It’s not much, but you can have it!
Judges 3:31
Israel should have been fully enjoying the Promised Land but their inconsistency in obeying God and their imitation of the idolatrous culture around them led to failure.
Israel had a habit of turning from God. Whenever they did so God would deliver them into the hands of their enemies. They would then cry out to God in repentance; God would send a deliverer – a judge – but when He delivered them they would only be obedient for a while but then drift back into sin, and God will deliver them to their enemies, until they again cried out for help. This was repeated again and again in the life of the nation of Israel.
At this particular time there is a definite need of deliverance. They people of Israel find themselves completely at the mercy of their nemesis, the Philistines!
Shamgar is only mentioned twice in the book of Judges - in out text and in 5:6-7. Shamgar’s story almost seems incidental, but because he was too important to be omitted.
THE TERROR
It Was A Time of Fear.
Travelers did not journey on the main highways for fear of being robbed or killed. The people abandoned their villages in an attempt to avoid being the victims of frequent Philistine raids.
It Was A Time of Vulnerability.
Israel had no weapons with which to defend herself against her enemies. She was vulnerable on every front. No one liked the situation, but no one seemed able to do anything about it.
The Israelites didn’t think they had a fighting chance. The Philistines had them so convinced of their inferiority that they had even surrendered their weapons of war. Then the Philistines did not allow them to have a blacksmith in the entire country so they could not fashion any weapons.
Their morale was low, they felt defeated and even worse they felt hopeless. The Israelites weren’t looking for a brighter day. They had lost confidence in themselves and they had even lost faith in God!THE TOOL
Our text reveals that Shamgar killed 600 men of the Philistines. It does not tell us if he did this over a period of time or in one encounter. While we aren’t given much detail concerning his heroic act, we are told that Shamgar’s weapon was an ox goad.
A goad is a wooden rod varying in length from five to seven feet, with a sharp point at one end. With this the farmer can hurry up his slow-moving animals.
The ox goad was an instrument used in agriculture, not in fighting against seasoned warriors. However, in Shamgar’s hands the ox goad became a lethal weapon.
Others in Israel may have seen the need to throw off the oppression of the Philistines, but they felt unable to do anything about their situation.
THE TRUTH
While others were waiting for God to work a miracle that would make failure impossible, Shamgar trusted God to use him and what he had.
What we are about to discover is that the Israelites deliverance came from the most unexpected source! Deliverance, you see, is about to come from a man…
Who isn’t politically connected,
Who isn’t from a wealthy family,
Who doesn’t have a college degree,
Who doesn’t n any military experience!
Yet it was this farmer that God chose to bring deliverance to Israel!
“Why did God choose Shamgar for such a task?” God chose Shamgar because he possessed qualities that made it possible for him to be used by God!
What can I learn from a guy whose entire biography consists of just two verses?
I. EMBARK Right From Where You Are
Where was Shamgar? What was the starting point for him? He was living in a time and place when his life and property, and the lives and property of his family and countrymen, were at the mercy of Philistines. He could have seen himself as helpless and hopeless but he didn’t.
A. Shamgar didn’t wait - for suitable circumstances. He commenced from here he was.
God specializes in taking the ordinary and doing extraordinary things with it! One of the lessons from the Book of Judges is that God places His Spirit upon people in spite of their weaknesses.
The truth is we are all weak and need God’s intervention.
God can do things in the lives of people who admit that they need Him. God cannot work in the lives of people who will not admit that they need Him. Three times the Bible says, "God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble."
Shamgar did not wait until he had an army of thousands to lead in battle. And you and I don’t have to wait until things are more convenient before we advance. So, commence where you are.
Shamgar wasn’t satisfied with the status quo!
In fact I believe it made him sick to his stomach to be bossed around by the enemy in his own country!
He was filled with anger every time he saw his neighbor’s wheat being carried off by the Philistines, or when he stood in his window and watched as his very own oxen were driven away!
It is bad enough to allow Satan to beat us up, but to be content to remain beat up is even worse!
The story is told of the eagle that was hatched among a family of chickens. His fellow chicken siblings laughed at the awkward brownish bird. He really did look quite funny as he tried to pick up the grain with his great hooked beak.
He looked out of place and he felt out of place. But for the time being he didn’t know what to do. So he scratched around in the barnyard day after day, a picture of discontentment.
But one sunny afternoon he saw a far speck in the sky. Then there was a strange wild call from the clouds. All at once this misfit, the laughing stock of the barnyard, looked up and understood the cry!
Suddenly the chickens noticed a glowing fire in this misfit’s eyes! Why they even stepped back a pace or two!
And without even realizing it he spread his wings and took flight! Higher and higher he soared until that barnyard and those chickens faded from view!
For the first time in his life the eagle experienced freedom. NEVER again would he scratch for food in the filth of the barnyard!
