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FLEECES AND FAITH #13
OUR PART IN GOD’S VICTORIES
He’s one of the more gifted – and certainly among the funniest – writers out there these days. Patrick McManus, with his tongue firmly planted, as we say, describes the colorful mis-adventures of an outdoorsman. Camping, fishing, hunting, boating, snowmobiling . . . Mr. McManus has experienced hilarious tragedies in all of the above.
At one point, he describes his tumultuous relationship with his faithful hunting dog, a flea-bitten, demented, vulgar animal named “Strange.” And it seems to be a descriptive name for this companion, because whenever they would go out in the woods looking for big game, Strange was more hindrance than help. “He had absolutely no concept of stealth,” McManus writes in mock frustration. Strange, giddy with joy at being outdoors with his beloved master, would bound through the trees making a racket and a din, rumbling, yelping, squealing, belching, leaving skid marks, barking a warning to the very deer his boss was trying to get in his gunsights, and arf-arf-ing his noisy greetings to all his other long-lost friends of the forest. “I would have had better luck hunting with a rock band,” the empty-handed hunter confesses.
On the other hand – what do you know – there were actually times when the hunting team of McManus and Strange would come home with an impressive haul. Despite all the noise and the canine yodeling, the hunter would succeed at bagging his quarry. To what did he attribute his rare against-the-odds successes? “I think all the animals let down their guard,” he writes. “They must have thought that nobody making that much commotion could possibly BE hunting.”
Well, friend, we’ve spent a good two-plus weeks of radio Bible study now, setting the stage for our own up-against-superior-odds confrontation between Israel and the mighty military juggernaut of Midian. And it’s clear that Gideon’s men are going to need some sort of element of surprise or stealth, because the enemy forces have then outnumbered 135,000 to 300. That data comes from chapter eight, by the way – an after-the-fact report that describes Midian as losing 120,000 swordsmen with only 15,000 left. But here on the eve of battle there is simply no way that Israel can hope to succeed. Three hundred men – that’s it.
We’ve already learned together that Gideon’s commander-in-chief, who happened to be the Lord Himself, deliberately set up this confrontation to be the few against the many. He was anxious for Israel to learn total dependance on Him, and so He plainly instructed Gideon to pare down his forces: from 32,000 down to 10,000, and finally just down to these three hundred guys. And now, as the battle begins, it’s helpful for all of us, here in the year 2005, to discover exactly how God likes to win His battles, which are waged on our behalf.
First of all, we already learn that men and women who are allied with heaven’s power have an unbeatable advantage, despite numerical statistics. There’s a story in First Samuel 14, where Jonathan and his armor-bearer climb up a steep cliff and go up against 20 Philistine warriors. Two against 20 . . . but the Lord is with the two. And all through Scripture and the pages of spiritual history, heaven has blessed the disadvantaged forces that expressed loyalty to heaven.
Maybe you remember the praise song of recent years, entitled Give Thanks, where we sing in the chorus:
“And now, let the weak say, ‘I am strong.’ Let the poor say, ‘I am rich – because of what the Lord has done for us.’”
That great message could be Gideon’s theme here for sure, as he goes into battle. But we should also notice that our miracle-working God, who has omnipotence and all knowledge, still chooses to work through human agencies, through Gideons who will give their all to Him. No, God didn’t win this battle with 32,000 men, but He also didn’t win it with zero men – as He could have. We’ll also discover that this was a brilliant military plan, led and executed by real people just like us. Let’s go to the war chronicles, beginning here in Judges chapter seven, and now verse 16:
“Dividing the three hundred men into three companies, [Gideon] placed trumpets and empty jars in the hands of all of them, with torches inside. ‘Watch me,’ he told them. ‘Follow my lead. When I get to the edge of the camp, do exactly as I do. When I and all who are with me blow our trumpets, then from all around the camp blow yours and shout, “For the Lord and for Gideon.”’ Gideon and the hundred men with him reached the edge of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, just after they had changed the guard.”
