God is Raising Heroes Among People of African Descent; Would You Be One!

Of late, I have been thinking of the stories recorded in the Bible and wondering to myself, should the stories of the current era be written down in a book, which ones would the Holy Spirit lead the prophets and scribes to write about. In the Bible, there are stories that describe how people encountered God and received revelation; there are stories about people receiving answers to prayer from God; there are stories describing how God rewarded bold and faithful people; there are stories about God punishing the disobedient and rebellious. Then there are stories of wars. There is a lost book even called the Wars of the Lord (Numbers 21:10–15). Are you wondering, why were certain wars recorded? Why were the stories of few and select rulers of various world kingdoms recorded in the Bible and many ignored.

This leads to the question, what purpose do these select stories serve? The Bible says that God's Word is like a mirror: “Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like” James 1:23-24.

The purpose of the mirror has been repurposed. These days, we look into the mirror to cover up the flaws on our faces. It does not however change the primary purpose of the mirror. So, the purpose of the Bible remains the same, unchanging as the Spirit who authored it through the prophets and scribes. Some may have repurposed it to capitalize on opportunities to be rich, famous, and powerful. Others have repurposed it to defend and chock up ailing value systems sick to the core. Others have repurposed it to found religious systems in contradiction to its tenets and central message. Because like the story, Picture of Dorian Gray (Wilde), repurposing covers up the flaws of the soul. But this misaligned obsession with superficiality led to Dorian's dramatic end in death.

What do the stories in the Bible portray? They tell of God pursuing people to deliver them from the lies and deception of the worldly system into TRUTH. Those who responded became heroes of faith, whom God used to transform others: individuals, communities, and nations, as Paul outlined in Hebrews 11: “And what more can I say? Time is too short for me to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets, who by faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, quenched the raging of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, gained strength after being weak, became mighty in battle, and put foreign armies to flight. Women received their dead—they were raised to life again. Some men were tortured, not accepting release, so that they might gain a better resurrection, and others experienced mockings and scourgings, as well as bonds and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawed in two, they died by the sword, they wandered about in sheepskins, in goatskins, destitute, afflicted, and mistreated. The world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and on mountains, hiding in caves and holes in the ground.” Hebrews 11:32-38

Something caught my attention as I was reading about the contributions of precious metals made towards the building and upkeep of the first temple in Jerusalem. The contributions were spoils or booty from battles and wars. Here is Gill’s Exposition on the passage, 1Chronicles 26: 24-28: And all that Samuel the seer, or prophet, won in battle with the Philistines; and Saul the son of Kish; in his wars with the Moabites, Edomites, Amalekites, and Philistines; and Abner the son of Ner, the general of his army, who as such had his share in the spoils; and Joab the son of Zeruiah, the general of David's army, who fought with the Ammonites, Syrians, and others; all of whom had dedicated more or less towards the building of the temple, and the support of it, it being known by them all that God would have a place to put his name in. This is how the passage reads in the Bible, “Shubael, a descendant of Gershom son of Moses, was the official in charge of the treasuries. His relatives through Eliezer: Rehabiah his son, Jeshaiah his son, Joram his son, Zikri his son and Shelomith his son. Shelomith and his relatives were in charge of all the treasuries for the things dedicated by King David, by the heads of families who were the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds, and by the other army commanders. Some of the plunder taken in battle they dedicated for the repair of the temple of the Lord. And everything dedicated by Samuel the seer and by Saul son of Kish, Abner son of Ner and Joab son of Zeruiah, and all the other dedicated things were in the care of Shelomith and his relatives.”

The lesson from the above passage cannot be lost on the church. It is a perfect illustration of the preciousness of the church and how it grows. To contribute anything of value to the building of God’s church, you must have been to war to conquer and bring back spoils. God is building his church. Are you winning your battles and wars to bring back spoils to contribute to the building of the Church? Are you a war hero? “The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:1

Would you be God’s hero in the unfolding of Africa and the African Diaspora story? God expects his heroes to be talking to each other and engaging each other about what they have heard from him concerning people of African descent, and He will listen: “Then those who feared the Lord talked with each other, and the Lord listened and heard. A scroll of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared the Lord and honored his name.” Malachi 3:16. God treasures working with war heroes, and He has the power to make you one. Let your story be one of the few to be told and read about eternally in God’s Book of Remembrance.

What about the stories in the Bible where the characters resisted God? They became cowards, who though unwilling to face the consequences of their actions, proved they would not survive the coming catastrophe. The Bible says that “What people value highly is detestable in God’s sight.” Luke 16:15. They valued the fleeting pleasures of sin over saving their souls – “For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Mark 8:35

The common thread in all the stories and messages in the Bible is that they all advance God’s plan for humanity. And God is advancing his plan for Africa and the African Diaspora right now. Remember, everything serves God purpose. Psalm 119:91 confirms it: “Your regulations remain true to this day, for everything serves your plans”. However, you can choose to be His holy instrument or an unholy one.

Which one would you choose?
HAPPY NEW YEAR
Flora Trebi-Ollennu
Team Lead
Beyond the Decade