In Judges 6:12-13, we read, the Lord’s angel appeared to him there and said, “The LORD is with you, brave and mighty man!" Gideon said to him, "If I may ask, sir, why has all this happened to us if the LORD is with us? What happened to all the wonderful things that our fathers told us the LORD used to do---how he brought them out of Egypt? The LORD has abandoned us and left us to the mercy of the Midianites." (GNB)
In this incident that is recorded in the book of Judges, the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, who was discouraged and disheartened, and gave him the message of encouragement that the Lord was with him. Gideon was at a point in his life where he failed to recognize that the Lord was indeed with him, and the Lord sent His angel just to reassure Gideon that He was most assuredly with him.
Though Gideon was scared and timid, the angel of the Lord addressed him as a brave and mighty man. The confidence that the angel of the Lord imparted to Gideon was the fact that when the Lord was with him, there was no room for fear and discouragement, because the Lord considered him as a man of valor.
We studied in detail in the previous chapter how, Mary Magdalene and the disciples of Jesus themselves were unable to recognize the risen Lord who was so close at hand. Often times we too are overwhelmed by our situations and difficulties, wherein we don’t perceive that the Lord is with us, and our hearts are in doubt if the Lord has abandoned us. The circumstances in our lives are prone to constant change, we will have seasons of joy, seasons of sorrow, seasons of challenges and trials, but through all of it, we have the assurance from the word of Lord that the Lord is with us, and He will never leave us not forsake us, no matter what we are going through. Our God is a personal God, and his desire is to transform us into robust men and women of God.
The people of Israel had rebelled against God, and had walked in disobedience as a result of which the Lord delivered them into the hands of their enemies. Gideon and the Israelites were constantly attacked by the Midianites, who raided their land, plundered all their fields and belongings and left them destitute and helpless. Therefore when the angel of the Lord came to Gideon, the one query that was topmost on Gideon’s mind which he asked the messenger of God was, “If I may ask, sir, why has all this happened to us if the LORD is with us? Judges 6:13
In many of our lives we work and labor so hard, but at the end of it, we are not enjoying the fruit of our labors, and often like Gideon we too wonder why this is so.
Israel was oppressed and called out to the Lord
In Judges 6:6 we read, “And Israel was brought very low because of Midian. And the people of Israel cried out for help to the LORD.” (ESV)
The people of Israel were in a deplorable situation because of the Midianites. It was in such a despicable circumstance that they called out to the Lord. The people of Israel were God’s people, but they were in this crisis only because of their willful disobedience, and rebellion. They refused to let the Lord lead them, and be their shepherd.
We read in Judges 6:1, “The people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the LORD.”(ESV)
The reason for the low and distressing plight of the Israelites was that they had done evil in the sight of the Lord. They had forgotten that the Lord was watching over them, and continued to live in disobedience and wickedness. God handed them over to the Midianites, not to abandon them as they thought, but to discipline them, for only when they were in dire straits they earnestly sought the Lord and called on Him.
In recent years we may have noticed that several residential building, shops, offices have CCTV (Closed Circuit Television) cameras installed in them. The reason for this is that in general people tend to behave differently when they know that they are under surveillance, and also the fact that they are being watched prompts people to be more disciplined. It is far more important for each one of us to be aware that the Lord is watching our every thought, word and deed. Therefore, if we don’t submit to the Lord, and allow Him to be the shepherd of our lives, we too will face similar situations of want and abandonment that the Israelites faced. Just as the Israelites were subjected to the Midianites, we will fall prey into the hands of the evil one, when we choose to disregard the fact that the Lord is watching us, and deliberately choose to walk in disobedience to His word.
The people of Israel called on the Lord only when they were faced with insurmountable troubles. Just like the Israelites, we too seek the Lord when in tough situations, but once things get better we forget the Lord, get back to the place of complacency, and don’t seek Him as we should. When we are brought low at certain times in our lives, it is always good to examine ourselves to see if we have failed, dishonored or not glorified the Lord in some way. However, when we repent and turn back to the Lord, He is gracious and willing to forgive and restore everything to us.
