What to Do When the Odds are Against You | God Gets the Glory

God is looking for men and women that will shine their lights in our very dark world. Our culture has never needed that light more than today. Coming up on a new beginning, Pastor Greg Laurie points out how to make ourselves useful for kingdom purposes. God can do more with a handful of people that are fully committed than he can with thousands who aren't.

Sometimes we may think that our effort by itself doesn't count for much. Maybe we're the only believer in our family, or the only Christian at work, or the only one in our group of friends at school. The odds are against us. Well today on The New Beginning, Pastor Greg Laurie takes us to one of the most encouraging stories in the Old Testament. We'll catch up with a military leader about to fight a battle. when God told him to send most of his army home. so that God alone would get credit for the victory.

The day when life begins. So My wife and I were with another couple the other night and They were asking us, Is one of you the neater one or one the messier one in your relationship? Oh, yes, we said. Definitely. So he asked, Well, who's the messy one? I said, Oh, it's Kathy. She is so messy. I said, we go to a hotel room. She trashes them like a rock star. It's so embarrassing. She's the messiest person I've ever met.

They're both, him and his wife are like, Wow, I can't believe it. I said, I'm joking. It's the very opposite is the case. She's very neat, very organized, always tidying up. Right after she makes a meal, she's cleaning it up. She washes my clothes while I'm still wearing them. And I have to say, it's very traumatizing the time I've spent in a dryer. I don't like it at all. But so it's not that at all. But but I bring this up because sometimes in life, You know, we don't quite finish a job. I'll start a project at home and I won't finish it. Kathy always finishes what she begins.

And I think in life the same can happen. We say, I'm going to commit this area to the Lord, and I'm going to be disciplined in this other area, but then a little time passes, I make a compromise here, I neglect something else there, and then I live to regret it later in life. We don't think about the long-lasting repercussions of our actions on our lives. On our children's lives, on our grandchildren's lives, and even our great-grandchildren's lives. There is cause and effect. There is action and reaction.

So we have to think about that. So what we're about to read picks up where Joshua leaves off. About 200 years later, we find out what happened to Israel when they didn't do what God told them to do in the book of Joshua. So as we come to this story. We see things are spiritually and morally upside down. In fact, there's a verse, Judges 17:6, that sums it up. It says, In those days Israel had no king, so the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.

Let me do a 60s paraphrase. Everyone was doing their own thing. And is that not a description of what is happening in America today? We're all doing our own thing. We're disregarding God. We're taking the Bible. We're deconstructing it. We're saying we don't believe this anymore. We're going to redefine what a man is. We're going to redefine what a woman is. We're going to redefine what the family is. We're going to do whatever seems right in our own eyes.

And now, as we sow the wind, we're reaping the whirlwind. And the Midianites, in this case, are in control. So as our story begins, we find Gideon. Preparing the little wheat that he had, husband Behind the walls of a small wine press. hardly a picture of heroism or courage. But this is the man that God shows.

The angel of the Lord appeared. and said to him, Mighty hero, The Lord is with you. Gideon said, O my Lord. If the Lord is with us, and why has all of this happened to us? And where are all of his miracles which our fathers told us about, saying, Did not the Lord bring us from Egypt? But now, Gideon says, the Lord has forsaken us and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites.

Then the Lord turned to him and said, Go in this might of yours, and you will save Israel from the hand of the Midianites. Gideon isn't seeing it. He says in verse 15, Lord, how can I save Israel? Indeed, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I'm the least in my father's house. Another translation puts it this way: I'm the runt of the litter. I'm the lowest of the low. That's how he felt.

And now we see some very interesting principles on the kind of man or woman that God will use. If you're taking notes, here's point number one. God uses people who are humble. God uses people who are humble. They're not proud. They're not arrogant. They see themselves for what they are. God tells Gideon what he's going to do through him. In verse 15, Gideon says, Who am I? The Lord effectively says, doesn't matter who you are. The real question is, who am I? Listen, buddy, it's me working through you.

Now, a series of tests come to Gideon. To prepare him for what he is about to do. The first test happened in his home. The Lord said, Okay. Here's what I want you to do. I want you to go home. And your dad, Joash, built an altar to Baal, a false god. I want you to tear it down. Gideon's like, ugh. Okay, you know, but he loved his dad, he respected his father. Obviously, this is going to cause a lot of tension to tear down his father's altar to Baal.

But he does it. But he does it at night because he was afraid of what his father would think. He was afraid of what the people would think. He did tear the altar down. But he did it at night, bringing me to principle number two. If you want to be used by God, you need to be faithful in the little things. Be faithful in the little things. God gave him a little test, a bigger one was coming.

