There are not as many Christian soldiers today in the world as you might like to think there are. This is not to say that there is not a fare amount of those who profess Christ as Lord, though we are indeed in the minority, but as to those who have joined in the battle, they are indeed few and far apart.
I will leave out those in the religious organizations of this planet, for they do not serve a Risen Savior who has paid the price in full, but instead concentrate on works to try to appease whatever they have envisioned God to be. Instead let us concentrate on those who are truly saved, the born-again believer whose name is inscribed in the Lambs Book of Life. There are many more disadvantages to being in a war than there are advantages, there is no glory in war. Every believer is to be prepared for battle every minute of every day, we are never to remove our armor, (Eph. 6:11) the types of battles are left up to the Lord, He will send none of His children to any place that He has not prepared them for, the problem tends to lie in the truth that far too many Christians today are shirking their duties, they have refused the call of their commander.
Throughout history, a soldier of the world who would not perform the duties assigned to him was punished severely, those who decided for whatever reason to disobey lost all honor, lost sometimes their freedoms, lost at times even their lives. “Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.” (2 Tim. 2:3) The terminology of the word “hardness” has changed dramatically over the years, in the original Greek the word means to “suffer trouble and affliction,” but it is sad to say that for many who profess Christ today the meaning has been determined to mean much less than its original intent. Affliction has taken on the terminology of feeling bad about ourselves, it has brought with it a sense of insecurity, not the type that a soldier feels when the battle is raging all around him, but only a queasiness of spirit that makes them uneasy because of Christ.
It is not the sword of the enemy that is piercing our souls, it is only their words, and men of God are not damaged or swayed by words. “They may torture and kill me if I even only speak His name” has been replaced with “They may not like me.” One of the swords of the Lord is an organization called “The Voice of the Martyrs,” they are at the forefront of the battle they are bloodied and bruised, many they serve are persecuted far beyond having their feelings hurt, they are imprisoned, tortured and killed for their faith, not two-thousand-years ago, today, at this very moment that you are reading this. Does that make you feel terrible, does that make you want to send them some money, perhaps throw a check in the mail before you head out into the world today, hoping that no one asks you about your faith, hoping you don’t come back home after your day’s labors feeling bad because you knew you were supposed to say something about your Savior when that opportunity arose earlier, but your mind went blank, you were busy, you were ashamed, again.
Soldiers who do not perform in the service of the Lord are not kicked out of His infantry, you cannot lose your salvation, but they are no longer offered positions that offer with them ascendancy, they have become unprofitable to the kingdom, not for lack of faith in His grace and mercy when it comes to the assurance of their salvation, but in the knowledge that He will protect and guide them no matter the call. They have lost their trust in His provisions, and it is the fear of not only their possible death that has caused this failure in them to act, but has sunk so far down that they have begun to be concerned with what others may think of them, they are concerned with self and not Christ. I have met them, I used to be one of them, saved, but basically useless to the kingdom, loved, but unprofitable.
One of the most important lessons that a soldier is taught is not to fear the enemy, to trust in their training, to trust in the armament that they carry and wear, to boldly go into battle, for their cause is just. A man of honor understands this, for before honor comes humility, (Prov. 15:33) how much more a soldier in the service of Christ. A soldier of Jesus Christ does not fear death, the words embarrassment and shame are foreign to them, he fully understands the word fear, but knows in his heart that He who has promised is faithful, (Heb. 10:23) and so he moves forward in a mixture of fear and confidence. “Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart.” (Eph. 6:6) in the fullness of the knowledge of the truth that He whom we serve is the only One worth serving. “O LORD, I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps.” (Jer. 10:23)
We are not just to repeat the words of promise in the Scriptures, we are to live them, it is not us that lives anymore, it is Christ that lives in us, (Gal. 2:20) and we are the only hindrance to Him in the work that He has set before us. You can feel bad for those of our brothers and sisters in Christ who are languishing in prisons right now for their testimony, you can try to make yourself feel better about yourself by offering up some quick, generalized prayers and maybe donating some money to “the cause,” but you will have to live with yourself the next time an opportunity arises for you to glorify the name of Jesus, and you felt embarrassed, again.
Every born-again believer should continuously desire to be in the front of the battle, for that places you directly behind Christ.
“No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.” (2 Tim. 2:4)
