A Battleground

[The following is a manuscript of my message delivered on Sunday morning, the 25th of August, 2019 at Pilgrim Reformed Church.  Look for the video of our services on our Vimeo channel:  http://vimeo.com/pilgrimreformedchurch.  Today we also held our back-to-school service, asking the Lord's blessing over our students, teachers, and all school personnel, as well as their gear.]

I will admit that, at first glance, the scripture I am using for today’s back-to-school service may seem a poor choice.  But if you’ll keep an open heart and stick with me, I think you’ll see why it fits.

I want you to picture in your minds a battlefield where a great war is fought, a war for freedom from tyranny and slavery.  One great warrior emerges, a Judge of Israel.  I mentioned last week that God sent His Spirit to touch and help the Judges, giving Samson as an example.  Please listen and follow along to what the prophet Samuel recorded in his Book of the Judges, chapter 3, verses 5 through 11, reading from the New King James Version of our Holy Bible…

5 Thus the children of Israel dwelt among the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 6 And they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their daughters to their sons; and they served their gods.

7 So the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord. They forgot the Lord their God, and served the Baals and Asherahs. 8 Therefore the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel, and He sold them into the hand of Cushan-Rishathaim king of Mesopotamia; and the children of Israel served Cushan-Rishathaim eight years. 9 When the children of Israel cried out to the Lord, the Lord raised up a deliverer for the children of Israel, who delivered them: Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother. 10 The Spirit of the Lord came upon him, and he judged Israel. He went out to war, and the Lord delivered Cushan-Rishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand; and his hand prevailed over Cushan-Rishathaim. 11 So the land had rest for forty years. Then Othniel the son of Kenaz died.

--Judges 3:5-11 (NKJV)

Let us pray…  Father God, You raised up a great warrior hero in Othniel by sending Your Holy Spirit to help him in battle.  Your servant Othniel delivered the people out of slavery.  Father, today we face a far greater enemy than the King of Mesopotamia.  Embolden us with Your Spirit that dwells within us, Father.  Give us the courage and strength we need in the battle ahead.  Speak to us now, Father, through Your Spirit, with the message we need to hear and heed.  This we pray in the holy name of Your Son Jesus, our Lord.   Amen.


Theologian G. K. Chesterton once noted that:  “Without education, we are in a horrible and deadly danger of taking educated people seriously.”

The great philosopher, Pete Seeger...  OK, so he was actually a folk singer, but Pete posed this question in an interview for Rolling Stone magazine:  “Do you know the difference between education and experience?  Education is when you read the fine print; experience is what you get when you don't.”


Both are indeed true.  We certainly gain experience when we ignore the fine print.  And even though it sounds humorous, I think Chesterton gave us a warning we should heed.  We are in danger of taking educated people, or at least some of them, too seriously.  And for that I’ll point directly at too many of our nation’s public schools and those of higher learning.

For decades now, we’ve sent our children off to prominent universities, only to have them taught that everything they learned at home is hogwash.  There is no God, Jesus was just a man, the entire universe sparked into being entirely by chance and in one big bang of energy and light, out of nothing.  We try to raise our kids right, and the professors tell them we had it all wrong.

And now that attitude is working its way into our public schools.  Case in point: a middle school in California recently handed out a little chart to incoming students that identified three genders:  make, female, and “other”.  And then they included “intersex” with “other”, whatever that is.

Family, we know that God created mankind in His own image and likeness.  Male and female He created us - no “other” nor “intersex”, just male and female.  But if things like this keep up, our children may not know the absolute truth of God and His creation.


I feel the Spirit led me to today’s scripture because we are at war, just as were the children of Israel.  And just like them, we are in a war of our own making, a war that is basically our own fault.  And when I say “our own making”, “our own fault”, I mean modern society, and yes, in a big way, even you and me.

The Israelis turned their backs on God, disobeyed His commands, carried on however they wanted, serving themselves and not God.  As Samuel put it, they did evil in the sight of the Lord.  So God allowed them to be taken into captivity by Mesopotamia.  For eight years the people languished in slavery before they finally remembered God and cried out to Him for help.

God took pity and sent Othniel to judge them, the son of Kenaz, nephew of Caleb.  God’s Holy Spirit touched Othniel, came upon him, and he delivered his people from captivity.  Samuel tells us that then the people, and even the land, enjoyed peace and rest for forty years… once they returned to God!


