Spiritual Warfare: Get in Gear!

 Let’s begin our journey to understanding spiritual warfare by reviewing Ephesians 6:10-18. The verses are very familiar. They get us thinking about how to prepare to face our foe, what we need to be wearing when we do and Who we are to rely upon.

"A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere."

Now, let’s look at each verse from our passage in Ephesians. 

A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.

We need strength and power from God.  Whatever we think our strengths are, whatever talents we possess, whatever our spiritual track record is, we cannot do this Christian life alone.  We cannot do this spiritual warfare alone. 

Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. 

We need armor to do this Christian life.  Why?  It’s a war we are in—pure and simple.  No other garment will do.  Someday we will be arrayed as His bride, but while we inhabit Earth, we are in a battle zone, and we need to be outfitted appropriately.  We must have armor on to survive.  Why?  So we can STAND.  If you are lying on the ground, the battle is over and you have lost. 

We need to put on the whole kit and caboodle. Not one or two pieces, thinking that will suffice.  Paul declared we need “the whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27) and we are to wear the “whole armor of God.”  If we are outfitted correctly, we are then able to stand against the schemes of Satan. 

Don’t bring your knife to a gun fight.  Don’t wear your ball gown in the trenches.

For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. 

The armor fits the battle itself: You must be arrayed in spiritual power, provisioned by God for this expressed purpose, because the battle is in the spiritual realm with spiritual foes.  You wouldn’t bring a crossbow when the enemy has an AK-47.  You don’t fight with your flesh what is in the spiritual realm. 

Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm.

Paul repeats for us put on the whole armor of God.  It’s God’s armor, and we are to put it on, not our own.  We don’t accessorize His armor with our flesh; it is His and His alone. 

God invites us to put it on.  We can either choose to put on what He provides, or we can walk away (a perilous choice).  Evil days are coming and we need to be suited up before they arrive.  Our “having done all” is putting on His armor willingly and standing in His power and might.  No snoozing.  No complacency.  No taking a nap behind the tent.  Armored up and standing.  That’s what He expects of us.

Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness.

Again, Paul says, “Stand.”  A fallen soldier is either dead, MIA, or wounded.  A fallen solider is now out of battle, and this is part of Satan’s game plan.   Being properly armored allows us to withstand the onslaught.  Though we may take many hits, we will still be standing. 

How? We possess God’s strength and His mighty power. Where?  We stand only on His truth.  Truth provides the only sure footing, for no matter how the winds of warfare blow, truth takes a beating and keeps on ticking.  Why?  Because you are standing in Christ.   

• He is The Truth: "Jesus answered, 'I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6) 
• He is The Rock: “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock." (Matt. 7:24)

Jesus is the only solid ground upon which we stand. 

Your heart will be protected by the breastplate of His righteousness as you stand. Why? You are facing your foe, and he will strike at your heart. Because you standing in Christ, He has given you His heart. Because He is standing, so are you: 

• "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws." (Ezek. 36:26-7)
• "A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of." (Luke 6:45)

The Word says, "Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it." (Prov. 4:23 NIV)  Good advice.  A guarded heart is a protected heart. You are not just protecting your own; you are protecting His, for He dwells within you.  His heart in you is far too precious to not protect.

For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. 

People who stand need shoes.  People who sleep can afford to be barefoot.  A soldier must be booted up, for the mission of declaring the Good News of Jesus Christ requires movement when ordered to do so.  So, standing or marching, you need shoes.  Nikes will do for battle, for Nike in Greek means, “victory.”  Flip flops?  No.

In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. 

Faith is not just your response to God’s lovely offer of grace.  It is your shield that you wave around you, showing your enemy that you are serious.  The armor is on you; the shield is around you.  The bigger your faith, the larger your shield. 

A dinky shield means an arrow or two will get passed it.  Upgrade.  Faith itself is a gift, so ask for more, and trade up to a larger shield.  Your shield will grow in proportion to your faith and your knowledge of the Word.  Less will get by that greater shield and you will feel bolder as you go forth.   

But you must stay strong in Christ to wield it.  Faith not only protects, it extinguishes.  How so?  Your faith says, “No!” to Satan’s lies and to those who perpetrate his agenda. 

