Thursday, August 10, 2017
Judges 3:16 But when the children of Israel cried out to the Lord, the Lord raised up a deliverer for them: Ehud the son of Gera, the Benjamite, a left-handed man.
GOD'S "WEAK" DELIVERER
Left-handed people make up about ten percent of the world's population. Because the majority of the world is right-handed, the world naturally then tends to think of the left hand as the "weak" hand and the right hand as the "strong" hand. In ancient times it was an honor to be seated at someone's right hand. In modern days we see the same thing in referring to the best employee or a good friend as, "My right hand man." No one talks about, "The left hand of power," or depends on, "My left hand man!"
When the children of Israel cried out to the Lord, He didn't send the most impressive deliverer. Ehud's right hand was not as strong or as skilled as his left hand. So the tendancy might be to question whether or not he was up to the task of delivering the children of Israel from Eglon, king of Moab. But, things are not always as they appear.
Consider Jesus, on trial before the chief priests and the elders, telling them, "... you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven" (Mark 14:62). Had they not considered this blasphemy, they surely would have laughed out loud at such a claim from this Rabbi from Nazereth standing tied before them, already beaten and bloodied, on His way to the cross. Why He had no power at all, much less God's Power! Later they did jeer Him as He hung upon the cross. They said, "He saved others; Himself He cannot save. If He is the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him!" (Matthew 27:42).
Another day we'll hear how the Lord worked through Ehud to deliver the Israelites from King Eglon in a surprising way. Today, let's give thanks to God that things are not always as they appear. The "weak" Jesus of Nazereth who hung "helplessly" upon the cross was anything but helpless. The Lord God put Jesus right where He needed to be to willingly offer up the sacrifice to pay for sin and having accomplished that, to defeat death by rising form the dead and ascending to the right hand of God the Father.
Philippians 2:5-11 "Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."
