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What Do The Enemies of God Say? - 11.5.2023 Bulletin
What do the enemies of God say?
The Scripture is full of examples of what the heroes of God have done and said throughout the ages. Who could forget how Moses said “Whoever is on the Lord’s side-come to me!” at the foot of Mt. Sinai? Or when Gideon’s army of 300 held their swords up and said “The Sword of the Lord and of Gideon”? Indeed God’s heroes throughout the ages have been renowned for their words and deeds of faith.
But what of the enemies of God? They have also made famous remarks that glorify God in their own way. In a certain sense these quotes could be more interesting, since you would not expect an enemy of God to praise Him inadvertently. Let us see some examples.
Exodus 14 contains the story of the Red Sea crossing. After watching their nation and their gods be destroyed before the One True God, Pharaoh and his army pursued the Israelites one final time into the midst of the Red Sea. Verses 24-25 mention how the Lord “troubled” the army of the Egyptians and took the wheels off their chariots. Notably, the Egyptians said “Let us flee from the face of Israel, for the Lord fights for them against the Egyptians.” Here in the Red Sea when it was far too late for Pharaoh and Egypt to repent did they finally admit that God was fighting against them, and they had no hope of prevailing.
In Joshua 2 we read of Rahab hiding the Israelite spies. Her words indicate what Jericho felt: “I know that the Lord has given you the land, that the terror of you has fallen on us, and that all the inhabitants of the land are fainthearted because of you.” (verse 9). Word of the destruction that God wrought upon the Egyptians had spread throughout the land and demoralized Israel’s enemies. In their own way, they were admitting that God was more powerful than their own false pagan idols, and they had no courage to stand against Israel.
Esther is famously one of 2 books in the Bible that does not directly mention God, yet even here an enemy of God makes a profound statement. Zeresh, the wife of Haman said “If Mordecai, before whom you have begun to fall, is of Jewish descent, you will not prevail against him but will surely fall before him.” (Esther 6:13) This wording reminds me somewhat of Gamaliel’s advice in Acts 5:38-39 “And now I say to you, keep away from these men and let them alone; for if this plan or this work is of men, it will come to nothing; but if it is of God, you cannot overthrow it- lest you even be found to fight against God.” Due to this advice, I believe that Gamaliel was one of the more reasonable pharisees. However, he was not quite “on the Lord’s side”. The words of both Zeresh and Gamaliel confirm that God’s will shall be done regardless of man’s efforts to stop it, and those who oppose the Lord will surely fall before Him.
And what of the enemies of God today? There is no shortage of mocking from them. We are even told in 2 Peter 3:3-4 that “knowing this first: that scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts, and saying, ‘Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.’” But now let us consider Revelation 6:16-17. The enemies of God may be bold now, but a day will come when they beg for mountains and rocks to hide them from the wrath of the Lamb. And after this life is over, every single enemy of God from the beginning of time to the end shall confess to Him, according to Romans 14:10-11.
Indeed we can learn much from what God’s champions have said throughout the ages, but we should also consider what His enemies have said, and that they too ultimately glorify God’s rightful power and authority.
-Daniel Young
- Glad_Tidings_11.5.2023_PDF.pdf (5.03 MB)
