Today on the verdict with Pastor John Monroe. What do we make of all of this?
Well, I find it interesting, don't you, that the mighty men are listed.
Some of them are better known than others, but God knows each one and has recorded them in sacred. Scripture. To you and me, they may just be names, but they are men who fought for the Lord. and for their king David. Welcome to the verdict, featuring the Bible teaching of Pastor John Monroe, senior pastor of Calvary Church in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Followers of Jesus are called to be strong and courageous in a world of spiritual darkness. Today on the verdict, we're finding encouragement to be faithful soldiers for Christ as we learn from the adventures of David's mighty men. Let's join Pastor John Monroe for the next message in our study on the life of David. David's mighty men. Repeatedly in Scripture, we're told to be strong and courageous.
Life can be difficult. The spiritual life is not an easy one. as there is always formidable opposition. The Apostle Paul reminds Timothy to share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.
So we're to fight a good fight. This requires not our own strength, but the power and strength of God. As we follow our Lord Jesus, It's easy to get comfortable. to follow the crowd. But today, as we continue our series on King David, we're going to think of David's mighty man.
Who provides a good example to us of strength, of courage, of fighting the good fight? I know you want to be a good soldier of Jesus Christ.
So let's listen now. as we think of David's mighty men. We ask you to open your Bibles to Second Timothy. Chapter 2 Yeah. 2 Timothy Chapter 2.
2 Timothy is Paul's last letter. He's in prison.
Soon he will. Be in the presence of the Lord. He's assured that God has saved his soul. And he's giving a challenge to young Timothy. and indeed to all of us 2 Timothy 2.
Verse three. Share in suffering. as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits Since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him. Notice that.
We are to share in suffering As a good soldier, of Christ Jesus. In the New Testament, The Christian life is portrayed in many, many ways. And one of the metaphors that Paul uses as we write here is that of a soldier. In the first century, Christians were driven from their homes and communities.
Some were in prison, some were beaten. Many were persecuted, some were martyred for their faith. Paul says In 2 Timothy 3, verses 12 and 13, He says, All who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be. persecuted.
So tonight, as we think of David's mighty men, soldiers, warriors, tough men, strong men. I want to encourage all of us to be strong. And good soldiers of Christ. Jesus. I've never been in the military.
But I I spoke to a young man today who is going to have a career in the Marines and he's a big strapping fellow. And I thought, this is the kind of soldiers that we need.
Someone who's strong.
Someone who's courageous, someone who is brave. And if that is true, in an army. It's certainly true in the army of God. And I think as we look at some of David's mighty men, it will encourage us. To be strong.
and our faith. Not to be weak. not to quickly crumble. to expect opposition, to expect hardship To understand we're in a spiritual war. and to be strong in the grace of We're considering David.
who is described as a man after God's own heart. And it is true that David did sometimes stand alone. He stood alone against Goliath. But throughout his life, He was not a solo. Commander.
He was surrounded by a group of soldiers. who are described as mighty Man. And I think all of us want to be mighty men. Mighty woman. Of God, and how blessed we are that we are surrounded by others who are also strong in their faith.
How wonderful! To have men and women around us at church who are strong in their faith, who can help us, who can pray for us, and who can encourage us. as we fight the good. Fight.
Now, before we think of David's mighty man, a little bit of context, a little reminder. that King David Spent quite some time, years in fact. In exile. If you know your Bibles, you know there was a long period. Between David being anointed king and David being crowned as king.
Who's the first? King of Israel? It is Saul. But Saul is an evil man and he's rejected by God from being king over Israel. And you recall that the prophet Samuel Is sent by God to Bethlehem, that little town.
Because from Bethlehem is going to come the greatest king. And Samuel comes to anoint a new king. He doesn't know who he's going to be. And he finds out, although that David is the youngest of the sons of Jesse. Samuel is told to anoint David.
