“Nazarene Knights and People of Valor”
June 5th, 2011
1 Chronicles 11:10-25:
10 These were the chiefs of David’s mighty warriors—they, together with all Israel, gave his kingship strong support to extend it over the whole land, as the LORD had promised— 11 this is the list of David’s mighty warriors:
Jashobeam, a Hakmonite, was chief of the officers; he raised his spear against three hundred men, whom he killed in one encounter.
12 Next to him was Eleazar son of Dodai the Ahohite, one of the three mighty warriors. 13 He was with David at Pas Dammim when the Philistines gathered there for battle. At a place where there was a field full of barley, the troops fled from the Philistines. 14 But they took their stand in the middle of the field. They defended it and struck the Philistines down, and the LORD brought about a great victory.
15 Three of the thirty chiefs came down to David to the rock at the cave of Adullam, while a band of Philistines was encamped in the Valley of Rephaim. 16 At that time David was in the stronghold, and the Philistine garrison was at Bethlehem. 17 David longed for water and said, “Oh, that someone would get me a drink of water from the well near the gate of Bethlehem!” 18 So the Three broke through the Philistine lines, drew water from the well near the gate of Bethlehem and carried it back to David. But he refused to drink it; instead, he poured it out to the LORD. 19 “God forbid that I should do this!” he said. “Should I drink the blood of these men who went at the risk of their lives?” Because they risked their lives to bring it back, David would not drink it.
Such were the exploits of the three mighty warriors.
20 Abishai the brother of Joab was chief of the Three. He raised his spear against three hundred men, whom he killed, and so he became as famous as the Three. 21 He was doubly honored above the Three and became their commander, even though he was not included among them.
22 Benaiah son of Jehoiada, a valiant fighter from Kabzeel, performed great exploits. He struck down Moab’s two mightiest warriors. He also went down into a pit on a snowy day and killed a lion. 23 And he struck down an Egyptian who was seven feet, six inches tall. Although the Egyptian had a spear like a weaver’s rod in his hand, Benaiah went against him with a club. He snatched the spear from the Egyptian’s hand and killed him with his own spear. 24 Such were the exploits of Benaiah son of Jehoiada; he too was as famous as the three mighty warriors. 25 He was held in greater honor than any of the Thirty, but he was not included among the Three. And David put him in charge of his bodyguard.
A few weeks ago some of us bought some shirts that said “Nazarene Knights on them. The Scripture on them was taken from the letter Paul wrote to the Ephesians. He said to them,
11 “Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”
Ephesians 6:11-16
There are a couple of things I want to emphasize in that Scripture. First, we are in a war. We are in a battle. Have you been struggling lately? Don’t think it is abnormal or unusual. Peter said,
“Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you.”
1 Peter 4:12-14
We are at war – and if we are at war – what do you think we ought to do? We ought to prepare ourselves to fight. We ought to dress for war. From head to toe – we need to be prepared. Paul listed them: The belt of truth; the breastplate of righteousness; the shoes of the gospel (you spread the Good News by using your feet and going out); the shield of faith; the helmet of salvation and the sword of Spirit – which is the Bible.
We are at war – and we don’t like it. War is unpleasant and dangerous and uncomfortable. But we don’t have a choice. We are under attack. The enemy is Satan, the world and our own flesh. And we are either overcome by them – or we struggle – we resist - and overcome them. The Bible says,
“In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.” Hebrews 12:4
We certainly don’t have it as bad as a lot of Christians. A lot of them were put in prison and tortured and even killed for their faith. But our battle, though minor compared to so many – is painful to us. It isn’t any fun. So what are we to do? The temptation is to avoid battle. The flesh would tell us to run! Paul said,
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the Creator and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”
Hebrews 12:1-3
Have you ever been in a fight or seen a couple of guys about to go at it? I have seen guys tear their shirts off, throw their watches and glasses off – and anything else they think will hinder them in the fight.
We need to do the same thing – get rid of all the stuff that hinders us. It may be habits, attitudes, friends, or just useless stuff that hinders us. Like too much TV, Computer, books, sports – or anything that hinders us in our spiritual battle. Only you and God know what that may be in your life. But if you want to be victorious you need to rid yourself of it.
Paul, that great warrior of old, told us the secret to victory. He said we are to “FIX our eyes on Jesus”. That great cloud of witness who went before us and who is watching and cheering us on is a great motivation – but knowing Jesus is watching is an ever better motivation. We play better when our dad is watching or someone we care about, like our sweetheart, is watching. I know I always tried a little harder to hit that homerun or to make more baskets if I knew someone I cared about was watching. But to think Jesus is watching – it ought to motivate us to fight our very best and do our best.
It is very important to realize Someone is watching us – Someone cares. But we are to, not only put off those things that would hinder us in the battle, but we are to put on the dress of the warrior. We need to be prepared for battle. The belt, the breastplate, the right shoes, the helmet, and the shield – these are all defensive things. And you are going to get shot at. You are going to be attacked. Count on it. The Bible says,
“In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” 2 Timothy 3:12
You better have your defensive armor on. But playing defense, though important, never won the game. I remember way back when I was in the army and used to box a little. I would go into a boxers shell and cover up. I was pretty safe. No punch could get through. But sooner or later I had to take a chance and risk getting hit to go on the offensive. It is only when I did that – that I had a chance to win.
