The Lord is my rock, my
fortress, and my savior; my God is my rock, in whom I find protection. He is my shield, the power that saves me,
and my place of safety.
Psalm 18:2
(NLT)
The Psalmist uses three images to describe how protected and secure
he is in God’s hands.
My Rock is the immovable, omnipotent
power of God to overcome any obstacle the child of God encounters.
My Fortress is the place of retreat. Even the strongest army must rest and regroup
in a safe place, and the safest place around is behind the shield of God’s protection.
My Savior is the arms of safety, where,
even when I mess up and wander, the Shepherd will find me and bring me back
home.
King David often found himself engaged in bloody warfare; the
culture back then was as out of its mind over conquest and power as ours is today. The Bible’s account of rampant lawlessness
and bloodshed throughout Israel’s struggle to become God’s messenger is frighteningly
similar to the culture in which we now live.
But, for followers of Jesus Christ there is another dimension to the
wars we face; we must always remember that our lives are framed by the reality
of spiritual
warfare.
Paul has this chilling reminder:
For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood
enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against
mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly
places. Ephesians 6:12 (NLT)
In 35 years of ministry I have both experienced this battle with
the unseen, and known plenty of believers going through the fires of spiritual
warfare.
What does this spiritual oppression by the enemy, and the battle lines
look like? You might be surprised, but it
often looks like just normal stuff – financial burdens, a
doctor’s report, court ruling, daily newspaper crime report. It may be the breakup of a marriage, or the
teenager who falls in with the wrong crowd; it may be news of your employer
starting to cut back on the workforce.
These are like the spots that tell you a person has leprosy; the spots
aren’t the disease, they are merely indicators that you have
something wrong on the inside.
And that’s the way sin works!
Spiritual warfare may be the most neglected form of Christian
living these days. We spend so much time
praying for the healing of our hangnails and other minor hurts, and beseeching
God for an easier life, that we fail to engage in the real game – the war to
which we’ve all been called – praying-up a hedge of protection for the next
generation.
In a very engaging inaugural address, which everyone my age
remembers, President John F. Kennedy said, ask not what your country can do for you;
ask what YOU can do for your country. That
17-word call to unity and unselfishness drew the citizens of this country into
the kind of national pride and enthusiasm which spawned decades of involvement and
unselfish investment of their lives for the preservation of the world and its
resources. And that by a generation of
so-called “hippies” as a response to the call of Camelot!
How I wish we could see that kind of passion to serve Christ in the
citizens of our churches.
Somehow, we have lost the focus on the battle which rages before
us. As a nation, and in churches (as the
Body of `Christ), we don’t pray, seek the face of God, humble ourselves and
turn from our wicked ways, as 2 Chronicles 7:14 lays-out for the kind of
revival we should be seeking.
May God forgive us and draw us back to Him.
For You Today
Two simple questions:
1.
Will you pray today?
2. If you do pray, will it be for your benefit…or
the sake of His Kingdom?
