FIGHTING IN FAITH – Judges 3:31
Monday, February 6th, 2006Judges 3:31 And after him was Shamgar the son of Anath, which slew of the Philistines six hundred men with an ox goad: and he also delivered Israel.
In this short verse God gives us a glimps into the life of Shamgar. While God may not have given us very much on this mighty man who helped deliver Israel, there are a few lessons in faith that can be observed from this passage. An ox goad was a long stick approximately eight to ten feet long. A plowman would hold the ox goad in his hand and would prick the oxen if they were straying to far one way or the other.
It appears from this short verse that Shamgar was a simple plowman who when his country needed help delivering themselves from the Philistines, he took the weapon that was familiar to him and went and killed 600 enemy. We do not know if Shamgar killed 600 Philistines at the same time like Samson killed 1,000 Philistines or if he killed these Philistines one at a time over a period of time.
Shamgar took what was made available to him and he allowed God to assist him through insurmountable odds. Shamgar did not allow the fact that he was not a warrior or that he did not have warrior’s weapons prevent him from doing that which he knew was right. Shamgar saw a problem and he did not wait for an invitation from others to lead them into battle. Shamgar did not wait until he had enough assistants before he attacked. Shamgar saw a problem and he attacked the enemy.
We learn from scripture with both Othniel and Ehud that the people cried out for a deliverer and then God raised up Othniel and Ehud. However, there is no indication that the people asked God to free them from the Philistines. There is no indication that God raised up Shamgar (although as a all knowing God, HE knew what Shamgar was going to do before he even did it). Shamgar simply saw that his nation was in bondage and HE went out and fought for the cause that was right and he allowed God to bless him in what he was doing.
Many Christians spend a lot of time worrying about receiving a special calling from God to do the things that God has laid upon their heart to do. They feel they need to receive a calling like Isaiah, the disciples, or Saul to do a specific event at a specific time. However, they forget that the problem they see is contrary to God�s law and that God has brought it to their attention and as such, they must fight for that which is right.
One cannot sit back and wait for God to call you to fight. David saw the giant and step forth willing to fight and God was with HIM. Unless God has told you to wait, if you see a problem that God has revealed to you, stop waiting for a special invitation from God. HE has already shown you the problem; HE has probably already equipped you with your ox goad or sling and is waiting to receive the glory for your faith of stepping forth without HIS prompting. God has shown you a problem, are you willing to step out in faith and watch how God can bless you as you do that which is right. Are you going to be like Gideon who needed a lot of prompting from God in order to do what God desires or are you going to be like Shamgar who when the time came to fight, stepped out and fought. Be willing to step out in faith and watch how the Lord protects you. Be willing to take on the enemies of the Lord and see how the Lord is glorified through you.