Scripture

Our verse for today comes from 2 Samuel 17:13, ” Moreover, if he has withdrawn into a city, then all Israel shall bring ropes to that city; and we will pull it into the river, until there is not one small stone found there. ” 

Background

In the movie The Untouchables , Elliot Ness works for the Federal Bureau of Prohibition, and he is charged with the daunting task of bringing to justice the gangster Al Capone. Capone is suspected of countless acts of income tax evasion and violation of prohibition in the late 1920s. During a hushed meeting with a seasoned Chicago cop named Jim Malone, Ness reaches out for help, telling him that he doesn’t know what to do, but has sworn to do everything within the law to get Capone. Malone, a veteran of the streets who knows the mentality of Capone and his mobsters, asks Ness, ” And then what are you prepared to do? ” He tells Ness that once he opens the ball on Capone, he must be prepared to go all the way, for these men are not going to give up the fight. Malone says, ” Here’s how you get him – he pulls a knife, you pull a gun. He sends one of yours to the hospital, you send one of his to the morgue. That’s the Chicago way, and that’s how you get Capone. Now, do you want to do that? Are you ready to do that? ” Capone had his way, and Ness had his way. But Jesus has His way as well. Ironically, it has some similarities to the message Ness heard that day. 

Application

We, too, must be prepared to go all the way. But our direction is completely opposite of the force that is working against us. When need is expressed, we are called to give rather than ignore. When shame is at work, we are called to forgive and redeem. When fear is preached, we are commissioned to love and peace. Where no one else will go, there is where we must be. When Hushai was laying out his plan for victory in battle, he promised to drag the very walls of the city into the river before he accepted defeat. Nothing was going to prevent him from getting his man. Jesus has called us to just such a service. It’s the opposite of what the world expects, and it’s the opposite of what your self desires. But it’s the Jesus way. Now, do you want to do that? Are you ready to do that? 

Charge

As we seek Him today, ask God to make His ways your ways. And keep on asking, because the other side is not going to give up the fight.  

Salvation – Eternal Life in Less Than 150 Words