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A Call to Arms
Make no mistake, The Call to Arms will cost you. The gospel has never been free of consequence, and Christ never pretended otherwise. Paul wrote that “we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord” (2 Corinthians 4:5), having “this treasure in earthen vessels” (ibid, 4:7) that the “excellency of the power may be of God” (ibid, 4:7) and not by our strength. This power when manifested is shown forth in a life of “being troubled on every side, yet not distressed”(ibid, 4:8). This life is manifest through the life of “Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body” (ibid, 4:10).
It is also revealed in the church of the Thessalonians, that they received with much afflictions and where ensamples of the gospel as they went into Macedonia and Achaia being persecuted for “taking up arms” and boldly proclaiming that which troubled the land when they themselves “turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God” (1 Thessalonians 1:9).
A Call to be Strong and of a Good Courage in Preaching Truth
The purpose of this devotional is to confront the modern notion that a preacher of the gospel must avoid preaching against specific sins, either because those sins are widely accepted in society or because calling them out would offend the hearer. Scripture knows nothing of such cowardice. When sin is known, practiced, defended, or openly paraded before the eyes of men, the preacher of righteousness is duty-bound to name it, expose it, and warn of its consequences. Unrebuked sin darkens the understanding, perverts the conscience, and gives Satan ground to harden the hearts of men against the true and living God.
The apostle Paul did not hesitate to preach with precision. Addressing Jews in the synagogue, he reminded them that they failed to recognize Jesus Christ as Saviour and instead put Him to death “because they knew him not, nor yet the voices of the prophets which are read every sabbath day” (Acts 13:27). Their ignorance was not innocent. They possessed the Scriptures, heard them read weekly, and yet rejected the very One of whom those Scriptures testified. Paul boldly declared that Jesus Christ is the fulfilment of God’s promises, proven by His resurrection from the dead, and then issued a prophetic rebuke that cut directly against their religious confidence:
Behold, ye despisers, and wonder, and perish: for I work a work in your days, a work which ye shall in no wise believe though a man declare it unto you. (Act 13:41)
God Is in Control: Truth,
Presumption, or Deception?
There is a phrase that ought to be spoken with trembling, if spoken at all, and yet it is thrown around carelessly by Christians who are often carnal, self-satisfied, and profoundly ignorant of the Word of God. That phrase is: “God is in control.” I have listened to professing Christians recount decisions, behaviors, and situations that stand in direct contradiction to Scripture, only to conclude with that hollow sentence, as though it sanctifies their folly. It does not. It condemns it.
I have told such Christians plainly: that statement, in your mouth, is foolishness. The one in control is not God, it is you. You may call that presumptuous; I call it biblical. If you knew the Scriptures, if you knew God as He has revealed Himself from Genesis to Revelation, if you understood the record of human responsibility that fills every page, you would never dare attribute your carnality to God.
Was God “in control” of Peter in Galatians 2, when Paul withstood him to the face because he walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel? Was God “in control” in 1 Corinthians 5, when a man lived in open fornication with his father’s wife and the church tolerated it? Was God “in control” in 1 Corinthians 11, when believers abused the Lord’s table and brought judgment upon themselves? Was God “in control” when David committed adultery with Bathsheba and murdered her husband, though David was a man after God’s own heart? The answer is obvious to anyone who fears God: no. God rebuked those situations precisely because He was not being obeyed in them.
A Call to Prayer
After forty-five years of Christian living, I am certain that prayer is not some sentimental, philosophical exercise, nor is it a human attempt to manipulate a distant, indifferent God. It is the sacred, biblical dialogue between a holy God and His obedient children, rooted in awe, fear, and love for the Lord. Too often, the world and even so-called Christians, reduce prayer to routine, mechanical petitions, divorced from righteousness, holiness, and the fear of God. This is foolishness, for the Scriptures make clear that God is not a blind, impersonal mechanism, nor a rigid, deterministic force unmoved by the choices and hearts of His children.
God, in His infinite wisdom, is fully supreme and knows what he desires to know. Yet His omniscience does not strip prayer of power. The Lord moves relationally, knowing His children by name, watching their obedience, and responding to their faith and love. Just as He spoke to Abraham, Moses, and Daniel, so too does He incline His ear to those who fear Him, who obey His Word, and whose lives reflect the holiness and devotion He requires. Prayer is not a casual act; it is a faithful and humble spiritual effort through which the righteous can move the heart of God. It is the means by which heaven itself aligns with a faithful soul, not because God is ignorant, but because He has chosen to govern relationally, to respond, to act in time, and to honor covenantal (obedience to the Lord Jesus Christ) love.
This understanding is both terrifying and glorious: terrifying because a careless, disobedient life, full of carnality and rebellion, severs the effectiveness of prayer (see 1 Corinthians 5:3-11, 11:27-30), But, for the faithful, those who adorn themselves in righteousness, humility, and devotion, can see God move, intervene, and even alter the course of judgment in mercy by directing the circumstances of our lives. True prayer, as found fifty-three times in the New Testament alone demands obedience, holiness, fervency and alignment with God’s Word, from the top of the head to the soles of the feet. The Christian who approaches prayer in the fear of the Lord does not merely speak into the air, he engages in the sacred work of drawing heaven to earth, of moving the very heart of God, and of walking in the power, authority, and blessing reserved for those who truly serve the Almighty.
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