Bible Passage: “My dear children, you come from God and belong to God. You have already won a big victory over those false teachers, for the Spirit in you is far stronger than anything in the world.” (1 John 4:4)
Scripture Reading: 2 Kings 6:8-23
In the ‘80s, there was a show called The A-Team. IMDb describes it this way: “Four ex-Army Special Forces soldiers become heroes for hire, after being branded as war criminals for a crime they didn’t commit.”
One of the most famous lines from that TV series was repeatedly said by Colonel John “Hannibal” Smith:
“I love it when a plan comes together.”
Success! We love it when a plan comes together. Often, when that happens, there is a lot of back-patting and self-congratulating.
But the victories that really matter are entirely dependent on the Lord.
Consider Elisha.
God had been the prophet to inform Israel’s king of every move of the enemy king of Aram. This got the king of Aram so angry that he sent horses, chariots, and a strong force to capture Elisha. They arrived in the night and surrounded the city where Elisha was staying.
Elisha’s servant was the first to see the trouble and panicked. But Elisha didn’t seem to share his servant’s fear.
In a few moments, Elisha would be leading that entire army into Israelite custody.
What?
How?
Elisha was so confident of victory because he saw what his servant failed to see at first.
He saw the armies of heaven surrounding the army of Aram.
The most important battles we will ever face in this world are the spiritual battles (Ephesians 6:12). Those are the ones that really matter.
We can experience all kinds of small successes (your team wins the championship, your company gets the contract, you get the promotion), but compared to spiritual battles, these are practically inconsequential.
There is a war for your soul, brothers. The enemy wants you to give in to lust, to pride, to fear, to envy. He wants you to give up on your faith. He wants you to live in discouragement. He wants you to go to hell!
We have no ability to find success in this war on our own.
But, as John says, “Greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4).
We are desperate for a Savior, for a Champion.
It doesn’t matter how much money you have.
It doesn’t matter how intelligent you are.
It doesn’t matter how regularly you go to church.
We will lose this fight without our King Jesus.
Fear the Lord and look to Him for success.
Prayer: Dear Lord, because I live in a world I can easily see, I forget that there is a spiritual realm I can’t easily see. Consequently, I consider my greatest challenges to be worldly challenges and my greatest victories to be worldly victories. Please remind me of the truth. Help me to see clearly that I am in a spiritual battle, one that I am incapable of winning myself. Thank You for being my Rock and Refuge. Thank You for being a strong Fortress to save me. Amen.
Reflection: Do you realize that you are in a spiritual battle? There is a battle for your very soul going on. There is a battle for your wife, your children, your family, and your friends. Do you fight for your family by praying to the Lord on their behalf?
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