What Drove Him to Victory? Judges 8:15
Then Gideon said to the men of Succoth,
Here are Zebah and Zalmunna, about
whom you taunted me saying,
‘Do you already have the hands of
Zebah and Zalmunna in your
possession? Why should we give
bread to our exhausted men?”
Judges 8:15
This is the verse I dreaded getting too. Gideon walking down hill, carrying his spoil, looks to torment the people who denied his troop and didn’t believe in him. He drags them around like a trophy, determined to make believers from the doubters, and earn respect and fear from those who previously counted him as less than.
He has the men gathered, and has one of the greatest “Your not going to believe this…” moments in history! They gather in front of him to see one of their newest and greatest fears and are about to live out their latest regret; a revengeful Gideon. Gideon full of frustration and anger, holds up his trophies in front of the his doubters. His audience stood polarized, watching Zebah and Zalmunna stand helplessly before them. While confronting them, no doubt, he had revenge and making the doubters respect him.
“Here are Zebah and Zalmunna, about whom you taunted me…” Gideon again showing how the words and actions of the men of Succoth impacted him. He recalls their words, as though they just spoke them, “Do you already have the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna in your possession?” He recalls them as though their words haunted him. These words served as motivation and helped drive him to capture the two kings.
I wondered to myself,
How many of us allow the words of others to serve
as the driving force behind our accomplishments and conquest?
Here Gideon is, a called man of God, chosen for greatness, steps ordered, armed and equipped, and the words that are driving him to victory don’t belong to the Lord. His anger robbed God of the glory, and marred the victory by tainting it with the punishment and torture of to lands who were just meant to be a part of the testimony.
What drives you?
Are you bringing glory and honor to the Lord with your victories?
Will you open your mouth and praise the true and living God?
The power of God worked mightily through him. Conquering his foe with by blowing a trumpet. Marching up a mountain, exhausted, and stood toe to toe 300 soldiers to 15,000 soldiers. Now Gideon stands before these men as though he personally won these battles.
And so do we! We accept the call from God. Chase down the goals, conquering feats, surviving battles, overcoming obstacles and somehow, we forget that it is He working through us that allows us to defeat armies of 50 to 1. God protects us through times of lack; keeping us while we are starving, and still allowing us to excel, and yet the words that come from our mouth don’t honor Him. I thought about Gideon, and gave praise because God protected Him,though he lost his focus as to why he was fighting and how he was going to win.
Let us not forget why we are bold in our pursuits! Let us not forget how God protects us, and fights for us! Let us not pretend that we are more than just a chosen vessel! Let us honor God and not get consumed with the words of others that we encounter on the path.
#PastorJDO3
