In Genesis 15 we read of God interacting with Abram (whose name was changed to Abraham) and stating two things to him of great importance. First, that He was Abram’s shield, and second, He was Abram’s great reward.
I want to address the first in brief thought. What did God mean by stating He was Abram’s “shield”? We understand that a shield is a piece of protective armament first developed for ancient warfare. The soldiers of the armies would carry these protective shields as the opposing army’s soldiers fought with them. A soldier without a shield to protect himself from the opposing soldier’s sword or mace would be much easier to kill. The shield was the second most important piece of armament the soldier carried on his person apart from his sword.
God was therefore reminding Abram that He was the ultimate protection against any foe that Abram would encounter in his journey of life upon this earth. Abram fully understood this principle, as he had already experienced God’s protection in chapter 14. We read that God had assured Abram of this fact when he initially instructed Abram to leave his home in the Ur of the Chaldees in Genesis 12:1-3.
God reminds the believer of his protective hand in Romans 8:31, “What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?” Who can hope to overcome God? It is an impossibility.
Now, we do understand that God allows His people, at times, to have to endure hardships and even death. It is according his His perfect plan when that occurs so His will can be accomplished. When God chooses to protect His own, there is no force upon earth that can overcome His people!
The ultimate victory for the Christian comes in His overcoming death for eternity. The Holy Scriptures promise in 2 Corinthians 5:8, “We are confidant, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.” How can a person attain this confidence, this assurance for his soul? It is by accepting the Lord Jesus Christ by faith as their Savior. Romans 10:9 states, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”
There is no substitute for the shield for the soul that only God can supply! Think about it.
