The Purpose of Battle
When we were last with them, the people of Israel (now led by Joshua) were at the east side of the Jordan River , ready to cross over and conquer the land. God is giving a charge to Joshua, encouraging him as he prepares to lead the people into the land that is, as we learned earlier, filled with fortified cities and giant men. God now tells Joshua:
Joshua 1:5-6
“No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life; as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you nor forsake you. Be strong and of good courage, for to this people you shall divide as an inheritance the land which I swore to their fathers to give them”
Isn’t that fantastic?! We have a Lord who will never leave us or abandon us! And we have a Lord who tells us that nothing will be able to stand against us. Notice something here: Joshua is about to go into a land that is inhabited by people who don’t want to give their property away and will fight to keep it and God doesn’t tell Joshua that he won’t have to do battle. He doesn’t promise that he won’t face difficulties. Instead, He tells Joshua that in those battles and difficulties, He’s going to be there with him—and that He has already given him victory.
That excites me. Why does this excite me? Is it because I love to battle? Is it because I get all giddy when I see difficulties coming? No, I am excited because I’ve found that it is in those battles and trials that we find our purpose.
And Our Purpose Is…?
Seeking our purpose these days seems to be something that drives our lives. Books are written, sermons preached, and classes taught, yet most people are still looking. I personally believe that finding our purpose is much simpler than some seem to think. Jesus tells His followers what that purpose is in Matthew 5: You are the light of the world.
We no longer have to search for our purpose… we are to be light. Why did He choose light? What could He possibly mean when He calls us the light of the world?
Think about it this way: If you live in a three-bedroom house with a kitchen, a dining room, a couple of bathrooms, an office, and a garage, you probably own about fifteen lights or so… If you were in charge of light distribution in this house, would you put all the lights you own in just one of the bathrooms? That would be ridiculous! You’d put the lights in all the rooms, especially the rooms that didn’t have adequate natural lighting. You’d put them in places that have potential toe-stubbing obstacles, places that intruders might see as weak points, and in the corners and hallways that need light. Because that’s where they can best be used!
A wonderful picture of this principle is found in Acts 16 where we are told a story of the Apostle Paul and his friend Silas. While on a missionary journey, they were walking down a road minding their business when a possessed slave girl approached and started to follow them. For days this girl followed them around yelling at the top of her lungs: “These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation.” Now as true as this statement was, it was no doubt exasperating for Paul and Silas to have someone following them around, yelling at every turn. Paul was so annoyed that he performed an exorcism and freed the girl of her demon.
Not surprisingly, this did not please the slave girl’s owners who were making good money by using her demonic abilities as a fortune-teller. So they complained to the local law enforcement agent who then arrested Paul and Silas. Unfortunately this incident didn’t take place in Mayberry where Sheriff Andy and Deputy Fife would have worked everything out in 22 minutes while making us laugh. Instead it happened in a place that was very unfriendly; Paul and Silas were beaten bloody and thrown into the deepest, darkest part of the local dungeon where their feet were shackled to the stocks.
So picture the scene: Paul and Silas, beaten, bloody, and chained to a pole because they helped a young girl by freeing her of a demon… we now come to one of my favorite Bible verses, Acts 16:25: “But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.” WOW! I love that! Singing hymns and praying while shackled in the deepest part of a dark dungeon!
This is where it gets even more interesting. Soon after that time of praise and worship, God caused an earthquake during which the chains fell off of all the prisoners and the prison doors shook off their hinges. The jailor, now upset thinking that he failed in his duties, takes his weapon and is about to kill himself when Paul interrupts him and tells him not to worry because nobody left. Nobody left!? That’s right, all the prisoners were still hanging around… no chains… no doors… just hangin’.
Why do you think that is? Why do you think none of the other prisoners fled? I contend that it was because of verse 25. Those men who were in the same dungeon as Paul and Silas, who were listening to them singing and praising the Lord despite their circumstance, they had to be seeking what Paul and Silas obviously had… they had to be desiring the same peace within the storm. The jailor certainly wanted that because the first thing out of his mouth was, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”
Someone is Watching You
Your neighbor, your friend, or your unsaved family member is watching you. He is looking at how you handle the problems that arise in your life. He is facing the exact same things, the same battles and trials that you are facing: sickness, money problems, career setbacks, even death. When he sees how you handle those circumstances, he sees that God is helping you and is with you through them. He notices God is giving you strength and peace despite those circumstances.
