Perhaps the most horrific story in the Bible is the devastating civil war of Judges 20 and the events that led up to one tribe of Israel being nearly obliterated. It was not just the atrocities that the men of Benjamin committed that were so awful; it was also what the other tribes had to go through to excise the cancer of evil that had infiltrated their nation. The tribe of Judah led the army into battle. It was 400,000 Israelites against 25,000 Benjamites. You would think with those odds the battle would be over in a few minutes. But Israel suffered great loss the first day and the second while Benjamin’s forces stood victorious.
“Then all the children of Israel, that is, all the people, went up and came to the house of God and wept. They fasted that day until evening.” (Judges 20:26)
Israel thought to give up after being repelled twice.
“So the children of Israel inquired of the LORD…saying, ‘Shall I yet go out to battle against the children of my brother Benjamin, or shall I cease?’ And the LORD said, ‘Go up, for tomorrow I will deliver them into your hand.'” (Judges 20:27-28)
On the third day the outcome was different. This time Benjamin was finally defeated, but not to the rejoicing of the Israelites. They wept bitterly in their victory because part of their own family had become a void in Israel.
Is failure a part of the Lord’s will? Why did Israel fail twice before seeing the task completed? Why didn’t the Lord give them the victory on the first try? Sometimes we are battling an all too familiar enemy and we want to give up because we keep falling flat on our faces. We might know that we are fighting for what is right and just, and that the Lord is with us, and we may believe that the battle should be easy to win. But sometimes, even when we are in the will of the Lord, we face the fight of our lives and do not come out of the battle unscathed. These are the battles that really test our faith. These are the victories that are often bittersweet because they come at a high price.
What do we do when we face failure? How should we react? Yeshua’s disciples faced failure too when they tried to cast a demon out of a boy without success in Matthew 17:14-21.
“Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, ‘Why could we not cast it out?’ So Jesus said to them…’if you have faith as a mustard seed…nothing will be impossible for you. However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.'”
Therein lies the key to overcoming failures. You must have faith, even the smallest amount, and not give up. Secondly, you can’t shrink back in retreat. You must run to the Lord in prayer and fasting and then return to the battle lines. Our instinct is to hide and lick our wounds, but the victory can’t be won that way. Once we are revived in our spirits, then we have to get back in there and keep fighting until the Lord can accomplish what He wants to do.
Don’t give up! I know some of you are fighting horrific battles right now and don’t know how you are going to overcome, but the Lord is with you even in your failures. Run to Him! Be strengthened by His power through fasting and prayers. Don’t let your faith waver for even a minute. God is on your side. And “what shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31) He knows your enemy even better than you do. Get up out of the dirt and start swinging again. Today may be your day for victory!