Sermon - January 27, 2013 - The Battle Begins
There is a saying, “On the battlefield, there is no atheists in foxholes." Each man who enters into battle prays that God would help them through this battle and ensure that his family is protected. The battle for the Promised Land was not an easy one. From the very beginning God had the people prepare. The people prepared by hearing the Word of God. The people gathered together to hear the entire word that had been given to them. The people also established their side of the covenant that was established with Abraham. Last week we hear about the first battle in which God defeated the people of Jericho. Throughout the campaign the people would consult the wisdom of God and when they did, they were victorious in battle. However, the people were still sinful creatures and thought they could do things on their own. Those were the times that the people would fight and lose. When you don’t consult God, the creator of all things and God is not on your side, you will fail.
The hardships of war are something that have plagued human kind since the beginning. In Genesis there were two men on the Earth who were brothers who fought. Ever since the time of Cain and Abel, battles have been fought, wars have been waged and lives have been lost. So let’s take it a little closer to home. Does anyone know what happened on December 7th, 1941? It was Pearl Harbor, the event that officially brought the United States into World War 2. The last major war that affected the world was World War II. A war in which:
Was that war enough to stop humankind from fighting? No, since then we fought in the Cold War, Vietnam, Korea, and battles still rage within the Persian Gulf and Africa. Through the History Channel, hearing stories from WW 2 veterans, and all who actually experienced the events, we are given an understanding of what the battles and wars were about.
I would like to look at one battle in particular, it’s popular name is D-Day. The day in which thousands of troops would be sent into Europe by boat and by air bringing in one of the largest amount of men and machines into a war. These soldiers were up against, the Atlantic wall. The Nazis had many years to fortify and prepare against the possibility of an invasion from England and into France and northern Germany. Here they placed; anti aircraft to battle aircraft, they placed artillery to battle ships that were still at sea. They had machine gun turrets in place if the enemy made it on to the land. At each station were men who had been trained and who had been fighting for years. These battle hardened soldiers were whom the Allies would be up against.
The Allies had prepared by getting air craft, ships, and equipment to England. Along with that, men were sent who had been trained to parachute in, to conduct various key missions to help more troops come and battle against the Nazi’s and then prepare a means so that all the Allied Forces could go all the way to Berlin, the captial of Germany and the place in which the key leaders were holding up until the final days.
This battle and the information is so important because it gives us insight into what is happening so many thousands of years ago. Each side preparing for battle. Each side training for victory. Each side praying that God would be with them. On D-Day many died, the land was soaked in the blood of both sides. Yet these men went to fight for their country, for the freedom of others and for the faith that they believed. For in the days, weeks, and months ahead, the battles continued, the prayers continued, and God was still at work within battles. No, I am not saying that God was on the side of the Allies and against the Nazis. Truly I think that God was working and caring for all the people, for life that was so valuable and toward peace within the land.
After both events have taken place and can be reflected on, we as God’s people can see the hard work, the passion, and the importance of having faith that God will be at work so that we may arrive at the final day. Once peace is declared within the land, the death and destruction is now visible to all. The wounds of God’s creation can be seen, the bombing, the bunkers, the altars to false gods, the many bodies that no longer have life within them.
Standing in all this destruction, one can wonder, is this really the promised land? Is this really the land that we have fought for? Amidst all this, God is at work to restore, rebuild and create a place in which God will take delight. Following both of these wars, God provided land in which the Hebrew people, the people of God would be able to live within the city of Jerusalem. Within the Biblical story, Jerusalem stands on the hill ready to be lived in and the fields were ripe with food for the people. The people were given the land and God protected them from their enemies. Following the days of World War II, many now debate was it right for the Hebrew people to return to Jerusalem?
We as Christians gather together in the face of all these violent acts, even the violent acts that continue within our own nation and are reminded of the cross. Here at the cross, we are reminded that through this suffering, blood and death takes place within our world. We gather together to know and love one another so that all that we have and all that we work so hard for should be used for the restoring, rebuilding and creating a place in which God would take delight.
For it is here on the cross that we come face to face with our own suffering and death, and receive instead the glory and honor that God wants us to have. From Jesus suffering, we have peace. From Jesus’ blood, we have forgiveness of sins, From Jesus’ death, we have life. For us today, the battle has been fought up until this point. However, then I wonder, what are you doing with all that you have inherited? How are you using it so that God is restoring, rebuilding and creating a place in which God would take delight?
