Friday, July 29, 2011

RUNNING ON EMPTY

One of the more intriguing experiences (at least to me) in the life of King David occurs in 2 Samuel 18:19-32. David’s son Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel and tried to take the kingdom away from his father. David’s great general, Joab, went to war with the army that Absalom had raised up and when Absalom tried to run away, he was killed by Joab and his men. (18:7-14).

Joab and the other leaders had insisted that David not go out to the battle that day. Upon Absalom’s death, Joab wanted a runner to take the news to the king and just as he was preparing to select the runner, a young man, Ahimaaz, stepped up and said, “Let me run and take the news to the king.” But Joab said, “No, you can take the news another day,” and he selected an unnamed man, probably one of his servants, and sent him with the message.

Even after being told no, Ahimaaz kept pestering Joab. “Please, please let me run.” Joab asked, “Why do you want to run since you have no news?” Ahimaaz responded, “There doesn’t need to be a reason, I just want to run.” Joab replied, “Fine, then run!”

Ahimaaz was a better runner than the Cushite who was given the message by Joab. Ahimaaz passed the official runner and got to King David first and the king asked him if Absalom was safe (18:29). Ahimaaz replied, “I know there was a great fight but I don’t know what the outcome was.” David gently rebuked the boy and said, “You are in the way. Stand over there.” Then the appointed runner arrived and tactfully gave David the news that the battle had been won but his son Absalom was dead.

Why did Ahimaaz insist that he be allowed to run even though he had no message? We really do not know for sure. Perhaps it was the excitement and energy of the battle, or perhaps it was just because he loved to run. His running was confusing to David at a time when he really didn’t need any confusion.

There are at least two important truths to be learned from this intriguing story. The first is for all of us who have been “called” into service by the Lord.

God called me into His service when I was studying business in my first year at the University of British Columbia. I transferred to a Bible college in California, met Carol, and we married in 1965. In 1967 David Wilkerson asked us to come to New York and assist him in his crusade ministry, so for the next eight years I served as his Crusade Director and it was a journey that was nothing short of incredible.

After eight years with David Wilkerson, God said the most shocking thing to me: “Your time here is complete and I have other work for you to do.” If you don’t think I argued with the Lord, you’re wrong. Why would I want to leave? I didn’t have to leave, things were going better than well, but God’s word to me never changed: “Your time here is complete.” I met with Brother Dave one day and told him what I understood the Lord had said to me. I will never forget how he responded. He quietly looked at me and said, “David, look me in the eye and tell me this is God!” and I did. His response to me was, “What can I do to help?” He wanted to know that I had a definite “word” from the Lord—and I did.

Taking a step into any kind of ministry venture without a word from the Lord is dangerous. Taking a step into ministry based on “good intentions” is running on empty. A lot of very good ministry ventures end in failure because they were begun without a “word from the Lord,” without a clear sense of direction. We tend to blame the devil when the venture fails but the fact is that those who began the venture were running on empty and when opposition arose, they had no word, no promise to fall back on.

The second thing we learn from this incident is for all who call themselves a follower of Jesus. “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have” (1 Peter 3:15, NIV). If someone asked you today the difference Jesus Christ has made in your life, could you explain to that person, simply and clearly? If you have to struggle to find an answer, it doesn’t mean you are unsaved, it just means you are running on empty. You need to take the time to reflect and pray and fill yourself with the “word of the Lord.”

When King David asked Ahimaaz a specific question, he could not give an answer because he didn’t have one and the king set him aside. Why did Ahimaaz run? We don’t know but one thing we do know is that he was running on empty and nothing satisfactory came out of that.

Friday, July 22, 2011

THUNDERING FEET

What mental image do the words “thundering feet” bring to mind? Maybe you think of hundreds of soldiers marching in unison across a parade ground, each step sounding like “thunder.” Perhaps it is a picture of the beautiful, huge Clydesdale horses as a team of six pulls a wagon on a snowy, wintry night, their hooves striking the pavement like the rumble of “thunder.”

In 2 Kings 7 we see another picture of “thundering feet.” The king of Syria, Ben-Hadad, had laid siege to the city of Samaria in Israel. Trapped in the city was the royal household of Israel and the prophet Elisha. The Syrians had cut off all food supplies and the situation was getting desperate; the people of the city were resorting to increasingly terrible and uncivil behavior.

Just when things were at their very worst, the unexpected happened and the massive army of the Syrians ran away. For the Lord had caused the army of the Syrians to hear the noise of chariots and the noise of horses—the noise of a great army; so they said to one another, Look, the king of Israel has hired against us the kings of the Hittites and the kings of the Egyptians to attack us! Therefore they arose and fled at twilight, and left the camp intact—their tents, their horses, and their donkeys—and they fled for their lives” (vv. 6-7 NKJV).

