Destroying Idols

My name is Matthew Capone, and I'm the pastor here at Cheyenne Mountain Presbyterian Church,

and it's my joy to bring God's Word to you today.

A special welcome if you are new or visiting with us.

We're glad that you're here, and we're glad that you're here not because we're trying to fill seats,

but because we're following Jesus together as one community.

And as we follow Jesus together, we become convinced that there's no one so good.

They don't need God's grace, and no one so bad that they can't have it,

which is why we come back week after week to hear what God has to say to us in His Word.

We're continuing our series in the book of Judges,

and you'll remember that the book of Judges is about a number of things.

It's about the need for constant renewal and revival among God's people.

It's about the need for a faithful and true king,

a king who can do what no human can do, which is to change the hearts of men.

It's about the power of spirit-filled leadership,

and it's about God's grace to hard-hearted and rebellious people,

people like you and me.

Last week, we began the story of Gideon, and we asked this big question,

why is it that God calls Gideon a mighty man of valor,

since everything in Gideon's resume and his actions would suggest otherwise?

And we saw that Gideon was a mighty man of valor because,

and only because, God was with him.

That God does not call the qualified, but instead, He qualifies the called.

This week, we're going to continue the story of Gideon,

and we'll see that Gideon has to make a choice.

Is he going to serve the true God or false gods?

Of course, a choice that all of us have to make as well.

And so, a simple question this morning for this passage is,

why is it worth taking a risk for God?

Why is it worth taking a risk for God?

We'll look at two things.

We'll see first the destruction of idols,

and then the powerlessness of idols.

The destruction of idols, and then the powerlessness of idols.

It's with that that I invite you to turn with me to Judges 6,

starting at verse 25.

You can turn in your worship guide.

You can turn on your phone.

You can turn in your Bible.

And no matter where you turn,

remember that Proverbs 30 tells us,

every word of God proves true.

He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him.

And so, that's why we read now,

Judges 6, starting at verse 25.

That night the Lord said to him,

Take your father's bull and the second bull 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 the top of the stronghold here,

with stones laid in due order.

Then take the second bull and offer it as a burnt offering

with the wood of the Asherah that you shall cut down.

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.

Verse 28.

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 the 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, the 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 morning.

If he is a god, let him contend for himself,

because his altar has been broken down.

Verse 32.

Therefore on that day Gideon was called Jeroboam,

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 Abizrites were called out 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, Zebulun, and Naphtali,

and they went up to meet them.

I invite you to pray with me

as we come to this portion of God's word.

Our Father in heaven,

we thank you once again for your word

that you've given to us,

that you haven't left us to stumble around

trying to put the pieces together on our own,

but instead you've given us your word

to show us the way to walk in this life.

And most of all, our hope,

that our hope is in you.

And we ask that you would do that again this morning,

that you would arrest our attention,

that we would see clearly

what you have for us in your word,

and most of all,

that we would see Jesus

and the hope that we have in him.

We are helpless to do this by ourselves,

and so we ask that you would

pour your spirit out on us in a special way,

that we would be able to hear clearly from you

and respond with faith and love and obedience.

We ask these things

in the mighty name of Jesus Christ.

Amen.

You'll remember from last week

that the Israelites have been oppressed.

Once again, we see another judge's cycle

by another foreign nation.

And so they cry out to God asking him,

hey, will you come deliver us?

And God, instead of immediately

sending them deliverance,

instead sends them a prophet to tell them,

hey, this is how you guys have gone off the map.

And so in verse 10, we saw the prophet said,

hey, this has happened

because you have gone serving after other gods.

It's not a mystery

how you've gotten yourselves into this situation.

No, you did exactly what I told you not to do.

You feared gods other than me.

This week, we get to see exactly what that means.

We saw it in a big picture last week,

and now we get to zoom in.

It turns out within Gideon's own family,

there is worship of false gods going on.

Gideon's own father, Joash,

this is what we see in verse 25,

has two different things set up.

He has an altar that he's established to Baal.

Baal is this male god that they would worship.

And he has an Asherah pole.

Asherah was a goddess.

She would have these poles

that might be a tree or something else.

Some folks think that these were actually carved

to look like her.

So he has not just one,

but two idols that he set up.

This is not just someone in Gideon's tribe.

It is someone in Gideon's very family.

Not just in his family,

but his own father.

And God comes then to Gideon,

this mighty man of valor,

and wastes no time in giving him his first task.

This is verse 25.

Take your father's bull,

pull down the altar of Baal,

cut down the Asherah that is beside it.

Gideon must destroy the pagan worship

that is occurring in his very own family.

And so, verse 27, Gideon obeys.

Gideon goes and does it.

We find out he does it with fear and trembling.

We're told also in verse 27,

he did it at night

because he was too afraid of his family

and the men of the town to do it by day.

Now, we might be tempted

to throw Gideon under the bus at this point

and say, look at him and his fear.

But God didn't tell him he couldn't do it at night.

In the midst of his fear and hesitation,

at the end of the day,

Gideon does what God commands.

