by Mike Benson

Scripture describes it as attempted guerilla warfare. Ben-hadad tried to carry out a series of assaults against the citizens of Israel (2 Kings 6:8). "Tried" is the operative word, because every time the king of Syria sent out a war party in ambush, he found enemy troops inexplicably guarding the camp he had intended to capture (vv. 8-10). The inspired text says this happened "not just once or twice" (NKJV), but that Ben-hadad's plans were foiled repeatedly.

The monarch came to the conclusion that there was either (a) a spy, or at the very least, (b) an intelligence leak within his own war cabinet. Somebody was obviously "feeding" Jehoram -- his Israelite counterpart -- information, so he summoned his military counsel together in an effort to expose the traitor (vv. 11-12). Ben-hadad inquired, "Will you not show me which of us is for the king of Israel?" (v. 11b).

As it turned out, no one from Syria had disclosed the king's plans. The informant was actually Elisha -- the prophet from Israel -- in HIS Majesty's secret service. Like a character from a James Bond movie, the man of God had a divine "surveillance camera" (cf. Proverbs 5:21; 15:3; Zechariah 4:10) in the king's bedchamber and was therefore privy to his most secret conversations (v. 12). Every strategy concocted within Ben-hadad's heart was revealed to Elisha by God who, in turn, conveyed such to the Israelite king in Samaria.

Armed with this new information, Ben-hadad turned his attention away from attacking a nation to capturing an individual (v. 13). Think of a deck of 52 playing cards, not with photographs of various high-ranking Iraqi officials, but with Elisha's face on every single card! The Syrian ruler sent a large force to surround the city of Dothan under the cover of darkness (a village about 12 Roman miles north of Samaria -- cf. Genesis 37:17) and apprehend Elisha (vv. 14-15).

Early the next morning, Elisha's servant awakened and discovered the Syrians entrenched about the city (v. 15). He seemed to have known that the soldiers had come for his lord and cried out in fear, "Alas, my master! What shall we do?" (cf. Exodus 14:10-14). Like American forces searching for Saddam Hussein, the army had located the great prophet and was under orders to take him prisoner (v. 14).

Elisha knew that a very great danger existed, but he also knew something of the militia arrayed in his defense. He calmly told his servant, "Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them" (v. 16). That may have sounded reassuring, but at that particular moment, no allied troops could be seen in the vicinity. Elisha then prayed that his servant's eyes might be opened (v. 17). The prophet's prayer was immediately answered, and suddenly his aide beheld a massive, heavenly detachment of horses and chariots of fire (v. 17b; cf. Exodus 3:2; Numbers 22:22-31)! This was a vision of deliverance!

Consider for a moment the servant's pitiful cry, "Alas ... what shall we do?" You can almost hear the alarm in his voice, can't you? He could only see an imminent attack; he could only see the problem. Brethren, we must strenuously guard against a similar mentality in the church today. Despondency sees only the multitude amassed against us, and fails to consider the Divine host that is marshaled on our behalf. The Bible says, "... If God is for us, who can be against us?" (Romans 8:31b). Do we really believe that ...?

Our problem is in the perception of the physical instead of the sight of the spiritual. It's not that we lack sufficient funds, or manpower, or space, but VISION! We need to stop thinking about what we can't do and get a glimpse of what God can do through us (Philippians 4:13)! The New Testament teaches, "While we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are NOT seen ..." (2 Corinthians 4:18a; emphasis mine—mb). "For we walk by faith, NOT by sight" (2 Corinthians 5:7; emphasis mine, mb).

Years ago, a grade-school class was told to go home and count the stars in the sky as part of their science lesson. Students came back with wildly dissimilar answers. One child said, "A couple of hundred," another said, "Ten thousand," while yet another offered, "One million." Finally, the teacher asked one little boy who had not yet spoken up. "How many stars did you count?" she inquired. The boy replied, "Three." "Only three?!" the teacher exclaimed. "How did you only see three?" He said, "I guess we just have a small backyard."

Beloved, let me humbly, but forcefully suggest that we need a big backyard today; we need a great vision -- one that is worthy of the "King of kings and Lord of lords"!! I'm not thinking in terms of some miraculous manifestation (cf. 1 Corinthians 13:8-10; Ephesians 4:11-13); I'm talking about faith and focus. The eye of faith sees Divine presence, whereas the eye of fear sees desperate problems. God is on our side and He's never lost a single battle! Amen?! Once we come to terms with that truth, we'll stop wringing our hands in doubt and start using them in fervent and devoted service (Hebrews 12:2).

by Mike Benson

QUESTION: "I've heard you say that a person must 'obey the gospel' in order to be saved. Could you please explain what you mean by this? How does a person go about obeying the Gospel?"

