"So it came about when Moses held his hand up, that Israel prevailed, and when he let his hand down, Amalek prevailed. But Moses’ hands were heavy. Then they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it; and Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other. Thus his hands were steady until the sun set. So Joshua overwhelmed Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword." -Exodus 17.11-13
Moses, while too old for hand to hand combat on the battlefield, is still a warrior and still plays a crucial role in the battle. He is up on a hill overlooking the fight, and as he holds up his hands Israel wins, but when they grow tired and heavy, they fall and Amalek wins. The only chance Israel has is for Moses' arms to stay up, but physically he can't do that. Fortunately, Moses isn't alone. Aaron and Hur are with him, they bring a stone for him to sit on, and then the two of them hold up Moses' arms. Since his arms stay up, Joshua defeats Amalek and the battle is won.
Without Moses, the battle would have been lost, and without Aaron and Hur, Moses would have been lost. There is no role in the battle that is insignificant, and every man is always a warrior. Moses, Aaron, and Hur fought the battle in a way that they were able to, but they still fought. They weren't too old, and their role was essential.
Men, you are never to old to fight. As we've seen, the way that we fight must change over time, but we are made in the image of a warrior God, and we are warriors until the end. We are never too old to engage in battle with evil.
The roles that we play may not seem too important. Age eventually catches up with us, and we can't do the things we used to be able to any more. I think back to the workouts I used to do in high school and college, and part of me can't believe it, and I'm only 27. But just because our time on the front lines comes to an end, it doesn't mean we sink into obscurity.
Maybe we take on the role of mentor and encourager. We find younger men, young warriors, and hold our hands high for them as the fight. Maybe we find a behind the scenes way of supporting others, and we hold up the hands of someone else. And maybe we're still young enough to take the fight right to the enemy, let's make sure our swords are sharp and our shields are ready so that we can be chosen for the task. Each role is significant and essential for victory.
You are never too old. You are never insignificant.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Showing posts with label Battle. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Battle. Show all posts
Friday, June 6, 2014
Thursday, June 5, 2014
Not Alone
"Joshua did as Moses told him, and fought against Amalek; and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill." -Exodus 17.10
Joshua leads the men to front lines, Moses heads up the hill with his brother and Hur. They each have a part to play in the battle that is about to take place, and neither of them attempts to do it alone. Neither one can succeed without the help of those with him. Joshua, skilled and knowledgeable as he is on the battlefield, cannot defeat an army alone. And as we'll see, Moses is unable to do his part on his own. We need eachother.
Men, we aren't supposed to do this all on our own. Yes, there are times when we go out on solo missions. There are times when we have to face enemies alone, but we aren't supposed to fight this war by ourselves. The Navy SEALs go out in teams, the Spartans fought together in the phalanx. Both sets of warriors are made up of individuals who are forces to be reckoned with, but no individual is as strong as the group working as a single unit.
We don't have to do this by ourselves. We weren't created to do this alone. Let us band together, working as a unit, to fight the battles of this war. This is not a never ending solo mission. We are not alone.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Joshua leads the men to front lines, Moses heads up the hill with his brother and Hur. They each have a part to play in the battle that is about to take place, and neither of them attempts to do it alone. Neither one can succeed without the help of those with him. Joshua, skilled and knowledgeable as he is on the battlefield, cannot defeat an army alone. And as we'll see, Moses is unable to do his part on his own. We need eachother.
Men, we aren't supposed to do this all on our own. Yes, there are times when we go out on solo missions. There are times when we have to face enemies alone, but we aren't supposed to fight this war by ourselves. The Navy SEALs go out in teams, the Spartans fought together in the phalanx. Both sets of warriors are made up of individuals who are forces to be reckoned with, but no individual is as strong as the group working as a single unit.
We don't have to do this by ourselves. We weren't created to do this alone. Let us band together, working as a unit, to fight the battles of this war. This is not a never ending solo mission. We are not alone.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Wednesday, June 4, 2014
Choose Men
"Then Amalek came and fought against Israel at Rephidim. So Moses said to Joshua, 'Choose men for us and go out, fight against Amalek. Tomorrow I will station myself on the top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand.'" -Exodus 17.8-9
God has led His people through the wilderness. He has provided food and water for them, but now they face a different challenge. Amalek has come to do battle with Israel. At the beginning of the journey God intentionally led them away from war, taking them around the land of the Philistines, but this time it won't be avoided. And it's time that the people got some experience in battle. They are going to have to fight for the Promised Land, and so God is providing hands on training on the journey there.
Moses has Joshua lead the army, and he instructs him to choose men to go out and fight. He doesn't say take every man, but to choose men. He knows that men were made for battle, and that it isn't the place for women or children. But he also knows that not every man is ready for, or capable of, battle. And so he instructs Joshua to choose some able bodied men to go out and fight for the people.
Moses at this point is an old man in his early eighties, and the battle field is no longer his place. But he will not sit in his tent waiting for news from the front lines. He will be up on the hill with the staff of God in his hand. He leaves the actual fighting to younger men, but he will be very much involved.
Men, this is part of our role, a big part. Are you willing to be chosen for battle? Some of us are in the prime fighting years of our lives. We are strong and capable, are you willing to offer your strength? Some have seen the last of their fighting days, but that doesn't mean you are useless. You can station yourself on the hill overlooking the battlefield.
Some are too young, and it is not yet time for them to be exposed to war. They are part of why we fight, to protect them from the horrors of battle and to make the world safe for them. But we must realize that the time will come for them to join us, or even for us to turn the the fight over to them. Let us prepare them, train them, so that when the time comes they will be men ready to be chosen.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
God has led His people through the wilderness. He has provided food and water for them, but now they face a different challenge. Amalek has come to do battle with Israel. At the beginning of the journey God intentionally led them away from war, taking them around the land of the Philistines, but this time it won't be avoided. And it's time that the people got some experience in battle. They are going to have to fight for the Promised Land, and so God is providing hands on training on the journey there.
Moses has Joshua lead the army, and he instructs him to choose men to go out and fight. He doesn't say take every man, but to choose men. He knows that men were made for battle, and that it isn't the place for women or children. But he also knows that not every man is ready for, or capable of, battle. And so he instructs Joshua to choose some able bodied men to go out and fight for the people.
Moses at this point is an old man in his early eighties, and the battle field is no longer his place. But he will not sit in his tent waiting for news from the front lines. He will be up on the hill with the staff of God in his hand. He leaves the actual fighting to younger men, but he will be very much involved.
Men, this is part of our role, a big part. Are you willing to be chosen for battle? Some of us are in the prime fighting years of our lives. We are strong and capable, are you willing to offer your strength? Some have seen the last of their fighting days, but that doesn't mean you are useless. You can station yourself on the hill overlooking the battlefield.
Some are too young, and it is not yet time for them to be exposed to war. They are part of why we fight, to protect them from the horrors of battle and to make the world safe for them. But we must realize that the time will come for them to join us, or even for us to turn the the fight over to them. Let us prepare them, train them, so that when the time comes they will be men ready to be chosen.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Sunday, April 27, 2014
Every Man a Warrior
"hen Israel said to Joseph, 'Behold, I am about to die, but God will be with you, and bring you back to the land of your fathers. I give you one portion more than your brothers, which I took from the hand of the Amorite with my sword and my bow.'" -Genesis 48.21-22
Jacob is about to die, and here, in one of the final statements of his life, we learn something new about him. Jacob was a warrior. He tells his son Joseph that he is giving him an extra portion of the land that he took with the sword and bow. Jacob fought battles, and emerged victorious. And this is the fist time we hear about it.
The man who started off as the gentle, tent dwelling, cook, became a warrior. He took to the road, learned to work, and apparently how to fight. It makes you wonder about his inaction when his daughter was raped. The man knew how to fight, and yet when the warrior was needed, he left his sword at his side. Why did the warrior stay in the camp instead of heading to the front lines? But whatever the reason, we see that Jacob had fought his share of battles.
I hadn't noticed this verse before, and needless to say it gave me pause. It drives home the fact that every man is a warrior, even if you never know about the battles he fights. It shows that every man is capable of being a warrior, even if he is a gentle man who enjoys things that may not seem to be the most masculine. Every man is a warrior.
Men, you are all warriors. The world may never know about the battles you fight, but they matter. This past week I added a quote to the left hand column, "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." If good men refuse to fight battles against evil, then evil wins. If we never allow the warriors in us to arise and be trained, we will not survive the battles when they come, and battles are coming.
Every man is a warrior. Don't deny it, and don't refuse to stand against evil. Let the warriors arise.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Jacob is about to die, and here, in one of the final statements of his life, we learn something new about him. Jacob was a warrior. He tells his son Joseph that he is giving him an extra portion of the land that he took with the sword and bow. Jacob fought battles, and emerged victorious. And this is the fist time we hear about it.
The man who started off as the gentle, tent dwelling, cook, became a warrior. He took to the road, learned to work, and apparently how to fight. It makes you wonder about his inaction when his daughter was raped. The man knew how to fight, and yet when the warrior was needed, he left his sword at his side. Why did the warrior stay in the camp instead of heading to the front lines? But whatever the reason, we see that Jacob had fought his share of battles.
I hadn't noticed this verse before, and needless to say it gave me pause. It drives home the fact that every man is a warrior, even if you never know about the battles he fights. It shows that every man is capable of being a warrior, even if he is a gentle man who enjoys things that may not seem to be the most masculine. Every man is a warrior.
Men, you are all warriors. The world may never know about the battles you fight, but they matter. This past week I added a quote to the left hand column, "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." If good men refuse to fight battles against evil, then evil wins. If we never allow the warriors in us to arise and be trained, we will not survive the battles when they come, and battles are coming.
Every man is a warrior. Don't deny it, and don't refuse to stand against evil. Let the warriors arise.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Thursday, October 24, 2013
The Way of the Wild Heart, Chapter 9: Raising the Warrior, part 7
Final post of this chapter, this has been a longer process than I initially thought it would be. But on the other hand, I believe the Warrior is predominately what every man is, and spending the most time here isn't a bad thing. In the previous section John shares a story about a friend who became the head of his company, which has brought on intense battles. He then says this, "Which reminds us that a King had better be a Warrior first, or else he will fold under the assault, or lead his people into passivity". Men, we must be warriors.
This chapter ends with a section titled, "Some Counsel from the Battlefield", and I feel like this is crucial information for all of us to keep in mind as we journey.
One Battle at a Time
"The enemy's first plan is to keep a man out of the battle altogether - through fear, or self-doubt, through bad theology or ignorance, through his wounds, or through the passivity we inherited from Adam. If that doesn't work (and it's worked with many a man), and a man rises up to be a Warrior, the enemy switches to dog pile. Bury you in battles. What he'll do is try to lure you into battles that aren't yours to fight. Be careful here - you don't want to take on every battle that comes your way... don't let yourself be lured into battles that aren't yours to fight, no matter how urgent they might seem... Ask Jesus, Do you want me to fight this? Get your orders from your King."
There are so many battles out there. There is so much corruption and injustice. It's too much for any one man to take down alone. We each have different gifts and passions, we have unique skills. We have to learn to pick our battles, and fight the enemy in front of us. The phalanx only works if each man does his part, and trusts his brothers to do theirs. If we try to take on everything, we'll fail, beat ourselves up, and be ineffective at everything. But if we get guidance and instruction from God, we'll see the battles He wants to use us for, and we'll be able to fight fully effective.
Fight Your Battles Once
"Don't fight your battles twice - once in worry and anticipation, and the second time when you actually enter into the event itself. Cross that bridge when you come to it, as the saying goes. This will require strength and resolve, resisting speculation, and it will strengthen the Warrior in you. It's another way of learning not to yield your heart - in this case, to worry and fretting."
When I first started wrestling, I got so nervous before matches. I couldn't sit down, couldn't do anything but think about it. It made me dread matches. But then something happened towards the end of my career, I stopped carrying about winning, and just focused on wrestling. Matches where fun, and I scored a ton of points. I actually looked forward to competition. It's easy to work ourselves up over something, but in the end it hurts our ability to combat it. We spend so much energy in anticipation that we go into battle drained and exhausted.
During any Important Event, Assume it's Warfare
"Treat it as such. And by 'important event,' I mean anything redemptive - a mission, or course, but also a source of joy like an anniversary. The enemy is out to steal your joy more than anything else."
I'm seeing this one right now. This morning on my walk with the dog I went to battle. Commanded Satan to flee and thanked God for the blessing my wife and I are receiving. Satan is after our joy all the time, and he'll twist something anyway he can to try and rob us of it. Don't let him steel the full enjoyment of God's blessings from you.
Resist it Quickly
"Don't let things get a foothold. However tired you may be, however distracted or inconvenient the moment, now is the time to fight...'for the enemy is then more easily overcome, if he is not suffered to enter the door of our hearts, but is resisted at the first knock.' Don't kid yourself, saying, 'I'll deal with this later.'... When you pray, or resist, or act decisively in the moments you least want to, the Warrior in you is strengthened. Next time you'll be even stronger."
The enemy attacks when he feels our guard is lowered, so keep it up. As soon as you feel the attack, drop into a fighting stance and defend yourself. Don't allow him to get inside your guard, and definitely don't allow him to come into camp and make himself at home by the fire. As soon as you feel the attack fight back. The enemy is a coward and usually won't stay long in a battle he's sure not to win. So strike quickly and push him back.
You won't Feel Like a Warrior
In the midst of battle, you will often feel confused, disoriented, perhaps overwhelmed, troubled with self-doubt. You will certainly feel the spirits that are present, and they will try to make you believe it's you that is angry, or prideful, or whatever assaults you. Set your face like a flint. It will clear, eventually, and you will again feel the presence of God and who you truly are. In the midst of it, war is chaos."
Yeah, I feel that way, a lot. And that's how the enemy wants us to feel, like we're all alone, and in over our heads. But this is where we must remember first and foremost, that we are Beloved Sons of the Father who has commanded and promised "Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." War is chaotic, and so it is crucial that we know our identity before we get into it.
Stay with it
"It takes more than a single skirmish to win a battle, and a hate-filled enemy usually will not yield at a single swing from us. Keep at it. The enemy is testing your resolve. Show him that no matter how long it takes, you fully intend to win."
In the Warrior's code, there's no surrender. We stand our ground and come back with our shields, or on them. Victory or death are the only two choices. And we are well trained Warriors fighting on the side that cannot lose. Don't give up my brothers, persevere to victory.
It Will Make You Holy
"First, that holiness is your best weapon. Spiritual warfare will make you holy. Trust me...The battle we find ourselves in gives a whole new purpose to holiness. The call is not to 'be a moral man because it's decent.' The call is to 'become a holy man and a Warrior, for you are needed in the battle, and if you don not become that man, you will be taken out.'"
That's the goal, holiness, Christlikeness. We are told in the Romans 5.1-5 and in James 1.2-4, that trials and hardships are there to mold us into the image of Christ. Romans 8 tells us that all things work for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose (verse 28). In the following verses (29-30) we see that this purpose is for us to become like Christ and to be glorified with Christ. The only way for this to happen is through trial and hardship. Christ endured, and overcame them, and so must we. He is there with us to help us, and the more we endure, the more like Him we become.