Here's a little test. Just go take care of this. Tear down that altar. God says get a bunch of men together Start forming your army. incredibly, impressively Gideon manages to form an army of 32,000 men. This is what happened next. Judges 7, verse 2. The Lord said to Gideon, You have too many warriors with you. If I let you all fight the Midianites, the Israelites will boast to me that they save themselves by their own strength.

Therefore tell the people, whoever is timid or afraid, they can leave this mountain and go home. So 22,000 of them went home. leaving only 10,000 willing to fight. Wow. Hey, if you don't want to fight, go home. 22,000 guys. See ya, man. Wow. Now he's down to ten thousand men. What a disappointment. God was putting Gideon in a place. Where, if the Lord didn't come through for him, he was dead in the water, and sometimes the Lord does this.

It'll pull away our security blanket. We don't have all the backup plans in place. And we're facing an emergency, we're facing a crisis, we're facing a problem. It might be a financial crisis, it might be a health crisis, it might be a family crisis, and it's getting worse and worse. And you need to just call out and say, Lord, if you don't come through for me, I don't have any hope, but that's not a bad place to be because that means you're in complete dependence upon God.

So sometimes the Lord will allow this to happen, so we will realize the only way out is Him. There will be times in life where you will face what seem to be insurmountable obstacles, like the Red Sea, he wants you to get through. Or the towering walls of a Jericho, he wants you. To fell. or a frightening giant like Goliath he wants you to defeat.

But there's God doing his part, and then there's us doing our part. There's always his part and our part. The Red Sea parted. But Israel had to march through. The walls of Jericho fell, but Israel still had to march around them. The giant Goliath fell, but David still had to attack him.

So Gideon says to the men that don't want to fight, okay, go home to mommy. Now he's down to a much smaller fighting force. Why did he dismiss those men? Because fear is contagious. Listen to this. If you're looking for an easy life, If you're looking for a life with no conflict, with no challenge, Go home, Namami. Because the Christian life is not an easy life.

It is a life where you will face spiritual warfare. It is a life where you will need to resist temptation. It is a life where you will need to obey God and be countercultural in almost every way imaginable, and perhaps even more so right now than I can remember. But here's the thing: it is the only life that is worthwhile following Jesus Christ.

Pastor Greg Laurie will have the second half of his message in just a moment. Oh. We love hearing from our listeners, whether it's a short word or they take time to tell us what's going on with them. Pastor Greg, I found you after watching the film Jesus Revolution. We had two packed theaters. One of our churches in our community bought up both theaters. And it was such a blessing. I looked you up after that, and I found your podcast and harvest.org.

I use all your resources, Pastor Greg, and I love them. And I pray that we'll have another awakening, another Jesus revolution. And I just pray we all live long enough. to see it happen and I thank you again for all you do. Do you have a story to share with Pastor Greg? If so, call him and tell him about it. The number is 1-866-871-1144. That's 866-871-1144.

We're watching Gideon prepare for battle with his army of 32,000 when the Lord told him to send more than two-thirds of his army home. Pastor Gregg is highlighting the spiritual lessons to be learned. Now one final test. Judges 7, verse 4. The Lord told Gideon, you still have too many. Bring them down to the spring, and I will sort out who will go with you and who will not.

When Gideon took his warriors down to the water, the Lord said, Divide them into two groups, and one group put all those who cup water in their hands, and the other group put all those who kneel down and drink with their mouths in the stream. This reminds me of something that happened years ago. We were in Israel leading a tour. And we came to Gideon Spring, the actual place where this happened.

So I wanted to illustrate, and I said to one of our pastors, Steve Wilburn, I said, Steve. I need you to go down to the water, and I need you to take the water and cup it in your hand and drink it so I can point to you and use you as an illustration. He said, boss, I'm going to do it. And he went down there. That's how Steve talks, by the way.

And so I'm giving the little message on Gideon, and I said, Look, this is the way they drank the water. And Steve's down there drinking the water, and suddenly I notice a sign that says, Do not drink water. It's toxic and poisonous. Oh no. We're going to have to pray for Steve to be raised from the dead.

Fortunately, he was okay. So here are the guys drinking the water. We could divide him into two categories. We'll call them the lappers and the cuppers. The loppers could have been easily ambushed and killed. They just have their face buried in the water, drinking, not alert to what's going on around them.

