Perceived strength can be one’s own worst enemy. After all, it leads people to think that they are more powerful and capable than they really are.
During times of battle, believers commonly find themselves to be underdogs. Faith, however, refuses to retreat and trusts God to overcome superior foes.
There are times when we attempt to do the right thing only to have our motive judged as impure. In such times, we can learn much from David's example.
At times, God called people to enter into war with the goal of killing their enemies. The Bible clearly distinguishes between this type of killing and murder.
Without a just and righteous cause for anger, it does not have a godly basis. Although Jesus was giving this admonition directly to the Jews concerning their kingdom, the principle remains just as accurate and applicable today. Many of the modern versions remove the phrase “without a cause” claiming that the so-called best manuscripts fail to include it. In following this faulty “scholarship,” they corrupt the verse and create a contradiction between Matthew 5:22 and Ephesians 4:26. Young David was no doubt angry as he heard the blasphemy from the lips of Goliath (1 Samuel 17:22-25). He was not going to let these words go without an appropriate response. When he asked about fighting the Philistine, others became angry and accused him of ungodly motives (1 Samuel 17:26-28), but he retorted, “Is there not a cause?” (1 Samuel 17:29).
A man’s thoughts serve as the foundation for his actions. If a man fails to be sober minded, he will likely fail to behave soberly. The Bible likens a sober mind to one that has girded loins. When a man would gird his loins, he would tie off his garments in such a way to assist him during work or when he was running. A man’s mind is best prepared to work properly when it is girded up with sobriety. This sobriety keeps a man humble by keeping him from thinking “of himself more highly than he ought to think” (Romans 12:3). Pride hinders a man’s ability to work for the Lord, but sobriety girds up the mind with humility. It is very important for this sobriety to begin taking root in one’s youth (Titus 2:6).
Rebels will not and cannot enjoy the breadth of God’s intended blessings. For those harmed by the consequences of sin, God desires to make things right. The Bible says that “he bringeth out those which are bound with chains.” God delivers those taken captive by the wicked. For this reason, the Bible says that He will be “a father of the fatherless, and a judge of the widows” (Psalm 68:5). Yet, He also withholds blessings from those who rebel against His will. Rebels will instead “dwell in a dry land” bereaved of the blessings of God. Though this was no doubt intended as the literal withholding of rain, it bears a spiritual truth that rebels will miss out on the richness of what God has for them. The Lord wants men to know His joy and His peace; however, rebellion offers nothing but a dearth of God’s blessings.
Respect is not inherited but must be earned. Paul wrote to young Timothy admonishing him to “let no man despise” his youth. In other words, Timothy was responsible for how others handled his youthfulness. Paul’s advice for Timothy was for him to be an example to other believers in every facet of life. If he did that, no man would despise his youth. They would begin to see Timothy as a man and would have no problem following his leadership. His youth would not be a hindrance. In the beginning, David was disdained because of his youth (1 Samuel 17:33, 42), but when he defeated Goliath and gave Israel the victory, he was given the respect of a war hero. David did not show up demanding or even expecting others to respect him; he earned it through his actions.
Most battles won have been won because of being equipped with the proper weaponry. Though the substance may be different in Christian warfare, the same theme prevails. No believer is nearly as successful in battle as he is when he dons “the whole armour of God” (Ephesians 6:11). This armour assists the believer as he seeks to stand “against the wiles of the devil” (Ephesians 6:11). This armour defends the loins with truth, the vital organs with righteousness (Ephesians 6:14), the head with salvation (Ephesians 6:17), and the entirety with faith (Ephesians 6:16). The same armour provides the offensive weaponry in the word of God and prayer (Ephesians 6:17-18). Notice that the spiritual weaponry lacks any emphasis upon the physical.
Psalm 119 is filled with statements promoting the necessity of the word of God. Seven times in this psalm we find a statement declaring the writer’s desire to meditate upon the words of God. Three of these times he states emphatically that he will meditate in God’s statutes or His precepts (Psalm 119:15, 48, 78). Not only was meditating upon God’s words something that the psalmist desired to do in the future, but he had formed this habit long ago (Psalm 119:23, 99). The writer of this psalm, like other successful believers in the past, made it common practice to meditate in the words of God both day and night (Psalm 119:97; Psalm 1:2; Joshua 1:8).
