The Lord, Our Peace

Bible Studies for Life devotional originally published here at the Biblical Recorder.

Focal Passage: Judges 6:11-16, 22-24

Alfred Nobel is known today as the man whose estate funded the Nobel peace prize. What you may not know is that before the peace prize, Nobel invented dynamite. While dynamite has other uses, it was quickly adopted by militaries and used to destroy countless lives in war. Alfred’s brother Ludvig died in 1888. By fateful mistake, Alfred’s obituary was printed instead of Ludvig’s. One newspaper opined, “The merchant of death is dead.” That caption changed Alfred and led him to fund the peace prize that bears his name. We are a world enamored with peace that that seems impossible to achieve. Conflict continues geopolitically and interpersonally. Peace evades us. In Gideon’s story, the people of Israel were not at peace. They were under Midian’s rule because of their sinfulness. God chose Gideon to lead Israel to cast off Midian. After perceiving he had met the angel of the Lord, he became afraid. But God said, “Peace be to you. Do not fear; you shall not die.” God promised Gideon peace. But Gideon would face internal turmoil and lead armies into battle, how could there be peace? We can have peace with God even though our external situations do not reflect it. Gideon met an angel of the Lord, likely none other than a preincarnate appearance of Jesus Christ. The peace we so desperately need, the peace the world lacks and the peace Nobel hoped to achieve with his prize met Gideon that day. Jesus is the Prince of Peace. He came to bring us peace, to end our war with God, to release us from sin’s bondage. Jesus is also the King of kings and he will return. One day interpersonal turmoil, political parties and international conflicts will be in the distant past because there will be One King, One Ruler, One Prince, One Lord, and all will bow before him as the Prince of Peace.

The Lord is Our Banner

Bible Studies for Life devotional originally published at the Biblical Recorder here.

Focal Passage: Exodus 17:8-16

One of the most iconic symbols in American history is the sculpture of the marines on Iwo Jima as they raised the flag of the United States of America. The flag symbolized victory, freedom and the power of the United States military. That picture aids our understanding of the concept of “the Lord is our Banner” In Hebrew it would read Yahweh-Nissi. A banner would be a military symbol that clearly identifies an army or a people. In the story of Israel’s battle with the Amalekites, Joshua led the rabble of former slaves to defend themselves. Moses watched from a hilltop overlooking the battle. As his arms were raised in prayer and dependence on God, Israel gained the upper hand. As his arms fell, Amalek gained the upper hand. Ultimately, Israel was victorious because God strengthened the armies of Israel against their enemy. It is interesting to observe the shared responsibilities in the battle. Israel fought. Men fell. Moses prayed. Moses lost strength. Aaron and Hur held Moses’ arms up. God gave Israel victory. The Lord is our Banner does not mean that we huddle in a corner hiding from our problems, enemies and difficulties. Rather, it means that we walk in faith and advance in dependence. We do ourselves no favors when we try to battle on our own strength. Rather, we gain victory when we look in faith to the Lord our Banner. More than a thousand years later God gave his people a glorious symbol of his victorious banner. When Jesus hung on that cruel Roman cross, he atoned for our sins and defeated our spiritual enemy. The cross of Christ is both historical reality and powerful symbol. We receive the victory of the cross not by fighting alongside our Savior, but by depending on the victory he won. Look to the cross as the symbol of God’s banner over you.