Tag: resourceful

Shamgar The Son Of Anath

Neal Pollard

The brief account Shamgar in Judges 3:31 is interesting and unique. Othniel had a famous family tie (Caleb). Ehud had a unique anatomical feature (he is pointed out as “left-handed”). Shamgar is known for his weapon of war (“an oxgoad”). Much more is said about the opposing rulers, the oppression, and the operation of the deliverance of the other four of Israel’s first five judges (Shamgar will be followed by Deborah and Gideon). None of the judges, including Tola, Jair, Ibzan, Elon, or Abdon, have so little said about them or their length of judging of the nation. This is what is said about him:

“After him (Ehud) was Shamgar the son of Anath, who killed 600 of the Philistines with an oxgoad, and he also saved Israel” (3:31). Add to that a line which Deborah includes in her song of victory: “In the days of Shamgar, son of Anath, in the days of Jael, the highways were abandoned, and travelers kept to the byways” (5:6). What can we learn and apply from this extremely brief record?

  • He was resourceful–He killed the Philistines with an oxgoad. Like men after him, Samson with the jawbone of a donkey (15:15-17), Adino with an unnamed weapon (2 Sam. 23:8), Eleazer with a sword (2 Sam. 23:10), and Abishai, with a spear (2 Sam. 23:18), Shamgar took what he had and used it for God. Solomon later writes, “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might…” (Ecc. 9:10). God once asked Moses, “What is that in your hand?” (Ex. 4:2). Take inventory of your resources–money, talents, temperament, personality, intelligence, etc. Are you using them for Him?
  • He was valiant–He killed 600 Philistines with an oxgoad. What incredible odds! He went toe to toe, hand to hand, with 600 different people and was victorious over them all. He walked away from that confrontation alive! Can you imagine? Reminding ourselves that God delivered Israel through the judges, God was behind this victory. But He did so through this man. It reminds us of a truth taught by Paul, “…If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Rom. 8:31). When we face spiritual foes, God’s enemies, we don’t use weapons of the flesh (2 Cor. 10:4). Yet, God guarantees the outcome. Through John, He says, “You are from God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world” (1 Jn. 4:4). With God’s help and power, you can win victories in battles you have no business engaging in!
  • He was useful–Judges 3:31 says he saved Israel. Judges 5:6 says he did his work in adverse times, when the highways were abandoned and travelers kept to the byways. While he gets but a footnote in history, what a legacy! There was a problem and he worked with God to provide a solution. The idea of a judge is of a savior. God saved the people through Shamgar. He had the freedom of choice, and he chose to save the people. Galatians 6:10 urges us all, “So then, awhile we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith.” You are valuable to God, but you must use what you have while you can to do all you can for Him! Just like Shamgar did!

Use The Resources Available To You

Neal Pollard

Judging from Candice Millard’s straightforward account of the assassination of James Garfield, there were two men responsible for his death. The more obvious villain was the shooter, Charles Guiteau, an unquestionably insane loner. The less obvious accomplice, judging from her words, was the man who seized control of Garfield’s care and appointed himself the president’s chief physician. The bullet that wounded the president would not have been fatal, but the medical attention he received afterward was. In fairness, a medical discovery already made in 1881 that could have helped Garfield was considered controversial and would not be generally embraced in America for a few more decades. Yet, Dr. Joseph Lister’s use of carbolic acid to sterilize surgical instruments and clean wounds had been in existence since the 1860s. The Englishman attended the Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia in 1876, attempting to convince American doctors of its effectiveness. Alexander Graham Bell, whose telephone was discovered at that same exhibition, heard the news that Bliss could not find the bullet inside the president. The incredible inventor came up with the “induction balance”—a metal detecting machine. But Bliss waited too long to call Bell, and when he did he never allowed the inventor to check his left as well as his right side for the bullet. Bliss was sure it was on the right; an autopsy found it on the left. In court, Guiteau made the argument that the president died from malpractice rather than his attempt. While almost certainly true, Guiteau was still hung. Yet, most historians name Bliss as a proud, ignorant accomplice. Portrayed as a glory seeker, Bliss relied on his prowess and rejected several people and principles that could have prevented Garfield’s death (Millard, Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine, And The Murder of a President, Anchor: New York, 2011).

To be fair, it would have taken uncommon clarity and vision for Bliss to ignore the prevailing views of his colleagues and embrace Lister’s techniques and Bell’s invention, but he could have.

There will be people we encounter today, who appear to be in great health and no danger. Yet, the vast majority of them will face a fate infinitely more terrible than the one Garfield succumbed to. They will eventually die, unprepared for the eternity that will follow (Mat. 7:13-14). The most tragic part of this will be, if you and I are in their lives, that it will not have had to be this way. At least, we have the solution from the “Great Physician” and we should know how to administer it. God needs us to make use of the resources He’s made available to us—prayer, Bible knowledge, influence, personality, courage, love, and a sense of urgency (cf. Col. 4:2-6; 1 Pet. 3:15; Eph. 4:15; 2 Tim. 2:24-26; John 4:35; etc.). We can look within our congregations and see those who were reached in this way. We see others who are not far from the cure, but who need us to help them. How inexcusable is it to have the remedy but refuse to share it? May God help us use the resources we have available to us!

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