God is always watching us, and for those who live with this thought, this is the fear of the Lord which the Bible talks about. Many children behave a certain way in the presence of their parents, and are totally different when their parents are not around. It is good to remind ourselves that we can never hide anything from the Lord, and instead of being people pleasers, if we live with the consciousness that God is watching, our lives will be totally pleasing to Him.
Gideon was concerned for others rather than himself
It was at this point of total fear and abandonment that the Israelites and Gideon faced that the Lord sent the angel to Gideon, and encouraged him with the words, “The LORD is with you, brave and mighty man!" Gideon didn’t take pride in the fact that God was with him, but he sympathized with the people of Israel, and that is what prompted him to ask the angel of the Lord why they had to go through so many hardships at the hands of the Midianites if the Lord was with them. Gideon was a man who was not self-centered, but whose heart was for the people of Israel who were facing untold hardships at the hands of the Midianites.
God is looking people like Gideon who are not self-absorbed, but whose heart is filled with burden for those who are lost, and it is to such people that the Lord sends His angels to. If we have such concern for those in our families, and those around us who are without Christ, the Lord will certainly use us in a mighty way. For those of us who are so caught up with our personal and family lives and our own needs, it is important that we take our mind off ourselves, and ask the Lord to burden us instead for people in our city, our state and our country.
Gideon was faithful in what he was entrusted with
We read in Judges 6:2, “The Midianites were stronger than Israel, and the people of Israel hid from them in caves & other safe places in the hills.”(GNB)
The people of Israel were so in dread of the Midianites that that they hid in caves, and other safe places. The ones who were bold at one point were now running and hiding in fear of their enemies.
In Judges 6:11 we read, “Then the LORD's angel came to the village of Ophrah and sat under the oak tree that belonged to Joash, a man of the clan of Abiezer. His son Gideon was threshing some wheat secretly in a wine press, so that the Midianites would not see him.” (GNB)
While everyone else feared and hid, Gideon didn’t run away, but was stayed right where he was and threshed wheat in a wine press. It is a good reminder to us that when God is with us, we have no reason to despair or flee. Whatever was in Gideon’s hands to do, he continued to do that faithfully. Gideon was not willing to give up doing what best he could do even in the most stressful situation.
We must check to see if we are faithful in all that God has committed to us. We read in Luke 16:10-11, “Whoever is faithful with very little is also faithful with a lot, and whoever is dishonest with very little is also dishonest with a lot. So if you haven't been faithful with unrighteous wealth, who will trust you with true wealth?” (ISV)
The Lord expects us to be upright and honest with the little that he has handed over to us. This faithfulness is achieved only when we live with the awareness that the Lord is with us, and watches us all the time. Only when a person is dependable with a little, will God entrust more and more. On the other hand if a person is unfaithful with the little that God has committed to them, they cannot be entrusted with more. When we talk about unrighteous worldly wealth it may very well also include our time, our family, our work, our finances in all of which we are expected to be conscientious and true.
Faithful in finances
Many people struggle with being honest in money matters. If we desire that the Lord bless our finances, here are a few areas in our lives we must check to see if we are following God’s principles.
Let us start with three everyday situations.
When we are invited to a wedding or birthday party, we do not go empty handed, but go with a gift that in a way reflects the kind of relationship we have with the ones who invited us. The closer the relationship the greater the value of the gift.
Some people when invited to a wedding or birthday party, will first partake of the food that is served, and then decide to give a gift amount that they think appropriate for what they received.
When receiving a dignitary or a person of honor, every person who is part of the team that is welcoming him or her is expected to bring either a bouquet or a shawl as a mark of respect to the position held by the dignitary. No one is permitted to receive the dignitary empty handed.
1. Giving to God
Similar to the situations cited above, there are three primary reasons why we give to God. Firstly, we give to God because we are His children and our giving is based on this relationship we have with Him. Secondly, we give to God in gratitude for all the material blessings He has bestowed on us, and thirdly, and most importantly we give to God to honor and respect Him for who He is, the Almighty God who is King of Kings.
