Courage and Character
The annals of history tell of the heroic and courageous acts of the warriors known as the Spartans. Perhaps what they are most famous for is the heroism that they showed at the Battle of Thermopylae were 300 hundred Spartans fought to the death to slow down the advancing Persian invasion against Greece. The 300 Spartans were led by their warrior King Leonidas (c. 530-480 B.C.) against the Persian forces that numbered over 100,000 strong. Leonidas was the king of the city-state of Sparta from about 490 B.C. until his death at the Battle of Thermopylae against the Persian army in 480 B.C. Although Leonidas lost the battle, his death at Thermopylae was seen as a heroic sacrifice because he sent most of his army away when he realized that the Persians had outmaneuvered him. Three hundred of his fellow Spartans stayed with him to fight and die. (Source)
Interestingly, God’s word in the book of Judges records another battle involving 300 brave men of Israel. These original 300 warriors were led by Gideon, who the angel of Lord referred to as a "mighty man of valor" (Judges 6:12). Like Leonidas and his 300 Spartans, Gideon and his 300 fought against an enormous army of invaders who came from the east. Gideon’s battle against the Midianite forces took place in 1150 BC. But unlike Leonidas and his 300, Gideon and his 300, with God’s help, not only held off the Midianites' eastern invasion, but subdued them before Israel, bringing rest to the land for forty years (Judges 8:28).
It’s important to note that before Gideon led his army of 300 men in battle against the Midianite forces, he had a much larger force of 32,000 men. But the Lord had their numbers cut down.
Why did the Lord want to lower the number of soldiers who Gideon would go into battle with? The Lord explained: "lest Israel boast over me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’" In other words, if they were allowed to go into battle with a large force they could convince themselves that it was their own might, not God’s intervention, that gave them the victory.
David Guzik put it this way:
Now, although the army was cut down from 32,000 to 10,000, the Lord told Gideon that it was still too many. So, to cut down Gideon’s army ever further and also determine who would be the men he would lead into battle, the Lord would put them to the test.
What was the Lord determining through this test involving how the men drank water? The most common suggestion I’ve read from commentators is that those men who brought the water to their mouths to drink did so in order to remain alert to their surroundings. The others knelt down and apparently lowered their heads to the water to drink, making them vulnerable.
Although this is a plausible explanation, we can’t say for sure what this test demonstrated about the 300 men who were eventually chosen. But what we can say for sure, which is the main thrust behind what God was doing, is that God wanted Gideon and his men to go into battle in total dependence upon Him for the victory. He wanted to leave no doubt that when His people do His bidding, whether by few or many, the Lord will intervene and see to it that His purposes are achieved and that in Him we have the victory.
I want to suggest also that if we look at this test from a New Testament perspective, we can glean an important principle about the people God uses to advance His kingdom. When outlining the kind of men who are qualified to be elders and deacons in the church, the apostle Paul wrote:
To be used of God to spread the fame of Jesus and advance His kingdom, Christians must possess both courage and character. We must be bold and Christlike. Like King Leonidas, who courageously led the 300 Spartans to stand against the forces of the Persians until the death, it’s possible to be courageous, but not Christlike. As Christians, we are called to be bold for Christ, but not to "chop people’s heads off." We are called to preach the gospel of Jesus not to win arguments, but to win souls.
While explaining how Christians are to fight the battles of the Lord to rescue those held captive by Satan, Paul wrote:
When seeking to lead a person to Christ, again we must be bold, but also Christlike. A Christ-like character of gentleness and compassion can break down walls that people build against Christianity, and provide opportunities to reach people heart’s with the saving hope of Jesus.
Concerning our need for boldness in evangelism, in his book the Soul Winning Church, J.A. Medders writes:
How do we as Christians develop the courage and character we need to fight the Lord’s battles? We must stay dependent on the Lord through prayer and the word so that we might know Him, become like Him, and receive the strength we need to serve His purposes. Like Gideon and His men needed to learn, we need to be convinced that little is much when God is in it.
May we seek the Lord daily for courage and character to do His bidding, and step out in faith and obedience, knowing that in the risen Lord Jesus, the victory is already won.
In His service,
Pastor Marco
Interestingly, God’s word in the book of Judges records another battle involving 300 brave men of Israel. These original 300 warriors were led by Gideon, who the angel of Lord referred to as a "mighty man of valor" (Judges 6:12). Like Leonidas and his 300 Spartans, Gideon and his 300 fought against an enormous army of invaders who came from the east. Gideon’s battle against the Midianite forces took place in 1150 BC. But unlike Leonidas and his 300, Gideon and his 300, with God’s help, not only held off the Midianites' eastern invasion, but subdued them before Israel, bringing rest to the land for forty years (Judges 8:28).
It’s important to note that before Gideon led his army of 300 men in battle against the Midianite forces, he had a much larger force of 32,000 men. But the Lord had their numbers cut down.
“The Lord said to Gideon, “The people with you are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hand, lest Israel boast over me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’ Now therefore proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, ‘Whoever is fearful and trembling, let him return home and hurry away from Mount Gilead.’” Then 22,000 of the people returned, and 10,000 remained.” Judges 7:2-3
Why did the Lord want to lower the number of soldiers who Gideon would go into battle with? The Lord explained: "lest Israel boast over me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’" In other words, if they were allowed to go into battle with a large force they could convince themselves that it was their own might, not God’s intervention, that gave them the victory.
