A Question of Reliance -- The Soapy Lady Knox: Victory Series, Part 22 (Our Armour)
Have you ever tried to make a geyser erupt? No matter how hard you try, you
won't have much success.
Or will you?
In the past, the New Zealand government used prisoners to build up the Waiotapu
region on the north island. These convicts planted trees and built roads, and
once in awhile, they needed to wash their dirty clothing. One day a group of
these inmates sat around a hole in the ground. Their intent was to wash their
clothing in one of the abundant hot springs, but one of them, by accident,
dropped his bar of soap into the hole. Imagine the surprise of these men when
soap suds began bubbling forth from the hole, to be followed by a stream of
boiling water, shooting 20 metres (65 feet) into the air! I can just see those
poor inmates tearing back to their prison cells!
And this is how the Lady Knox geyser was discovered.
Lady Knox now erupts at exactly 10:15 each morning. It is the only geyser in
the world with a precise time frame! Wow!
Well, not really.
The park ranger drops a bar of pure, white soap into the opening of Lady Knox at
exactly that time each day, and pouf! Off she goes!
In her recent devotional, Lady Knox, my wife
explains this reaction: "Apparently the geyser has two water chambers, a hot one
that is lower, and heats up due to the volcanic activity below, and a cooler one
on top, which cools because of a large opening to the outside. When the soap is
thrown into the upper water chamber, the lowered surface tension of the water
allows it to mix with the warmer water below, and this causes the eruption."
My friend, the same is true in regards to obtaining victory over our nasty and
vicious sinful habits. We can't free ourselves through our own efforts, no
matter how hard we try.
When we experience defeat, like the Israelites in Eli's time, and we start
crying out, "Why did the Lord bring defeat upon us today?" (1 Sam 4:3 NIV), we
have to ask ourselves: "Did we really and truly depend on the Holy One for
victory?"
The Israelites in those days sure didn't (See 1 Sam 3:1)!
The message about God's armor, found in Ephesians 6:10-18, can be summarized in
three words: Rely on God! Just like that park ranger depends on a pure white bar
of soap to ensure Lady Knox's timely eruption at precisely 10:15 each morning,
we must also rely on God for victory! Only then can the Holy One push us to
triumph!
"Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is
freedom. And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being
transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the
Lord, who is the Spirit." (2 Cor 3:17-18 NIV)
We can't have victory without complete reliance on God's Holy Spirit. He is the
One who can give us freedom, not ourselves! Paul confirms this again in Rom 8:13
"For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the
Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live." NIV
The message of Ephesians 6 is to encourage us to stand firm and resist the
sinful temptations from the evil one. This is only possible through ardent
prayer and fervent reliance on God's Word, the Bible, something we more often
than not neglect! God will do the rest! Total trust in God is the secret to our
victory! The devil isn't greater than God! God is!
"My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from him. He alone is my
rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken." (Ps 62:1-2
NIV)
Are we willing to trust Him even amidst the fieriest temptations we encounter?
I sure stink! It's time I wash in the refreshing waters of God's presence. Do
you have a pure white bar of soap I can borrow?
Rob Chaffart
