God's Free Ammo!

Some of us older folks remember a song inspired by the attack on Pearl Harbor and the U.S. involvement in World War II. This patriotic song written by Frank Loesser has been mistakenly attributed to others as it became a battle cry of many soldiers. This song entitled "Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition" is about a chaplain that is with some sailors under air attack.

When he is asked to say a prayer for those sailors engaged in battle, he laid down his Bible and took charge of one of the ship’s guns. As he started firing the gun at the attacking planes, he starts singing, “Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition and we’ll all stay free.”

God’s plan for His children was certainly not for us to go to battle with each other and kill each other in our inability to get along in this world. God speaks to us through the Words of Jesus in the Gospel of John 13:34-35: “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.  By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

This spiritual battle for the Lord is not one that requires us to lie down and let the evil of the world tramp on us. Yes, Jesus tells us to turn the other check and be slapped yet again and to forgive our enemies. Due to the complicated nature of knowing when and if to defend ourselves, we will not discuss it here, but recommend you do your own research for clarification. Isaiah 14:5-7 certainly describes God’s own battle against the evil of the world.

God’s idea of spiritual battle is that we should be soldiers of the cross, accepting and spreading Christ’s Kingdom around the world. This is a battle where the ammunition is the Word of God and the love that He wants His children to have for each other. If you don’t think this is a battle, just look around the world and view the never ending hatred some have for others. Hatred that turns to taking the lives of others for ungodly purposes. As we see in our world, there are bad against good and bad against bad in this refusal to love one another.

Psalm 150:1-6 teaches all of us in saying: “Praise the Lord! Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens! Praise him for his mighty deeds; praise him according to his excellent greatness! Praise him with trumpet sound; praise him with lute and harp! Praise him with tambourine and dance; praise him with strings and pipe! Praise him with sounding cymbals; praise him with loud clashing cymbals!”

How could we possibly praise God in the way spoken in Psalm 150, yet turn against His Word and hate others. There are too many citizens and leaders in this world that don’t connect with God in a way that calls them to love others. If they claim a God that allows hatred and murder, he is a false god. As Christians, we believe in one Creator God and we must discount any claims of another. We must forgive others, but not join them in their ungodly or false godly hatred and killing. We must praise God and pass the spiritual ammunition.”  

In 2 Timothy 4:6-8, Paul talks about the Godly battle in his life in saying: “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.”

So we get medals, even a crown, in seeking God in our lives, not waging a worldly battle, but a Godly fighting of the good fight in Him. Paul informs us further in Galatians 4:8, ^“But then, indeed, when you did not know God, you served those which by nature are not gods. And continues in Romans 8:31b ^“If God is for us, who can be against us? So the question for us becomes: How is our ammo supply for praising the Lord and passing it on to others?