And they said to one another, “Who did this thing?”. And when they searched about and inquired, they said, “Gideon the son of Joash did this thing” Judges 6:29

Gideon had taken his stand for the Lord. The Baal and Asherah of his family were in shambles. The people in the area were outraged. That always happens when tyrants are found out. Gideon was a hero for the Lord, but not according to some of his other unbelieving neighbors. However, there is another hero in the story – Joash, Gideon’s father. He stepped in and defended his son. Could it be that Gideon have him courage to take a stand that he himself had wanted to take for a long time?

Courage is contagious. America needs more parents like that today who are willing to support their children’s obedience to God, even if it exposes their own weakness of faith. Joash stood with his son and the Lord against the people who wanted to keep their false Gods and continue to support the evil despots. His ridicule of Baal’s importance was tremendous. If Baal was as strong as the people thought, let him defend himself against Gideon. The fathers affirmation was expressed by giving his son a new name, Jerubbal, meaning “let Baal contend against him.” He released his son to battle for the Lord.

Just as in Gideon’s day, we face a powerful enemy. While our enemy today may not be an actual “idol”, we are wrong to fear our enemies so much so that we become paralyzed in thought and deed. This is contrary to God’s will. We are to fear the Lord, not Washington D.C. or the U.N. or some other entity. This is the concept of the commandment “Thou shalt have no other Gods but me.” When you fear our enemies and therefore remain silent, rather than fearing the wrath of God and speaking out, you are sending strong negative messages to your children. You are saying that you would rather go along with your modern day false idols (whom you secretly despise) than to serve the Lord.

However, when we take a stand, whether in the home or in the community, we are giving our children the courage to be courageous themselves. What a better inheritance to pass to our children, than the strength to stand on principle and to fight for White Christian Revival.