Unseen Heros
I Samuel 30:21-25
Introduction:
As David returns from battle with the Amalekites
he is feeling pretty good. He and 400 of his men have just fought an Army of
thousands, the Lord promised them the victory and so they got it. Before going
into battle though, David had to leave behind 200 of his men; they were tired
and weary from the pursuit and previous journeys. After the battle
David re-unites the two segments of his troops to divide their spoils of war.
Just like David fighting the Amalekites
we too are in a battle, a spiritual battle. Over in I Timothy Paul tells
Timothy to fight the good fight, stay tough and look to the author and finisher
of his faith, Paul wanted to be an encouragement to Timothy, Paul knew the
ministry would get tough so he wanted to prepare Timothy. In his letter to the
Ephesians Paul reminds those folks they’re not fighting against people, but
powers, principalities and rulers of darkness. Just as
the enemies of war are different so are the standards of war. We should
remember that we don’t fight according to the standards of the world, e.g.
trickery, deceit, lies, fraud, murder and etc.; we do
fight according to the standards of God, e.g. love our enemies, pray for those
who use us, love people as God loved us. I know these standards are easier
preached than practiced, as Christians we still realize them and understand
that the Holy Spirit is in us to lead us in them. The battle David and his army
fought and our battles have a lot in common, tonight I would like to point out
some of the similarities.
I. The make up of an Army
A. The two parts
(1) Fighters-the men David took with
him
(2) Supporters-the men who stayed
behind
II. Gods Army is no
different
A. The two parts
(1) Fighters e.g. teachers, preachers
(2) Supporters e.g. prayer warriors,
those who
provide
contacts, those who help with the
physical
means of the ministry.
e.g. Mary
Magdalene, Joanna, Susanna and many
others
ministered to Jesus and the twelve while
they
preached and taught the
Gods Army requires both.
This may
bring up the question, which is more important?
III. Both services are equally important
A. Romans 12:3-8, talks about Paul
warning us not to
Get carried away with ourselves.
Remember who
We are and where we came from. God
has given
Each their own gifts according to
his abilities, these
Are prophecy (preaching), ministry,
teaching,
Exhortation, giving, ruling and
being merciful.
Whatever your gift do it with
cheerfulness.
B. The fighters are there because of
their gifts.
(1) David’s men knew how to fight
that’s why
they were there, they also
knew where they
needed to be, in the fight or
in support.
(2) Support troops are fighters too
just as gifted
and just as important. David’s
troops that
stayed behind had to sacrifice
because their
families were captured too,
but someone had
to take care of the homefront. In Gods army
Some people will be gifted to
do work behind
the scenes to free the
fighters to go forward. If
you’re a fighter don’t sell
these support people
short, through them God has
freed you to do
your job. Whether it’s
preaching, teaching,
leading or whatever.
IV. We need to Share the Same Goal
A. lives changed
(1)God has called us for a purpose
its to spread
the good news of the gospel,
worship Him
and minister to the ones in
need. Our goal
should not be to impress each
other, when we
look in that direction we
loose sight of the
Cross. We begin to listen to the praise of
men. We begin to measure
other men against
ourself,
when we should be measuring ourselves
against Christ. God gives us
something and one
day we will give account of
it, how we handle
it and how we mishandle it.
We need to
approach it with Zeal; loving
people, wanting
to do our job. Wanting to see
people saved,
reconciled and churches grow.
V. Both receive the same reward
A. Fighter and supporter each get the
same
(1)
Work is Work; if one plows, plants, waters or harvests, a person can’t become
born again without all 4 steps.
Conclusion:
To often in the church one of the two is missing
either we have an abundance of fighters and no support or we have a lot of
support people and no fighters. Well that’s not the way God plans it. He has placed
both in each church; if we search out our gifts and allow God to use them in
our lives we can see His Army come to life. No body is an island unto themself, none of us can be everything all the time, we are
all part of this Army. Hey God needs you doing your part, using your gifts,
holding down your position. We need to judge ourselves first and not each
other, love one another and focus on Gods plan when we find God’s gifts for our
lives, if we work together to use them we will see results for Gods glory.
Stand with me please.