The Syrians had been frightened by the “thundering feet” of what they thought was an approaching army. The noise was so deafening that terror gripped the Syrian soldiers and they fled, leaving their equipment, weapons, food, clothes and animals. The “thundering feet” of the approaching army had overwhelmed them and they ran away in fear.

Now let’s rewind the tape and see what really happened. Remember, there was a famine in the besieged city of Samaria. The people of the city were behaving badly. Out by the main gate of the city were four men dying from leprosy and they agreed among themselves, “If we go into the city, we will die and if we stay here and do nothing, we will die. Let’s go over to the camp of the Syrians and surrender; the worst thing that can happen to us is that we will die. Maybe they will take pity on us and spare us and give us a little to eat. So what do we have to lose? Nothing! Let’s go!”

It wasn’t a great army that caused the Syrians to flee, it was the shuffling footsteps of four sick and dying lepers walking across the desert sand. How does God take the muted footsteps of four men who are sick and hardly walking and make it sound like the terrifying march of thousands of armor-clad warriors? How does God do that? I don’t have a clue. Heaven’s technical abilities are far beyond anything any of us can understand. I just know that God can do things like that.

The “thundering feet” of the lepers became the point of deliverance for all of Israel. When the lepers discovered that the enemy had fled, they began to plunder the tents and supplies of the encampment. It wasn’t long before the lepers realized that what they were doing was not right and they said, “We are not doing what is right. This day is a day of good news, and we remain silent” (2 Kings 7:9 NKJV).

The lepers rushed back to the city as fast as their shuffling feet and sick bodies would take them and reported the good news. After some initial disbelief, the people of the city came out and joined in the plundering. In one day they had gone from, “The cupboard is bare and I may eat your left leg today” to, “It’s party time!”

Today is a day of good news for us!

God loves to confound our enemies and that’s good news. I call what happened with the four lepers “the confounding effect.” I base this on 1 Corinthians 1:27: “But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty.”

Our acts of obedience and steps of faith are the fuel that releases the “confounding effect.”

Friday, July 15, 2011

WORSHIP LEADS THE WAY TO VICTORY!

A huge enemy army was on its way to crush Judah. When King Jehoshaphat became aware of the impending invasion, the enemy was just days away from Jerusalem. This was long before the invention of any kind of rapid communication, so unless someone came and told you what was coming, it would be upon you before you had any knowledge. In many ways it’s still the same today, as problems often arrive suddenly with little or no prior knowledge.

King Jehoshaphat was alarmed and overwhelmed by the impending attack, so he prayed and called for a nationwide time of fasting (2 Chronicles 20:3). This is a very rich chapter and I can only touch on part of it in this article. We will visit here again in the near future.

Jehoshaphat led his nation in prayer and together they cried out to God for help (vv. 6-12). The heart of that prayer is, “We have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are on You” (v. 12, NKJV).

The answer to this prayer came through one of the Levitical worship team members who began to prophesy and brought the Word of the Lord to the nation. The essence of the word was, “Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God’s . . . . You will not need to fight in this battle. Position yourselves, stand still and see the salvation of the Lord, who is with you . . . . Do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them, for the Lord is with you.” (20:15-17, NKJV).

Jehoshaphat’s response to this powerful word was instantaneous and important. The king immediately bowed before the Lord as an act of submission and acceptance of the Word of the Lord and in worship. The whole nation followed his lead and they too bowed and worshipped.

The next day the people of Judah did as they were instructed and went out and positioned themselves to fight with the Word of the Lord still ringing in their ears, “The battle is not yours, but God’s.”

What happens next is truly enlightening. Jehoshaphat appointed a group of worshippers to go out in front of the army to “sing to the Lord . . . praise the beauty of holiness . . . they went out before the army and were saying: ‘Praise the Lord, for His mercy endures forever’” (20:21).

What a powerful truth we are given: Worship leads on the road to victory! Will we ever learn?

As the people of God were worshipping and praising, miraculous things began to happen. “The Lord set ambushes against the enemy” (v. 22). The Lord had some surprises in store for the enemy and suddenly the invading armies began to fight among themselves. When one army had destroyed the other, the warriors of the victorious army began to fight among themselves. Worship brings confusion and discord into the ranks of our enemy. Worship leads the way on the road to victory! Will we ever learn?

The Lord made these truths real to me during my months of treatment for cancer. There were many nights when sleep was impossible; wherever sleep was, it wasn’t in my neighborhood. I am most susceptible to anxiety and fear when I am alone and it is quiet, and most often this is at night. When I am tired and not feeling well, the combination of all components provides an open door for fear to take hold. I learned when this began to happen that I needed to begin to worship and praise Him. As I entered into worship, many times I would sense the presence of the Lord but even if I didn’t I found that as I worshipped, the fear that was trying to get a grip on me would be overwhelmed by the worship. Worship led me and kept me on the road to victory.

