Sword for the Lord and Our Children

By Frank King

Art by Chloe Ajala, age 14

According to most media and Christian statisticians, the church is in trouble. Fathers and mothers are discouraged, and their children are being seduced by modern culture into selfishness, corruption, and sexual sin.

If the modern soothsayers are to be believed, we are in the last generation of the Church, on the wrong side of history, and destined to obscurity.

We are under attack. When the culture attacks the people of God, we can either hide or stand.

Judges 6:2 tells us that the nation of Israel was in hiding for seven years until God chose out a deliverer by the name of Gideon.

Today the culture is attacking again, and the people of God again must choose.

Just as in the day of the Midian invasions, Baal has returned to “destroy the produce of the land” (Judges 6:4). Today’s invasion is not by mighty armies riding on camels; it consists of the temptation to compromise the Word of God – a temptation that especially seeks to target our children.

In the day of Gideon, the threat came in the form of altars built to Baal in the midst of God’s people, Israel. The altars represented everything that was opposed to God’s Word and commandments. Worshipers of Baal demanded sacrifice and devotionals (likely in the form of sexual acts). The building of the altars signified Israel’s deep spiritual fall. It was this spiritual fall that led Israel into being victims of the Midianite hordes.

Eventually, God stepped in and the people rallied around the man God had chosen. As they prepared for battle in Judges 7:18, they cried, “The Sword of the Lord and of Gideon!”

Gideon was likely a grown man – maybe middle-aged when God chose him – but we can examine his actions and see the root of his strength; the reason he was chosen by God. This man was called to deliver Israel, but his preparation began long before his meeting with the Angel of the Lord.

Long before the fleeces and the winnowing of the troops; long before the marches and the trumpets and the jars; long before Midian was subdued and peace reigned in Israel – Gideon was being prepared for this great task.

I have been working with families long enough to know that there is no perfect process for rearing our children, but perhaps we can glean some wisdom from Gideon’s preparation. We may even get some hints on the advantage of preparing our children using this wisdom.

Art by Nehemiah King, age 16

The Sword of the Lord is deployed in our weakness

“The Lord is with thee,” the angel of the Lord told Gideon in the moment that he appeared, “for thou art a mighty man of valor” (Judges 6:12). Gideon thought that the angel of the Lord was mocking him.

His reply is nearly comical: “But Lord, how can I rescue Israel? My clan is the weakest in the whole tribe of Manasseh, and I am the least in my entire family!” In other words: I am the least of the least of the least!

Gideon’s first step in the right direction was in knowing he was helpless. Long before David wrote the truth: “Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain; unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain,” that truth was evident to Gideon. He knew we can do nothing in our own strength.

Today we teach our children self-reliance and self-esteem. The lesson from Gideon is that we should rather be teaching them reliance upon and esteem for the one true God. When our kids doubt their own abilities, we should extoll God’s ability, and His desire to bless.

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11).

The Sword of the Lord is not diminished by a questioning disciple.

Gideon asked, “Where are all His wonderful deeds that our fathers recounted to us?” It is apparent from this question that Gideon had been trained in the way of the Lord. He knew God’s promises, even if he had his doubts about God’s deliverance. He knew there was a promise, but wondered about its relevance in the day of invasion.

Note well, parents: The angel did not strike Gideon dead for his question. Rather, He came to his side: “The Lord said to him, ‘But I will be with you.’” Gideon was assured of God’s support, and he responded to it. Sure, he needed signs (lots of them), but underlying that need was belief, not doubt.

Our children need our assurance, even when they question God or his Word. It is normal for children to need their questions answered. It is also normal for adolescents to question the answers. This is all part of the spiritual maturity process. We should guide them through their questions to the truth that lies at the end of the quest.

The Sword of the Lord is enhanced by Respect of the Father

As Gideon steps up to address Israel’s failure, his first step is a spiritual one. He addressed the worship of Baal by tearing down altars, beginning with those on his father’s land.

As Alexander Whyte comments: “For, how could Joash's son think to cast out a single Midianite as long as that unclean altar and those unclean trees stood beside his father's house? He could not. But at every blow of Gideon's swift axe new strength came into his arm. At every tree that fell before his axe his courage rose.”

This didn’t go over well with the men of the city, who confronted Gideon’s father, threatening death to his son. Here we get another key to the building of Gideon’s leadership. His father supported the actions he took.

“If [Baal] is a god,” Joash says, “let him contend for himself, because his altar has been broken down” (Judges 6:31). The father of Gideon stands for his son, and against Baal. In fact, he mocks Baal, saying if he is really a god, he should defend himself instead of relying on an angry mob. You can almost hear the pride in his voice as he supports his son’s action.

Incidentally, this action of tearing down altars is one that Gideon’s father should have taken himself, since it is part of his role as spiritual head of the family. Gideon has begun the freedom of his nation by winning the freedom of his family, and his father supports his action.

When our children make a stand for righteousness, we parents should stand firmly behind them, especially if we have been a little lax in our own stand. Our children’s stand is reflective of their earlier training at the feet of parents.

And so, long before the deliverance of Israel, God delivered the deliverer. Gideon was called in his weakness, strengthened in his questions, and respected by his parents. He became the “mighty man of valor” that the angel had seen.

He rose up, gathered an army, faced the enemy and delivered a nation. And they cried out, “A sword for the Lord and for Gideon!”

No, there is no such thing as a perfect process for rearing our children – but this pattern wouldn’t hurt. Raise your children to honor God and to humbly admit their own inability. Allow them to question, but guide them to the truth, and respect the stands they make, even if those stands convict you.