SOLDIERS OF THE CROSS I
Memorise: Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus
Christ. 2nd Timothy 2:3
Read: 2nd Timothy 2:1-7, (KJV) 1 Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in
Christ Jesus.
3 Thou
therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.
4 No man
that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may
please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.
5 And if
a man also strive for masteries, yet is he not crowned, except he strive
lawfully.
6 The
husbandman that laboureth must be first partaker of the fruits.
7 Consider
what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things.
Bible in one year: Ezra 1-3, Ecclesiastes 5:10-20
MESSAGE
One of my sons once said ‘For
every new level there is a new devil’. This is very correct in the life of
every believer. I always tell my children that if they are not relevant in the
scheme of things, they cannot be a target of the devil. But, the moment you
make up your mind to obey God, to love God and to serve Him, you become a
target for the enemies, both within and without. As a soldier of the Cross, you
do not fight your battles with physical weapons because it is the nature of a
battle that will determine your arsenal of weapons. As a good soldier of the
Cross, you must be able to endure hardness in the race to heaven. You have to
fight lawfully and follow those rules which characterise a righteous person.
There are many factors attacking
the Christian faith today. We cannot just continue to be passive; there is the
need to defend the Christian faith against modern and post-modern ideologies,
so that we can all lay hold of eternal life. Any Christian who is timid and
fearful cannot carry out the struggles of spiritual warfare.
“Put on the whole armour of God that ye may be
able to stand against the wiles of the devil”
Ephesians 6:11
Those who were before us were
able to stand strong and give a reason for the hope they had in Christ Jesus,
we cannot but do same. Timothy as an evangelist, did not waste any opportunity,
he constantly stood before men and confesses his faith in Christ. Jesus Christ
our master stood before Pontius Pilate and defended his Son-ship and Kingship.
One of the ways to be a good soldier of the Cross is to appreciate the works of
the Cross and live our lives to reflect the sacrifices made by Jesus. This we
can achieve when we begin to live a life of purity and godly behaviour. We must
follow the truth that has been received in Christ. The truth that set you free
and gave you liberty must be passed on to others, so that they can experience
what you experienced. This is why our pastors need to go back to the ancient
landmarks of sound apostolic teaching. There is a need for urgency on the part
of the clergy to feed their flocks with the undiluted Word of life.
Hardship will come, Satan will
launch all forms of attack against the preaching of the gospel of Jesus, yet,
we must not allow all these to divert our focus from our primary assignment as
soldier of the cross. Also, don’t allow the affairs of this world to make you a
victim in the battles of life. As a messenger of Jesus, you must do all that is
within your power to please the Owner of your life and be committed to the work
of the Kingdom. It is my prayer that your enemies will miss whenever they
target you in Jesus’ name.
Action Point
Put on the whole armour of God that you may be able to stand against
the wiles of the devil.
Open
Heavens Daily, written by Pastor E.A Adeboye
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