“Thirty-two thousand men…following me. There’s no way the Midianites can stand against us. We’re invincible.”
“You’ve got too many men, Gideon.”
“What, Lord? Too many men?”
“Yes. Say to the people, “Whoever is afraid can go home.”
As Gideon watched twenty-two thousand of his troops tramp back home what was he thinking? This is Gideon, the weakest-clan warrior, the hide-in-a-hole hero. Was he shaking in his sandals?
I don’t think so. God had called him to lead, had promised him victory. I think he probably got a little nervous as the fearful fled, but then he looked at the fearless – ten thousand battle-ready warriors.
If God said there were too many before, then these guys must be the leanest, meanest fighting force ever assembled. “There’s no way the Midianites can stand against us. We’re invincible.”
“You’ve got too many men, Gideon.”
“What, Lord? Too many men?”
“Yes. I’ll separate them for you. Take them down to the water.”
God had Gideon set aside those that brought the water to their mouths from those who put their mouths to the water. Three hundred in one group, nine thousand seven hundred in the other.
As Gideon looked out over the two groups, he probably nodded with satisfaction. “Three hundred, that’s doable. We should have no problem defeating Midian without those three hundred guys.”
“No, Gideon, the three hundred is your army. Send the nine thousand seven hundred home.”
“What! Three hundred men?”
God went out of his way to make sure Gideon knew God was with him. He called him, burned up a meal on a rock, kept the fleece wet and kept the fleece dry. “Gideon, I’ve chosen you!” It’s almost as if God was shouting it. “You are the one.”
And then…when Gideon’s finally convinced – and thirty-two thousand others are too – it seems as if God’s saying, “Just kidding.” Of course, that’s not what was going on.
God chose Gideon, chose Gideon to lead Israel, chose Gideon to defeat Midian. But God also chose Gideon to follow Him, do depend on Him, to bring glory to Him. Gideon couldn’t let the sight of thirty-two thousand men take his eyes off the King of Glory.
When we are afraid, hiding in a hole, it is easy to place our trust in the power of the almighty, world-creating, death-defeating God. But for many of us, all we need is a little confidence, a little prosperity, a little victory and then we act like four year-olds. “I can do it myself.”
When it seems as if your resources are receding or your followers flagging, perhaps that’s not a sign of discouragement. Instead, it’s a sign that the God of the universe is preparing you for an amazing battle. He’s going to strike down the Midianites in your life. He just wants you to know He is the power in powerful, the might in almighty and the victor in victory.
No comments:
Post a Comment