by Rev. L. E. Maxwell Prairie Bible Institute
explains why, in spite of the many and urgent de mands that we muster all our forces to meet the inroads of the modem Midianites, comparatively little yet comes to pass. In spite of the desperate darkness, deepening into midnight battle, front-line fighters actually dwindle. The fleshly, the fearful, and the faint-hearted cannot tackle the task, for the odds overwhelm them. God’s testings furnish them opportunity to vanish. All such forces fall out and silently seek the shelter. In ways simple and in scrutable and fiery, God must drain away the dregs of self-confidence. He must let the flesh fail. Finally, when all those remaining are convinced that in God alone is their rescue and remedy, and when those few are so “ shut up to faith” that they carry into their midnight struggle not the weapons of usual warfare but rams’ horns and shouts o f Heaven-sent victory, then God turns the tide and Himself wins the battle. Those 300 become each a kind o f Gid eon’s lamp, themselves but broken pitchers. There they stand exposed on the battle field—hazard-lov ing souls, hazarding their lives, their lamps light ing them up as perfect targets for the enemy. Yet how far from our personal experience all this can be. Gideon’s victory is beautiful to write about, thrilling and romantic to read about, but are we almost glad that it happened too long ago to have any practical bearing on our own warfare? Have we wickedly wandered so far from that world of weakness that the lamp and pitcher method frightens us? For example, consider how students for the ministry become paralyzed with fear lest they go forth to battle without having “what it takes”—of letters, degrees, prestige, influence, rec ognition. Away to Egypt they go, summoning sci ence and philosophy and psychology and what not, in order to escape the stigma of being reckoned “ Pitchers for the lamps of God— Hark, the cry goes forth abroad! Not the beauty of the make, But ah, the readiness to break Marks the vessels of the Lord, Meet to bear the lighted Word!”
A wakm prayer - partner once enclosed a gener ous contribution to our work with this inter esting note: “ This is a contribution which my Father says I should send to you. I trust God will continue to bless and use you for His glory. An old friend of mine used to say that ‘God can use a worm to thresh a mountain if He can get all the wiggle out of the worm.’ ” To His weak, despised captives in Babylon, who were being trampled upon as a thing of nought, God said, “ Fear not, thou worm Jacob, . . . Be hold, I will make thee a new sharp threshing in strument having teeth: thou shalt thresh the moun tains” (Isa. 41:14, 15). What two things could stand in more striking contrast than a worm and a sharp threshing instrument having teeth ? In this very contrast is exhibited the way of the flesh and the way of the Spirit. In this figure of a “worm” is reflected a principle o f God’s working. If the weap on of His choice is a worm, minus the wiggle of the flesh, let every one of us take heart — we may be qualified to be chosen of God. Through Him who for our sakes became “ a worm and no man,” we can lose the wiggle and energy of the flesh, and yet become His chosen instrument to thresh some im possible mountain. Recall God’s method in the days of Gideon. Israel had been mightily oppressed for years. An overwhelming horde of no less than 135,000 Midi- anites were now massed against her. At Gideon's bugle call, 32,000 rallied to the front, but God said that there were too many, “ lest Israel vaunt them selves against Me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me.” That the number might be diminished, the fearful and faint-hearted were sent home, leav ing only 10,000. Though 32,000 against 135,000 seemed all too few, God nevertheless said that 10,- 000 were “ yet too many” ; for with odds thirteen to one against Israel, should she win, she would still strip God of His glory. Israel’s army had to be fur ther diminished. This very principle of God’s working perhaps
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DECEMBER, 1967
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