The Heart of a Warrior
Introduction: The heart is the true seat of everything that you and I really are. Where your heart is - is where you really are. We have not been called out to be weak, feeble followers of Christ, rather we have been called out as intercessors, gap-standers, warriors, conquerors, defenders of the truth, heavenly patriots. Paul constantly related our daily Christian walk to an ongoing struggle and battleground.
We need to arrive at the place in our lives where we begin to understand that as believers in Jesus Christ, the enemy will be constantly attempting to wage war against us. He desires to bring us down, to destroy our faith and confidence, to shatter our hopes and dreams; ultimately, he desires to defeat us completely. This is where the heart of a warrior comes into play. If your innermost man, your heart, is set on being a warrior, if you are a warrior at heart, you will be prepared for whatever may come your way. You will live everyday saying, "Bring it on, devil!"
King David was a veteran of many foreign wars. He was a conqueror, a defender, a true patriot. This man was also a veteran of many spiritual wars and was thus primed in the art of engaging the enemy with the sole purpose of victory. Let’s look at this Psalm he wrote together.
Text: Psalm 27:1-14
Having himself been involved in such a vast number of physical and spiritual struggles and battles, David is more than qualified to instruct us in waging successful spiritual warfare and in the process, developing the heart of a warrior.
Developing the heart of a warrior begins by placing our:
1. Focus on God, Not on Fear - (vv. 1-3)
A. David begins with a strong declaration: "The LORD is my light and my salvation--whom should I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life--of whom should I be afraid?"
Illustration: Max Lucado shares the story of a parakeet named Chippie who had a very bad day. It began when the bird’s owner decided to clean his cage with a vacuum cleaner. She was almost finished when the phone rang, so she turned around to answer it. Before she knew it, Chippie was gone.
In a panic she ripped open the vacuum bag. There was Chippie, covered in dirt and gasping for air. She carried him to the bathroom and rinsed him off under the faucet. Then, realizing that Chippie was cold and wet, she reached for the hair dryer! Chippie never knew what hit him.
His owner was asked a few days later how he was recovering. "Well", she replied, "Chippie doesn’t sing much anymore. He just sits and stares."
Have you ever felt like that? One minute you’re whistling through life, and the next you’re caught up in a whirlwind of stress. Life sucks you up into its vortex and just when you think you’ve recovered from one trouble another wind of adversity blows in your direction.
Application: Don’t be like Chippie the parakeet. Don’t let the song go out of your life. David did not let fear take the song out of his life and neither should we. But how is this possible? It is possible only when we focus on who God is, how great He is, and what He means to us. He is our light. He is our salvation. Because of Him, we are no longer living in the darkness of sin. No enemy can take God’s salvation from us!
B. Continuing in verse 2 & 3, David says: "When evildoers came against me to devour my flesh, my foes and my enemies stumbled and fell. Though an army deploy against me, my heart is not afraid; though war break out against me, still I am confident."
-Spiritual warfare requires confidence. Confidence not in our own strength and abilities but in God and His strength and abilities and His power.
-The enemy uses psychological warfare against us. He knows that if he and his demons can get believers to fear, they have gone a long way in winning a spiritual battle.
C. David, the veteran warrior for God, knew the secret to winning the fear game - focus completely on God.
A warrior’s heart is refined as we learn to:
2. Practice Consistent Fellowship with God - (vv. 4-10)
A. Verse 4: "I have asked one thing from the LORD; it is what I desire: to dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, gazing on the beauty of the LORD and seeking Him in His temple."
-When David says "all the days of my life" he is talking about constant communion with God. He is not talking about coming to God only when he’s in trouble!
B. David puts it this way in verse 5, "For He will conceal me in His shelter in the day of adversity; He will hide me under the cover of His tent; He will set me high on a rock."
-Why did David have assurance in times of trouble? Because before trouble ever got to him, he had been dwelling in God’s house "all the days" of his life.
-One of the greatest mistakes you can make in spiritual warfare is to wait to train for battle in the midst of battle. Train before the battle ever begins. As David mentions over and again, the greatest place to train from battle in in God’s house.
C. Verses 6-7: "Then my head will be high above my enemies around me; I will offer sacrifices in His tent with shouts of joy. I will sing and make music to the LORD. LORD, hear my voice when I call; be gracious to me and answer me."
-David made it a consistent practice of his life to attend worship in God’s house!
-David was an excellent warrior for God because he was faithful to the house of God. 21st Century children of God are losing a great battle here.
D. Verses 8-10: "In Your behalf my heart says, "Seek My face." LORD, I will seek Your face. Do not hide Your face from me; do not turn Your servant away in anger. You have been my help; do not leave me or abandon me, God of my salvation. Even if my father and mother abandon me, the LORD cares for me."
-When David cried out to God - God answered him. What was God’s answer? "Seek my face". To which David immediately replied, "Thy face, LORD, will I seek."
Application: What are you seeking today? Comfort? Riches? Popularity? God never asks us to seek any such things. He asks us to seek His face - seek intimacy with Him. God desires closeness. He desires a personal, intimate closeness. Even when others, including close family, reject you God desires you.
-The key to victory in spiritual battle is consistent communion. Do you walk with God face to face, or is your relationship with God "on and off"? Strive for consistency. Make worship a priority.
The defining step of a true warrior is learning to:
3. Live an Upright Life - (vv.11-14)
A. Verse 11: "Because of my adversaries, show me Your way, LORD, and lead me on a level path."
-As Christians, our desire must be the straight path.
-Very little is said today about the value of a morally good life. It is not politically correct to even say that one way of life is "good" and another is not, that one action is "moral" and another is not.
-Traditional values in society have been torn down in the name of fairness and tolerance.
-This has also led to weakness in spiritual warfare. The enemy tries to persuade us our values are outdated or "intolerant".
B. Verse 12: "Do not give me over to the will of my foes, for false witnesses rise up against me, breathing violence."
-When you live a morally upright life, people will be cruel to you . They will falsely accuse you of being "holier than thou".
-Trust in the Lord for patience and protection.
C. Verse 13: "I am certain that I will see the LORD’s goodness in the land of the living."
-God is a good and loving God that will reveal to you His goodness in your time of need.
-There is a "good" and "right" way to live and there is a "wrong" way to live. Moral relativists may attempt to erase the lines but we all know there is a difference between right and wrong.
D. Verse 14: "Wait for the LORD; be courageous and let your heart be strong. Wait for the LORD."
-The only way we can overcome society’s impulses to compromise is to follow David’s counsel here in verse 14.
-We must look to the LORD, not to society around us for our guidelines on what is right and wrong. If we wait to see which way the moral winds are blowing we will be lost at sea.
Conclusion: Do you have that warrior’s heart? Are you winning life’s battles? Consider this advice from a veteran. Make the adjustments the Word of God calls for and your life will be victorious.
Disclaimer: Not necessarily all original material. Some material contained in my sermons may be gleaned from other sermons.
