The living God of heaven and earth and all things has always designed and desired a way by which He could rule mankind in righteousness (Judg. 8:23). Where problems enter is not God’s design, but man’s unwillingness to follow. God created men, women, boys and girls with freedom to choose. It’s a most beautiful design that the all-powerful God could make us do whatever He wanted, but rather chose to give creation freedom of choice. Follow Him if you love Him (I John 5:2-3), reject Him if you don’t. In the day of judgment, you’ll have yourself alone to blame if lost eternally.
The heavenly Father surely knows there are competing doctrines, so He says put them to the test (I John 4:1). Gideon, a judge from antiquity in Israel, is an example. He put God to the test—six times (Judg. 6). God answered each one, gave him a bonus revelation and did not rebuke him for it. Why? Because in His will for man, God desires men/women to seek out truth. This from old applies today in the spiritual battle (Eph. 6:12). Amazing to consider is the expanse of the righteous battle. It extends from earth to the “heavenlies”, a spiritual battle not always seen by human eyes. What is done here is part of the larger battle.
The angel of the Lord told Mary, “with God nothing shall be impossible” (Luke 1:37). Three hundred men (Judg. 7:16) who took on and defeated armies without number (Judg. 6:5; 7:12). The sword of God and of Gideon accomplished this great feat (Judg. 7:18), proving that with God all things are possible. How does this happen today? He rules when we humble ourselves and let Him (I Pet. 5:6). With Gideon’s conquest came great glory to God. Gideon said: “I will not rule over you, nor shall my sons rule over you; the Lord shall rule over you” (Judg. 8:23). Jesus modeled this teaching for us in the Sermon on the Mount: “Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify the father which is in Heaven (Matt. 5:16).
Perhaps you’ll remember that the humility of Gideon only lasted through his generation (Judg. 9). The first recorded king in Israel, not appointed by God, but raised up by arrogant pride, Abimelech [the bramble], led the people astray. He proved to be the opposite of his father and brought destruction and slaughter to Israel. He spoke with false humility to get his way. Nothing of what he promised or did glorified God, and for a while the people of Israel allowed it. His end came as Jotham had prophesied in the parable of the trees (vv. 8-15), proving that the way of the transgressors is hard (Prov. 13:15).
The way up in the Lord’s kingdom is down in humble submission to Him (Matt. 20:26-27). Bowing heart and life before God as a servant, following the supreme example of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (Phil. 2:5-8) is how the Lord rules. The Lord rules with or without you. Have you allowed Him to rule your life? He desires to lead all to eternal life in a beautiful home in heaven.
–David Hill, President of Tennessee Bible College