War Against Words

"This is war!" Three words shouted by a madman just before he opened fire on the people gathered at First Baptist Church, Daingerfield, Texas in the summer of 1980. His "war" came without warning and was unleashed with tremendous fury on the innocent.

It was a war no one knew existed until it erupted that June morning. It was a war I will never forget. It has left permanent visual images on my mind. Since that day, there have been similar one-man acts of war that have ambushed innocent people on college campuses, churches, schools, and other public places.

There are wars we know are wars, and there are wars we remain unaware of until we're under attack. There are visible, strategic, correspondents-on-the-ground wars and invisible, surprise, no-one-knew-this-was-coming wars. Pearl Harbor and Nine Eleven rank high on our nation's memory of surprise attacks.

There are at least two ways to be invisible. One is to fly under the radar so that no one sees you. The other is to be so cleverly disguised that no one sees you even when you're right out in the open. There is an invisible war taking place right now. It is not flying under the radar. It is out in the open. Yet, few see it.

Even though it is a war on all fronts, it continues to go unnoticed. The reason it continues to go unnoticed is because its strategy is one of slow erosion. The outer defenses have been systematically removed with intellectual sniper fire. Yet, it is not a war against man, though man is a casualty. It's a war against paper. Paper? Paper. Documents. Parchments. Scrolls. It is a war against the authoritative documents once respected and obeyed in this land.

The strength of this nation is directly linked to the principles, values, and Divine guidance found in written form. The primary source of the U. S. Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, our nation's authoritative documents, is the Bible. Those who question that fact wear a darker blindfold than Lady Liberty. Not for the sake of justice, but for the sake of defiance against the notion of an involved God in the affairs of man.

The content of our conduct contained in those parchments of liberty and law are reflective of that which is contained in God's Word. State Constitutions are an even greater reflection of a Biblical foundation. Yet, we now live in a day when all the authoritative documents of our land, especially the Bible, are under fire.

Liberties are being squeezed into handcuffs. Laws of God-ordained human conduct and decency are being court marshalled. Man has assumed an editing role over what God has written and drawn red ink X's over sections that do not meet with their approval or desired lifestyle urges.

When men elevate themselves above their authoritative documents, there is anarchy. When men tell God who He can and cannot be and what He can and cannot do or say, the insane have truly taken over the sanitarium.

We have mislabeled arrogance and called it wisdom. We have substituted pride with what we were told was enlightenment. We have forced nature to accept what is unnatural. We have become so subnormal that the normal is now seen as abnormal. We celebrate homosexuality and mock celibacy. We fight vociferously to save whales in icy waters and send scalpels into hearts beating with human life inside human wombs. We have decided humans are evolved monkeys and then wondered why our children act more like monkeys than humans.

This is a war that is fully engaged and rapidly gaining strength. We need to be students of history. When Israel behaved similarly, turned her back on God's Word and God's ways, allowed man-made gods equal status to the God who made man, the God who made man removed His hedge of protection and allowed peoples of distant lands and purveyors of pagan religions to cart them off as conquered enemies.

To engage this battle for the soul of this nation, let us return to the primary document of true faith which includes the following directive: "If My people who are called by My name, will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land" (2 Chronicles 7:14).

The hope of healing for this nation is real. You have just read the prescription needed to bring healing. Will we fall to our knees...or be brought to them?

On the Battlefield of Prayer,
Perry Crisp

Killer Voices

Enemy forces joined together and marched toward Judah in massive force. Multitudes of capable warriors were only miles away, ready to pounce on the weak, unsuspecting nation. King Jehoshaphat received very bad news from the JIA (Judah Intelligence Agency): "We have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us, nor do we know what to do" (2 Chronicles 20:12). "Jehoshaphat feared" (v. 3).

When it seems defeat is inevitable, it always helps to remember these words from this same story: "The battle is not yours, but God's" (v. 15). Sure, Jehoshaphat feared. But the verse doesn't end there. Fear was the initial reaction, not the course of action. "Jehoshaphat feared, AND SET HIMSELF TO SEEK THE LORD."

By doing so, the king set in motion a series of events that required the direct involvement of God to explain the outcome. I love the outcome. "Now when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushes against the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; and they were defeated" (v. 22).

Talk about the choir knockin' 'em dead! "When Judah came to a place overlooking the wilderness, they looked toward the multitude (the enemy's camp or stronghold); and there were their dead bodies, fallen on the earth. No one had escaped" (v. 24).

No, their singing was not that awful. Their God is just that powerful! Jehoshaphat and Judah understood something that we too easily forget: "You will not need to fight in this battle. Position yourselves, stand still and see the salvation of the Lord, who is with you, O Judah and Jerusalem! Do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow, go out against them, for the Lord is with you" (v. 17).

Look back at the first paragraph and read the first verse I quoted (v. 12). I must confess I didn't quite finish that verse. Hear the end of that statement now: "but our eyes are upon You" (v. 12).

When a people turn their fear into faith and choose to submit the situation totally to God instead of surrendering in defeat or sulking in despair, God rolls up His sleeves. And if you want to see God blow your socks off in the way that He works, keep your sword in your belt, and belt out some "hallelujah's" -- sing His praises -- and see His power!

There are so many keys to the victory that Jehoshaphat and Judah saw that day. Sure, when they "stood up to praise the Lord God of Israel with voices loud and high" (v. 19), God moved in power and might. But before they stood to praise, they bowed their faces to the ground in God's presence and worshipped Him (v. 18).

What enemy has you in sight? What force greater than you leans heavily upon you? Remember what the true enemy of your soul wants you to forget: "The Lord is with you," and "the battle is not yours, but God's!" Oh, and remember this as well -- You have a killer voice whenever you sing God's praises.

Be warned, devil -- I'm about to become a one-man hallelujah choir!
Perry Crisp