Are You in the Lord's Army?

Psalm 89:28 “My mercy I will keep for him forever, And My covenant shall stand firm with him.”

I may never march in the infantry,
Ride in the cavalry,
Shoot the artillery.
I may never zoom o'er the enemy,
But I'm in the Lord's army. Yes, sir! I'm in the Lord's army. Yes, sir!
I'm in the Lord's army. Yes, sir!

I may never march in the infantry,
Ride in the cavalry,
Shoot the artillery.

I may never zoom o'er the enemy,
But I'm in the Lord's army. Yes, sir!

Remember that one? It was always one of my favorites. In fact, I wish the 'grown-up' church service would have it as a worship song occasionally - just to remind us of something very important:

We are in the Lord's Army
Sure, it's a kids' song- but it has an adult message that is too easily neglected and too often forgotten. When you're a child, it's fun to think about being in the service of the Captain of our salvation...oh but then at some point we get 'mature', which often translates into 'chicken'.

So the issue at hand is: are you involved in the fight? Or perhaps at some point you were taken prisoner by the enemy. If you are a captive, you might not even know it- so let me give you a few characteristics of spiritual P.O.W.'s.

• They think that many Christians are just too 'radical' for Jesus. After all, they should settle down and try not to 'offend' people too much or too often.
• They have been led to believe that the early fire they had for Christ was just a temporary spiritual high, but that kind of feeling will probably never come back.
• They are trapped in the rut of going through the motions of church, Bible reading, and prayer...almost as if they are doing it out of duty instead of desire.
• They try to witness to others through actions only, thinking that people will understand the gospel without ever being told.

If any of these describe you, the great news is that you hold a 'get out of jail free' card right in your hands! Satan only has as much authority as you give him, so take it back, recommit your life, and go to battle!

Perhaps the old song mentioned above isn't quite enough to get you motivated anymore. If so, allow me to share a somewhat updated version that describes your position more specifically:

I am a Soldier
Author Unknown

I am a soldier, a prayer warrior, of the army of my God.
The Lord Jesus Christ is my Commanding Officer.
The Holy Bible is my code of conduct.
Faith, Prayer and the Word are my weapons of warfare.

I have been taught by the Holy Spirit, trained by experience,
tried by adversity, and tested by fire.

I am a volunteer in this army, and I am enlisted for eternity.
I will either retire in this army at the Rapture or die in this Army;
but I will not get out, sell out, be talked out.
I am faithful, capable, and dependable.

If my God needs me, I am there.

I am a soldier, a prayer warrior. I am not a baby.
I do not need to be pampered, petted, primed up, pumped up, picked up, or pepped up.

I am a soldier, a prayer warrior.
No one has to call me, remind me, write me, visit me, entice me, or lure me.

I am a solider, a prayer warrior. I am not a wimp.
I am in place, saluting my King, obeying His orders, praising His name
and building His Kingdom!

I am a soldier, a prayer warrior.
No one has to send me flowers, gifts, food, cards, candy, or give me handouts.
I do not need to be cuddled, cradled, cared for, or catered to.

I am committed.
I cannot have my feelings hurt bad enough to turn me around.
I cannot be discouraged enough to turn me aside.
I cannot lose enough to cause me to quit.

The Ultimate Question

Philippians 2:9-11 “Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

  

When Jesus spoke to His disciples about His impending death and resurrection, it was lost in translation. They didn’t seem to get it. The problem was they had visions of grandeur. They envisioned Jesus establishing His earthly kingdom where they would rule and reign with Him, where everyone would live happily ever after. That is why, after the feeding of the 5,000, Jesus made them get into a boat and leave. The people had wanted to take Jesus and make him king by force.

Jesus was about to reveal something to His disciples they had not understood up to this point, and it was simply this: He would die on a cross. There would be a crucifixion. There would be a resurrection. There would be a Second Coming. And then His kingdom would be established.

So Jesus posed a very important question to them: Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” (Matthew 16:13). This question is still being posed to us today, and it is the most important question anyone ever will respond to.

They are really only four options, four responses to that great question Christ posed. Either Jesus was a legend, a liar, a lunatic, or the Lord. We know that He was not a legend, because there is more than enough historical evidence to clearly confirm that Jesus Christ lived and died at a marked point in time. Others will say that He was lying about everything He said, while still others would say that He was stark raving mad.

But we have to respond to this question Jesus posed. And ultimately everyone, everywhere will say that Jesus Christ is Lord. Christians, skeptics, agnostics, atheists, everyone—regardless of their religion—eventually will say that Jesus Christ is Lord when they stand before God.

Jesus posed an important question to His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” What is your response to this same-asked question of you?