Military Preparedness

Psalm 18:30-36

          Militaries around the world and throughout history have trained for conflict. Because evil resides in the heart of each and every one of us, conflicts will happen. And despite our best human efforts they get out of control. In our day and age there are those who want to start conflicts, create chaos, stir up rivalries, and stoke hatred. Their goal is the breakdown of society. They want the power structures demolished so that they can come in and take over.

          No matter how much we want peace here on earth it won’t happen until the Prince of Peace returns. We might be able to negotiate a temporary halt to conflict, but because the source of conflicts lay within us, peace won’t be permanent until we all are at peace with the LORD.

          David, the writer of our psalm, has been on the receiving end of unwanted conflict. The type of conflict ranged from a very personal vendetta held by the current King of Israel, Saul, to military conflicts with neighboring peoples who were displaced when the Jews were delivered from Egypt and given the Promised Land. For some strange reason they didn’t want to give up their land without a fight. And because the processes wasn’t completed as the LORD commanded, there were episodic battles with those remnants.

          This psalm is written after the battle with Saul had ended and David was again free from mortal threat. David didn’t take credit for his own deliverance. In fact, he bends over backwards giving the LORD credit for what happened. He had been empty, used up, worn out and the LORD intervened. David gives all the glory to the LORD.

          In today’s section of this psalm we see many references to military connected things. David was, after all, a might military leader and fighter in his own right. During those years he was in hiding from Saul’s murderous threats, David gathered around him the strongest and fiercest warriors. He, with the leading of the LORD, was able to defeat many an enemy. Military leaders, even in today’s military, study these battles to learn the application of battle techniques and strategies.

          David gives credit to the LORD for protection. The LORD is his shield and protection. The LORD is the only God who can do these kinds of interventions. He provides strength as a weapon and security along the way. If we have learned anything in our current conflicts it is that getting from place to place can be the most dangerous part of the mission. With the proliferation of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) travel became very dangerous and deadly. Ambushes have happened all down through time. David was both the object of ambush and the operating force in ambushing his enemies.

          One of the greatest concerns of any military is the condition of the soldier’s feet. If their feet fail, the army fails. So having feet like a deer, that never seem to fail and can take them securely to any height, would be a great advantage. David is of course not speaking of literal feet of a deer, but of the stability, endurance and reliability of the LORD’s strength.

          Most military tasks require the use of hands and arms. So having strength in these areas is crucial to military effectiveness. But strength alone is not enough. The strength must be trained for the specific battle tasks that will be undertaken. Pushups only build general strength in the upper body. Someone who loads ammunition must develop specific strengths and agilities to accomplish their task quickly and efficiently. That takes specific training, repetition under stress. David says that the LORD trained his hands for battle. Starting as a young boy, David had been presented with a series of challenges that required specific skills. These trained him for battle. A lion and a bear come to mind.

          And in the end David was saved and sustained by the LORD’s strength. He was provided a safe place to walk and the strength to walk it. And David gives the credit to the LORD. Many other rules of this world have taken credit for their rise to power and tight grip on it. But David recognized his rise as nothing other than the LORD’s favor on his life.

          To whom do you give credit for the achievements you have in your life? Does your heart yield?

The Twenty-Plus-Three’s

Psalm 23, 53, 83, 113, 143

Psalm 23 is perhaps the most familiar psalm in all the psalms. What powerful and comforting words! Because the LORD is in charge of my life, I have no need that He doesn’t satisfy. Provision for body and soul. Guidance. Protection. Empowerment for the task at hand. Blessing. His presence. No wonder this psalm means so much to so many.

There is only one hope, and it doesn’t lie with the atheists (Ps 53:1). The sad thing is that there are so few people who really serve the LORD. Many have the appearance of a spiritual life, but spiritual is not good enough. I love verse four. “Do all these evildoers know nothing?” It is as if the psalmist is saying, “You have got to be kidding! You are going to continue to try and deny God’s existence and His authority over your life? How stupid is that!” Evil people don’t really know the stakes at hand. They think that if they ignore God they won’t have to pay the consequences for their wicked ways. The psalmist hopes that the LORD will restore His people and bring victory.

Psalm 83 is a prayer of petition. The writer wants the LORD to act, to get involved on his behalf. He wants the LORD to get involved as He has so many other times in Israel’s history. The word pictures of God’s judgment that are painted capture the vivid imagination and depth of emotional involvement of the writer. And all this to the end that the LORD’s fame would be universally understood, that they would know that He alone is God.

The universality of the message of the Scripture is capture in Psalm 113. The whole earth is His domain (v3). All nations, even the heavens themselves are nothing compared to the LORD. He is exalted above them all (vv4-6). No one is too lowly or insignificant to garner the LORD’s attention. Notice verse nine. Even the childless woman, someone at the bottom of the social ladder of her day, gets the privilege of raising children. No one gets overlooked.

The Psalmist in Psalm 143 has a picture of God, an accurate one I might add, that when the LORD turns His back on people, life is as good as over (v7). They desperately want the LORD’s answer (v8). When was the last time you desperately wanted or felt you needed the LORD’s answer? That sense of desperation can be crippling if we try to deal with it absent from God’s presence. The secret that the Psalmist discovered was to take the struggle directly into God’s presence. There he could find an answer that could satisfy.