The Grace of God Gives Peace to the Heart

When Gideon realized that it was the angel of the Lord, he exclaimed, “Alas, Sovereign Lord! I have seen the angel of the Lord face to face!” But the Lord said to him, “Peace! Do not be afraid. You are not going to die.” So Gideon built an altar to the Lord there and called it The Lord Is Peace. To this day it stands in Ophrah of the Abiezrites. (Judges 6:22-24)

We are in a teaching series called “Ordinary Heroes” looking at most of the main characters in the book of Judges. This week we go backwards in the story of Gideon’s life to the time just before he became the great leader of an army. Here we see Gideon is learning one of the most important lessons in life.

Gideon was learning that you cannot lead others unless you can lead yourself. Gideon could not lead the people of God in the battle of the LORD unless he was a worshipper of God. Gideon was realising that God was God and he was not.

Gideon encountered the angel of the LORD and realised that he should die because God’s angel was holy and he was not. Gideon realised this and did the only thing he could do - he prayed. “Alas, Sovereign Lord! I have seen the angel of the Lord face to face!”. This is much like the prayer of Isaiah when he encountered the presence of God: “Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.” (Is 6:5).

Gideon was a man who lived among an unholy people, he was unholy himself, and he was encountering the holiness of God. “Alas, Sovereign Lord! I have seen the angel of the Lord face to face!” This is a natural cry of the heart when we encounter God. It was a cry for mercy. That is exactly what Gideon received. But the Lord said to him, “Peace! Do not be afraid. You are not going to die.”

He was not going to die because God had made provision for him. God has done a work of mercy which Gideon asked for but did not deserve. Gideon encountered the grace of God.

It was only because of God’s grace that Gideon did not die. This does not mean his unholiness didn’t matter. Sin does matter in the economy of God. There is no natural cure for our unholiness, there is nothing we can do about it in our own strength, the only cure is a supernatural cure. The apostle Paul wrote: For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast. (Eph 2:8-9). It has always been about grace and will always be about grace.

When God said “Peace” Gideon not only heard it he encountered it deep within his being. Therefore his natural response was to build an altar and worship the God who had given him peace and was true peace. So Gideon built an altar to the Lord there and called it ‘The Lord Is Peace’. [Jehovah Shalom].

Encountering grace in our hearts brings Shalom-Peace (well-being) and will always lead to worship.

What informs your worship? Have you encountered the grace of God recently? Phil 4:6-70 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Like Gideon let your heart understand the grace and peace that has been given to you.

This week take leadership responsibility for your heart. Choose to be like Gideon and allow your heart to encounter the peace of God. In faith build an altar in your heart of worship to God who has revealed himself as 'the LORD Is Peace' and Jesus who has made this peace possible. Jesus is the Prince of Peace.

Amen!

Blessings

Fraser