God Is Faithful in the Battle

“Moses built an altar there and named it Yahweh-Nissi - which means the LORD is my banner” (Exodus 17:15).

Welcome back dear student, in times of adversity we need God’s wisdom and peace to make good decisions and not fall down under pressure. The LORD sees you in every tough situation dear friend: whether that struggle is with addiction, or family warfare, suffering severe lack, or mental distress - the list of difficulties that people endure is endless because we live in a fallen world, where Satan and his demons hound God’s people (1 Peter 5:7-9).

But God is Faithful! His Word and His promises hold true forever.

God Spirit in you is greater – He is for you, and He will help you and bring you through (1 John 4:4). Some say that it’s God Who brings the trouble – that is not true. We have a deceitful and wicked enemy whose plan is to attack and destroy humanity. God is good all the time, but the devil’s agenda is to cause as much pain and torment as he can before his time runs out (Revelation 12:9-17). The closer we get to Jesus’ return, the worse the enemy’s onslaught. And folks who don’t know the Truth of God’s Word and His character are targets for deception (Hosea 4:6).

People ask all the time….‘if God’s so good, why do bad things happen to lovely people?’ God gave Adam and Eve authority and dominion over this earth; the devil tricked them into listening to his lies and they believed his words over God’s, bringing mankind under the control of Satan (2 Corinthians 4:4). Thus, began man’s downfall: separation from God, curse upon the earth – hopelessness, with sin and death reigning.

So, God came down to fix it in the Person of Jesus His Son, the Word of God, to pay for all our sins, to reverse death, and curse, and to reconcile everyone of us to God the Father Who loves us.

But it’s a choice!

In His Love for us, the LORD has given us free will – that is the option to believe in Him and accept His Son as Messiah, and yield to the leadership of His Spirit – or not.

God is not pushy.

Jesus said ‘behold I stand at the door and knock’ – we have a choice whether or not to open the door to Him (Revelation 3:20). In truly turning to God, we choose to submit to His plan. We come to Him surrounded by the debris of our mess, unsure of where to begin. There’s a beautiful song called ‘O Come To The Altar’ by Elevation Worship. The altar is not just a table – it is the sacred place where mess meets The Holy God.

A place of sacrifice, mercy, prayer, healing, deliverance, and restoration through Jesus, Restorer of all (Acts 3:20-22).

I pray we will answer God’s call, and rebuild the altars in our lives.

In our lead Scripture above, Moses built an altar of thanksgiving at the place of great trouble and deliverance. The people were in dire straits – dying from thirst in a wilderness that sustained no life. God demonstrated His provision and care by bringing water from the Rock and daily manna. They faced a huge battle with an enemy army – this was not ‘handbags at ten paces’ - it was serious warfare.

As Moses watched the combat below he noticed that when his arms were raised high, his side prevailed; but when his arms fell down tired, the enemy was winning. Aaron and Hur held Moses’ arms up, extending the rod of God’s authority until victory was won. Gathering with other believers in agreement and fellowship is vital.

"And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of His return is drawing near" (Hebrews 10:25).

Life is not easy, but our perfect God sustains and delivers us to triumph together!