Soldiers in the Lord’s Army
October 3, 2024 | 2:41 pm
The Sunday school song-list starter pack of any church nationally has to be: – ‘Jesus loves me this I know’, ‘Read your Bible and Pray every day’ and for our Gen Alpha kids that would be the ‘I am a C-H-R-I-S-T-I-A-N’ song. My all-time favorite however has always been, ‘I am a Soldier in the Army of the Lord’.
As a child, I loved the song because of how we would match and stomp our little feet to mimic soldiers – matter of fact, of concern to us then was whose stomp would be loudest. As an adult, this song is a constant reminder and declaration that first I am in an army, that this army is the Lord’s and my position in that army is that of a soldier. Whether I serve, whether I live, whether I stand, whatever it is I engage in, I should do it with the mindset, attitude, position and posture of a soldier.
Throughout centuries, when men geared up for battle, the routine way of preparation would be to form alliances with other nations who have resources and manpower. They would get allies-nations that would benefit from joining the war. Battle strategies would then be drawn up, which the lieutenants and commanders studied day and night and finally, they’d acquire whatever resources were needed for the fight – weapons, body armor and all before taking off for battle.
The beauty of being in the Lord’s army is that all these things have been availed. We have an alliance with the commander of angel armies, God Himself. The omnipotent Father is our ally, He that is all knowing has given us the strategies by which we should war and being self-sufficient, has equipped us with resources.
The Britannica encyclopedia defines an alliance to mean a formal agreement between two or more states for mutual support in case of war. I love how an alliance has to be mutual, more like a symbiotic relationship, where both parties get to give and receive. As soldiers our alliance with Christ is mutual as Christ gets to work through us, in us and with us and as the soldiers we get to work through Christ, in Christ and for Christ.
Christ with the Soldier
In John 3:2 Nicodemus came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.”
The Soldier In Christ
I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. (Galatians 2:20)
Christ In the Soldier
To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. (Colossians 1: 27)
The Soldier For Christ
For to me, to live is Christ [He is my source of joy, my reason to live] and to die is gain [for I will be with Him in eternity] (Philippians 1:21)
The Soldier Through Christ
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:13)
Christ Through the Soldier
You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. (1st John 4:4)
Christ My Ally
In 1st Corinthians 20:15 it is written that the battle is not ours but the Lords. Again in Joshua 1:9, the Lord commanded Joshua saying; “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”
Having Christ as our ally translates into constant back up. As soldiers we are assured that someone always has our back, we are not alone! It also translates into His resources being our resources. Therefore, whatever Christ died on the cross for us to have, we have in full, lacking nothing! The finished work of the cross gave us a name to call on – the name Jesus, it gave us authority, His strength has now become our strength, it has made us heirs, sons adopted into the family of Christ, it gave us power. I mean the list is endless.
How then do we wage war? Paul reminds us in Ephesians 6:12 that our battle is not against flesh and blood enemies but against evil rulers, authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world and evil spirits. Though being human, we do not wage war as humans do. The weapons to be used while in war are not weapons of this world but God’s mighty weapons which have the power to bring down strongholds according to 2nd Corinthians 10:3-5.
This then tells us that we should be dressed up in God’s armor at all times. This is how we win. With our helmet of salvation on, the breastplate of righteousness in place, the belt of truth tied, the shoes of the gospel of peace fastened, the shield of faith and the sword of the spirit on each hand (our mom did an in depth piece on the Full Armor of God a while back, please have a read for better understanding).
So what kind of soldiers ought we to be? Writing to his son Timothy, Paul gives an account of who a good soldier of Christ Jesus is in 2 Timothy 2: 1-4. As good soldiers it is expected of us to first, be strong through the grace availed in Christ Jesus. Secondly, teach the truths of God’s word to trustworthy people who will pass it on to others. He continues to give account of the good soldier as one who endures suffering and finally does not get tied up in the affairs of civilian life but only pleases the officer that has enrolled them.
On the contrary we get to see a different kind of soldier in 2 Samuel 1:4. A report gets to King David that his friend Jonathan had died alongside Saul and that the entire Israelite army had fled from battle leaving behind all their dead and wounded soldiers. It is unfortunate that the Israelite army failed to recognize the Lord that had given them victory on numerous accounts. Fear led them to abandon their positions and their fellow soldiers who had fallen in battle.
Beloved soldier, we have been called for the battle field. We are always in a state of war. Choose today the kind of soldier you seek to be – whether the fleet-footed soldier or the good soldier of Christ Jesus.
Julie Munyoki,
Pastor