07/31/20 GOD’S ODDS — Judges 7:2-3, 5 (CSB) The Lord said to Gideon, “You have too many troops for me to hand the Midianites over to them, or else Israel might elevate themselves over me and say, ‘I saved myself.’ 3 Now announce to the troops, ‘Whoever is fearful and trembling may turn back and leave Mount Gilead.’ ” So twenty-two thousand of the troops turned back, but ten thousand remained. . . 5 For the Midianites came with their cattle and their tents like a great swarm of locusts. They and their camels were without number, and they entered the land to lay waste to it.

The Bible frequently does NOT tell us every single detail of an encounter (it’s thick enough as it is!). So let’s use our imaginations to fill in some details. Gideon is comparing his thirty thousand soldiers to the “innumerable” troops of Midian. So he schedules a strategy session with God. He tells God, “I don’t like the odds.” God says, “Me either; I think you have way too many soldiers in your army!” Definitely NOT what Gideon had in mind! But the Lord wants everyone to be absolutely clear—when this battle is over, there will be NO DOUBT in anyone’s mind that THE VICTORY BELONGS TO THE LORD!

This passage begs a vital question: What would have happened if God had NOT empowered Israel? Lots of church leaders today need to address a couple of similar questions: (1) Without God’s help, what can I hope to accomplish on my own? And, (2) Since God is all-powerful, are we attempting God-sized, God-directed ministries? The WRONG question is “Is God on our side?” The RIGHT question is “Are we on God’s side?”