And Elisha prayed, and said, "Lord, I pray, open his eyes that he may see." Then the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha (2 Kings 6:17).
THEME
GOD'S PROTECTION
One of the purposes for forming the United States of America was "to provide for the common defense." It has not always been easy. At the Constitutional Convention one of the delegates moved to restrict the standing army to five thousand men at any one time. George Washington sarcastically asked one of the other delegates to suggest an amendment--no enemy could invade at any time with more than three thousand troops.
As we all know, whether in war or in everyday life, we cannot control the enemy. In Elisha's day, the Syrian army marched to the city of Dothan at night and surrounded it. Elisha's servant was afraid until the Lord opened his eyes to the heavenly army encircling the Syrians. Elisha prayed for protection, and the Lord blinded rather than killed the enemy.
Much of the Old Testament is about God protecting His people. God did not create the world and then retire to a long winter's night sleep. He has involved Himself in the humdrum and the humdinger.
Many years after He blinded Elisha's enemies, He sent One who gave sight to the blind and called them to follow Him across the battleground to safety. In the upper room Jesus told His followers that they were protected from Satan by the very power of His name. Those of us today who fly His colors can be assured that our enemies never outnumber His troops.
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JUN 03
2 KINGS 6:8-23
"Those who are with us are more than those who are with them"
(2 Kings 6:16).
In the subway in New York City, two youths moved through an underground train and robbed a well-dressed man who appeared to be asleep in his seat. Suddenly the whole car came alive. The victim turned out to be a decoy, and the passengers who jumped up from their seats were police officers. Like lightning, they converged on the young pair and arrested them. Although these officers were "unseen" at first, they provided ample security for riders on that subway car.
We see a similar picture of protection in 2 Kings 6. In a manner more dramatic than what happened on that New York subway, Elisha's servant saw why his master could be so confident in the face of what seemed to be impending disaster. We read that "the Lord opened the eyes of the young man" and he saw an amazing sight (v. 17). An invisible army "of horses and chariots of fire" surrounded Elisha, ready to protect the Israelites from the Syrian army.
Divine protection is not just an Old Testament provision. As God's children, we can put our faith in His mighty defense as we do His will. We can therefore move ahead with confidence, eager to fight the foe. Even when the battle seems to be too great and it appears that we face defeat, we must still trust the Lord. We can encourage ourselves by thinking of Elisha's message to his servants, "Those who are with us are more than those who are with them."
--M.R.D.II
With God behind us and His arms beneath us, we can face whatever lies ahead of us.
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JUN 04
PSALM 59
You have been my defense and refuge in the day of my trouble (Psalm 59:16).
Growing up in a tough Bronx neighborhood, Jerry and Jeff Monroe developed an interest in self-defense early in life. As they got older, they became experts in the martial arts, and they opened a kung fu school in 1978. Later, after several members of their family had fallen victim to street crime, the brothers fought back by forming the Shaolin Protectors to patrol the streets of their neighborhood. Eventually they merged with another vigilante group and formed with Curtis Sliwa the now-famous Guardian Angels.
One day a fellow member of the Guardian Angels walked up to Jerry, pointed his finger at him as if it were a gun, and said "You're good at kung fu. Bang!" Jerry got the point. His skill at self-defense was no match for a loaded gun. Then the other Angel asked, "Where will you spend eternity if you're blown away on patrol?" Jerry admitted he had never thought about that. When Jerry mentioned the incident to his brother, they both realized their need for God in their lives. Today Jeff and Jerry are Christians, and they use their kung fu demonstrations to tell others about the ultimate defense, the kind David celebrated in Psalm 59.
In today's society, we are vulnerable to everything from viruses to nuclear weapons. We need divine protection. We must depend on God, who is our defense and refuge in the day of trouble.
--M.R.D.II
When troubles call on us, we can call on God.
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JUN 05
PSALM 18:1-6
The Lord is . . . my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold (Psalm 18:2).
On a visit to the National Air and Space Museum in Washington D.C., I marveled at the small capsules that carried our first astronauts into space. In particular, the heatshields fascinated me. These protective layers of special material were all that kept the men inside from being burned up as the spacecraft sliced through the atmosphere on its way to splashdown.
THE DETROIT NEWS carried an article about another kind of shield that I find even more amazing--the vast magnetic field that surrounds the earth. Generated by the sun, it is so large that Pioneer 10, which has traveled more than twenty-three trillion miles, has not yet passed out of its protection. Called the heliosphere, this magnetic force shelters our entire solar system from harmful cosmic rays. Without it, life on earth would end.
Recalling the astronauts' heatshield and reading about our solar system's heliosphere made me think of the greatest protective shield of all--God Himself. David wrote, "The Lord is . . . my shield and . . . my stronghold." He knew that the Lord could keep him secure in a hostile world. We too can know that same confidence. Even though Satan may attack us and evil may surround us, the Lord is our protector. Whenever we are frightened by circumstances or feel that the forces against us are too much, we can take comfort in knowing that God's protective shield is more powerful than anything man or nature can provide.
--D.C.E.
God is no security against life's storms, but He is perfect security in life's storms.
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JUN 06
PSALM 27:1-6
The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms (Deuteronomy 33:27).
