Judges 6:15
‘But he said to Him, “O Lord, how am I to save Israel? Behold, my family is the least in Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my father’s house.”’
I love this. God works this way. He uses the least of these. Gideon was probably right. His family may have been the least of his tribe and he was the least of his family. God uses the lowly to deliver, so He will get the credit. He should for He is worthy.
Those of us who are the least can praise Him. He can use us. Psalm 138:6 says, “Though the LORD is on high, He attends to the lowly; but the proud He knows from afar.”
Sometimes we hear about people blowing up because they feel left out. That’s unfortunate as they have a God who would love to listen to them and make room for them.
God is a defender of the least of these. Proverbs 23:10,11 says, “Do not move the ancient boundary or go into the fields of the fatherless, For their Redeemer is strong; He will plead their case against you.”
Today’s verse has the Lord choosing the lowly as the next judge. I’ve heard it said that God equips the called, He doesn’t call the equipped. Today’s verse is a perfect example.
Isaiah 53 speaks of how Jesus may have had some lesser than traits. “He has no stately form or majesty that we would look at Him, Nor an appearance that we would take pleasure in Him. He was despised and abandoned by men. A man of great pain and familiar with sickness; And like one from whom people hide their faces, He was despised, and we had no regard for Him.”
The commonors loved Jesus. Those rejected by the religious were drawn to Him. The leaders of the day had little respect for Him. They had Him killed. They rigged their system and brought in false witnesses. At His trial, it was a mockery. He had to step in and refer to His divinity. That was what they needed to condemn Him. However, Pilate didn’t buy it. He said that “He did nothing worthy of death”. Matthew 27:18 says, “For he knew it was out of envy that they had handed Jesus over to him.”
Thank You, Jesus, that You were also in the “least of these” group. The witnesses of Your birth were poor shepherds. You were raised in low class neighborhood. You didn’t have a place to rest your head. You didn’t have money. You chose that. You could have been amongst the great. Thank You, Lord.
We can be the lowly that He uses. Just be God fearing and obedient. Be available. Lord, give us the wisdom to sense Your calling and to have the courage to obey.
Thank You, Lord, that You have a place for us. You’ve made a way.