Caught off Guard

Tuesday, February 05, 2019

by Dr. Paul Chappell

“For the Son of man is as a man taking a far journey, who left his house, and gave authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the porter to watch. Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning: Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping.”

Mark 13:34–36

At 7:20 on a Sunday morning, the phone rang at a radar station on Oahu Island. It was Lt. Kermit Tyler, responding to a message he had received a few minutes earlier regarding a huge blip that had shown up on the radar screen just after 7:00 that morning. Tyler told the radar operator, George Elliot, Jr. that it was nothing to worry about—just a flight of B-17 bombers flying in from California. And with that, the last warning that could have allowed a response before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor was overlooked. The first wave of planes, 183 strong, had shown up on radar, but the US forces, with a peacetime mentality, were caught off guard.

The Bible tells us repeatedly that we are engaged in daily spiritual warfare against a powerful enemy who is dedicated to our destruction. Yet all too often Christians are caught off guard, losing the battle against sin because they did not take the warnings seriously. Jesus alerted Peter to the fact that he would deny his Lord in very strong terms. “And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat” (Luke 22:31). Yet despite that warning, Peter went to sleep while Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, and hours later he denied even knowing Jesus. Peter’s story is an example to us that we must give attention to biblical warnings. Every time we let down our guard, we give Satan an opening that he will certainly take.

Today's Growth Principle: 

The best defense against spiritual opposition is God’s Word. We should read it and respond to its warnings.

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“But these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” —John 20:31 The identifying mark of a Christian is faith. In fact, before we were called Christians in the Bible, we were called believers…believers in Christ. How do you fortify your faith? Saturate your heart, your mind, your life with God’s Word. Eating a well-balanced diet is essential…eating right and exercising right. Physical meals are necessary for your physical well-being, and spiritual meals are necessary for our spiritual well-being. Build your life on the Word of God! My friend Hank Hanegraff has an acrostic that I’m going to borrow called meals…M-E-A-L-S. Memorize God’s Word. It’s amazing how these scriptures will surface just when you need them the most. Examine the scriptures. When we examine the scriptures, we grow in our faith, in our knowledge of God’s word, and our knowledge of God Himself! Apply. We must exercise our faith in practical obedience. The Word of God gives you wisdom for life. Listen. God speaks to us through His Word. When you’re in the Word, the word will get in you, and you start hearing from God. Study. Be a student of the Word. Jesus, the living Word of God will fill you through and through, and your faith will grow. The faith that we have is solid and strong when our faith is truly built upon a foundation that cannot be shaken! EVERY BLESSING IN LIFE IS A RESULT OF FAITH!