Monday, October 10, 2011
Exodus 17:8-13 Now Amalek came and fought with Israel in Rephidim. And Moses said to Joshua, "Choose us some men and go out, fight with Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the rod of God in my hand." So Joshua did as Moses said to him, and fought with Amalek. And Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. And so it was, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed; and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed. But Moses' hands became heavy; so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it. And Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side; and his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. So Joshua defeated Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword.
SOME BATTLES WE MUST FIGHT
When Israel was attacked by the Egyptians at the Red Sea, they didn't have to do anything. The people just watched as God did all the work and defeated Egypt for them. God opened up the sea to let Israel cross on dry ground, then when the army of Egypt pursued, God brought the waters back on top of them and destroyed the entire army. Israel just watched and rejoiced in God's victory.
Now when Israel thought they were free from their enemies, a new enemy attacked -- the Amalekites. This time Israel had to fight for themselves. Joshua gathered an army to go fight against Amalek, but it was the Lord who granted the victory.
Isn't that the same in our lives? At Calvary, God went to battle for us against Satan, sin and death. There was nothing for us to do but watch as God defeated our great enemies. In our baptisms, we passed through the water, so to speak, and were freed from those enemies. Now, we are faced with new enemies and new battles which we must fight ourselves. These are great spiritual battles, battles for our faith and life. That's why the Apostle Paul urges us to "Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, to which you were also called and have confessed the good confession in the presence of many witnesses" (1 Timothy 6:12).
Even though we have to fight these battles, the outcome is guaranteed in the Lord. This week we are going to be looking at Israel's battle against the Amalekites to gain some insight and reassurance as we face the many spiritual battles of life. May God bless us through this study so that we can fight the good fight of faith.
