Less is More When God is in It

“And the number of them that lapped, putting their hands to their mouth, were three hundred men: but all the rest of the people bowed down upon their knees to drink water.”  Judges 7:6

Several years ago, I took a defensive driving course, a requirement because I was working for the federal government driving a government car to the post office to pick up the mail.  (I had to learn to drive a straight shift in order to get the job.  I did not like that old car.  Every time I made a right turn, the horn would blow!  That was embarrassing.  I tried disabling the horn, but someone would always enable it again.)  The two main points that I learned from taking the course was to watch out for the other drivers and to expect the unexpected.  This is actually good advice for other activities besides driving, particularly parking your car in a shopping district or a gas station.  Too many folks are getting carjacked, and some, especially women, have been kidnapped and killed.  It is always a good idea to be very alert and aware of one’s surroundings.  We don’t need to be paranoid, but better safe than sorry.

In today’s passage, we have the account of Gideon, whom God called a “mighty man of valor”.  He was in charge of the army of Israel in the time of the judges.  Israel was about to be engaged in fighting the Midianites.  Israel had the advantage because of the size of their army, but it was really a disadvantage because God would not allow them to be victorious.  He knew them well.  He knew that if He allowed them to defeat their enemy with their vast army, then they would take all the credit for themselves, thus ignoring God.  He told Gideon to release all those who were fearful, resulting in 22,000 leaving.  Gideon was left with 10,000 men, but still too many according to the LORD.  Gideon would have to pare them down even further, and God had the method by which that would be accomplished.

God told Gideon to lead the 10,000 men to water to get a drink.  Every one of them who stooped down lapping up water with his tongue (as a dog or cat drinks) directly from the body of water were to be set aside in one group, and those who reached down and scooped up water and drank it by putting his hand to his mouth were to be set aside in another group.  There were 300 men in this latter group, and these were the ones whom God would use to defeat the Midianites.  It is fairly obvious why they were chosen over the 9,700 other men.  Those men kneeling with their heads down to the water would not know what was going on behind them.  For us, it would be like getting out of our car with a million things on our mind and not paying any attention to the immediate area.  Even before COVID, I wouldn’t get on an elevator by myself if there was a man alone in the elevator.  There is likely a 99.999 percent chance that he is not a serial killer, kidnapper, or rapist, but it is best to follow one’s instincts.

The method of the 300 showed that they were cautious and ever watchful of their surroundings, preparing for the unexpected.  Gideon divided these 300 men into three companies, gave every man a trumpet, an empty pitcher, and a lamp, and told them to watch what he did and to do likewise.  They had surrounded the camp of the Midianites.  When Gideon blew his trumpet, they were to blow theirs and shout “The sword of the LORD, and of Gideon”.  It was the middle of the night.  The trumpets were blown, the pitchers were broken, which made a lot of noise, and the lamps were shining brightly.  The Midianites were awakened from their sleep, and it seemed as though there were thousands of Israelites surrounding them.  They were so startled, confused, and frightened that they fled the camp.  Gideon and his 300 men pursued after them and called for the men of Ephraim to join them.  Midian was defeated, her princes killed, and Israel was led by God to be victorious.

In I Peter 5:8, Peter cautioned believers to be sober and vigilant because our adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walks about and seeks those whom he can devour.  When scripture cautions folks to be sober, it means to be serious, sane, and under one’s self-control.  We should be like Gideon’s 300, that is, be alert, prayed up, and ready for the devil can strike at any time, and he will.  God will keep us safe, but He expects us to be, as Jesus told His disciples, “Wise as serpents and harmless as doves” (Matthew 10:16b).  We don’t have to have a vast army around us to protect us if we are depending on the Lord.  Little is much when God is in it.