The BattleSample

Consecration

By Amy Cook

A soldier who has just enlisted in the army and has been issued orders and equipment is probably not ready for combat. He has to be trained and equipped to effectively carry out his missions. In the same way, as a soldier in God’s army, you must prepare for battle by training your mind, will, emotions and even your physical senses to respond to the Lord’s commands. You must be consecrated—set apart and dedicated for God’s purposes.

In order to serve as a soldier in God’s army, you must first make a clean break from everything that is corrupting or distracting your body and spirit. In 2 Timothy 2:21 (AMP), Paul tells Timothy, “So whoever cleanses himself [from what is ignoble and unclean, who separates himself from contact with contaminating and corrupting influences] will [then himself] be a vessel set apart and useful for honorable and noble purposes, consecrated and profitable to the Master, fit and ready for any good work.” It’s human nature to try to attain salvation by working on your outside actions, but God works from the inside out. He saves your spirit and then changes your desires. Your responsibility is to yield to those new godly desires and allow the power of His Spirit to change you (Philippians 2:12–13).

Consecration involves three steps: confession, cleansing and commitment. You confess your sin by acknowledging that you’ve sinned, and then you truly repent by renewing your mind and changing your actions. If you try to justify, explain or make excuses for your sin, then you haven’t truly repented yet. 1 John 1:10 (NIV) says, “If we claim we have not sinned, we make Him out to be a liar and His Word has no place in our lives.” When you don’t receive God’s cleansing, the devil gains ground in your life. The enemy will try to turn your sin into a stronghold within your soul and make you a prisoner of war in that area of your character. Don’t waste time condemning yourself. All you have to do to receive freedom is simply confess that your problem or issue is actually a sin (1 John 1:9).

Some things don’t require cleansing; they just need to be cast aside. These things are neither spiritual nor sinful. They are merely optional things that clutter your life and divert your energy. The Bible says that anything that drags you down and hinders your effectiveness is an “unnecessary weight” (Hebrews 12:1; 1 Corinthians 10:23). A soldier in training must forego some extras to toughen up for combat. Paul told Timothy, “You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please Him who enlisted him as a soldier” (2 Timothy 2:3–4, NKJV). You must travel light and lean. You can’t let the baggage of your past or your entanglements in the present weigh you down and hinder your mission. A soldier pulling around a U-Haul full of baggage can’t be effective on the battlefield.

Daniel determined in his heart that he would set himself apart from the Babylonian way of doing things. He stuck to his convictions and didn’t conform to the prevailing winds of his time, even when his life was on the line (Daniel 1:8; 6:10–23). Daniel knew that some things were non-negotiable, and he consecrated himself unto God. Ask yourself today, “What are the non-negotiable things in my life? What areas of my life do I need to consecrate to the Lord?” Commit yourself to the process of consecration and don’t give up. Cast off your unnecessary weights today, and become an effective and mighty warrior for God.

Memory Verse

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” Matthew 5:6 (NIV)