CONCLUSION
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"AND what more shall I say? I do not have to tell you about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets, who through faith conquered kingdom, administered justice, and gained what was promised; . . . . . ".

This is the Word of God in Hebrews chapter eleven and verses 32 and 33. This is the testimony of God, by his Spirit, to Gideon.

As we have looked at the history of Gideon recorded for us in the book of Judges, we have seen the man. Of himself in his own strength and nature we have seen a weak and sinful person. By grace we have looked on someone who had great faith and was enabled to do great things for God. What we have also seen is that these two sides of Gideon were mixed up together, and in this life never separated.

We saw that even at the end of his life he showed great spiritual stature, but at the same time great human weakness and sin.

These verses in Hebrews reveal to us how God looked upon the man. God saw him as he was in Christ, justified and accounted righteous before God, with no sin recorded in heaven against his name. God saw him, not as he was in his day by day stumbling, but as he was by grace, and as he would be by grace, and saw the victory which God brought about in him and would bring about in him.

This is how God looks on all his believing people whom he has chosen in Christ. When God chose Gideon and called him, he knew not only what he was like at that time, but also all what his life would be from that time on until death. God also knew what he would make him and do in him. So God's testimony as is given in these verses in Hebrews was that Gideon was a man of faith, beloved of God, and one of the cloud of witnesses which surround us.

Let us take comfort and assurance that God looks on all his believing people in this way.

How comforting and reassuring it has been to see the way God looked on and dealt with Gideon. There was such patience and love, together with perseverance and strength. Always it was grace that Gideon found from God in all God's dealing with him.

We also have seen that as Gideon learnt to have no confidence in the flesh, and put all his confidence upon God, giving God the glory, and in this condition that God gave him great victories and great honour.

There is no doubt that there is much encouragement for every believer in Gideon's story, not least to the most weak amongst us.