The good news of Christ
Heavenly Father,
save me from dying in the desert
because of my discontent —
Let me find reason for gratitude.
Only God,
save me from the pleasure of idolatry,
from deifying desire —
Let me know the true and living God.
Continue reading “Save me”
“I’ll tie one hand behind my back just to make it a fair fight!” says someone who believes himself at a great advantage to start with. But what about God? If He’s going to fight for you, what does He have to do to make it a fair fight for your enemies … or so you can understand His power?
Isaiah records that one angel slew 185,000 Assyrians, and yet Jesus said in Gethsemane that He could call 12 legions of angels to Him if He wanted to. With a legion being 6,000 strong, that’s a total of 72,000 angels capable of handling 13,320,000,000 enemies.
With God on your side, who indeed could stand against you?
I. Judges 7:1-21. But, Gideon didn’t understand that. He lived in a time when the great things that God did for His people were just dusty stories from long ago (don’t know what that’s like!). Just telling Gideon that He will be with him is not enough for trust in God to be built. So, through a series of tests, God shows Gideon that He will take care of him. God had to get Gideon (full of man’s idea of strength) out of the way so God could be seen as GOD. Paring down Gideon’s army to a mere 300, the bully, Midian, flees.
II. Exodus 14. In fact, throughout the Bible God uses impossible situations to show His power. Gideon cites God saving them out of slavery in Egypt with the plagues, but it is at the Red Sea that God is seen as GOD. Armed for battle in all of man’s strength (Exodus 13:17-18), the Israelites were nevertheless disorganized and unprepared to meet Pharaoh’s army. Backed against the water with chariots bearing down on them, God–through Moses–parted the water and the Israelites walked through as on dry ground while the Egyptians drowned.
III. Romans 8:26-31. The cross is, of course, the greatest impossible situation in which God was seen to be GOD. And, we have the reassurance that if God would not even spare His own Son for us that there’s nothing He wouldn’t give us. He fights for those who trust in Him to be GOD, and so He uses those who can get themselves out of the way, be still (Psalm 46:10), and let Him battle for them (1 Corinthians 1:18-31).
But do we? So often we go at the impossible situations in our lives with our own strength and resources. Like Gideon, we need to know that God is GOD, and that when He is fighting for us, there’s nothing resembling a fair fight!
The world is large, and I am small,
What can one person do?
It seems to be an order too tall
To pull just myself through!
How, then, to bring another soul
To love and serve the Lord,
Much less to make the world my goal?
For that, how small’s my sword!
O God eternal, open my eyes
To power beyond my mind,
To love where saving deeds arise,
To words that seek and find.
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Revelation 1
Father, in all affliction, show
your glorious presence, show your power
that shines like the sun at noon, with feet
of flowing bronze, moving quickly,
stars in hand, the mouth of judgment,
the First and Last, who died and arose,
who Was and Is and Ever will Be!
To me bring comfort, Vision of love,
O Flow of freedom, Blood of man;
bring courage to meet the arm of sin,
oppressor of soul; bring faith to win
in face of death, your name confess,
O Holder of keys to Hades’ prison —
open to me the gate of Heaven.
What power your word contains,
And ours in prayer!
No greater work than this,
That supplicants dare.
No stronger love to show
Than save a soul —
Our thanks, O God, to play
This vital role.
Let joy be multiplied,
Removed our shame —
In us be glorified
The blessed Name.
Above, from heaven, look down upon us, O God,
We would not do the worldly things we did,
Alone we cannot win against the flesh,
Give power to put our weakness to the lash.
Build up the will to please our risen Lord,
And every mean and base desire discard,
A holy spirit worthy of heaven’s glory,
For this, O Father, we are in a hurry!
Heavenly Father, heaven is the only worthy goal for the future. All else will perish. Nothing will last except eternal life at your side. Save us!
Powerful Lord, the forces of the world would crush us on every side. The little ones of the earth possess no means of resistance. You alone can protect. Save us!
Only true and living God, the idols of man cannot speak, yet permit their makers to make up a religion that pleases them. All these are nothing but will waste away at the breath of the wind. Save us!
For salvation, see this simple study:
A few minutes with someone who loves you.
In you, O Lord, we live and move
And breathe, to exist forever more.
From nothing you created me,
For the purest glory that Jesus wore.
The stars, my God, seem far away,
And farther still perfection’s goal.
The flesh is too much present here,
In distant light the eternal soul.
Our Father, open heaven’s view,
That we might know the end of war,
And see, with Christ, the faithful few.
From him let us not wander far.
God who rules in heaven above,
Keep me from running to people and places that appear to have the resources I’m looking for. The Israelites ran down to Egypt, and it did them no good. They thought the Egyptian military power would save them. Their dependence upon Egypt was exactly their problem. They trusted in man, rather than in the Lord. They used humanly wisdom, rather than yours.
Let me look to you, Holy One of Israel! I seek my help from your hand. You make the enemy fall. You give your people victory. You care for the humble.
You are the fire that consumes the adversary. Purge from my heart everything opposed to your rule!
Isaiah 31
Father, thank you for the gift of generosity. Show us more and more how to give freely and gladly. We want to be like you in this respect.
Life is a wonderful blessing. Time brings us closer to eternity, and we are grateful for its passing. Trials cause pain, but we rejoice, O Lord, for they cast us upon your care to find relief in your promise.
Make us ever more conscious of our need for salvation and of the subtlety of sin. Awaken us to the power of the gospel. Lord, strengthen us in Christ.
We all have your Spirit. Although our life experiences are different, we know we have equality in Christ and enjoy all the privileges and blessings of eternal life you provide us. The fullness of your presence is available to all, and we praise you for your love of every single soul.