Silently they moved through the night. The only sound was the brush of leather against the sand and rocks. The heat of the day had not completely left the earth and it seemed to make the journey almost comfortable against the cold of the evening. However, nothing could remove the uneasy feeling of dread that hung over them like a cloud. How could they have ever wound up in this impossible situation? It seemed totally illogical and more than that, it screamed of total insanity!
Quietly they moved through the canyon, ever so close to the enemy. Occasionally they glimpsed the enemy camp down below. All seemed still and quiet; as quiet as 120,000 armed men preparing for war can be. Every man moved quietly along the trail above the camp lost in his own thoughts. There was, however, one singular, nagging thought that raced through every mind as they looked down at their hands. How can we face this army without one sword or spear among us?
Slowly they moved along in single file, ever closer to a well-armed and well-trained army. So quiet was their approach that even the lizards drawing the last of the day’s warmth from the rocks below only casually noticed them. Perhaps even they were astounded at the weapons each man carried. Had the men noticed those lizards they might very well have changed places with them. What a disaster this was about to become. There they were, 300 men slowly drawing closer to 120,000 heavily armed warriors. How in the world had they ever been convinced to arrive at this moment in time, armed with … a trumpet and a jar with a lamp inside?
Have you ever felt like that? Following the calling of God as best you know how, trusting in Him for the answer to your dilemma and looking at the strange weapons in your hand? I cannot tell you the number of times I have paused, looked up and asked God. One of us is not thinking clearly here? You don’t need me to reveal who that was and I don’t want to go into how I found out. But, suffice it to say, God has led all of those who have chosen to follow Him into some mighty strange circumstances.
I can only imagine the thoughts of Gideon’s mighty men at that moment. Here they were on the verge of attacking an enemy that outnumbered them 400 to 1 and not one sword or spear among them. To add insult to injury this mighty band of 300 had just the other day been an army of 32,000. I’m sure that 4 to 1 would have felt a lot better the closer they crept to the Midianites and Amalekites. As a matter of fact, it seemed like a whole lot more considering the 120,000 down in the valley.
Judg 7:12 Midianites and the Amalekites and all the children of the east lay along in the valley like grasshoppers for multitude; and their camels were without number, as the sand by the sea side for multitude.
It was hard to believe that God had stacked the deck in their favor. I am sure they would have looked at it differently if God hadn’t sent 31,700 of their compatriots home before the battle even began. Does it ever seem like God has done that to you? Just when you think you have what you need to carry out His plan — and it’s His plan mind you that you are desperately trying to follow — he ups and takes away what you need to finish the job. Well, if He did it to the man He called a mighty man of valor (Judg 6:12), then can we expect any different? Let’s roll back the clock and see why Gideon and his men found themselves in such a fix.
We all remember the story (Judg 6-8) but it might help to look a little deeper to get a better understanding of what was really going on. Before God asked Gideon to reduce his army from 32,000 to 300 He first asked him to do a strange thing; take an act against his father.
At that moment in time Israel had turned away from God and He was looking for a man to turn things around. He was so serious that He sent an angel to personally call on Gideon and extend His invitation to become the savior of Israel. And who did he choose? None but the very man who considered himself of the poorest family in town and the least in his father’s house no less (Judg 6:15).
So he submitted to the Lord and offered up a sacrifice to Him. And that’s when the angel of the Lord told him his first task was to destroy his father’s altar and raise up an altar to the Lord.
Judg 6:7-10 And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried unto the LORD because of the Midianites, That the LORD sent a prophet unto the children of Israel, which said unto them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, I brought you up from Egypt, and brought you forth out of the house of bondage; And I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all that oppressed you, and drove them out from before you, and gave you their land; And I said unto you, I am the LORD your God; fear not the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but ye have not obeyed my voice.
While Israel cried out to God for deliverance He responded by calling their attention to the fact that they had not obeyed His voice; suffering at the hands of the Midianites as a result. He was going to rescue them but first things first. So in the middle of the night, Gideon destroyed the altar to Baal and erected an altar to God and offered a sacrifice to Him.
Now, I have left a lot out of our story here but the above makes my point. God asked Gideon to acknowledge Him as Jehovah and turn away from sin and set an example for Israel by making an offering for the people. He responded and God kept His promise to deliver Israel from the hands of the Midianites. It took an act of faith, obedience and repentance for God to move on behalf of the people.
An interesting thing to note here is that God called Gideon a mighty man of valor before the fact. God sees the finished product but most often we can only see the beginning. Remember that as we move ahead with our story and the moment at hand as Gideon sends forth and gathers an army of 32,000.
The first thing the Lord does before fulfilling His promise is to downsize Gideon’s army by 99%. If I’m Gideon and God has told me I am going to save Israel this is not good news. But note that Gideon does not hesitate and is immediately obedient to the Word of the Lord. As a reward, God reveals to him that He has sown fear into the enemy’s leadership (Judg 7:9-14). So Gideon …
Judg 7:15 … returned into the host of Israel, and said, Arise; for the LORD hath delivered into your hand the host of Midian.
So there they were, 300 of Israel’s finest, split into 3 groups of 100 surrounding 120,000 Midianites with only trumpets, jars, lamps. You have to put yourself in their sandals to fully appreciate the impact of the moment. Their only hope is God’s promise to Gideon: Arise, get thee down unto the host; for I have delivered it into thine hand.
