Gideon, Unappreciated Savior
Scripture Reading — Judges 8:1-6; Matthew 25:29-30
“Whoever has will be given more. . . .”
It’s strange that the leaders of Sukkoth were blind to God’s gifts. The Lord had used Gideon and a small, untrained army to rout the powerful hosts of Midian. It’s even stranger that the Sukkoth officials refused to feed Gideon’s troops. Gideon pressed on and captured the enemy. Then “he took the elders of the town and taught the men of Sukkoth a lesson by punishing them with desert thorns and briers” (8:16). Disloyalty brings its own reward.
The greatest gift of God is Jesus, our Savior, who has rescued us from sin and death. But what do we do with the gift of this Savior and the accompanying gifts of mercy and grace?
Jesus told his disciples a parable about the gifts of the kingdom; God expects his gifts to be appreciated and used, not ignored and hidden, as if buried in the ground. Are we grateful for and using God’s good gifts of mercy and grace—or are we disloyally hiding them away?
Disloyalty demonstrates a rejection of God’s gifts: whoever does not live out the gifts of the kingdom will lose them, Jesus told his disciples.
May the gift of Jesus Christ move us to gratitude for our rescue. Loyalty and dedication to God for his gifts of grace and mercy multiply those gifts—for all who witness God’s goodness in our lives. Thanks be to God!
Help me, Lord, to multiply your gifts of mercy and grace by the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
About the author — Arie C. Leder
Dr. Arie C. Leder is the Martin J. Wyngaarden Senior Professor of Old Testament Studies at Calvin Theological Seminary in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He previously served as pastor at Ebenezer Christian Reformed Church, Trenton, Ontario, and with Christian Reformed World Missions in Latin America. He teaches courses on the Pentateuch and on historical books of the Old Testament.
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