TITLE: TIPS ON DODGING JAVELINS
SCRIPTURE: I SAMUEL 18:11 / I SAMUEL 19:10
I am honored this evening to be here to celebrate this great Pastor and Friend and his beautiful wife. I am absolutely excited to be here to witness what the Lord is doing for you and for this ministry. I pray for the angel of this house and this ministry constantly. I believe Pastor – IF YOU ARE SMALL ENOUGH, LONG ENOUGH, GOD WILL MAKE YOU BIG ENOUGH, SOON ENOUGH. Thank you for that encouraging introduction from my wife of 34 years – you are my joy.
I do recognize the theme printed on your program, however; I will leave the exposition of the theme to your keynote speaker on Sunday Afternoon. If you have your Bibles this evening, there is a Word that will challenge and equip us as we continue on this journey together and celebration weekend. Turn with me to I SAMUEL 18:11 & I SAMUEL 19:10 - I want to lift as a thought this evening – Tips on Dodging Javelins.
There is a message of caution and preparation found in this text that will help prepare you Pastor for what God has in store for you and this ministry. As God elevates us to different levels of ministry, there are things we need to understand and look out for that have the potential to harm and kill a ministry if we are not aware. So I stopped by this evening to give you some Tips on Dodging Javelins.
Let me give some historical context for this message. The Prophet, Old Man Samuel loves King Saul, and sees Saul's failure as his own failure. But God won't let the Prophet mope about the pain of the past. God gives Samuel a new mission.
--"The LORD said to Samuel, 'How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king.'"
Samuel tells the Lord, anointing a new king while the reigning king is still alive is dangerous -- as if God didn't know. The anointing of the young man by the name of David is significantly political. It designates David as the King-to-be and thus is dangerous for both the Prophet Samuel and the very young David.
• David is anointed twice more for political purposes by the men of Judah
• And later by the elders of Israel
• But Samuel's anointing of David is much more significant spiritually than any political anointing!
• The Bible records “FROM THAT DAY ON THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD CAME UPON DAVID IN POWER
Can I tell you, when the Holy Spirit comes in power upon David it empowers him.
• The young man had been a harp-player and songwriter
• Now he becomes an anointed, prophetic songwriter and the "sweet singer of Israel" - II Samuel 23:1
• The boy who has courageously defended his flock against the lion and the bear
• Now becomes the mighty warrior who defends his country against giants and Philistines
• The young man who has shepherded his father's flock to find green pastures and still waters
• Now becomes the shepherd of a nation as its King
• All by the powerful Holy Spirit who has come upon him
So, it makes no difference who you are or what you are today.
• God is not looking at your Today
• God is focused on your Tomorrow
• You can be a Street Sweeper Today – God will make you a Deacon Tomorrow
• You can be Devilish Today – God will make you a Deaconess Tomorrow
• You can be on Drugs and Rehab Today – God will make you a Trustee Tomorrow
• You can be a Sinner Today – god will make you a Sunday School Tomorrow
• You can have a Foul Mouth today – God will have you Sing Like an Angel in the Choir Tomorrow
Some of you don’t see it yet, but here is where I am going with this thought.
• David had to wait about 15 years from the time he was first anointed by Samuel to the time he became KING OVER JUDAH
• It was another seven years before David was anointed king over all ISRAEL
• This means David waited over 20 years of his life to be made king
God is finished with Saul. He has disobeyed for the last time. His kingdom is doomed. And so the Prophet Samuel is dispatched by God to Bethlehem to anoint Saul's replacement.
• When Samuel arrives, David is not even present, because no one ever dreamed David was a contender for king
• He was doing what young lads his age do -- tending a small flock of his father's sheep
• When Samuel has David summoned and then anoints him, David must wonder how long it will be before he becomes king
• The answer is that it is much longer than he imagines, and much more difficult, too
We now find a short period of time has elapsed and David after killing the giant Goliath is now found living and working in King Saul’s Palace as just a young lad. Things had been real good for a while: as a teenager he had been anointed as the next King, he had killed Goliath, he had been working in the King’s Court and he had been very successful in his leadership of the King’s military. But the more successful he became the more King Saul despised him, to the point where the King tried to kill David. David’s popularity causes King Saul to become jealous and enraged. At first Saul keeps his jealous rage to himself.
• He seeks to bring about David's death in a way that will make it look like an accident
• He throws his spear at David, but people probably write this off to “temporary insanity”
• Then Saul seeks to be rid of David by having him killed in battle
Everything Saul does to destroy David serves to elevate him in power and in popularity. Saul also offers David one of his daughters for a mere 100 Philistine foreskins. Instead of getting himself killed, David kills 200 Philistines, gains a wife who loves him more than her father, and further admiration and respect from all but Saul.
I know what you are thinking, this is good Pastor Lawson, but what is the point? If David is appointed as the next King by God himself, why do we see on more than one occasion King Saul attempts to take his life?
• Why does King Saul try to Pin David to the wall with his Javelin?