B. Shamgar didn’t whine
He believed God had something better in mind.
He saw the difficulties! He knew the enemy! He realized the weakness of the Israelites. BUT SHAMGAR SAW MORE THAN JUST THE DIFFICULTIES! He saw the divine hand that would bring victory! Shamgar possessed a belief that God uses people to accomplish a heavenly task!
You see it doesn’t take a great deal of faith to say: “I believe that God uses others.” But it does take a great deal of faith to say: “I believe that God wants to use me!”
II. EMPLOY Resources That You Have
Shamgar didn’t have a sword or spear. But he didn’t need one. He had an ox goad!
The truth is we don’t need a lot of things we think we need in order to succeed for God. You may not have the abilities or the education you think it takes to succeed - but you can embark from where you are and employ what you do have.
God approaches Moses in the wilderness and tells him to return to Egypt, confront Pharaoh, and lead the Hebrews out of slavery. Moses immediately slips into an excuse mode. "Who, me? I don’t have what it takes to do that!"
So God says, "What is that in your hand?" (Exodus 4:2). Moses replies, "Well, Lord, all I have is this shepherd’s staff!" And God says, "That will do. Throw it on the ground." When Moses obeys, his staff turns into a snake.
That staff is the instrument God uses to turn the Nile River into blood, to bring other great plagues on Egypt, to part the Red Sea, and bring about miracles in the wilderness. That shepherd’s staff wasn’t much but dedicated to God it became a mighty tool!
God can use anything when it is surrendered to Him!
What is it you are waiting for? Don’t wait for ideal circumstances or supplies to come your way.
Shamgar could have made excuses! He could have said, “Lord the last time I checked ox-goads weren’t listed as the number one weapon of mass destruction.” Or he could have said, “Lord I’m just one person. I’m neither qualified nor equipped. War has never been fought this way before.”
But Shamgar didn’t have the spiritual gift of excusing himself from the Lords service! So when the enemy came at him he stood his ground and let his ox goad do the talking
Instead of waiting for a better weapon, instead of saying what he could do if he had more people in his army, he simply went to work with what was in his hand!
Shamgar simply used what was in his hand!
What do you have that when used in obedience will
bring glory to God?
III. ENTRUST The Results To God
Defeating 600 Philistines with an ox goad definitely was a mammoth accomplishment.
How often do we fail to do something for the Lord because we mistakenly conclude that our what we have is not much? It may not but little is much if God is in it.
God isn’t looking for people with ability but for people with availability.
What can one person do? Shamgar was only one man but with the enablement of the Lord “he also delivered Israel.”
In the April 1996 edition of Mountain Movers magazine, missionary Bob Roberts tells a story about "Six Small Seashells."
The pastor dismissed the congregation and I, the guest speaker, sat down to relax for a moment. I had just shared my burden for the hungry children in the Philippines.
When I looked up, I saw a young boy, about 7 years old, standing before me. He was a Norman Rockwell painting waiting to happen.
I motioned for him to come closer. He came running and three both arms around my neck in an unexpected display of emotion. As he stepped back from his heartwarming bear hug, I saw tears in his eyes. "What’s the matter?" I asked.
He explained, "Jesus spoke to me tonight while you were telling us about the hungry children." He stopped, looked into my eyes, and asked, "Do you think it’s possible that Jesus really spoke to me?"
"Yes!" I encouraged him. "Go on."
He continued excitedly. "When you said that for a quarter a day you would feed a child and give him a vitamin, I thought, I’ve got to help, but I didn’t know how I could. That’s when Jesus spoke to me."
He slowly pulled his hand, now formed into a tight little fist, from his pocket. He was firmly gripping his gift to the ministry, whatever it was. He extended his fist toward me and slowly opened his hand to reveal six small seashells.
Gazing at his treasure with pride, he said, "This is my shell collection. Ain’t it just beautiful?" His voice quivered as he continued. "I believe Jesus wants me to give these shells to help the children."
With those words, he placed the shells in my hand. I said a prayer of dedication over the gift, and my little friend sniffed and sighed in a final farewell to the treasure he held dear.
A few weeks later, I spoke to another congregation about my burden. Reaching into my pocket, I pulled out the seashells and shared their legacy.
At the end of the service, a man approached me and asked to see the shells. I happily complied and placed them in his hand. He held them for a moment and then said, as he pulled out his checkbook, "I would like to purchase these shells for $100!"
My freckle-faced friend may never know that his sacrificial offering provided 400 meals for Filipino children. He may not have understood how the Lord would use the small gift to feed the hungry, but he knew God wanted him to give what he had; he did it. God did the rest.
Conclusion
What do you have? It may in the face of the overwhelming need seem ever so insignificant, but obedience can make it an instrument of deliverance. What do you have?
There were a thousand reasons why it couldn’t be done, but Shamgar and his ox goad did it with the help of the Lord
