Prepare for War!

“The LORD is a warrior; yes, the LORD is his name!” Exodus 15: 3

War can be defined as conflict, fighting or hostilities between two countries or interest groups. You fight wars to protect your interests or sovereignty. When you are putting together a nation or any entity for that matter, it is taken for granted that you should also put in place the machinery to protect it, otherwise you will wake up to see that your enemies have overran the whole place. I believe this is the reason why it is wisely said that if you want peace, you have to prepare for war. And I think that was what helped the wisest man ever-lived – Solomon. He was so wealthy, powerful, connected (humanly and divinely), wise, blessed, militarily armed and prepared that no enemy dared to attack him. He had a very peaceful and prosperous reign. It was not that everybody loved him, but his strength and capability were enormous. He was well prepared for any eventuality. We will talk about these later. You are in a war!

Our God is a warrior and we must see things the way He sees them. We must go closer to Him and see the way He fights His battles, and also learn how to allow Him lead us through the war called life. We must not take anything for granted. Yes, life is war, and as in every war there are always many battles to fight. When you win one, then you prepare or go over to the next. Until you win the entire war. Have you noticed that even the bible is a book of war? It is a record of so many battles between the kingdom of God and that of Satan. Between righteousness and unrighteousness. It started with a battle and ended with another. And in-between, almost every book shows this battle of two kingdoms.

In Genesis chapter one, there was a battle that threw the whole earth into a chaotic state. It was left empty, formless and in darkness, before God started working again. It was a battle between the angels loyal to God and the angelic rebels led by Satan himself. In the book of Revelation (the last book of the bible), is just full of the last battles that will culminate to the battle of Gog and Magog. After this, Satan will be cast into the lake of fire, and shall be tormented day and night forever. He knows this and it makes him afraid and very sick everyday. This is why he is desperate in everything he does.

Now, you must wake up everyday with the consciousness that you are in a war. The battle fields are your life, your health, your position, family, faith, your calling, your business, etc. All these are the battle fronts, but the war is between the kingdom of light and that of darkness for your destiny and the destiny of your nation. Are you prepared this war? You just have to because it is a fact of life. Life is warfare. Now, let’s go back to King Solomon and see how he prepared himself and Israel for this war.

Solomon

Immediately Solomon took over after the death of his father as the king of Israel, he summoned all the generals, military commanders, judges, political and clan leaders and led them to the presence of the LORD. They went to the hill at Gibeon where God’s Tabernacle was located. When they gathered in front of the Tabernacle, Solomon quickly went up to the bronze altar in the LORD’s presence and sacrificed a thousand burnt offerings on it. And this singular action sparked off a new phase of relationship for the both. God visited Solomon that same night and asked him, “What do you want? Ask and I will give it to you. Wonderful!

Solomon promptly asked Him for wisdom and knowledge to rule Israel properly. This further pleased God and He decided to embarrass Solomon with all His blessings. God gave him wisdom and knowledge as he asked, and also added riches, wealth and honour. Gold and silver became like stones in Jerusalem. His empire extended to the nations around Euphrates River to the land of the philistines and the border of Egypt. All these kings (and others from all parts of the world) regularly brought gifts of gold, silver, clothing, weapons, spices, horses, cattle, etc, to him. Solomon became the wisest, richest, most influential and most famous king on earth. With this kind of resources, he went ahead to build a very strong military force. He had 1,400 chariots (tanks) and 12,000 horses. These troops were strategically stationed in the cities and some brought into Jerusalem to provide personal security to the king. Wow! So King Solomon was also a military strategist? Now, why won’t this king enjoy a whopping 40 years of peaceful and prosperous reign?? Attempting to attack him or his kingdom would have been a suicidal mission for anybody or nation.

How did this man achieve this level of security and success? First, in humility, he acknowledged God; the maker and controller of all things. He was honest in his dealing with God, and also provoked Him with his massive sacrifice and sincere love for the people. He also rightly and timely applied the wisdom God gave to him. Beginning from the first, immediately he got on the throne, he gathered his lieutenants and headed for the presence of God. He handed over himself and his kingdom to God. Sure, he had seen how his father related to the God of Israel and the blessing and security that followed him. His father died of ripe old age, enjoyed long life, wealth and honour. So, he decided to go the same proven way. Security, victory and good success are all in the hands of God. When you acknowledge Him in all your ways, He will direct you paths, and give you security in all areas of your life. And nobody, no power or situation shall be able to defeat or destroy you. Not just Solomon, other war veterans in the bible knew this principle. Ask Abraham, David, Joshua, Jehoshaphat, etc. When you give God His place, He will give you a place. To be ready to win the current war, you must give Him the first place in your life, and in that situation. If you fail, then, you have only prepared to be defeated and disgraced.

Then, Solomon rightly and timely applied the wisdom, knowledge and the resources God gave to him. This manifested in the way he quickly established and strategically deployed well-trained and equipped soldiers to protect the country and also his throne. The spiritual and the physical were properly taken care of. And he had the desired result – secured and prosperous reign for 40 years! Are you prepared for war? Till next week, God bless you!


People also view

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *