Quiet Talks on Service Part 15

The pa.s.sage has oftentimes been quoted as though G.o.d prefers weakness; never put so bluntly as that perhaps, but plainly meaning that. That of course is not true. G.o.d wants the best we have. He needs the best. And for leadership often His plans must wait till a man of the sort needed can be gotten. And gotten frequently means broken, shattered, and then made over wholly new, that the native strength may be used according to true standards.

Jacob was chosen rather than his elder brother Esau, not because of Jacob's goodness but because of Esau's weakness. G.o.d was narrowed to these two grandsons in carrying out the promise to Abraham. Jacob was contemptible in his moral dealings, but he had qualities of leadership wholly lacking in his brother. His moral character was a serious hindrance. G.o.d had to handle him heroically before He could get the use of his stronger mental equipment. Jacob had to get a bad throw-down before he would be willing to let G.o.d have His way. His body must be weakened before his mental power would yield. That was the weakness of his stubbornness. Stubbornness is strength not strong enough to yield.

G.o.d's Use of Weak Things.

It is true that over and over again G.o.d has used men utterly weak and foolish and despised in the light of life's common standards. He wants men of the best mental strength, of the finest mental training, and He uses such when they are willing to be used, and governed by the true G.o.d-standards of life. But talent seems specially beset with temptation.

The very power to do great things seems often to bewilder the man possessing it. Wrong ambition gets the saddle and the reins and whip too, and rides hard.

Frequently some man who had not guessed he had talent, born in some lonely walk of life, without the training of the schools, is used for special leadership. It takes longer time always. Early mental training is an enormous advantage. Carey the cobbler had mental talents to grace a Cambridge chair. It took a little longer time to get him into shape for the pioneer work he did in India. Duff's training gave him a great advantage.

But G.o.d is never in a hurry. He can wait. What He asks is that we shall bring the best we have natively, with the best possible training, and let Him use us absolutely as He may wish. And always remember that every mental power is a gift from Him; that actual power in life must be through Him only; and that mental gifts are not serviceable save as they are ever inbreathed by His own Spirit.

This word of Paul's finds most graphic ill.u.s.tration in the book of Judges.

Judges should be put alongside of the first chapter of First Corinthians.

It is a series of pictorial ill.u.s.trations of what Paul is saying there.

These two books, Joshua and Judges, side by side in the Old Testament stand in sharpest contrast. The keynote of Joshua is victory; of Judges defeat. There's music in both, but contrasted music. Joshua rings with songs in the major key, triumphant, militant, joyous, victorious.

The music of Judges is in the minor, sad and weeping, with the harps hanging on the willows. Joshua is upon the mountain top with sun shining and air bracing and outlook inspiring. Judges is down in the valley bottoms, dark and gloomy, and depressing. Yet Judges has bright spots, and has spurts of good music interspersed. It is a study in lights and shadows, bright lights, and dark shadowings, but with the blacker tints intensifying and overcoming the others.

There are here seven striking ill.u.s.trations of G.o.d's use of strange unusual means, such as are reckoned weak and trivial. A _left-handed_ man uses that peculiarity to get a great victory and eighteen years of freedom for the nation.[24] A farmer with as homely a weapon as an _ox-goad_ delivers his people from oppression.[25] Men came to be so scarce, that is men that were men enough to take their true place as leaders, that a _woman_ had to step into the breach, and a.s.sume leadership. But the student of history and of modern times is used to that. The result was great victory, and a forty years' rest from the nation's enemies.[26]

A _nail_ or _tent-pin_, only a wooden peg, in the hands of a woman with a hammer helps to make the enemy's defeat more decisive.[27] _Three hundred_ young men with _pitchers and trumpets_ completely rout the three armies of three nations, and bring another deliverance.[28] Another time _a piece of a millstone_ shoved over the wall by a woman turns the tide of battle favorably.[29] And as contemptible a thing as the _jawbone of an a.s.s_ in the hands of one strong man is used to slay a thousand men.[30]

Call for Volunteers.

