Riverside Church Sunday Message
Oct 26, 2026 · 24 min · 9 segments
Judy Moore speaks on Judges 6:1-16 as part of our Escaping the Cycle series. When we're ashamed of who we've become, hiding can feel like the safest option. We shrink our expectations, keep our…
Judy MooreHost
So as we look at Gideon in this chapter that we've had read, He is in hiding in the winepress.
And the enemy is rife, ravaging the land, coming against them, the Midianites, the Amalekites.
And they, even though in chapter 5, right at the end of the chapter 5, they've seen great victory.
And yet, chapter 6 hiding again because the rescue was temporary and so the Israelites find themselves in hiding so why do we hide do we hide that's the question we're going to look at who might our enemies be internal and external and what brings us out of hiding and breaks this cycle in final freedom and It's quite funny, sometimes my dreams tell me why I'm anxious.
Does anyone else have that? Sometimes I'm back teaching, and I've taught year 10, and I've taught them completely the wrong thing.
Well, last night I had a dream that Tim and we were all told that we had to wash each other's feet in church this morning, and I refused to take my shoes off because I hadn't had my nails done.
And it made me laugh when I woke up this morning because I suddenly thought, in a way, that's an area of pride for me, an area of shame.
Now, I'm sure God was being gentle in that, and clearly my thoughts were very much with this talk.
And why do we hide? Because the power of temptation and shame and evil feels so oppressive that we almost feel we can't look God in the face.
If you look at verse 2, it says, the power of Midian was so oppressive, the Israelites prepared shelters for themselves in mountains, in clefts, in caves, and strongholds.
And when we meet Gideon later on, he's hiding in the winepress, keeping the wheat.
So even though Gideon and the Israelites have been set free, they are now cowering.
So as we look at Gideon in this chapter that we've had read, He is in hiding in the winepress.
And the enemy is rife, ravaging the land, coming against them, the Midianites, the Amalekites.
And they, even though in chapter 5, right at the end of the chapter 5, they've seen great victory.
And yet, chapter 6 hiding again because the rescue was temporary and so the Israelites find themselves in hiding so why do we hide do we hide that's the question we're going to look at who might our enemies be internal and external and what brings us out of hiding and breaks this cycle in final freedom and It's quite funny, sometimes my dreams tell me why I'm anxious.
Does anyone else have that? Sometimes I'm back teaching, and I've taught year 10, and I've taught them completely the wrong thing.
Well, last night I had a dream that Tim and we were all told that we had to wash each other's feet in church this morning, and I refused to take my shoes off because I hadn't had my nails done.
And it made me laugh when I woke up this morning because I suddenly thought, in a way, that's an area of pride for me, an area of shame.
Now, I'm sure God was being gentle in that, and clearly my thoughts were very much with this talk.
And why do we hide? Because the power of temptation and shame and evil feels so oppressive that we almost feel we can't look God in the face.
If you look at verse 2, it says, the power of Midian was so oppressive, the Israelites prepared shelters for themselves in mountains, in clefts, in caves, and strongholds.
And when we meet Gideon later on, he's hiding in the winepress, keeping the wheat.
So even though Gideon and the Israelites have been set free, they are now cowering.
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