Who Do You Think I Am? - The Horn of Our Salvation
The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower. - Psalm 18:2
In the Bible, the word "horn" here implies strength, power, honor and victory. That the Lord is the horn of our salvation, therefore, means He is our saving power, and success is guaranteed. In contrast to many other terms of the Lord we've discussed, this one carries with it the implication of a weapon of offense rather than defense. It goes beyond protection and takes the battle to the enemy.
My mind draws up images of medieval combat where the combatants were encouraged to choose their weapons. Some would choose swords while others preferred the mace. Some knights were most skilled with the lance while others excelled with the bow and arrow. With good sense, the warriors would choose the weapons of which they were the most familiar and skilled.
We have been given a similar opportunity. We are in a battle. There is no question there. The inquiry lies in what weapons we are using. Are we fighting in our strength with words, efforts and any other means we can come by, or are we relying on the power of the Lord? Are we fighting hoping we will win, or are we fighting in Christ knowing victory is already ours? Think about it. What difference would it make in the battle if we knew for sure we would win? Would it change our attitude? Our effort? I believe it would change everything.
Now, let's apply that to our everyday lives. When we acknowledge Christ as the horn of our salvation, we are turning the battle over to Him. Victory is assured, and we will feel much less stressed and anxious. Our hearts will be lighter and our eyes brighter. The world will be a much less scary place if we only allow God to fight in our stead as He longs to do.
David understood this. He had lived it. As he stood boldly before the giant, Goliath, he declared,
And all this assembly shall know that the Lord saveth not with sword and spear:
for the battle is the Lord's
, and he will give you into our hands. (I Samuel 17:47)
He knew the battle was God's. He knew he couldn't win any other way. And through his statement in this Psalm, he wants us to know the same.
The phrase "Let go and let God" comes to mind. It may seem like a cliche, but in all honesty, it ought to be our daily motto. The battle is not ours, and we need to stop stressing ourselves out trying to fight it alone. God is the horn of our salvation. He is power, might, honor and so much more, and with Him, victory is guaranteed!
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HaMl5yagVHU]