THE FORWARD WALK – PART EIGHT
“THE WALK OF A VICTOR”
1 CHRONICLES 26:27 - ©LARRY L. THOMPSON (2003)
1 Chron. 26:27
“Some of the plunder taken in battle they dedicated for the repair of the temple of the Lord.”
Introduction:
Today is the next to last Sunday that we will be in this series, THE FORWARD WALK as we anticipate our FORWARD BY FAITH commitment Sunday on June 1st. Today I want us to examine and consider why we have experienced warfare in our lives as Christians. I want us to look at why some have had a battle in marriage, why some have fought a war with finances, why some have been engaged in a battle keeping your children pure while others have fought personal battles of oppression, depression or addiction. I want all of us to read this one verse together as a basis of this study today:
“Some of the plunder taken in battle they dedicated for the repair of the temple of the Lord.”
This verse speaks of the spoils of war that were won in the midst of a battle. These spoils of war won in the midst of battle rightfully belong to the victorious army. These soldiers of the Lord, however, gave a portion of all the plunder to the temple to express their love, dependence and dedication to God for the purpose of repairing or building up the Temple. Today, if you can grasp WHY the Lord has allowed you to be engaged in such intense spiritual warfare then you will understand that God has not only allowed the battle in your life but wants to use the battle for His glorious purpose in building His temple for His glory. Today, I am asking you to join with me in what may be one of the most spiritually instructive sermons the Lord has given to me in my 30 years of proclaiming truth. The Truth we will learn today is this: The Walk of the Victor is discovered only through the BATTLE; but through the battle we discover the BLESSINGS. Today I want to show you the Blessings that are ours through the Battles we face in life and how those battles are used to Honor the Lord and to build His people. Let’s look at the first battle…
I. Strength is Discovered Through the Struggle (Gen. 14:11-12)
“The four kings seized all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their food; then they went away. [12] They also carried off Abram’s nephew Lot and his possessions, since he was living in Sodom.”
We read when Abram’s nephew, Lot, was taken captive and held in bondage that Abram gathered 318 of his men and went after the four kings. Now look at the results of this battle in Genesis 14:15-16 (NIV)
“During the night Abram divided his men to attack them and he routed them, pursuing them as far as Hobah, north of Damascus. [16] He recovered all the goods and brought back his relative Lot and his possessions, together with the women and the other people.”
What we need to see today is this truth: WE WILL ALL FACE STRUGGLES IN OUR LIFE. LIFE IS FILLED WITH DAILY BATTLES. In the midst of those battles we have to make a choice: In every battle we will either SURRENDER or by faith find His STRENGTH in our STRUGGLE.
Satan must have really been gloating about the apparent victory as the enemy carried away the entire population of two cities including the only ONE godly man who lived in the city. Lot was the only righteous man who could have stood in the struggle in the power of the Lord but his life was so compromised by his carnality that he was taken into captivity and led away in bondage. Imagine the Devil boasting, “There is a man of God. He is in my chains; he has lost all his possessions to me. I want you to take notice; all of you who dare to challenge my authority.”
However, Abram walked with God and he knew that by God’s power he would not surrender but find His strength for this present struggle! The result was Abram returned to Sodom and all witnessed the Walk of a VICTOR!
But don’t miss this vital truth of the WALK of a Victor: Genesis 14:18-20:
“Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. He was priest of God Most High, [19] and he blessed Abram, saying, "Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth. [20] And blessed be God Most High, who delivered your enemies into your hand." Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything.”
Do you see what else Abraham had in his possession other than God’s STRENGTH for the struggle? He also returned with the spoils of victory and with the spoils of victory he was able to strengthen the work of God and we have the first recorded example of tithing in the Bible. DO YOU UNDERSTAND THIS BIBLICAL TRUTH?
God wants us to know more than just the WALK OF A VICTOR…He wants to give us the victory but also the spoils from the battle. We take away from every battle we win in the strength of the Lord, spoils from that struggle that can be used in strengthening the work of the Lord in and through our lives. This is why the Apostle Paul exclaimed: Romans 8:37
“No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.”
Our first lesson in the Walk of a Victor is that we are to find His Strength for the Struggle if we are to return in celebration of the overcomer with the spoils of battle.
