Isaiah 59:17,19 For He put on righteousness as a breastplate, And a helmet of salvation on His head; He put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, And was clad with zeal as a cloak. So shall they fear The name of the Lord from the west, And His glory from the rising of the sun; When the enemy comes in, like a flood The Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him.
Romans 13:12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light.
Over the last week, tensions have escalated significantly following the assassination of an Iranian General and several terrorist leaders within the Iranian Embassy compound in Damascus. This week also coincides with the conclusion of Ramadan, during which there have been heightened calls from terrorist groups for attacks against Jewish and Christian communities. The war drums are beating … and the question is — how should we as believers respond?
First, we have to win the spiritual battle that we’re currently fighting! Whether you realize it or not, we as believers have been at war since we came to faith!
“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” Thus Paul instructed us in Ephesians. We fight against the kingdom of Satan.
We fight with spiritual weapons; prayer, the Word of God, faith in His truth, and His power– these are not carnal weapons but spiritual. We are seated in the heavenlies with Him [Ephesians 1:20], and in His authority, we make our stand.
The enemy’s weapons are temptations, fiery darts of doubt and disbelief, discouragement, weariness, earthly pleasures. Thus the enemy distracts us from and disarms us in the battle position.
But what soldier goes to war without taking the equipment necessary for war? A soldier on the battlefield without his weapons is useless and helpless and in great danger.
So it is in the spiritual realm. We need to actively take up our spiritual armor and weapons to fight the enemy. And we have this promise — when the enemy comes in — like a flood the Spirit of the Lord shall raise up a standard against Him! Are you ready to make your stand in this day?
Now, today, war is a very real threat in the physical realm – but it’s already been here for millennia in the spiritual realm. So by all means necessary take up the armor of God today – stand with Him in faith and win your battle, one day at a time — win the battle over your thoughts and your actions. YHVH Tz’vaot, “The LORD of Hosts” is with you, to strengthen, equip, and overcome; and His victory is assured!
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[worthy_plugins_devotion_single_body]Why is it that some believers seem to go much deeper in their walk with God than others? I believe it has to do with a desire to pursue God and not to stop until they feel His very presence in their lives. These believers decide not to settle for anything less than a growing, vibrant relationship with God, and God honors that desire for those who seek it.
This pivotal passage of scripture, Isaiah 52 and continuing into Isaiah 53, profiles a suffering servant whom the nation of Israel would not recognize. The spiritual leaders of Yeshua’s (Jesus) day were blinded to the messianic passages which pointed to the messiah’s role as a humble servant and bearer of sins.
A recent study by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and University of California Los Angeles wanted to find out, “if you had to choose between more time and more money, what would it be?” While they found most respondents answered, “more money”, they also found that those who preferred “more time” were generally happier! When I read this article, it reminded me of a story, that I’d like to share.
The Lord spoke to Moses, who led the children of Israel out of Egypt to be desperately cornered with the Red sea before them and Pharaoh’s chariots advancing upon them from behind. Overwhelmed with terror they cry out to Moses, “It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!” Having just miraculously escaped from the miserable life of slavery, and only beginning their new life of freedom, the children of Israel were faced with the most dire threat to their existence.
Over the past few weeks, we’ve begun a series of devotions based on the Exodus wanderings of the Children of Israel, and their tragic mistakes which we can learn from and avoid. One powerful influence common to their failures was fear.
For the past two weeks we have examined lessons from the OT account of Israel’s Exodus from Egypt in hope of avoiding the errors and attitudes of the children of Israel. This week we will draw connections between the Exodus and the prophecies in the book of Revelation.
For the past two weeks we’ve been building life lessons derived from the Exodus wanderings and from Paul’s exhortations to the church in Corinth. Notice carefully that Paul says, “these were written for our admonition upon whom the ends of the ages have come”…
…that is, written for us today! – admonitions from Paul to learn lessons from the history of the children of Israel.