By James L. Thornton

1 Kings 20:11. And the king of Israel answered and said, Tell him, Let not him that girdeth on his harness boast himself as he that putteth it off. (KJV)

Ahab, The King Of Israel Was A Poor Creature. And Like Most Weak Characters, He Turned Out To Be A Wicked One. Because He Found More Temptations To Do Wrong Than Inducements To Do Right.

On The One Side Was His Tempestuous Wife Jezebel Stirring Him Up To Idolatry And Evil, And On The Other Side Was Elijah Thundering Out God’s Retribution For His Evils.

So Ahab Was Often Reduced To Perplexity, Not Knowing Which Way To Turn. Once In His Lifetime He Did Behave Like A King, Just One Flash Of Dignity.

My Text Comes From That Incident.

His Next Door Neighbor, And Continual Enemy Was The King Of Damascus. He Had Gathered A Large Force Against Samaria.

The King Of Damascus Was Dictating Such Severe Terms Of Peace Even Ahab Arose To Courageous Opposition. With His Back To The Wall, Ahab Mustered Up Enough Courage To Say, No!

Words Flew Back And Forth Between Them. Threats Were Made By The King Of Damascus As To What He Was Going To Do To Samaria.

Whereupon Ahab Replied, "Tell Him, Let Not Him That Girdeth On His Harness Boast Himself As He That Putteth It Off."

Ahab Is Saying, "The Time To Crow And Clap Your Hands Is After You Have Fought. Samaria Is Not A Heap Of Dust Just Yet."

The Battle Began, The Lord Intervened And The Bully Was Beaten. Ahab For Once Tasted The Sweets Of Success.

Now I Want To Leave Ahab And His Troubles But I Want To Apply His Message To Every One Of Us, Especially The New Saints.

"Let Not Him That Putteth On His Harness (Armour) Boast Himself As He That Putteth It Off. "

Putting On The Armour

The Christian Walk Is A Battlefield, A Fight To The Finish. Thousands Will Put On The Armour, Many Will Rush Into Battle.

But Most, Sad To Say, Will Fight Uncertainly And Fall In Doing So.

1 Corinthians 9:26. I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air: (KJV)

We Have Got To Hit The Devil Right Between The Eyes, And Paul Tells Us Where To Start.

1 Corinthians 9:27. But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.

I Want To Awake The Slumbering Heroism In Every One Of Us. After All Life Is Meant To Be One Long Continuous Conflict. There Are Great And Noble Causes Which Must Be Defended.

Regardless Of The Cost They Must Be Upheld. Unless You Cherish Them, You Will Be Beggared In Your Older Years.

We Must Realize The Conditions Which We Work In This World Is That Everything Worth Doing Has To Be Done At The Cost Of Opposition And Antagonism. And That No Noble Service Or Building Is Possible Without Brave Continuous Conflict

You Have Been Called Upon To Walk The Christian Life. You Have Been Called Upon To Walk The High Levels Of Duty And No Man Does What His Conscience Tells Him, Or, Refrains From That Which His Conscience Sternly Forbids, Without Having To Fight For It. We Are In The Ranks And Compelled To Draw The Swords.

We Must Realize That All Nobility, That All Greatness, That All Wisdom, That All Successes Are Won By Conflict. Unless We Realize This We Will Never Do Anything In The World Worth Doing.

You Are A Soldier, Whether You Will Or Not, And Life Is A Fight, Whether You Understand The Conditions Or Not

You Are Not Stepping Into A World In Which You Can Take Your Ease And Come Out Successfully At The Other End. You Must Fight To Make Yourself Pure, Wise, Strong, And Christ-Like.

Have You Considered What It Is You Have To Fight For? Have You Considered The Forces That Are Arrayed Against You?

Jesus Says, "What king, going to war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with his ten thousand he can meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand." (Luke 14:31)

Your Worst Enemy Is Yourself. There Is A Part Of Me That It Takes All The Rest Of Me To Keep Down And Prevent From Becoming Master. Hold Back The Boasting While You Put On The Armour. Go Into The Fight Bragging And You Will Come Out Of It Beaten.

You Must Enter Into This Battle With Calm Confidence. You Do Not Need To Be Beaten. Jesus Was Not Putting On The Harness, But Putting It Off When He Said, "Be of good cheer; I have overcome the world."

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