now a demand to choose between patriotism and obedience to God. Trump may look like Gideon because he took down the Ba'al's idol. But Trump is no Gideon.
Bishops and Pastors
You are the ones called to be Gideon. You don't need political power. You don't need tens of millions of votes. God chose only three hundred out of over thirty thousand.What you need is the fire of the Holy Spirit. In the Biblical story of Gideon, it says that God's Spirit came upon Gideon.
That is all you need pastors. Pray for the courage you need to rally the Christian troops with the passion of God. Thrust from your breast the fist of fear that is protecting your heart and soul. Do not ignore the idol of Ba'al looming over the US from sea to shining sea. There is silence among our Christian leaders as families fall apart because of disobedience to Christ. Our shameful secrets have been exposed and instead of seeking repentance, we are now glorying in them. Do not sit by wringing your hands while our children are falling prey to the Father of lies.
Set ablaze your anointed hands with the fiery sword of the Spirit that Christians may light our torches upon them. Give us the leadership we need to join you in sounding our trumpets to war in this spiritual battle. Shout loudly enough that the word will hear, “A sword for the Lord and for Gideon!”
Catholic bishops and priests, Protestant pastors: BE GIDEON! Let the truths of Christ ring out boldly against the moral depths to which we have fallen. Do not fear for numbers, God doesn't need numbers he needs men of passion, men willing to strike down Ba'al in the form of Planned Parenthood, families collapsing because of divorce, pornography, indifference, sexual perversion, media distortions. The wolves are devouring the flocks. Time to stand against them.
