Sermon Central
-
The Battle-Axe Of God
Contributed by Daniel Olukoya on Feb 2, 2005 (message contributor)
Summary: If you must become God’s battle-axe,passing through fire becomes non-negotiable.
Thou art my battle axe and weapons of war: for with thee will I break in pieces the nations, and with thee will I destroy kingdoms; [21] And with thee will I break in pieces the horse and his rider; and with thee will I break in pieces the chariot and his rider; [22] With thee also will I break in pieces man and woman; and with thee will I break in pieces old and young; and with thee will I break in pieces the young man and the maid; [23] I will also break in pieces with thee the shepherd and his flock; and with thee will I break in pieces the husbandman and his yoke of oxen; and with thee will I break in pieces captains and rulers.
The Bible describes God as a “Man of War” He fights on behalf of His children. Also, He is at war with the kingdom of darkness, so that the kingdom of God can be established in the hearts of men. In the text above, God is referring to you and I , that are called by His name, as His “Battle-Axe” An Axe is an instrument, a tool used in chopping wood or anything else. A good axe must be swift, sharp, strong and powerful. God expects every Christian to be His battle-axe, which He will use in destroying the kingdom of darkness. The devil is aware of this fact, so he is vigilant, he knows the Christians that are not useful and cannot function as razor blade, let alone being battle-axes, for the Lord. That is why the seven sons of Sceva suffered in the hands of a man that was possessed of evil spirits.
Then certain of the vagabond Jews, exorcists, took upon them to call over them which had evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus, saying, We adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preacheth. [14] And there were seven sons of one Sceva, a Jew, and chief of the priests, which did so. [15] And the evil spirit answered and said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye? [16] And the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, and overcame them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.
Some Christians are tools and toys in the hands of the devil; whereas, that is not the will of God.
There was a young man who gave his life to the Lord Jesus Christ, many years ago. This was seen as a reproach to his family, so his father made several attempts to kill him but failed. One day, the father called him to ask what the source of his power was. He then confessed that he had made several attempts to kill him but all proved abortive. The young man was untouchable because he was already a battle-axe in the hands of God.
Many Christians have died untimely and some are in hell now because they refused to be the battle-axe of God. Today, beloved, you have the opportunity of making the choice of becoming God’s battle –axe or not.
The world is a battle-field and it is a place of darkness that is why
Have respect unto the covenant: for the dark places of the earth are full of the habitations of cruelty.
In the habitation of cruelty, there is no mercy, you cannot afford to be neutral there. You must have to take a stand. God does not want anyone to suffer unjustly so, you must refuse to allow the enemy to pull you down.
Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. [4] He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. [5] Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day;
You must appreciate that this world is a battle- field and you should be God’s battle-axe. This text shows that the battle goes on day and night and there is no hiding place and there is no room for idleness. The devil is occupied 24hours of the day and he fires arrows at people, day and night.
WHY DOES GOD WANT YOU TO BE A BATTLE AXE?
1. So that He can break nations into pieces.
2. So that He can destroy the kingdom of darkness.
3. So that He can destroy demonic agents.
4. So that He can destroy satanic principles and practices.
Except you are a battle-axe in the hands of God, you cannot do the above mentioned things. Being God’s battle-axe, takes more than church attendance. You have to start from the starting point, which is an encounter with the Lord, before you can grow and groom yourself into being useful and useable in His hands.
