FAITH CAPSULE: God’s preference should always prevail over our best reference.

Judges 7

Jerubbaal (Gideon) was camped with his people and set for a confrontational war against the Midianites when God spoke to him, “The people who are with you are too many for Me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel claim glory for itself against Me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’ Now, therefore, proclaim in the hearing of the people, saying, ‘Whoever is fearful and afraid, let him turn and depart at once from Mount Gilead.’” And twenty-two thousands of the people returned, and ten thousand remained.” (Judges 7:1-3)
In every battle, there is a need for high numbers of soldiers to emerge victoriously. God sounded to Jerubbaal with instruction for Jerubbaal to reduce the number of soldiers. Without hesitation, the Word of God prevailed as instructed. God’s direction called for the number of soldiers to be reduced by more than half, from twenty-two thousand to ten thousand. The God of battle that does not share His glory with no man called on Jerubbaal after he had cut down the numbers saying, “The people are still too many; bring them down to the water, and I will test them for you there…” (Judges 7:4)
If you are Jerubbaal communicating with friends about God’s instruction to reduce your soldiers, how would you react? Jerubbaal’s obedience to reduce the number, without doubt, His friends would have wondered and even considered Jerubbaal as foolish, spiritually insane, overzealous and unrealistic.
Jerubbaal led the people to the water as directed by God with the intention to have the number reduced the second time. At the water, God spoke again, “Everyone who laps from the water with his tongue, as a dog laps, you shall set apart by himself; likewise everyone who gets down on his knees to drink.” And the number of those who lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, was three hundred men; but all the rest of the people got down on their knees to drink water.” (Judges 7: 5-6). In going against the Midianites, one that considers assigning men that lapped from water over ones that got on their knees to drink water would have been considered foolish.
At all times, regardless of how foolish it sounds, God’s preference should always prevail over our best reference. The number of men to go to battle against the Midianites was eventually cut down to three hundred men from thirty-two thousand; this is foolishness by human reasoning. For any man, it is suicidal to go to war after ending up with such a small number. Thirty thousand seems to be the right way and not the foolish way. Always remember the word of Proverbs 14:12, “There is a way that seems right to a man but its end is the way of death.” Jerubbaal did not take the path that seems right, he simply obeyed God’s word without complain nor doubt and went with three hundred men to fight a battle which initially called for thirty-two thousand men.
Are you fighting a battle yet looking to human wisdom to sustain you?
The wisdom of human should not replace God’s wisdom.

Prayer for today: Ask for God’s wisdom to reign and rule your life.