Bible
Study: 1 Maccabees 4, 36 to 59. And Luke
19, 45 to 48.
Anyone who
sets out to fight for truth, righteousness and holiness always wins in the end.
The victory of Judas and his brothers which we read about in today’s first
readings over the evil king Antiochus is a victory that assures us of God’s great
hand of support when we fight for him. There is a song that we sing quite
often: “Who can battle with the Lord? Who can battle with the Lord? I say No
body. I say No body.”
Can anyone
destroy God? The book of Proverbs 18 verse 10 says even the very name of the
Lord is a STRONG TOWER. The righteous run to it and they are safe. When it comes
to fighting, King David is one great example of a man who fought wars and
defeated giants even from his very childhood. David revealed his secret in 2nd
Samuel 22 verse 2 to 4 when he said: “The Lord is my rock, my fortress and
my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn
of my salvation. He is my stronghold, my refuge and my savior — from violent men you save me. I call to the
Lord, who is worthy of praise, and I am saved from my enemies.”
God is a
rock, if you run into it, it will crush you. If it falls on you, it will crush
you. We cannot simply allow the enemy to defeat us when we know we have a God
who crushes wars, a God who is greater than anything we can ever think of or
imagine. Just as we pointed out yesterday, when it comes to the battle against
sin, our greatest enemy is our very selves. According to Sir Thomas Browne in
his book Religio Medici written in 1639, “Every man is his own greatest enemy,
and as it were his own executioner.”
If we are
determined to fight against ourselves, that is, fight against our love for sin,
not just because we want to be better than others, but for the sake of our Love
for God, today’s readings assure of us of great victory. The time of battle may
last for a while but as we fight, we stand from a position of advantage. In the
course of his earthly life, Jesus fought many battles and won. He fought with
the devil after his 40days fasting and prayer and the devil could not stop him
from beginning his ministry. Again at the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus fought
again, his sweat was like drops of blood but he succeeded. It was on the Cross
of Calvary that Jesus gave the final fatal blow to Satan.
Dear
friends, no matter how many battles the enemy may present, remember that
victory is yours. Always call on Jesus for help and pick your cross daily because
this battle is not one to be fought on the level of comfort and luxury.
Let us
Pray:
Lord
Jesus, grant me victory daily over myself that by my life, I give you the
worship that you truly deserve. Amen.
Good morning.
Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you.
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