The temptation of vanity: (Judges 8:22-23)

“Then the men of Israel said to Gideon, ‘Rule over us, both you and your son, and your grandson also; for you have delivered us from the hand of Midian.’ But Gideon said to them, ‘I will not rule over you, nor shall my son rule over you; the Lord shall rule over you.’”

Gideon neglected to say that deliverance had been given by God and not by him. Therefore, though the words of his reply imply that he is humble and acknowledges God as Lord, in reality, he is accepting the glory of victory for himself. He is tempted by the idea of being king, and deep down, he comes to nurture that idea within himself. The pitfall that will happen later is merely a consequence of this sequence of mistakes that we have seen so far.

Since he stopped being complicated and had been turned courageous by the Spirit of God and the exchange of his spirit, Gideon was being tempted by the devil with vanity. The antidote against vanity is to consciously and constantly maintain the fear of God. Know that it is He who placed you where you are today, and He alone is worthy of receiving credit for all that you do. Never believe what anyone says about you, whether good or bad. Your opinion of yourself has to be God’s opinion: “Surely I will be with you, and you shall defeat the Midianites…”

Meaning, you only win because God is with you.

He gets the glory. Always.

Continues tomorrow…

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