Loading and Firing
January 4, 2004
Dear Friends,
In a time long ago in a land far away, there were two cities locked in battle. It was a strange battle because of the unusual tactics of the two combatants. In the first city, the people never fired their guns, they just loaded them. They loaded and loaded until their guns were bursting with ammunition. It never occurred to them to fire them.
The other city was just the opposite. They fired their guns constantly. Unfortunately for them, they never took the time to load them. They just sat there day and night pulling the trigger with nothing happening. Needless to say, not much was accomplished in this battle for either side.
It seems to me that some believers are like these two cities. There are those who never fire their guns, they just load them. They read their Bibles all of the time. They study books and all sort of Bible related material. They go to Bible class all the time. However, when it comes to putting all of that head knowledge to work, it just never seems to happen. They don’t preach. They don’t help their fellowman. Life in Christ for them is an academic exercise which has little practical application. James warns believers such as this. ” But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.” (Jas 1:22 AV)
On the other hand, we have those who are always firing, but never loading their gun. They run all over the place constantly doing good works, but never take the time to look in the Bible for guidance to what they do. They might feed the poor, but aren’t well equipped enough in the things of God to assist them much beyond providing a meal. They can give them bread, but not the bread of life because they don’t know that much about it. Paul likened this to the Jews who didn’t accept Christ when he said “For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge.” (Rom. 10:2 AV)
If we continue on with a “soldiers for Christ” analogy, we can make sense of a reasonable war plan. When we decide to serve Christ, we need to both learn the basics of how to read and understand the message of the Bible and as well as apply it in our lives. We learn not only how to load our guns, but shoot them too. We learn many other things as well such as how to administer spiritual first aid to those wounded souls around us. In this way we can counter the oft heard accusation that “Christians are the only army in the world that shoots its wounded.” In short, we learn how to wear the whole armor of God as described by the Apostle Paul in Ephesians 6. “Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; and your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”
“Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.” (2 Tim. 2:3 AV)
Have a great week!
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