 You are clothed in righteousness because of Christ’s finished work on the cross.  You respond with faith by actively moving your shield and flashing it before the enemy.  Your faith protects you from all sides when the arrows of lies, deceit, temptation and condemnation come flying in. 

Faith:  Don’t leave home without it. 

Faith:  Don’t go to war without it.

Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 

A blow to your head can be fatal and down you go.  A blow to your mind is where you believe the enemy’s lies, fall into deceit, yield to temptation or wallow in condemnation.  All or one of these can be fatal to your ability to stand and down you go.   

Your salvation is your covering.  You have been adopted into God’s family as His son or daughter because of Jesus’ sacrifice.  He paid the price so you could enter in God’s presence, cleansed of your sin and made right with God.  You are covered in the blood of Jesus and it’s a powerful covering. 

To insure that the foe doesn’t get too close, mightily wave that sword at him.  The Word of God is the weapon of choice in spiritual warfare.  Jesus used it to vanquish Satan in the wilderness.  Take a lesson from the Master.

But you must know the Word.  You read the Word and the Word reads you.  So, with the SPIRIT  + WORD, you get S/WORD. 

Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.

Pray.  All the time. Every chance you get. 

In other words, continuously monitor the intel from HQ.  Listen for Jesus’ voice and run everything you hear by His Word.  His voice and His Word will never contradict each other.  A soldier out of touch with his Commanding Officer is a soldier in danger. So, persevere.  Fight the good fight.  In other words, STAND. 

But how do you STAND? 

It's simple: S.T.A.N.D.: Spiritually Trained And Not Defeated.  Training for warfare is everything.  But we equally need to know that Satan is a defeated foe.  We are training not to gain ground, but to stand on what Jesus already won for us on the cross.  What did He do on the cross?  He defeated sin and death: 

• "'O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?' The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."  (1 Cor. 15:55-57 NIV)

So, the ground we stand on is given to us by Jesus.  His blood secured it and we stand on it.  He fought and defeated the enemy on the cross.  Satan is a vanquished foe, although he will try to convince you otherwise.  (Remember, he’s a liar, so whatever he tells you is automatically false.)

God Himself is arrayed in His Helmet of Salvation—if we follow Him, how can we dress any less?  His foe is our foe, and His battle is our battle.  By dressing in His armor, we will have the wisdom in Christ to follow orders and carry out His desires:

• "Truth is nowhere to be found, and whoever shuns evil becomes a prey.  The LORD looked and was displeased that there was no justice.  He saw that there was no one, he was appalled that there was no one to intervene; so his own arm worked salvation for him, and his own righteousness sustained him.  He put on righteousness as his breastplate, and the helmet of salvation on his head…" (Is. 59:16-17 NIV)

We’ve establish that we need to gear up.  Not for a run to the market but for each day we wake up and face the challenges ahead.  His grace awaits us as we rise to go forth:

    Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,
    for his compassions never fail.
    They are new every morning;
    great is your faithfulness.
    I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion;
    therefore I will wait for him.” (Lam. 3:22-24)

What’s next?  You need to know who you are.  You will then practice with this knowledge. 

You will learn what you are not.

You will learn Who God is, and what He is not. 

You will again practice with this knowledge.

You will learn who Satan is, and what He is not. 

We will learn what Satan’s ultimate goal or endgame is.

You will see what God’s gear is, what your gear is, and how the two are not compatible. 

We will then follow Jesus through the Gospels, seeing how He conducted His encounters with evil. 

We will then use Joshua, Chapter 6, as our guideline to taking down a stronghold. 

The Word of God will be our sole guide.  We are going to stay focused on Scripture, for it alone guides us as we face our foe.  But we must put it into practice for us to be effective warriors:

"But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it." (James 1:22-25)

Excited? We have a new journey ahead!  Out of the desert into being a soldier! Let’s go!

 

Spiritual Warfare: Soldier Up!

“There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them. They themselves are equally pleased by both errors and hail a materialist or a magician with the same delight.” –C. S. Lewis

I am on a quest to more fully understand spiritual warfare. I have studied it for awhile, read some books, had a few experiences, and yet I am still unsettled about the issue.