"The recovery of the Warrior is absolutely crucial to the recovery of a man. All else rests on this, for you will have to fight, my brothers, for everything you desire and everything you hold dear in this world. Despite what you feel, or what you may have been told, you have a Warrior's heart, because you bear the image of God. And he will train you to become a great Warrior, if you'll let him."
Men, we are Warriors, and we are needed in battle, now more than ever. Take up your shield, stand beside me in the phalanx, and let's take back ground for the Kingdom. Let the Warrior's rise.
"Father, you are a great Warrior, and I am made in your image. I am your son, and a warrior too. Open my eyes to see how you have been developing the Warrior in me."
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
This chapter ends with a section titled, "Some Counsel from the Battlefield", and I feel like this is crucial information for all of us to keep in mind as we journey.
One Battle at a Time
"The enemy's first plan is to keep a man out of the battle altogether - through fear, or self-doubt, through bad theology or ignorance, through his wounds, or through the passivity we inherited from Adam. If that doesn't work (and it's worked with many a man), and a man rises up to be a Warrior, the enemy switches to dog pile. Bury you in battles. What he'll do is try to lure you into battles that aren't yours to fight. Be careful here - you don't want to take on every battle that comes your way... don't let yourself be lured into battles that aren't yours to fight, no matter how urgent they might seem... Ask Jesus, Do you want me to fight this? Get your orders from your King."
There are so many battles out there. There is so much corruption and injustice. It's too much for any one man to take down alone. We each have different gifts and passions, we have unique skills. We have to learn to pick our battles, and fight the enemy in front of us. The phalanx only works if each man does his part, and trusts his brothers to do theirs. If we try to take on everything, we'll fail, beat ourselves up, and be ineffective at everything. But if we get guidance and instruction from God, we'll see the battles He wants to use us for, and we'll be able to fight fully effective.
Fight Your Battles Once
"Don't fight your battles twice - once in worry and anticipation, and the second time when you actually enter into the event itself. Cross that bridge when you come to it, as the saying goes. This will require strength and resolve, resisting speculation, and it will strengthen the Warrior in you. It's another way of learning not to yield your heart - in this case, to worry and fretting."
When I first started wrestling, I got so nervous before matches. I couldn't sit down, couldn't do anything but think about it. It made me dread matches. But then something happened towards the end of my career, I stopped carrying about winning, and just focused on wrestling. Matches where fun, and I scored a ton of points. I actually looked forward to competition. It's easy to work ourselves up over something, but in the end it hurts our ability to combat it. We spend so much energy in anticipation that we go into battle drained and exhausted.
During any Important Event, Assume it's Warfare
"Treat it as such. And by 'important event,' I mean anything redemptive - a mission, or course, but also a source of joy like an anniversary. The enemy is out to steal your joy more than anything else."
I'm seeing this one right now. This morning on my walk with the dog I went to battle. Commanded Satan to flee and thanked God for the blessing my wife and I are receiving. Satan is after our joy all the time, and he'll twist something anyway he can to try and rob us of it. Don't let him steel the full enjoyment of God's blessings from you.
Resist it Quickly
"Don't let things get a foothold. However tired you may be, however distracted or inconvenient the moment, now is the time to fight...'for the enemy is then more easily overcome, if he is not suffered to enter the door of our hearts, but is resisted at the first knock.' Don't kid yourself, saying, 'I'll deal with this later.'... When you pray, or resist, or act decisively in the moments you least want to, the Warrior in you is strengthened. Next time you'll be even stronger."
The enemy attacks when he feels our guard is lowered, so keep it up. As soon as you feel the attack, drop into a fighting stance and defend yourself. Don't allow him to get inside your guard, and definitely don't allow him to come into camp and make himself at home by the fire. As soon as you feel the attack fight back. The enemy is a coward and usually won't stay long in a battle he's sure not to win. So strike quickly and push him back.
You won't Feel Like a Warrior
In the midst of battle, you will often feel confused, disoriented, perhaps overwhelmed, troubled with self-doubt. You will certainly feel the spirits that are present, and they will try to make you believe it's you that is angry, or prideful, or whatever assaults you. Set your face like a flint. It will clear, eventually, and you will again feel the presence of God and who you truly are. In the midst of it, war is chaos."
Yeah, I feel that way, a lot. And that's how the enemy wants us to feel, like we're all alone, and in over our heads. But this is where we must remember first and foremost, that we are Beloved Sons of the Father who has commanded and promised "Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." War is chaotic, and so it is crucial that we know our identity before we get into it.
Stay with it
"It takes more than a single skirmish to win a battle, and a hate-filled enemy usually will not yield at a single swing from us. Keep at it. The enemy is testing your resolve. Show him that no matter how long it takes, you fully intend to win."
In the Warrior's code, there's no surrender. We stand our ground and come back with our shields, or on them. Victory or death are the only two choices. And we are well trained Warriors fighting on the side that cannot lose. Don't give up my brothers, persevere to victory.
It Will Make You Holy
"First, that holiness is your best weapon. Spiritual warfare will make you holy. Trust me...The battle we find ourselves in gives a whole new purpose to holiness. The call is not to 'be a moral man because it's decent.' The call is to 'become a holy man and a Warrior, for you are needed in the battle, and if you don not become that man, you will be taken out.'"
That's the goal, holiness, Christlikeness. We are told in the Romans 5.1-5 and in James 1.2-4, that trials and hardships are there to mold us into the image of Christ. Romans 8 tells us that all things work for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose (verse 28). In the following verses (29-30) we see that this purpose is for us to become like Christ and to be glorified with Christ. The only way for this to happen is through trial and hardship. Christ endured, and overcame them, and so must we. He is there with us to help us, and the more we endure, the more like Him we become.
"The recovery of the Warrior is absolutely crucial to the recovery of a man. All else rests on this, for you will have to fight, my brothers, for everything you desire and everything you hold dear in this world. Despite what you feel, or what you may have been told, you have a Warrior's heart, because you bear the image of God. And he will train you to become a great Warrior, if you'll let him."
Men, we are Warriors, and we are needed in battle, now more than ever. Take up your shield, stand beside me in the phalanx, and let's take back ground for the Kingdom. Let the Warrior's rise.
"Father, you are a great Warrior, and I am made in your image. I am your son, and a warrior too. Open my eyes to see how you have been developing the Warrior in me."
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Monday, October 7, 2013
The Way of the Wild Heart, Chapter 8: Warrior, part 1
"It may take time, and require repeated provocation, but eventually a man must come to realize that there are certain things in life worth fighting for. Perhaps, when we appreciate the truth of this, we can better understand the heart of God... Our God is a warrior, mighty and terrible in battle, and he leads armies. It is this God that man is made in the image of. I spoke of this in Wild at Heart, but some things bear repeating, because a man will be in a much better place to enter the stage of the Warrior if he knows this is thoroughly grounded in Scripture, supported by Scripture, compelled by Scripture."
For some reason the Church usually refuses to acknowledge this reality. War and fighting are seen as evil, and while I'll admit the fact that war is a terrible thing, we can't escape the reality that it exists in the world we live in. And because of that we must embrace the truth of Exodus 15.3, "The LORD is a warrior; the LORD is his name."
God stands for truth and justice; He fights for righteousness and holiness. He doesn't back down from a fight, instead He leads His people into battle. "Our God is a Warrior because there are certain things in life worth fighting for, must be fought for. He makes man a Warrior in his own image, because he intends for man to join him in that battle."
Men, we were made for war. We have strength and power so that we can be dangerous on the battlefield. We cannot run from this truth and hide, pretending that it doesn't exist or hoping that it will go away if we ignore it. If we don't take a stand, then we allow evil to trample all that is good.
"There are certain things worth fighting for. A marriage, for example, or the institution of marriage as a whole. Children, whether they are yours or not. Friendships will have to be fought for, as you've discovered by now, and churches, too, which seem bent on destroying themselves if they are not first destroyed by the enemy who hates them... Take anything good, true, or beautiful upon this earth and ask yourself, 'Can this be protected without a fight?'... Sometimes the battle has to strike close to home in order to rouse the Warrior in a man. Perhaps that is why God often allows it to strike so close to home."
What makes you angry? What breaks your heart? What are you going to do about it? Will you take a stand or sit down? Evil is a very real thing, and it has already corrupted so much because men have refused to be warriors. "Evil typically doesn't yield its hold willingly. It must be forced to surrender, or be destroyed." It takes a warrior to fight a battle. Only a warrior can emerge victorious.
Think about Gladiator. In the extended edition of the movie during the scene where Maximus is cutting out his Legionnaire tattoo we learn that one of the slaves is a scribe, he talks about how he can speak seven languages. The next day the gladiators are paired up and sent into the arena, guess who one of the first guys killed is? And guess who survives the battle?
Men, we must embrace the fact that we are made in the image of a warrior God, and called to be warriors fighting at His side. If we don't then we'll just helplessly watch all that is good and beautiful be corrupted and destroyed before we ourselves are killed by the same evil.
The battle rages all around us, lets arm ourselves, and join the fight.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
For some reason the Church usually refuses to acknowledge this reality. War and fighting are seen as evil, and while I'll admit the fact that war is a terrible thing, we can't escape the reality that it exists in the world we live in. And because of that we must embrace the truth of Exodus 15.3, "The LORD is a warrior; the LORD is his name."
God stands for truth and justice; He fights for righteousness and holiness. He doesn't back down from a fight, instead He leads His people into battle. "Our God is a Warrior because there are certain things in life worth fighting for, must be fought for. He makes man a Warrior in his own image, because he intends for man to join him in that battle."
Men, we were made for war. We have strength and power so that we can be dangerous on the battlefield. We cannot run from this truth and hide, pretending that it doesn't exist or hoping that it will go away if we ignore it. If we don't take a stand, then we allow evil to trample all that is good.
"There are certain things worth fighting for. A marriage, for example, or the institution of marriage as a whole. Children, whether they are yours or not. Friendships will have to be fought for, as you've discovered by now, and churches, too, which seem bent on destroying themselves if they are not first destroyed by the enemy who hates them... Take anything good, true, or beautiful upon this earth and ask yourself, 'Can this be protected without a fight?'... Sometimes the battle has to strike close to home in order to rouse the Warrior in a man. Perhaps that is why God often allows it to strike so close to home."
What makes you angry? What breaks your heart? What are you going to do about it? Will you take a stand or sit down? Evil is a very real thing, and it has already corrupted so much because men have refused to be warriors. "Evil typically doesn't yield its hold willingly. It must be forced to surrender, or be destroyed." It takes a warrior to fight a battle. Only a warrior can emerge victorious.
Think about Gladiator. In the extended edition of the movie during the scene where Maximus is cutting out his Legionnaire tattoo we learn that one of the slaves is a scribe, he talks about how he can speak seven languages. The next day the gladiators are paired up and sent into the arena, guess who one of the first guys killed is? And guess who survives the battle?
Men, we must embrace the fact that we are made in the image of a warrior God, and called to be warriors fighting at His side. If we don't then we'll just helplessly watch all that is good and beautiful be corrupted and destroyed before we ourselves are killed by the same evil.
The battle rages all around us, lets arm ourselves, and join the fight.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Friday, May 31, 2013
Wild at Heart, Chapter 10: A Beauty to Rescue, part 4
Every beauty needs to be rescued, the question every man must answer is, "Will you fight for her?" Will you risk your life to save hers, or leave her to fend for herself in the tower? She must be rescued, and if you refuse to do it, she will look for it in someone else.
Back in college on of my RA's (Resident Assistants) told me something I haven't forgotten, "Too many guys treat the girl like a princess until they get her, then they stop. It's like once they have her they think they don't have to try anymore." When he told me that I knew that I wanted to be the guy who never stopped, sadly I can't say that I haven't.
I don't always treat my wife like the princess that she is, and honestly I hate myself for that. I hate that I've let other things take up the few precious moments we get to spend together. I hate that I am silent and kill her with it. I hate that I get impatient with her. I hate that there are times I haven't fought for her.
"And it's not just once, but again and again over time. That's where the myth really stumps us. Some men are willing to go in once, twice, even three times. But a warrior is in this for good." There is nothing that could ever make me leave my wife. Never once have I thought, "I wish I could get out of this." But there are times I've treated her like I think that way. The times I don't make her a priority. The times I let the chaos of life overwhelm me to the point of complacency. The times when I let my frustration with circumstances come out as anger directed at her. Those are the times I have dropped out of the fight for her heart.
I'm not saying a husband and wife will never fight or argue, that's unavoidable when you bring two people with two decades of separate lives together into one. I'm not saying there won't be times when things come up that demand your attention. But we do have a choice in how we react during these times. Even in those moments it is still possible to fight for her heart. I'm learning how to.
If we rescue the beauty it says so much about who we are as men. "The universe is so vast and so ageless that the life of one man can only be justified by the measure of his sacrifice." Only I can be a husband to my wife and father to our children. My goals and dreams don't matter if it costs me my family. And so the question is what will I sacrifice? Will I give up the princess for myself, or myself for the princess?
I choose her. Yes it does mean the hardships of battle, but it also means her love. That is worth every wound I will receive in the fight. And with her it opens the door to a whole new life of adventure.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Back in college on of my RA's (Resident Assistants) told me something I haven't forgotten, "Too many guys treat the girl like a princess until they get her, then they stop. It's like once they have her they think they don't have to try anymore." When he told me that I knew that I wanted to be the guy who never stopped, sadly I can't say that I haven't.
I don't always treat my wife like the princess that she is, and honestly I hate myself for that. I hate that I've let other things take up the few precious moments we get to spend together. I hate that I am silent and kill her with it. I hate that I get impatient with her. I hate that there are times I haven't fought for her.
"And it's not just once, but again and again over time. That's where the myth really stumps us. Some men are willing to go in once, twice, even three times. But a warrior is in this for good." There is nothing that could ever make me leave my wife. Never once have I thought, "I wish I could get out of this." But there are times I've treated her like I think that way. The times I don't make her a priority. The times I let the chaos of life overwhelm me to the point of complacency. The times when I let my frustration with circumstances come out as anger directed at her. Those are the times I have dropped out of the fight for her heart.
I'm not saying a husband and wife will never fight or argue, that's unavoidable when you bring two people with two decades of separate lives together into one. I'm not saying there won't be times when things come up that demand your attention. But we do have a choice in how we react during these times. Even in those moments it is still possible to fight for her heart. I'm learning how to.
If we rescue the beauty it says so much about who we are as men. "The universe is so vast and so ageless that the life of one man can only be justified by the measure of his sacrifice." Only I can be a husband to my wife and father to our children. My goals and dreams don't matter if it costs me my family. And so the question is what will I sacrifice? Will I give up the princess for myself, or myself for the princess?