II. Truth is Declared in the Triumph (1Samuel 30:1-4)
“David and his men reached Ziklag on the third day. Now the Amalekites had raided the Negev and Ziklag. They had attacked Ziklag and burned it, [2] and had taken captive the women and all who were in it, both young and old. They killed none of them, but carried them off as they went on their way. [3] When David and his men came to Ziklag, they found it destroyed by fire and their wives and sons and daughters taken captive. [4] So David and his men wept aloud until they had no strength left to weep.”
While David and his men were off fighting another battle the Amalekites attacked their home village of Ziklag and took all their families, all their possessions and burned down the town. To add to the injury in this battle David’s men blamed David for what happened to their family and possessions and there was talk of stoning David. 1 Samuel 30:6 (NIV)
“David was greatly distressed because the men were talking of stoning him; each one was bitter in spirit because of his sons and daughters. But David found strength in the Lord his God.”
Listen to me; there are times in our lives when the battles are so difficult that even our friends become our enemies. It is painful enough to know the enemy has robbed you of your family and your possessions but then the enemy has also lied and deceived even those you loved into believing that YOU ARE THE PROBLEM. The pain is so great at that point that you want to give up, get away and run for you fear the pain is greater than any potential victory that may come from this battle. THE ONLY HOPE YOU HAVE IN THIS BATTLE IS TO FOLLOW THE PATTERN OF THIS MAN AFTER GOD’S OWN HEART AND FIND THAT YOUR STRENGTH IS ONLY IN THE LORD. “But David found strength in the Lord his God.”
This is the greatest test in Spiritual warfare. This is not just about David and his leadership but it is about the ETERNAL PURPOSES of God. Every attack from the enemy on the people of God has ONE DEFINED PURPOSE: TO DESTROY THE WITNESS OF JESUS CHRIST.
In this situation, as well as every spiritual struggle, the Devil is out to destroy the witness of Christ. We know from scripture the seed of the promised Messiah must come through David’s descendants and if David is defeated and destroyed then the Messianic prophecy would also be destroyed.
Things have not changed in the centuries and Satan knows that by attacking God’s people and lying to them in the midst of the battle, hiding the TRUTH, with the hope of their defeat and in the process the damage or loss of a testimony honoring Jesus Christ.
David knew he must respond by faith immediately or he would see neither truth nor triumph. He sought the leadership of God and obeyed God’s directive and went after the enemy without delay.
We now come to another truth that we discover on our way to triumph: We often discover our BATTLES become a BURDEN before we ever see the BLESSING.
1 Samuel 30:9-10 (NIV)
“David and the six hundred men with him came to the Besor Ravine, where some stayed behind, [10] for two hundred men were too exhausted to cross the ravine. But David and four hundred men continued the pursuit.”
Satan will always challenge you even when you act by faith to see if there is anything he can do to persuade you to give up in the midst of discouragement and defeat. David, being a man after God’s own heart knew his victory was not in the number of men that stayed fought with him but the fact that his faith remained steadfast in the Lord. Look at the results of this faithfulness:
1 Samuel 30:17-20 (NIV)
“David fought them from dusk until the evening of the next day, and none of them got away, except four hundred young men who rode off on camels and fled. [18] David recovered everything the Amalekites had taken, including his two wives. [19] Nothing was missing: young or old, boy or girl, plunder or anything else they had taken. David brought everything back. [20] He took all the flocks and herds, and his men drove them ahead of the other livestock, saying, "This is David’s plunder.”
David returned not only with the victory but returned with EVERYTHING the enemy had taken…and more! Not only did David bring back everything from his hometown but he also took all the plunder that his enemy had collected that was not associated with Ziklag! Paul reminds us that in our struggles “we are more than conquerors!”
Because of David’s faithfulness in the midst of the battle everyone would see GOD’S TRUTH IN THE ULTIMATE TRIUMPH! The man of God is vindicated and God’s glory and testimony is secure.
III. Plunder is Destined for His Purpose (1 Samuel 30:26)
“When David arrived in Ziklag, he sent some of the plunder to the elders of Judah, who were his friends, saying, "Here is a present for you from the plunder of the Lord’s enemies.”
It is imperative to remember that the spoils of the battle, the plunder of our wars have a divine purpose in our lives and the lives of others. David realized that the plunder of the battle taken was a result of God’s work in his life and nothing he had done. David used the plunder to not only strengthen God’s continued work in his life but to be a blessing to others who shared in that vision and that work.
