Judges 6:11-18 LIMITED VISION
Under Midian Israel had lost their freedom, their fruitfulness and their food. Their numbers had increased as "grasshoppers" and they had come in to "destroy the land' and impoverish the people of God. That is typical of the destructive nature of strife and it is the same today as it was then. With poverty came bitterness, and with bitterness came despondency that overcame the people. The results of strife affect every part of our lives whether it be in homes among our families, in assemblies where the testimony of God's people is affected or in the nation when violence and self-interests destroy the peace that is needed to succeed and flourish. Dealing with strife does not come easy. People are humbled to the dust where the only way to look and recover is up. In our human weakness we are unable to deal with the problem but when the Lord is acknowledged and called upon, there is given the needed strength. An available man with an exercise who knows what has happened, God can use that man.
Gideon became the fifth judge. He must have been a man of strength who knew how to be a "hewer" as his name implies. He could thresh grain in a very unlikely and uncomfortable place, and was willing to do what was necessary to bring about the provisions needed by his family. As is made plain further on in the account of this humble judge, he was able to use an ax effectively. Gideon's weakness was that he had not yet acknowledged that the calamity that had fallen on God's people was their fault. When they had neglected God and disobeyed Him, they put the blame in the wrong place. Gideon was something like the man who came to his psychiatrist with a problem.
"Doctor, you must help me. Everything's wrong. I feel worthless. My friends tell me I have a terrible inferiority complex. Can you help me?" A week later after testing and evaluation the man came back and the psychiatrist said, "Friend, I have some good news and some bad news for you. The good news is that we have proved you do not have a complex. There is no doubt about that. But the bad news is, you are inferior."
Gideon had questioned God because of the problems he and the nation faced and wondered why God had not come to help and deliver them. There will always be problems in life and Christians are not immune from them. When they come and we finally are brought to face them, the first place we should look is at ourselves and within ourselves. If we find areas in life where we have sinned by either commission or omission, there is no one else to blame but ourselves. Confession and forsaking sin is how we find mercy that is needed. We are called to serve God in specific ways. it is up to us to rise to deal with the problems and not make excuses for ourselves. When God's promises are clear to us, we need to move forward in faith and trust Him to give us the ability and strength needed for the work before us. Instead of excusing ourselves, we need to get up and move ahead.
When we know there are issues to be faced and problems to be solved, we look for guidance, and that is only right. The problem often is we don't know where to find the solution. God's guidance doesn't always come out of the blue in some miraculous way. Often it comes clear to us the fact that the solution is found in the activities in which we are presently engaged. What we are working on now deserves our attention until it is completed. When God gives us something new to do, it seldom means leaving our present work unfinished or in jeopardy. God's call for future work may come while we are working our way through the challenges of the present moment.
Gideon's vision was limited in that he was committed to meeting the challenge of food for his family. He showed initiative by making use of the winepress, a most unusual place to thresh grain, so that his activity was hidden from the Midianites. Strife is always lurking in the area but when we are meeting urgent needs, strife often is not present. It was there God met him. It was in the place of his urgent activity that God surprised him with the fact that He knew what Gideon was doing, even though the Midianites didn't. It was also there that God set about to expand his limited vision to include the call of God to meet the needs of others. He doubted the call because he doubted himself. His sense of inadequacy had to be overcome by faith in God. We are not sufficient in ourselves to accomplish all that is necessary in the work of God. In everything, and in every way, we need God.
When there is even limited vision, the Lord can add to that and enable us to rise to the challenge. Such a challenge involves real sacrifice, which in turn comes at the cost of our own survival. Vision also means reaching out beyond our own comfort zone to act on what God says. When we turn over what we own, God takes it. With vision there is the conviction God is in control. A genuine person of faith knows that victory comes from God. Vision means there is a willingness to go forward in simple obedience to God. Five minutes of obedience is worth more than a month of study. Understanding and vision go together and by learning from others, we are made strong. Vision means evaluation of a matter from God's perspective. Self- importance interferes with God's plans. When our vision is with divinely given insight, we will have the wisdom to share that vision with others. Though Gideon was hard to convince, when he was sure that God was in the matter, he acted on his convictions with speed and enthusiasm. His own perceived personal limitation yielded to obedience to divine authority and he gave his new responsibilities his full attention.
There will always be times when I cannot see far ahead Moving forward in darkness and fog brings a certain dread Of dangers unseen, either real ones or perceived That limits my vision so instead of opportunities seized I labor and wait with self-centered fear and trepidation Even though I know God is in control of every situation And can bring to pass by His own might and sovereign will A solution to a problem that we may be pondering still.
When God moves to act, and brings about a needed solution We can know with assurance He has in His mind a conclusion That will ultimately bring blessing although there is pain in the present We would choose to avoid because its action is so unpleasant Yet with faith in Him who knows the beginning and the end We go through step by step each event that He chooses to send Because our confidence is in Him who we've proven never fails And we trust His guidance to get through all that following Him entails.
Vision isn't wishful thinking, but it is looking farther ahead Then is normal to those who have learned that He has led Us to go through deep waters to dry land and mountains high That we may see beyond the valleys and deserts to our home in the sky Where the Holy One sits and knows each and every event Because from His place of authority and His hand He has sent Both the problem and solution that will sharpen our own vision So that we will claim for ourselves every divinely given provision.
This is all allowed by God, even sent, so that we will learn To act in obedience to His will and in each matter arising turn To Him for the guidance we need to enhance our needed vision And bless Him who in grace keeps giving with His holy precision All that is needed by us from His limitless abundant supply And is available for us to grasp and claim when in faith we do apply The initiative that is to be taken when from Him the vision is given Though we may not know now or ever the outcome or the reason.
"I gladly accept Father, the fact that I do not have the right to know every reason behind every action Thou dost sent. I am simply trusting Thee because i know Thee well enough to be assured that whatever comes to me is for my good, and hopefully, for Thy glory. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, Amen."