Scripture: Judges 7:1–25 NIV

Summary:

In Judges 7, Gideon is preparing to fight the Midianites. From a human perspective, Gideon needs as many soldiers as possible because the Midianite army is enormous. But God looks at Gideon's army and tells him something unexpected: he has too many men. Gideon begins with 32,000 men, but God reduces the army to 10,000 and eventually reduces it again to only 300.

God was intentionally changing the numbers because He did not want Israel to believe they had won the battle through their own strength. He wanted there to be no question that the victory came from Him. But God did not only deal with the number of people surrounding Gideon. He also dealt with the fear inside Gideon. God allowed Gideon to overhear a conversation in the enemy's camp that confirmed that God had already given the Midianites into his hands.

Then God gave Gideon a strategy. The 300 men were divided into three groups and used trumpets, jars, and torches to defeat an army much larger than themselves. Throughout Judges7, we see God's math at work. He subtracts before He multiplies. He subtracts fear and adds faith. Then He divides and designs a strategy to solve the problem.

He Subtracts Before He Multiplies (Judges 7:1–8)

Gideon begins with 32,000 men ready to fight the Midianites, but God tells Gideon that he has too many. That probably did not make sense to Gideon. If you are preparing for battle against a massive army, the last thing you would expect God to do is decrease the number of people fighting with you. But God explains that if Israel went into battle with all those men and won, they might believe their own strength saved them. God wanted Israel to know that the victory belonged to Him.

So God begins subtracting. First, the men who were afraid were allowed to leave. Twenty-two thousand men went home, leaving Gideon with only 10,000. But God told Gideon that there were still too many. After another test, Gideon was eventually left with only 300 men. What looked like a disadvantage was actually part of God's plan.

Sometimes God subtracts before He multiplies. We naturally associate increase with blessing. We think if something is growing, God must be in it, and if something is decreasing, something must be wrong. But Judges 7 shows us that sometimes God Himself is responsible for the reduction. Sometimes people leave. Sometimes resources decrease. Sometimes an opportunity closes. Sometimes something we thought we needed is no longer available. We may immediately start praying for God to restore what was lost without first asking whether God allowed the subtraction for a reason.

What feels like a loss may actually be preparation. God knew exactly how many people Gideon needed for the victory He was planning. Gideon did not need 32,000 people if God was going to fight with the 300. Sometimes God will reduce what we are depending on so that we learn to depend on Him. He may allow the numbers to get so small that when the victory comes, we cannot possibly take the credit for it.

The subtraction may be uncomfortable because we can see what is leaving without being able to see what God is preparing. But just because something is getting smaller does not mean God's plan is getting smaller. God can accomplish more with 300 surrendered people than Gideon could accomplish with 32,000 people in his own strength.

Discussion Questions:

1. Why do you think God intentionally reduced Gideon's army before such a major battle?

2. Why is it easy for us to assume that having more means we are in a better position?

3. Have you ever experienced God removing something from your life that you later realized you did not need?

4. Is there something God may currently be subtracting from your life that you have been interpreting as a setback?

He Subtracts Fear and Adds Faith (Judges 7:9–15)

Even after God reduced Gideon's army, Gideon was still afraid. God knew exactly what Gideon was feeling, so He told him that if he was afraid to attack, he could go down to the Midianite camp with his servant Purah and listen to what the enemy was saying. God was about to allow Gideon to hear something that would change the way he viewed the battle.

When Gideon arrived at the camp, he overheard one Midianite soldier telling another soldierabout a dream. The other soldier interpreted the dream as meaning that God had given the Midianite army into Gideon's hands. Think about how powerful that moment must have been for Gideon. He went into the enemy's camp afraid of them and discovered that the enemy was already talking about his victory.

God allowed Gideon to hear the opposing side confirm what God had already promised. Gideon had been looking at the size of the Midianite army and the small number of men he had left. From his perspective, there was plenty to fear. But while Gideon was afraid of the Midianites, the Midianites were already talking about how God was going to give Gideon the victory. Sometimes we become intimidated by what is in front of us because we only see the situation from our perspective. We see the size of the problem, the lack of resources, the obstacles, and all the reasons something should not work. But we cannot see everything God is doing behind the scenes.

After Gideon heard the dream and its interpretation, he worshiped God. Then he returned to his men and told them to get up because the Lord had given the Midianite camp into their hands. The circumstances had not changed. Gideon still had 300 men. The Midianite army was still enormous. The battle was still ahead of him. What changed was Gideon. He went down to the camp afraid and came back ready to fight.