Why? So much of what I have read about spiritual warfare has some scripture in it, but a lot of the information was driven by the author’s experiences. Does that invalidate an author’s conclusions about spiritual warfare? No, but I found that sometimes the author’s own experiences began to take precedence over the scriptural references. The author used the Word, of course, but the author’s experience became its own evidence. A person’s experience may be compelling, but they may lack a clear-cut parallel in Scripture.

As writers and readers, we run the risk of a having a “Can You Top This?” kind of exchange. We may share the author’s reading of the Word and see spiritual warfare’s reality. But what if we didn’t have the same experience the author did? We may question what we went through. We may even doubt that it was a legitimate encounter with evil. We may downplay what happened, because it seems rather insignificant when we compare it to what the author said.

That’s when confusion steps in. Confusion is not what the Lord wants for us as we study this: “For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.” (1 Cor. 14:33)

Scripture should be the only basis for our theology. I have read books where the author has developed quite a theology in areas that are not directly addressed or contradicted by the Word. Thus, it was hard to disprove or prove the ideas scripturally. It may be satisfying to plug in the gaps in the Bible with well-intentioned and reasonable ideas, but if the Bible does not specifically address it, should we?

Must the gaps be filled in to have a better understanding about spiritual warfare? I do not think so. What God’s Word says about spiritual warfare will keep us informed enough to do battle.

I am also trying to understand how the spiritual realm effects us. For example, I have read books and have friends who say that every disease is caused by Satan. Mental illness is especially subject to being diagnosed as a purely spiritual condition; though some will not argue as vigorously about say, diabetes being demonically caused. But sickness, for some, is understood as being dominated solely by demons. The cure, consequently, is only spiritual.

On the other hand, I know people who say Satan isn’t really needed to mess human beings up; we are all perfectly capable of doing that ourselves. Satan is a minor player (if even a player at all) on this planet, and talking about his influence only leads, in many people’s thinking, to diminishing our personal responsibility for the chaos we see.

I have experienced only a handful of times when I knew Satan was lurking in the situation, because I sensed his malevolent presence. However, as I mature in Christ and my spiritual discernment increases, I sense Satan’s involvement more and more. I agree humans need very little help in destroying their lives, but I now know they are not alone in doing so.

Let's journey together to understand Satan’s influence, what the Word teaches and our response to all of it. Scripture is my starting point. We will be driven by Scripture alone.

If I cannot find a scriptural basis for my statements, I won’t comment.

I am using the KISS model: Keep It Simple Saint. I take spiritual warfare seriously, but I do not need to recoil in fear or put on a big display to drive Satan out. Jesus spoke and it was enough. The Word is our authority. Jesus did not, in His encounter with Satan, engage in debate. He quoted the truth and the father of lies had to leave. Why should we try to do any more or any less? “In Christ” is the only way for us to live. We all know He came and died for us. We equally need to know He wants to live His life in and through us. This verse is the key to walking victoriously:

"I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me." (Gal. 2:20)

Join me as we explore this topic. Having clarity of mind and purpose is essential to being a good soldier. We need to be better informed soldiers in these troubled times.

 

 

Roll Up for the Majestical Mystery Tour, Part II

God's glory is on display when He initiates the exodus and as the children of Israel enter the desert, He continues to show them who He is. 

He is the Great I Am...such a label implies that His children have to get to know Him.

He isn't the god of the storm, the land, or the sun.  His identity is not tied to any natural phenomena. 

If it rains, the Canaanites say, "Oh, see how Baal is providing us rain to water our crops!"

When the sun rises and sets, the Egyptians say, "There goes Amun-Ra.  He rises every morning, dies at the close of day, journeys through the underworld and rises again, all due to our Pharaoh's obedience to the rituals prescribed to us."

A one-to-one correspondence exists between some natural force and the presiding god's characteristic.  

Yahweh is fair too majestic and lovingly complex for any such correspondence.  Instead, He has a one- to-one correspondence with love and mercy to His creation--especially us. 

His characteristics are revealed in how He interacts with His people.  We get to know the Great I Am by interacting with Him and He shows us the many facets of who He is.

He judges the gods of Egypt by subverting the supposed kingdom they preside over.  Egypt's sun god is  trumped by darkness.  The frog god multiplies to disgusting levels.  The cow god can't prevent the livestock from dying.  The center of the Egyptian universe is the pharaoh himself, who holds the universe together with his devotion to the gods through ritual and rule; he is a god himself.  But his son dies.  This supposed giver of life cannot save his own son. 

