THE LORD IS OUR SHIELD

"Our soul waits for the LORD; He is our Help and our Shield" (Isaiah 40:31)

SHIELDS are for the day of battle and the time of danger. Whether fighting at a distance or in hand-to-hand combat, the warrior must have the protection of his shield. The shield is what absorbs the shock of the arrow and sword. It repels the flaming arrows, and brings safety to one being attacked.

GOD has provided a personal shield for us in faith – "the shield of faith" (Eph 6:16). But that is not the shield referred to in our text. The Lord Himself is declared to be "our Shield." What a marvelous declaration: "OUR Shield!" He is our Protection, Guard, and Security.

FREQUENT references are made to our Lord in this capacity. When praying against his enemies, the Psalmist pled, "bring them down, O Lord our Shield" (Psa 59:11). Desiring personal intimacy with the Lord, the Psalmist prayed, "Behold, O God our Shield, and look upon the face of thine anointed.For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand" (Psa 84:9-10). The effectiveness of this Divine Shield is expressed in the 28th psalm. "The LORD is my strength and my Shield; My heart trusted in Him, and I am helped; Therefore my heart greatly rejoices, And with my song I will praise Him" (v 7).

EARLY in His dealings with Abraham, the Lord confirmed this Divine role to His friend. The statement is remarkable, and to be pondered with deliberation. "Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your Shield, your exceedingly great Reward" (Gen 15:1). Faith had brought Abram, later called Abraham, into the realm of danger. The devil opposed him, working through enemies and circumstances. Yet Abraham was not to be afraid: the Lord was his "Shield."

THIS means that every opposition, every evil initiative against us, must first go through the Lord. He is our "Shield." Satan may desire Job, but he cannot have him without his request first going through the Lord. He may desire Peter, to sift him as wheat, but he must first go through the Lord. The devil, with all of his malice and craftiness, cannot get at you without going through the Lord. He cannot touch you or what you own unless granted leave by your God. What is more, God will not allow you to be tested above your ability. With every temptation, He will "make" a way of personal escape, so you can endure (1 Cor 10:13).

THE most notable example of this Divine Shield is the Lord Jesus Christ. He not only took the brunt of Satan's attack, with all the powers of darkness and the most wicked of men, He also absorbed the shock of Divine wrath. Standing, as it were, between us and God, He was "made a curse" that we might be blessed. The sins of the world were placed upon Him to such an extent that He "was made sin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Cor 5:21). The arrows of the enemy struck Him! The blazing wrath of God against sin fell upon Him! In the awful judgment of sin, He was our "Shield!"

ONE more thing about a shield – the further you are from it, the less value it has. The closer you are to it, the more effective it is. So it is with the Lord, "Our Shield." Those who insist on dwelling at a distance from the Lord will surely not be protected from all the assaults of the enemy. But for those who are hidden with Christ in God (Col 3:3), survival and renewal are certain. The Lord is their Shield!
-- Given O. Blakely