No provision = utterly destroy

On Friday I shared with you how the words “utterly destroyed” have been swirling around in my head now for days. I want to return to that Scripture in 1 Samuel to share another thought.

“Now go and attack Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and do not spare them. But kill both man and woman, infant and nursing child, ox and sheep, camel and donkey."' (1 Samuel 15:3)

God commanded Saul to utterly destroy Amalek. Utterly destroy. Amalek was an enemy of God’s and of the Israelites. God commanded Saul to utterly destroy their enemy. I think we tend to approach our enemies (world, the flesh and the devil) in much the same way that Saul did. We partially obey. We partially do battle, but we fail to utterly destroy. We leave little windows of opportunity open for them to come back and attack us. The windows are the avenues that tend to ultimately lead to our downfall.

I can think of numerous illustrations but here are two. When men come into the Colony of Mercy to deal with an addiction, one of their commitments is to abstain from all tobacco use. They may have come in with a heroine addiction. When they leave the program, they may stay clear of heroine but pick up cigarettes. Often cigarettes will lead them back into heroine use. They did not utterly destroy the enemy. Their reasoning might be, ‘well at least it’s not heroine’ and they are lulled into a false sense of success. Since they do not utterly destroy the enemy, they will deal with it again. A second illustration is from my own life. In July 2001, I choose to give up desserts, totally. I had people suggest I try to cut down, to eat sugar free options, etc. I know if I make that provision for my flesh, eventually my flesh will gain control over me. I am not strong enough or disciplined enough to moderate. Some people are, and this decision is not for everyone. But I believe God called me to utterly destroy that enemy. I can make no provision for my flesh. I have to shut down every avenue to feeding my flesh (literally) in that way. I had to utterly destroy. I could not let the king live. Make no provision for the flesh. Cut off every avenue to fuel sinful desires. Leave no back door escape hatch. Utterly destroy your enemy the flesh, whatever that looks like in your life. Romans 13:14, “But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.”

No provision = utterly destroy

Diane