Read Psalm 60:6-12. 6God has spoken in his holiness: “With exultation I will divide up Shechem and portion out the Vale of Succoth. 7Gilead is mine; Manasseh is mine; Ephraim is my helmet; Judah is my scepter. 8Moab is my washbasin; upon Edom I cast my shoe; over Philistia I shout in triumph.” 9Who will bring me to the fortified city? Who will lead me to Edom? 10Have you not rejected us, O God? You do not go forth, O God, with our armies. 11Oh, grant us help against the foe, for vain is the salvation of man! 12With God we shall do valiantly; it is he who will tread down our foes.
The enemies that have troubled David so much are no match for God. God speaks in verses 6-8 like a father telling his quarrelling children to go to their rooms. All is his. Shechem. Succoth. Gilead. Manasseh. Ephraim. Judah. Moab. Edom. And even Philistia. Everything David was fighting for is already God’s.
David, still reeling from God’s discipline, refuses to quit. He can admit now that the fortified city is beyond his power. He can honestly face God’s discipline – Have you not rejected us, O God? But he can also move forward trusting in God’s salvation rather than his own strength. He is simply with God as God treads down the foe.
Obviously, in the church age, our enemies are not Shechem, Moab, or Edom. There are no Philistines coming out to fight us. But this does not mean that we are not at war. Spiritual war. The weapons of are warfare are not of the flesh but of the Spirit. By Christ’s indwelling love and power, we can pull down the strongholds of our own thinking, taking every thought captive for Jesus (2 Cor. 10:4-5). With Jesus we have the victory in hand and the enemy under foot.
Romans 16:20. The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
To live is Christ means that like David, you can admit your inability in the fight against sin. You can face God’s discipline as a beloved child, rather than a spoiled brat. And you can move forward valiantly in courage against the spiritual Enemy, trusting fully that God alone has won the victory in Christ?
You: Have you totally given up on your own ability to fight sin yet? If you have, that’s good.
You in Christ: How does knowing your victory in Christ allow you to move forward in courage today?
Christ in you: What specifically will moving forward look like for you today?
Prayer. Father, you are with me and the enemy is under my foot. Help me to move forward in Christ’s armor today fully aware of your presence and your victory. Amen.
To Live is Christ 