Not by Might nor by Power: Lessons in Zerubbabel and Barak

IT IS NOT BY MIGHT NOR BY POWER...

By Ezekiel Kimosop

As I was praying over some burdens this morning, the LORD impressed upon my heart the word of God to Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel in Zechariah 4:6 which says:
"This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’
Says the Lord of hosts."

THE CALL OF ZERUBBABEL

Here is the background to this message...

God had assigned Zerubbabel the task of leading the returnees in rebuilding the Jerusalem Temple which lay in ruins since the captivity.

The Jews had initially commenced the works but were discouraged by enemy threats and eventually neglected the works entirely.

God finally spoke through prophet Haggai in 520 BC and rebuked the people for their moral dereliction.

He commanded Zerubbabel the governor of Judah and Yeshua son of Jehozadak the High Priest to lead the people in the reconstruction work. This strategy was instructive in that it drew the civilian and spiritual leadership into a logistical team.

Zerubbabel needed skilled people and resources in order to accomplish this divine mandate. He was a privileged man in that he was the colonial governor of Judah serving under the great Persian empire. He could perhaps easily access the royal corridors in Persia! However, God revealed to Him that this assignment was under God's sovereignty.

Haggai 2:8 says, "The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine,’ says the Lord of hosts."

By this statement, God reminded Zerubbabel and his team of leaders that no matter where the resources were obtained from they  were primarily from God.

We should always bear in mind that all the Earth's resources which are at our disposal are indeed from God (Psalm 24:1-2, 50:10-11).

God therefore reminded Zerubbabel that he needed the hand of God more than He could possibly imagine. This man perhaps saw his privileged position as a source of influence or as an added advantage in carrying out his assignment.

The unity of the people and their obedience to God under these circumstances was itself an asset but it was still insufficient. They needed God's leading and provision.

The Bible reports in Haggai 1:12 that the leaders and the people obeyed the voice of the LORD their God, and the words of Haggai the prophet, as the Lord their God had sent him; and the people feared the presence of the Lord.

This was one significant milestone in the solution to the temple restoration process. Obedience in any community of God's covenant people is the key to divine renewal and progress. It is the beginning of a new life of victory with God.

The next step would naturally involve the execution of the object of the obedience; the reconstruction work.

This was thankfully accomplished.

THE CALL OF BARAK

Speaking of the execution of a divine mandate, let us now turn to another account in Judges 4 where we learn about the call of Barak the man from the diminutive tribe of Naphtali. This carries a significant parallel to the calling of Zerubbabel which we have examined above.

God used Deborah the prophetess to inspire Barak to raise an army and fight the Canaanites, a powerful army that had oppressed Israel for twenty years (Judges 4:3). This was perhaps a horrifying message in the ears of Barak. He was in disbelief.
Barak could not imagine that mounting a rebellion against Jabin, king of the Canaanites could make sense. The odds stood against him.

Here is why...

The Canaanites had a superior military both in numbers and the quality of equipment. They were therefore advantaged and, humanly speaking, could wipe out Israel in one battle!

Besides, these oppressors had brought Israel to their knees! God had sovereignly permitted these enemies to punish Israel because of their disobedience and idolatry.

Judges 4:3 says "And the children of Israel cried out to the Lord; for Jabin had nine hundred chariots of iron, and for twenty years he had harshly oppressed the children of Israel."

The children of Israel badly needed God's leading and provision in facing Jabin's army. In human terms, Israel should simply have surrendered rather than make a fatal mistake that would cost them tens of thousands of lives.

When God gave Barak the assurance of victory, and he trusted God, this was the game-changer. God is looking for people of faith and courage even today.

Here was God's instruction to Barak:

"Go and deploy troops at Mount Tabor; take with you ten thousand men of the sons of Naphtali and of the sons of Zebulun; and against you I will deploy Sisera, the commander of Jabin’s army, with his chariots and his multitude at the River Kishon; and I will deliver him into your hand’?”

God was only asking for only ten thousand men against an invincible and ruthless enemy! Worse even, the men would be picked from two insignificant tribes: Naphtali and Zebulun.

Naphtali was the second son of Jacob by Bilhah, Rachel's maidservant (Genesis 25:35) while Zebulun was Leah's last born son (Genesis 30:20, 35:23). God does not seek the mighty or famous but those whose hearts are turned to Him.

Scripture is replete with stories of how God used insignificant, obscure people to accomplish His divine purposes.

It is not by our might nor by human ability that we can succeed in life. It is by God's grace and favor.

Here is the point...

Self confidence is the enemy of our Christian faith. It causes  us to look inwards and count on our limited human strengths and abilities with the result that we place too much premium on them rather than on God's enabling power.

Psalm 20:7-8 says, "Some trust in chariots, and some in horses; But we will remember the name of the Lord our God. They have bowed down and fallen;
But we have risen and stand upright."

Chariots and horses were critical tools in ancient military warfare. They would probably be equated with modern military tanks and jet fighters. However, even with the best military arsenal and logistics, the army would fail if God is not on their side.

This is the lesson that Jabin the king of the Canaanites learnt the hard way when he assembled a flood of soldiers against Israel's small, poorly equiped army.

Scripture records in Judges 4:12-13: "And they reported to Sisera that Barak the son of Abinoam had gone up to Mount Tabor. So sisera gathered together all his chariots, nine hundred chariots of iron, and all the people who were with him, from Harosheth Hagoyim to the River Kishon."

Jabin counted on his vast army and the unparalleled military arsenal at his disposal. Unfortunately, God was not on his side.

He was gravely mistaken. He was coming against the God of Israel, the LORD of hosts!

Jabin lost the battle to small ill equipped army and, worse even, his general was killed by a woman, a great humiliation indeed.

God gave Israel a resounding victory so that a battle initiated by one courageous woman of God, Deborah, the wife of Lapidoth (Judges 4:8-9) was completed by another brave woman, Jael the wife of Heber the Kenite who drove a tent peg into the head of Sisera, the commander of Jabin's army after she lured him into her tent (Judges 4:21-22).

To the glory of God, the Canaanites were finally subdued by Israel (Judges 4:23-24).

CONCLUSION

We learn from the two accounts of Zerubbabel and Barak that God guided these faithful men and accomplished His purposes through them. He can do the same with you and me only if we are willing to arise in His name!

Zerubbabel and Barak were ordinary men, without anything innate in them that stood them out until God graciously picked on them.

God guided the entire process, influencing and inspiring the players into action.

In Zerubbabel's case, God inspired the leaders and supplied the resources that saw the completion of the Temple works.

In Barak's case, God guided Israel into battle despite their military disadvantage and set up the enemy for a devastating defeat. The battle was the LORD's and so was the glory.


What is it that you seek to accomplish in your life?

Do you fear that you will never succeed?

Are you possibly counting on your strength, intellect and resources?

Is God in the picture of things?

Remember this...

It is not by might nor by power but by My Spirit says the LORD of hosts.

No matter how disadvantaged we are or how financially endowed we may be or how privileged we are in the corridors of power, we should never forget that it is God's divine power that works within us and through us to accomplish His divine purposes.

Exodus 14:13-14 says "...Do not be afraid.
Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever. The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace."

God ultimately holds the sway in our battles. We should therefore fully depend on Him and call on Him for only by His enabling grace shall we overcome.




Shalom





© Ezekiel Kimosop 2020