wrong army

There was a song, that was and may still be in some places, that I sang as a child, primarily in Sunday School.  The lyrics went something like this:

“I may never march in the infantry,

ride in the calvary

shoot the artillery

Oh, I may never fly o’er the enemy,

But I’m in the Lord’s army.”

The Lord’s army is a spiritual army of followers of Jesus Christ the Lord.  People who have given their lives on this earth to the King of Kings to serve Him.  It is not an army with the purpose of conquering and wiping out nations, rather it is an army of committed prayer warriors, frontline evangelists, and base camp disciple makers, all seeking to follow their Lord in reaching the nations for the Kingdom of God with the Gospel.  The soldiers in this army must be genuine, authentic, and singular minded to be effective in their responsibilities.  These soldiers truly honor and glorify King Jesus.

There was another group of soldiers who were trained well and dedicated to their responsibilities and to their ruler, albeit an earthly ruler.  They too, had an encounter with King Jesus.  However, their connection to the King of Kings was very different.

“Then the governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the governor’s residence and  gathered the whole company around Him.  They stripped Him and dressed Him  in a scarlet robe. They twisted together a crown of thorns, put it on His head,  and placed a staff in His right hand.  And they knelt down before Him and  mocked Him: ‘Hail King of the Jews!’ Then they spat on Him, took the staff, and  kept hitting Him on the head.  After they had mocked Him, they stripped Him of  the robe, put His own clothes on Him, and led Him away to crucify Him.”                                                                            Matthew 27:27-31

These soldiers were in the wrong army.  They may have been in service of the governor, but they were not in the army of the Kingdom of God.  It is easy to look at the scripture and this part of Jesus trial and crucifixion and wonder how could Jesus, the Son of man, the Son of God, God Himself could suffer through such abuse.  To this company of soldiers Jesus was a nobody.  They mocked this nobody in a manner that mocked the true identity of Jesus the King.  The staff they placed in His right hand was a gesture mocking the scepter in a true King’s right hand indicating His power over the Kingdom including the power to give life or death to people brought before his throne. They took the staff and beat Jesus on the head, they spit on Him, and mocked Him with ridicule.  What will these soldiers say when they stand before the throne of God one day?

This passage of scripture always causes me to stop and evaluate my life and testimony regarding King Jesus my Lord.  Am I a faithful soldier in His spiritual army and Kingdom?  Or am I mocking the King in the way I worship, the way I live, or the way I pray?  It is a good reminder that I must keep my eyes focused on the Lord Jesus to be a faithful and obedient soldier in His army.


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