God had subtracted fear and added faith. Sometimes God does not have to change the situation around us before we can move forward. He needs to change what is happening inside of us. We may be waiting for the opposition to disappear when God is trying to build enough faith in us to face it. There may even be things we are currently afraid of that God has already given us the victory over. We are intimidated because we are looking at the size of the opposition instead of remembering what God has already said.

Discussion Questions:

1. Why do you think God allowed Gideon to hear the conversation between the Midianite soldiers?

2. How do you think Gideon felt when he heard the enemy saying that God had already given them into his hands?

3. What changed in Gideon between going down to the camp and returning to his army?

4. Have you ever received confirmation from an unexpected place that strengthened your faith?

5. What are you currently afraid of that you need to trust God with?

He Divides and Designs a Strategy to Solve the Problem (Judges 7:16–25)

God had already reduced Gideon's army from 32,000 men to 300. Then Gideon divided those 300 men into three groups and gave each man a trumpet and an empty jar with a torch inside. From a human perspective, this was an unusual strategy for fighting an enormous army. Gideon did not have thousands of soldiers or superior military strength. What he had was a strategy.

At Gideon's signal, the men blew their trumpets, broke their jars, held up their torches, and shouted. The Midianite camp was thrown into confusion, and the Midianites began turning their swords against one another. Gideon's victory did not come because he suddenly received thousands of additional soldiers. God showed him how to use the people and resources that remained.

Sometimes we spend all of our time asking God for more when we should be asking God for a strategy. We ask God for more money when we may need a strategy for the money already coming into our hands. We ask for more customers when we may need a strategy for the business we already have. We ask God to remove our debt when we may need Him to give us a strategy for paying it off. We ask for another opportunity when God may want to show us what to do with the opportunity already in front of us.

There are areas of our lives where our prayer needs to become, “God, give me a strategy.” If it is your business, ask God what you should focus on, what you should stop doing, who you are called to serve, and how you should use what He has already placed in your hands. If it is your finances, ask God how to steward what you are currently making, what needs to be saved, what needs to be reduced, and where your money needs to go. If you are trying to pay off debt, ask God for wisdom about what to prioritize, what expenses need to be eliminated, whether there are opportunities for additional income, and what financial disciplines need to change.

We can ask God for strategy in every area of our lives. Ask Him for a strategy for your career. What skills should you develop? What doors should you pursue? Where should you position yourself? Ask Him for a strategy for your ministry. Who are you called to reach? What should you be teaching? What should you build, and what might you need to stop doing? Ask Him for a strategy for your family and relationships. Ask Him how you should communicate, what boundaries may be necessary, and what you can do differently. Ask Him for a strategy for your time. What needs your attention in this season? What needs to be delegated, eliminated, or reorganized?

Sometimes the answer to the problem is not more. Sometimes the answer is strategy. God can give you wisdom for how to use what is already in your hands. He can show you something you did not see before. He can show you what to eliminate, what to divide, what to prioritize, who to involve, when to move, and when to wait. One strategy from God can change the way you approach an entire situation.

The same 300 men who looked insufficient became enough when they operated according to the right strategy. Gideon did not need God to give him back the 31,700 men who had left. He needed to know what to do with the 300 who remained. In the same way, we should not only ask God to increase what we have. We should ask God to show us what to do with what we have.

Discussion Questions:

1. Why do you think Gideon's strategy would have looked unusual from a human perspective?

2. Why do we often ask God for more resources before asking Him for wisdom about what we already have?

3. What is one area of your life where you need to stop simply asking for more and start asking God for a strategy?

4. What has God already placed in your hands that you may not be using effectively?

5. If you asked God for a strategy for your business, finances, debt, career, ministry, family, or time, what specific question would you ask Him?

Prayer of Personal Transformation:

Father, thank You for reminding us that Your math does not have to make sense to us in order for Your plan to work. Help us trust You when You subtract things from our lives. When people leave, resources decrease, opportunities change, or we find ourselves with less than we expected, keep us from immediately assuming that something has gone wrong. Give us discernment to recognize when the subtraction is part of Your strategy.

Subtract the fear that keeps us from moving forward and add faith. When we become intimidated by what we see, remind us of what You have already said. Help us believe Your Word more than we believe our circumstances. Give us confidence that if You have called us to something, You are able to equip us and lead us through it.

Father, give us strategy. Give us strategy for our businesses, our finances, our debt, our careers, our ministries, our families, our relationships, and our time. Show us how to use what You have already placed in our hands. Keep us from believing that we always need more before we can move forward. Teach us to seek Your wisdom and follow Your instructions even when they do not make sense to us. We trust Your math, we trust Your strategy, and we trust that what You have given us is enough when You are with us. In Jesus’ name, Amen.