Ron Hutchcraft Ministries - Everything for the War Effort - #6375

Friday, June 17, 2011

Download MP3 (right click to save)

When World War II began, almost every American's life changed, including my Dad's. He couldn't fight because of a medical problem, and he was working at that time in a plant that had been making some kind of industrial product. And suddenly almost overnight it was converted into a defense plant. They stopped making whatever little things they had been making, and they started to make airplane parts. Well, it was obvious what was happening. It was a war, and that plant had to be used to help win the war. During that time, not that I remember it personally, people made sacrifices of gasoline, and food, and rubber tires, and money. Why? Well, because you know that everything is needed to fight the war. It was then and it still is.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Everything for the War Effort."

Now, our word for today from the Word of God comes from Numbers 32 - I'm going to begin reading at verse 5. I need to set the scene a little bit. The Jews are getting ready to enter the Promised Land. They're facing walled cities, barbarian tribes, and well-developed armies to fight. A couple of the tribes already have their inheritance on the peaceful side of Jordan; the east side of Jordan. They have an idea for Moses, "If we have found favor in your eyes," they said, "let this land be given to your servants as our possession." In other words, we'll just kind of settle down, start milking the cows. "'Do not make us cross the Jordan,' they said. Moses said to them, 'Shall your countrymen go to war while you sit here?'" The message to Moses from God to these comfortable folks: "This is your war, too."

You know, it's easy to forget in the comfort of American Christianity that there is a war going on. The forces of darkness know what time it is, and that there isn't much time left. They are throwing everything: all the money, all the talent—everything they can into the battle for people's hearts, for people's families, for their lives, for their eternal futures, and this is war!

Let me explain what you see going on in your school, in your family, in your community. It's war! And Jesus Christ fights that war through His people. The devil is no match for God's people when they're mobilized to fight him in Jesus' name. But many of us seem to have forgotten.

There's a war going on. When you realize there's a war, you throw everything you've got into the war effort. You put your money into it, you put your talent into it, you put your time into it. It's all converted to the war effort.

You sacrifice what you might like to have for yourself. You say, "You know what? After we win this thing, I can have that." In other parts of the world, Christians know that its hand-to-hand combat and they live like it. In North America, it's easy to forget—just to send a few warriors out; you know, some of those professional warriors who can take all the risks for us and maybe have all the faith for us, and maybe we can just send a check.

God says to you and me, as He says to those believers centuries ago, "This is your war, too." God's victory strategy is that every Christian sacrifices for His battle. But the best I have—not the least I have—is used to make an eternal difference somewhere in the world or somewhere in my community.

Amy Carmichael said, "We'll have all eternity to celebrate our victories, but only a few short hours to win them." We are in those few short hours!