DAVID’S DEDICATION OF THE PLUNDER:
2 Samuel 8:11
“King David dedicated these articles to the Lord, as he had done with the silver and gold from all the nations he had subdued.”
DAVID’S CHARGE TO THE PEOPLE AND THEIR RESPONSE:
1 Chron. 29:1-18
“Then King David said to the whole assembly: "My son Solomon, the one whom God has chosen, is young and inexperienced. The task is great, because this palatial structure is not for man but for the Lord God. [2] With all my resources I have provided for the temple of my God--gold for the gold work, silver for the silver, bronze for the bronze, iron for the iron and wood for the wood, as well as onyx for the settings, turquoise, stones of various colors, and all kinds of fine stone and marble--all of these in large quantities. [3] Besides, in my devotion to the temple of my God I now give my personal treasures of gold and silver for the temple of my God, over and above everything I have provided for this holy temple: [4] three thousand talents of gold (gold of Ophir) and seven thousand talents of refined silver, for the overlaying of the walls of the buildings, [5] for the gold work and the silver work, and for all the work to be done by the craftsmen. Now, who is willing to consecrate himself today to the Lord?" [6] Then the leaders of families, the officers of the tribes of Israel, the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds, and the officials in charge of the king’s work gave willingly. [7] They gave toward the work on the temple of God five thousand talents and ten thousand darics of gold, ten thousand talents of silver, eighteen thousand talents of bronze and a hundred thousand talents of iron. [8] Any who had precious stones gave them to the treasury of the temple of the Lord in the custody of Jehiel the Gershonite. [9] The people rejoiced at the willing response of their leaders, for they had given freely and wholeheartedly to the Lord. David the king also rejoiced greatly. [10] David praised the Lord in the presence of the whole assembly, saying, "Praise be to you, O Lord, God of our father Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. [11] Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, O Lord, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all. [12] Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things. In your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all. [13] Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise your glorious name. [14] "But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand. [15] We are aliens and strangers in your sight, as were all our forefathers. Our days on earth are like a shadow, without hope. [16] O Lord our God, as for all this abundance that we have provided for building you a temple for your Holy Name, it comes from your hand, and all of it belongs to you. [17] I know, my God, that you test the heart and are pleased with integrity. All these things have I given willingly and with honest intent. And now I have seen with joy how willingly your people who are here have given to you. [18] O Lord, God of our fathers Abraham, Isaac and Israel, keep this desire in the hearts of your people forever, and keep their hearts loyal to you.”
DAVID’S DEDICATED PLUNDER USED BY NEXT GENERATION
1 Kings 7:51
“When all the work King Solomon had done for the temple of the Lord was finished, he brought in the things his father David had dedicated--the silver and gold and the furnishings--and he placed them in the treasuries of the Lord’s temple.”
CHEST OF JOASH:
Last week we witnessed again where the plunder of the battles were used to build the temple and the frustration on the part of King Joash when the plunder received was not used for God’s purpose. This was the reason for the creation of the Chest of Joash…to rebuild the temple, restore the glory.
2 Chron. 24:5-6
“He called together the priests and Levites and said to them, "Go to the towns of Judah and collect the money due annually from all Israel, to repair the temple of your God. Do it now." But the Levites did not act at once. [6] Therefore the king summoned Jehoiada the chief priest and said to him, "Why haven’t you required the Levites to bring in from Judah and Jerusalem the tax imposed by Moses the servant of the Lord and by the assembly of Israel for the Tent of the Testimony?”
PLUNDER FROM THE EGYPTIANS:
What can we say about God’s great victory over the Egyptians and the freedom from the bondage of being slaves to the enemy for 400 years? God gave the victory and He gave the plunder, the spoils of battle. Remember, the plunder had a purpose…the building of the tabernacle in which the people gave $15 million dollars worth of money and materials. But it all came from the plunder in the victory over the enemy!
Exodus 3:22
“Every woman is to ask her neighbor and any woman living in her house for articles of silver and gold and for clothing, which you will put on your sons and daughters. And so you will plunder the Egyptians.”
Like these commanders, we should consider what we can give, rather than what we are obligated to give. Is your giving a matter of rejoicing or an exercise in regulation? Give as a response of joy and love for God and all He has done to see you through the battles of life.