1 Samuel 16, verse 7, for the Lord sees. Not as man says. Man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart. And so, although David is the youngest, he is anointed king. And we're told that when he's anointed by oil, By Samuel, the Spirit of the Lord.
rushed upon David from that day forward. He is filled with the Spirit of God. He is God's anointed. And Then he stands in the power of the Spirit of God, standing alone against Goliath. and demonstrates As we read in 1 Samuel 17, verse 47, that the Lord saves not with sword and spear.
For the battle is the Lord's, and he will give you into our hands. These are strong words, weren't they? And David then humiliates the Philistines and kills their champion Goliath. and demonstrates But the Lord of hosts Is strong and superior, and nothing can stand against him as he cuts off Goliath's. Head.
So Initially, of course, he's very pleased with David. But soon Saul, King Saul, is overcome by depression and bitterness and even anger against David, who is victorious in battle against the Philistines. You remember the woman saying, Saul has struck down his thousands and David his ten thousands. Yes, Saul is a good warrior, but David is even better because the spirit of the Lord. is upon him.
And for a long time then, Saul is hunting. David He's persecuting David. He wants to kill David. And so David has to flee to the wilderness and. Saul and his army Come against David.
And at one point, David escapes. to the cave of Adalam. And the Bible tells us that He became captain over them, and there were with him about 400 men.
So, as David is in exile, between being anointed king and crowned king He has about 400 men. Around him at this point. And from these men, Several of them are called David's mighty man. And it's interesting, even after David is crowned king, You will recall that his own son Absalom conspires against David to take over David's throne, and David himself, again, for a second time. finds himself in exile.
2 Samuel 15, verse 6, Absalom. David's own son steals the hearts of the men of Israel. And David is under siege and has to leave Jerusalem. And again he experiences exile. After Absalom is killed, David Rattons.
To Jerusalem.
So there's no doubt. That although David was a lawful king, anointed by God, He experienced rejection. He experiences exile. on these two occasions. That exile, that rejection, of course.
It's a picture, isn't it, of David's greater son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Although he is anointed king, we thought this morning that he ascends to the right hand of the Father for that wonderful coronation as he then gives gifts to his church. But the king, King Jesus, is presently today Unrecognized. and is rejected by the world. Isn't that true?
Is he the king of kings? Yes, the world does not acknowledge that. That day will come.
So the writer of Hebrews writes in Hebrews 13, verse 13, that we, his followers, are to go to him, that is to our Savior, outside the camp. and bear the reproach he endured. Just as David followers. Had to leave the comfort of their homes and attach themselves to David, so we. who are followers of Christ.
or to turn as it were from the comforts of the world. and renounce the world. not be conformed to the world. and follow Okay. Jesus.
Now in these times of rejection. In the time of exile, in the time when he is being hunted by King Saul. David particularly depends upon his mighty men. And I want us to think Of a few of them very quickly.
So turn back in your Bibles to 2 Samuel. Chapter 23. Second Samuel. Twenty-three. Can you imagine how comforted David must have felt.
of having these mighty men round him. when he's being hunted. By Saul. Second Samuel twenty three. First of all, verse eight.
These are the names of the mighty men whom David had. Here's the first one. Joshua. Hashabeth A Takamite. He was chief of the three.
He yielded his spear against 800 whom he killed at one time. or a warrior, no wonder he's the chief. It's a pretty good accomplishment, isn't it? 800, take them down 800. And uh You don't have a machine gun.
You've got a spear. with a warrior. Here's the other one. Eleazar in verses 9 and 10, and next to him.
So there are three of the mighty men. There's many of them, over 30, but there's three of the highest, the real warriors.
Next to him among the three mighty men were Eleazar the son of Dodo, Son of Ahohai. He was with David when they defied the Philistines who were gathered there for battle. And the men of Israel withdrew.
So some of the men felt, we're getting out of here, it's too the battle's too hot. Heroes And struck down the Philistines until his hand was weary and his hand clung to the sword. And the Lord brought about a great victory that day. and the men returned after him only to strip the slain.
So there were some who said I'm not going to Uh fight, but I'm going to be there for the spoils. Eliezer. He continued to fight. The Philistines, until his hand was weary, until his hand clung to the sword. Think of the endurance, think of the courage.
