Fight For Your Family The Lord is Great and Terrible

Fight For Your Family

The Lord is Great and Terrible

If you are going to fight for your family you need to remember who God is

He is the ultimate judge of morality, He is Great and Terrible

Ask yourself the question, “Whose side is God on, yours or your enemy?

The answer is neither

God is always on the side of righteousness

And we need to remember we need to be on that side

If you are going to fight for your family, you need to pray

You need to remember He is holy

And all you say and do needs to uphold His Holiness

David and Goliath, Gideon and his 300 and a host of other examples

In the Bible tell us it is not the size of the army

It is remembering Who God Is

When you and I remember who God is

Our fear will leave and God’s enemies will be defeated 

The Lord is Great and Terrible

How you start has a big impact on your success

The Lord is Great and Terrible

How you start has a big impact on your success.

Young people, as well as adults,

 who start with a lack of confidence

find fear getting in the way of success.

Nehemiah’s famous words…

Fight for your brethren, your sons, and

your daughters, your wives, and your houses.

Nehemiah 4:14 KJV

These words were given to families

like yours and mine facing strong threats.

I never liked to fight as a kid,

bullies could make me shake.

I practiced running more than fighting.

I still hate fighting to protect

from physical or emotional harm.

One day when Marty was about 10 years

 old a neighborhood bully came over.

Just a few days earlier that boy was walking

across our yard and saw Marty’s bike.

The boy knocked over the bike

and jumped on the spokes.

This boy was always looking for trouble.

So when I heard this boy, who was much shorter

then Marty, urging Marty for a fight, I stepped in.

This boy knew the kindness of Marty

and knew Marty would back down.

I stepped in and said very

firmly to Marty, “Fight him!”

Marty’s face went flush, Marty did not

even know how to make a fist to fight.

They both looked at me with surprise

and I said again, “Marty fight!”

“Go ahead and hit him!”

Marty was shaking like

a leaf and so was the bully.

A third time I said…

 “Marty beat him up now!!!”

That bully ran and we never had

another problem with him again.

To tell you the truth, I was as surprised as Marty

and the bully was, that I would do such a thing.

Nehemiah said…

 “Fight!!!”   

The word still makes me shake.

It is very important that we back up and read

what is said in this verse before the word fight.

"Don't be afraid of them.

Remember the Lord”

Good idea, remember the Lord, but why?

Why remember the Lord?

The New International Version says…

Who is great and awesome
 Nehemiah 4:14

Great and Awesome!

I prefer the NIV most of the time over

the KJV primarily because the English

language has changed a lot since

1611 when the KJV was translated.

No one speaks the English language of the 1600’s.

But in this case the KJV’s use of the words…

  

Which is great and terrible

Nehemiah 4:14 KJV

Are more accurate to the original Hebrew.

Although God is Awesome, in the

Hebrew this word is yare' and means…

To fear; morally, to revere; cause to frighten

God gives us and our enemies reason to fear.

There is cause to be frightened if

we are not on the right side morally.

Fighting is a serious thing.

Fighting puts everyone at risk.

All sides will face sacrifice.

So before you fight…

Remember the Lord, which is great and terrible

 Nehemiah 4:14 KJV

Our God is a loving God…

But He also is a moral God,

perfect and righteous.

He is the ultimate judge of right and wrong.

God will punish wrong not just in

this life but in the life to come.

Hell is real and that should make us all tremble.

When Jesus was teaching the

disciple to pray in Matthew 6:9…

"This, then, is how you should pray:

"'Our Father in heaven,

hallowed be your name.

Hallowed be your name: to “Make Holy”

Purify or Consecrate to Venerate

God the Father does not need to Hallow His name.

The Father can’t be more Holy or Pure.

When we start with prayer, we are to start

by making Him Holy and Pure in our minds.

If you are going to fight for your family,

you need to remember who God is.

He is the ultimate judge of morality…

He is Great and Terrible.

Ask yourself the question…

 “Whose side is God on, yours or your enemy?”

The answer is neither.

God is always on the side of righteousness and

we need to remember we need to be on that side.

If you are going to fight for your family…

 You need to pray.

You need to remember He is Holy and all

you say and do need to uphold His Holiness.

David and Goliath, Gideon and his 300

and a host of other examples in the Bible

 tell us it is not the size of the army.

It is remembering Who God Is.

When you and I remember who God is…

Our fear will leave and God’s enemies will be defeated.

  

The Lord is Great and Terrible.

How you start has a big impact on your success.

Scripture Reading

Nehemiah 4:14 KJV

14 And I looked, and rose up, and said unto the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the people, Be not ye afraid of them: remember the Lord, which is great and terrible, and fight for your brethren, your sons, and your daughters, your wives, and your houses.

Matthew 6:9-13 NIV

9 "This, then, is how you should pray:

"'Our Father in heaven,

hallowed be your name,

10 your kingdom come,

your will be done

on earth as it is in heaven.

11 Give us today our daily bread.

12 Forgive us our debts,

as we also have forgiven our debtors.

13 And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from the evil one.'