The hardships of war are something that have plagued human kind since the beginning. In Genesis there were two men on the Earth who were brothers who fought. Ever since the time of Cain and Abel, battles have been fought, wars have been waged and lives have been lost. So let’s take it a little closer to home. Does anyone know what happened on December 7th, 1941? It was Pearl Harbor, the event that officially brought the United States into World War 2. The last major war that affected the world was World War II. A war in which:
| World War 2 Total Deaths | (Approximate) |
| Country | Casuality Number |
| Soviet Union | 23,954,000 |
| China | 15,000,000 |
| Germany | 7,728,000 |
| Poland | 5,720,000 |
| Japan | 2,700,000 |
| India | 2,087,000 |
| Yugoslavia | 1,027,000 |
| Rumania | 833,000 |
| Hungary | 580,000 |
| France | 567,600 |
| Greece | 560,000 |
| Italy | 456,000 |
| Great Britian | 449,800 |
| United States | 418,500 |
| Czechoslovakia | 345,000 |
| Netherlands | 301,000 |
| Austria | 123,700 |
| Finland | 97,000 |
| Belgium | 86,100 |
| Canada | 45,300 |
| Australia | 40,500 |
| Bulgaria | 25,000 |
| New Zealand | 11,900 |
| South Africa | 11,900 |
| Norway | 9,500 |
| Spain | 4,500 |
| Denmark | 3,200 |
| Total: | 63,185,500 |
Was that war enough to stop humankind from fighting? No, since then we fought in the Cold War, Vietnam, Korea, and battles still rage within the Persian Gulf and Africa. Through the History Channel, hearing stories from WW 2 veterans, and all who actually experienced the events, we are given an understanding of what the battles and wars were about.
I would like to look at one battle in particular, it’s popular name is D-Day. The day in which thousands of troops would be sent into Europe by boat and by air bringing in one of the largest amount of men and machines into a war. These soldiers were up against, the Atlantic wall. The Nazis had many years to fortify and prepare against the possibility of an invasion from England and into France and northern Germany. Here they placed; anti aircraft to battle aircraft, they placed artillery to battle ships that were still at sea. They had machine gun turrets in place if the enemy made it on to the land. At each station were men who had been trained and who had been fighting for years. These battle hardened soldiers were whom the Allies would be up against.
The Allies had prepared by getting air craft, ships, and equipment to England. Along with that, men were sent who had been trained to parachute in, to conduct various key missions to help more troops come and battle against the Nazi’s and then prepare a means so that all the Allied Forces could go all the way to Berlin, the captial of Germany and the place in which the key leaders were holding up until the final days.
This battle and the information is so important because it gives us insight into what is happening so many thousands of years ago. Each side preparing for battle. Each side training for victory. Each side praying that God would be with them. On D-Day many died, the land was soaked in the blood of both sides. Yet these men went to fight for their country, for the freedom of others and for the faith that they believed. For in the days, weeks, and months ahead, the battles continued, the prayers continued, and God was still at work within battles. No, I am not saying that God was on the side of the Allies and against the Nazis. Truly I think that God was working and caring for all the people, for life that was so valuable and toward peace within the land.
After both events have taken place and can be reflected on, we as God’s people can see the hard work, the passion, and the importance of having faith that God will be at work so that we may arrive at the final day. Once peace is declared within the land, the death and destruction is now visible to all. The wounds of God’s creation can be seen, the bombing, the bunkers, the altars to false gods, the many bodies that no longer have life within them.
Standing in all this destruction, one can wonder, is this really the promised land? Is this really the land that we have fought for? Amidst all this, God is at work to restore, rebuild and create a place in which God will take delight. Following both of these wars, God provided land in which the Hebrew people, the people of God would be able to live within the city of Jerusalem. Within the Biblical story, Jerusalem stands on the hill ready to be lived in and the fields were ripe with food for the people. The people were given the land and God protected them from their enemies. Following the days of World War II, many now debate was it right for the Hebrew people to return to Jerusalem?
We as Christians gather together in the face of all these violent acts, even the violent acts that continue within our own nation and are reminded of the cross. Here at the cross, we are reminded that through this suffering, blood and death takes place within our world. We gather together to know and love one another so that all that we have and all that we work so hard for should be used for the restoring, rebuilding and creating a place in which God would take delight.
For it is here on the cross that we come face to face with our own suffering and death, and receive instead the glory and honor that God wants us to have. From Jesus suffering, we have peace. From Jesus’ blood, we have forgiveness of sins, From Jesus’ death, we have life. For us today, the battle has been fought up until this point. However, then I wonder, what are you doing with all that you have inherited? How are you using it so that God is restoring, rebuilding and creating a place in which God would take delight?
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