God allows death to be His agent--a dog on a cosmic leash--to cause the firstborns to die.  He is not the god of death; actually, He presides over life and death, for the children of Israel survive that night called Passover. 

He demonstrates not only His superiority to the gods that the Israelites had lived under for over 400 years, He pronounces these gods null and void.  He is the Great I Am who holds the universe and everything in it in His hands. There are no gods before Him, beside Him or around Him: "Shema Israel!  The LORD our God is the God, the LORD is one." (Deut. 6:4)

How He presents Himself shows different aspects of His character, so His children can grasp a deeper understanding of who He is.  He isn't just an ancestral god--the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob--for His reach touches the Egyptians, the dwellers in Canaan, as well as the Israelites.  He is sovereign over all creation, and is not bound to any one location.  The earth is His footstool.  Heaven is His court.   

Let's look at the ways God revealed Himself as the children of Israel wandered in the desert:

He is the Shepherd who leads His people with a pillar of fire by night and a cloud by day; He provides water and food for His flock; He protects them from the wolves that gather (the Amalekites); He uses a human being to lead, all the while giving him wisdom and strength and He never leaves him alone to do the work He's called him to do. 

He is the LORD God when Moses ascends the mountain and He gives him the Law; He appoints His people to be a holy nation and royal priesthood; He demands that Moses go down from the mountain to talk to the people, for He is holy and not to be approached without humility and deep respect. 

Then He gives His people the Law--the covenant written on stone--that will create a society where His people will be those priests, showing God's holiness in how they act and what they believe.

Do you hear an echo here?

Jesus reveals Himself in our desert by being our Good Shepherd who guides us with His Word; He provides for us; defends us against the wolves (Satan and those who listen to him); He became a human being to die for us and then sent His Spirit to lead us and give us wisdom and strength; He speaks lovingly to us and never leaves us alone to do the work He's called us to do.

Jesus is also the Son of God, the Messiah, the mighty One who went up on a mountain and revealed His majesty; He came down from the mountain and talked with His people; He is holy and mighty to be praised and we can approach Him, through His blood, in humility and deep respect.  

He writes the Law on our hearts, and we move through society, showing God's holiness in how we act and what we believe.

Amen. 

  

 

Roll Up for the Mighty Majestical Tour

We have met each challenge with the Israelites as they have wandered through the desert.  They have needed decent water to drink, food to eat, and victory over a hostile people.   

Each time, through Moses, God commands the people to sit down and watch Him perform things that can only be called, "miracles."  Moses is the leader but like the monarch of Britain, he can only advise and warn.  He is not the one who would bring about what the people needed,; he's only the servant.

That's the whole point of the desert:  Only God can meet your need.  Period.  

If it's God's to give, then you have to follow His instructions.  

When the people encounter bitter water, Moses cries out to the LORD, and He shows him a piece of wood that Moses throws into the water to make it drinkable. 

God then tells the people that they must obey Him by listening and then doing what He commands.  

The people complain about food. God says He will provide manna from heaven. He will "rain down bread." (Ex. 16:4) He is very explicit on how the people are to get it: They are to go out and each day gather just enough for that day. Moses and Aaron go to the people, and say: “In the evening you will know that it was the Lord who brought you out of Egypt, and in the morning you will see the glory of the Lord, because he has heard your grumbling against him." (Ex. 16:6-7).

As Aaron is speaking to the people, and as they gaze upon the desert, they see the glory of the LORD in a cloud. (Ex. 16:10)  God tells Moses that He has heard the people's grumbling, and will provide food for them, so that they will "know that I am the LORD you God."  (Ex. 16:12)

Lo and behold, in the morning, breakfast is served, (the menu is really simple--one item: manna) and Moses tell them what it is and how they are to gather it. Dinner will be served (the menu is simple--one item: quail).  All free of charge and provided only by God's hand.

The people cannot explain it any other way. 

Just as Jesus fed the multitude (echoing God feeding His people in the desert) no one could explain what happened in any other way but it was from God's hand.  

