5/2/12 THE LORD WILL FIGHT FOR YOU

Kevin Jesmer NIU UBF   Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Deuteronomy 20:1-20
Key Verse: 20:4

“For the LORD your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory.”

Lord Jesus, thank you for your grace and truth. Thank you for the gospel and the mission of Jesus that satisfies my soul and gives me something satisfying and life giving to apply my heart to. I am really excited about Deuteronomy daily bread devotionals. Help me to get all I can out of the reading. I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen!

Part 1: Do Not Be Afraid (1-9).
We must never be afraid when we are called to fight the Lord’s battles. Verses 1-4 read, “When you go to war against your enemies and see horses and chariots and an army greater than yours, do not be afraid of them, because the LORD your God, who brought you up out of Egypt, will be with you. 2 When you are about to go into battle, the priest shall come forward and address the army. 3 He shall say: ‘Hear, Israel: Today you are going into battle against your enemies. Do not be fainthearted or afraid; do not panic or be terrified by them. 4 For the LORD your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory.”

Times of war were bound to come. God’s people did not have fortified cities or highly developed weaponry and armies. It would be very easy, and reasonable for them to panic and run. But in periods of aggression, they should guard their hearts and minds so as not to be fearful or panic. They should believe God’s promise that he will fight for them and give them the victory.

Christians are facing many foes in the west. These foes are not necessarily people. They are psychological in nature. They are facing and increasingly anti Christian culture. They are facing apathy and Biblical illiteracy. They are facing a young generation who does not want anything to do with church or church programs. Many Christians are left to struggle with despair and depression and alienation. (Actually the non Christian world is struggling with same things.) Christians are tempted to give up the struggle to preach the Gospel and raise disciples. These are our enemies. We are not so terrified of them, because they are “killing” us softly and slowly and painlessly. But our souls are becoming deadened by these enemies. They are forcing us to give up the battle and travel through this world, without passion and without a voice. I pray that I may have spiritual eyes to truly see what is going on around me. I pray that I may have strength to fight, depending on the strength that God gives in order to stand as a man of God and to preach the Gospel and raise disciples fearlessly and unreservedly.

There is also a sense of humanity among the people of God. Verses 5-7, “The officers shall say to the army: ‘Has anyone built a new house and not yet begun to live in it? Let him go home, or he may die in battle and someone else may begin to live in it. 6 Has anyone planted a vineyard and not begun to enjoy it? Let him go home, or he may die in battle and someone else enjoy it.7 Has anyone become pledged to a woman and not married her? Let him go home, or he may die in battle and someone else marry her.’ In the battle, the leaders are not some heartless leaders. They are to actually consider the soldiers life situation. In the fight things are not so cut and dry. There are legitimate reasons for not going into battle that must be considered by the leaders. There is no shame in going back to a person’s hometown. As Christian leaders we need to have a sense of humanity and not force everyone into a cookie cutter mold and force them into the front lines of the spiritual battle without considering their personal situation.

The leaders must also consider the moral of the people. Verses 8-9 read, “Then the officers shall add, ‘Is anyone afraid or fainthearted? Let him go home so that his fellow soldiers will not become disheartened too.’ 9 When the officers have finished speaking to the army, they shall appoint commanders over it.” The people who are not ready to go to battle should not go. We should not discourage others. But there is no shame not going. If you are not ready to participate then that is OK. They may be ready later. Think about the young man, Mark. he was not ready to follow Jesus. He ran away naked when Jesus was arrested. But later he became the great Apostle Mark. It is not about numbers. The Lord can save whether by many or by few. When serving in ministry it is not about how many people are at your Sunday worship service. It is not about how hard we work to make a good environment. It is all about what God is doing among us. But we should consider our influence on others.

2. Do Everything God Has Commanded (10-20).

Verses 10-20 reads, “When you march up to attack a city, make its people an offer of peace. 11 If they accept and open their gates, all the people in it shall be subject to forced labor and shall work for you. 12 If they refuse to make peace and they engage you in battle, lay siege to that city. 13 When the LORD your God delivers it into your hand, put to the sword all the men in it. 14 As for the women, the children, the livestock and everything else in the city, you may take these as plunder for yourselves. And you may use the plunder the LORD your God gives you from your enemies. 15 This is how you are to treat all the cities that are at a distance from you and do not belong to the nations nearby. 16 However, in the cities of the nations the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, do not leave alive anything that breathes. 17 Completely destroy them—the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites—as the LORD your God has commanded you. 18 Otherwise, they will teach you to follow all the detestable things they do in worshiping their gods, and you will sin against the LORD your God. 19 When you lay siege to a city for a long time, fighting against it to capture it, do not destroy its trees by putting an ax to them, because you can eat their fruit. Do not cut them down. Are the trees people, that you should besiege them? 20 However, you may cut down trees that you know are not fruit trees and use them to build siege works until the city at war with you falls.”

God gave them certain guidelines for attacking their enemies. First, they should seek a peaceful surrender. If a distant nation refuses a truce, they should destroy all their fighting men and plunder the women, children, and flocks, which God would give to them. If a warring nation lives in the land that God promised to them as an inheritance, they should refuse terms of peace and completely destroy them as God commanded them. Otherwise, the enemy will become a snare to turn them from God.

Of course Christians should never, ever do something like this today.We need to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us.  God was using his people as instruments of judgment on a people that were given over to very depraved forms of idolatry. But today we need to do battle with spiritual forces within our hearts. There is sin and darkness in our hearts that must be rooted out with sincere repentance and the word of God and faith. The eradication of sin in our hearts must be complete or we will be continually dragged away and enticed by our sinful nature. Lord, help me never to give a the forces of darkness in my heart a reprieve, but to dedicate the entirely of my mind, body and soul over to Jesus Christ,

In destroying the enemy, they would be wise not to destroy the fruit trees. They needed to obey God and be wise to manage their successes. Just because we are obeying God, it does not mean that we throw away our minds. God did give us common sense. I think that we should use it. But this must be done in prayer, because there are times when our common sense keeps us from doing what God wants to do through us and in us.

Prayer: Lord, take away my fear and help me to trust you and follow your wisdom carefully.

One Word: The Lord will fight your enemies