Susan received two gifts during her journey to rendezvous with Aslan as she and her siblings attempt to save her brother Edmond. She received a quiver of arrows with a bow to shoot them with, and a horn. The bow and arrow is an obvious reference to the forceful offense that would be needed to defeat the evil witch, but why the horn?
We continue the sermon series, “The Gifts of Narnia” today, and we will discover how valuable Susan’s horn is to her and what it can do for us too. Today’s sermon is entitled “The Gift of Assurance”.
Our theme scripture for this series is 1st Peter 4:10 – “Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in various forms”.(NIV)
Our focus scripture for this sermon is Numbers 10:9 – “When you go into battle in your own land against an enemy who is oppressing you, sound a blast on the trumpets. Then you will be remembered by the LORD your God and rescued from your enemies.”(NIV)
How many times have you wanted to blow that horn of desperation and receive that help you needed to defeat your enemies? The wonderful truth about the gift that Susan received, is that we have all received this very gift, but in a different form. God is ready and able and willing to come to our rescue. But we have to pick up the horn and blow it.
When Moses was living in Midan far away from Egypt, were he grew up in Pharaoh’s courts, he met God in the form of a burning bush. Twelve hundred years before Jesus walked on earth God called to Moses and as He spoke to him.
God said;
“I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt."
Friends, God heard their cry. The Israelites called out to God for deliverance, in a prayer,… a call for relief,… and the Lord our God heard them. The horn of Narnia is a symbol of the desparate prayers that go out to God. I believe C.S. Lewis was recalling our focus scripture in Numbers as he wrote in this horn as the signal for our desperate cry in need. The cool thing about this symbolism is that this horn is a tangible item.
If you are worried and don’t know how you are going to make it, you can see or feel the horn on your hip and know and be assured that if you blow it, help is on the way. This is the symbol of our prayer life.
The Old and New Testaments are full of examples of prayers soliciting the rescue of God. No other Old Testament character knew the value of praying to God better than King David. David’s life seemed to constantly be lived out on the edge, and these perils motivated him to seek God often for help and assurance. During his rise to be King, as he waited for the proper time, the current King of Israel, Saul, pursued David and wanted to kill him. As he was hiding in a cave from Saul’s pursuit he wrote this prayer:
Psalm 142
I cry aloud to the LORD;
I lift up my voice to the LORD for mercy.
I pour out my complaint before him;
before him I tell my trouble.
When my spirit grows faint within me,
it is you who know my way.
In the path where I walk
men have hidden a snare for me.
Look to my right and see;
no one is concerned for me.
I have no refuge;
no one cares for my life.
I cry to you, O LORD;
I say, "You are my refuge,
my portion in the land of the living."
Listen to my cry,
for I am in desperate need;
rescue me from those who pursue me,
for they are too strong for me.
Set me free from my prison,
that I may praise your name.
Then the righteous will gather about me
because of your goodness to me. (NIV)
Do you have a desperate need today? If you do there is good news for you, my friend! God hears your cry. I believe you can be assured of that. Our assurance is not the physical presence of our horn of desperation at our side, our assurance comes from God’s constant intervention into the lives of His people over the span of history, and also the faith we have in His promises to deliver us. Hebrews 3:5-6 reminds us that God will not abandon us.
God says, "…"Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." So we say with confidence, "The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid."
The children’s message today reminds us that we can get so caught up in the routines of our daily lives that we forget to look for Jesus. Likewise we can forget that we have this wonderful gift of prayer. We have this tool to deepen our relationship with God, to go to God on behalf of others, and to receive just the help we need in our time of desperation.
What are some practical steps that we can take that will help us utilize this gift of prayer so that we find ourselves not blowing the horn of desperation so often?
David Butts of "Harvest Prayer Ministries" wrote an article entitled "A Fresh Look at the Prayer Model". In his article he gives a good and practical guideline for your personal prayer life. His basic model is this:
First we are to begin our prayer addressing our Heavenly Father as Jesus did, ("Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name."). It is He that we are to direct our prayers towards. Our Lord Jesus always addressed the Father.
As we begin, the substance of your daily prayers should be first about Kingdom issues ("Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven."). Jesus’ message was about the Kingdom - His Kingdom. In Matthew 6:33, He instructed His disciples to seek first the Kingdom, and then the things needed for this life would be provided.
Kingdom issues are those of saving the lost by bringing them to Jesus… and caring for the sick, poor, imprisoned and hungry people of this world.
Our prayer conclusion should finish with our prayer for personal needs ("Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one."). There are three parts that make up the prayers for your personal needs. Number one, your daily bread, these are the necessities of life – health – food – and balance. Number two, the forgiveness of your sins – we all need that. Number three, we are to address the issues of temptation and deliverance in our own battles that each one of us wage every day.
(Harvest Prayer Ministries)
Our prayer life is a discipline each and every Christian should continually cultivate and grow. This prayer discipline is not only to be practiced by new converts but also seasoned mature believers. The gift of Susan’s horn should remind us that help is available when we ask for it. Jesus teaches us that we should ask for it daily by committing to be good stewards of our prayer life with God.
Amen
"Harvest Prayer Ministries"
"A Fresh Look at the Prayer Model"
http://www.harvestprayer.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=22&Itemid=26
(Used by permission from David Butts)
