SHINING God’s LIGHT through our ‘BROKENNESS’!
March 14 Bible
Reading: Judges Chapters 7-9
SHINING God’s LIGHT through our ‘BROKENNESS’!
So Gideon and the hundred men who were with
him came to the outpost of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, just
as they had posted the watch; and they blew the trumpets and broke the pitchers
that were in their hands. Then the three companies blew the trumpets and broke
the pitchers--they held the torches in their left hands and the trumpets in
their right hands for blowing--and they cried, "The sword of the Lord and
of Gideon!" And every man stood in his place all around the camp; and the
whole army ran and cried out and fled. (Judges 7:19-21)
We can
clearly see that God had asked Gideon to do the impossible - to launch a
pre-emptive attack on the Midianite army of 135,000 (8:10) with a force of only 300 Israelites (7:7). God had cut
down the ranks from 10,000 to 300 (7:2-7) so that the “army” had to trust completely in God for victory. When God strips
away our resources, it is not to
impoverish our lives but to enrich our faith by trusting in Him completely!
We see that Gideon
worshiped God before going to battle
(v. 15) for he knew that God alone was
able to give him the victory against such a formidable enemy. God then used the
weak weapons and the few people to defeat such a mighty army
because Gideon and his men trusted in Him: “For
nothing restrains the Lord from saving by many or by few” (1 Sam. 14:6).
Gideon’s
battle strategy counted on the elements of surprise and confusion upon the
Midianite army. The divinely conceived plan worked better than anyone could
have hoped, as the blast of the trumpets, the loud clatter of breaking pitchers,
and the blinding light caused such panic that the Midianites began swinging
swords blindly and killing one another. We should understand that "...the foolishness of God is wiser
than men" (I Cor.1: 25a), and "God
hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise" (1
Cor. 1:27a).
The method
used by Gideon to defeat the Midianites can be used by us also to overcome our
enemy – Satan and his forces (Eph. 6:12). The sounding that trumpet can be equated to the preaching of the everlasting gospel, as the light inside the
pitchers can represent the ‘gospel light’:
"For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has
shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in
the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels that the
excellence of the power may be of God and not of us" (2 Cor 4:6-7).
Our bodies
are the earthen vessels that carry the wonderful treasure of the gospel light.
It is only when we are broken and crucified with Christ can we present this
gospel light as a reality as our lives will then reflect the words of Apostle
Paul: "I have been crucified with
Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which
I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and
gave Himself for me." (Gal 2:20)
