Written by David Brown: David Brown is a husband, father, grandfather, Pastor with a Masters of Religious Studies and a Professor of Philosophy and Comparative Religions. Dave is the Associate Pastor of Pemberton’s First Baptist Church. He is the author of two devotional books, “From a Chair by the Window.” And “#PrayerWinsThe Day”.
Faith Makes Sense in Reverse
Posted on November 18, 2022 by Elizabeth Welte in Freedom Fighters
“I have learned that faith means trusting in advance what will only make sense in reverse.” ~ Yancey
When Gideon had called the people together to stand against the Midianites, about 32,000 showed up.
Then “The Lord said to Gideon, ‘You have too many warriors with you. If I let all of you fight the Midianites, the Israelites will boast to me that they saved themselves by their own strength.’” (Judges 7:2)
So through a process of elimination, God got the number down to what would help the Israelites know that their God was fighting for them, and they can put their trust in Him, and worship Him. That number was 300 men against the 100,000 Midianites.
Knowing that this number probably made Gideon a little ‘uncomfortable’ God had one more thing for Gideon to strengthen his faith in God’s Word. He told him to take Purah his servant and go down to the outpost of the Midianite army.
“Gideon crept up just as a man was telling his companion about a dream. The man said, ‘I had this dream, and in my dream a loaf of barley bread came tumbling down into the Midianite camp. It hit a tent, turned it over, and knocked it flat!’ His companion answered, ‘Your dream can mean only one thing—God has given Gideon son of Joash, the Israelite, victory over Midian and all its allies!’ When Gideon heard the dream and its interpretation, he bowed in worship before the Lord. Then he returned to the Israelite camp and shouted, ‘Get up! For the Lord has given you victory over the Midianite hordes!’” (Judges 7:13-15)
From the time God first came to Gideon until He delivered the Midian army into his hands, God invested much time into building Gideon’s faith. With small steps, Gideon went from knowing to whom he was speaking ‘face to face’, to leading a small group of 300 against a monstrous army… knowing with confidence that God would deliver on His Word.
You too can walk in confidence with God if you would just invest the time necessary to grow your faith. Humble your heart before Him, listen intently as you read His Word and put into practice what His Word says, and as you invest the time doing this, you will be amazed at how your faith grows and what battles the Lord delivers into your hands. I bet they will cause you to worship God as Gideon did!
Choose wisely…
“I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.”
“Those who know your name trust in you, for you, O Lord, do not abandon those who search for you.”
(Romans 15:13; Psalms 9:10)
Praying you choose Christ today
Think About This: “Jesus isn’t trying to expose you to put shame on you. He’s trying to expose the sin that has its chains around you.” – Lysa TerKeurst
The Daily Bible Reading: Ezekiel 17-19; Hebrews 13 You can download our 2022 Daily Bible Reading Plan by clicking here.
This Week’s Verse to Memorize: “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, 5 casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:3-5