There Is No Switzerland in Spiritual Warfare
When God Speaks—Be Quick to Obey!
Where is the battle of faith calling you to take a stand today? Since God is already there, jump into the fray. You’re guaranteed a win.
SUMMARY: The realm of spiritual warfare where the Christian resides is no theological “Switzerland.” Moral issues demand that we take a stand as Kingdom ambassadors. We cannot keep our distance from this conflict; we cannot stay neutral in it. We must engage, even when the odds are overwhelming. To step forward in faith into the fray is to be on the right side of history — what we can rightly call “His story” — and time will prove it.
God Speaks—I Obey
// Focus: Judges 5:15-18, 24-25
The princes of Issachar were with Deborah; yes, Issachar was with Barak, sent under his command into the valley. In the districts of Reuben there was much searching of heart. Why did you stay among the sheep pens to hear the whistling for the flocks? In the districts of Reuben there was much searching of heart. Gilead stayed beyond the Jordan. And Dan, why did he linger by the ships? Asher remained on the coast and stayed in his coves. The people of Zebulun risked their very lives; so did Naphtali on the terraced fields….Most blessed of women be Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite, most blessed of tent-dwelling women.
In Judges 5, the prophetess Deborah composed a tune to commemorate the Israelites’ victory, led by General Barak, over the Canaanites and their leader, General Sisera. The memorable and brutal battle described in Judges 4 ended with the gruesome death of Sisera. Deborah used the occasion to memorialize the details of Israel’s victory in this song—a song she not only composed but also sang for all to hear.
The tune, however, was not just a celebration; it was a diatribe as well. Not only did she celebrate the brave hearts of several of Israel’s tribes, Issachar, Ephraim, Benjamin, and Zebulun, along with the courageous lady named Jael, who assassinated Sisera, but she also castigates the indecision of other tribes, Reuben, Dan, and Asher. These latter tribes apparently sat out the conflict because it didn’t directly concern them.
Rueben was conflicted about joining the fight, apparently not so sure there would be a good outcome, given how badly Israel was outmanned and outgunned: “In Reuben there was much searching of heart.” (Judges 5:15-16). The others, the tribes of Ephraim, Benjamin, and Zebulun, were either sitting in the safety of being far from the conflict or too busy with their own concerns to jump into the fray.
Despite the lack of participation from these four tribes, Israel conquered the Canaanites. It was an amazing victory for Israel when General Barak put the larger, better-equipped army led by General Sisera to flight. But when the time came for courage, for the reasons mentioned above, the four stayed home. In so doing, they earned the ire of this steely prophetess, Deborah. She interpreted their reluctance as disloyalty to the nation, which was tantamount to a lack of faith, disobedience, and disloyalty to God. So, she called them out publicly for seeing themselves as separate entities rather than as a part of the nation, a problem Moses had previously warned about, and a problem that became reality in future chapters throughout Judges.
So, what does this story have to do with you? Simply this: there is always conflict in the believer’s life. At times, the conflict is in the unseen realm, while at other times it spills over into the real world in your personal, family, social, professional, and church life. In the raging battle, there is always a right and wrong side, a side that represents good and one that represents evil. And wherever conflict invades your world, there are always three positions you can take—one right, two wrong.
The two wrong sides are pictured immortalized in Deborah’s song. One side, represented by Reuben, is to stay neutral in the fray when the choice is clear. The Rueben mentality is conflicted, not sure what to do, worried about the cost, wanting to play it safe, but not feeling so good about sitting it out. But safe it is not, it is wrong, for in the fight of faith, there is no neutral spiritual Switzerland. Moral issues demand that we take a stand.
The second wrong side takes a definite stance to sit it out. The sit-it-out crowd is too busy, too far removed (they don’t have a dog in this fight, or so they think), and to jump into the fray would take too much effort for too little reward. But in the fight of faith, where the choice is clear, staying off the field will only get you into history books for the wrong reason. Spiritual infamy is not what you want when you are needed in the conquest.
There is only one right side, and that is to step forward in faith to fight for right. When sin threatens, encroaches, or seeks to enslave, even when it seems the odds are against you or against those who need your help, Deborah’s eternal call is to jump into the fray. Her words to Barak are the Word of the Lord to you:
“This is the day the Lord has given your enemy into your hands—for the Lord is marching ahead of you.” (Judges 4:14)
Where is the battle of faith calling you to take a stand today? If there is an identifiable conflict, jump into the fray. God is already there, and you are not only guaranteed a win but also an eternal song to commemorate your conquest.
Choose You This Day
Picture your greatest challenge. Once you have that in view, picture God already there waiting for you. Now get out there; go take a victory lap in a victory that God has won for you.
“God’s way of choosing leaders often defies human expectations. He doesn’t seek the most powerful, the most skilled, or those with the greatest resources. Instead, He chooses ordinary men and women to do extraordinary things. This shows that it is not about who we are, but who God is.”
- Edo Political Forum