Eventually he is going to ask you why your reaction, when faced with the same things he is faced with, is completely different. Then when God uses you to share with that person about the source of the strength and peace that he is seeing in you, you realize that you truly do have a purpose in life—to be a light in a dark world!
Reasons for the Difficulties
God is preparing Joshua for the conquering of the Promised Land. As we look ahead we can see there are battles to be fought, obstacles to overcome. We know that God is powerful enough to conquer the land without Joshua. If He wanted to, He could give it to them without them ever having to fight for it. God could give us the lives we seek, handed to us on a silver platter with parsley garnish. But He chooses instead to lead us into a difficult world, giving us peace and power in that difficult world. Why?
I believe for two reasons. Number one (and always number one): that He might be glorified. And number two, so that He can use us to be instruments of light in the darkness of this world. By allowing ourselves to be used by God, we in turn will find out what it is that we are created to do! He loves us that much!
Easier Said Than Done
But, you might say, “That’s all well and good and I agree with the concept, but in real life when I’m entrenched in battle, I don’t feel this strength and peace you’re talking about. I freak out. Life is difficult and I mess up daily and nobody is ever going to come to me looking for direction on how they can freak out too. I know it is possible because I’ve seen it in others, but how do I find this strength? Where do I get this peace? What must I do to see that kind of miraculous result in my life?”
In the book of John chapter six, an interesting story unfolds on the shores of the Sea of Galilee . Jesus is surrounded by a hungry multitude when He does a miracle and feeds them with a couple of loaves of bread and some fish. This impressed the people so much that they tried to take Jesus by force and make Him king—so He and His disciples left the scene.
Read on your own the interesting developments of that night, but I want to, for the sake of this chapter, jump forward to the next morning. Upon waking, the multitude wanted breakfast and began to look for Jesus near the place where they had eaten on the previous day. They didn’t find Him there, so they went to look for Him on the other side of the sea. Once they found Him they approached Him and asked Him to miraculously produce more food. Jesus, knowing that the only reason they were looking for Him was to get their bellies filled, decided to make a spiritual connection between what they thought they wanted, and what He knew they needed. He said:
"Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him." (vs. 26-27)
The multitude did not understand what Jesus was saying, but still wanted their morning sustenance. So they asked Jesus how they could do the cool trick they witnessed the day before and make enough food to feed everyone from a couple of loaves of bread and some fish: "What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?" (v. 28)
Jesus, staying on point about the spiritual connection to the multitude’s hunger, answered:
"This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent" (v. 29).
Spiritual Things First
The multitudes were looking for physical relief from their hunger, and Jesus was telling them that it is more important for them to seek to have their spiritual needs met. We so often look for physical relief from our trials, something tangible. For example, let’s just say that you are doing battle with an illness; you want to be healed and define the success of your trial on whether or not you are healed. Your thought is that if God heals you, it will be a great testimony for your unsaved friends and family to see.
But God is working out something different, something spiritual. He knows that if your friends or family members see a physical need being met in your life, they will have a tendency to come to Him merely to have their physical needs met. He loves them too much to allow them to come to Him in that way.
The lesson being taught by Jesus is this: If our spiritual need is met first, the reaction to our physical need will change—and that will be a better testimony for those who are watching. He also is teaching us that He is not here merely to meet the physical needs of the multitude, but more importantly to meet their spiritual needs. So when they asked Him what they must do to meet their physical need for food, Jesus answered with the spiritual, telling them the only thing they must do to have the life they want is to believe in the One God sent. To believe in Him.
Take a Different Look
And so it is today. If the battles and difficulties in your life are weighing you down and you don’t feel as if God is with you as He promised He would be, stop seeking a physical solution and start seeking a spiritual solution. Reconnect with the One sent of God. Seek Him first.
Believe that He is working something infinitely better for you than you could ever imagine. Trust Him. In that trust, you will find life!