I choose her. Yes it does mean the hardships of battle, but it also means her love. That is worth every wound I will receive in the fight. And with her it opens the door to a whole new life of adventure.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Sunday, May 19, 2013
Wild at Heart, Chapter 9: A Battle to Fight: The Strategy, part 6
As we come to the end of what this book has to say about battle it is crucial to note one final thing, "you will be wounded." This is war after all. And it isn't with all of the "sophisticated" technology and equipment of today where a general pushes a button and launches a missile. This is Normandy, Thermopylae, Falkirk (Brave Heart), or the opening scene of Gladiator. This is brutal, in your face, up close and personal war. And though it isn't a physical battle, there are still wounds.
"Just because this battle is spiritual doesn't mean it's not real; it is and the wounds a man can take are in some ways more ugly than those that come in a firefight... You will be wounded by the Enemy. He knows the wounds of your past, and he will try to wound you again in the same place. But these wounds are different; these are honor-wounds... 'It is an honor to be wounded in the service of the Lord.'"
Let's go to 300 one more time. After Stelios has killed the messenger and opened a path for Leonidas to throw his spear at Xerxes, arrows begin to rain down on the Spartans and soldiers move in to take them out. All of them are killed but there is a moment when Stelios, with two arrows in his chest, pulls himself over to Leonidas, who is also mortally wounded, and says, "My King! It's an honor to die at your side." Remember what he had said earlier about a beautiful death? He has given his life for his King, and his city, and it is an honor for him to be able to die next to his leader.
Scars are not sources of shame at this point, but badges of honor that we can be proud of, and boldly show off. The scars we now carry are from the battles we have fought and won. They are a reminder of what God has done and how we have been used in his service. They are nothing to be ashamed of.
I heard a story last year that I haven't been able to find on the internet and verify, but it came from a credible source so I don't doubt its truthfulness. A plastic surgeon was asked once about the strangest surgery he had ever been asked to perform, and he told a story about a Navy SEAL. The SEAL came to him and was ashamed of the fact that he didn't have any battle scars. He hated playing basketball with other warriors because when they took their shirts off to go skins, everyone had scars except for him. And so he asked the surgeon to give him a scar, something that looked like a bayonet slice across his abdomen. He wanted a scar that said, "I've been in combat, I've survived war."
All who fight in this war we are swept up in will be wounded. And because of this, we must be fierce. "'The kingdom of heaven suffers violence,' said Jesus, 'and violent men take it by force' (Matt. 11:12 NASB)... Hopefully by now you see the deep and holy goodness of masculine aggression... If you are going to live in God's kingdom, Jesus says, it's going to take every ounce of passion and forcefulness you've got. Things are going to get fierce; that's why you were given a fierce heart."
One myth that culture has placed on Christianity is that coming to Jesus solves all your problems and eliminates your troubles. As many will attest, the opposite is actually true. Coming to Christ means enlisting in His service, and it makes you a target for the Enemy. Do not be surprised when things get hard. Don't be surprise when you take hits. Don't be surprised when the Enemy strikes back, this is war after all.
But scars, my scars and yours, are badges of honor. They tell the story of what we have been through. They are reminders of the battles we have fought for the Kingdom. And scars are also a sign of the healing God has done in our lives. So wear the proudly, and don't be afraid to share the stories they carry.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
"Just because this battle is spiritual doesn't mean it's not real; it is and the wounds a man can take are in some ways more ugly than those that come in a firefight... You will be wounded by the Enemy. He knows the wounds of your past, and he will try to wound you again in the same place. But these wounds are different; these are honor-wounds... 'It is an honor to be wounded in the service of the Lord.'"
Let's go to 300 one more time. After Stelios has killed the messenger and opened a path for Leonidas to throw his spear at Xerxes, arrows begin to rain down on the Spartans and soldiers move in to take them out. All of them are killed but there is a moment when Stelios, with two arrows in his chest, pulls himself over to Leonidas, who is also mortally wounded, and says, "My King! It's an honor to die at your side." Remember what he had said earlier about a beautiful death? He has given his life for his King, and his city, and it is an honor for him to be able to die next to his leader.
Scars are not sources of shame at this point, but badges of honor that we can be proud of, and boldly show off. The scars we now carry are from the battles we have fought and won. They are a reminder of what God has done and how we have been used in his service. They are nothing to be ashamed of.
I heard a story last year that I haven't been able to find on the internet and verify, but it came from a credible source so I don't doubt its truthfulness. A plastic surgeon was asked once about the strangest surgery he had ever been asked to perform, and he told a story about a Navy SEAL. The SEAL came to him and was ashamed of the fact that he didn't have any battle scars. He hated playing basketball with other warriors because when they took their shirts off to go skins, everyone had scars except for him. And so he asked the surgeon to give him a scar, something that looked like a bayonet slice across his abdomen. He wanted a scar that said, "I've been in combat, I've survived war."
All who fight in this war we are swept up in will be wounded. And because of this, we must be fierce. "'The kingdom of heaven suffers violence,' said Jesus, 'and violent men take it by force' (Matt. 11:12 NASB)... Hopefully by now you see the deep and holy goodness of masculine aggression... If you are going to live in God's kingdom, Jesus says, it's going to take every ounce of passion and forcefulness you've got. Things are going to get fierce; that's why you were given a fierce heart."
One myth that culture has placed on Christianity is that coming to Jesus solves all your problems and eliminates your troubles. As many will attest, the opposite is actually true. Coming to Christ means enlisting in His service, and it makes you a target for the Enemy. Do not be surprised when things get hard. Don't be surprise when you take hits. Don't be surprised when the Enemy strikes back, this is war after all.
But scars, my scars and yours, are badges of honor. They tell the story of what we have been through. They are reminders of the battles we have fought for the Kingdom. And scars are also a sign of the healing God has done in our lives. So wear the proudly, and don't be afraid to share the stories they carry.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Saturday, May 18, 2013
Wild at Heart, Chapter 9: A Battle to Fight: The Strategy, part 5
In order to win a battle we must know who we are fighting, and we must know how our enemy functions. But all of that is useless if we go into battle unarmed and unprepared for a fight. We have weapons for war, and it is crucial that we arm ourselves and train with them so that we are skilled and ready for combat.
"Against the flesh, the traitor within, a warrior uses discipline." This is all about connecting with God. To quote James 4.7 again, "Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you." Discipline and connecting with God, is all part of the submission. "Most men have a hard time sustaining any sort of devotional life because it has no vital connection to recovering and protecting their strength; it feels about as important as flossing." (Which is actually a really important part of health) "But if you saw your life as a great battle and you knew you needed time with God for your very survival, you would do it... We give a half-hearted attempt at the spiritual disciplines when the only reason we have is that we 'ought' to. But we'll find a way to make it work when we are convinced we're history if we don't."
Remember, the Enemy works to cut off our communication with God. Part of the reason that quite time and devotionals can be hard, is because the are about connecting with God. The Enemy will do whatever he can to try and prevent them. My schedule has been so busy and random the last few weeks. When I do find myself with some private moments of solitude my mind wanders and it's hard to focus. This is the Enemy working to disrupt communication with God.
No communication means no connection. No connection means no submission. No submission means no resistance. No resistance means no victory. We must connect with God, everything depends upon it. And it can actually be easier than we might think.
"Time with God each day is not about academic study or getting through a certain amount of Scripture or any of that. It's about connecting with God. We've got to keep those lines of communication open, so use whatever helps... The point is simply to do whatever brings me back to my heart and the heart of God."
In college there was a prayer room, a place free of distractions devoted to time spent with God. Since then I've tried to find solitude in nature, but certain areas of Ohio don't provide much of that. I've done a lot of connecting through this book and blog. There have been a few songs that have hit me and spoken to things that I'm going through. I enjoy times of silence, alone with God, (this is something I find most easily in nature). And of course there is Scripture. Over the last few years I've come to really see that it isn't about how much I read, or how many times I read it, but again, it is about connecting with God through His word.
"The discipline, by the way, is never the point. The whole point of a 'devotional life' is connecting with God. This is our primary antidote to the counterfeits the world holds out to us. If you do not have God and have him deeply, you will turn to other lovers." We all serve something, and if we are not submissive servants of God, we are enslaved to the Enemy. If we are not connected with God, who were are told in the Bible, is the source of life, then we are empty and searching for it. Without God, we don't really live, simply exist until we die.
"The believer is in spiritual danger if he allows himself to go for any length of time without tasting the love of Christ... When Christ ceases to fill the heart with satisfaction, our souls will go in silent search for other lovers." And these others never satisfy, they leave us empty and searching. Without Christ we are warriors with no cause to fight for. And so we must be disciplined. Every warrior is disciplined, because that is how a man becomes a warrior. Without it there is no training, there is no perfection of skills, and without those he will be killed on the battlefield immediately.
Our first weapon is discipline so that we can connect with God. And it is with this first weapon that we receive the second. First we must overcome the traitor within, they we are ready to take on the enemy outside the city. "Against the Evil One we wear the armor of God." Ephesians presents an incredible picture that I don't have the time to go into now, but will at a later date. But in this we see God's gifts to us so that we can stand firm and confident on the battle. The belt, breastplate, shoes, shield, helmet and sword are ours to use in combat. And we have a connection with the Holy Spirit that instructs us how and when to use them.
And as we go into battle we are given something more, a purpose and the authority to fight with. "And we walk in the authority of Christ. Do not attack in anger, do not swagger forth in pride. You will get nailed... All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Jesus Christ (Matt. 28:18). He tells us this before he gives us the Great Commission, the command to advance his kingdom. Why? We've never made the connection. The reason is, if you are going to serve the True King you're going to need his authority. We dare not take on an angel, let alone a fallen one, in our own strength. That is why Christ extends his authority to us... Rebuke the Enemy in your own name and he laugh; command him in the name of Christ and he flees." Submit to God, resist the devil and he will flee.
A warrior is only a warrior if he fights for someone greater than himself, we are warriors for God. It is in His authority that we advance HIS kingdom. And it is by His authority that all enemies flee. Again, submission to God is so crucial, it is the most essential part of our lives.
One final thing we have as we go off to war is each other. A fight is between two people, one on one. But a war involves armies. And so, "Don't even think about going into battle alone. Don't even try to take the masculine journey without at least one man by your side. Yes, there are times a man must face the battle alone, in the wee hours of the morn, and fight with all he's got. But don't make that a lifestyle of isolation. This may be our weakest point... a man need other men."
The Spartans were, arguably, the greatest warriors of all time. And while each one was disciplined, highly trained, heavily armored, and deadly, one Spartan on his own was nothing compared to a group of Spartan's standing in the phalanx. In my book on page 177 I have nine names written down. These are not my accountability partners, they are my brothers. they are fellow warriors who I have fought alongside of, guys who have my back. We all need that. We need a band of brothers, we need the phalanx. "The whole crisis in masculinity today has come because we no longer have a warrior culture, a place for men to learn to fight like men. We don't need a meeting of Really Nice Guys; we need a gathering of Really Dangerous Men."
"Yes, we need men to whom we can bare our souls. but it isn't going to happen with a group of guys you don't trust, who really aren't willing to go to battle with you. It's a long-standing truth that there is never a more devoted group of men than those who have fought alongside one another... We need a band of brothers willing to 'shed their blood' with us."
Earlier this week I contacted the three names on my list that I am closest to, asking them to join me in prayer, and I thanked them for having my back. They are my brothers, they have fought with me and I with them. And though I don't have the time with them that I would like due to our geographic locations, there are no three people in this world that I trust more than these men. We all need brothers like that.
With these weapons we will overcome for the glory of God.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
"Against the flesh, the traitor within, a warrior uses discipline." This is all about connecting with God. To quote James 4.7 again, "Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you." Discipline and connecting with God, is all part of the submission. "Most men have a hard time sustaining any sort of devotional life because it has no vital connection to recovering and protecting their strength; it feels about as important as flossing." (Which is actually a really important part of health) "But if you saw your life as a great battle and you knew you needed time with God for your very survival, you would do it... We give a half-hearted attempt at the spiritual disciplines when the only reason we have is that we 'ought' to. But we'll find a way to make it work when we are convinced we're history if we don't."
Remember, the Enemy works to cut off our communication with God. Part of the reason that quite time and devotionals can be hard, is because the are about connecting with God. The Enemy will do whatever he can to try and prevent them. My schedule has been so busy and random the last few weeks. When I do find myself with some private moments of solitude my mind wanders and it's hard to focus. This is the Enemy working to disrupt communication with God.
No communication means no connection. No connection means no submission. No submission means no resistance. No resistance means no victory. We must connect with God, everything depends upon it. And it can actually be easier than we might think.
"Time with God each day is not about academic study or getting through a certain amount of Scripture or any of that. It's about connecting with God. We've got to keep those lines of communication open, so use whatever helps... The point is simply to do whatever brings me back to my heart and the heart of God."
In college there was a prayer room, a place free of distractions devoted to time spent with God. Since then I've tried to find solitude in nature, but certain areas of Ohio don't provide much of that. I've done a lot of connecting through this book and blog. There have been a few songs that have hit me and spoken to things that I'm going through. I enjoy times of silence, alone with God, (this is something I find most easily in nature). And of course there is Scripture. Over the last few years I've come to really see that it isn't about how much I read, or how many times I read it, but again, it is about connecting with God through His word.
"The discipline, by the way, is never the point. The whole point of a 'devotional life' is connecting with God. This is our primary antidote to the counterfeits the world holds out to us. If you do not have God and have him deeply, you will turn to other lovers." We all serve something, and if we are not submissive servants of God, we are enslaved to the Enemy. If we are not connected with God, who were are told in the Bible, is the source of life, then we are empty and searching for it. Without God, we don't really live, simply exist until we die.
"The believer is in spiritual danger if he allows himself to go for any length of time without tasting the love of Christ... When Christ ceases to fill the heart with satisfaction, our souls will go in silent search for other lovers." And these others never satisfy, they leave us empty and searching. Without Christ we are warriors with no cause to fight for. And so we must be disciplined. Every warrior is disciplined, because that is how a man becomes a warrior. Without it there is no training, there is no perfection of skills, and without those he will be killed on the battlefield immediately.
Our first weapon is discipline so that we can connect with God. And it is with this first weapon that we receive the second. First we must overcome the traitor within, they we are ready to take on the enemy outside the city. "Against the Evil One we wear the armor of God." Ephesians presents an incredible picture that I don't have the time to go into now, but will at a later date. But in this we see God's gifts to us so that we can stand firm and confident on the battle. The belt, breastplate, shoes, shield, helmet and sword are ours to use in combat. And we have a connection with the Holy Spirit that instructs us how and when to use them.
And as we go into battle we are given something more, a purpose and the authority to fight with. "And we walk in the authority of Christ. Do not attack in anger, do not swagger forth in pride. You will get nailed... All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Jesus Christ (Matt. 28:18). He tells us this before he gives us the Great Commission, the command to advance his kingdom. Why? We've never made the connection. The reason is, if you are going to serve the True King you're going to need his authority. We dare not take on an angel, let alone a fallen one, in our own strength. That is why Christ extends his authority to us... Rebuke the Enemy in your own name and he laugh; command him in the name of Christ and he flees." Submit to God, resist the devil and he will flee.