Gideon is obedient and faithful

despite the consequences that might come.

He doesn't do what we saw Barak do.

Remember, Barak said, I'll obey if.

I'll obey if Deborah comes with me.

No, Gideon, in all his imperfection and humanity

and trembling and fear,

goes and does what God has told him to do.

We find out that Gideon has every reason to be afraid.

Townspeople wake up the next morning.

They discover that the Asherah pole has been cut down,

the altar has been destroyed,

and what is their first response?

Verse 30, let's kill him.

Gideon is not simply afraid here

of being ostracized socially.

He's not afraid that some people might say

some mean things about him around town.

No, he is too afraid.

He's doing this at night

because his very life might be at risk.

He is not afraid of disapproval.

Gideon is actually afraid of death.

This also reminds us that Israel

has not actually repented of her idolatry.

Last week, they cried out to God saying,

look, we're oppressed by these other nations.

Please come and help us.

But as we said that then, they didn't repent.

They continue to have the altar to Baal

in the Asherah pole.

Now, we're gonna come back to what happens next

with Gideon, how his skin is able to be saved,

but I don't want us to miss what has just happened here.

It is not simply or merely

that Gideon has to tear down the false worship.

Verse 25, there's a tearing down.

Verse 26, there's a replacing.

God doesn't just say, hey, do away with this idol worship.

26, and build an altar to the Lord your God

on top of the stronghold.

And then, go and make a sacrifice.

When we're told, verse 27,

that Gideon did as the Lord commanded,

it does not simply mean

that he pulled down the altar and the pole.

It means that he also stood up the new altar,

made the new sacrifice.

The point is this.

The human heart will worship something.

It is not enough to remove one thing.

It must be replaced with another thing.

We cannot move from worshiping one idol

to worshiping nothing.

No, our hearts are designed to give something,

our trust, our hope, our confidence, our desires.

And so, if they merely pull down this altar

and there's nothing new to replace it,

what is going to happen?

Well, of course, that vacuum in their heart

is going to be filled by something.

They must replace their false worship

with true worship.

It's not enough to tear down.

They must also build up.

It's just like we discussed many times

when we were in the Gospel of Mark.

One love must be replaced by another love

because the heart will love something.

Now, remember that Gideon asked this question

in verse 13 of last week.

When the angel comes to him, he says,

God, why has this happened to us?

Why are we not experiencing the success

we're told our fathers recalled to us?

The angel tells them, remember verse 10,

hey, not the angel, the prophet had already told them,

look, you were fearing other gods.

In other words, this foreign nation

that has come in to take you over,

they are merely a symptom of a greater disease.

The disease is not the fact that the Amorites are there.

The disease is your idolatry.

You cannot expect to be rescued from this foreign nation

until you are rescued from false worship.

We cannot deal with the symptom

until we eradicate the disease.

And so God is telling Gideon here,

look, cut it out at the root.

Do you want deliverance from the foreign nations?

You must first be delivered from idols.

You want no more oppression.

You don't want to be hiding in the caves anymore,

threshing out wheat in wine presses.

You have to deal with your heart.

And so the point for us

is just like the old proverb says,

everyone wants to be a gangster

until it's time to do gangster things.

Everyone wants revival

until it's time to do revival things.

Everyone wants a mighty work of God

until it's time to pull down the altar to Baal.

Everyone wants a mighty work of God

until it's time to take an unpopular stand

that the world will mock you for.

Everyone wants a mighty work of God

until the moment that we don't just talk about the sin

that's out there in the world,

but we have to talk about the sin

that's in here in God's church.

We have to repent of our own tongues

and selfishness and pride and greed.

Everyone wants a mighty work of God

until it involves us confessing our sins

to a brother or a sister.

Everyone wants a mighty work of God

until the moment we have to forgive our enemies

and pray for those who persecute us.

Everyone wants a mighty work of God

until the moment

that love for God and others

becomes more important

than personal achievement

and peak experiences.

Everyone wants a mighty work of God

until the moment we talk about giving generously

for the kingdom of God.

In other words,

mighty works of God require

and always require sacrifice

and repentance from his people.

Everyone wants revival

until it's time to do revival things.

We see here Gideon does exactly that.

Gideon takes the risk.

Gideon faces rejection by his family.

Doesn't just risk rejection by his family,

although Joash does come in to save him.

Faces rejection by the town.

Even more than that,

he faces potential death.

I mentioned last week in verses 8 through 10

that we see the logic of redemption,

that God's salvation comes before our obedience.

It's deliverance followed by obedience,

not obedience followed by deliverance.

In other words,

we don't earn things from God

or prove things to him.

No, he comes,

as Roman 5 tells us,

Christ died for us while we were still sinners.

But, and,

obedience does follow.

There is a call to obedience

before success in battle.

There is a call to obedience

before God clears these oppressors from his people.

Again, it's the same thing we heard our Lord Jesus say

when we were in Mark,

in Mark chapter 8.

Mark 8 · chapter mention

If anyone would come after me,

let him deny himself

and take up his cross and follow me.