In 2 Corinthians 9:7 we read, “Each of you must give what you have decided in your heart, not with regret or under compulsion, since God loves a cheerful giver.” (ISV)
Our giving should always be willingly, and never out of compulsion. We primarily give out of a heart full of love and when we do so the Lord is pleased because ‘God loves a cheerful giver’
In Deuteronomy 16:17 we read, “Each man must bring a gift in proportion to the blessings the LORD your God has given him.” (GW)
Here the Lord clearly commands that each man who comes into His presence comes with whatever he is able to bring to the Lord. The first principle for God’s blessings to remain on us is to honor God with our finances.
2. Giving to the Government
In Romans 13:7, “Give to everyone what you owe them: Pay your taxes and government fees to those who collect them,” (NLT)
One of the areas where many people fail is in this area of paying taxes to the government. Instead of paying what is due, they devise ways and means to evade the payment or circumvent the rules, and even engage in misrepresentation of facts just to pay less than what is due. The word of God is concise that the Lord expects us to be honest is paying our dues to the government. When we disobey God’s word, we will lose out on the blessings that He desires to shower on us.
3. Giving to the Poor
Have you noticed how we are so willing to pay any amount of money when we shop at huge malls, and yet we bargain with a poor vendor on the street? This is an important principle we must practice in our lives, the principle of giving generously to the poor. It is also imperative that when we engage people in daily labor, we pay them their dues immediately, and not procrastinate their payments.
In James 5:4, we read, “I tell you that the pay of the laborers who have gathered in your crops--pay which you are keeping back--is calling out against you; and the outcries of those who have been your reapers have entered into the ears of the Lord of the armies of Heaven.” (WNT)
The word of God cautions us that it is our duty to pay those who work for us. When we withhold the money that belongs to the poor, and the laborer the blessings of the Lord will certainly evade us. If they cry out to the Lord in their distress, the Lord will listen, and mete out justice for them. Let us be those who give lavishly to those in need, and be upright in paying those who work for us, so we can enjoy God’s abundant favor on us.
4. Giving to our family
In 1 Timothy 5:8, we read, “But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”(ESV)
In many homes both the husband and wife are employed, but the responsibility of taking care of all the expenses of the home is expected to be taken care of by the wife with her salary. There are many religions in our world today that may justify this where there is a big divide between the spiritual life, and daily practical living. However, the Bible does not teach such dichotomy because what we believe has got to be translated into our daily living. The word of God is clear that it is the duty of the man to first take care of the needs of his family and relatives. If a man fails in this responsibility, not only has he denied the faith, but is considered worse off than an unbeliever. God’s blessing rests on the family who are obedient to this principle, and fulfil their obligation to their families.
5. Giving to ourselves
We are certainly exhorted to take care of our personal needs as well. The Bible clearly teaches us that we must indeed love ourselves, and take care of ourselves as well, but sadly this has become so predominant in our lives that we have totally changed the order of giving and have become self-centered and content with only taking care of ourselves. Let us remind ourselves that we must always follow God’s principle of giving, is we want to be recipients of His manifold blessings.
In summary, if we aspire God’s blessing on our finances, let us practice being faithful in giving to God, giving to the government, giving to the poor, giving to our family, and finally taking care of our needs as well. It is mandatory for us to be faithful and trustworthy with the little that the Lord has entrusted to us. We must learn to be content with what we have, and practice living within our means, and God will positively bless us immeasurably more than we can ask and imagine. Our hands must become hands that give generously, instead of hands that keep on receiving. Like Gideon, may we have hearts that empathize with those around us, and like Gideon may we be faithful to do whatever is entrusted to us faithfully and sincerely. Let Jesus be our shepherd, and lead us every day, and may we learn to listen and obey His voice, so we can be blessed, and be a blessing to others.
Rev. F. Andrew Dixon
www.goodnewsfriends.net
Transcribed by: Sis. Esther Collins