• Why does King Saul’s son hide David out when Saul throws another Javelin at him?
• Why does King Saul send David out to 1 man against 100 Philistines which should have gotten him killed?
• If David is anointed by God as the next King why does he go through so much adversity and almost killed on many occasions?
• Why is he going through all this if he has been anointed by God?
Ok, Ok, let me bring this closer to home this evening.
• If you have been anointed to birth this ministry – why is it so challenging?
• If you have been anointed to birth this ministry – why do so many continue to walk away?
• If you have been anointed to birth this ministry – why do leaders fight your leadership?
• If you have been anointed to birth this ministry – why do so many act up, even on Sunday morning?
• If you have been anointed to birth this ministry – why isn’t the ministry going smoother by now?
David had to learn during these 20 years of waiting, how to Dodge Javelins. Although he was anointed he was not yet appointed to be the King. He had to learn while he was still young in ministry how to Dodge Javelins. This is why we are told in ROMANS 12:7 “….LET US WAIT ON OUR MINISTERING: OR HE THAT TEACHETH, ON TEACHING.” We very well may be Anointed for our ministry, but you need to wait on the Appointing and being released for that ministry. This is why so many do not survive preparation process in ministry. Announce a call to the ministry and never move forward, not heard from again.
• Ran during the Anointing process and killed by the Javelins
• Did not wait for the Appointing, therefore did not understand and survive the process
• If you don’t learn how to dodge Javelins at this level
• The Javelins thrown at you during the next level will ultimately Kill you
• You have to learn now how to become proficient at Dodging Javelins so you can survive at the next level of ministry
• There is a process you must go through when you are Anointed that will save your life when you are Appointed to the next level
As long as you are small in ministry, nobody pays you much attention.
• As long as you are not preaching to heavy in the Word – no one pays you much attention
• As long as you are not baptizing and welcoming new members – no one pays you much attention
• As long as you are not accepting too many preaching engagements – no one pays you much attention
• As long as you sit in the pulpit by yourself every Sunday – no one pays you much attention
• Oh, but as soon as God elevates your Ministry – Javelins
• Oh, but as soon as God increases your Territory – Javelins
• Oh, but as soon as the membership begins to Grow – Javelins
• Oh, but as soon as the preaching invitations Flow – Javelins
• Oh, but as soon as you have a Pulpit full of Preachers - Javelins
JAVELIN DODGING IS DANGEROUS BUSINESS.
• Javelins are Big
• Javelins are Heavy
• Javelins are Sharp
Can I footnote here for a moment? JAVELINS DIFFER GREATLY FROM A SPHERE. A sphere is held in your hand and used for Close Proximity, to find Hand to Hand Combat if you will. It is more personal. A Javelin on the other hand is nothing more than a Sphere on a long Stick or Pole.
• Used to fight at a distance
• I don’t necessarily need to be very close to you to use this weapon
• Sometimes you don’t even see the Javelin coming since it can be thrown through the air
• That’s how the ministry is ordinarily attacked
• Not attacked in close proximity – in your face
• Attacked while others talking about you on the phone
• Attacked while others run you down on email
• Attacked while preachers talk about you in Pastors office and then smile at you when you walk in the door
THERE ARE MANY DIFFERENT TYPES OF JAVELIN THROWERS.
• Bitter javelin throwers
• Angry javelin throwers
• Jealous javelin throwers
• Grieving javelin throwers
One thing is for sure – Javelin throwers are dangerous. Look at this text with me again -- I SAMUEL 18:11 “AND SAUL CAST THE JAVELIN; FOR HE SAID, I WILL SMITE DAVID EVEN TO THE WALL WITH IT. AND DAVID AVOIDED OUT OF HIS PRESENCE TWICE.”
• David would on three occasions escape the Javelin of Saul
• Too many today have not escaped the Javelin
• Many ministers have fallen and failed because they never learned how to dodge the Javelins
• Many ministries have died because they never learned how to dodge the Javelins
• Many ministers no longer have preaching engagements because they never learned how to dodge the Javelins
• Many churches have closed their doors because they never learned how to dodge the Javelins
• Many Pastors no longer have a pulpit because they never learned how to dodge the Javelins
The first tip I want to leave you this evening – PICK YOUR BATTLES --
--I SAMUEL 24:5-6 “And it came to pass afterward, that David’s heart smote him, because he had cut off Saul’s skirt. And he said unto his men, The Lord forbid that I should do this thing unto my master, the Lord’s anointed, to stretch forth mine hand against him, seeing he is the anointed of the Lord.”
David had the opportunity to fight back against Saul. However, David knew that even though Saul sought to do him harm, he would not do well to fight against the leader in his life. I realize that it is hard to comprehend, but even if we fight against the man whose heart has went wayward from God, we are still fighting against the office that God has set up.