David Guzik put it this way:
“We rarely think that bigness can be a hindrance to the work of God. Yet it is harder to truly rely on God when we have many wonderful resources at hand. Though it certainly can be done, it is hard to be big and to rely only on the LORD. When we are big, it is possible to do a lot in human resources and give the credit to God. Paul was in danger of being too strong for his own good. Therefore, God brought a weakness into his life so that Paul would keep relying on the LORD’s strength – and be stronger than ever (2 Corinthians 12:7-10).”
Now, although the army was cut down from 32,000 to 10,000, the Lord told Gideon that it was still too many. So, to cut down Gideon’s army ever further and also determine who would be the men he would lead into battle, the Lord would put them to the test.
“And the Lord said to Gideon, “The people are still too many. Take them down to the water, and I will test them for you there, and anyone of whom I say to you, ‘This one shall go with you,’ shall go with you, and anyone of whom I say to you, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ shall not go.” So he brought the people down to the water. And the Lord said to Gideon, “Every one who laps the water with his tongue, as a dog laps, you shall set by himself. Likewise, every one who kneels down to drink.” And the number of those who lapped, putting their hands to their mouths, was 300 men, but all the rest of the people knelt down to drink water. And the Lord said to Gideon, “With the 300 men who lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hand, and let all the others go every man to his home.” Judges 7:4-7
What was the Lord determining through this test involving how the men drank water? The most common suggestion I’ve read from commentators is that those men who brought the water to their mouths to drink did so in order to remain alert to their surroundings. The others knelt down and apparently lowered their heads to the water to drink, making them vulnerable.
Although this is a plausible explanation, we can’t say for sure what this test demonstrated about the 300 men who were eventually chosen. But what we can say for sure, which is the main thrust behind what God was doing, is that God wanted Gideon and his men to go into battle in total dependence upon Him for the victory. He wanted to leave no doubt that when His people do His bidding, whether by few or many, the Lord will intervene and see to it that His purposes are achieved and that in Him we have the victory.
I want to suggest also that if we look at this test from a New Testament perspective, we can glean an important principle about the people God uses to advance His kingdom. When outlining the kind of men who are qualified to be elders and deacons in the church, the apostle Paul wrote:
“Deacons likewise must be dignified, not double-tongued, not addicted to much wine, not greedy for dishonest gain. They must hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. And let them also be tested first; then let them serve as deacons if they prove themselves blameless.” 1 Timothy 3:8-10
To be used of God to spread the fame of Jesus and advance His kingdom, Christians must possess both courage and character. We must be bold and Christlike. Like King Leonidas, who courageously led the 300 Spartans to stand against the forces of the Persians until the death, it’s possible to be courageous, but not Christlike. As Christians, we are called to be bold for Christ, but not to "chop people’s heads off." We are called to preach the gospel of Jesus not to win arguments, but to win souls.
While explaining how Christians are to fight the battles of the Lord to rescue those held captive by Satan, Paul wrote:
“And the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.” 2 Timothy 2:24-26
When seeking to lead a person to Christ, again we must be bold, but also Christlike. A Christ-like character of gentleness and compassion can break down walls that people build against Christianity, and provide opportunities to reach people heart’s with the saving hope of Jesus.
Concerning our need for boldness in evangelism, in his book the Soul Winning Church, J.A. Medders writes:
“Almost everyone has exercised boldness at some point in their life. Maybe you find it easy to be bold in a restaurant, or when cheering for your team, or when driving on the highway, or when asking for a raise—for most of us, boldness isn’t totally foreign. But for most of us, it’s foreign to our evangelism. We need to harness our boldness and use it to proclaim Jesus. We need to embody an evangelistic boldness. While chained in a Roman prison, Paul told the Ephesian Christians, “Pray also for me, that the message may be given to me when I open my mouth to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel. For this I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I might be bold enough to speak about it as I should” (Ephesians 6:19-20). Even in chains, boldness was on his mind. Is it on ours? I would imagine that Paul’s prayer reminded the Ephesians to be bold with the gospel themselves too…Boldness isn’t brashness. There ought to be a gentle boldness among Christians. Bold evangelism talks about hell, sin, judgment, and the supremacy and exclusivity of Christ. Boldness doesn’t cut corners on the message. Jesus invites and demands all people to repent, believe, and receive his salvation. Boldness doesn’t flinch. Even though the cross and resurrection of Christ are foolishness to the world, bold Christians speak the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help us, God. But they do it all with gentleness, with love. Boldness is not anger or annoyance. Boldness generates gospel conversations, and it seizes opportunities.”
How do we as Christians develop the courage and character we need to fight the Lord’s battles? We must stay dependent on the Lord through prayer and the word so that we might know Him, become like Him, and receive the strength we need to serve His purposes. Like Gideon and His men needed to learn, we need to be convinced that little is much when God is in it.
May we seek the Lord daily for courage and character to do His bidding, and step out in faith and obedience, knowing that in the risen Lord Jesus, the victory is already won.
In His service,
Pastor Marco