“No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.” 2 Timothy 2:4
Dear Ones:
Abraham was an unentangled man. How can this be when God had blessed him in every way, ultimately giving him a son of promise concerning possessing the land of Canaan? It is because he lived by two principles, symbolized by his tent, and the altar, where he worshipped God. What does the tent mean, beyond a place of habitation? It speaks of mobility, flexibility, not a permanent dwelling and thus, not settling down. The writer of the letter to the Hebrews puts it like this: “By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles (or tents) with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise. For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.” (11:9-10) Here we have the unattached Abraham, though possessing much in material goods, unentangled with that which he had. He was not entangled with the preoccupation, and thus, domination of it all. His eye was on the eternal, not on that which was material in the present day. He was free from all to obey God. Of course, the greatest test of his attitude of being the Lord’s servant, independently dependent upon the Lord, came the day when, according to God’s commandment, he was to sacrifice Isaac, the son of the promise. Here again, by the grace of God, Abraham rises to the challenge of where he will look, whether at the present material world, or down that corridor of time into eternity to the One who made the promise. He chose to set his sights on the One who alone builds and makes that which will last. Christ laid the foundation of that dwelling place of God by His work on Calvary, being also the very essence of that foundation. Jesus would tell Peter, “…upon this rock I will build My church.” (Matt. 16:18) The church would become the dwelling place of God. The heavenly city would be the dwelling place of the believer. Abraham was unentangled, for his eyes were upon the unchanging, eternal Christ.
What about cares, those pernicious preoccupations with the things of this earth, which can dominate the heart and mind to such an extent, that anxiety becomes a hindrance, and deterrent to true faithfulness to Christ? Again, the writer of Hebrews tells us, with regard to running the race, and living for Christ, “…let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.” (12:1) The purpose of casting all our care upon the Lord, is to be able to run weightlessly, “look unto Jesus,” the author and finisher of our faith, and run freely. (12:2) Peter addresses the extent to which the believer is to deal with care, or anxiety, by writing, “…casting all your care upon Him, for He careth for you.” (1 Peter 5:7) The Lord Jesus was very explicit concerning this matter of anxiety, in speaking to His disciples, “Take no thought (be not anxious) for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink: nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?” (Matt. 7:25) He even goes so far as to address the care of “tomorrow,” by commanding, “Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.” (Matt. 7:34) If a soldier is to discharge his duties faithfully, according to the dictates of his Commander, then he must be unentangled from the affairs of this life to do so. If a runner is to run well, and finish his race victoriously, he must lay aside every weight, and the sin that would so easily beset him. Faithfulness and victory can be known daily if we are free from entanglements and care.
Dear Father, Give us freedom from entanglements and cares, to war and run as we ought. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Love, Dad