But with each provision, came instructions from the Lord.  He didn't just hand out food, and make water available.  Each event was a test to see if the people will listen to God's voice, and do what is right "in His eyes," (Ex. 15:25-26) meaning that (a) only God can do this (b) He wants you to trust Him (c) He knows exactly what the challenge is and will meet it supernaturally so you have no doubt Who did this (d) It prepares you for the next challenge.  He is making a precedent of miraculous provision that you will draw upon with the next challenge you face. He will step in again.  

But all these interactions of grumbling people + Moses and Aaron getting upset + God hearing the people + God stepping in and mightily meeting the people's needs = the prelude to the Big Event:  The giving of the Law on Mt. Sinai.

The people have only been in the desert for three months, and we meet up with them, leaving Rephidim, where they had camped out.  They come into the Desert of Sinai. 

This is what the wandering in the desert is all about:  God tested them in little ways, showing them that He will provide for them and they must obey Him with do what He declares to be His ways.  

But the larger testing is to come:  To be a nation of priests whose obedience to His law will pave the way for His Son, who will redeem the whole world. 

The people camp out in front of a mountain.  The location is very significant:  God's great display of  kindness, majesty and love played out on a mountain with the founding father of the Jewish people.  Abraham's hand was stayed by God, for his willingness to sacrifice his son.  God saw Abraham's faith and that was enough.  It was counted to him as righteousness, for he was obedient to God, for he trusted God would provide for him and his son, whatever happened. 

Now we move from the father of the Jewish people, to the people themselves. God is not going to ask them to sacrifice their sons; God will ask them to sacrifice themselves.  He will ask them to shed their vanity, pride and lack of faith to become the very people He chose long ago.  Why did He choose them? 

Then Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain and said, “This is what you are to say to the descendants of Jacob and what you are to tell the people of Israel: ‘You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation." These are the words you are to speak to the Israelites. (Ex. 19:3-6)

Moses returns and tells the people what God told him. They respond beautifully: “We will do everything the Lord has said.” (Ex. 19:8) 

Moses brings their answer back to the Lord.

This is exactly the kind of trust and respect that God wanted these former slaves to have, and the desert, with all of its hardships, made this attitude of gratitude possible.  Their experiences have shown God to be utterly faithful to all He says He will do. 

God wants the people to go deeper in their trust of Moses, given what is to come:  Moses will bring the Law to the people, the crowning moment that the desert experience has been preparing them for. 

But this isn't water or food.  This is way more significant for now and for the future.  This is the cornerstone, the foundation that will allow the Israelites to become those priests, those holy people.  This is moment where God gives His people the keys to the kingdom.  

But first, the people must clean their clothes.  God will come down on Mount Sinai in front of all the people on the "third day." (Ex. 19:11)  God also instructs Moses to not allow the people to come up the mountain or touch it.  The people will only be allowed to ascend the mountain when the ram's horn is blown. 

The echoes to Jesus are astonishing. 

God comes down the mountain (of heaven) in His Son and dwells among us. As John says, "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth." (John 1:14).

The Greek renders the "dwells among us" as "tabernacled among us."  The Tabernacle in the desert become the dwelling place of God in human form.  

Moses consecrated the people and told the people to wash their and refrain from sexual relations. They are going to come before the mountain of God and to be ready "for the third day." (Ex. 19:15) 

We are clothed in His righteousness, for what we wear (our sinful nature and the behaviors there of) consists of filthy rags:

I will greatly rejoice in the Lord; my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation; he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. (Is. 61:10)

But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires. (Rom. 13:14)

All of us have become like one who is unclean,
and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags;
we all shrivel up like a leaf,
and like the wind our sins sweep us away. (Is. 64:6)

Third day?  Sound familiar?

Jesus repeatedly told His disciples that He would rise again on the "third day."

Jesus went up to the mountain to die for us and He brought the New Covenant from God to us--we who are slaves, unworthy and clothed in sin. 

The Big Event is about to unfold, which we will explore next time. But its echoes to an even bigger Event makes us realize that God, all along, has us in the desert to remind us He is still in the business of miraculous provision--for our souls.  He wants us to ascend the mountain in the beauty of holiness that only His Son can provide. 

The mountain, like the Garden of Eden, is the place where a holy God embraces His cleansed and clothed children, in fellowship and forgiveness. 

