My concern is not if God is on our side; for I know that the Lord is always on the side of the right. But it is my greatest concern and prayer to be on Gods side. (Abraham Lincoln)

This past Sunday, our new Pastoral Intern, Isaac Martin referenced this famous quote in his sermon.  When he said this, President Lincoln was responding to a clergyman during the Civil War who suggested to him that God was on the side of the Union army.

That quote got me thinking about an incident in the book of Joshua, that I read recently.  Like many in our church, I’m reading through the Bible in a year.  We were challenged to do so, the last Sunday in December by a professor from Lancaster Bible College, Dr. Mark Farnham, who was our guest speaker. I don’t usually make New Year’s resolutions, but I took him up on his challenge and, so far, I’m glad I did.  Reading through the Old Testament has really highlighted God’s character and patience with his people and given me a great “big picture” overview of his story of redemption.  We’ll see if I’m still saying that in August when I hit Jeremiah, Ezekiel and the minor prophets.

In Joshua chapter 5, the nation of Israel had just crossed the Jordan River and entered the “Promise Land.” This was the land that God had given to their forefathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.  It was the land that God had promised to bring them to, when he rolled back the waters of the Red Sea and they escaped slavery in Egypt.  And was the land that they had thought about every day for 40 years while they waited for God’s timing to enter the land. And now, they sat at the threshold of the land on the eve of battle after God had miraculously dried up the Jordan River so they could cross over.

As they awaited God’s instructions, Joshua

… looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?”  “Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.” Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, “What message does my Lord have for his servant?” Joshua 5:13-15

The interesting thing about both the Lincoln quote and this story in Joshua, is that… in my mind, it’s a no-brainer.  Of course, God was on the side of the Union army.  They were fighting against the enslavement of 4 million African Americans in the Confederate south.  And, for Israel, of course, God was on the side of Israel.  He had promised them the land and told them to conquer.  And had assured Joshua that he would be “with you wherever you go. (Joshua 1:9). And isn’t the most repeated promise of the Bible that God will be “with us”? (Isaiah 41:10, Deuteronomy 31:6 Romans 8:38-39, Zephaniah 3:17, Matthew 28:20, Hebrews 13:5, etc.) So, what’s the point?  What do you mean, God isn’t “with us”? What am I missing?

I think the distinction that’s being made here, can be summed up in one phrase, “Who’s the boss?” Who’s the boss, God or me? Contrary to what we may think, God isn’t on our side, he’s on His own side. God doesn’t join us, we join him.  And we fall into dangerous territory when we think that our plans, agenda or cause fully represents the God of the Universe.  Or that God in some way joins us in “our” plan. With humility we must always align with God. He doesn’t align with us.

We live in a world where life is all about “me.”  The greatest good, we are told, is our own personal happiness and satisfaction. Nothing should stand in our way. As William Henley wrote in Invictus, “I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul.” Everyone and everything, then, becomes simply a means to my own personal fulfillment or a tool to help me accomplish my goal.

Unfortunately, like a virus, this “me-first” consumerist mentality easily infects Christians. And once infected, life slowly becomes all about us.  We make a plan and ask God to bless it.  We have problems, and we expect God to fix it. We have needs and we expect God to meet them.  And subtly, the Almighty becomes an all-powerful Butler.  Do you think this is too harsh?  Well, let me ask you… how did you respond the last time God didn’t “come through” for you? It’s easy to forget who’s the boss.

So, regardless of how pure our motives may be, how good our cause is, or how “obvious” God’s will may seem to us, ultimately we submit to God’s sovereign purpose.  We align with his will and wishes. And, without consulting us, he often uses pain, misfortune and even confusion to shape us into the people he has made us to be. He’s the boss.

Check out this song.  It’s one of my favorites: