The Lord Sees Our Potential
As a much younger believer I remember reading a book or commentary where the author points this passage out:
Judges 6:12, 14 And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him, and said unto him, The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valour... And the LORD looked upon him, and said, Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites: have not I sent thee?
Then he mentioned that the Lord God saw Gideon's potential as a warrior BEFORE Gideon ever fought his first battle. The Lord opened the doors needed for Gideon to step into that role and equipped him fully for it - long before he ever fought that first battle. God already stated that Gideon had the might, the strength or power, that was needed to fight the upcoming battles God had planned for Gideon to set free the oppressed Israelites of his day.
Our Heavenly Father is sovereign. He knows the end from the beginning. He knows everything about us, has a plan for us, and He has all that is needed to bring out that result in our lives that we may fulfill His will, as we walk with Him daily by faith.
We see this same principle in two other passages:
Exodus 6:26 These are that Aaron and Moses, to whom the LORD said, Bring out the children of Israel from the land of Egypt according to their armies.
Exodus 12:17, 41, 51 And ye shall observe the feast of unleavened bread; for in this selfsame day have I brought your armies out of the land of Egypt: therefore shall ye observe this day in your generations by an ordinance for ever... And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years, even the selfsame day it came to pass, that all the hosts of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt... And it came to pass the selfsame day, that the LORD did bring the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt by their armies.
Notice the language the Lord used to describe His oppressed people. He referred to them several times as a host, an army, BEFORE they ever fought a battle with the Canaanites and other nations they would encounter on their way to the Promised Land. AND notice, the Lord of Hosts had already equipped them BEFORE they ever left Egypt.
Exodus 13:17-18 And it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God led them not through the way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God said, Lest peradventure the people repent when they see war, and they return to Egypt: But God led the people about, through the way of the wilderness of the Red sea: and the children of Israel went up harnessed out of the land of Egypt.
Harnessed means armed, equipped for war.
I find the contrast presented in the passage above interesting. God knew His plan for His people, He was putting into motion the events that would free them from their oppressors, and knew what would hinder them; therefore He chose not to bring them a certain way until they had gotten the battle experience He knew they would need to conquer the Canaanites in the land He was leading them to.
One other example I want to bring to your attention:
Exodus 3:7-10 And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows; And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites. Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them. Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt.
Moses, I've chosen you to deliver My people from Egypt. Then came Moses' excuses, which God dealt with one by one. Maybe the biggest fear for this leader-to-be was basically the fear of public speaking - in this case, speaking to Pharaoh, the leader of the Egyptians, and speaking to the nation of Israel as their new leader.
Exodus 4:10-12 And Moses said unto the LORD, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue. And the LORD said unto him, Who hath made man's mouth? or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? have not I the LORD? Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say.
God promised to provide someone to speak on Moses' behalf - he just needed to be obedient and go do what the Lord had called him to do. The Lord, in His wisdom, provided Moses' brother to help him (whom the Lord had already sent on his way to meet Moses). The part I find so intriguing is that after Moses' and Aaron's initial meeting with the elders of the nation of Israel (in which Aaron did speak), and their first encounter with the Pharaoh (in which they spoke together), we find that Moses was the primary speaker from then on.
Exodus 4:29-30 And Moses and Aaron went and gathered together all the elders of the children of Israel: And Aaron spake all the words which the LORD had spoken unto Moses, and did the signs in the sight of the people.
Exodus 5:1-3 And afterward Moses and Aaron went in, and told Pharaoh, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Let my people go, that they may hold a feast unto me in the wilderness. And Pharaoh said, Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go? I know not the LORD, neither will I let Israel go. And they said, The God of the Hebrews hath met with us: let us go, we pray thee, three days' journey into the desert, and sacrifice unto the LORD our God; lest he fall upon us with pestilence, or with the sword.
Exodus 6:9 And Moses spake so unto the children of Israel: but they hearkened not unto Moses for anguish of spirit, and for cruel bondage.
Exodus 7:1-2 And the LORD said unto Moses, See, I have made thee a god to Pharaoh: and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet. Thou shalt speak all that I command thee: and Aaron thy brother shall speak unto Pharaoh, that he send the children of Israel out of his land.
Exodus 8:9 And Moses said unto Pharaoh, Glory over me: when shall I intreat for thee, and for thy servants, and for thy people, to destroy the frogs from thee and thy houses, that they may remain in the river only?
One final observation from all these passages is that the Lord God promised to be with them in all He had called them to do. Notice the following:
Judges 6:12 ...The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valour.
Exodus 4:12 ...Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say.
Exodus 3:12 And he said, Certainly I will be with thee; and this shall be a token unto thee, that I have sent thee: When thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon this mountain.
The Lord is with His people, guiding them, preparing them for whatever He has planned out for each of their lives, equipping them for service and opening the needed doors for ministry in their lives.
What has your heavenly Father called you to do in Jesus' name? Are you fulfilling His will? He has left us with so many promises - not just that He will be with us as we go into all the world with the Gospel of salvation, but that He will provide, prepare, and equip each of us as we walk with Him in obedience and serve Him day by day. Consider these final two promises:
Revelation 3:7-8 And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth; I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name.
This next one is a sevenfold promise that the Lord will provide EVERYTHING you need through His Word and the power of His Holy Spirit to faithfully serve Him.
2 Corinthians 9:8 And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:
Go forth, thou mighty child of God and serve Him today!
November 2, 2023
Jerry Bouey
