Cracked Pots & Broken Glory

“And the Lord said to Gideon, ‘The people who are with you are too many for Me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel claim glory for itself against Me, saying “my own hand has saved me.”’” — Judges 7:2

Gideon had a problem. The problem was he was too powerful. As a judge of Israel and going against the Midianites, God wanted to make sure the victory was attributed to Him, not their own hand. He chose Gideon; the least in his father’s house from the weakest clan of the tribe of Manasseh (Judges 6:15). Yet, Gideon rallied thousands to his banner.

In response, God deemed he had too many under his command. He put forth a test to narrow down the field of eligible warriors. He brought them to a river to drink. Those who went to their knees were eliminated. Those who “lapped the water like a dog” were accepted. Leaving Gideon with 300 warriors to fight the battle.

This brings up an extremely controversial passage as to the nature of the 300. Many, many Biblical scholars believe that these were the warriors that stood by the river, ready for war, and lifted the water to their mouths to lap like a dog from their palms. The others kneeled in submission and drank. But dogs do not lift water to their mouth with their paws!

I am much more inclined to Josephus’ interpretation that the 300 “valiant” men were those that threw themselves to the ground and put their mouths to the water like a dog. Those that were wholly unprepared for battle. As Josephus states, “…but for all those that drank tumultuously, that he should esteem them to do it out of fear, and as in dread of their enemies.” In other words, the losers!

God’s purpose was to show that He would win the battle! Why then would he choose the elite soldiers of Gideon’s force. He chose the lowest man, in the lowest tribe, with the lowest number of troops, who, in my opinion, were the lowest, and said, “Now! Let’s go fight!”

And fight they did not! Rather, God instructed them to take a trumpet and a torch hidden in a pot. Then, at the command, everyone was to blow the trumpet, break the pots, reveal the torches and utter the battle cry. The Lord then turned the Midianites against themselves. In utter panic, they fought themselves and struck down their fellow soldiers allowing Gideon’s men to chase them in retreat and win the battle and the war.

I find this to be one of the most encouraging stories from Biblical history. The nobodies in mass being on the winning side of a battle simply by being obedient, breaking their pots and letting their light shine.

Make no mistake, if you are in Christ, so shines the Light in your cracked pot! The world might not see it. You might be stalking around in the darkness trying to find your position. You might be the worst of the worst when it comes to spiritual warfare, but the light still shines. It is within you and craving to break forth into victory. Blow the trumpet! Send out the shout! Throw down the cracked pot of your being to be broken before the Lord and the light will shine forth!

Brokenness is simply coming to the point where you are able to say, “I have nothing to offer that is worthy of Your name. I have nothing to give. Nothing to claim. Nothing. I need you Lord!”

The greatest news for us cracked pots is “God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty” (1 Corinthians 1:27). And no matter how cracked we are, if we are willing to put ourselves into the hand of the Potter, all will be well. “And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter; so he made it again into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make” (Jeremiah 18:4).

While there is much shame that often comes with being a cracked pot, the answer is not some sort of spiritual glue to try and hold things together. The answer is to throw down the clay vessel of our lives at the feet of Jesus. Be completely broken before Him. And to let His light shine in our place. The victory is always His. Not ours.

My struggle for today is what shards of the cracked pot am I trying to hold on to in my arrogance? Am I prepared to throw them down and let the Lord’s light shine in their place? Am I willing to put all my being into the Potter’s hand and let Him make me anew into a vessel that is pleasing in His sight? There is no doubt I’m a cracked pot. Am I willing to be broken for His glory?

© 2025 Warren Martin. All rights Reserved.