It was dry on the fleece only, but there was dew on all the ground. Judges 6:40.

Gideon deeply felt his own insufficiency for the great work before him. He dared not place himself at the head of the army without positive evidence that God had called him to this work and that He would be with him. He prayed, “If thou wilt save Israel by mine hand, as thou hast said, 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.”

The Lord granted the prayer of His servant. In the morning the fleece was wet while the ground was dry. But now unbelief suggested that wool naturally absorbs moisture when there is any in the air, and that the test was not decisive. Hence, he asked a renewal of the sign, humbly pleading that unbelief might not move the Lord to anger. His request was granted.

The Lord does not always choose for His work people of the greatest talents, but He selects those whom He can best use….

God will accept the services of all who will work in obedience to His will, who will not for any consideration bring a stain upon the conscience, who will not permit any influence to lead them from the path of duty. If we choose, we may make the record of our lives such as we shall not be ashamed to own when the secrets of all hearts shall stand revealed, and everyone’s work shall be weighed in the balances of truth. The Lord employs men and women as His colaborers, but let none imagine that they are essential to the work of God, that they cannot be dispensed with.

The teachable and trusting ones, having a right purpose and a pure heart, need not wait for great occasions or for extraordinary abilities before they employ their powers. They should not stand irresolute, questioning, and fearing what the world will say or think of them. We are not to weary ourselves with anxious care, but to go on, quietly performing with faithfulness the work which God assigns us, and leaving the result wholly with Him….

Let the daily life be a reflection of the life of Christ, and the testimony thus borne to the world will have a powerful influence…. The great contest of truth against error must be carried forward by men and women who kindle their taper at the divine altar.—Signs of the Times, June 23, 1881.

From From the Heart

The Lord said to him, “… tear down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the wooden image that is beside it.” Judges 6:25.

The deliverer of Israel must declare war upon idolatry before he went to battle with the enemies of his people. He must esteem the honor of God above the credit of his father and regard the divine commands as more obligatory than parental authority.

The offering of sacrifice unto the Lord had been committed to the priests and Levites and had been restricted to the altar at Shiloh, but He who had established the Jewish economy, and to whom all its services pointed, had power to change its requirements. In this instance He saw fit to depart from the ritual appointment. It was of great importance that the deliverance of Israel should be preceded by a solemn protest against the worship of Baal and an acknowledgment of Jehovah as the only true and living God.

When the men of the city, early in the morning, came to pay their devotions to Baal, they were greatly surprised and enraged at what had taken place. Soon it was known that Gideon had done this, and then nothing but his blood could satisfy those deluded idolaters….

Gideon had told his father, Joash, of the Angel’s visit and the promise that Israel should be delivered. He also related to him the divine command to destroy the altar of Baal. The Spirit of God moved upon the heart of Joash. He saw that the gods whom he had worshipped had no power even to save themselves from utter destruction, and hence they could not protect their worshippers. When the idolatrous multitude clamored for the death of Gideon, Joash fearlessly stood in his defense and endeavored to show the people how powerless and unworthy of trust or adoration were their gods: “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.” …

All thoughts of violence were dismissed, and when, moved by the Spirit of the Lord, Gideon sounded the trumpet of war, they were among the first to gather to him. He then sent messengers throughout his own tribe of Manasseh, and also to Asher, Zebulon, and Naphtali, and all cheerfully obeyed the call….

Evil may seem for a time to prevail, but in the end righteousness will gain the victory.—Signs of the Times, June 23, 1881.

From From the Heart

If now I have found favor in Your sight, then show me a sign that it is You who talk with me. Judges 6:17.

Gideon desired some token that the One now addressing him was the same that spoke to Moses in the burning bush. The angel had veiled the divine glory of His presence, but it was none other than Christ, the Son of God. When a prophet or an angel delivered a divine message, his words were, “The Lord saith, I will do this,” but it is stated of the Person who talked with Gideon, “The Lord said unto him, Surely I will be with thee.”

Desiring to show special honor to his illustrious Visitor, and having obtained the assurance that the Angel would tarry, Gideon hastened to his tent, and out of his scanty store prepared a kid and unleavened cakes, which he brought forth to set before Him. Gideon was poor, yet he was ready to use hospitality without grudging.

As the gift was presented, the Angel said, “Take the flesh and unleavened cakes, and lay them upon this rock, and pour out the broth.” Gideon did so, and then the Lord gave him the sign which he desired. With the staff in His hand, the Angel touched the flesh and the unleavened cakes, and a fire rose up out of the rock and consumed the whole as a sacrifice, and not as a hospitable meal; for He was God, and not man. After this token of His divine character, the Angel disappeared.

