A friend of mine was a paratrooper  and faced live action in many different areas of conflict. Whenever we talked about his experiences, even though he was not a follower of Christ, he would say, “There are no atheists on the battlefield.” When he first said this, I thought he was making a joke, but there was no smile on his face. He really cried out to God in those moments of severe danger, and wanted Him to help. However, as soon as the battle was over and the enemy fire had stopped, he forgot about calling out to God, at least until the next time he was under fire!

The Bible has a warning for us if we view God in this ‘magic genie’ way. “The Lord said, ‘These people draw near with their mouths and honour Me with their lips, but have removed their hearts far from Me’ ” (Isa. 29:13). God spoke these words to His people when their attention to Him was based on merely human rules they had been taught.

Whether we speak to God out of duty, as ancient Israel did, or out of fear because of the dangers of battle, neither will suffice. God is there for us when we are in immense danger, but He is God outside the battlefield as well. He wants a relationship with us, anything less and we trivialise who He is. He is God all of the time, so let’s submit to Him as God all of the time.

Author

Russell Fralick

Topics

Our Daily Bread