ANSWER: I appreciate this thoughtful, Bible question. Please study the following:

1. The gospel is defined as the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. "Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you - unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures" (1 Corinthians 15:1-4).

2. Those who fail to obey the gospel will be eternally lost. "And to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power" (2 Thessalonians 1:7-9; Romans 10:16; 1 Peter 4:17; cf. Matthew 7:21-23; Hebrews 5:8,9).

3. An individual obeys the gospel when he obeys a FORM of the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. "But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. And having been set free from sin, you became the slaves of righteousness" (Romans 6:17,18). Baptism is a form of the death, burial, and resurrection. "Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life" (Romans 6:3,4).

If I can be of further assistance, please contact me here at Forthright.

by Mike Benson

The place was Palmer, Alaska and the date was July 21, 1988. There were 288 construction workers waiting for the signal to begin work. It was a contest to see how quickly a house could be built.

They were encouraged by 6,000 spectators and a country music band. The record they set was absolutely incredible. In only 3 hours and 54 minutes, the team of builders had erected an $80K, two bedroom home.

After that, the furniture company furnished the house in just under 4 minutes. An "instant home."

We may have "instant houses", but there are no instant homes. Homes take time to build. They are not built out of brick and mortar, but out of love, hope, patience, and trust (cf. 1 Corinthians 13). There will never be any bands playing, nor crowds of spectators cheering you on. Neither will there be any press releases announcing when you are through and the time that was required for the building. The truth of the matter is that you always find improvements which need to be made.

But with love as the foundation and God as your architect, you can know real joy as you watch your home develop.

"Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labor in vain"(Psalm 127:1).

by Mike Benson

TD: Dreams in Motion is an autobiography about Terrell Davis, running back for the Denver Broncos. According to the book, Davis has faced his share of difficulties:

"His father, Pops, tortured Davis and his five brothers with his alcoholism, drug dealing, and unusual disciplinary methods. One night, while drunk and high, Pops pulled Davis and his brothers out of bed, lined them up against the bedroom wall, and shot at them with his .38 special. To punish the boys for mischief, Pops would make them strip ... and whip them with an extension cord.

"Davis's physical demon has been his migraine headaches, which started when he was seven. They have plagued him ever since, sidelining him for several high school ... college (and professional) football games ...

"When he was a freshman at Long Beach State, the San Diego police caught him stealing spoke rims for his ... Chevy Impala. He was charged with grand theft, and imprisoned for four days.

"When Long Beach State dropped their football program after his freshman year, Davis transferred to the University of Georgia. There he faced another roadblock: Ray Goff, head coach of Georgia's football team. During the three years Davis played for Georgia, Goff pushed him around and even forced him to practice when he had a migraine. When Goff badmouthed him to NFL scouts, Davis's reputation and draft position were hurt. Goff further denied NFL scouts access to Davis's game films, telling them not to waste their draft picks."

Ironically, despite the trials in his life, Davis was chosen the 1997 Super Bowl MVP. A year later, he was selected as the 1998 Associated Press Player of the Year.

How did he achieve such success in his professional career? Consider:

. He saw Pop's beatings as his way of toughening his sons, calling him the "most loving father I ever could have wanted."

. He played through his blinding migraines.

. He used his four-day imprisonment as an opportunity to rethink life and reform.

. His frustrating days at Georgia built up his resistance to adversity.

That sounds a lot like Paul and James to me.

"But we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope" (Romans 5:1, emphasis mine).

"Count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience" (James 1:2, emphasis mine).

How do you view adversity in your life? As glory? As joy? It's something to think about, isn't it?

by Mike Benson

A past issue of Action caught my attention. It carried an article about a gentleman from the Philippines by the name of Leopoldo Ducany.

One afternoon, Leopoldo's wife had brought him a fish which she had purchased at the local market. She asked him to clean it in order that she might prepare it for supper. The meal-to-be was wrapped in a year-old newspaper. As he tore away the paper, Leopoldo noticed an ad for World Bible School. The ad prompted a response, and before long, he was regularly receiving Bible correspondence materials.

At the conclusion of the series of lessons, Leopoldo requested baptism and was added to Christ's church (Acts 2:47; Galatians 3:27). He made this decision despite the obvious anti-church sentiment held by Communist rebels in his region.

I have a thought. If we can (a) reach a man on the other side of the world with (b) a year-old newspaper wrapped around a dead snapper, then (c) don't you think we can reach the masses of humanity with the saving message of Christ?

"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 28:19; cf. Acts 1:8).