Our Commander's Orders
Joshua 1:9 This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
When you go to battle you need a great battle plan. And part of that battle plan is to have someone to command the forces and guide them in executing that plan. Great leaders of the past have made very important decisions that resulted in victory and defeat for those fighting. So the commander's orders have to be well thought out because lives are depending on it.
We are in a battle for sure as believers. Ephesians 6:10 A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.11 Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil.12 For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. As you can see our battle is different from the physical battles soldiers have had to fight in our world. Ours is a spiritual battle and we need our forces, or troops to stand up and be counted. We also need our commander's orders to show us our way to victory. In Joshua 1:9 God, our great commander spoke these words 9 This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” Our commander has spoken and His command is "be strong and courageous!" He also goes on and says "Do not be afraid or discouraged." You may ask why not be afraid and discouraged to which God says "The Lord your God is with you wherever you go."
You may ask "when do we need to go into battle?" Earlier in that chapter God says to Joshua "the time has come for you to lead these people, the Israelites, across the Jordan River into the land I am giving them.." Basically, God says the time is NOW! How do know the time is now? Because every day is the day to fight. Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 6:2 For God says, “At just the right time, I heard you. On the day of salvation, I helped you.” Indeed, the “right time” is now. Today is the day of salvation. No longer are we waiting for some sign to show us when the time for revival is going to come. Jesus is our eternal sign that the battle is now and our commander is calling out the troops to take up their crosses and follow Him.
In fact, Paul wrote these words in Ephesians 5:16 Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days. Today is the day and we are the ground troops and we have been given our instructions from our commander and now is the time to fight!!
The Pilgrimage continues.....
David Warren