When convinced that he had looked upon the Son of God, Gideon was filled with fear, and exclaimed, “Alas, O Lord God! for because I have seen an angel of the Lord face to face.” Then the Lord graciously appeared to Gideon a second time and said, “Peace be unto thee; fear not: thou shalt not die.” …

The family to which Gideon belonged was grievously infected with idolatry. His father erected at Ophrah, where he dwelt, a large altar to Baal, at which the people of the towns worshipped. Gideon was commanded to destroy this altar, to cut down the groves that surrounded it, and in its stead to erect an altar to Jehovah, over the rock on which the offering had been consumed, and then to offer a sacrifice unto the Lord. Gideon faithfully carried out these directions, performing the work by night, lest he should be compelled to desist if he attempted it by day.—Signs of the Times, June 23, 1881.

From From the Heart

So Israel was greatly impoverished because of the Midianites, and the children of Israel cried out to the Lord. Judges 6:6.

Alas, that in the history of God’s chosen people the sorrowful story of apostasy and its punishment must be so oft repeated! …

Because of their sins, the protecting hand of God was withdrawn from Israel, and they were left to the mercies of their enemies. The wild, fierce inhabitants of the desert [the Midianites and Amalekites], “as grasshoppers for multitude,” came swarming into the land with their flocks and herds and pitched their tents in plain and valley. They came as soon as the harvests began to ripen and remained until the last fruits of the earth had been gathered. They stripped the fields of their increase and robbed and maltreated the inhabitants, and then returned to the deserts….

For seven years this oppression continued, and then in their distress the people remembered Him who had so often delivered them; and they cried unto the Lord for help….

Their prayers were heard, and again the Lord sent forth the man of His choice to act as deliverer for Israel. The one thus selected was Gideon, of the tribe of Manasseh…. It was only with the greatest difficulty that the Hebrews could secrete sufficient food to save them from actual starvation. Gideon had, however, retained possession of a small quantity of wheat, and fearing to beat it out in the threshing floor, he had taken it to the vineyard, near the winepress. The time of ripe grapes being far off, the attention of the Midianites would not be directed to that place…. Gideon almost despaired of inspiring the people with faith or courage, but he knew that the Lord would work mightily for Israel as He had done in the past….

While Gideon’s mind was absorbed in meditations like these, suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared to him and addressed him with the words, “The Lord is with thee, thou mighty man of valour.”

The melancholy nature of Gideon’s thoughts is revealed by his answer, “Oh my Lord, if the Lord be with us, why then is all this befallen us?” … With a sense of his own unfitness for so important a work, Gideon exclaimed, “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.” … Then the angel gave him the gracious assurance, “Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man.”—Signs of the Times, June 23, 1881.

From From the Heart

I have had a dream, and there is no one who can interpret it. But I have heard it said of you that you can understand a dream, to interpret it. Genesis 41:15.

When Joseph interpreted the dreams of the butler and the cupbearer, he begged to be remembered when the chief butler should be reinstated in his position; but he was forgotten, and remained two years longer in the prison.

But a more exalted person than the butler had a dream, and when there could be found no one able to interpret it, Joseph was called to the remembrance of the butler. “Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, and they brought him hastily out of the dungeon: and he shaved himself, and changed his raiment, and came in unto Pharaoh. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I have dreamed a dream, and there is none that can interpret it: and I have heard say of thee, that thou canst understand a dream to interpret it.” Joseph did not take the glory to himself. He pointed Pharaoh to God, saying, “It is not in me: God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace.”

Through the wisdom given him of God, Joseph could see the true meaning of the dream. He saw the wonderful workings of God, and he laid the whole matter distinctly before Pharaoh. He revealed to him the long famine that was to visit the land, and the plans to be pursued in order to save the nation from destruction…. His words were received as gold, and the answer was returned to him, “Forasmuch as God hath shewed thee all this, there is none so discreet and wise as thou art: thou shalt be over my house, and according unto thy word shall all my people be ruled: only in the throne will I be greater than thou.” …

Joseph represented Christ. He stood for many years as the honored ruler of Egypt. In his life and character was manifested that which was lovely, and pure, and noble. In bearing his sorrows under trying circumstances and in enduring temptation, Joseph was one in character with Christ….

The example of Joseph, shining with heaven’s brightness, did not shine in vain among this people for whom Christ had pledged Himself to become an offering—a people whom God had taken under His guardianship, and upon whom He was bestowing not only temporal but spiritual blessings, in order to attract them to Himself.—Youth’s Instructor, March 11, 1897.

From From the Heart