A warrior is only a warrior if he fights for someone greater than himself, we are warriors for God. It is in His authority that we advance HIS kingdom. And it is by His authority that all enemies flee. Again, submission to God is so crucial, it is the most essential part of our lives.
One final thing we have as we go off to war is each other. A fight is between two people, one on one. But a war involves armies. And so, "Don't even think about going into battle alone. Don't even try to take the masculine journey without at least one man by your side. Yes, there are times a man must face the battle alone, in the wee hours of the morn, and fight with all he's got. But don't make that a lifestyle of isolation. This may be our weakest point... a man need other men."
The Spartans were, arguably, the greatest warriors of all time. And while each one was disciplined, highly trained, heavily armored, and deadly, one Spartan on his own was nothing compared to a group of Spartan's standing in the phalanx. In my book on page 177 I have nine names written down. These are not my accountability partners, they are my brothers. they are fellow warriors who I have fought alongside of, guys who have my back. We all need that. We need a band of brothers, we need the phalanx. "The whole crisis in masculinity today has come because we no longer have a warrior culture, a place for men to learn to fight like men. We don't need a meeting of Really Nice Guys; we need a gathering of Really Dangerous Men."
"Yes, we need men to whom we can bare our souls. but it isn't going to happen with a group of guys you don't trust, who really aren't willing to go to battle with you. It's a long-standing truth that there is never a more devoted group of men than those who have fought alongside one another... We need a band of brothers willing to 'shed their blood' with us."
Earlier this week I contacted the three names on my list that I am closest to, asking them to join me in prayer, and I thanked them for having my back. They are my brothers, they have fought with me and I with them. And though I don't have the time with them that I would like due to our geographic locations, there are no three people in this world that I trust more than these men. We all need brothers like that.
With these weapons we will overcome for the glory of God.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Friday, May 17, 2013
Wild at Heart, Chapter 9: A Battle to Fight: The Strategy, part 4
At this point the battle may feel like it's over, but the Enemy has one more move to attempt. It's a last ditch effort made in an attempt to turn defeat into some sort of victory. Sadly many men buy into it and are taken down. "The third level of attack the Evil One employs, after we have resisted deception and intimidation, is simply to try to get us to cut a deal. So many men have been bought off in one way or another."
Many men see the battle as over after stage two ends. The waves of heavy assault have ended, and the enemy appears to be defeated, and so they lower their guard. But though wounded, the enemy still has some fight left in him and our brothers have been taken out in the third stage of the attack.
John shares a brief account of a ministry leader who had fallen into an affair. This story is one that has effected my own life. Years ago my grandfather was pastoring a growing church. I don't know all of the details, and honestly I don't really want to, but he got involved in an affair. He and my grandmother split up, at least three of his four kids slipped away from God, and there has been issues in my family since that day.
My grandfather never planned for that to happen. I don't believe anyone starts ministry for God with the intention of ruining everything one day with something like an affair. "What man begins his journey wishing, 'I think one day, after twenty years of minstry, I'll torpedo the whole thing with an affair'?", no one. And yet it happens all the time. Why?
"He was picked off;the whole thing was plotted. In his case it was a long and subtle assignment to wear his defenses down not so much through battle as through boredom. I knew that man; he had no great cause to fight for, just the monotony of 'professional Christian ministry' that he hated but couldn't get out of because he was being so well paid for it. He was set up for a fall. Unless you are aware that that's what it is, you'll be taken out too."
As I typed that my mind thought back to the verses from 1 Peter 5 and James 4 that have been mentioned in this chapter. 1 Peter 5.8, "Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour." Be so sober spirit, be on the alert. The devil is prowling like a lion, at this stage in the battle a wounded lion, just looking to take someone down with him. Don't turn your back, don't drop your guard, or it will be you. The battle is still going on, we are still at war. James 4.7, "Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you." Do you realize what a bribe is, what making a deal with the Devil means? It means submitting to Satan rather than God. And we cannot resist something we are enslaved to. The fight is still going on around us, even if a majority of it has ended, there are still enemies out there looking to take out as many as they can. We continue to fight as warriors, or we become casualties of war.
"Notice this - when did King David fall? What were the circumstances of his affair with Bathsheba?... David was no longer a warrior; he sent others to do his fighting for him. Bored, sated, and fat, he strolls around on the roof of the palace looking for something to amuse him. The Evil One points out Bathsheba and the rest is history - which, as we all know, repeats itself."
David, a man after God's own heart, was taken out by the enemy. Christian leaders, men we would call Men of God, have fallen into the same trap. It isn't just with an affair. It could be dishonest business, it could be betraying others to advance yourself. It could be an compromise of morals and integrity.
This is war, that's what all men are born into, and that is why we all must be warriors who are constantly on guard, even when things appear to get easy. "We have known many who have joined the army of Christ and like being a solider for a battle or two, but have soon had enough and ended up deserting. They impulsively enlist for Christian duties... and are just as easily persuaded to lay it down."
In one of the final scenes of 300 Leonidas and his Spartans are alone, surrounded by Persians. They have held their ground and fought valiantly, and are now faced with a choice, take a bribe, or fight to the end. Xerxes messenger extends the kings offers, "Leonidas, my compliments and congratulations. You surely have turned calamity into victory. Despite your insufferable arrogance the god-king has come to admire Spartan valor and fighting skill... You will make a mighty ally. Despite your several insults, despite your horrid blasphemies the lord of hosts is prepared to forgive all and more, to reward your service. You fight for your lands. Keep them. You fight for Sparta. She will be wealthier and more powerful than ever before.
You fight for your kingship. You will be proclaimed warlord of all Greece answerable only to the one true master of the world. Leonidas, your victory will be complete if you but lay down your arms and kneel to holy Xerxes."
Leonidas is silent. He removes his helmet, drops his shield, and after brief words to the traitor Ephialtes, he drops his spear and falls to his knees. For a moment Xerxes seems to have won. But then Leonidas calls for Stelios who runs, jumps over the king and kills the messenger clearing his way. Leonidas grabs his spear as we hear "His helmet was stifling. It narrowed his vision, and he must see far. His shield was heavy. It threw him off balance and his target is far away." He throws his spear and though it does not kill Xerxes it cuts his face and he bleeds.
The Spartans were killed that day, but they were warriors to the end. I have been to Thermopylae, and on the hill where the final Spartans were killed there is a simple monument that reads in Greek, "Go tell the Spartans, passerby that here, by Spartan law, we lie." The Spartans never ran, they returned to Sparta carrying their shields, or on them. They fought to the end, and because of them victory was ultimately won.
There are casualties in every war, but may we go down fighting. You have come too far, and fought to hard, to be taken out now by a cheap shot. Don't lower your guard. Submit to God, resist the devil to the end. Fight the good fight, finish the course, and if we do give our lives in the service of our King, we will be rewarded with the crown of righteousness.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Many men see the battle as over after stage two ends. The waves of heavy assault have ended, and the enemy appears to be defeated, and so they lower their guard. But though wounded, the enemy still has some fight left in him and our brothers have been taken out in the third stage of the attack.
John shares a brief account of a ministry leader who had fallen into an affair. This story is one that has effected my own life. Years ago my grandfather was pastoring a growing church. I don't know all of the details, and honestly I don't really want to, but he got involved in an affair. He and my grandmother split up, at least three of his four kids slipped away from God, and there has been issues in my family since that day.
My grandfather never planned for that to happen. I don't believe anyone starts ministry for God with the intention of ruining everything one day with something like an affair. "What man begins his journey wishing, 'I think one day, after twenty years of minstry, I'll torpedo the whole thing with an affair'?", no one. And yet it happens all the time. Why?
"He was picked off;the whole thing was plotted. In his case it was a long and subtle assignment to wear his defenses down not so much through battle as through boredom. I knew that man; he had no great cause to fight for, just the monotony of 'professional Christian ministry' that he hated but couldn't get out of because he was being so well paid for it. He was set up for a fall. Unless you are aware that that's what it is, you'll be taken out too."
As I typed that my mind thought back to the verses from 1 Peter 5 and James 4 that have been mentioned in this chapter. 1 Peter 5.8, "Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour." Be so sober spirit, be on the alert. The devil is prowling like a lion, at this stage in the battle a wounded lion, just looking to take someone down with him. Don't turn your back, don't drop your guard, or it will be you. The battle is still going on, we are still at war. James 4.7, "Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you." Do you realize what a bribe is, what making a deal with the Devil means? It means submitting to Satan rather than God. And we cannot resist something we are enslaved to. The fight is still going on around us, even if a majority of it has ended, there are still enemies out there looking to take out as many as they can. We continue to fight as warriors, or we become casualties of war.
"Notice this - when did King David fall? What were the circumstances of his affair with Bathsheba?... David was no longer a warrior; he sent others to do his fighting for him. Bored, sated, and fat, he strolls around on the roof of the palace looking for something to amuse him. The Evil One points out Bathsheba and the rest is history - which, as we all know, repeats itself."
David, a man after God's own heart, was taken out by the enemy. Christian leaders, men we would call Men of God, have fallen into the same trap. It isn't just with an affair. It could be dishonest business, it could be betraying others to advance yourself. It could be an compromise of morals and integrity.
This is war, that's what all men are born into, and that is why we all must be warriors who are constantly on guard, even when things appear to get easy. "We have known many who have joined the army of Christ and like being a solider for a battle or two, but have soon had enough and ended up deserting. They impulsively enlist for Christian duties... and are just as easily persuaded to lay it down."
In one of the final scenes of 300 Leonidas and his Spartans are alone, surrounded by Persians. They have held their ground and fought valiantly, and are now faced with a choice, take a bribe, or fight to the end. Xerxes messenger extends the kings offers, "Leonidas, my compliments and congratulations. You surely have turned calamity into victory. Despite your insufferable arrogance the god-king has come to admire Spartan valor and fighting skill... You will make a mighty ally. Despite your several insults, despite your horrid blasphemies the lord of hosts is prepared to forgive all and more, to reward your service. You fight for your lands. Keep them. You fight for Sparta. She will be wealthier and more powerful than ever before.
You fight for your kingship. You will be proclaimed warlord of all Greece answerable only to the one true master of the world. Leonidas, your victory will be complete if you but lay down your arms and kneel to holy Xerxes."
Leonidas is silent. He removes his helmet, drops his shield, and after brief words to the traitor Ephialtes, he drops his spear and falls to his knees. For a moment Xerxes seems to have won. But then Leonidas calls for Stelios who runs, jumps over the king and kills the messenger clearing his way. Leonidas grabs his spear as we hear "His helmet was stifling. It narrowed his vision, and he must see far. His shield was heavy. It threw him off balance and his target is far away." He throws his spear and though it does not kill Xerxes it cuts his face and he bleeds.
The Spartans were killed that day, but they were warriors to the end. I have been to Thermopylae, and on the hill where the final Spartans were killed there is a simple monument that reads in Greek, "Go tell the Spartans, passerby that here, by Spartan law, we lie." The Spartans never ran, they returned to Sparta carrying their shields, or on them. They fought to the end, and because of them victory was ultimately won.
There are casualties in every war, but may we go down fighting. You have come too far, and fought to hard, to be taken out now by a cheap shot. Don't lower your guard. Submit to God, resist the devil to the end. Fight the good fight, finish the course, and if we do give our lives in the service of our King, we will be rewarded with the crown of righteousness.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Wild at Heart, Chapter 9: A Battle to Fight: The Strategy, part 3
Stage one of the battle was simply feeling out the opposition, sending a small force seeing if any more was needed. Now that the Enemy sees that we are for real, that this is going to be an all out war, he sends in the main force. "The Enemy, once discovered, usually doesn't just roll over and go away without a fight." In James it says to "Resist the Devil" that word is anthistemi (the e is pronounced like a long a, and the i at the end is a long e sound), and it means "to set one's self against, to withstand, resist, oppose". This is a fight, this is war, and we are to be set against Satan, withstanding his attacks, resisting his temptations, and opposing his advancement.
In stage two our resistance is tested because Satan uses the tactic of intimidation. "That is the next level of our Enemy's strategy. When we begin to question him, to resist his lies, to see his hand in the 'ordinary trials' of our lives, then he steps up the attack; he turns to intimidation and fear." Once we realize that he is here and involved, he unleashes hell. "Satan will try to get you to agree with intimidation because he fears you." Or rather, he fears God in you. Remember James 4.7 says, "Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you." Before we can resist, before we can set ourselves against Satan and oppose him, we must first take up arms against him by submitting to God. It is God that he fears, and he must flee from us because of God. "You are a huge threat to him. He doesn't want you waking up and fighting back because when you do he loses... So he's going to try to keep you from taking a stand. He moves from subtle seduction to open assault... the Evil One is trying an old tactic - strike first and maybe the opposition will turn tail and run."
That is intimidation. If Satan can overwhelm us with the means at his disposal then our resistance of him fails. that is why the first crucial step to resisting him is submission to God. It is only in His power that we can stand storm the gates of Hell. A few years ago I moved to Michigan to take a job at a church. It was a big step in my life because it was moving out of state, being fully on my own for the first time. At one point I almost turned the job down because I was overwhelmed. But I really felt God leading me to go there, and to help me out He gave me a promise that I know I am not the first one to receive. " Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go" (Joshua 1.9).
Joshua was given those words before he led the people into the Promised Land, and began the conquest of the land. And God shared those words with me as I prepared to move to Michigan. My time there was short, and honestly just before it ended I did have the feeling that my job there was completed, but I did make some impact on a few lives while I was there, and looking back, I believe Satan was trying to keep me from going. I learned some things, saw some sad truths about the Church, and was able to impact a few lives along the way, and Satan didn't want that.
God is with us, no matter where we go, when we submit to Him. Looking back to Joshua, God gave him an additional promise, "Just as I have been with Moses, I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you." Just as I was with Moses, and remember that Moses is who is first referred to as "A Man of God", I will be with you. My mind goes to 1 Timothy 6, seen on the left, where Paul calls Timothy a man of God, and instructs him to pursue righteousness. We are men of God, just as Moses was, and just as God was with Moses, God is with us. That is the promise that we have when we have submitted to God.
"How did Jesus win the battle against Satan? God was with him. This really opens up the riches of the promise Christ gives us when he pledges, 'I am with you always, even to the end of the age' and 'I will never leave you nor forsake you'... It means he will fight for us, with us, just as he has fought for his eople all through the ages. So long as we wlak with Christ, stay in him, we haven't a thing to fear." Are you getting how crucial the submission to God is? Have you picked up on how key that is? When we are submitted to God, He is with us. And when He is with us, we can resist the Devil and he must flee. And his intimidation will not work, because we know that God, who is with us, is far greater than our enemy will ever be.
In 300 (yes I do know that the movie is extremely historically inaccurate, but the scenes depicted in it portray these concepts, and our response to them, so clearly) we find a group of Spartan's building a wall to funnel the Persian army into the narrow pass of the Hot Gate. Another Persian messenger is sent to try and convince the Spartan's to give up before the battle begins. As he talks he notices the bodies of the Persian scouts he has just made reference to built into the wall. One of the Spartans, Stelios, tells about how the wall was built by their ancestors, and how the scouts have supplied the motor to rebuild it. The Persian yells, "You will pay for your barbarism!" and begins to swing his whip. Stelios leaps into action, and severs his arm from his body.