As I read Deuteronomy 33, I recalled an old song written by Ada Habershon. "When I fear my faith will fail, Christ will hold me fast; when the tempter would prevail, He can hold me fast."
A woman facing difficult trials and troubling circumstances came to W. B. Hinson at the close of a sermon and said, "I'm very much afraid I might fall." Hinson replied, "Well, why don't you do it?" "But Preacher," she protested, "where would I fall to?" "You would fall down into the everlasting arms of God," he replied. Then he said, "I have read in the Bible that His everlasting arms are underneath His children. And you know, I believe that if you fall down upon those everlasting arms, it is sure and certain that you will never fall through them." Without question, the believer can rest in the unfailing strength and support of the omnipotent Father. God bolsters this assurance with a progression of truth in Isaiah 41:10 when He says through the prophet, "I am with you." "I will strengthen you." "I will help you." "I will uphold you with My righteous right hand." And in John 17:11 we read this prayer of our Lord: "Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me." His request will not be thwarted because our Savior has given every believer into the keeping, safeguarding power of the Father. So even when we stumble, we fall into the everlasting arms of His grace.
--P.R.V.
When we get to the place where there's nothing left but God, we find that God is all we need.
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JUN 07
PSALM 139:1-12
"Am I a God near at hand," says the Lord, . . . "Do I not fill heaven and earth?" (Jeremiah 23:23-24).
A legendary man went to a beggar and asked, "Why do they say God is everywhere? I don't see Him anywhere." The beggar picked up a clod of dirt and hit the other with it. When the man complained that it hurt, the beggar said, "You say you have pain in your head. Show it to me and I will believe it."
He made his point. By reminding the man that he didn't have to see pain to know it existed, he helped him understand that neither do we have to see God with our eyes to know He is everywhere present.
The promise of God's omnipresence comforts and encourages the Christian. Scottish preacher Thomas Chalmers wrote long ago, "When I walk by the wayside, God is along with me. When I enter into company amid all my forgetfulness of Him, He never forsakes me. In the silent watches of the night, when my eyelids are closed and my spirit has sunk into unconsciousness, the observant eye of Him who never slumbers is upon me. I cannot flee His presence, go where I will. He leads me and watches me and cares for me. And the same Being who is now at work in the remotest dominions of nature and of providence is also at my hand, to give to me every moment of my being, and to uphold the exercise of all my feelings and of all my faculties." We can rest in the assurance that the unseen God is always near. Wherever we go, He walks with us to lead us, assist us, comfort us, and bless us.
--D.C.E.
A skeptic once asked a Christian, "Where is God?" The Christian answered, "First tell me where He is not."
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JUN 08
PSALM 119:113-120
You are my hiding place and my shield; I hope in Your word
(Psalm 119:114).
In a State of the Union address in the early 1960s, President John F. Kennedy said that each day was drawing us nearer to the hour of maximum danger. And now, over a quarter of a century later, perils such as a nuclear holocaust are a greater possibility than ever. In fact, at the end of 1980, the editors of the BULLETIN OF ATOMIC SCIENTISTS, who use a "doomsday clock" to gauge human history by a twenty-four-hour measurement of time, moved the hands to four minutes to midnight. The escalating nuclear arms race led them to make this change. They reasoned that if an atomic war were to take place, the total destruction of mankind would be inevitable.
In his book NO PLACE TO HIDE, Dr. David Bradley, who monitored the radiology of early atomic bomb tests, wrote, "When one considers that one-millionth of a gram of radium contained within the body may be fatal, one is inclined to turn from calculus to Christianity." Yes, that is the best possible answer, for the Christian can be secure in the presence and love of God. Psalm 91 speaks of the Lord as a secret place, a shadow (suggesting nearness), a refuge, a fortress, a protector, and a deliverer. We are always safe in him.
Whether our danger comes from the threat of war, disease, family crisis, or satanic attack, God is our fortress. Whatever the circumstances--even in a nuclear age--we have a place to hide.
--D.C.E.
No danger can come so near the Christian that God is not nearer.
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JUN 09
PSALM 31:1-16
Be my rock of refuge . . . and my fortress (Psalm 31:2-3).
Protection comes in many forms. A rabbit dives for his hole. A squirrel clings to the backside of a branch. A deer runs for the dense cover of a swamp. A two-year-old runs for his dad's pantleg. A teenager looks for the security of friends. A marine digs in under cover of friendly guns. But what does a Christian do? Where do we hide when surrounded by danger?
David had the answer to that question. When he wrote Psalm 31, things were not going well for him. He was hurting, tired, and weak. His mind was distressed, his heart broken. His enemies were chasing him, and his friends had let him down. Though vulnerable, he was not defenseless. David had a refuge that those who didn't trust Jehovah knew nothing about. He knew that in God is the safest place, and that the wisest defense strategy is having a right relationship with Him. So that's where he found his security. Just as a small child might find confidence in using his older brother's name when threatened by a bully, David called upon the name of God. Because he was living in fellowship with Him, he hid himself in the security of the One who had helped him so many times before and who loved him with an unfailing love.
Are we wise? Are we as quick to seek that same security? We can trust God. He who was a sure hiding place for David is also the One we should cling to for our protection.
--M.R.D.II
Christians find safety not in the absence of danger but in the presence of God.
