Soldiers of Grace

"You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others. Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus." - 2 Timothy 2:1-3 (NIV)

We are called to be Soldiers of Christ Jesus, strong in the grace found in Him. This is a key element and reminder for us if we are to truly be H.I.T. Men. You see grace is the element of the gospel that changes lives. If God had sent His Son to die because He loved us and wanted us to be able to live lives that might please Him if we were good enough, then grace would not exist. Yet so often we encounter people who might admit that this is not what the Bible teaches and yet it is how they apply Christianity to their lives. REALITY CHECK! Grace is so essential that without it we would all be doomed to Hell. Grace is what happened when Jesus Christ took on all our sin and gave us His 100% righteousness, that is Grace.

Without a foundation of that Grace, we have no hope. The only way to receive Grace is by faith in Jesus Christ as your Lord, surrendering yourself to Him. We recognize that our lives are a mess and that we cannot make it work, we cannot find God on our own, we cannot fix things, we need help... our only true and eternal source is Jesus. Then we live with Him in us, allowing the Spirit of God to mold us and shape us into who He wants us to be. It can be scary but it is good.

Part of how we are to live this life of surrender is to become soldiers of Jesus Christ. Part of His force, His troops, serving under His command. We know that a normal soldier with a normal general who is a really good commander will have troops who seek to become like him, to lead like he does, to do the things he does. In the same way we are to follow his ways and become like Him.

Jesus gave us grace, we are now to live out that grace with others. As men, as soldiers in His army as H.I.T. Men, we are called to this. Walking in grace = help others even when you don't feel like it, overlooking others faults, loving people even when they hurt you, standing up for those who cannot defend themselves, sharing about what Jesus did in our lives, loving our communities, leading by example, raising families that love and honor God even though it can be hard, etc...

If you have some more examples feel free to add them here, there are lots in your Bibles!

Fight ON!

Our God is a Warrior!

OUR GOD

The Mighty One, The Warrior, The Fierce, The Just, The Massive, The Strong, The Vindicator, The Hero, The Defender, The Judge, The Jury, The All Powerful One, etc...

These descriptors are not the complete list of attributes of God and His character, but they are often overlooked. Take a read of Exodus 15 below and consider some of the attributes of God that are expressed.

Exodus 15:1-18 (NIV)

Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the LORD :

"I will sing to the LORD, for he is highly exalted. The horse and its rider he has hurled into the sea. The LORD is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise him, my father's God, and I will exalt him. The LORD is a warrior; the LORD is his name. Pharaoh's chariots and his army he has hurled into the sea. The best of Pharaoh's officers are drowned in the Red Sea.

The deep waters have covered them; they sank to the depths like a stone. "Your right hand, O LORD, was majestic in power. Your right hand, O LORD, shattered the enemy. In the greatness of your majesty you threw down those who opposed you. You unleashed your burning anger; it consumed them like stubble. By the blast of your nostrils the waters piled up. The surging waters stood firm like a wall; the deep waters congealed in the heart of the sea. The enemy boasted, 'I will pursue, I will overtake them. I will divide the spoils; I will gorge myself on them. I will draw my sword and my hand will destroy them.' But you blew with your breath, and the sea covered them. They sank like lead in the mighty waters.

"Who among the gods is like you, O LORD ? Who is like you— majestic in holiness, awesome in glory, working wonders? You stretched out your right hand and the earth swallowed them. "In your unfailing love you will lead the people you have redeemed. In your strength you will guide them to your holy dwelling. The nations will hear and tremble; anguish will grip the people of Philistia. The chiefs of Edom will be terrified, the leaders of Moab will be seized with trembling, the people of Canaan will melt away; terror and dread will fall upon them. By the power of your arm they will be as still as a stone—until your people pass by, O LORD, until the people you bought pass by.

You will bring them in and plant them on the mountain of your inheritance— the place, O LORD, you made for your dwelling, the sanctuary, O Lord, your hands established. The LORD will reign for ever and ever."

As men we are called to live lives after God's Own heart, like David was known. This means that we are to seek to emulate God's Character in our lives as much as we can, every day. It is an attitude of the heart.

Preacherman