I don’t think God wants His Nazarene Knights or Mighty Warriors to simply be on the defensive. He doesn’t want us covering up or cowering behind closed doors like the first disciples did right after the Crucifixion. There was a Resurrection. Jesus overcame death. Jesus also sent His Holy Spirit to empower us. He has given us the POWER! To correctly use that Power we need to learn how to correctly handle the Sword He has given us. The Sword, (which is the Word of God) is our offensive weapon. Paul writes to the young Christian,
“Work hard so you can present yourself to God and receive his approval. Be a good worker, one who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly explains the word of truth.” 2 Timothy 2:15
“Study and be eager and do your utmost to present yourself to God approved (tested by trial), a workman who has no cause to be ashamed, correctly analyzing and accurately dividing [rightly handling and skillfully teaching] the Word of Truth.” Amplified Bible
“Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that need not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” King James Version
Last Week I bought my youngest grandson a Bible and before we got home he read the entire first chapter of Genesis – and he is only seven years old. That’s more reading than most Christians do all week. I encouraged him and I encourage you – read the Bible every day. It is our offensive weapon. It will prepare us for battle. It is how we put the devil on the run. Remember how Jesus did it?
“The devil led him to Jerusalem and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down from here. For it is written: “‘He will command his angels concerning you to guard you carefully; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’” (Psalm 91:11-12)
Jesus answered, “It says: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” (Deut 6:16) When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time.” Luke 4:9-13
The Devil knows the Bible – and we need to know it, too. Even if we just know a verse or two, we can attack and overcome the enemy. Little is much – when God is in it.
Have you heard about the mom who took her young son to hear one of her favorite performers? When the house lights dimmed and the concert was about to begin, the mother returned to her seat and discovered that her child was missing.
Suddenly, the curtains parted and spotlights focused on the impressive Steinway on stage. In horror, the mother saw her little boy sitting at the keyboard, innocently picking out "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.”
At that moment, the great piano master made his entrance, quickly moved to the piano, and whispered in the boy's ear,” Don’t quit.” Keep playing." Then, leaning over, Paderewski reached down with his left hand and began filling in a bass part. Soon his right arm reached around to the other side of the child, and he added a running obbligato. Together, the old master and the young novice transformed what could have been a frightening situation into a wonderfully creative experience. The audience was so mesmerized that they couldn't recall what else the great master played - only the classic," Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.”
I think that's the way it is with God. What we can accomplish on
our own is not very much. It’s pretty weak. We try our best, but the results aren't always graceful flowing music. However, with the hand of the Master, our life's can truly be beautiful.
The next time you are struggling to make a little music - listen carefully. You may hear the voice of the Master, whispering in your ear, "Don't quit." "Keep playing." Maybe you will feel His arms around you and know that His hands are there, helping you turn your feeble attempts into true masterpieces. Remember, God doesn't seem to call the equipped, rather, He equips the 'called.' He doesn’t fight all our battles for us – but He fights all our battles WITH us. Keep fighting!
I love the account of David’s Mighty Men. I am fascinated with them. There are three important qualities in them that I want to emulate. First, they were loyal. They were loyal to their chief to the point of foolhardiness. Warriors are like that. They want to please their commander. Paul wrote:
“Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs—he wants to please his commanding officer.” 2 Timothy 2:3-4
I don’t know what relationship Paul had with the military – but he uses them as illustrations often. Here he points out the fact that a soldier wants to please his commanding officer. David’s men did as well. They were loyal to David. They were Loyal to their country. And they were loyal to God. May we be the same.
They were not only loyal – they were 2. motivated by love. Some of them snuck behind enemy lines just to get a drink of water for their commander. David, kind of wishfully thinking, said he longed for a drink from a certain well. They loved him so much they risked their lives for him. I wonder how many of us love Jesus that much? I wonder if we love Him so much that if He desires we give up a habit or wishes we would do something different with out money – they we would do it. Do we love Jesus so much that we would do anything to please Him? May we become that kind of Mighty Warrior.
These Might Warriors were also 3. Full of Faith. They were fearless. They obviously were very capable. They were gifted physically, no doubt. They were well equipped as warriors. They were highly trained. That’s apparent. They were experienced from many lesser battles and exploits. So when the “Big” battle came – they were ready. They were fearless because of their faith. And they shined! They were fearless because they had faith in themselves; they had faith in their leader; they had faith in their cause; but more importantly they faith in their God. Their attitude was like Paul wrote in his Romans letter,
“...If God is for us, who can be against us?” Romans 8:31b
Do you have that kind of faith? That kind of faith makes us fearless. We don’t have to fear any enemy - natural or supernatural. “Greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world.” (1 John 4:4) There is nothing that can stand against you when you stand with Jesus.
Be bold. Be strong. When the Lord is with you – you have already won.
This week – let’s put on the full armor of God; let’s pick up our shield of faith and our sword of the Spirit – and go fight. May we be able to say with Paul one day,
“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me...” 2 Timothy 4:7-8
There is a crown of righteousness. There is joy and glory ahead of us. There is a country worth fighting for; A country where the sun never sets and the tears never flow; A land where the streets are transparent gold and the walls of made of jewels.; A land of love and laughter.; A land where we will never be separated from Jesus or our loved ones ever again. The battle is worth it. The prize is worth fighting for. You are the Nazarene’s knights. Go out and get into the battle for Him.
“The Battle Belongs to the Lord”