  

That's So Unfair God! Let Moses Enter the Promised Land!

We have been studying life in the desert.  We have travelled with the Israelites and watch them time after time grumble against God about His lack of provision, Moses intercedes and God comes through, meeting their needs.

Numbers 20 has an interesting aspect to Moses striking the rock and the water gushing out for the people to drink when they arrived at the Desert of Zin.  Water is conspicuously absent, and the people let Moses know in no uncertain terms their upset. Moses and Aaron hear the people's grumbling and retreat to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting.  God appears in His glory and then gives them specific instructions:  

Moses and Aaron went from the assembly to the entrance to the tent of meeting and fell facedown, and the glory of the Lord appeared to them. 

The Lord said to Moses,

“Take the staff, and you and your brother Aaron gather the assembly together. Speak to that rock before their eyes and it will pour out its water. You will bring water out of the rock for the community so they and their livestock can drink.” 

So Moses took the staff from the Lord’s presence, just as he commanded him. He and Aaron gathered the assembly together in front of the rock and Moses said to them, “Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?” Then Moses raised his arm and struck the rock twice with his staff. Water gushed out, and the community and their livestock drank.

But the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not trust in me enough to honor me as holy in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this community into the land I give them.” These were the waters of Meribah, where the Israelites quarreled with the Lord and where he was proved holy among them.

God is very specific in His instructions to Moses and Aaron on how to proceed in meeting the needs of the people.  God is always specific with His people.  I cannot think of one time where God was vague with His expectations.  God's Word is a kind of sacred algebra:

Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach. It is not up in heaven, so that you have to ask, “Who will ascend into heaven to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?” Nor is it beyond the sea, so that you have to ask, “Who will cross the sea to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?” No, the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it.

See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. For I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess.

But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient, and if you are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them, I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess.

This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the Lord is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. (Deut. 30:11-20)

God is telling His people that, 

• If you obey all of the crystal clear instructions I have set before you, then you will be blessed.  I am not asking you to go find it--it is right before you, explicated by My Word. I am very specific about what I mean by "obedience."  I am equally specific about what I mean by "disobedience."  I give you a choice.  Each choice has its consequences: either blessings or curses will be your lot. Choose wisely.

But Moses is not exempt from being obedient, either.  God expects the same level of obedience from anyone who calls upon His name, whether it's a prophet, a priest, a king or a child of Israel.  Same God, same law--no exemptions or exceptions.  But God is, above all, an egalitarian:  He has no favorites, and His servants are all required to uphold  His Word.

At the end of the day, we sin against God.  Yes, we hurt others, and yes, we hurt ourselves, but God is the one we have so egregiously offended. That is why David lamented: 

Against you, you only, have I sinned
and done what is evil in your sight;
so you are right in your verdict
and justified when you judge. (Ps. 51:4)

He sin included Bathsheba, her husband, his men and his nation, but ultimately it was God to whom David committed the greatest offense:  sinning as if God didn't exist.

That's one way to look at sin.  We act as if the universe is vacant.  No one is there to be accountable to.  No one is there to look upon what we've done.

It's just us.  

And we don't care.

For the moment.

But then, through the Holy Spirit, we realize how our sin is a kind of eclipse, covering the face of the Son. But His radiance still escapes the darkness, and shines even brighter in contrast.  When we confess our sin, the darkness moves away, once again revealing His light in our lives. 

God doesn't allow Moses the freedom to disregard the very things he is ordained by God to proclaim to the people. God is very specific about how Moses is to get water from the rock: 

1) Take the staff (the very one that turned the Nile to blood, the Red Sea to part--a symbol of power given to you by Me).

2)  You, Aaron and everyone gather together.  

3)  Once everyone is settled, and they are watching (so there is no doubt as to Who is making this miracle possible), speak to the rock.

4)  Because I am the all-sufficient Provider, the water will come out of the rock, because I ordain it to be so.  There will be no other explanation.  Without Me, it's just two old men, an old stick and a bunch of people with nothing to recommend them standing and staring.   

5)  The water will be for everyone and their animals.  

6)  Dusted and done. 

Now, let's follow Moses' process, and how it violated God's instructions:

1)  Moses leaves God's presence.  (So far, so good, or is this a commentary that Moses left God's presence in terms of his obedience?)

