ABUNDANT LIFE VISION.
SOLDIERS. Psalms 24:7-10
Open up, ancient gates! Open up, ancient doors, and let the King of glory enter. [8]Who is the King of glory? The lord, strong and mighty; the lord, invincible in battle. [9]Open up, ancient gates! Open up, ancient doors, and let the King of glory enter. [10]Who is the King of glory? The lord of Heaven’s Armies—he is the King of glory. NLT.

Our God, the creator of the heavens and the earth is a warrior, a valiant one at that. He is the grand commander of the armies of heaven. One of the ways he works is to touch his people and anoint them for warfare. He taught David how to wage war. Psalms 144:1: Praise the lord, who is my rock. He trains my hands for war and gives my fingers skill for battle. NLT. He touched Samson to be the defender and liberator of Israel from the Philistines. Judges 13:3-5: The angel of the lord appeared to Manoah’s wife and said, “Even though you have been unable to have children, you will soon become pregnant and give birth to a son. [4]So be careful; you must not drink wine or any other alcoholic drink nor eat any forbidden food. [5]You will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and his hair must never be cut. For he will be dedicated to God as a Nazirite from birth. He will begin to rescue Israel from the Philistines.” NLT. In the same vein, he anointed Gideon as a mighty warrior. Judges 6:11-16.

If we are to trace the workings of God from time past till this moment, we will discover that he is interested in recruiting people into his army. The truth is, he has a mighty army in heaven (angels) and a mighty army on earth (men). There are some battles that angels cannot fight and vice-versa. The kind of battles that angels cannot fight are the ones that deals with things like the spread of the gospel. Humans are the ones to preach the gospel to fellow humans and let the Holy Spirit work on it. Jesus gave the command that we should go into the world and preach the gospel. He did not give the command to angels. Matthew 28:19: Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. NLT. In the words of Evangelist Reinhard Bonke; “an unpreached gospel is no gospel at all.” If we do not preach the gospel, we do not give the Holy Spirit anything to work with in the lives of people. That is why God has given us power to have dominion over every power that may challenge us in the quest to deliver the thing God wants us to do. The power is from the Holy Spirit who lives within us and the power makes us a member of the army of God.

All soldiers are trained to function well in their role. The training process is not always a palatable experience. It is the same thing with the children of God. He takes us on a journey to prune and shape us. Jesus did this with his disciples. Throughout his time with them, he taught them on series of topics. The one I will use as an example is the one found in Luke 18:1: One day Jesus told his disciples a story to show that they should always pray and never give up. NLT. He went further in that chapter till verse 7 to tell them the importance of prayer.

Also, God trained Paul in Arabia. Galatians 1:15-17: But even before I was born, God chose me and called me by his marvelous grace. Then it pleased him [16]to reveal his Son to me so that I would proclaim the Good News about Jesus to the Gentiles. When this happened, I did not rush out to consult with any human being. [17]Nor did I go up to Jerusalem to consult with those who were apostles before I was. Instead, I went away into Arabia, and later I returned to the city of Damascus. NLT. God uses discipline as a tool for training. Hebrews 12:5-6: And have you forgotten the encouraging words God spoke to you as his children? He said, “My child, don’t make light of the lord’s discipline, and don’t give up when he corrects you. [6]For the lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes each one he accepts as his child.” NLT. The training God put us through are person specific and they are meant to make us formidable soldiers in his army to win the world for him. If you are currently in training, keep at it, it is designed for you and you will benefit from it at the end.

However, for you to get into the army of God, the first step is to accept Jesus as your Lord and saviour. If you have not done so, I implore you to do that today by saying this prayer; Lord Jesus, I confess you as my Lord and saviour today, please save me and be my lord and I will be your witness till the end. Amen. If you have recited the prayer wholeheartedly, I congratulate you and I welcome you to the family of God. Make sure you join a bible believing church as you start your journey in Christ.