22 May 2009

Not by Might, nor by Power...
Reflections on Jeremiah 17:5-8

This evening, we looked at Jeremiah 17:5-8. It talks of two kinds of people - those who trust in human beings and those who trust in God. Or, those who make flesh their strength vs those whose hope is in God.

The truth is, most people have this inclination of trusting in the strength of their flesh. Let's face it - it's a human tendency. We tend to believe in the seen and heard, and find it hard to believe by faith that which is unseen and not very obvious to our natural senses.

The men of God in the bible all had a distinctive quality - they trusted in God, even against huge and impossible odds. We immediately think of King Jehoshaphat and Gideon.

The Prayer of Jehoshaphat is worth meditating on (2 Chronicles 6-12). Perhaps you might like to consider doing this as a personal reflection for the week. As we examine and unpack Jehoshaphat’s prayer, we will find 3 stages, or principles. The first thing Jehoshaphat does in his prayer is he initiates praise; secondly, he identifies the problem, and thirdly, he implores God for help. You may wish to check out the following link for a good study guide on Jehoshaphat's Prayer. http://www.reformedtheology.ca/2chronicles20.htm

"Gideon & his Valiant Three Hundred" is the other remarkable story. God chose Gideon, a young man from an otherwise unremarkable clan from the tribe of Manasseh, to free the people of Israel and to condemn their worship of idols. Gideon started off with 32,000 men in his army. Ironically, God couldn't act when Gideon had this many. It was cut to 10,000, then finally to a mere 300. Could you imagine how Gideon, a rather tentative character, actually felt about being in this situation? His faith prevailed in the end, and the battle was won with 300.

From Jehoshaphat and Gideon, we learn 2 important perspectives -

(a) The battle is not yours but the Lord's. (2 Chronicles 20:15)

(b) The victory is not gained by might, nor by power, but by the Spirit of the Lord of Hosts. (Zech 4:6)

We had a good time of sharing this evening, and some key points emerged:

(a) God often gives us challenges and problems that are well beyond us, so that we can learn to trust Him. Indeed, it's usually the case that only when we have come to the end of ourselves that God begins to act. (He's really not in a hurry!)

(b) The simple disciplines of praying and reading the word are paramount and contain the secret to moving mountains! We call these 'disciplines' precisely because it's common to neglect these practices, and we really have to be intentional about it. Start by doing a little each day - do it no matter how little and whether we feel like it or not. God is pleased even if we take very small steps in the right direction, and He will enlarge our steps as we faithfully go along.

(c) The daily act of declaring God's Word and promises ushers the reality of God into our lives. (Teik practices this diligently and will teach us some of his daily declarations this coming Friday!) The world competes with God all the time for our attention, and vey often, we succumb to the attractions this world offers. We trust things that we can see, hear and touch. Actually, God is as real as these things, and it takes someone with a sensitised and awakened spirit to sense God standing next to you all this while. As we press in daily, we will become more sensitive to the presence and leading of God's Spirit. It's worth it and exciting - so let's all press in!

Have a blessed and victorious week! Remember to carve out a little time each day for reflection and pause a little to regain some perspective.