2)  Moses and Aaron gathered everyone together.  (Good.)

3)  The Moses lets fly angry words and lumps himself, Aaron and God into this miracle, excoriating them as he does so.  It's as if he is so angry that  he's saying, You losers!  You want a miracle, I'll give you one!  I am so sick of your grumbling and bad attitude, I'm going to show you who's boss! (Not good.) 

4)  He strikes the rock. In his anger, Moses hits the rock as if he'd rather hit the people.  His anger has blinded him to how God is the One who is in control of the people, with their good, bad and ugly behavior, and how God is teaching them to be obedient.  You don't demonstrate obedience by being disobedient.  (Our  anger never accomplishes the righteousness of God.)

5) Water comes out, but Moses is standing there, sneering at the people, and self-righteously judging them for the losers they are. (No. God is our Judge. We are His servants.) 

6)  Busted and undone. 

What is God's response?  

Because you did not trust in Me enough to honor Me as holy in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this community into the land I give them. These were the waters of Meribah, where the Israelites quarreled with the Lord and where he was proved holy among them.

Can you just hear Moses?  Was he thinking, deep inside: 

• Wait a minute, God!  Even You get tired of them grumbling!  They are such an  ungrateful bunch!  They try You patience, so I thought I'd show them a lesson!
• I have honored You every other time!  I have been obedient!  I blew it, but hey, I am so sick and tired of these people, I lost my temper. 
• I am sorry I didn't honor You, but I have tried to.
• Yes, You still met them with grace, even when I didn't. 

You notice that Moses does not argue with God.  He knows God is right. 

Sin is sin. Whether or not we agree with God's assessment right away or come to it over time, sin is sin.

But before we think God's grace has an expiration date on it, or He exercises it a limited number of times, let's fast forward to a day in the life of Jesus: 

After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus.

Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”

While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” (Matt. 17:1-5)

Moses did get to see the Promised Land and the Promised One.

God's love never fails, even when we do. 

 

Oh Yeah, Just One More Thing: The Amalekites

Just when you thought...

Everything's looking a bit better.  Maybe it's not the situation that has changed, but me.  I am still struggling, but I am seeing that God has not abandoned me, but is walking alongside me, even if, at times, doubt still plagues me.  I see God's provision in the little things. I am trying--and sometimes I get it!--to see Him in everything. The children of Israel had food, water, shelter and God's guidance in a very inhospitable place.  Cloud by day. Fire by night. Manna. Quail. But, forgive me, Lord: I do have one thing utterly in common with those desert wanderers: I grumble.  A lot.

I am so fixated on the immediate need before me, that I lose sight of the bigger picture, which is You are in the desert with me, every step of the way.  Forgive me.

Then BOOM!  Amalekites.

Wow.  Really God? 

The Amalekites were tribal people "living in the Negev and in the Sinai peninsula." [NIV Study Bible, 26]

So, we have the harsh conditions of the desert, with all of its natural challenges, and then we have (wait for it) human challenges!  (Who would have thought that anyone could live out here?)

Give me a lack of water any day.  

I can slake my thirst but people have a nasty habit of coming at us relentlessly, day after day.  Getting rid of thirst is far and away easier than getting along with those who move, think and act contrary to what we understand to be the ways of God, as we dig through His Word, engage in prayer and seek to walk in His Spirit. 

Yet, if God is the God of desert challenges, isn't He the God of difficult situations brought on by people in our lives?  

These Amalekites originally attacked Israel as they were leaving Egypt. God takes a dim view of His children's enemies. In fact, because these people attacked the vulnerable Israelites, God has harsh words for them, which we will soon see.

We see God providing water from a rock that Moses struck with the very staff he used at the Nile, and water came forth. Paul equates that with Christ being struck for us and how He is the ultimate source of living water: 

They all ate the same spiritual food and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. (1 Cor. 10:3-4) 

Christ equates Himself with that water when He talks to the woman at the well:

Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”

"Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his livestock?”

Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” (John 4:10-14)

Christ was struck and out of Him flows life-giving water that refreshes, revives and renews us. 

Out of the violence of the cross, Christ heals us, for by His stripes, we are healed. 

