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Judges · Men's Leadership Study

Week 7: Thirty-Two Thousand Down to Three Hundred

Judges 7

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Read Together

Judges 7

Read the whole chapter aloud before discussing the handout.

Hidden in the Text

Weekly Devotional

God reduced Gideon's army at the same spring where Gideon received the name Jerubbaal. That name reminded him that Baal had failed to defend his own altar. Later, God encouraged Gideon through an enemy's dream. A loaf of barley bread, the food of poor people, rolled into camp and knocked down a tent. The enemy feared the weakness Gideon was ashamed of. Then Gideon's men had to break their jars before the hidden torches could shine. God kept choosing things that looked small, poor, and easy to break so everyone would know the victory came from Him.

Discuss Honestly

Hard Questions

  1. 01

    God removed resources to protect Gideon's humility. What has God removed from you that you have been seeing as God leaving you rather than protection?

  2. 02

    Twenty-two thousand men left when fear was given an honorable exit. Is your ministry environment making it too easy for men to quit with dignity, or too shaming for them to admit fear at all?

  3. 03

    Gideon was still afraid after the fleece, after the Spirit, after the altar. What does that tell you about expecting fear to disappear before you lead?

  4. 04

    The light only shone when the vessel broke. What in you is God trying to break, and what are you calling 'protecting my ministry'?

  5. 05

    Would you rather have a big win you managed or a small win God obviously did? Answer with an example from the last year.

  6. 06

    Numbers are the easiest idol in ministry. What number do you check most often, and what does it do to you when it's low?

  7. 07

    Who in your life is a 'three hundred' man — few, tested, and all in? What are you doing to keep them?

Look Them Up

Cross-References

  • 2 Corinthians 4:7

    Treasure in earthen vessels, 'that the excellency of the power may be of God' — Gideon's pitchers, explained.

  • 1 Samuel 14:6

    Jonathan: 'there is no restraint to the LORD to save by many or by few.'

  • Deuteronomy 20:8

    God's law already allowed fearful men to go home from battle. God follows that law here.

  • Zechariah 4:10

    Despise not the day of small things. Three hundred is not a shortage.

  • James 4:6

    God resisteth the proud. The reduction in Judges 7 is mercy aimed at pride.