And what loyalty these men had to King David. And the scripture says, as we read, the Lord brought about a great victory. that day. Endurance is absolutely essential. in the Christian warfare, isn't it?
As Satan harasses us, as he tempts us. Put on the whole armor of God is the point. Don't be weary. in well-doing Endure. Here's the third one in verses 11 and 12.
His name is Shama. And next to him, verse 11, was Shama. the son of Aggie, the Hararite. The Philistines gathered together at Lehi, where there was a plot of ground full of lentils, and the men fled from the Philistines.
So the Philistines are coming. And many of the Israelites flee. Philistines are pretty good warriors. Ah, but this man, this mighty man, one of the chiefs of the mighty men. He took his stand in the midst of the plot.
and defended it and struck down the Philistines. And the Lord worked a great Victory. He's the third of the churches. Chief of the mighty man. He stands firm when others flee.
It's essential for a soldier, isn't it, to defend this position, not to retreat. And this is exactly what this man Shama did. He took a stand for God. Against the enemy, when others fled, this mighty man stood. And the Lord gave The victory.
Here was a man who was prepared to stand alone. For the cause of his king. He stood. Strong. And the Lord worked a great Victory.
We're often like sheep, aren't we? As followers of Jesus. We follow the crowd. When things get difficult, sometimes in the Christian faith and ministry, we give up. How important it is, brothers and sisters, that we stand firm.
It's not what Paul says in Galatians 6, stand firm. Take a stand for God. and having done all to stand firm. You know what is right. You may be the only person in your family standing for God.
You may be the only person in your office. You may be the only person in your class at school. And it's very difficult and you find yourself isolated and others go. Stand for God. Here is a mighty man.
of God.
Now in verses thirteen through s seventeen We have an act of worship. This is a wonderful. story let me read it i'm still in second samuel twenty three Verse thirteen. And three of the thirty chief men That's David's mighty man. went down and came about harvest time to David at the cave of Adalam, when a band of Philistines w were encamped in the valley of Rephaim.
David was then in the stronghold.
Some think that might be Masada. But he was in the stronghold. And that the garrison of the Philistines, and the garrison of the Philistines, was then at Bethlehem. And David said longingly, Oh, that someone would give me water to drink from the well of Bethlehem that is by the gate. Then the three mighty men broke through the camp of the Philistines.
and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem that was by the gate. and carried and brought it to David. But he would not drink of it. He poured it out. to the Lord.
and said Far be it from me, O Lord, that I should do this. Shall I drink the blood of the men who went at the risk of their lives? Therefore he would not drink it. These things the three mighty men Dead.
Now where is David from? David is from Bethlehem. Bethlehem. I've been there, it's only five miles from Jerusalem. This time is small, it's insignificant, it's not the greatest of the towns in Israel.
But Bethlehem, of course, is a great history. Rachel, the wife of Jacob, is buried. in Bethlehem. It was at Bethlehem where Ruth and Boas Fell in love. And of course Israel's greatest king, David.
is from Bethlehem. Bethlehem is his hometown. And a thousand years after this event, David's greater son, our Lord Jesus Christ, is going to be born in. Bethlehem. Now many of you as I've experienced You lived far away from your hometown.
And if you have, you may understand something, a little bit, of what's going on in these verses. David clearly loved his hometown. and away from home at war. He longs for a drink. from Bethlehem's well.
You say that's not really when you think about it. They didn't have bottled water? Yeah. Think back, this is three thousand years ago. You know, in today's water, we have fluoride and other chemicals, and in a sense, wherever you travel, the water, in a sense, always tastes alike.
But there's a vast difference in the tastes of natural water. It wasn't until I was in my teens that my grandparents, my mother's Parents had running water in their house, living in a small village in the north of Scotland, a small fishing village. And I remember going there as a boy And uh there's no running water in the house. To us it's almost unbelievable, isn't it? It's not really all that long ago.
Don't know about your ancestors, but None of them had running water either. great-grandparents and so on. And several yards away From the little house. where my grandparents lived was a well. and myself and my brothers.
