ICS Daily Devotions
God Believes in You
Judges 6:11-12,14-15 (NKJV) Now the Angel of the Lord came and sat under the terebinth tree which was in Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, while his son Gideon threshed wheat in the winepress, in order to hide it from the Midianites. And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him, and said to him, “The Lord is with you, you mighty man of valor!” …. Then the Lord turned to him and said, “Go in this might of yours, and you shall save Israel from the hand of the Midianites. Have I not sent you?” So he said to Him, “O my Lord, how can I save Israel? Indeed my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house.”
Although Gideon was included in the “Hall of Faith” in chapter 11 of the Book Of Hebrews, we see that he had to deal with several of his weaknesses or perceptions before he was able to step into his calling.
He chose to hide in the winepress to thresh the wheat instead of threshing it in the open because he was fearful of the Midianites. He wasn’t ready to respond to God’s call to face the challenges, and he gave the excuse that he belonged to the weakest of all tribes and was the least in the family. The problem was too overwhelming for him, not to mention leading the people to overcome the onslaught of the Midianites, and he suggested that God should use someone else to deal with the situation.
Like Gideon, we also have the tendency to give the same excuses when we are called or asked to trust God to overcome challenges in our lives. Often, the problem seems bigger than our God, and it is especially true when we are living in unprecedented times. We don’t think we are able to overcome the challenges because they seem like a huge mountain before us.
Although the Angel of the Lord called Gideon a “mighty man of valor”, he definitely didn’t feel like one, nor did he know or act like one when he was hiding from the invaders, feeling inferior and full of doubts in his mind about God. Nevertheless, God chooses to call us that as though we are, even if we don’t feel or act like it. We can witness this principle at work on another occasion with Abraham’s life.
Genesis 17:5 (NKJV) No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations.
God is full of faith and He has faith in His creation even though we might feel or act very differently from what He thinks and expects of us. Therefore, take heart that He is already calling us based on what He expects of us to do and achieve because He sees the end from the beginning!
Sermon Series: You Are in the Hall of Faith! (Part 1)
