For the scepter of wickedness shall not rest on the land allotted to the righteous, lest the righteous stretch out their hands to do wrong. Do good, O Lord, to those who are good and to those who are upright in their hearts! (Verses 3-4)
Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The One sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems...He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which He is called is The Word of God. And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following Him on white horses. From His mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On His robe and on His thigh He has a name written: King of kings and Lord of lords. Revelation 19 italics, mine.
We are at war. Never forget that. And it matters Whose side we are on. The enemy of our souls, the prince of the power of the air (Ephesians 2) leads his army into disobedience. The scepter in this foul ruler's hand demands disobedience to God. Delights in the defeat of the righteous. Laughs when we are imprisoned in his dungeons of despair. Trapped in wrong. Even doing his perverse bidding. Christians writhe, addicted on beds of pain. Some are jailed for heinous acts. Or tricked into adultery. Maybe lied to about each other. Fractured by jealousy. The rule of wickedness making us run, play dead or acquiesce to avoid the fight of our lives. Given over to Satan's agenda because we lost strength and are emptied of courage. We lie down and take it.
Bill and I watched the Band of Brothers series recently. The World War II story of Easy Company of the 101st Airborne Division. The group of men were together from jump training through D-Day, the siege of Bastone and Operation Market Garden and to the end of the war. The fighting was fierce. Many men died in battles so intense it defies logic that anyone could've survived. Because they were an elite group, chosen and trained to be undaunted, they ran into enemy fire, dodging bullets and jumping into ditches as they moved forward toward an uncertain victory. Many lost limbs. Soldiers died in each other's arms. Others had to be left on the battlefield dying without comfort. A few of the veterans who survived were interviewed at the beginning of each episode. Many years later their eyes still filled with tears, their voices became almost inaudible, as they recounted the ferocity of the war. It had become so routine, there were days when they couldn't remember what they were fighting for. It was too painful to think of home. And, most had to put the thought away because the expectation of making it to the end was too hopeful to contemplate. Then Easy Company happened upon a death camp. Startled and nonplussed, they unlocked the gate and wandered among men so emaciated and weak they could barely move. The dead were stacked up in piles. The stench overwhelming. The Jewish prisoners fell into the arms of the soldiers, thankful. Finally, rescue. And the men realized why they were fighting. Camp after camp was discovered. Incinerators full of bones. Evil trying to make evil right. The work of the greater enemy whose army has come to steal, kill and destroy. Using men to do his bidding.
Our war is more subtle but just as real. I've been wounded by the orders from the scepter of Satan. If we for one minute forget that we aren't ruled by him, he'll step in and try to devour us. But wait! We have a King. A Lord above all lords. We have marching orders. We have armor (Ephesians 6). We have victory. Jesus came so that the throne of Zion be filled once and forevermore by a Righteous King. No more will the scepter of another rest on our holy land. But we must declare our allegiance to the King. Fight against the invasions of the enemy into our territory. We know the end of the story. But the King of kings and Lord of lords isn't just fighting at the end of time. He's our King right now! Why would we take orders from the prince of this world? If we listen, we can hear our Ruler say, "This is the way, walk in it (Isaiah 30:21)!" Lest we become caught up in the war and find ourselves bloodied and alone, the Lord Himself came to vanquish our enemy. Died on the final battlefield to give us His victory over even the last enemy, death. So stand up! Put on your God-given armor and push through today, warrior princesses and princes! Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the whole armor of God that you might be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places (Ephesians 6). italics, mine
Onward and upward!
Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The One sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems...He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which He is called is The Word of God. And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following Him on white horses. From His mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On His robe and on His thigh He has a name written: King of kings and Lord of lords. Revelation 19 italics, mine.
We are at war. Never forget that. And it matters Whose side we are on. The enemy of our souls, the prince of the power of the air (Ephesians 2) leads his army into disobedience. The scepter in this foul ruler's hand demands disobedience to God. Delights in the defeat of the righteous. Laughs when we are imprisoned in his dungeons of despair. Trapped in wrong. Even doing his perverse bidding. Christians writhe, addicted on beds of pain. Some are jailed for heinous acts. Or tricked into adultery. Maybe lied to about each other. Fractured by jealousy. The rule of wickedness making us run, play dead or acquiesce to avoid the fight of our lives. Given over to Satan's agenda because we lost strength and are emptied of courage. We lie down and take it.
Bill and I watched the Band of Brothers series recently. The World War II story of Easy Company of the 101st Airborne Division. The group of men were together from jump training through D-Day, the siege of Bastone and Operation Market Garden and to the end of the war. The fighting was fierce. Many men died in battles so intense it defies logic that anyone could've survived. Because they were an elite group, chosen and trained to be undaunted, they ran into enemy fire, dodging bullets and jumping into ditches as they moved forward toward an uncertain victory. Many lost limbs. Soldiers died in each other's arms. Others had to be left on the battlefield dying without comfort. A few of the veterans who survived were interviewed at the beginning of each episode. Many years later their eyes still filled with tears, their voices became almost inaudible, as they recounted the ferocity of the war. It had become so routine, there were days when they couldn't remember what they were fighting for. It was too painful to think of home. And, most had to put the thought away because the expectation of making it to the end was too hopeful to contemplate. Then Easy Company happened upon a death camp. Startled and nonplussed, they unlocked the gate and wandered among men so emaciated and weak they could barely move. The dead were stacked up in piles. The stench overwhelming. The Jewish prisoners fell into the arms of the soldiers, thankful. Finally, rescue. And the men realized why they were fighting. Camp after camp was discovered. Incinerators full of bones. Evil trying to make evil right. The work of the greater enemy whose army has come to steal, kill and destroy. Using men to do his bidding.
Our war is more subtle but just as real. I've been wounded by the orders from the scepter of Satan. If we for one minute forget that we aren't ruled by him, he'll step in and try to devour us. But wait! We have a King. A Lord above all lords. We have marching orders. We have armor (Ephesians 6). We have victory. Jesus came so that the throne of Zion be filled once and forevermore by a Righteous King. No more will the scepter of another rest on our holy land. But we must declare our allegiance to the King. Fight against the invasions of the enemy into our territory. We know the end of the story. But the King of kings and Lord of lords isn't just fighting at the end of time. He's our King right now! Why would we take orders from the prince of this world? If we listen, we can hear our Ruler say, "This is the way, walk in it (Isaiah 30:21)!" Lest we become caught up in the war and find ourselves bloodied and alone, the Lord Himself came to vanquish our enemy. Died on the final battlefield to give us His victory over even the last enemy, death. So stand up! Put on your God-given armor and push through today, warrior princesses and princes! Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the whole armor of God that you might be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places (Ephesians 6). italics, mine
Onward and upward!
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