"Laying a Fleece Before the Lord"

[Blood-Bought Pilgrim]

I'm not sure if I have this in the right forum so feel free to move:

What do you all think of the concept of asking God for direction in specific ways? As in: "Lord, please let this event happening be a sign that I should ___________, or the event not happening be a sign that I should not ___________________."

I've heard other, generally non-reformed believers talk like this, and I've heard it compared to Gideon's test with the fleece. What do you think? Is this ever acceptable? Is it just presumption to ask the Lord to give a sign in this way? My normal reaction has been to see it as not very wise, but I’m curious what others here think.

Thanks!

 

[Contra_Mundum]

I guess an analogy to a fleece will have to do (although, I find it quite convenient that some other element will do decided on by the inquirer), since the option of consulting the ephod-wearing priest possessing the Urim and Thummim to know the will--the yes or no--of God is unavailable (but then... why not come up with an analogy to that means?).

From one standpoint, I suppose a believer may request of God that he help with the decider's decision somehow. But does he have any assurance that God will infallibly, prophetically answer him by a sign? What about the possibility that the devil will give him a lying response and false encouragement?

"To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them," Is.8:20. The believer is bound to the revealed will of God, and ought not seek or demand guidance or "confirmation" besides. In the story of Gideon's fleece, we have a situation where the word of the Lord had already been spoken, yet the Lord's servant did not act on that word but insisted on not one but TWO "fleece signs" by which he might prove the solidity of the Lord's intention! To my sights, this pattern is not one for emulation at all, least of all for evidence that the Lord will stand by MY plans.

If we pray God to answer by a sign, we are putting the Lord to the test. Isaiah spoke to king Ahaz, and told him to ask for a sign (Is.7:12); but the faithless king put up a show of false piety, and refused. The angry prophet, on behalf of God proceeded to promise a stupendous sign (the virgin birth) besides furnishing a proximate sign for the immediate need that would satisfy for the believers around the king.

Ahaz understood what was ordinarily the duty of faithful men: to believe the word of God, resting in it as sufficient. Our work, our decisions should be done in accordance with the revealed will and wisdom of God, and prudent seeking for assistance from providentially provided earthly sources. We must make decisions, and these will sometimes seem to wonderfully work out... or not, or be mixed with disappointment in degree. Yet, the one who has made his effort in prayer and faith should trust that God was with him, regardless of how the outcome appears.

Prv.3:5-6 "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths."

Ps.37:4-5 "Delight thyself also in the Lord: and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass."

With a heart and mind full of God, he will first put a desire and a choice in your heart, and then answer that desire with a satisfying result. Consider how in the end satisfaction doesn't come from the result but from the God of results, from God who is in perfect and ultimate control of every situation, working it out for the good--yea, the best--for those who love God and attend the word of his call, Rom.8:28

 

[Polanus1561]

I would be hesitant to draw out applications from the actions of God's people in one of their lowest points in covenantal history.

 

[Eyedoc84]

God was kind to Gideon despite his disobedience. Gideon knew exactly what the LORD had told him, and was questioning him! This is most definitely not something to emulate. We are to ask for wisdom and obey his revealed word, not seek signs or “read the tea leaves of providence”.

 

[Jack K]

A few observations about Gideon:

1. Gideon asked for a miraculous, supernatural sign (doubly confirmed by asking a second time for the opposite). Asking God to make a fleece wet with dew while the ground around it remains dry takes a miracle. Someone today who prays, "Lord, if it's raining in the morning, let that be a sign you want me to stay home instead of...." should not think they are acting like Gideon. That is not a request for a miraculous sign. To follow Gideon's example, the "sign from God" needs to be unquestionably miraculous.
2. Gideon was not asking to hear God's word, but was asking for confirmation, at a time when Scripture was not yet written, of God's word that God was about to further his redemptive promises through Gideon. A request for confirmation that the spoken word of God is true sometimes happens in Scripture. Usually, the person asking for a sign is being more doubting than we would like, but God's order for Gideon to take on a life-risking mission that pointed to Christ makes the request understandable even if not ideal. However, most people today who "put out a fleece" aren't facing such high stakes, nor should they be thinking they have only a spoken oracle they need to confirm. They should be consulting Scripture, in prayer and with fellow believers. They might pay attention to providence as well, but they are not facing a situation in which they need to confirm a spoken oracle.
3. Even without these ways that Gideon's situation is extraordinary, the idea that Gideon should be a model for us is questionable. At best, he's a good model in some ways and a bad model in others. To say, "I'm doing like Gideon" would earn a sideways glance from me.

I do believe providence can be part of a decision-making process. But first know the Scriptures and sit under good preaching. Pray for the Spirit to bring understanding to you and believers around you, and for a willingness to obey the Word. At that point, you might decide that godly wisdom looks different depending on events yet to happen. That's a good time to ask your Father, in his kindness, to control those events in a way that makes your course of action clear.