The Persian falls to the ground holding the stub that is left and yells "My arm!" to which Stelios tells him, "It's not yours anymore. Go now, run along and tell your Xerxes that he faces free men here, not slaves. Do it quickly, before we decide to make our wall just a little bit bigger." The Persian here moves to step two, "No, not slaves. Your women will be slaves. Your sons, your daughters, your elders will be slaves, but not you. No, by noon this day you will be dead men. A thousand nations of the Persian empire descend upon you. Our arrows will blot out the sun." Stelios, unintimidated, announces, "Then we will fight in the shade."
That is courage. That is strength. That is the answer given by a warrior. "When a man resolves to become a warrior, when his life is given over to a transcendent cause, then he can't be cowed by the Big Bad Wolf threatening to blow his house down... The most dangerous man on earth is the man who has reckoned with his own death... I'd rather go down swinging. Besides, the less we are trying to 'save ourselves' the more effective as warriors we will be." Earlier in the movie, Stelios, another Spartan, and another Greek solider have gone to scout out the Persian army. The other Greek, overwhelmed by the magnitude of the force against them says, "There can be no victory here." Stelios simply smiles, and the Greek asks why? Here is his response, "Arcadian, I've fought countless times, yet I've never met an adversary who could offer me what we Spartans call 'A Beautiful Death.' I can only hope, with all the world's warriors gathered against us, there might be one down there who's up to the task."
He knows there is a battle to fight, and if need be he is prepared to give his life for Greece. This section of the book ends with a quote that hit me so hard the first time I read it. "Courage is almost a contradiction in terms. It means a strong desire to live taking the form of a readiness to die. 'He that will lose his life, the same shall save it,' is not a piece of mysticism for saints and heroes. It is a piece of everyday advice for the sailors or mountaineers. It might be printed in an Alpine guide or a drill book. The paradox is the whole principle of courage; even of quite earthly or quite brutal courage. A man cut off by the sea may save his live only if he will risk it on the precipice. he can only get away from death by continually stepping withing an inch of it. A solider surrounded by enemies, if he is to cut his way out, needs to combine a strong desire for living with a strange carelessness about dying. He must not merely cling to life, for then he will be a coward, and will not escape. He must not merely wait for death, for then he will be a suicide, and will not escape. He must seek his life in a spirit of furious indifference to it; he must desire life like water and yet drink death like wine."
If we are to really live, we cannot fear death. We go into battle ready to die, willing to die if need be, and intimidation has no power over us. It is our submission to God, that gives us the peace to die for Him, knowing that He is waiting to welcome us into His presence for "fighting the good fight of the faith." So when Satan announces that his fiery arrow will blot out the Son, simply tell him, that you will fight in the shade, knowing that the Son cannot be blotted out because He is by your side on the front lines.
Two waves have been overcome, one final one remains. Don't lower your guard because the battle rages on.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
In stage two our resistance is tested because Satan uses the tactic of intimidation. "That is the next level of our Enemy's strategy. When we begin to question him, to resist his lies, to see his hand in the 'ordinary trials' of our lives, then he steps up the attack; he turns to intimidation and fear." Once we realize that he is here and involved, he unleashes hell. "Satan will try to get you to agree with intimidation because he fears you." Or rather, he fears God in you. Remember James 4.7 says, "Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you." Before we can resist, before we can set ourselves against Satan and oppose him, we must first take up arms against him by submitting to God. It is God that he fears, and he must flee from us because of God. "You are a huge threat to him. He doesn't want you waking up and fighting back because when you do he loses... So he's going to try to keep you from taking a stand. He moves from subtle seduction to open assault... the Evil One is trying an old tactic - strike first and maybe the opposition will turn tail and run."
That is intimidation. If Satan can overwhelm us with the means at his disposal then our resistance of him fails. that is why the first crucial step to resisting him is submission to God. It is only in His power that we can stand storm the gates of Hell. A few years ago I moved to Michigan to take a job at a church. It was a big step in my life because it was moving out of state, being fully on my own for the first time. At one point I almost turned the job down because I was overwhelmed. But I really felt God leading me to go there, and to help me out He gave me a promise that I know I am not the first one to receive. " Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go" (Joshua 1.9).
Joshua was given those words before he led the people into the Promised Land, and began the conquest of the land. And God shared those words with me as I prepared to move to Michigan. My time there was short, and honestly just before it ended I did have the feeling that my job there was completed, but I did make some impact on a few lives while I was there, and looking back, I believe Satan was trying to keep me from going. I learned some things, saw some sad truths about the Church, and was able to impact a few lives along the way, and Satan didn't want that.
God is with us, no matter where we go, when we submit to Him. Looking back to Joshua, God gave him an additional promise, "Just as I have been with Moses, I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you." Just as I was with Moses, and remember that Moses is who is first referred to as "A Man of God", I will be with you. My mind goes to 1 Timothy 6, seen on the left, where Paul calls Timothy a man of God, and instructs him to pursue righteousness. We are men of God, just as Moses was, and just as God was with Moses, God is with us. That is the promise that we have when we have submitted to God.
"How did Jesus win the battle against Satan? God was with him. This really opens up the riches of the promise Christ gives us when he pledges, 'I am with you always, even to the end of the age' and 'I will never leave you nor forsake you'... It means he will fight for us, with us, just as he has fought for his eople all through the ages. So long as we wlak with Christ, stay in him, we haven't a thing to fear." Are you getting how crucial the submission to God is? Have you picked up on how key that is? When we are submitted to God, He is with us. And when He is with us, we can resist the Devil and he must flee. And his intimidation will not work, because we know that God, who is with us, is far greater than our enemy will ever be.
In 300 (yes I do know that the movie is extremely historically inaccurate, but the scenes depicted in it portray these concepts, and our response to them, so clearly) we find a group of Spartan's building a wall to funnel the Persian army into the narrow pass of the Hot Gate. Another Persian messenger is sent to try and convince the Spartan's to give up before the battle begins. As he talks he notices the bodies of the Persian scouts he has just made reference to built into the wall. One of the Spartans, Stelios, tells about how the wall was built by their ancestors, and how the scouts have supplied the motor to rebuild it. The Persian yells, "You will pay for your barbarism!" and begins to swing his whip. Stelios leaps into action, and severs his arm from his body.
The Persian falls to the ground holding the stub that is left and yells "My arm!" to which Stelios tells him, "It's not yours anymore. Go now, run along and tell your Xerxes that he faces free men here, not slaves. Do it quickly, before we decide to make our wall just a little bit bigger." The Persian here moves to step two, "No, not slaves. Your women will be slaves. Your sons, your daughters, your elders will be slaves, but not you. No, by noon this day you will be dead men. A thousand nations of the Persian empire descend upon you. Our arrows will blot out the sun." Stelios, unintimidated, announces, "Then we will fight in the shade."
That is courage. That is strength. That is the answer given by a warrior. "When a man resolves to become a warrior, when his life is given over to a transcendent cause, then he can't be cowed by the Big Bad Wolf threatening to blow his house down... The most dangerous man on earth is the man who has reckoned with his own death... I'd rather go down swinging. Besides, the less we are trying to 'save ourselves' the more effective as warriors we will be." Earlier in the movie, Stelios, another Spartan, and another Greek solider have gone to scout out the Persian army. The other Greek, overwhelmed by the magnitude of the force against them says, "There can be no victory here." Stelios simply smiles, and the Greek asks why? Here is his response, "Arcadian, I've fought countless times, yet I've never met an adversary who could offer me what we Spartans call 'A Beautiful Death.' I can only hope, with all the world's warriors gathered against us, there might be one down there who's up to the task."
He knows there is a battle to fight, and if need be he is prepared to give his life for Greece. This section of the book ends with a quote that hit me so hard the first time I read it. "Courage is almost a contradiction in terms. It means a strong desire to live taking the form of a readiness to die. 'He that will lose his life, the same shall save it,' is not a piece of mysticism for saints and heroes. It is a piece of everyday advice for the sailors or mountaineers. It might be printed in an Alpine guide or a drill book. The paradox is the whole principle of courage; even of quite earthly or quite brutal courage. A man cut off by the sea may save his live only if he will risk it on the precipice. he can only get away from death by continually stepping withing an inch of it. A solider surrounded by enemies, if he is to cut his way out, needs to combine a strong desire for living with a strange carelessness about dying. He must not merely cling to life, for then he will be a coward, and will not escape. He must not merely wait for death, for then he will be a suicide, and will not escape. He must seek his life in a spirit of furious indifference to it; he must desire life like water and yet drink death like wine."
If we are to really live, we cannot fear death. We go into battle ready to die, willing to die if need be, and intimidation has no power over us. It is our submission to God, that gives us the peace to die for Him, knowing that He is waiting to welcome us into His presence for "fighting the good fight of the faith." So when Satan announces that his fiery arrow will blot out the Son, simply tell him, that you will fight in the shade, knowing that the Son cannot be blotted out because He is by your side on the front lines.
Two waves have been overcome, one final one remains. Don't lower your guard because the battle rages on.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Wild at Heart, Chapter 9: A Battle to Fight: The Strategy, part 2
Chapter 8 focused on who the enemy is, but knowing that is only part of the battle. Yes, we have to know who we are fighting, but if we want to win, we need to know more. We've got to know how the enemy fights. We need to know how he attacks so that we can counter it and fight back. We've got to know how the enemy works so that we can be victorious.
This battle, like D-Day, is a crucial fight that must be won. June 6, 1944 as he closed his message to the troops about to storm the beaches of Normandy Eisenhower said, "We will accept nothing less than full victory!", and that must be our mentality as well. The battle we fight is not simply for us, but for our marriages, our sons, and the souls of the world.
The enemy attacks in three stages, as I read about them I kept thinking about scenes from the movie 300 that line up with the three of them. Near the beginning of the movie a messenger from the Persian King Xerxes arrives in Sparta and offers a simple request to King Leonidas, "Earth and water." Presenting the front that all Xerxes wants is to get along, and that if they comply nothing will change.
Our enemy begins his attack in the same manner. His first tactic is to convince us "I'm not here - this is all just you." The reason being "You can't fight a battle you don't think exists." If you don't think there is an army on the way you aren't going to train for combat. If you don't believe there is an enemy at the gates you aren't going to dress for battle. And if our enemy can get us to ignore him, to simply allow things to continue as they are, believe nothing out of the ordinary is happening, then he never meets any resistance.
1 Peter 5.8-9 says, "Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world." "What is the Holy Spirit, through Peter, assuming about your life? That you are under spiritual attack. This is not a passage about nonbelievers; he's talking about 'your brethren.' Peter takes ir for granted that every believer is under some sort of unseen assault. And what does he insist you do? Resist the devil. Fight back, take a stand... when you ignore the Enemy, he wins. He simply loves to blame everything on us, get us feeling hurt, misunderstood, suspicious, and resentful of one another."
Think about it, if we're so focused on how messed up we are, or how someone else has thrown us under the bus or screwed us over, do we even give the real enemy a second thought? It begins with a lack of communication. "Before an effective military strike can be made, you must take out the opposing army's line of communication. The Evil One does this all the time- in ministries and especially with couples... Most of all the Enemy will try to jam communications with Headquarters." Most problems arise from a lack of communication. In marriage, in ministry, in life, so many issues could be avoided if communication took place, and so the first thing the enemy takes out is our communication lines.
Things get in the way and take up the time we have just to talk to each other. Feelings get hurt for one reason or another and conversation doesn't take place to resolve it or heal it. Instead walls are built, relationships fall apart, and we are left all alone felling like we've failed and messed everything up. And that is just how the Enemy wants us to feel. If our focus is on us, it can't be on him. And if we don't have communication with God, we don't have the voice of truth speaking into us, helping us be aware of what is really going on. "Oswald Chambers warns us, 'Sometimes there is nothing to obey, the only thing to do is to maintain a vital connection with Jesus Christ, to see that nothing interferes with that."
Too often we leave the communication lines unguarded, and once they are taken out, step two of the "I'm not here" attack begins. "Next comes propaganda... the Enemy is constantly broadcasting messages to try to demoralize us... he is constantly putting his spin on things. After all, Scripture calls him the 'accuser of our brethren'."
This is always against your identity. This is why knowing your real name is so crucial. Jesus' identity is the thing that Satan attacks during the wilderness temptation. John points out how this attack is so subtle that it seems true at the time. This happens to me. I listen to other great preachers and I think, "I have no business doing that. I can't speak like they can. I can't talk as long as they do, I don't think of the stuff like they do. I'll never be able to do that as well as them, so what's the point?" And that is how the Enemy wants me to feel. Preaching is something I love. It's something I've been called to do, and I've been told that it's something that I'm gifted at, and so this is what the Enemy attacks in one way or another. I once had a lady tell me, minutes after getting done with a Sunday morning message, that I was nothing more than a teacher and that I needed to watch TV to learn how to preach, I'm not kidding that really happened, and it was a move of the enemy.
We all face things like this, but let me offer some encouragement, it's a good thing. "Follow this; so long as a man remains no real threat to the Enemy, Satan's line to him is You're fine." Difficult and painful as it is, the attack on your identity is affirmation that you are on the right path. It is affirmation that you are dangerous and a force that cannot be ignored, not because of you, but because of your submission to God. As it says in James 4.7, "Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you." Take God's side and the Enemy goes on the hard offensive, but stand firm, submitted to God, and the Enemy will have to flee. Be encouraged by the attack.
And when the propaganda doesn't work, the "I'm not here" stage makes its last attempt, "Finally, he probes the perimeter, looking for a weakness... He knows your story, knows what works with you, and so the line is tailor-made to your situation." This is where it gets personal, and difficult. This is a last ditch effort so nothing is held back. Here is a cornered animal trying to get out. "When Satan probes, make no agreements. If we make an agreement, if something in our heart says, Yeah, you're right, then he pours it on." Do not buy into the lies of the enemy. Don't agree with what he is trying to feed you, he is a liar, capable of telling nothing else. Stand firm don't give in.
After the dialogue with the Persian messenger, Leonidas considers what has been said as he thinks how to respond. He has been told, "Choose your next words carefully, Leonidas. They may be your last as king." He pauses, looks around the city, and then draws his sword backing the messenger up to a pit he declares, "Earth and water, well you'll find plenty of both down there. You bring the crowns and heads of conquered kings to my city steps. You insult my queen. You threaten my people with slavery and death. Oh I've chosen my words carefully Persian, perhaps you should have done the same." The messenger is fear and anger responds, "This is blasphemy. This is madness." Leonidas lowers his sword, pauses, and then says, "Madness?" And then yells, "THIS IS SPARTA!" as he kicks him into the pit.
"When we are under attack, we've got to hang on to the truth. Dodge the blow, block it with a stubborn refusal, slash back with what is true. This is how Christ answered Satan- he didn't get into an argument with him, try to reason his way out. He simply stood on the truth. He answered with Scripture and we've got to do the same. This will not be easy, especially when all hell is breaking loose around you. It will feel like holding on to a rope while you're being dragged behind a truck, like keeping your balance in a hurricane... but this is where your strength is revealed and even increased- through exercise. Stand on what is true and do not let go. Period."
