Lesson 9 Fighting in the Shadow of the Cross
Questions 5 and 6
The Man in the Middle
Friend, this battle was intense, the enemy started it, but Israel ended it--victorious! But could they go home and boast to their families that they won the battle? The soldiers had learned warfare and must have fought bravely, but did you notice who actually won this battle for them?
Look at this little statement:
“As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning”
Exodus 17:11 NIV
What an extraordinary way to win a battle, right? I mean, here is Moses up on a hill, with men on each side of him, and if he raises his hands, the Israelites win the battle, but if he lowers his hands, they lose! In other words, while the Israelites were fighting down in the valley, God made the outcome of the battle totally dependent on what that man on the hill did!
Question 5. Do you see that God made the outcome of this battle dependent on what the man in the middle did? Please fill in the blank. “As long as Moses held up his , the Israelites were ..." Exodus 17:11a NIV
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Lift Up Your Eyes to the Cross
Imagine an Israelite soldier being in the heat of battle, fighting as a good soldier does. And in a brief lull in the fighting, he turns and looks up at the hill, and there he sees three men; the one in the middle has his hands outstretched in victory. And that soldier knows somehow that what that man in the middle is doing (Moses, interceding with God) is winning the battle for him, and so, he fights harder!
Do you see what I mean about fighting in the shadow of the cross?
Friend, substance abuse is a very powerful temptation. The battle to overcome is intense. You will have to make a God-given plan to defeat it and fight hard to overcome it. But stop for just a minute, and turn and look up to the hill of Calvary. There you see three men (Jesus in the middle of the two criminals), and the one in the middle has His arms outstretched in victory. And what He is doing there - dying for your sin and taking all of God’s wrath on Himself - has won the battle for you! He is triumphing for you!
“And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.”
Colossians 2:15 NIV
Like this soldier in battle, we must fight with our eyes fixed on the cross, receiving grace from God, thanking Jesus for forgiveness and reconciliation through His death and resurrection.
“fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer, and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him, he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”
Hebrews 12:2-3 NIV
Oh, friend, this is a far different way to win a battle than human programs ever taught us. We fight by looking at the cross, seeing Jesus assume our guilt and pay off our debt of sin, seeing Him breathe out His last breath so that we can receive His Spirit, and experiencing deeply the love and forgiveness that flows from the cross.
But while this is a totally different method, you will find freedom as you’ve never experienced before if you do it long enough. You will experience heart change and will begin to hate your previous life of sin, even as you begin to love Jesus deeply from your heart. And you will find power, Holy Spirit power, resurrection power, a power for which you’ve been longing.
All this and much more, as we continue in this course together.
Question 6. What did you learn in this lesson today, and how will you apply it?
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