So – late at night; most men are asleep. Let’s skip down a few verses to where this midnight plan is carried out. What happens?
“When the three hundred trumpets sounded, the Lord caused the men throughout the camp to turn on each other with their swords.”
This vast army of Midian, some slaughtering each other in the murky confusion, began to run. And now we see that the God who holds the forces of lightning and thunder and creation also appreciates the wise plans and diligent labors of men. The NIV text notes here in Judges observes that:
“The battle at the spring of Harod is justly celebrated for its strategic brilliance.”
First of all, the huge army of Midian was already cut off from the only source of water there, the Spring of Harod. Now, in this midnight madness, as these hordes begin to flee to the south, down through the Jordan Valley, Gideon quickly summons additional troops from Naphtali, Asher, and Manasseh, along with soldiers from the tribe of Ephraim. “The battle’s going well,” he cries. “Come, join us.” And with this bandwagon-effect, with the fragrance of victory and liberation in the air, reinvigorated soldiers – including, maybe, some of the 31,700 who had already been heading home – join the fight. And what happens is this: stretching themselves down along the Jordan River, which runs north and south along the eastern corridor of this Jordan Valley, they effectively cut off all avenues of escape for Midian. They “seized the waters of the Jordan ahead of them,” it says in verse 24.
Scholars point out that this tactic of dividing into three groups is used elsewhere in the Bible chronicles. Saul used it effectively; so did King David, and also Abimelech. So, friend, not that we’re encouraged here to all enlist in the United States Marine Corps or strive to be promoted to general. But isn’t it clear here that God invites us to join our efforts to His? When we hold meetings over in Lusaka, Zambia – where my team and I were quite recently – shouldn’t we lay the best plans we can? Preach well-researched and well-prayed-over sermons? Organize the finest follow-up strategies and church nurturing systems we can create with God’s help? Carefully and economically arrange for buses to bring people to meetings, and satellite dishes to pull in the signal throughout the continent? Yes, there’s a time to “wing it” and a time to cast yourself upon the graces of the Holy Spirit, but there’s also a time to convene a no-holds-barred committee meeting, and slog through the details and fine print until you have the best battle plan you can come up with.
And one more thing. Down in chapter eight, with the Midianite army on the ropes, Gideon and the original 300 guys have chased them across the Jordan. They’re exhausted, they’re hungry, they’re without provisions. Twice in a row, they ask their fellow countrymen for some foodstuffs and are refused – more about that later. But they keep going. Verse four says they “kept up the pursuit.” Thankful for the miracle that God has already wrought, they continue to do their human part.
I think it’s that way with us, too – don’t you think? I’m so thankful that God provides power to drive sin out of my life . . . and yet He counts on me to help keep up the chase. To join Him in doggedly pursuing the enemy temptations, and driving them beyond the borders of the kingdom He is protecting on behalf of me and my family. When pride rears its ugly head, my heavenly Father invites me to submit my will. To read the Bible verses that HELP me to submit my will. To get down on my knees and pray a prayer OF submitting my will. To get myself to a church each Sabbath morning where a godly, Bible-based sermon, a thought-provoking study class, and the encouraging fellowship of the “cloud of witnesses” will strengthen me in submitting my will. Just because I “cross the Jordan,” so to speak, and see a little subsiding of Satan’s power in my life, doesn’t mean the war is over. So often we let the devil and his forces regroup and come right back, don’t we?
But the bottom line certainly has to be that this is God’s victory, not man’s. Yes, we do man’s part, but God’s part is still the main thing, the wonderful thing, the essential thing. Let’s never forget that; let’s never stop praising God for His part, for His victories.
I mentioned the great lyrics to the song, Give Thanks, which so many of us love to sing in church. Here’s a newer one, as we close, written by the marvelous singer and praise leader, Darlene Zschech from Australia. It’s entitled All Things Are Possible. And the very contemporary chorus goes:
“When I’m weak, You make me strong. When I’m poor, I know I’m rich. For in the power of YOUR name . . . ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE!”
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