Granted this is simply the first attack, more will follow, but as Thomas a Kempis said, "Yet we must be watchful, especially in the beginning of the temptation; for the enemy is then more easily overcome, if he is not suffered to enter the door of our hearts, but is resisted without the gate at his first knock."
We've survived the first wave, now breathe, the next blow is coming quickly.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
This battle, like D-Day, is a crucial fight that must be won. June 6, 1944 as he closed his message to the troops about to storm the beaches of Normandy Eisenhower said, "We will accept nothing less than full victory!", and that must be our mentality as well. The battle we fight is not simply for us, but for our marriages, our sons, and the souls of the world.
The enemy attacks in three stages, as I read about them I kept thinking about scenes from the movie 300 that line up with the three of them. Near the beginning of the movie a messenger from the Persian King Xerxes arrives in Sparta and offers a simple request to King Leonidas, "Earth and water." Presenting the front that all Xerxes wants is to get along, and that if they comply nothing will change.
Our enemy begins his attack in the same manner. His first tactic is to convince us "I'm not here - this is all just you." The reason being "You can't fight a battle you don't think exists." If you don't think there is an army on the way you aren't going to train for combat. If you don't believe there is an enemy at the gates you aren't going to dress for battle. And if our enemy can get us to ignore him, to simply allow things to continue as they are, believe nothing out of the ordinary is happening, then he never meets any resistance.
1 Peter 5.8-9 says, "Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world." "What is the Holy Spirit, through Peter, assuming about your life? That you are under spiritual attack. This is not a passage about nonbelievers; he's talking about 'your brethren.' Peter takes ir for granted that every believer is under some sort of unseen assault. And what does he insist you do? Resist the devil. Fight back, take a stand... when you ignore the Enemy, he wins. He simply loves to blame everything on us, get us feeling hurt, misunderstood, suspicious, and resentful of one another."
Think about it, if we're so focused on how messed up we are, or how someone else has thrown us under the bus or screwed us over, do we even give the real enemy a second thought? It begins with a lack of communication. "Before an effective military strike can be made, you must take out the opposing army's line of communication. The Evil One does this all the time- in ministries and especially with couples... Most of all the Enemy will try to jam communications with Headquarters." Most problems arise from a lack of communication. In marriage, in ministry, in life, so many issues could be avoided if communication took place, and so the first thing the enemy takes out is our communication lines.
Things get in the way and take up the time we have just to talk to each other. Feelings get hurt for one reason or another and conversation doesn't take place to resolve it or heal it. Instead walls are built, relationships fall apart, and we are left all alone felling like we've failed and messed everything up. And that is just how the Enemy wants us to feel. If our focus is on us, it can't be on him. And if we don't have communication with God, we don't have the voice of truth speaking into us, helping us be aware of what is really going on. "Oswald Chambers warns us, 'Sometimes there is nothing to obey, the only thing to do is to maintain a vital connection with Jesus Christ, to see that nothing interferes with that."
Too often we leave the communication lines unguarded, and once they are taken out, step two of the "I'm not here" attack begins. "Next comes propaganda... the Enemy is constantly broadcasting messages to try to demoralize us... he is constantly putting his spin on things. After all, Scripture calls him the 'accuser of our brethren'."
This is always against your identity. This is why knowing your real name is so crucial. Jesus' identity is the thing that Satan attacks during the wilderness temptation. John points out how this attack is so subtle that it seems true at the time. This happens to me. I listen to other great preachers and I think, "I have no business doing that. I can't speak like they can. I can't talk as long as they do, I don't think of the stuff like they do. I'll never be able to do that as well as them, so what's the point?" And that is how the Enemy wants me to feel. Preaching is something I love. It's something I've been called to do, and I've been told that it's something that I'm gifted at, and so this is what the Enemy attacks in one way or another. I once had a lady tell me, minutes after getting done with a Sunday morning message, that I was nothing more than a teacher and that I needed to watch TV to learn how to preach, I'm not kidding that really happened, and it was a move of the enemy.
We all face things like this, but let me offer some encouragement, it's a good thing. "Follow this; so long as a man remains no real threat to the Enemy, Satan's line to him is You're fine." Difficult and painful as it is, the attack on your identity is affirmation that you are on the right path. It is affirmation that you are dangerous and a force that cannot be ignored, not because of you, but because of your submission to God. As it says in James 4.7, "Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you." Take God's side and the Enemy goes on the hard offensive, but stand firm, submitted to God, and the Enemy will have to flee. Be encouraged by the attack.
And when the propaganda doesn't work, the "I'm not here" stage makes its last attempt, "Finally, he probes the perimeter, looking for a weakness... He knows your story, knows what works with you, and so the line is tailor-made to your situation." This is where it gets personal, and difficult. This is a last ditch effort so nothing is held back. Here is a cornered animal trying to get out. "When Satan probes, make no agreements. If we make an agreement, if something in our heart says, Yeah, you're right, then he pours it on." Do not buy into the lies of the enemy. Don't agree with what he is trying to feed you, he is a liar, capable of telling nothing else. Stand firm don't give in.
After the dialogue with the Persian messenger, Leonidas considers what has been said as he thinks how to respond. He has been told, "Choose your next words carefully, Leonidas. They may be your last as king." He pauses, looks around the city, and then draws his sword backing the messenger up to a pit he declares, "Earth and water, well you'll find plenty of both down there. You bring the crowns and heads of conquered kings to my city steps. You insult my queen. You threaten my people with slavery and death. Oh I've chosen my words carefully Persian, perhaps you should have done the same." The messenger is fear and anger responds, "This is blasphemy. This is madness." Leonidas lowers his sword, pauses, and then says, "Madness?" And then yells, "THIS IS SPARTA!" as he kicks him into the pit.
"When we are under attack, we've got to hang on to the truth. Dodge the blow, block it with a stubborn refusal, slash back with what is true. This is how Christ answered Satan- he didn't get into an argument with him, try to reason his way out. He simply stood on the truth. He answered with Scripture and we've got to do the same. This will not be easy, especially when all hell is breaking loose around you. It will feel like holding on to a rope while you're being dragged behind a truck, like keeping your balance in a hurricane... but this is where your strength is revealed and even increased- through exercise. Stand on what is true and do not let go. Period."
Granted this is simply the first attack, more will follow, but as Thomas a Kempis said, "Yet we must be watchful, especially in the beginning of the temptation; for the enemy is then more easily overcome, if he is not suffered to enter the door of our hearts, but is resisted without the gate at his first knock."
We've survived the first wave, now breathe, the next blow is coming quickly.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Wild at Heart, Chapter 9: A Battle to Fight: The Strategy, part 1
"She was right that reality can be harsh and that you shut your eyes to it only at your peril because if you do not face up to the enemy in all his dark power, then the enemy will come up from behind some dark day and destroy you while you are facing the other way." These words from Frederick Buechner begin this chapter and I almost passed over them because I didn't feel they were fully relevant. It's been a hectic week in life, and therefore a slow week on the blog; but that may be a good thing because I'm not omitting this first section of the chapter.
John starts by talking about D-Day and the Allied invasion of France that took place at Normandy on June 6, 1944. And he shares how this crucial battle, the turning point of World War II began the night before the beaches were stormed. Paratroopers were dropped behind enemy lines to cut off reinforcements. It took guts and as John says, "It was a moment of unparalleled bravery ... and cowardice. For not ever trooper played the man that fateful night... One group took cowardice to a new level." And then he shares this account from that night.
"Too many had hunkered down in hedgerows to await the dawn; a few had even gone to sleep. Pvt. Francis Palys of the 506th saw what was perhaps the worst dereliction of duty. He had gathered a squad near Vierville. Hearing 'all kinds of noise and singing from a distance,' he and his men sneaked up on a farmhouse. In it was a mixed group from both American divisions. The paratroopers had found [liquor] in the cellar... and they were drunker than a bunch of hillbillies on a Saturday night wingding. Unbelievable."
I am willing to make the statement that D-Day was the most crucial moment in the Twentieth Century. If the Allies fail Hitler takes over all of Europe, and who knows where he goes from there. I've read lists that place the Moon Landing, Creation of Israel, Atomic Bombings, and Fall of the Berlin Wall above D-Day, but I have to ask, without D-Day how many of those take place? If D-Day is unsuccessful, Hitler wins, and the world as we know it does not exist.
Before the invasion began, General Eisenhower shared these words, which are written on the World War II memorial in Washington DC, with the men, "You are about to embark upon a great crusade, toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you... I have full confidence in your courage, devotion to duty and skill in battle." This moment was crucial,and yet during this event men who play a vital role are failing to fulfill it. As the eyes of the world are upon them, desperately needing them to do their job, they act as if nothing is wrong, like the threat is non-existent, and life back to normal.
"These men knew they were at war, yet they refused to act like it. They lived in a dangerous denial - a denial that endangered not only them but countless others who depended on them to do their part. It is a perfect picture of the church in the West when it comes to spiritual warfare."
These men put the future of the world in jeopardy by their actions, and if we refuse to be men, if we refuse to initiate boys into manhood, we do something very similar. And to move this forward into the next few posts, if we deny the enemy, if we close our eyes to his actions, we do something far worse because we put the eternal souls of ourselves, and everyone else, in danger.
I'm feeling the need to change the verse I post at the end of these.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
John starts by talking about D-Day and the Allied invasion of France that took place at Normandy on June 6, 1944. And he shares how this crucial battle, the turning point of World War II began the night before the beaches were stormed. Paratroopers were dropped behind enemy lines to cut off reinforcements. It took guts and as John says, "It was a moment of unparalleled bravery ... and cowardice. For not ever trooper played the man that fateful night... One group took cowardice to a new level." And then he shares this account from that night.
"Too many had hunkered down in hedgerows to await the dawn; a few had even gone to sleep. Pvt. Francis Palys of the 506th saw what was perhaps the worst dereliction of duty. He had gathered a squad near Vierville. Hearing 'all kinds of noise and singing from a distance,' he and his men sneaked up on a farmhouse. In it was a mixed group from both American divisions. The paratroopers had found [liquor] in the cellar... and they were drunker than a bunch of hillbillies on a Saturday night wingding. Unbelievable."
I am willing to make the statement that D-Day was the most crucial moment in the Twentieth Century. If the Allies fail Hitler takes over all of Europe, and who knows where he goes from there. I've read lists that place the Moon Landing, Creation of Israel, Atomic Bombings, and Fall of the Berlin Wall above D-Day, but I have to ask, without D-Day how many of those take place? If D-Day is unsuccessful, Hitler wins, and the world as we know it does not exist.
Before the invasion began, General Eisenhower shared these words, which are written on the World War II memorial in Washington DC, with the men, "You are about to embark upon a great crusade, toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you... I have full confidence in your courage, devotion to duty and skill in battle." This moment was crucial,and yet during this event men who play a vital role are failing to fulfill it. As the eyes of the world are upon them, desperately needing them to do their job, they act as if nothing is wrong, like the threat is non-existent, and life back to normal.
"These men knew they were at war, yet they refused to act like it. They lived in a dangerous denial - a denial that endangered not only them but countless others who depended on them to do their part. It is a perfect picture of the church in the West when it comes to spiritual warfare."
These men put the future of the world in jeopardy by their actions, and if we refuse to be men, if we refuse to initiate boys into manhood, we do something very similar. And to move this forward into the next few posts, if we deny the enemy, if we close our eyes to his actions, we do something far worse because we put the eternal souls of ourselves, and everyone else, in danger.
I'm feeling the need to change the verse I post at the end of these.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Friday, May 3, 2013
Wild at Heart, Chapter 8: A Battle to Fight: The Enemy, part 5
The traitor behind the walls has been executed. The armies that have surrounded the city have been defeated. But one final enemy is still at large. We must take out the general. This final enemy is the most powerful one that we have faced, but his power pails in comparison to the God whose men we are. But never the less, the devil is very real, and a very real enemy. We cannot rule him out and ignore him, because when we do, he wins.
"The devil no doubt has a place in our theology, but is he a category we even think about in the daily events of our lives? Has it ever crossed your mind that not every thought that crosses your mind comes from you?... We are being lied to all the time."
The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis gives a perspective into the workings of the devil and his demons. In the book Screwtape, an older experienced tempter, is mentoring his nephew Wormwood in the art of temptation. Through letters Screwtape instructs his prodigy on ways to guide and influence his patient's thoughts. Though this is a fictional work I don't think it's too much of a stretch as to how the devil works.
It's got to be subtle, otherwise our suspicions are immediately aroused and the attack is stopped before it can gain any momentum (this is why denying his existence gives him an advantage.) But this attack is so effective because so often it makes us think that it's our own thoughts. As we think them we begin to think that we are worthless sinners who can do nothing but pursue what is a counterfeit desire. If we give in to this attack, if we are beaten by it, the other enemies are resurrected. But the man of God is victorious, because his strength is true.
1 John 2.12-14 tells us about the battle we fight against the unholy trinity. "I am writing to you, little children, because your sins have been forgiven you for His name’s sake. I am writing to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I have written to you, children, because you know the Father. I have written to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one."
Little children have been forgiven, their hearts have been made clean and new, and the traitor has been dealt with. Young men have done battle, they are strong and victorious, full of God's word and therefore the truth. Fathers know God, and have grown closer to Him through this entire journey. All men of God are on the journey to become spiritual fathers (what is described in these verses).
When we stop listening to the voice of the traitor, when we refuse to compromise to the ways of the world, the only way for the unholy trinity to continue the attack is by filling our thoughts with false truths. At this point the enemy is desperate to take you out, and so it pulls out everything it has left. "It is the image of God reflected in you that so enrages hell; it is this at which the demons hurl their mightiest weapons."
Think about it, men bear the image of God's strength and power, and that is what every attack has been against. The enemy does not want God to be reflected to the world. The enemy does not want God to be seen, and so it attacks most fiercely against our strength, against the image of God we bear.
Think about this, the Bible says that God made man in His image, male and female. Men bear part of the image of God, women bear the other part. In marriage the two parts come together to make a whole, to give the most complete portrayal of the image of God humans are capable of displaying. Is it a surprise that traditional marriage is under attack?
"Behind the world and the flesh is an even more deadly enemy... one we rarely speak of and are even much less ready to resist. Yet this is where we live now -on the front lines of a fierce spiritual war that is to blame for most of the casualties you see around you and most of the assault against you."
It all comes down to this final enemy. "Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith," (1 Peter 5.8-9a) "Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded" (James 4.7-8).
Alone, we cannot defeat this final enemy, but if we are alert and ready, empowered by God, Satan will flee. Three down, battle over.
"Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen." Ephesians 3.20-21
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
"The devil no doubt has a place in our theology, but is he a category we even think about in the daily events of our lives? Has it ever crossed your mind that not every thought that crosses your mind comes from you?... We are being lied to all the time."
