God Promises Vindication
What weapons have been used against you?
Verse of the Day
‘No weapon forged against you will prevail, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and this is their vindication from me,” declares the Lord.’
Today’s Devotional
One of the arguments I hear from verses that come from the Old Testament is that these promises were likely only for the Israelites of that time. Today’s verse directly refutes that. This quote from Isaiah is directly from God Himself. And He says this promise is for “the servants of the Lord”. Just to be sure, I read this same verse in 5 different translations. They all said the same thing, using very similar words in each one.
Are you a servant of the Lord? Is He your Master? If so, God promises to be your vindication.
Most of us have probably heard the phrase “no weapon formed against you will stand”. But what does that mean? The first thing it means is that there are weapons being used against us. These weapons are not physical guns and knives, though that may be true in some circumstances. The devil uses all sorts of weapons daily. Lies, fear, distortion, misdirection, gossip, insecurity, faulty perceptions, getting us to focus on the negative, getting us to believe in our own abilities (or inabilities), trying to make us believe that God’s promises don’t apply to us: these are just a few of the weapons Satan uses against us. Daily.
God promises that these weapons won’t prevail. They won’t win. They won’t defeat us. They won’t have the last word. This does not mean that we are walking around with a spiritual force field and we are protected from every strike of every attack. I think we can each attest to the fact that some of the blows hit their mark. So what does it mean?
Sometimes God takes the weapon out of the enemy’s hand and we are protected from that particular strike. But other times…the weapons cut and wound us. In these cases, God permits the wound, knowing that more good can come from the strike than the initial pain of the blow. God never causes the wound. That’s not who He is. But some wounds He allows, knowing what the outcome will be. That doesn’t make the wound any less painful in the moment. Look what God did with the wounds of Jesus. Those wounds were transformed into your salvation.
It’s beauty from ashes. It’s purpose from pain.
I have a very painful part of my story. It was incredibly difficult at the time. Today it’s my ministry. My former pain has given me a purposeful way to serve God today. That is exactly how the weapons don’t prosper. That part of my story is not where the story ended.
When we are attacked by the enemy we have a choice. We can become victims, which leads us to live in fear, self-pity, and defeat. Or…we can lay our wounds down at the throne and ask God for healing. And we need to be aware: the work of healing is hard and vulnerable and requires our participation. We can ask God to use our healed wounds to serve others. I will be the first to admit that this is not an easy road. It takes work. It takes surrender, willingness, and obedience. It requires trust in the promises of God.
God is promising us that He gets the final word. God promises us that He can take any wound and turn it into our gift to serve others. God promises that no matter how painfully wounded we are in the battle, He wins the war with us on His side.
Journal Prompts
Answer only the questions that seem relevant to you today.
What weapons have been used against you?
What wounds do you have that still need healing?
How has a past attack by the enemy been healed?
How have you seen a past attack by the enemy being used for God’s glory? (In you or in someone else)
How can you declare God’s victory in your life today?
SIDE NOTE:
God gives us protection for the battle. ‘Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. ‘ Ephesians 6:11-13
Further reminder about the Belt of Truth.