A Successful Failure

Verse of the day: Judges 8:28, Thus Midian was subdued before the children of Israel, so that they lifted their heads no more. And the country was quiet for forty years in the days of Gideon.

The story of Gideon is one that is both inspirational and sad. Gideon’s life was filled with ups and downs, but sadly, it ended on a sad note. He started out as a humble servant whom the Lord used greatly. He and 300 men were used to defeat a much greater army, and win Israel’s freedom against their enemies the Midianites. Yet, when God allowed Gideon to gain wealth and recognition, he allowed his position and his pride to lead him for the remainder of his life. The stories of God working in his life became “the good ol’ days of the past”. I must stop and ask, “Is our testimony of what God is doing in us and through us fresh or is it stale stories of days gone by?” Do we talk about God in the past tense, as if God is already done using us and working in us or do we have fresh stories of what God is doing today and now? Gideon, through God’s leading, became a successful figure and judge amongst his people. However, once the real challenges were over and he began to experience the blessings God bestowed upon Him, the blessings became more important than the One who blessed him. He became a successful failure. Once Gideon gained notoriety and wealth, he immediately put himself in a position of religious leader (v. 27), which was not a role God called him to. Although he rejected Israel’s request to be their king, he began acting like a king. He took many wives, had children by them and even named one of his sons Abimelech, which means, “My father, a king” (v. 29-31). The ephod of gold that Gideon made became a stumbling block to him, his family, and Israel, as it led to idol worship (v. 27). At the end of his life, the example and legacy he left behind did not encourage Israel to follow God. Instead, they followed the example of his later years, and became an idolatrous people, once again, who were only interested in riches and worshipping Baal. This is what the Scriptures sadly records of the legacy of Gideon in verses 33-35, “So it was, as soon as Gideon was dead, that the children of Israel again played the harlot with the Baals, and made Baal-Berith their god. 34 Thus the children of Israel did not remember the LORD their God, who had delivered them from the hands of all their enemies on every side; 35 nor did they show kindness to the house of Jerubbaal (Gideon) in accordance with the good he had done for Israel.” As Christians, are we successful failures? What do others see of our lives when we claim to be followers of Christ? Do they see someone who is truly surrendered to Jesus, or do they see a worldly Christians who is more concerned with gaining wealth and prestige in this world? As Christians, we can have earthly success in Christ, if that is what God chooses for us. We saw that example in the lives of Joseph and Daniel. However, that is not what God calls for all of us. Our priority in life, as born again Christians, is to live the life Christ wants us to live for His glory, not the life we choose for ourselves. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 tells us that we belong to the Lord because He bought us with a price, which is His life and Blood. Colossians 3:2 tells us to set our minds on the things of above, and not on earthly things. Finally, 1 John 2:15 tells us not to love the world or the things of the world, because if we love the world, the love of the Father is not in us. What kind of success are we seeking? Are we seeking success by the world’s standards or are we seeking to be successful by God’s standards, and leave a legacy that lives on and glorifies God long after we are gone?

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His gift of salvation (Rom 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing your sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive Him and His gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).