Sometimes, troubles come in herds. I think of the family that pitched their tent on a camping trip. During the night, the mosquitoes inside the tent feasted on them. The dad sprayed them with repellant and thought he had killed the pests. A little later, out of nowhere, a lightening bug appeared in the tent. The youngest son expressed his exasperation: “I give up. They are coming after us with flashlights.”
David and his men might have felt that way. Humiliated by the Ammonites, they prepared to battle, only to discover the Aramaeans had joined their enemies. In that moment, Joab urged the men to fight for God and their cities. Everything was on the line. They had to fight hard to win.
In our cultural despair, Christians today may feel like the ones opposed to God have teamed up against those who are for God. To win this decadent world to Christ remains a daunting task. The forces arrayed against us often prove to be formidable. But as Elisha later showed his servant, “Those who are for us are more than those who are against us” (2 Kings 6:16). Or as John told the early Christians, “Greater is he who is in you than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4).
After General Joab led the Israelites to victory, the Aramaeans decided not to gang up on the Israelites again. God wants all in our world to know him and to love him. But in the final battle, those who reject relationship with God will lose, eternally. Prayer is our way forward. Let us fight bravely for our people and our cities by sharing the good news of Christ. The gospel works because it is true.
E. Stanley Jones was right when he said, “The early Christians succeeded because they did not lower their eyes in despair saying, ‘Look what the world has come to.’ Instead, they lifted their eyes in delight and said, “Look Who has come to the world.” Jesus has come. We who walk with him win in the end. Our God can do anything but fail. Do not be discouraged.
