“Then Elisha, filled with a twofold portion of his spirit, wrought many marvels by his mere word. During his lifetime he feared no one, nor was any man able to intimidate his will.” Sirach 48:12
Ever seen a really scary movie? I know that, in my life, I have seen some movies that have scared the daylights out of me. Movies like Chucky, IT, The Exorcist and The Ring are just some of the movies that have caused this tough guy to toss and turn at night. Most of us love scary movies. For some strange, deranged, twisted-reason we are fascinated with the adrenaline rush that follows a good pop-out scene. It is as human as thought and marriage. But why? That is what I always wonder. What is it that makes us so enamored with these horror flicks? And, moreover, why are we so intimidated by sinister-dolls, well-dwelling-dead-chicks, insane clowns and a man wielding a chainsaw?
Sometimes, our faith life resembles a horror movie. There are times when I put myself in situations that must make God sweat with anxiety. There are times when I am confronted with a situation that forces me to make a choice—God or myself; Jesus or society. And there are times when, unfortunately, I chose the latter of the choices. Once again, the devil, the ultimate villain, obliterates my love for Jesus with his chainsaw of selfishness.
In the verse here, we are told that Elisha, a mighty prophet, had so much faith and spirit that he could stun and amaze people by merely talking. Wow! Wouldn’t it be cool to just knock someone over by simply opening our mouths? Hey, doesn’t that remind you of a certain Someone who made Roman soldiers fall down by just standing up? You see, our faith is so powerful that the devil and his demons tremble in fear, like cowards, when they sense it. By our baptism, we are given the titles priest, prophet and king. Can you imagine a king scared of a tyrant? Can you think of a priest too afraid to do the mass? Further, can you name one prophet that was petrified of speaking the Word of God (Note: Jonah was not “scared” to talk: he just didn’t want to. Sound familiar?) I didn’t think so. We have been given the same spirit as Elisha. That is why they attack us. This is what a priest once told me: They are so scared to think that believers like us will get to Heaven that the only thing they can think of to stop that from happening is to make us doubt our faith, or forget our faith, or neglect our faith.
Doesn’t it kind of scare you to think that the devil and the demons conspire against us?
Doesn’t it make you feel a little…intimidated?
It shouldn’t. Because Jesus has already did the part of giving us faith and spirit. He lived His life with it for us to emulate. The verse speaks to us and says that Elisha was afraid of NO ONE! Hey, Jesus wasn’t afraid of anyone either. Temple priests, Roman Guards, Herod, Pontius Pilate…He wasn’t scared of any of them! He knew His mission, trusted His faith in His Father, and saw them as mere attempts by the devil to stop Him from getting to His destination. They may have thought they defeated Him when they sentenced Him to death; however, Jesus, showing the ultimate example of loving thy neighbor, spoke these love-filled words before breathing His last: "Father, forgive them, they know not what they do." (Luke 23:24) Even until His death, Jesus was a defiant, loving rebel.
So, if we have this undying-faith in Christ and live our lives according to His example, why do allow our fears to govern us? Why are we so scared to “step out of the box” and proclaim our faith? Because we let ourselves be intimated. We let that darn devil kick our butts! But, this day, brothers and sisters, I challenge you to remove yourself from the fluffy-pillow feeling of secret faith. Get out of this comfort zone we call “tolerance.” In the words of a certain TOOL TIME host, “Screw that!” Leave all of that softcore garbage behind and step onto this battlefield. In horror movies, the characters that run away are always the ones who get whacked. But the ones who step up and challenge the villain always win. True, they may get knocked around a bit (ever seen the Nightmare on Elms’ Street movies?), but, in the end, they always prevail. Today, pray that you would be convicted with love for God and ask that He would open your eyes to the spiritual armor in front of you (see Ephesians 6:10-17). Put on that cloak, that shield and that sword and go out onto the warzone of life. We, as Christians, may lose some battles, but we ultimately WIN THE WAR!
Ever seen a really scary movie? I know that, in my life, I have seen some movies that have scared the daylights out of me. Movies like Chucky, IT, The Exorcist and The Ring are just some of the movies that have caused this tough guy to toss and turn at night. Most of us love scary movies. For some strange, deranged, twisted-reason we are fascinated with the adrenaline rush that follows a good pop-out scene. It is as human as thought and marriage. But why? That is what I always wonder. What is it that makes us so enamored with these horror flicks? And, moreover, why are we so intimidated by sinister-dolls, well-dwelling-dead-chicks, insane clowns and a man wielding a chainsaw?
Sometimes, our faith life resembles a horror movie. There are times when I put myself in situations that must make God sweat with anxiety. There are times when I am confronted with a situation that forces me to make a choice—God or myself; Jesus or society. And there are times when, unfortunately, I chose the latter of the choices. Once again, the devil, the ultimate villain, obliterates my love for Jesus with his chainsaw of selfishness.
In the verse here, we are told that Elisha, a mighty prophet, had so much faith and spirit that he could stun and amaze people by merely talking. Wow! Wouldn’t it be cool to just knock someone over by simply opening our mouths? Hey, doesn’t that remind you of a certain Someone who made Roman soldiers fall down by just standing up? You see, our faith is so powerful that the devil and his demons tremble in fear, like cowards, when they sense it. By our baptism, we are given the titles priest, prophet and king. Can you imagine a king scared of a tyrant? Can you think of a priest too afraid to do the mass? Further, can you name one prophet that was petrified of speaking the Word of God (Note: Jonah was not “scared” to talk: he just didn’t want to. Sound familiar?) I didn’t think so. We have been given the same spirit as Elisha. That is why they attack us. This is what a priest once told me: They are so scared to think that believers like us will get to Heaven that the only thing they can think of to stop that from happening is to make us doubt our faith, or forget our faith, or neglect our faith.
Doesn’t it kind of scare you to think that the devil and the demons conspire against us?
Doesn’t it make you feel a little…intimidated?
It shouldn’t. Because Jesus has already did the part of giving us faith and spirit. He lived His life with it for us to emulate. The verse speaks to us and says that Elisha was afraid of NO ONE! Hey, Jesus wasn’t afraid of anyone either. Temple priests, Roman Guards, Herod, Pontius Pilate…He wasn’t scared of any of them! He knew His mission, trusted His faith in His Father, and saw them as mere attempts by the devil to stop Him from getting to His destination. They may have thought they defeated Him when they sentenced Him to death; however, Jesus, showing the ultimate example of loving thy neighbor, spoke these love-filled words before breathing His last: "Father, forgive them, they know not what they do." (Luke 23:24) Even until His death, Jesus was a defiant, loving rebel.
So, if we have this undying-faith in Christ and live our lives according to His example, why do allow our fears to govern us? Why are we so scared to “step out of the box” and proclaim our faith? Because we let ourselves be intimated. We let that darn devil kick our butts! But, this day, brothers and sisters, I challenge you to remove yourself from the fluffy-pillow feeling of secret faith. Get out of this comfort zone we call “tolerance.” In the words of a certain TOOL TIME host, “Screw that!” Leave all of that softcore garbage behind and step onto this battlefield. In horror movies, the characters that run away are always the ones who get whacked. But the ones who step up and challenge the villain always win. True, they may get knocked around a bit (ever seen the Nightmare on Elms’ Street movies?), but, in the end, they always prevail. Today, pray that you would be convicted with love for God and ask that He would open your eyes to the spiritual armor in front of you (see Ephesians 6:10-17). Put on that cloak, that shield and that sword and go out onto the warzone of life. We, as Christians, may lose some battles, but we ultimately WIN THE WAR!
posted by Kujo @ 2:37 AM
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