How do you worship when all hell is breaking loose around you and things seem impossible? It’s my experience that you just begin by thanking and praising Him for your salvation, for the Holy Spirit, for the Word, for the privilege of prayer, for the many blessings that He has given. The more you worship and magnify Him, the more things will come to mind, and the more you praise, the more His presence will manifest itself (Psalm 22).

Now that I am on the other side of the cancer treatment, there are still many nights that I am awake, so I get up and go to the den or into my office and spend time worshipping Him. Why? Because He loves me, I love Him, and I want to stay on the road to victory!

But doesn’t 1 John 5:4 (NKJV) say, “And this is the victory that has overcomes the world—our faith”? Yes, it does—and what is worship but an act and expression of faith? The people of Judah acted in faith when they were obedient to the direction of God’s Word and they acted in faith by letting worship lead them into battle and on to victory. Will we ever learn?

Friday, July 8, 2011

FAITH AND "LITTLE FAITH"

Last week my blog post was about learning to “be still” taken from, “Be still and know that I am God…” (Psalm 46:10). A portion of that article discussed the encounter between Jesus, His disciples—and a storm. The Sea of Galilee is known for the sudden appearance of storms and when this particular storm came, the disciples cried out in panic, “We are going to die!” (Matthew 8:25).

Jesus had made the decision to take the boat across the lake. The day had been busy, filled with teaching and ministry, and soon after the boat began the crossing, Jesus lay down and went to sleep. When He was awakened Jesus spoke first to the panicked disciples, “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?” The Master then turned his attention directly on the storm, rebuking the wind and the sea—and immediately it became calm (Matthew 8:26).

“Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?” I have always assumed that “little faith” in the original language used the same word for faith as that used for faith in Hebrews 11—simply referring to a very small amount of faith. In Hebrews 11 the Greek word for faith is pistis, which means conviction, confidence, trust, belief, trustworthiness. It is the divinely implanted principle of inward confidence, assurance, trust and reliance in God and all that He says. So my natural assumption was that the Lord was saying to the disciples, “Hey, you need a little more faith in this situation,” but I was wrong!

“Little faith” is not the word pistis but instead is oligopistos. “Little faith” is describing a faith that lacks confidence or trusts too modestly. Another way to describe it is “underdeveloped faith” and these words described the disciples. At this point, they were not yet men of faith and Jesus was chiding them for their lack in this area.

A second incident in Matthew 14 helps us see more clearly what the Lord is teaching here. Again the story involves the Sea of Galilee, the disciples, a boat and a storm (Matthew 14:22-33). Jesus sent the disciples to the boat, instructed them to go across the sea without Him and, yes, a storm came. In the midst of the storm the disciples began to scream like little girls as they suddenly saw Jesus in a place they never dreamt they would. The Lord was walking on the water toward them and the disciples were freaked out. Peter, recognizing that this was not a ghost but was really Jesus, asked, “Can I come there, too?” and Jesus responded, “Come” (Matthew 14:29). Peter began to walk on the water and for a few minutes did just fine. How great would this be, to be able to defy the laws of nature and show off in front of your friends?

When Peter was focused on the Lord he stayed in faith; when he focused on the conditions of the sea around him, he started to sink and cried out to the Lord, “Save me” (Matthew 14:30). Immediately Jesus reached out to Peter, lifted him out of the water, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” The word for little faith here in the original is the same one used in Matthew 8:26 (oligopistos). When Jesus asked Peter, “Why did you doubt?” it is a question that throws a lot of light on why many of us are God’s children with “little faith.” The word doubt means to stand divided, to try and follow two paths at the same time. Jesus was asking a question and answering the question at the same time.

The church of the twenty-first century, at least in the United States, is largely a church of “little faith.” We are essentially a people with divided loyalties and we ask the Lord, “Why doesn’t my faith work?” The Lord answers us the way He spoke to the disciples and to Peter: “Why are you so fearful? Why do you doubt, O you of the church of little faith?”

Little faith is faith without a fixed focus. Like Peter out on the water, “little faith” is easily distracted. Whether the stock market is going down or the price of gas is going up, individuals walking in faith are not distracted and their faith remains steadfast, it does not waver.

My personal journey with cancer these last eight months uncovered “little faith” for me to see personally and I had to confront it. My teaching about faith is not faith; my saying I have faith is good but just saying it does not mean it is faith. The way I live and carry out my life is faith.

To say, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” is a declaration about faith but it is not faith. It is when you begin
to “do” that you begin to really live by faith. “Faith without works is dead [useless]” (James 2:20).

So who else is ready to abandon the ranks of “little faith”? I have already said goodbye to that place of underdeveloped faith and by His grace I’m moving on up!