The story of Gideon has so many great lessons. The passage today is no exception.
17 Gideon replied, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, give me a sign that it is really you talking to me. 18 Please do not go away until I come back and bring my offering and set it before you.”
And the Lord said, “I will wait until you return.” Judges 6:17,18
We continue to see God’s patience with Gideon as he builds Gideon’s trust and confidence. The Lord said, “I will wait.” Another wonderful example that every parent needs but especially those with a child characterized with learning differences.
What did Gideon’s offering consist of? Let’s see.
19 Gideon went inside, prepared a young goat, and from an ephah[a] of flour he made bread without yeast. Putting the meat in a basket and its broth in a pot, he brought them out and offered them to him under the oak.
20 The angel of God said to him, “Take the meat and the unleavened bread, place them on this rock,and pour out the broth.” And Gideon did so. Judges 6: 19,20
As we think about this process, there were a lot of steps. He prepared a young goat. He probably had to go and hunt it first. He had to make the bread. Not a fast process! This may of taken several hours to prepare. He’s already with his offering and remember God has been waiting on Gideon this entire time. This is not like going to the grocery store deli and picking up a rotisserie chicken on the way home from work!
Alright, the offering is prepared and God is waiting. What next? God tells Gideon to pour out the food on a rock. What? Gideon had been working all day on this and he throws it out on a rock! The text tells us, “And Gideon did so.” Gideon immediately obeyed the voice of God! Gideon did the work because it was proper to give an offering for the Lord. God was
patient with Gideon but God’s word was final.
God sometimes asks each person to do something that doesn’t make sense in human wisdom. As each person walks with the Lord and is in relationship with Him, he/she learns to trust in the Lord’s wisdom and realize that his/her responsibility is to offer his best. God may take it and use it or ask us to pour it out. The person’s responsibility is to respond in obedience to the Lord.
