JU8-9: You Can’t Edge Your Way Into The Kingdom Of God

So Chapter 8 opened with the tribal leaders of Ephraim feeling all huffy and puffy because Gideon didn’t bow down to them in his plans and actions.

Plans he had received directly from the Lord by the way.

The Ephraimites pretended they had no idea what was going (which was total BS) and were insulted that Gideon never deferred to them.

However, the truth is, behind all of their pretense was pure jealousy and selfishness.

They wanted to take credit for Gideon’s victory and they wanted a good portion of the war booty that had been collected.

From the very beginning, Ephraim always knew full well what was going on.

They just wanted to watch from the sidelines while Gideon and his men did all of the heavy lifting.

And then after the dust settled, they hoped to step in and side with the victor.

To put it bluntly, they were being what the Scripture describes as “lukewarm”.

Neither fully committing nor fully declining…just straddling the fence waiting to see how things were gonna turn out.

And when things turned out in Gideon’s favor, like a bunch of spineless cowards, they jumped in wanting to take credit and get their share of the spoils of war.

The way they acted speaks volumes about human behavior.

Because that’s pretty much how leaders with fragile egos act today

And Gideon, to his credit, was a real gentleman about the whole situation.

Instead of reacting in anger, he controlled his emotions and submitted to the arrogance of these men.

And quite honestly, it was a wise thing to do.

Because if he hadn’t, there was the very serious risk of tribal warfare breaking out.

This would have further separated an Israel that was already becoming increasingly divided.

In terms of takeaways, I wanna focus on the dangerous attitude of Ephraim and how they were sitting on the fence just waiting to see how things would turn out before committing to any one particular position.

The lesson to be learned here is that such behavior does NOT sit well with the Lord.

We are NOT to be like Lot’s wife who looked back and was turned into a pillar of salt.

We are NOT to be like the man who wanted to follow Yeshua but decided it was more important to go bury his father first.

We are NOT to be like the rich man who just couldn’t let go of his worldly wealth to follow Yeshua.

Because here’s the thing man.

You can’t edge your way into the kingdom of God like the Ephraimites tried to do.

You’re either ALL IN for the Kingdom or you’re all out.

But here’s the good news.

We already know the outcome.

I mean the Lord has GUARANTEED us the victory.

So surrendering to God is literally the safest bet you could ever make in your life.

It’s the safest investment far superior to any stock you could purchase on the stock market.

And the stakes are eternal.

So for crying out loud, get off the fence man and commit wholeheartedly.

Over and out.

CONNECTING THIS TEACHING TO THE NEW TESTAMENT

“I know your deeds,
that you are neither cold nor hot.
I wish you were either one or the other!
So, because you are lukewarm
—neither hot nor cold—
I am about to spit you out of my mouth.
You say, ‘I am rich;
I have acquired wealth
and do not need a thing.’
But you do not realize that
you are wretched, pitiful,
poor, blind and naked.
I counsel you to buy from me
gold refined in the fire,
so you can become rich;
and white clothes to wear,
so you can cover your
shameful nakedness;
and salve to put on your eyes,
so you can see.”
-Revelation 3:15-18