But violence in the world's economy is despised by God, for it violates His image in us and glorifies the flesh, which is contrary to His ways. That's why the Amalekites get into serious trouble with God. God has no tolerance for abuse of the poor, the weak, the oppressed and the vulnerable.  The children of Israel, while they stand on the shore watching Pharaoh's army drown, are people who have only known the violence of the whip, and thus, are vulnerable.  

Now the Amalekites come in full force, wanting nothing more than to rob, kill and steal from God's children.

Sound familiar? 

Jesus says of those who act contrary and rebelliously to His Father: 

The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life. (John 10:10)

So, here we are.  We've been wandering through the desert with the children of Israel, those newly minted freedmen (and women! and children!) who have witnessed God's provision and now, uh-oh, here comes these thieves, attacking the Israelites' at their camp:  

The Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim. Moses said to Joshua, “Choose some of our men and go out to fight the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hands.”

So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset. So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword. (Ex. 17:8-13)

Wait a minute!  Did you catch that? Joshua is given orders to fight the Amalekites.  Joshua!  His means, "The LORD saves."  

Sound familiar? 

Joshua overcomes Israel's enemies with a sword!

Sound familiar?  

Joshua speaks of Christ in our lives--He overcomes our enemies with His sword. Look how John in the Book of Revelation describes the risen and glorified Jesus:

 
And standing in the middle of the lampstands was someone like the Son of Man. He was wearing a long robe with a gold sash across his chest. His head and his hair were white like wool, as white as snow. And his eyes were like flames of fire. His feet were like polished bronze refined in a furnace, and his voice thundered like mighty ocean waves. He held seven stars in his right hand, and a sharp two-edged sword came from his mouth. And his face was like the sun in all its brilliance. (Rev. 1:13-16) 

Wow.  Joshua fighting Israel's enemies is absolutely analogous to Jesus fighting ours.

What are our Amalekites?

Sin.  Despair.  Depression.  Fatigue.  The flesh.  Defeat.  Loneliness.  Anger.  Rejection. (Just to name a few.)

These armies are powerful  in our lives and attack us at our most vulnerable moments. 

But I propose that the Amalekites are more than analogous to sin and its damaging effects in our lives.  It's Satan himself.  He is the one who steals our confidence in Christ away; the one who literally wants to kill us, to punish God, and who wants to destroy us, any way he can, by using our sin nature and our vulnerability to his whisperings against God. 

But look at what God says about the Amalekites: 

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this on a scroll as something to be remembered and make sure that Joshua hears it, because I will completely blot out the name of Amalek from under heaven." (Ex. 17:14)

Wow.  God has a plan for the enemy of our souls.  His fate?  

Then the devil, who had deceived them, was thrown into the fiery lake of burning sulfur, joining the beast and the false prophet. There they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. (Rev. 20:10) 

Blotted out from any involvement in His children's future, God wants us to remember His ultimate provision: the conquering of sin and death, through His Son. 

Then look what God has Moses do:

Moses built an altar and called it The Lord is my Banner. He said, “Because hands were lifted up against the throne of the Lord, the Lord will be at war against the Amalekites from generation to generation. (Ex. 17:15-16) 

Our enemy is God's enemy, and He will not allow Satan to triumph, no matter how large Satan's evil is and how devastating his involvement with humanity is. 

An affront to us is an affront to God. He remembers us and doesn't want us to forget His constant provision.  God wants Moses to record the battle on a scroll so Joshua can read it (Ex. 17:14) His people will remember it, because as their future leader in taking on the armies of Canaan, he will remind them of the Amalekites' defeat.

God has given us His Word, so we can read it.  We must remember it, because as our Leader takes on the prince of this world, we are reminded of his future defeat.  

One last thought:  Just like Moses raising his arms to ensure the success of Joshua and then growing tired, we may tired too of raising our hands to heaven and beseeching God for a victory.

But look at what Moses rested his arms on: stones!

Sound familiar? 

 

Christ is not just a stone, but the Cornerstone upon which we build our lives. 

He is our Rock upon whom we rest.

He is in the field fighting.  He fought for our soul and now fights the one who would destroy it.

How our prayers influence God may not really matter in the long run--we need to be present at the battle, lifting up holy hands and asking God for victory.

And resting upon the Rock.