-- Saturday, 8/7/10 -- AFTER THE VICTORY -- Judges 8:31

[J.R. & Bonnie Ricks]

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AFTER THE VICTORY -- Judges 8:31 NIV

 

His concubine, who lived in Shechem, also bore him a son, whom he named Abimelech.

 

Gideon was victorious.  He had risen from a lowly farmer to a judge over Israel.  He had wealth and power beyond anything he had ever dreamed.  He also had a concubine.  Through this relationship with his concubine, a son was born... a son who would one day tear his family apart.

 

You are on top of the spiritual world.  You are soaring.  You have just won a battle that you never thought you could win.  Your perspective is good, though, and you're giving full credit to the Lord for winning the battle.  You are so holy you glow!  Brace yourself.  Right now you are at your most vulnerable.  Right now, temptations will begin to fly at you.  Right now, you are more likely than ever to give in to those temptations.

 

Doesn't seem to make sense, does it?  Why should you be most likely to succumb to temptation when you feel stronger than you've ever felt?  That's the reason… that very fact… you feel strong.  No matter how much you're giving credit to the Lord, you still have that great, strengthening sense of victory.  At that point, you don't really believe you can be tempted.  And even if you are, you don't believe you will ever be weak again.  Right?  You've just won a major battle!  How could anything defeat you?

 

But then temptation sneaks in.  You succumb.  And you are devastated. 

 

This does not have to happen.  If you remain aware of the dangers you face in the bright light of victory, you can call on God's strength to face the temptations that are sure to come.  After the victory, be more wary than ever of temptation.  After the victory, don't let your guard down.  After the victory, remember that this is the time – more than ever – that you need to call on the strength of your Lord Jesus Christ.

 

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