We were dispatched from time to time. Uh with buckets. to get the water and to bring it. to her home. And I remember my father often saying how much he liked the taste of the water in my grandparents' village compared with the water.
or where we lived uh in central Scotland at that time. If you know anything about water, not with the chemicals in it, but natural water, it tastes different. And David longed for a drink. Not just of water, but the water from Bethlehem. But there was more, I think, than the taste of water.
of Bethlehem or the nostalgia of reflecting on Bethlehem. Going on and David, I think. There must have been a tremendous sadness. that the Philistines The enemies of God. Had made a garrison in his hometown at Bethlehem.
So notice. What the text says, he said longingly, Oh, that someone would give me water to drink. from the well of Bethlehem that is by the gate. David The anointed king Is not able to enter his own hometown of Bethlehem because it's in the hands of the Philistines, the Lord's enemies. Do you understand what's going on?
And three of David's mighty men. Here their commander-in-chief. He doesn't command them. And notice they're not even their names are not even mentioned in the text. But what do they do?
They risk their very lives. And they bravely burst through the line of the Philistines, at great risk to their own lives, and obtain water from the well of Bethlehem that is by the gate. Why is by the gate mentioned? That is the most guarded place. The gate.
The entrance The Philistines would have guards there. It would be the most difficult place to go to. There may have been other wells in Bethlehem. I'm sure there were, but David wanted a drink of water from that particular well, the one that is by the gates. And this is what exactly They're men too.
and in great love for their king. In honor of their commander-in-chief, They bring water. From the well of Bethlehem that is by the gate, and present it to David. Can you imagine their surprise with what he does? But here I think we begin to understand, don't we?
Why David is described as a man after God's own heart. David is so overcome. By the man's devotion. Men who had risked their life to get that drink of water for him. that he wouldn't drink it.
Here in a tangible form. Of water was a reminder of the faithfulness of God. And David would have remembered that one day, yes. He would be crowned king. and that God would give him the victory.
And what an encouragement to David. That God would stand true to his promise and he would reign over Israel, including his hometown of Bethlehem. And so, what does he do? He takes that. Waters.
You know, in the Old Testament there were different offerings and there was the drink offering. You can read about it in Leviticus and Numbers. And David takes this and pours it out. as a drink offering. To God.
An act of beautiful worship. Prompted by the love of these three mighty men for David, and a tangible reminder of the mercies of God and the faithfulness of God. This is the verdict with Pastor Jean Monroe and the first part of a message titled David's Mighty Men. If you want to revisit any of today's lesson or find an earlier message from our current series on the life of David, Be sure to visit our website at theverdict.org. While you're there, we also encourage you to get your free copy of the special listening guide that goes along with this study.
Full of keynotes, thoughtful questions, and practical applications for daily life. This printable workbook is a tool you'll want to use as we go deeper into our study. And you can download or request your copy of the Life of David Listening Guide today. by going online to theverdict.org. Then don't forget to also sign up for John's email newsletter.
Once a month, John sends out exciting updates and opportunities here at The Verdict. And if you value the gospel work of this ministry, we invite you to be a part of our radio outreach and help us share these biblical teachings with new listeners by giving a financial gift of any amount. Your generous contributions will help cover the costs to deliver the truth of God's Word to your neighbors, your community, and all around the world. To partner with us today, just go to theverdict.org. On our website, you can also learn how to join our Sunday morning worship here at Calvary Church in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Again, just visit theverdict.org.
Now, here's Pastor John Monroe with his closing remarks for today's program.
Well, what's your verdict? Are you a soldier of Jesus Christ? Do you ever think of yourself that way? Or are you just following the crowd? I know people who are very passive in the Christian life.
They don't seem to stand for Christ and They wonder why they don't see a demonstration of the power of God in our life. Today and this week, be strong, be courageous. I don't know the particular battle you're facing. but be strong in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. And we'll think more of David's mighty men next time.
Thanks for joining us today on The Verdict. I'm Michelle Davies. Today's program with Pastor John Monroe was produced and sponsored by Calvary Church in Charlotte, North Carolina.
