As long as Moses held
up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands,
the Amalekites were winning. When Moses' hands grew tired, they took a stone
and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up--one on
one side, one on the other--so that his hands remained steady till sunset. So
Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword. – Exodus 17:11-13
I was reminded in reading this recounting of a battle
between the Israelites and the Amalekites that everyone has a part to
play. We rely on one another. For the sake of this particular blog I could
specifically discuss mission and how some are needed to go to the harvest while
others are needed to sow into the mission financially, others to serve through
intercessory prayer, others through encouragement, etc. But the honest truth is that this concept of
needing one another extends far beyond just mission. We are the body of Christ. We are called to be united, functioning as
one to glorify our Lord and Savior.
The only way Israel won this battle was through the joint
effort of each individual. They won
because Joshua and the soldiers fought with the sword while Moses was postured
in praise (raised hands), supported by Aaron and Hur. Had any one of them decided their part really
wasn't that significant, the battle would have been lost. Each person has a part to play. This brings to mind the passage in I
Corinthians 12 where Paul reminds us that a body is made up of many different
parts with different functions, yet all are necessary. Whether you realize it or not you are vital
to the body. You are important. You are significant. You are needed. And you have a part to play.
