Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to faithhopegodlove@aol.com In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
Then panic struck the whole army—those in the camp and field, and those in the outposts and raiding parties—and the ground shook. It was a panic sent by God.
Saul's lookouts at Gibeah in Benjamin saw the army melting away in all directions. Then Saul said to the men who were with him, "Muster the forces and see who has left us." When they did, it was Jonathan and his armor-bearer who were not there.
Saul said to Ahijah, "Bring the ark of God." (At that time it was with the Israelites.) While Saul was talking to the priest, the tumult in the Philistine camp increased more and more. So Saul said to the priest, "Withdraw your hand."
Then Saul and all his men assembled and went to the battle. They found the Philistines in total confusion, striking each other with their swords. Those Hebrews who had previously been with the Philistines and had gone up with them to their camp went over to the Israelites who were with Saul and Jonathan. When all the Israelites who had hidden in the hill country of Ephraim heard that the Philistines were on the run, they joined the battle in hot pursuit. So the Lord rescued Israel that day, and the battle moved on beyond Beth Aven.
1 Samuel 14:15-23
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
At the start of Chapter 14, we saw where Jonathan and his armor bearer defeated a Philistine outpost. After their victory, the Philistine army was in disarray, struck by a panic that scripture tells us was “sent by God”. As the “ground shook”, the whole army…“those in the camp and field…in the outposts and raiding parties”…were seen by Saul’s lookouts as “melting away in all directions”.
So Saul mustered his forces and found that Jonathan and his armor bearer were missing before commanding the priest Ahijah to “Bring the ark of God”. Meanwhile, the “tumult in the Philistine camp increased more and more”…so much more that Saul assembled all his men and went to battle where they “found the Philistines in total confusion, striking each other with their swords”. Scripture tells us that Saul and his men were joined by the “Hebrews who had previously been with the Philistines and had gone up with them to their camp” as well as “all the Israelites who had hidden in the hill country of Ephraim”. The “Philistines were on the run” as the “Lord rescued Israel that day”.
Note the word of God here. For the Lord rescued Israel. Not Saul. Not Jonathan. Not any man or woman. No…God was the One who did the rescuing. He did it then and He does it today.
We need to keep this in mind as we face difficulties in our lives. We serve a God who rescues us and with that rescue, brings us so much more. Consider these scripture passages:
1. The Lord provides us support and rescues us because He delights in us.
He (the Lord) reached down from on high and took hold of me; He drew me out of deep waters. He rescued me from my powerful enemy, from my foes, who were too strong for me. They confronted me in the day of my disaster, but the Lord was my support. He brought me out into a spacious place; He rescued me because He delighted in me. Psalm 18:16-19
We can’t rescue ourselves. We need a rescuer, someone who will support us when we are in distress…someone who can snatch us away from danger and move us to a more secure place…someone who loves and delights in us enough that He desires for us to be saved.
This is the God we serve. Always there for us. Always ready to intervene and save us. Always loving us.
2. The Lord avenges us, subdues our enemies and exalts us over our foes.
He is the God who avenges me, who subdues nations under me, who saves me from my enemies. You exalted me above my foes; from violent men you rescued me. Therefore I will praise you among the nations, O Lord; I will sing praises to Your name. Psalm 18:47-49
Many people will come against us in life but we need never worry about our foes because we serve a God who rescues and avenges us, exalting us above our foes. In Him, we are protected and lifted up.
Truly, if God is with us who can be against us? (Romans 8:31) The answer is no one and this is why we, like the Psalmist should praise God among the nations and sing praises to His name…now and forever.
3. The Lord hears our cries, saves us from distress and heals us with His word.
Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and He saved them from their distress. He sent forth His word and healed them; He rescued them from the grave. Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for men. Psalm 107:19-21
How often do we find ourselves in need…looking for help? And how often do we find ourselves turning to the Lord, our refuge and ever present help (Psalm 46:1), in those times?
We turn to the Lord because we know He’s the only One who is ALWAYS there for us…every day and every night. And because He is with us always, He is always there to hear our cries for help, come to us in our distress and heal us through His word…a word that would ever tell us to not be afraid for He is with us. No one else can do this for us and this is why we give thanks to the Lord for His unfailing love and wonderful deeds for us.
4. Ultimately, the Lord rescues all of us through His Son.
For He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Colossians 1:13-14
We can’t talk about the Lord and the matter of rescuing without talking about Jesus...the Son that God loves…the Son that God sent to rescue us from darkness and bring us redemption…the One who brought us deliverance from our sins and the opportunity to enter the God’s Kingdom to share life forever with Him and His Son.
Do you know that you are rescued by God today through His Son? Better yet, do you know your Rescuer…your Savior, Jesus Christ?
If you know Him, continue to grow in Him this advent season as we once again anticipate the celebration of His coming.
If you don’t know Jesus, there’s no better time to get acquainted with Him than now. He’s waiting for you and ready to rescue you forever. And there’s no better gift you’ll receive this year than your salvation. Trust in that. Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
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