February 6th More than Conqueror's

More Than Conqueror's

 

Do you believe God is faithful to keep his promises?  I think that, with a unified voice, we would all say "yes".   After giving a good amount of laws and commandments, we read today how the LORD gave his people a promise; to be with them and guard them as he leads them to the place he has prepared.  God promises that he will fight, he will cause their enemies in their path ahead to stumble and be conquered.  He tells them they need to be obedient in their hearts to him and also to know that their battles will not be brief, (vs. 29) it will take time but it is for their benefit and God will do all that he said.  He will win the battles for them.  What was their response? With one voice they responded, "Everything the LORD has said we will do" (Ex. 24:3) & "We will do everything the LORD has said; we will obey" (Ex 24:7).   Unified trust and obedience in the LORD.

 

The thing is I know what happens when the Israelites actually do get to the land God promised, when God leads them safely, as he said he would, to the battles against their enemies.  That unified voice of trust and obedience that the Israelite people had is now lost and they forget how big their God is, how big and faithful he has proved himself to be.  Even more importantly, they forget his promise to continue to be with them and to fight their battles with them.   They have a fear of the enemy ahead, an enemy that looks beyond their ability to conquer.  This fear and discomfort as they face these new battles has caused them to loose focus on the God who parted the Red Sea in order to save them from their prior enemy and then used that same sea to destroy that enemy.

 

It is so, so easy to again sit in the comfort of my home and judge the actions of the Israelites as cowardly and disobedient.  I can be yelling at my bible, "You fools!  God promised to fight for you.  Why do you not trust him?  Why are you letting this battle become bigger then your God?"  No sooner do those thoughts enter my mind when I am convicted of my hypocrisy.  When I see the battles in my life marching against me I, all too often, stand in fear and forget that I too have this same God who promises to lead me through till the end.  He never promised me quick battles and easy freedom from the struggles but instead strength to endure and the confidence to know that I am never ever alone.  I have let the battle cry of the enemy drown out the voice of the LORD who is right there with me trying to remind me of his promises and to let me know not to fear but to trust in him.

 

I don't want to just give lip service to my God.  I don't want to sit in the pews on a Sunday and speak about how great God is, how he is my conqueror, and how my faith and trust are in him only to sit in defeat when the difficult times of life, the battles strike.  Romans 8:31-37 reminds me that if God is for me who can possibly be against me?  It tells me that I am more than just a conquer through Christ. 

 

When the battles of life hit (and they will, or they already have) I cannot loose sight of my God.  I cannot let the promises he has given be drowned out by fear.  I need to stand firm and remember that God did not necessarily promise a quick result but a victorious one.  Even when it may seem as if the battle is raging on longer then I have strength I need to remember that God tells me that his strength is enough and I need to simply ask him to help me to learn to rest during the stormy battles and find peace in him.  I will be a victor with Christ by my side.

 

I don't know all the battles going on with every person who may be reading this but I want to encourage each of us to not let the battle cry of our enemy drown out the voice of the LORD.  I want to encourage each of us to lift our voice to the LORD daily and seek the truths and promises he has for us in his word.  You and I are more than conqueror's and God is faithful and will fight for us.

 

I have attached a link to a song by the group The After's called "Battles".  Use it (along with God's word) whenever you start to feel overwhelmed by life to remind you that you are not alone.  Sing it as your battle chant and remind yourself and others who it is that fights for you.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MQJWT017Jwc