Week of Monday October 6 – October 12
Don’t Lose Heart – Man as Defender
“But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;… So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.” -- 2 Corinthians 4: 7-9, 16-18 ESV
As I relate in my book Never Surrender, my faith came under fire when I took a public stand for Christ. I wore my uniform in the pulpit and spoke from the Bible about the spiritual warfare that was behind the war on terror. The media got wind of it and savagely attacked me with wild accusations. People I respected and assumed would stand with me not only did not do so but even joined the chorus of the critics. Precious few stood by me as defenders. It was a difficult and discouraging season, but the Lord saw me through it. That’s why I can completely identify with Paul’s words there in v 8-9: “We are afflicted in every way but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed.” At the end of the day, the Lord was my Defender, and glory to God, my name was cleared!
When your faith is under fire, that’s when it really kicks into high gear…when there is nothing and no one else left to trust but the Lord as our Defender! The apostle Paul went through much affliction and persecution while serving the churches like the one in Corinth. His words remind them and us of what is truly important. That this is God’s work in us, even the suffering we endure, and it is all for His glory, not ours. Though the challenges of defending the faith in a hostile environment are many, and though sometimes it seems like we are not going to survive, we must look at our circumstances with an eternal perspective. Paul directs us to get our focus off the temporary suffering of life and onto the unseen but real eternal realm, on God and His kingdom. What we do now as defenders of the faith will echo into eternity.
Will we face opposition, hostility, even persecution? Absolutely. Yet, we need to take our stand as defenders of the faith no matter the cost. The first time Paul went to Corinth, he was apparently shaken by the hostile reception and the threats. Yet the Lord appeared to him in a night vision with a word of encouragement: “Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and don’t be silent, for I am with you…” (Acts 18:9-10). What a promise! So don’t lose heart when your faith is under fire. If we can wrap our hearts around the promise of our Lord that He will never leave us or forsake us, we have all we need.
In fact, when our faith is under fire, that’s when God is working in us. Paul wrote: “Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day” (2 Cor. 4:16). The Rev. D.L. Moody, basically the Billy Graham of the 19th century, wisely observed, “Happiness is caused by things that happen around me, and circumstances will mar it; but joy flows right on through trouble; joy flows in the night as well as in the day; joy flows through persecution and opposition. It is an unceasing fountain bubbling up in the heart; a secret spring the world can't see and doesn't know anything about.” So we should not lose heart when our faith comes under fire. God is building our character to take on the next challenge. So even when we are suffering for our faith, let’s allow the joy that comes from the indwelling presence of Jesus inspire us to continue living for and sharing the faith, and yes, defending the faith. May we inspire others to do the same!
Don’t Lose Heart – Man as Defender
“But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;… So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.” -- 2 Corinthians 4: 7-9, 16-18 ESV
As I relate in my book Never Surrender, my faith came under fire when I took a public stand for Christ. I wore my uniform in the pulpit and spoke from the Bible about the spiritual warfare that was behind the war on terror. The media got wind of it and savagely attacked me with wild accusations. People I respected and assumed would stand with me not only did not do so but even joined the chorus of the critics. Precious few stood by me as defenders. It was a difficult and discouraging season, but the Lord saw me through it. That’s why I can completely identify with Paul’s words there in v 8-9: “We are afflicted in every way but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed.” At the end of the day, the Lord was my Defender, and glory to God, my name was cleared!
When your faith is under fire, that’s when it really kicks into high gear…when there is nothing and no one else left to trust but the Lord as our Defender! The apostle Paul went through much affliction and persecution while serving the churches like the one in Corinth. His words remind them and us of what is truly important. That this is God’s work in us, even the suffering we endure, and it is all for His glory, not ours. Though the challenges of defending the faith in a hostile environment are many, and though sometimes it seems like we are not going to survive, we must look at our circumstances with an eternal perspective. Paul directs us to get our focus off the temporary suffering of life and onto the unseen but real eternal realm, on God and His kingdom. What we do now as defenders of the faith will echo into eternity.
Will we face opposition, hostility, even persecution? Absolutely. Yet, we need to take our stand as defenders of the faith no matter the cost. The first time Paul went to Corinth, he was apparently shaken by the hostile reception and the threats. Yet the Lord appeared to him in a night vision with a word of encouragement: “Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and don’t be silent, for I am with you…” (Acts 18:9-10). What a promise! So don’t lose heart when your faith is under fire. If we can wrap our hearts around the promise of our Lord that He will never leave us or forsake us, we have all we need.
In fact, when our faith is under fire, that’s when God is working in us. Paul wrote: “Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day” (2 Cor. 4:16). The Rev. D.L. Moody, basically the Billy Graham of the 19th century, wisely observed, “Happiness is caused by things that happen around me, and circumstances will mar it; but joy flows right on through trouble; joy flows in the night as well as in the day; joy flows through persecution and opposition. It is an unceasing fountain bubbling up in the heart; a secret spring the world can't see and doesn't know anything about.” So we should not lose heart when our faith comes under fire. God is building our character to take on the next challenge. So even when we are suffering for our faith, let’s allow the joy that comes from the indwelling presence of Jesus inspire us to continue living for and sharing the faith, and yes, defending the faith. May we inspire others to do the same!
- Can you remember a time when your faith came under fire? How did you respond?
- Have you ever defended faith and suffered for it? What did you learn from that experience that you could share with someone who is going through some similar challenges?
- Ask the Lord to help you take a stand and defend the faith and even show you a fellow believer who may need you to serve as a Defender.