The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis gives a perspective into the workings of the devil and his demons. In the book Screwtape, an older experienced tempter, is mentoring his nephew Wormwood in the art of temptation. Through letters Screwtape instructs his prodigy on ways to guide and influence his patient's thoughts. Though this is a fictional work I don't think it's too much of a stretch as to how the devil works.
It's got to be subtle, otherwise our suspicions are immediately aroused and the attack is stopped before it can gain any momentum (this is why denying his existence gives him an advantage.) But this attack is so effective because so often it makes us think that it's our own thoughts. As we think them we begin to think that we are worthless sinners who can do nothing but pursue what is a counterfeit desire. If we give in to this attack, if we are beaten by it, the other enemies are resurrected. But the man of God is victorious, because his strength is true.
1 John 2.12-14 tells us about the battle we fight against the unholy trinity. "I am writing to you, little children, because your sins have been forgiven you for His name’s sake. I am writing to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I have written to you, children, because you know the Father. I have written to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one."
Little children have been forgiven, their hearts have been made clean and new, and the traitor has been dealt with. Young men have done battle, they are strong and victorious, full of God's word and therefore the truth. Fathers know God, and have grown closer to Him through this entire journey. All men of God are on the journey to become spiritual fathers (what is described in these verses).
When we stop listening to the voice of the traitor, when we refuse to compromise to the ways of the world, the only way for the unholy trinity to continue the attack is by filling our thoughts with false truths. At this point the enemy is desperate to take you out, and so it pulls out everything it has left. "It is the image of God reflected in you that so enrages hell; it is this at which the demons hurl their mightiest weapons."
Think about it, men bear the image of God's strength and power, and that is what every attack has been against. The enemy does not want God to be reflected to the world. The enemy does not want God to be seen, and so it attacks most fiercely against our strength, against the image of God we bear.
Think about this, the Bible says that God made man in His image, male and female. Men bear part of the image of God, women bear the other part. In marriage the two parts come together to make a whole, to give the most complete portrayal of the image of God humans are capable of displaying. Is it a surprise that traditional marriage is under attack?
"Behind the world and the flesh is an even more deadly enemy... one we rarely speak of and are even much less ready to resist. Yet this is where we live now -on the front lines of a fierce spiritual war that is to blame for most of the casualties you see around you and most of the assault against you."
It all comes down to this final enemy. "Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith," (1 Peter 5.8-9a) "Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded" (James 4.7-8).
Alone, we cannot defeat this final enemy, but if we are alert and ready, empowered by God, Satan will flee. Three down, battle over.
"Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen." Ephesians 3.20-21
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Thursday, May 2, 2013
Wild at Heart, Chapter 8: A Battle to Fight: The Enemy, part 4
Enemy one, the flesh, the traitor within, has been eliminated, but now we face enemy number two, the world. Our enemies grow in strength as we move outside of the walls, but in order to properly combat this one, we must first identify what it really is. John asks, "What is this enemy that Scripture calls 'the world'? Is it drinking and dancing and smoking? Is it going to the movies or playing cards? That is a shallow and ridiculous approach to holiness. It numbs us to the fact that good and evil are much more serious."
Part of the reason our strength has been hit so hard and part of the reason there are so few men, is because we have watered down this enemy called the world. We've attacked the wrong enemy, a decoy so to speak, while the real threat has taken us out in droves. We must regroup and refocus on the real threat, "'the world' is not a place or a set of behaviors - it is any system built by our collective sin, all our false selves coming together to reward and destroy each other... The world is a carnival of counterfeits - counterfeit battles, counterfeit adventures, counterfeit beauties. Men should think of it as a corruption of their strength.".
The world is the "anti"-Christ of the unholy trinity we are at war against. Where as Christ is truth, and the source of our real strength. In Christ we have life, with the world, there is simply existence masquerading as life. As William Wallace said in Brave Heart, "Every man dies. Not every man really lives." Too many of us are fighting the wrong enemy. To many of us are focused just on morality and being "nice guys", and so many of us aren't really living, just existing until we finally die. The Man of God doesn't exist, he really lives from true strength.
The world would have us be mercenaries for hire, guys who fight for pay and self-preservation. The only battles are clawing our way to the top for our own gain and prestige. We become adventure addicts with nothing more than some worthless hobbies that don't really test us or fulfill our deep longings. And we focus on superficial beauty that is only skin deep. "The world offers a man a false sense of power and a false sense of security."
As I read that last quote in the book my mind went to John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress. It's the story of Christian, a man in the City of Destruction bearing a heavy burden, who, under the guidance of Evangelist, sets off on a journey to the Celestial City. Along the way he meets up with people who try to distract him and lead him astray, the one who came to mind was Mr. Worldly Wiseman.
2 Timothy 4.1-5 says, "I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry."
The world will point us in every direction to distract us from truth. It will point us away from Christ because "Without Christ a man must fail miserably, or succeed even more miserably." Apart from Christ life really has no meaning except for self-preservation, failure is devastating and success never fulfills. But with Christ "failures" are simply training exercises that teach us to be more dependent upon Him and mold to be like Him. And with success there is satisfaction because we have lived, worked, and fought for something greater than ourselves, and to Him is all the glory.
The question we must ask ourselves, often John points out, is "Where am I deriving my sense of strength and power from?" Is if from your career? What happens when you get laid off? Is it from your hobbies? What happens when you're too old to continue to do them? Is it from what your wife looks like? What happens when that outward beauty fades, or someone more beautiful comes along?
Or is your power found in Christ? I'm learning that my life is bigger than what I do to make an income. That I'm so much more than what I do to get paid and provide for my family. My hobbies are chances to escape and be alone with God, they are chances to hear from Him without all of the business and distractions the world throws at me. The adventure is not a momentary thrill, but an intimacy with God that reveals the real purpose and adventure that is life. And my wife, as beautiful as she is outwardly, has so much more to offer aside from looks. She has a beautiful spirit, a kind and gentle demeanor that really cares about people, and a humor that allows her to really enjoy everything in life.
"The world of posers is shaken by a real man. They'll do whatever it takes to get you back in line - threaten you, bribe you, seduce you, undermine you. They crucified Jesus. But it didn't work, did it? You must let your strength show up. Remember Christ in the Garden, the sheer force of his presence? Many of us have actually been afraid to let our strength show up because the world doesn't have a place for it. Fine. The world's screwed up. Let people feel the weight of who you are and let them deal with it."
"Every man dies. Not every man really lives." When we really live, when we let our strength show up and be felt, the world is defeated.
Two down, one to go.
"Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen." Ephesians 3.20-21
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Part of the reason our strength has been hit so hard and part of the reason there are so few men, is because we have watered down this enemy called the world. We've attacked the wrong enemy, a decoy so to speak, while the real threat has taken us out in droves. We must regroup and refocus on the real threat, "'the world' is not a place or a set of behaviors - it is any system built by our collective sin, all our false selves coming together to reward and destroy each other... The world is a carnival of counterfeits - counterfeit battles, counterfeit adventures, counterfeit beauties. Men should think of it as a corruption of their strength.".
The world is the "anti"-Christ of the unholy trinity we are at war against. Where as Christ is truth, and the source of our real strength. In Christ we have life, with the world, there is simply existence masquerading as life. As William Wallace said in Brave Heart, "Every man dies. Not every man really lives." Too many of us are fighting the wrong enemy. To many of us are focused just on morality and being "nice guys", and so many of us aren't really living, just existing until we finally die. The Man of God doesn't exist, he really lives from true strength.
The world would have us be mercenaries for hire, guys who fight for pay and self-preservation. The only battles are clawing our way to the top for our own gain and prestige. We become adventure addicts with nothing more than some worthless hobbies that don't really test us or fulfill our deep longings. And we focus on superficial beauty that is only skin deep. "The world offers a man a false sense of power and a false sense of security."
As I read that last quote in the book my mind went to John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress. It's the story of Christian, a man in the City of Destruction bearing a heavy burden, who, under the guidance of Evangelist, sets off on a journey to the Celestial City. Along the way he meets up with people who try to distract him and lead him astray, the one who came to mind was Mr. Worldly Wiseman.
2 Timothy 4.1-5 says, "I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry."
The world will point us in every direction to distract us from truth. It will point us away from Christ because "Without Christ a man must fail miserably, or succeed even more miserably." Apart from Christ life really has no meaning except for self-preservation, failure is devastating and success never fulfills. But with Christ "failures" are simply training exercises that teach us to be more dependent upon Him and mold to be like Him. And with success there is satisfaction because we have lived, worked, and fought for something greater than ourselves, and to Him is all the glory.
The question we must ask ourselves, often John points out, is "Where am I deriving my sense of strength and power from?" Is if from your career? What happens when you get laid off? Is it from your hobbies? What happens when you're too old to continue to do them? Is it from what your wife looks like? What happens when that outward beauty fades, or someone more beautiful comes along?
Or is your power found in Christ? I'm learning that my life is bigger than what I do to make an income. That I'm so much more than what I do to get paid and provide for my family. My hobbies are chances to escape and be alone with God, they are chances to hear from Him without all of the business and distractions the world throws at me. The adventure is not a momentary thrill, but an intimacy with God that reveals the real purpose and adventure that is life. And my wife, as beautiful as she is outwardly, has so much more to offer aside from looks. She has a beautiful spirit, a kind and gentle demeanor that really cares about people, and a humor that allows her to really enjoy everything in life.
"The world of posers is shaken by a real man. They'll do whatever it takes to get you back in line - threaten you, bribe you, seduce you, undermine you. They crucified Jesus. But it didn't work, did it? You must let your strength show up. Remember Christ in the Garden, the sheer force of his presence? Many of us have actually been afraid to let our strength show up because the world doesn't have a place for it. Fine. The world's screwed up. Let people feel the weight of who you are and let them deal with it."
"Every man dies. Not every man really lives." When we really live, when we let our strength show up and be felt, the world is defeated.
Two down, one to go.
"Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen." Ephesians 3.20-21
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Wild at Heart, Chapter 8: A Battle to Fight: The Enemy, part 3
We are warriors. You are a warrior. And you have enemies that are working to take you out. Be on your guard and ready for the battle. John points out that we will always encounter three enemies, the world, the flesh, and the devil which he says "make up a sort of unholy trinity."
I think these work in a particular order. I think the attack in waves beginning with the one closest at hand, the flesh. This would be the Evil Spirit in the unholy trinity that is against us. This is "that part of fallen Adam in every man that always wants the easiest way out." This is that voice in us, that feeling that says we'll fail, that we aren't enough, not we aren't really warriors at all and have no business on the battlefield to begin with.
But it's important to know that "Your flesh is not the real you." No matter what it would have you believe, this is not who you really are. The thing in you that feels like a constant failure that can do nothing right, is not the real you. It is the traitor inside the walls that is trying to let the enemy outside come in and destroy all life.
The Church has not helped men to overcome this enemy. John points out something I've been saying and thinking for years. You are not just a sinner saved by grace. We've all heard that, many of us have probably said it, but it is a lie, and undoubtedly the biggest lie told in the Church. You are not a sinner saved by grace, your flesh is sinful, but "You are not your sin; sin is no longer the truest thing about the man who has come into union with Jesus. Your heart is good." The flesh is the sinner, but you, the new creation in Christ, are a child of God. You are His beloved son.
"The real you is on the side of God against the false self... your flesh is your false self - the poser, manifest in cowardice and self-preservation - and the only way to deal with it is to crucify it." In order to deal with an enemy we must identify it. We must call it what it is, and then we must execute him for treason. We crucify the flesh, we put it to death. We die to sin and are raised to new life in Christ. And pay attention to this, "we are never, ever told to crucify our heart. We are never told to kill the true man within us, never told to get rid of those deep desires for battle and adventure and beauty. We are told to shoot the traitor."
In Christ, your heart is good. It has been cleansed and sanctified by Him for His work. It has been set free, trained, and called to the front lines. But in order to be effective in battle, we must get rid of the traitor behind the walls. "If you want to grow in true masculine strength, then you must stop sabotaging yours."
John points out that we sabotage our strength, we allow the traitor to live, when we refuse our strength, and when we give it away. We refuse it by running from it, by not using it when it is called upon. We keep silent when we should speak up for truth. We remain seated when we should stand up and face injustice. We give our strength away when we allow ourselves to be bought off. We are bribed or we give in to temptation, and the flesh lives to destroy another day. "A man's addictions are the result of his refusing his strength."
To be men, we must live from our strength. Our strength comes from the good, new heart that is ours in Christ. The flesh, the traitor within the walls, will do whatever he can to prevent that. He will work to convince us that we are weak and worthless; that we have nothing to offer and even if we did, it wouldn't be enough. He will work to convince us that we are nothing but worthless sinners who are nothing without grace. But the truth is, you are a new creation, a beloved son of God, who is powerful, dangerous, and strong. You have strength that the flesh is terrified of because your God given strength is the end of the flesh, and the whole goal of the flesh is self-preservation.
Embrace your strength. Embrace the fact that you are so much more than a sinner who has been saved by grace. Realize that, "For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus" (Philippians 1.6), "for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure" (Philippians 2.13). " But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead" (Philippians 3.7-11). And "Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you" (Philippians 4.8-9).
The traitor is dead, one down, two to go.
"Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen." Ephesians 3.20-21
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
I think these work in a particular order. I think the attack in waves beginning with the one closest at hand, the flesh. This would be the Evil Spirit in the unholy trinity that is against us. This is "that part of fallen Adam in every man that always wants the easiest way out." This is that voice in us, that feeling that says we'll fail, that we aren't enough, not we aren't really warriors at all and have no business on the battlefield to begin with.
But it's important to know that "Your flesh is not the real you." No matter what it would have you believe, this is not who you really are. The thing in you that feels like a constant failure that can do nothing right, is not the real you. It is the traitor inside the walls that is trying to let the enemy outside come in and destroy all life.
The Church has not helped men to overcome this enemy. John points out something I've been saying and thinking for years. You are not just a sinner saved by grace. We've all heard that, many of us have probably said it, but it is a lie, and undoubtedly the biggest lie told in the Church. You are not a sinner saved by grace, your flesh is sinful, but "You are not your sin; sin is no longer the truest thing about the man who has come into union with Jesus. Your heart is good." The flesh is the sinner, but you, the new creation in Christ, are a child of God. You are His beloved son.
"The real you is on the side of God against the false self... your flesh is your false self - the poser, manifest in cowardice and self-preservation - and the only way to deal with it is to crucify it." In order to deal with an enemy we must identify it. We must call it what it is, and then we must execute him for treason. We crucify the flesh, we put it to death. We die to sin and are raised to new life in Christ. And pay attention to this, "we are never, ever told to crucify our heart. We are never told to kill the true man within us, never told to get rid of those deep desires for battle and adventure and beauty. We are told to shoot the traitor."
In Christ, your heart is good. It has been cleansed and sanctified by Him for His work. It has been set free, trained, and called to the front lines. But in order to be effective in battle, we must get rid of the traitor behind the walls. "If you want to grow in true masculine strength, then you must stop sabotaging yours."
