Devotion: Mighty Warrior - Part 1

Judges 6

Sometimes we wonder if we are doing the right thing, especially when things tend to go wrong, or when a close friend betrays your trust or when God simply does not seem to say a word. This week the Spirit led me to meditate on Judges Ch 6 to consider the live of Gideon and to draw strength from that passage.

Gideon's condition (6:11-12)
  • Lost Bearing. He was supposed to be a leader but was doing the wrong job (threshing wheat) and doing it at the wrong place (vineyard). A chosen leader doing the wrong thing at the wrong place. Total disorientation.
  • Lost Bravery. He had no courage. He was filled with fear of the enemy and hence runs into hiding.
  • Lost Belongings. All his possessions taken away by the enemy.
  • Living in Bondage. Enemies were in control of what was supposed to be God's people.
  • Life of Questions. He questions God in verse 13. "Where is God? He has abandon us. Where are all his miracles?
Gideon seems to be in a helpless and hopeless condition and most probably not all the above were due to his own doing. Nevetheless he is a gentle reminder of what we too can get into when our focus shifts.

The reason for such a condition (8-10)
  • The children of Israel did evil in the eyes of the Lord (v1)
  • People forsook God's commands and went after the idols (v10). Their focus shifted from God to something else. Sometimes ministry becomes more important than God. Worst still some other person or activity becomes more valuable and occupies most of our time. Its really the deception of the devil, trying to distract and divert the attention of God's servants to the extend of compromising their love for God. That was really the situation of the people of Israel.
  • Could it be that many times in our lives we get into unnecessary trouble because there is a shift in focus? From God to something or someone else?
God changes the condition
  • In his loving way, God appears to Gideon and calls him mighty warrior. What an honor, what a salutation. Gideon probably must have been shocked at hearing this. He knew exactly what he was but God viewed him differently. Many time we think that the word "mighty warrior" refers to might and physical strength. That's what I though. In any case God did not use the physical strength of Gideon or his followers to defeat the enemy. The Hebrew word for mighty warrior is chayil. The same word is used in Exodus 18:21 and it refers to able men who are upright, who fear God, men with virtue and integrity. This meaning shows how God does not view a person in terms of physical strength. From His perspective its not physical strength but moral and spiritual. That is why David was chosen although he was a shepherd boy compared to his brothers who were professional soldiers. GOD SEES YOU AND ME DIFFERENTLY. Even though you and I may have a negative impresion of ourselves. Even if the society has a negative impression of us. The religious leaders of the day saw the woman caught in the act of adultery as a vile sinner deserving to be stoned but Jesus saw a potential SAINT, a daughter of the Living God...... to be continued

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