For whoever would save his life will lose it.

But whoever loses his life for my sake

and the gospel's will save it.

For what does it profit a man

to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?

Do we really want a mighty work of God?

Gideon,

in the midst of his frailty and fear and humanity,

is willing to pay the price.

Are we willing to do the same?

We see this dynamic also in verses 25 through 26.

What is it that Gideon has to do?

He's not just making a generic sacrifice.

No, he is taking one of his father's bulls to sacrifice.

In other words,

what was meant for idolatry.

In other words,

this bull was almost certainly meant

to be sacrificed on Baal's altar,

is repurposed and redirected.

What was meant for idolatry

is used for worship of the true God.

That's what turning away from idolatry looks like.

It means taking what was dedicated to false gods

and giving it to the true God.

It means that our resources and our time

are turned over

from the things that capture our hearts.

And they're given to God and his kingdom.

We still haven't answered our question, though,

which is this.

Why is it worth taking a risk for God?

Why is it worth Gideon stepping out here

and risking his own death?

Well, we turn back to the story

and we see what saves Gideon's skin

in this situation is his father, Joash.

Joash understands a key in elementary,

a theological principle.

Verse 31, he says this.

They're coming, by the way, for Gideon's life.

They're saying, hey, let's find him and kill him.

And Gideon says, will you contend for Baal

or will you save him?

He threatens to kill anyone who tries.

And then he says this.

If he is a god, let him contend for himself

because his altar has been broken down.

In other words, idolatry, fake gods,

are just one big psyop.

The false gods are actually powerless.

Joash knows this.

And so he's betting on it.

We will have Baal protect himself

so nothing will happen.

Because what is Baal

but someone weak, powerless, non-existent?

And so Joash is reminding us

of an extremely important truth,

the simple fact that idols have no real power.

Success will not bring you the healing

that you long for.

Money cannot protect you

from pain and heartbreak and disease.

Sex cannot give your life meaning

or resolve the questions you have

about your identity.

If you pile things up

and you're surrounded by trinkets,

you will still be left feeling empty.

Let Baal defend himself.

Why?

Because false gods cannot deliver on their promises.

False gods cannot give the hope they promise.

Why is it worth taking a risk for God?

Because he is not a false god.

The flip side is this,

that Yahweh, the God of Israel,

has real and true power.

Gideon decides and prepares to go out to war.

That's what we see in verse 33.

All these enemy tribes are gathering up against him.

The Midianites, the Amalekites,

of the people of the east,

are in an alliance.

They cross the Jordan

and they encamp in this valley.

He has three different groups

who are coming against him.

Gideon here should be shaking in his boots.

Verse 34,

But.

But what?

Why is he not shaking in his boots?

But the spirit of the Lord clothed Gideon.

God makes good on his promise.

God does exactly what he said he would do

in last week's passage.

Remember, he told Gideon over and over

as Gideon shared with him his concerns

and his lack of resume.

He said,

But I will be with you.

And what do we see here

but that very thing?

God clothes him with his spirit

so that he has all the power he needs

to follow God's command.

Brothers and sisters,

we have seen an even greater demonstration

of God's power.

We know even more of God's love

and power and authority

than Gideon could ever dream.

We have seen his demonstration

when he sent his only son,

our Lord Jesus,

to live the perfect life

that we should have lived on this earth

and to die the death

that we deserved.

And we see the type of power

that is at work

that Ephesians tells us

is accessible to us

when he raises Jesus from the dead.

In other words,

it is resurrection power

that is at work in you, Christian.

You have even greater reason

to hope than Gideon.

It is the power

that God uses

to save hard-hearted people.

It is the power

that was strong enough

to raise Jesus from the dead

and is powerful enough

to raise us as well.

It is the power

that gives us great hope

and confidence

as 1 Peter 1 tells us.

We have this inheritance in heaven.

And he describes it in this way.

The inheritance is imperishable,

undefiled,

and unfading.

In other words,

there is nothing

that happens here on earth

that can touch

or affect your inheritance there.

Why is God worth

taking a risk for?

Because he has real power

to really save.

He gives us

the only hope

that can deliver

on its promises.

He does for us

what he does for Gideon.

The spirit of the Lord

clothed him.

That's why we follow him.

That's why we obey him.

That's why we trust him.

That's why we sing to him.

Let's pray.

Let's pray.

Our Father in heaven,

we praise you

and thank you

that Jesus is not

an idea

or a suggestion

or a teaching,

but he is a person.

He is God

who became man,

who came down,

demonstrated your great love

and your great power

so that we could follow

after you

with confidence and hope.

And we ask

that you would be at work

in our lives,

that we would be willing

to take a risk for you.

That we would be willing

to stand for what's true

and to follow you

when it's hard

because we know

that you are the one

and only true

and living God.

That everything else

that makes us promises

and gives us hope

ultimately is a lie.

We thank you

that that's not true

of your son

and our savior,

our Lord Jesus.

And so we pray

all of these things

in his name.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.