But the cuppers, those who kneeled bringing the water to their lips, were alert. cautious watching The Lord said, That's it. Now he's got it down to 3% of the original 10,000. This is the delta force. These are the green berets. These are the Army Rangers. These are the SWAT team. These are the elite ones now that God is going to use.

The Lord says, okay, here's a battle plan. You ready? Yes. You're going to break them in into two groups. And here's what you do: in one hand, you're going to hold a torch. Fire. Put a clay pot over it. And in the other hand you hold a sword? No. A little knife? No knife. A trumpet. Really? Isn't this like what happened at Jericho where they're marching around blowing trumpets? What is the thing with trumpets? A trumpet. A torch and a trumpet. Okay. Then what?

So you run down the hill, you just say, For the Lord and for Gideon. You smash the clay pot, they see the torch, blow your little trumpet. That's it? That's it. Wow. And that's exactly what they did. They come running down the hill at night. Boom, they break the pot. Now the enemy see the flame. They blow their trumpet, the sword of the Lord and of Gideon.

The Midianites completely freak out. They're so disoriented, they don't know what's happening, and they start attacking each other and kill themselves. And God gave to Israel the victory. It's so crazy. But it's classic. And the Lord did it in such a way so he would get all the glory.

So what's the takeaway truth of all of this? Simple. God is looking. for men and women. Today. that will shine their lights. in our very dark world. He's looking for people. Who will make a stand for their faith wherever they are, starting with their family?

Because there's a lot of people that I would describe as fair weather followers. You know, they say they're Christians. But they won't make the stand. They're like the people that were fearful and afraid. But then there are those that are really committed. And they say, I want to be used by God. I wonder if some of you are here right now.

God can do more with a handful of people that are fully committed than he can with thousands who aren't. Will you be a real committed follower of Jesus Christ? God can do a lot with a little. If you don't believe me, when you get to heaven, ask the little boy that offered his loaves and fish. He offered what he had. God multiplied it, and God used it for his glory.

You know, when Jesus walked this earth, A lot of people started following him. Especially after he did his most popular of all of his miracles. And which one do you think that was? When he healed blind Bartimaeus? No. When he healed the leprous man? Again, no. How about when he raised Lazarus from the dead? No, that wasn't it either.

It's when he provided free lunch and multiplied those loaves and fishes. They're like, you know, resurrection from the dead's great, but free food. Now we're talking. Yeah. And the crowd swell. And they're following Jesus. And Jesus actually challenged them. And he offered some hard words to them, and thousands of them turned away.

And he turned to his own disciples and he said, Will you also go away? They said, Lord, where else are we going to go? You alone have the words of eternal life. There's an interesting little passage at the end of the Gospel of John. It says that many believed in him when they saw. the signs that he did.

But Jesus did not commit himself to them. Another way to translate that would be many Believed in him, but he didn't believe in them. Why? It tells us: because he knew it was in the heart of man. He could see that their faith was fickle. He could see that their commitment was not genuine.

So he did not commit himself to them. But then John 3 starts: Now, there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus who came to Jesus at night, and we see the Lord unfolding. the truths of the kingdom of God to this man named Nicodemus. Who came by night? Nick at night. If you laughed, you're old, because that's a really dated reference, but it's all good.

And I've been using it a long time. But Why did Jesus open his heart to Nicodemus when he effectively closed it to these other people? Because Nicodemus really wanted to know God. And those other people did not. Yeah, Gideon came And did what he did at night, and so did Nicodemus. But the LORD opened the truth up to him, and he said, You must be born again.

So, God. Revealed himself to Nicodemus because the Bible says, Those that seek me will find me. So when I meet someone who says, well, I'm seeking God. My test as to whether or not they're seeking God is how they react to the gospel. It's interesting when someone says, Well, I'm seeking God. Really, let me tell you what the Bible says.

Wait, put that away. When it's just a bite, put it away. Don't quote the Bible to me, man. Wait, I thought you were seeking God. I am. Have you ever read the Bible? No. Can I tell you a verse from the Bible? No. Wait, if you're seeking God, if you're seeking truth, why will you not even listen to what the Bible says?

Answer, they're not seeking God. Because God says, I will reveal myself to those that seek me. So if you really want to know truth, you'll at least be open to what the scripture says. And here's what the scripture says. It's what Jesus said to Nicodemus: For God so loved the world, He gave His only begotten Son. And whosoever believes in him shall not perish, but have everlasting life.

That's the gospel truth. That's the gospel in a nutshell. And that's what Jesus said to Nicodemus, and that's what he says to all of us right now. So, in closing, Maybe I'm talking to somebody that has had the bottom in life dropout. Maybe you've realized your dreams and then some. Maybe you've checked all those boxes that you thought you should check to make you happy, and there's something missing still.

