"Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, where are you going?” Jesus answered him, “Where I am going you cannot follow me now, but you will follow afterward.” Peter said to him, “Lord, why can I not follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.” Jesus answered, “Will you lay down your life for me? Truly, truly, I say to you, the rooster will not crow till you have denied me three times." John 13:36-38
When the Father warns us about the upcoming battles, do we find ourselves thinking, "I will lay down my life for you Jesus!"? Don't we have this desire? Yet another warning comes to our heart, to be on guard.
Will we prepare for battle?
As Jesus speaks to our hearts, what do we do with the Words He speaks? Do they, like a seed fall to the ground? Will they die as we seek to loose our life for Him or do they remain there waiting, struggling to live thus remaining dead forever?
There is a battle ahead, do we think we can fight it in our own strength? Thinking we can lay down our life for Him? Yes, we long to lay down our lives for Him and the desire is a good start. Yet if He warns us about the battle, shall we not prepare earnestly seeking Him in prayer? How can we prepare for battle?
We each have our own battles the Lord knows we need to go through. {He is faithful, He has promised to supply all our needs, even the challenging ones which make us more like Himself, even these battles we don't understand} He speaks this word next, right after Jesus warned Peter about falling and denying Him three times. "Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in Me." {John 14:1} Although we may be tempted, although it all may seem like darkest night, believe in God, believe in the Son. In Luke 22:32 Jesus also says to Peter, "but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers." He is praying, interceding for us! Not that we wouldn't fail, but that our faith would not fail.
"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil." Ephesians 6:10-11
There is a spiritual battle for us to fight and Paul explains it well in Ephesians, about wearing the armour of God so that we might be able to stand against the schemes of the enemy. He has tactics which he tries to get us down. Will we be brought down by them? Or will we lift high the shield of faith, distinguishing all doubts the enemy brings? If he can manage to get us to doubt God and His Mighty Power in our life, TODAY, he can bring us lower. Yet we can see God's power even here, that He wants us to stand firm against the enemy and He not only desires that we will, He is able to help us! His power is mighty and He gives the desire to do what He wants us to do and the power to do it. Peter had the desire to do God's will, but lacking the power {when Jesus asked Peter to pray with him, he fell asleep; Luke 22:32-62}. We see by the verses below also how important prayer is.
"For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints..." Ephesians 6:12-18
Are we lacking power? This week, although I longed to lay my life down for my Love, my Lord -- I found myself doing the very things I didn't want to do. I found the battle to be more real. It was more challenging than I thought. I was trying to fight the battle on my own, like Peter did when he threw his sword at the man and cut off his ear that night. We do this in our own ways, trying to fight the battles in our own strength. And what a wonderful Father, who binds the broken hearted. He then waits patiently for us to reach that place within ourselves, spent and empty, needing His Power to fight this battle.
There is a battle to fight, are we willing to prepare? It is the road through the Valley of Loss*, where we must loose ourselves in order to be saved. The road of Humility, resisting the enemies schemes as the Lord enables us to discern them. This calls for wisdom. Are we prepared? Have we sought the Lord for more wisdom? Are we treating His Way seriously or are we half-hearted?
Are we weak? Do we feel this fight and battle too strong for us? The Joy of the Lord is our strength. {Nehemiah 8:10}
Have we counted the cost? This battle will cost us. e v e r y t h i n g. Are we ready to give up our own way of fighting this battle? I pray we will be serious as we step into this battleground. It will not be easy, but if we seek to humble ourselves, we will find His more than willing to help us. He is right there waiting, willing, longing that we will be empty so He may fill every part of us. Praise God. What a wonderful Father we have!
James 4:1-10
