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In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
The Israelites said to Gideon, "Rule over us—you, your son and your grandson—because you have saved us out of the hand of Midian."
But Gideon told them, "I will not rule over you, nor will my son rule over you. The Lord will rule over you." And he said, "I do have one request, that each of you give me an earring from your share of the plunder." (It was the custom of the Ishmaelites to wear gold earrings.)
They answered, "We'll be glad to give them." So they spread out a garment, and each man threw a ring from his plunder onto it. The weight of the gold rings he asked for came to seventeen hundred shekels, not counting the ornaments, the pendants, and the purple garments worn by the kings of Midian or the chains that were on their camels' necks. Gideon made the gold into an ephod, which he placed in Ophrah, his town. All Israel prostituted themselves by worshiping it there, and it became a snare to Gideon and his family.
Thus Midian was subdued before the Israelites and did not raise its head again. During Gideon's lifetime, the land enjoyed peace forty years.
Jerub-Baal, son of Joash, went back home to live. He had seventy sons of his own, for he had many wives. His concubine, who lived in Shechem, also bore him a son, whom he named Abimelech. Gideon, son of Joash, died at a good old age and was buried in the tomb of his father Joash in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.
No sooner had Gideon died than the Israelites again prostituted themselves to the Baals. They set up Baal-Berith as their god and did not remember the Lord their God, who had rescued them from the hands of all their enemies on every side. They also failed to show kindness to the family of Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) for all the good things he had done for them.
Judges 8:22-35
This ends our reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
As we finish Judges 8, we see the final chapter in the life of Gideon, an Old Testament figure who is truly an enigma.
For we have seen him go from a humble man selected by God to lead Israel to victory over Midian, to a man obsessed with vengeance and exacting justice on anyone who would do him or his people wrong, to a man who turns Israel to God as their true leader, and finally to a man who fashions an ephod which his people ended up prostituting themselves by worshipping it in his town of Ophrah.
Truly, in Gideon we see a classic example of an inconsistent servant of the Lord…someone who we might be able to relate to. I know I can.
For I often wonder how God must feel about us as we go through life day-by-day…this very life that He blesses us with. How does He feel when one moment we are the faithful, obedient servant He wants us to be and then turn around in another moment and conduct ourselves in some sinful manner that has to disappoint Him greatly. Our inconsistency must frustrate Him as much as it should frustrate us as we seek to grow more and more in Him and His way.
Well, in our passage today, there lies one absolute remedy for inconsistency…one key to ensuring we always remain constantly righteous and holy in all our actions and attitudes.
What is that key?
It involves allowing the Lord, and Him alone to rule over our lives.
For after Gideon had gained such great success and victory over Midian, freeing all of Israel from their oppression, the people were ready to follow him anywhere. We read where they say:
“Rule over us — you, your son and your grandson — because you have saved us out of the hand of Midian."
Note here that it wasn’t just the current generation of Israelites who vowed submission to Gideon’s leadership but their descendents as well. But as we see, Gideon would have none of what Israel was proposing. Instead, he turned Israel’s attention to where it needed to be…on God, the One who had truly handed Midian over to His people. Here’s what he told them:
“I will not rule over you, nor will my son rule over you. The Lord will rule over you."
And indeed, He does rule…not just over the Israel of the Old Testament but over the world we live in today. Gideon attributed full surrender to His authority and we need to as well.
So truly friends, this is what’s needed in order to consistently live in the way that God expects us to live. It involves total deference to Him, a willingness to allow Him to have control over every aspect of who we are and what we do. For after all, He and He alone is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, and there is no greater power above Him. Thankfully, He is willing to lend us some of that power so we can have the strength and perseverance to become the steady, faithful, trustworthy servants He wants us to be…servants who model the life of His Son and our Savior, Jesus Christ.
And as Christians…isn’t that what we’re supposed to be doing?
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.
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