It's not something, it's someone. It's Jesus you're looking for. And He's here with us right now in this place. Speaking to you. Standing at the door of your life, and he is knocking. And he's saying, If you'll hear his voice and open the door, he will come in.

So if you need Jesus to come into your life and forgive you of your sin, That can happen for you right here, right now. In a moment we're going to bow our heads and pray. I'm going to extend an invitation for anyone here. That wants to find what you've always been looking for.

You know, when I was a little boy, I lived with my grandparents for a few years. And I would go to bed at night. and I would pull the covers over my head, And I would talk to an imaginary character that I made up, and I named him Mr. Nobody. And I would tell Mr. Nobody all of my problems.

Sad thing is, I was 30 when this happened, but. No, I was actually very, very young. And I would tell him what was troubling me. I would tell him what happened to me that day. I was reaching out. I didn't know who to talk to. And one day I realized, Mister, nobody had a name. It was Jesus.

My little boy Way, with as little as I knew, I was trying to find God. and he revealed himself to me. as he will reveal himself to you if you really want to know him. Let's pray. Father, I pray you'll speak to the heart of. Every person here, every person listening, watching, wherever they may be, if they don't know you, let this be the day. They believe.

That the moment they're forgiven of all of their sins, we commit them to you now. Amen. Pastor Greg Laurie, with an important prayer for those who are feeling the need to make a change today in their relationship with the Lord. If you feel the Lord nudging you, well, Pastor Greg wants to help you take the next step.

Would you like Jesus Christ to come into your life? Would you like your sin forgiven? Would you like to fill the hole in your soul? Would you like to go to heaven when you die? If so, Just stop what you're doing. And pray this prayer with me.

You can pray it out loud if you like, you can pray it in the quietness of your heart if you choose, but. Pray this prayer. This is a prayer of asking Jesus Christ to come into your life. Pray these words. Lord Jesus, I know that I'm a sinner. But I know that you're the Saviour. who died on the cross for my sin and rose again from the dead, I turn from that sin now, and I choose to follow you From this moment forward, the Thank you for hearing this prayer.

In answering this prayer, In Jesus' name I pray. Amen. Hey, did you just pray that prayer? If so, I want to Congratulates you. It'd be the first to say, welcome to the family of God. Yeah, that's right. And we want to help you get started in this new walk with the Lord.

We want to send you Pastor Gregg's New Believers Bible. It's an easy-to-understand translation, and it features hundreds of helps, especially for new believers. It'll answer many of your questions and help you build a strong foundation for your faith. We'll send it free of charge, so get in touch and ask for the New Believer's Bible.

You can call 1-800-821-3300. Call anytime, 1-800-821-3300. Or go online to harvest.org and click Know God. Now, a few minutes ago Pastor Gregg mentioned the movie Fame, produced here at Harvest, that explores the lure and the dangers of fame and fortune.

You can watch that for free on our Harvest Plus app. It's a powerful movie. Check it out for free on our Harvest Plus app. Yeah. And then let us take a moment to thank you for praying for this ministry and for supporting it through your generous donation.

It's an investment in kingdom business. Isn't that right, Pastor Greg? Yeah, it's really true, Dave. And I believe it's so important because, you know, the gospel saves lives. It saves eternal lives. Because when a person believes in Jesus, according to Scripture, they pass from darkness to light, from the power of Satan to the power of God.

And then, of course, that changes the course of their future. That impacts their children and their children's children. The gospel changes everything. And thousands and thousands of people respond every single year. Thanks to the Lord. Also, thanks to you for your investment in this ministry, enabling us to reach people. Wherever they are.

So if this is something you care about, I encourage you to make a financial investment. And a new beginning in Harvest Ministries. Yeah, that's right. And we really do appreciate your support. Thanks for partnering with us today. It can make a real difference, not just for today or this week, but for eternity.

So get in touch with your support today by calling 1-800-821-3300. That's a 24-7 phone number, 1-800-821-3300. Or write a new beginning box 4000, Riverside, California, 92514, or go online to harvest.org.

You know, sometimes the bottom just drops out of our lives. We don't see it coming, and we're left reeling, wondering what to do. So many questions, so few answers. Well, next time, Pastor Greg addresses those life-altering crises head-on with important insight from God's Word and from his own experience.

Join us here on A New Beginning with Pastor and Bible teacher, Greg Laurie. This is the day, the day when life begins.