It is of one of these, one of the most striking of these, that we are to talk together awhile; the graphic story of Gideon and his band of three hundred young fellows. Things were in bad shape in the nation; about as bad in every way as they could be. This time it was the Midianites who overran the land, and held the leaderless people in most abject slavery.

With them were joined two other nations, the Amalekites and the Children of the East. When the crops were almost ready to harvest, these raiders swooped in in great numbers and destroyed all the crops and drove away all the stock.

They harried the Israelites so that life was made very miserable for them.

They were forced to flee from their farms and take refuge in caves and dens and the fastnesses among the hills. Then, as usual, when they got into bad shape the people remembered G.o.d, and cried for help, and, as usual with Him, He at once forgave them and planned another great deliverance.

First of all Gideon the leader is chosen out, and put through a bit of schooling. That is a fascinating story of great helpfulness. Then this trained young leader gathers his band of helpers. And we want to mark keenly how these three hundred men were sifted out of the thousands for service. They were sifted out. They sifted themselves out. In that army of thousands were just three hundred who had the needed qualifications for the bit of service G.o.d wanted done.

Look over the gathered thousands: which are the chosen three hundred? No man knew. They didn't know themselves until the tests came. They chose themselves out by the way they stood the three tests applied. Even so is G.o.d ever sifting out men for service. The more difficult the service, the higher the grade of leadership needed, the severer the test. The testing both reveals the qualities, and in part makes them.

The first quality these men had was _willingness._ They were all _volunteers_. When the call came they rallied to the leader's side. Gideon sent runners, criers, out throughout that whole section. They went first to his own family clan, then to his tribe, then to three neighboring tribes. They said that G.o.d had called upon Gideon to lead a movement against the Midianites and their allies and he wanted every man to come and help. The messengers went swiftly through the whole territory of these neighboring tribes, arousing the men to action and calling for volunteers.

A good many did not respond to the summons. Some were simply indifferent.

They could not help hearing the call, but there was no response without or within. No change of expression in the eye or face. They went right on in their heavy, dull way as though they hadn't heard. They were utterly indifferent to the call. Some were reluctant. They stopped and listened, but with a heavy slant backwards to their bodies. Their heels bore most of their weight. It was a good idea to get up such a movement, the enemy ought to be driven back and out, but--but--and their eyes are half shut already.

Some criticised. Who was Gideon? A young upstart! trying to push himself forward as a leader. He had no skill or experience. And the people had no weapons. The enemy had stolen everything of the sort away. And they were clear outnumbered. There wasn't a ghost of a show. It would only make bad matters worse. This young upstart Gideon would soon be sorry enough when he b.u.t.ted his head against the experienced Midianite leaders.

And--and--and--there they are talking, criticising, but not responding to the call. Such critics seldom respond, and helpers criticise in a very different way. It takes less brain to criticise unwisely, captiously, far less than to help. Almost any hare-brain can tear a thing to pieces. And nothing is commoner than just such criticism.

Some ridiculed. "Ha! ha! ha! Gideon going to be national leader; ha! ha!

ha! And whip the enemy. Ridiculous! Absurd!" And some were outrightly opposed. They objected. The people would be aroused, their hopes awakened only to be dashed. The whole thing was wrong, for it was impossible. And these men tried to keep others from going.

A Willing People.

But many came. A crowd of volunteers came hurrying from farms and caves, bringing such weapons probably as they had been able to keep in hiding.

They were willing to respond. It was a motley crowd, no doubt. There were thirty-two thousand of them. These four tribes had once numbered as many as one hundred and eighty-four thousand five hundred fighting men. And at another, later, enumeration they had two hundred and twelve thousand men of war age. Their numbers may be smaller now, though possibly not. It looks as though only a small minority of all had responded, maybe one in six or so.

