Go in the strength you have. Say among the nations, “The LORD reigns.”

Link for today’s reading: Judges 6:1-40, Luke 22:54-23:12, Psalm 95:1-96:13, Proverbs 14:5-6

Message:  ⁶⁷ ‘If you are the Messiah,’ they said, ‘tell us.’  Jesus answered, ‘If I tell you, you will not believe me, ⁶⁸ and if I asked you, you would not answer. ⁶⁹ But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God.’  ⁷⁰ They all asked, ‘Are you then the Son of God?’  He replied, ‘You say that I am.’  John 22:67-70

¹¹ The angel of the LORD came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, where his son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress to keep it from the Midianites. ¹²When the angel of the LORD appeared to Gideon, he said, “The LORD is with you, mighty warrior.” ¹³“Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but if the LORD is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our ancestors told us about when they said, ‘Did not the LORD bring us up out of Egypt?’ But now the LORD has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian.” ¹⁴The LORD turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?” ¹⁵“Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.” ¹⁶ The LORD answered, “I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites, leaving none alive.” Judges 6:11-16

²² When Gideon realised that it was the angel of the Lord, he exclaimed, ‘Alas, Sovereign Lord! I have seen the angel of the Lord face to face!’²³ But the Lord said to him, ‘Peace! Do not be afraid. You are not going to die.’²⁴ So Gideon built an altar to the Lord there and called it The Lord Is Peace. Judges 6:22-24

Promise: 

For great is the LORD and most worthy of praise;
he is to be feared above all gods.
⁵ For all the gods of the nations are idols,
but the LORD made the heavens.
⁶ Splendor and majesty are before him;
strength and glory are in his sanctuary. Psalm 96:4,5,6

¹¹ Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad;
let the sea resound, and all that is in it.
¹² Let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them;
let all the trees of the forest sing for joy.
¹³ Let all creation rejoice before the Lord, for he comes,
    he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness
    and the peoples in his faithfulness.
Psalm 96:11-13

Command:

 ⁶ Come, let us bow down in worship,
let us kneel before the LORD our Maker;
⁷ for he is our God
and we are the people of his pasture,
the flock under his care.

Today, if only you would hear his voice,
⁸ “Do not harden your hearts…Psalm 95:6-8

¹ Sing to the LORD a new song;
   sing to the LORD, all the earth.
² Sing to the LORD, praise his name;
   proclaim his salvation day after day.
³ Declare his glory among the nations,
   his marvelous deeds among all peoples.

⁷ Ascribe to the LORD, all you families of nations,
   ascribe to the LORD glory and strength.
⁸ Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name;
bring an offering and come into his courts.
⁹ Worship the LORD in the splendor of his^[c] holiness;
   tremble before him, all the earth.
¹⁰ Say among the nations, “The LORD reigns.”
The world is firmly established, it cannot be moved;
he will judge the peoples with equity. Psalm 96:1-3, 7-10

Warning: ⁵⁸A little later someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them.”   “Man, I am not!” Peter replied. ⁵⁹About an hour later another asserted, “Certainly this fellow was with him, for he is a Galilean.” ⁶⁰ Peter replied, “Man, I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed. ⁶¹ The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times.” ⁶² And he went outside and wept bitterly. Luke 22:58-62

Application: I commit to going with the strength the Lord gives me that I might ascribe to the Lord glory and strength and say among the nations, “The Lord reigns!”

The LORD is with you, mighty warrior.
Peace! Do not be afraid. You are not going to die.