Joshua 10:25 “Do not be afraid or dismayed; be strong and courageous. For thus the LORD will do to all your enemies against whom you fight.”

When God says “fight” its sinful to be passive. When God says “rest” its sinful to strive.

When God gave the land by way of promise to Israel, other tribes and nations were already occupying it. To take possession of the land would be no “walk in the park.” Israel would need a trained army of fighters, and they would need to be employed. Israel also had to wait on God for the specific military strategies at every stage. It would be presumptive to just go out and fight without the Lord’s sanction, just as it would be to remain passive when the Lord said, “now is the time to engage the enemy.” Just because the land was promised to Israel, the enemies of God did not lay down, die, or just move away saying “well here it all is for you then.” There would be fierce hostility and fierce combat if Israel was to see the promises fulfilled.

As we read the Old Testament record we notice that it was actually EXTREMELY rare for God to say “You dont need to fight this battle. I will handle this all myself.” What was usual was for God to say, “You go fight the enemy and know that I will be with you.”

Many times, we as Christians assume the rare thing is the usual thing – that God will just do everything for us. While it is true that God does it all in regenerating us dead sinners and bring us to spiritual life, the rest of the Christian life is a working out of our salvation with fear and trembling, knowing it is God who is at work within us (Phil 2:12,13). The Christian life is a cooperative venture.

As a child of God, you have many great and precious promises. Yet in this life, to possess them may well mean the scary thought of leaving the known, the comfortable, the predictable and the familiar. God will fulfill His many promises and will make you and shape you in the process. Yet His greatest blessings are found outside of the comfort zone. Smooth seas never made a great sailor.

Here’s a sermon I preached called “Rest and Fight!”

I trust it will be a blessing.

There are two mistakes we often make when it comes to the devil. One is the make too much of our foe and attribute almost deity status to him. The devil is not omnipotent (all powerful), omniscient (all wise, all knowing) or omnipresent (everywhere present); so if he is bothering you, he cannot possibly be bothering me at the same time (though he does have many agents under his rule who work on his behalf). The other mistake though is to make too little of him, and not take his schemes against us seriously.

In the famous passage in Ephesians 6 which portrays the saints’ spiritual warfare, notice two things. Firstly, the Apostle Paul likens the conflict to wrestling, which is the closest form of fighting. The original words could be translated “our wrestling match is not against people with bodies…”

Secondly, although Paul could have used the word “against” just once to have easily made his point, he uses it over and over again – five times in all – illustrating the immensity and intensity of the battle each of us are engaged in. Like it or not, we are in a war.

“10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.