During times of battle, believers commonly find themselves to be underdogs. Faith, however, refuses to retreat and trusts God to overcome superior foes.
Nations are vulnerable and oblivious to their vulnerabilities! At any moment, the Lord could raise up a new nation or destroy one that currently exists.
Rebels are sometimes known as loners. Today’s scripture says that this trait can be attributed to their desire to keep their distance from righteousness. Many who would be identified by these terms do not disassociate from sin or sinners. Instead, they disassociate from truth and righteousness. Righteous thoughts and words have been known to melt the hard heart. They penetrate the rocky soil and begin to break down pride and rebellion. In order for a rebel to remain in his rebellion, he must keep a distance between himself and the truth. The very concepts of righteousness and rebellion refuse to coexist. Hence the battle rages: as the Lord works to draw man’s attention to righteousness, the Devil fights to keep man’s distance from it.
As Necho, king of Egypt, was on his way to fight against Carchemish, king Josiah of Judah came out against him for battle. Necho assured Josiah that the battle did not involve Judah and that the Lord had commanded him to make haste against the house of Carchemish. In order to turn Josiah’s intervention, Necho reminded Josiah that his intervention would be meddling with the will of God. Josiah refused to listen to the warning and meddled in these matters costing him his life (2 Chronicles 35:22-24). Gamaliel, a doctor of the law, expressed a similar statement when he told his peers that they should let the apostles alone lest they fight against God (Acts 5:34-39).
It is not a common practice for people to desire or pray for confusion. Yet, there are times in the word of God when believers pleaded with the Lord in hopes that He might send confusion to their enemies. For instance, David entreated the Lord to send confusion to those who devised (Psalm 35:4), desired (Psalm 70:2), and rejoiced at his hurt (Psalm 35:26). Perhaps those chasing David would be led by the Lord in the wrong direction. Perhaps the Lord would allow David’s enemies to turn against each other rather than being united together in killing David. Regardless, David knew there would be times when his enemies would have the ability to overtake him. In those times, he asked the Lord to intervene on his behalf by confusing them.
Many people suffer from gerascophobia which is the fear of growing old. Perhaps this condition is ultimately the fear of death rather than simply growing old, but other conditions indicative of old age cause people to fret. One of these concerns was expressed by the penman of Psalm 71. On two separate occasions, he requested that the Lord would not forsake him when he was old and grayheaded (Psalm 71:9, 18). The Lord knew the fears of man and promised, “even to your old age . . . and even to the hoar hairs will I carry you: I have made, and I will bear; even I will carry, and will deliver you” (Isaiah 46:4). The thought of growing old should not bring fear or trepidation to God’s people. In fact, the Bible points to it as a blessing and one of the greatest blessings the Jewish people will experience in the kingdom (Zechariah 8:4).
Though the means of worldly safety have changed throughout time, people have always put their trust in various things to offer temporary safety. The Bible depicts those who trusted in fenced walls (Deuteronomy 28:52), nations (Isaiah 30:2-3), horses, horsemen and chariots (Isaiah 31:1), weapons (Psalm 44:6), and mountains (Amos 6:1). People today place their trust in weapons, security systems, governments, insurance policies, and even medicines. Though the sources of trust have changed, the Lord remains just as grieved today when men place their trust upon the things of this world rather than upon Him. Ultimately, every source of worldly safety will fail, often in the moment we perceive as our greatest time of need.
