Deuteronomy 20:1, 5, 19
1 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 out of Egypt, will be with you.
5 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.
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?
Observations:
Moses tells is preparing the people of Israel for their entrance into the Promised Land. The passage concerns who they are to wage war with nations that threaten them. The Nations that will be disposed are filled with sinful behaviors reveling their hatred for God. This may be evident by their treatment of humanity as a whole. Particularly, they worship graven images giving no thought to God. God is concerned for His people, that if they allow these nations to co-inhabit the land they will begin to worship these idols (of course we know from scripture that eventually they do). God explains that he will be with them, and that he will protect them. What is interesting is that He makes provision for those who have built a home, planted a vineyard, gotten engaged, or are just plain afraid to stay behind. What is notable is that he tells His people they should stay behind because they might die in battle (well the fearful might cause others to lose heart). Why would they need to worry about death if God is with them? In v.19 we are told the battle might be long. Why would a battle be long if God is with them?
Application:
God is preparing His people to do battle against evil forces, just as much as they are doing battle with people. Perhaps on one level these battles represent spiritual warfare. The Hebrew children will wage war against the enemy of God and the battles my be bloody, and lives may be lost in the process. Why, because people are the ones fighting. Yes, there are battles where God does all the work, or at least that is the way they are understood (even in these the people have a part). The truth of the matter is that God partners with humanity to bring about his Salvation. He is partnering with Israel to cut a Highway of Holiness into the desert of humanity.
When we do the work of God there are times when we take casualties. Christians may be martyred for the cause of Christ. This should not be a surprise to us. Just as God promised to be with the Israelites, He is also with us. The promise is not that we will have immediate victories and kevlar protection. The promise is that in the midst of the bloody battles against spiritual darkness God will be with us. I think Paul would tell us that whether I live or die it does not matter. I am victorious in Christ. For if I die I am with Christ, if I live Christ is with me. There is no need for fear in the living out of our Christian life. He is with us and will not leave us.
It is a false teaching that tells us that if we believe we will not suffer, it is a false expectation to think that every task of the believer should be without difficulty. We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against powers of darkness and principalities. These enemies are not easily seen, and are not easily moved. Sometimes they strike the heel of humanity and blood is spilt, but thanks be to God our Salvation has come, and He is coming. The battles will one day be finished, and the dead in Christ shall rise victorious, for their faith is in the Lord.
Prayer:
O Blessed Lord, my Salvation! Though I face all kinds of trial and temptations, you are with me. You strengthen my feeble limbs, you lift my weary heart, you strengthen my resolve, and empower my action. You are with me in the valley of the shadow of death, and you raise me when my breath is gone. You promise me a victorious end: I need not fear. Forgive me for my doubts, for my stumbling in the darkness of my own understanding. Place your gentle hands upon my face, lift my countenance that I might see into your eyes and know you are with me. Arise O my soul! Arise O my Spirit! Arise O my flesh! To Arms! To Arms! The Battle of Love awaits you. Go forth an love the unloved and unloveable and defeat this enemy of destruction.
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