Glorious Victory

As we are reading through Deuteronomy, we find that it is not easy for the Israelites to enter into their Promised Land. Though it was promised to them, God never said it would be a “walk in the park” for them to inherit their land. However, He did promise that He would go before them, and He promised that His presence would be with them. The Promised Land was inhabited by pagans and heathens who worshiped other gods. The Jews needed to go to war and capture the territory that already belonged to them. Victory was promised to them, but they still had to fight. This is what the Lord said concerning Israel’s battle against the enemy: “Hear O Israel, today you are going into battle against your enemies. Do not be fainthearted or afraid; do not be terrified or give way to panic before them. For the Lord your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory.” (Deut. 20:3-4)

The Apostle Paul must have remembered these words of the Lord as He marched into enemy territory in Jerusalem. He was warned not to go to Jerusalem because of the impending danger that awaited him. But Paul’s response was, “Why are you weeping and breaking my heart: I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.” (Acts. 21:13) He knew there would be a battle to fight, but He knew the Lord would be with him and would fight for him. Paul was well-acquainted with warfare. He was tortured, and put in prison numerous times for proclaiming his faith. Because of this, he has written some of the most eloquent discourses concerning warfare that we will find in Scripture. Concerning Spiritual warfare he wrote these words: “be aFinally be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore, put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be to stand your ground…” (Eph. 6:13)

Paul understood that as Christians, we do not wage war as the world does. He explained in 2 Cor. 10 that the weapons of our warfare are not weapons of the world. We must fight with the very words of God—our sword of the Spirit. With that sword, we are able to demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. Just as victory was promised to the Jews as they entered the Promised Land, victory is promised to us as well. Paul assures us in 2 Corinthians 2:14 that God will lead us into victory with the help of Christ. We must do our part to stand firm in our faith and victory will be ours. In Romans 15, Paul reminds us that everything in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. (Rom. 15:4) I believe he had Deuteronomy 20:3-4 in mind when he wrote the passage in Romans 15. We have hope in our glorious victory because God has already promised it to us, just as he promised victory to the ancient Jews. We have His presence, His protection and His mighty power to fight the battles for us. If God is for us, who can be against us? (Rom 8:37) “Thanks be to God who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him!” (2 Cor. 2:14)