245. The Lord will be with the least: His grace is not without effect.

26 January 2022

I am the least.

“Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.” Judges 6:15

Thus Midian was subdued before the Israelites and did not raise its head again. During Gideon’s lifetime, the land had peace forty years. Judges 8:28

For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 1 Corinthians 15:9

Judges 6

16 The Lord answered, “I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites, leaving none alive.”

"What Can We Learn from Gideon’s Story?

1. God can work with a little bit of faith.

Overall, we can learn that God can work through anyone, even timid believers of little faith.

A leader doesn’t always mean the boldest and most extroverted. God often works through believers who come from the least of the least, like Gideon. When we’re hiding from what scares us most, God compels us to tackle it head on.

2. But God wants us to trust Him.

Second, God doesn’t allow metaphorical crutches. Although he plays along with Gideon’s fleece tests, when it comes to the actual battle, he refuses to let Gideon have a cushion of a bulky army. Reducing him to the bare essentials of 300, they know they have to rely on God for a victory.

The same happens in our lives.

We can often have various cushions that offer comfort. Maybe we have jobs that provide enough income for a cozy retirement or other members of the church who step up into leadership roles we’d rather not fill ourselves. We can only hide on the threshing floor for so long before God pulls us out of our comfort zones to do His amazing work.

No matter what the case, God will reduce our “numbers” down to 300. When He does so, we have to rely on Him to do what we thought was impossible." From christianity website/wiki/people/who-was-gideon.html

1 Corinthians 15

10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.

"The Least of the Apostles"

Paul’s humility is most clearly seen in his own self-appraisal. Writing to the Corinthians in AD 55, he calls himself “the least of the apostles unworthy to be called an apostle because [he] persecuted the church of God (1 Cor. 15:9).

To the Ephesians about five years later, he refers to himself as the very least of all the saints (Eph. 3:8). Near the end of his life, he considers himself the foremost of sinners (1 Tim. 1:15). That is quite a progression in his self-awareness, from a proud, self-righteous Pharisee to the foremost of sinners.

Only a person of genuine humility would describe himself in such terms.

What turned a once proud Pharisee into a humble apostle of Christ? It was Paul’s understanding of the grace of God. He understood God’s grace to be more than undeserved favor.

He saw himself not just undeserving but ill deserving. He knew that in himself, apart from Christ, he fully deserved the wrath of God. Instead, he had been made a herald of the message he once tried to destroy.

That is why he followed his assessment as the least of the apostles by the statement “but by the grace of God I am what I am” (1 Cor. 15:10). That is why he would say, “To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given” (Eph. 3:8). He saw himself as a prime example of the grace of God, and his theology of grace produced his humility." From ligonier website/learn/articles/least-apostles

Grace begets grace.

I have been a recipient of God's grace. I do a good turn.

“This same grace is available to all who call upon God, for “in Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace” (Eph. 1:7).

""The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.

Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst.

But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patience as an example for those who would believe in him and receive eternal life.

Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen" (1 Timothy 1:14-17).

16 March 2018"

May you be blessed with God's Word.

Maraming salamat.