Family, just like those ancient Jews, we are in a war of our own making.  We have stood by and watched as Satan has taken control of the public sphere, from our courthouses to our seats of government to the schools where we send our children.  Our religious freedom is being stripped away from those public places and relegated to the privacy of our homes and churches.

We are in a war, and we are losing.  The Apostle Paul tells us what we need to do.  Listen to what he wrote in his letter to the Ephesians, chapter 6, verses 10 through 18…

10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; 18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints...

--Ephesians 6:10-18 (NKJV)

We are at war, and I wonder how many of us realize we are sending our children into the battlefields.  We watch as our grandchildren march off to face an enemy whose cruelty and viciousness is unmatched in history.  Satan is hard at work in our schools, from elementary all the way through college, trying to sway young minds.  He attacks them relentlessly, making the absurd sound reasonable, telling our children that everything we taught them is silly.

We must prepare them for that fight.  We must ensure they have all the tools they need to return to the battlefields of school.  Paul tells us what we need to do.  We can’t leave it all up to preachers and Sunday School teachers and youth leaders.  The equipping of our youth must begin and be continually reinforced in the home.  They must be knowledgeable in God’s word, which they can’t learn at school.  They must understand the Gospel, the Good News of salvation available only through Jesus, and know just what it means to them.  The only offensive weapon Paul offers is the sword of the Spirit, the word of God.  It is crucial we train our children in its use, in its truth.


Othniel was the hero in the battle against Mesopotamia, delivering the people from slavery because God’s Spirit came to him, touched him, gave him strength and courage.  Satan now threatens to take our young ones into slavery, making them slaves of sin.  We must let the Spirit strengthen and encourage us and our children, for the fight we face is for the eternal souls of our youth.

In the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.


Let us pray…  Father God, some of us don’t yet realize that we are at war, but unlike what Othniel faced, our war is spiritual.  Thank You, Father, for providing us the equipment we need for this spiritual warfare.  Thank You for Your Spirit to stand at our side in battle.  Please strengthen us and our children through Your Spirit so that we can withstand Satan’s attacks.

Please hear us now, Father, as we come to You in the silence, speaking from our hearts, promising to turn from our disobedient ways, seeking Your forgiveness and Your help…

Lord Jesus, You know what we are up against in this battle because You faced Satan Yourself.  You also had God’s Spirit on Your side, and You used the sword of the Spirit, God’s word, to fight against the devil.  Thank You, Lord, for showing us how we too can stand in this fight.  Please help us to trust in the Spirit and take strength and courage from Him.

This we pray in Your glorious name, Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior.  Amen.

And now, Heavenly Father, God of all wisdom and knowledge, we come before You this morning to ask Your blessings over our beautiful students, teachers, school staff, and their backpacks.   We give You thanks, Lord, for schools and classrooms, and for all the teachers and students and staff who will fill them each day.  We thank You for school supplies, both traditional and high tech.  But mostly, Father, we thank You for these Your children standing here today who have committed themselves to study and to learning and to teaching in the school year ahead.  Please bless our students with a thirst for knowledge, with an understanding of what they are shown and taught, and with respect for those who selflessly strive to teach them.

Father God, please bless these teachers and staff in their endeavors.  Watch over them in their daily travels to and from school, in their classrooms and everywhere on school grounds.  Please grant them patience, wisdom, and a sense of humor to see them through each day.  Bless them with a wonderful imagination and creativity that they might make the learning experience exciting for our students.  Use them, Lord, to show our children Your love.  Guide them, that they might guide our youth in their travels through life.

Lord, please give all of these Your children health and well-being throughout the year.  Bless the food they eat each day that they be well nourished.  May they be guided by Your love in all they do.  May their faith increase each day that they may grow ever closer to you.  Shield them by Your Spirit that they may withstand the attacks Satan will inflict upon them.  And may their backpacks and bags serve as a constant reminder that the love and care of this congregation family surrounds and enfolds them each school day.

And Lord, may we as a church family understand and accept the responsibility of helping our children grow into righteous young men and women.  Help us show them Your way by the example we live.  May we constantly offer them love, support, encouragement, and prayer for their safety and success.  This we ask as we seek Your blessings, and this we pray in the glorious name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.