These men had the first great qualification for service, they were willing. They were actively willing. They willed to come down to the front and help fight the enemy, and deliver their nation. It is a great quality this of being willing. That prophetic One Hundred and Tenth Psalm mentions this as the great characteristic of those who shall rally about G.o.d's King in a coming day of power. G.o.d reckons our service not by our ability but by our willingness.[31]

Whatever is given out of a warm, willing heart is eagerly accepted by Him. The Hebrew tabernacle was constructed of free-will offerings. The people came willingly with their offerings and left them for Moses' use.

Some brought gold and silver, some finely woven tapestries and silks. Here was one poor woman who wanted to give but had very little. So she went out to her little flock of goats whereby her living came to her, and cut off a big bunch of goat's hair, and then with much pains dyed it red.

And then one day she went up to where they were presenting their gifts and timidly laid her bunch of goat's hair on the pile of offerings, and quietly, quickly slipped away. It seemed very small on that pile of gold and silver and richly-colored weavings. But it was the gift of her heart.

They had to have goat's hair as well as gold. And her offering was acceptable because it came from a willing heart. Willingness is a heart quality. It is the heart volunteering.

"Our wills are ours to make them Thine."

This was the first test. Thirty-two thousand out of four tribes stood this test. Gideon's army had one great qualification at the start.

Courageous Volunteers.

Now these men are put to a second test. The next morning G.o.d surprised Gideon by telling him that he had too many men. If a victory was given them with so many men they would feel that they had done the thing themselves. They would grow so large as to shut G.o.d out of their landscape. There would be no getting along with them. Each man would feel that he was the essential factor. They would go back to the homefolks to tell of themselves. G.o.d seems to know us folk down on the earth fairly well.

Now He would lessen their numbers, but in doing it He will pick out the best. The men are encamped on the hillsides overlooking a valley. Across the valley to the north lay the encamped armies of three nations. They were a vast host. They were spread out as thick as the gra.s.shoppers of Egypt had been years before. Everywhere you looked there they were swarming.

Gideon spoke to his men. He said, "Gentlemen, Fellow-Israelites, there is the enemy. Take a good look at them." And his followers looked, and as they looked some of them began to get scared. They had not realized just what was involved. Their footwear seemed to grow too large. They were shaking in their boots. And their eyes grew big and their faces white under the tan.

Then Gideon said, "Now, every man of you that thinks it can't be done--I wish you would get right out of this, and go back home." And he watched.

And I imagine even Gideon shook a bit inside as he watched. They commenced to move away in squads, in scores, in fifties. Great gaps were left in the mob of men. Here is a fellow standing, looking. He thinks, "It looks pretty bad, sure enough; but then, I suppose, if G.o.d is planning--"

h.e.l.lo, the fellow by his side has gone, and on this other side too--"I guess I'd better go too." And off he goes. Fear is very contagious. There is great power in feeling a man by your side. And two-thirds of them disappear over the hills.

The motto of these disappearing men was this: "It can't be done." They must have organized themselves into a society to perpetuate their own idea. If so the society has shown great vitality. Many of its members abide with us until this day. No, probably they didn't organize. They didn't have enough gumption to. And such a sentiment grows like a weed without any cultivation.

I recall a certain town in Ohio where I had gone to talk about an enlargement and re-vitalizing of the Young Men's Christian a.s.sociation.

Thousands of young men in the place needed just such help as that organization is supposed to provide. I outlined the plan to a clergyman.

He said it was a good plan, there was great need, the thing should be done, "but," he said, with an air of settling the thing, "it can't be done in _this town_."

Among others I talked with a business man. He listened attentively, approved the plans, agreed upon the great need, and then settling back in his chair with the same air of finality, used exactly the same words, with the same emphasis, "It can't be done in _this town_." I got that same reply from several men that day. And I said to myself, "They are right; it can't be done _with them_; but it can be done without them." And it was.

Irresistible Logic.