Bible Stories for the Young
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After God told Gideon that He was going to use him to get rid of the enemies of God’s children, do you know what God told Gideon to do?
The very first thing that God asked Gideon to do was to tear down his father’s false god altar and idols.
Remember how we told you that getting rid of idols is always the first step before we can start following and pleasing God? Remember Korah and his idol of wanting to be first and included? And remember Achan and the stuff he took and hid in his tent? Since they wouldn’t deal with their idols, they couldn’t go on the journey with God. But listen to this story about a guy who DID obey and get rid of the idols!
Many of God’s children had been disobedient by having these false gods. So even though God had heard them crying and asking Him to save them from their enemies, God still had to insist they STOP this sinning. If He was going to help them, His children needed to see that HE was the ONLY God — the ONLY one who could truly help them.
So, the next night, Gideon took ten men and tore down his father’s false-god-worshipping altars and poles. Then Gideon built a new altar and made a sacrifice to the REAL God, the only true God.
When the men of the city got up the next morning, they were so mad!
The people said to one another, “Who did this? Who, Who, Who?”
After they asked around, they found out that Gideon had done it.
The men of the city said to Gideon’s father, “Bring out your son, so we can kill him! He pulled down the Baal altar and cut down the Asherah pole.”
But Gideon’s father said, “If Baal is a real god, let Baal fight his own battles! After all, it was Baal’s altar that was pulled down. If Baal is real, let him punish Gideon.”
So, the people agreed to not kill Gideon and to wait and see what Baal would do to him. What do you think happened to Gideon? Nothing, of course! Fake Baal couldn’t do anything to Gideon.
Do you think it was disrespectful for Gideon to tear down his father’s false gods? Do you think he should have tried to talk it over with the men of the town first? Nope and Nope! Because GOD told him to do it. And some things don’t require talk, talk, talk. They just need obedient action.
Now that the idol had been ripped down, Gideon could begin the rest of his journey with God!