Just when it seemed as though the stillness of the night would shatter every nerve, Gideon rose up in the darkness, blew his trumpet, smashed his jar and held the lamp up in his left hand. Within seconds, 300 others followed suit all around the Midianite camp and the result was astounding:
Judg 7:20-21 And the three companies blew the trumpets, and brake the pitchers, and held the lamps in their left hands, and the trumpets in their right hands to blow withal: and they cried, The sword of the LORD, and of Gideon. And they stood every man in his place round about the camp: and all the host ran, and cried, and fled.
Can you imagine the chaos at that moment? The Midianites must have thought that there were thousands behind each lamp. And the only thing Israel had to raise was a lamp. But what a lamp it was!
For many years I have read this account and, while amazed at the hand of God, I never saw the thread that runs from this story to the New Testament. It was not long ago that I heard J. Vernon McGee say something regarding this incident that brought me up short. As I thought about this amazing miracle the Lord whispered in my ear … it happens every day. Then I saw it.
The whole amazing thing about Gideon is the never-ending love of God for people He created. He is constantly reaching out to us, even though we often ignore His advances. I am speaking here to those of us who call ourselves Christians. Like He used Gideon to reach out to Israel, He uses us to reach out to His sheep, and it all starts and ends with a personal relationship that is lived out in a daily walk.
Look at the events involved in Gideon’s victory over the Midianites. First he destroyed His father’s idol.
For us, it’s turning from the ways of the world and reestablishing our relationship with God through faith in Jesus and repentance.
Next He asked Gideon to reduce his army from 32,000 to 300.
For us, it’s giving up all that we have, which we rely upon to get us by. All those strengths that we think are what keeps us ahead of the game; everything that we depend upon to keep US in control.
Now with empty hands, God gave Gideon’s soldiers a trumpet, a jar and a lamp.
For us, it’s often only a word, a thought, an unction or a knowing … “this is what I am to do or to say.”
Then at the proper moment each soldier responded as he had been ordered; blow his trumpet, break his jar and wait on God.
For us, it’s exactly the same thing!
Now this is where the Lord opened my eyes. He said that the trumpet blown by Gideon is the call of the Lord. By blowing our trumpet we are responding to His call, to take our stand alongside Him. That is often the easiest part. However, the breaking of the jar is something a whole lot more difficult.
When we “break” our jar, we are in effect dealing with our flesh. We are going through that process we have grown to love so well – dying to self. But here is what the Lord showed me and it’s worth thinking about. If we don’t get our jar broken (shattered in pieces), the light within will never shine out into the world around us. And if it doesn’t shine into the world around us it will never be able to turn the enemy’s plans into chaos. While you think about that, ponder what Paul told the Christians at Corinth:
2Cor 4:6-10 For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined 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 excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us. We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.
Isn’t that what we are; earthen vessels containing the light of God in the form of the Holy Spirit? Well, if we aren’t broken that light is never going to shine.
Look at verse 8. There are our enemies: trouble, distress, perplexion, despair, persecution and destruction. But Paul tells us that the power that overcomes these enemies is the light within; the excellency of the power of God.
But that light is of no effect if it can’t be seen. When we fail to deal with issues of the flesh, we limit God’s light within us. It doesn’t reach out into the darkness and our enemies continue to rage against us. A little light dimly reaching out of a small crack won’t illuminate much. Isn’t that what happens when we hold onto the things of the flesh; living one way on Sunday and another from Monday through Saturday?
Our failure to die-to-self limits our growth. Our flesh (our jar) is what keeps us from growing in the Lord. Remember, sanctification is a lifelong process. God may see us as perfectly sanctified by the blood of Jesus, but Jesus sees us, as we are — earthen vessels containing His Spirit. And He wants to see us broken. Remember that in our weakness He shows Himself strong (2Cor 12:9).
God wants our jars broken because He has called us to live a holy life.
1Peter 1:13-17 Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy. 17. And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man’s work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear:
We are all accountable for the life we lead here on this earth. What we do with the light within is of paramount importance to the Lord. Do we trust in Him to guide us through and provide for our battles? Are we smashing our vessels, effectively allowing Him to manifest Himself through us? Are we following after the call of His trumpet with our own or are we being silent? Is the light within shining brightly for all to see or is it covered with only dim rays leaking out of tiny cracks in our vessel?
Strong food for thought!
Yes, just as Gideon’s army must have thought the whole plan was insane, there are those times in our own lives when it all seems just as insane to us. But we must never forget that our God is in control and He is all-powerful. Our God is all-knowing and He is prepared for every eventuality in our life.
But the question remains, are we doing our part? Is our light shining or is it covered with the cares of this world? Is it dimmed with sin? Is it coated with hardness? We have not been called to keep our light under a bushel. God has commanded us to break our vessel for His sake. To do away with the flesh that His Spirit may shine forth in power. A corrupt and unclean vessel is not of honor.
Let the words of Peter challenge us all once again:
1Peter 1:14-16 As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.
The word conversation (anastrophe) means behavior. Let all manner of our behavior be holy. In other words, let’s break our jars and let His light shine forth in holiness and power. Because …
1Peter 1:17 if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man’s work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear:
If You Don’t Break It … You Pay For It