John points out that we sabotage our strength, we allow the traitor to live, when we refuse our strength, and when we give it away. We refuse it by running from it, by not using it when it is called upon. We keep silent when we should speak up for truth. We remain seated when we should stand up and face injustice. We give our strength away when we allow ourselves to be bought off. We are bribed or we give in to temptation, and the flesh lives to destroy another day. "A man's addictions are the result of his refusing his strength."
To be men, we must live from our strength. Our strength comes from the good, new heart that is ours in Christ. The flesh, the traitor within the walls, will do whatever he can to prevent that. He will work to convince us that we are weak and worthless; that we have nothing to offer and even if we did, it wouldn't be enough. He will work to convince us that we are nothing but worthless sinners who are nothing without grace. But the truth is, you are a new creation, a beloved son of God, who is powerful, dangerous, and strong. You have strength that the flesh is terrified of because your God given strength is the end of the flesh, and the whole goal of the flesh is self-preservation.
Embrace your strength. Embrace the fact that you are so much more than a sinner who has been saved by grace. Realize that, "For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus" (Philippians 1.6), "for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure" (Philippians 2.13). " But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead" (Philippians 3.7-11). And "Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you" (Philippians 4.8-9).
The traitor is dead, one down, two to go.
"Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen." Ephesians 3.20-21
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Friday, April 26, 2013
Wild at Heart, Chapter 8: A Battle to Fight: The Enemy, part 2
God has called you to the front lines. You have what it takes. You are a warrior. So what does that mean? What is a warrior? For many the idea of combat is probably the first thing that comes to mind. With that comes the notion of strength and courage. Most probably think of someone who is fearless, never backing down from anything or anyone. And some probably think of a loaner who doesn't need anyone else.
Some of these qualities are good and true, others miss the point. John points out two main characteristics of the warrior, two that really sum them all up. A warrior has vision, and a warrior is cunning.
"Above all else, a warrior has a vision; he has a transcendence to his life, a cause greater than self-preservation... A true warrior serves something - or Someone - higher than himself."
A warrior isn't focused on saving his own life. Most of his actions involve putting his life on the line, and this is only possible when you're living for something greater than yourself. My mind goes to Brave Heart. Towards the end of the movie William Wallace is going to meet with Robert the Bruce because he has offered to fight along side him which gives the hope of final victory. Wallace's friend warns him that it's a trap, and this dialogue takes place.
Hamish: I don't want to be a martyr.
William Wallace: Nor I. I want to live. I want a home and children, and peace.
Hamish: Do ya?
William Wallace: Aye, I do. I've asked God for these things. But it's all for nothing if you don't have freedom.
William Wallace goes, is captured, and executed. But if you've seen the movie you know that even at the end he has the greater purpose in mind where even as he is being gutted he cries out, "FREEDOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!"
I think about Gladiator. Maximus has a desire to join his wife and son in the after life. As he fights his final battle in the Coliseum we see him begin to fade in and out, but he stays focused, finishes what he must do, because he is living and fighting for the glory of Rome.
A warrior has vision, he lives and serves for that vision, setting aside his own life, his own safety for something greater. A warrior is only a warrior when he serves something, or someone, greater than himself. Vision is what strengthens him to keep going, it enables him to endure the hardships, and if necessary it gives him the courage to lay his life down.
"Second, a warrior is cunning. He knows when to fight and when to run; he can sense a trap and never charges blindly ahead; he knows what weapons to carry and how to use them."
Not all battles are worth fighting, not all hills are worth dying on. Sometimes we run, and live to fight another day. Sometimes there are traps laid to take us out, and so it's crucial to be heads up and alert so we don't waste our lives carelessly. And what warrior is ever unarmed? Even if it's just his hands, he knows how to use them. He knows what weapons are needed for battle, and he knows how to use them. He's trained with them, he knows them, and he carries the appropriate tools for the job.
Vision and cunning are crucial to a warrior because we face deadly enemies whose sole purpose is to take us out. Sometimes we may need to give our lives, and with vision we are willing and ready to. Sometimes we run, sometimes we fight, and with cunning we know the difference and how to.
We are warriors. You are a warrior. And you have enemies that are working to take you out. Be on your guard and ready for the battle.
"Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen." Ephesians 3.20-21
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Some of these qualities are good and true, others miss the point. John points out two main characteristics of the warrior, two that really sum them all up. A warrior has vision, and a warrior is cunning.
"Above all else, a warrior has a vision; he has a transcendence to his life, a cause greater than self-preservation... A true warrior serves something - or Someone - higher than himself."
A warrior isn't focused on saving his own life. Most of his actions involve putting his life on the line, and this is only possible when you're living for something greater than yourself. My mind goes to Brave Heart. Towards the end of the movie William Wallace is going to meet with Robert the Bruce because he has offered to fight along side him which gives the hope of final victory. Wallace's friend warns him that it's a trap, and this dialogue takes place.
Hamish: I don't want to be a martyr.
William Wallace: Nor I. I want to live. I want a home and children, and peace.
Hamish: Do ya?
William Wallace: Aye, I do. I've asked God for these things. But it's all for nothing if you don't have freedom.
William Wallace goes, is captured, and executed. But if you've seen the movie you know that even at the end he has the greater purpose in mind where even as he is being gutted he cries out, "FREEDOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!"
I think about Gladiator. Maximus has a desire to join his wife and son in the after life. As he fights his final battle in the Coliseum we see him begin to fade in and out, but he stays focused, finishes what he must do, because he is living and fighting for the glory of Rome.
A warrior has vision, he lives and serves for that vision, setting aside his own life, his own safety for something greater. A warrior is only a warrior when he serves something, or someone, greater than himself. Vision is what strengthens him to keep going, it enables him to endure the hardships, and if necessary it gives him the courage to lay his life down.
"Second, a warrior is cunning. He knows when to fight and when to run; he can sense a trap and never charges blindly ahead; he knows what weapons to carry and how to use them."
Not all battles are worth fighting, not all hills are worth dying on. Sometimes we run, and live to fight another day. Sometimes there are traps laid to take us out, and so it's crucial to be heads up and alert so we don't waste our lives carelessly. And what warrior is ever unarmed? Even if it's just his hands, he knows how to use them. He knows what weapons are needed for battle, and he knows how to use them. He's trained with them, he knows them, and he carries the appropriate tools for the job.
Vision and cunning are crucial to a warrior because we face deadly enemies whose sole purpose is to take us out. Sometimes we may need to give our lives, and with vision we are willing and ready to. Sometimes we run, sometimes we fight, and with cunning we know the difference and how to.
We are warriors. You are a warrior. And you have enemies that are working to take you out. Be on your guard and ready for the battle.
"Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen." Ephesians 3.20-21
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Thursday, April 25, 2013
Wild at Heart, Chapter 8: A Battle to Fight: The Enemy, part 1
"If we would endeavor, like men of courage, to stand in the battle, surely we would feel the favorable assistance of God from Heaven. For he who giveth us occasion to fight, to the end we may get the victory, is ready to succor those that fight manfully, and do trust in his grace." -Thomas A Kempis
With each chapter John begins with a few quotes. Usually song lyrics, occasionally Scripture, and often from other pieces of literature. Very few have really hit me with this reading, but this one did. We've come to the part that thrills the heart of every man, the warrior. This is written deeply into our image. Exodus 15.3 declares, "The Lord is a warrior; The Lord is His name." And in Genesis it says we are made in the image of God, and therefore, man is a warrior.
"A man needs a battle to fight; he needs a place for the warrior in him to come alive and be honed, trained, seasoned... every man is a warrior, yet every man must choose to fight... the warrior is crucial in our movement toward any masculine integrity; it is hard wired into every man."
Every man is a warrior, and a warrior needs a battle to fight if he is to stay a warrior. For his skills to stay sharp he has to use them, and it's crucial that his skills be honed because we live in a world at war, as C.S. Lewis points out, I believe in Mere Christianity, or as Aragorn tells Theoden in The Two Towers, "Open war is upon you whether you would risk it or not."
Every man is a warrior, and every man is born into war, but every man has the choice to join the fight or not. But it is crucial that we do, because without the warrior it is impossible for us to continue on in the journey to man hood. Without being a warrior, a man cannot be a Man of God.
I am not saying that all men must serve in the military to be a real man. I didn't serve, one of the only regrets I have in life, as many of the men I know have not. But literal war is not the only battle there is to fight, and those who put their lives on the line for our freedom are not the only ones who are warriors.
"A man must have a battle to fight, a great mission to his life that involves and yet transcends even home and family. He must have a cause to which he is devoted even unto death, for this is written into the fabric of his being. That is why God created you - to be his intimate ally, to join him in the Great Battle. You have a specific place in the line, a mission God made you for. That is why it is so essential to hear form God about your true name, because in that name is the mission of your life."
You were made to stand side by side with God in this war. You were created for this, and "your whole life has been preparation for battle." Everything that has happened in your life has been part of your training, God's boot camp if you will. The things we have experienced and been through, have served to prepare us for the things we encounter in war. And you have an essential part, you play an irreplaceable role, "No one else can be who you are meant to be. You are the hero in your story." John says, you are William Wallace, armed with a claymore not the guy four rows back with a garden hoe.
God created you to stand next to Him and push forward. The training has happened, the wounds that have been inflicted have been healed, you have been given your true name which comes with an identity and therefore a mission, and now you are ready for battle. "This is the next leg in the initiation journey, when God calls a man forward to the front lines."
The Spartans were the greatest warriors of the ancient world. Take away gunpowder, and I might be tempted to say they were the greatest warriors ever (the Navy SEALs would be the only ones who I'd say would stand a chance against them with hand to hand weapons). A single Spartan was a force to be reckoned with, his whole life had been devoted to preparing for war. He was trained to ignore pain, and went into battle hoping to meet a warrior worthy and able to give him his death. The Spartans were taught never to retreat and were told, "Come back carrying your shield, or on it." Just one of them could take on pretty much any opponent, but the Spartan army was nearly invincible.
The numbers of the Battle of Thermopylae vary based on your source, but the Spartans were greatly outnumbered, and still held their own for three days killing tens of thousands of Persians. The secret was in their phalanx. This battle formation was formed by the Spartans standing side by side with their massive shields overlapping. Each warrior protected himself and the man to his left. The older, experienced warriors, would be in front and back where the fighting was most intense. In the center there were young Spartans who were learning how to fight in an actual war. But no Spartan stayed in the middle forever. The day would come from each of them to be called to the front, being given the honor to add his shield to the phalanx.
We are at this stage in the journey were God has called us forward, we get to join our shield to the phalanx. God is standing to your right, covering you with His shield. And you have the chance to call others to join you. I've shared the meaning of the names I've picked out for my sons, and along with those names I have picked out a life verse for them. To my first, "Mighty, Man of God" I've picked out 2 Timothy 2.1-4, "You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. Suffer hardship with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier." The time will come when he will be called to join the front lines, to add his shield to the phalanx, to stand firm with me as a solider of Christ. And when he is called to the front it will be because he is ready.
God has called you to the front lines. You have what it takes. You are a warrior.
"Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen." Ephesians 3.20-21
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
With each chapter John begins with a few quotes. Usually song lyrics, occasionally Scripture, and often from other pieces of literature. Very few have really hit me with this reading, but this one did. We've come to the part that thrills the heart of every man, the warrior. This is written deeply into our image. Exodus 15.3 declares, "The Lord is a warrior; The Lord is His name." And in Genesis it says we are made in the image of God, and therefore, man is a warrior.
"A man needs a battle to fight; he needs a place for the warrior in him to come alive and be honed, trained, seasoned... every man is a warrior, yet every man must choose to fight... the warrior is crucial in our movement toward any masculine integrity; it is hard wired into every man."
Every man is a warrior, and a warrior needs a battle to fight if he is to stay a warrior. For his skills to stay sharp he has to use them, and it's crucial that his skills be honed because we live in a world at war, as C.S. Lewis points out, I believe in Mere Christianity, or as Aragorn tells Theoden in The Two Towers, "Open war is upon you whether you would risk it or not."
Every man is a warrior, and every man is born into war, but every man has the choice to join the fight or not. But it is crucial that we do, because without the warrior it is impossible for us to continue on in the journey to man hood. Without being a warrior, a man cannot be a Man of God.
I am not saying that all men must serve in the military to be a real man. I didn't serve, one of the only regrets I have in life, as many of the men I know have not. But literal war is not the only battle there is to fight, and those who put their lives on the line for our freedom are not the only ones who are warriors.
"A man must have a battle to fight, a great mission to his life that involves and yet transcends even home and family. He must have a cause to which he is devoted even unto death, for this is written into the fabric of his being. That is why God created you - to be his intimate ally, to join him in the Great Battle. You have a specific place in the line, a mission God made you for. That is why it is so essential to hear form God about your true name, because in that name is the mission of your life."
You were made to stand side by side with God in this war. You were created for this, and "your whole life has been preparation for battle." Everything that has happened in your life has been part of your training, God's boot camp if you will. The things we have experienced and been through, have served to prepare us for the things we encounter in war. And you have an essential part, you play an irreplaceable role, "No one else can be who you are meant to be. You are the hero in your story." John says, you are William Wallace, armed with a claymore not the guy four rows back with a garden hoe.
God created you to stand next to Him and push forward. The training has happened, the wounds that have been inflicted have been healed, you have been given your true name which comes with an identity and therefore a mission, and now you are ready for battle. "This is the next leg in the initiation journey, when God calls a man forward to the front lines."
The Spartans were the greatest warriors of the ancient world. Take away gunpowder, and I might be tempted to say they were the greatest warriors ever (the Navy SEALs would be the only ones who I'd say would stand a chance against them with hand to hand weapons). A single Spartan was a force to be reckoned with, his whole life had been devoted to preparing for war. He was trained to ignore pain, and went into battle hoping to meet a warrior worthy and able to give him his death. The Spartans were taught never to retreat and were told, "Come back carrying your shield, or on it." Just one of them could take on pretty much any opponent, but the Spartan army was nearly invincible.
The numbers of the Battle of Thermopylae vary based on your source, but the Spartans were greatly outnumbered, and still held their own for three days killing tens of thousands of Persians. The secret was in their phalanx. This battle formation was formed by the Spartans standing side by side with their massive shields overlapping. Each warrior protected himself and the man to his left. The older, experienced warriors, would be in front and back where the fighting was most intense. In the center there were young Spartans who were learning how to fight in an actual war. But no Spartan stayed in the middle forever. The day would come from each of them to be called to the front, being given the honor to add his shield to the phalanx.
We are at this stage in the journey were God has called us forward, we get to join our shield to the phalanx. God is standing to your right, covering you with His shield. And you have the chance to call others to join you. I've shared the meaning of the names I've picked out for my sons, and along with those names I have picked out a life verse for them. To my first, "Mighty, Man of God" I've picked out 2 Timothy 2.1-4, "You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. Suffer hardship with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier." The time will come when he will be called to join the front lines, to add his shield to the phalanx, to stand firm with me as a solider of Christ. And when he is called to the front it will be because he is ready.
God has called you to the front lines. You have what it takes. You are a warrior.
"Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen." Ephesians 3.20-21
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)