ARE YOU HIS SOLDIER?
2 Timothy 2:1-13

An eligible and qualified soldier for Christ has to be a sold out soul for the cause of the cross that Jesus carried to Calvary when He was crucified. A soldier can be described as a person who contends or serves in any cause such as a soldier of the Lord. Soldiers are to persist steadfastly in one’s cause and to persevere (to soldier on until the work is done). Paul, the apostle, admonished Timothy by using an illustration of a soldier.  “You therefore must endurehardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier.” (2 Timothy 2:3-4) The first notable statement in Paul’s illustration for faithfulness is that a soldier (follower of Christ) must endure hardship. Unfortunately, Christian soldiers today do not want to endure hardship, but rather want to enjoy worldly pleasures or live lives of convenience and commitment. Endurance can be painful and can possibly generate unwanted suffering. However, enduring hardship is what qualifies a Christian soldier as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. Every Christian soldier will have to know how to endure because a committed one cannot escape hardship in this world of wickedness. The Christian soldiers who will not have to endure or face any of the challenges of this world are the ones that often entangle themselves with the affairs of this life. The apostle Paul emphasized that no one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life because it is not possible to serve two masters. Are you a Christian soldier by mouth or by act? A Christian soldier need not to be introduced as a soldier because his warlike disposition will always point him out as one who is operating as a sold-out soul for the cause of the Lord Jesus Christ. What kind of a soldier are you? Are you a soldier who will always need constant introduction as a soldier? Are you wondering what could be an affair of the world that is being strongly warned against? 1 Peter 2:11, “Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul.” Without any doubt, fleshly lust is a prime target that every Christian soldier needs not to take for granted because it launches its attack on a regular basis. Fleshly lust will lead to the grave via ever great and small temptation. It is so deadly that it only goes after its target which is the soul of every Christian soldier. Once a soul is captured, the role as a soldier becomes incarcerated in the hand of chief of all wickedness; the evil one himself.

Prayer for today: Ask God for the grace to have your soul be protected from every fleshly lust that you may please One that enlisted you.