HAPPY VETERANS DAY
Today in America is Veterans Day and I salute all
the brave men and women who serve this country in order to protect the life,
liberty and pursuit of happiness that we so enjoy. The soldier deserves one of
the highest honors for it is their duty to protect without question and be
willing to lay down their lives if necessary.
Most every kingdom has a country and the Kingdom of
God is no exception. God employees a innumerable host of invisible angelic
beings that carry out His will from messaging to ministering to marching into
spiritual battles. These beings move in and out about us daily as we live out
earthly lives. They are the Special Forces sent in to support God’s other
branch of servicepersons.
The Christian Church is God’s Army on earth. From
the apostles to the disciples, from the minsters to the deacons, from the
healers to the prayer warriors, the Army of God has been on the move since Adam
and Eve were created in the Garden of Eden.
At the outset Israel was tapped on the shoulder by
God to serve. The prophets and holy people of God carried out Spirit directed
missions to expand the Kingdom of God. These were the scouts and minesweepers that
prepared the way for a more advanced branch of God’s Army, the Christians.
“Through faith subdued kingdoms, worked
righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the
violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made
strong, became valiant in battle, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.
Women received their dead raised to life again.
Others were tortured, not accepting deliverance,
that they might obtain a better resurrection. Still others had trial of
mockings and scourgings, yes, and of chains and imprisonment. They were stoned,
they were sawn in two, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered
about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented— of
whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, in dens
and caves of the earth.” (Hebrews 11:33-39)
These pioneers paved the way for the ultimate
Commander and General in the history of the world, Jesus Christ. The
establishment of His kingdom would be eternal and last forever. He would rule
on the throne of David without end. His followers would pledge their allegiance
to Him, even after death. The battle of the ages was about to commence and
eternal life and death hanged in the balance for billions of souls.
In the next wave of attacks, millions upon millions
have enlisted for the cause of Christ and the Kingdom of God. Leaving friends,
family and former lives behind, they have picked up their cross and followed
Jesus into battle. As their Commander In Chief, Jesus, had done, they were
prepared to sacrifice all, even to their very own lives.
If the great exploits of the army of the Old
Testament saints were not enough to garner the attention of the most astute
military personnel, the Apostle Paul has laid of what the second infantrymen of
God can do and expect.
“Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So
am I. Are they the seed of Abraham? So am I. Are they ministers of Christ?—I
speak as a fool—I am more: in labors more abundant, in stripes above measure,
in prisons more frequently, in deaths often. From the Jews five times I
received forty stripes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods; once I
was stoned; three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I have been in the
deep; in journeys often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils
of my own countrymen, in perils of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in
perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren;
in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, in
fastings often, in cold and nakedness— besides the other things, what comes
upon me daily: my deep concern for all the churches. Who is weak, and I am not
weak? Who is made to stumble, and I do not burn with indignation?
If I must boast, I will boast in the things which
concern my infirmity. The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is
blessed forever, knows that I am not lying. In Damascus the governor, under
Aretas the king, was guarding the city of the Damascenes with a garrison,
desiring to arrest me; but I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall,
and escaped from his hands (2 Corinthians 11: 1- 33)
Enlistment in the Army of God can come at great
peril. Millions upon millions have lost their lives in the battle for the Name
of Christ. Even until the present day, million face ongoing persecution with
facing unjust laws, restrictive freedoms, verbal bashing and accusations, discrimination,
beatings and violence, church burnings, home displacement, rape, maiming, dismemberment,
and murder.
In many places, with no sympathy from governments,
there is an open declaration of war against Christians. These brothers and
sisters are in the thick of battle and many have paid the ultimate price;
death.
Other Christians around the globe face persecution
on a lower level, but nonetheless, they suffer for the Kingdom. Laws are passed
suppressing their freedom of religion. The Name of God and Jesus is banned from
the public square and the Bible is openly mocked and ridiculed. They face
discrimination and alienation and the anti-Christ behavior is only growing.
All these men and women of God, from the Old
Testament to the New Testament, from the slaughters in the Roman Coliseum to
the Inquisitions, from the Muslim invasion to governments persecutions, are
entrenched in the War of Good and Evil.
These brothers and sisters are true Veterans in in
God’s eyes and I salute you! Happy Veterans Day!
God Bless,
http://waitonboaz.com
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