• Be careful not to attack those that have attacked you
• They may not be acting right, but that does not mean they still don’t belong to the Lord
• Just because they don’t look or act anointed, remember it is not your call
• I CHRONICLES 16:22 “TOUCH NOT MINE ANOINTED, AND DO MY PROPHETS NO HARM”
• We may be justified in our own eyes, but in the eyes of the people who don’t have all of the information, we are just rebellious and fighting a loosing cause
• When we fight back we are not trusting that God will fight our battles for us
• II CHRONICLES 20:17 “YE SHALL NOT NEED TO FIGHT IN THIS BATTLE: SET YOURSELVES, STAND YE STILL, AND SEE THE SALVATION OF THE LORD WITH YOU…”
The next Tip -- UNDERSTAND WHO YOUR FRIENDS ARE -- We must be careful who we confide in especially during a season of Javelin Throwing. It always interest me with David that he confided in Saul’s son Jonathon. They loved each other like brothers. When you are going through, TELL SOMEBODY, NOT EVERYBODY.
• You only need to talk to the people that are closest to you when you go through a javelin throwing season
• During this time, David confided in Jonathon but no one else
• At the next level, not everyone smiling in your face is necessarily tickled with you
• Watch out for those in your Circle but Not in your Corner
• You remember Jacob’s son Joseph don’t you?
• Joseph made his biggest mistakes by always telling everyone about his Dreams
• His own brother finally said, “LET US KILL THIS DREAMER AND SEE WHAT BECOMES OF HIS DREAMS”
• Sometimes we need to keep to our self or those we know we can confide in
One of the things that’s amazing about this entire narrative is while the hatred of Saul for David was growing every day, David was surrounded by others who loved him.
• We’re told the Israelites loved him
• We are told the King’s son Jonathan loved him
• We are told the King’s daughter loved him
• In fact, when the text says in that Saul’s daughter Michal loved David, it’s the only place in the Hebrew scripture where a woman is said to love a man
• In the midst of this darkest hour of David’s life, while Saul’s hatred for David burned within him, everyone else was growing more and more fond of David
• David knew who his friends were
The next and final Tip I want to leave with you this evening -- KEEP IT MOVING -- Look with me at this second text again - . . . And Saul sought to smite David even to the wall with the javelin; but he slipped away out of Saul’s presence, and he smote the javelin into the wall: and David fled, and escaped that night.
• When you are under attack, it is imperative that you keep progressing with the mission
• Once we stop moving and preforming our God-called tasks, we become bitter
• If we stop moving while under attack we are doomed and quickly defeated and killed by the Javelin
Back in my early school days when we still had PE every day, I used to look forward to playing DODGE BALL. If you were hit with the ball it really did not hurt, but made a very distinct sound. One thing I learned playing Dodge Ball was to look for those that stood still or did not move very much, they were easy targets. It was always more difficult and challenging to hit the kids that were very active and jumping around. It would be hard to ZERO IN ON THEM to get them out.
Well, what are you saying Pastor Lawson? When you are under a Javelin Attack we need to remember the words and council Paul left for us -- EPHESIANS 6:11 “PUT ON THE WHOLE ARMOUR OF GOD, THAT YE MY BE ABLE TO STAND AGAINST THE WILES OF THE DEVIL.” We don’t put on the Armour of God to Stand Still. We put it on so we are prepared to move and do battle. We put it on so we can -- KEEP IT MOVING.
• As long as you keep Worshiping – Keep it Moving
• As long as you are Leading – Keep it Moving
• As long as you are Loving – Keep it Moving
• As long as you are Forgiving – Keep it Moving
• As long as you are Preaching – Keep it Moving
• As long as you are Praying – Keep it Moving
• As long as you Keep It Moving you will get through it
As God continues to elevate each of us into a higher level in ministry and remember your ministry is not always what goes on in the church –
• Your ministry can happen on the job where God has placed you
• Your ministry could be nursing homes or hospitals
• Your ministry could be volunteering at the school
• Your ministry could be at the Car Wash
• Your ministry could be at the Dialysis Center as a volunteer or patient
• Your ministry could be in the Classroom
• Your ministry could be with the Youth
• Your ministry could happen standing in the Grocery Store or Wal-Mart line
• Wherever God has placed you it is important we see ministry
God in our life will send us to places He has prepared for us, where others will THRUST A JAVELIN INTO US. But it will always be a place He has already gone to Himself, and taught us how to respond. His goal is that where He is, in CHARACTER – MORALS – GENTLENESS – FORGIVENESS - we will be also. He knows what it is like to be speared and has set the example for us to follow.
--You remember don’t you?
--Jesus had a Javelin attack
--It was on Calvary’s Cross
--On a Hill Far Away
--On a Friday Night
--They Nailed Him to a Cross
--They Took a Spear
--Pierced Him in His Side
--Blood and Water came streaming down
--He Suffered, Blead and Died
--But on the Third Day Morning
--He God Up With All Power in His Hand
--And Because He Lives we can survive the Javelin Attacks
--Because He Lives we can Handle and Maneuver through the Javelin Attacks
--Because He Lives we can Survive the Javelin Attacks in our Lives and Ministries
