First Samuel 29-31

God’s message to me: It is the duty of Christians to understand our faith and defend it well. We need to know the difference between true Christianity and what the world calls Christianity. We need to know the truth of what Jesus taught. We need to know what the bible says, when it was written, how and why it was written and the evidence that supports it. In short we need to be ready to defend the bible, Christianity and God against attack by the powers of this world and we need to stand up unapologetically and declare with pride the truth of Jesus Christ and Jehovah God without fail.

Promises: God will preserve you and tend to your livelihood when you cannot if you follow Him. When Ziklag was attacked and burned the Amalekites stole all the livestock and treasure and kidnapped all the people but didn’t hurt any of it. When David’s people returned they grieved, not knowing what had happened to their families. David set out with his men to avenge what had been done and, in the process of avenging the families, they wound up rescuing them, retaking all that was stolen and capturing a great deal more in spoils of war. God preserved all that had been taken until David and his army could take it back.

Commands: It is always wise to check with God before making those decisions that He hasn’t already given clear commands about. While it takes no great leap of faith to avoid theft and murder, and act of war isn’t always right or always wrong. God makes that decision. We can only seek a way to deal with the situation and pray for God’s guidance in our decisions. David made a habit of taking it a step further. David asked God if he should go after an enemy and asked Him if he would prevail in the battle.

Timeless principles: God will put you where you need to be, when you need to be there. David had made a name for himself with king Achish and was expected to join the Philistine army against Israel. When the 2 armies met and Marched in parade in front of each other David led his men at the back of the formations where the Philistines would see him but not the Israelites. The other princes of the Philistines didn’t trust him to fight on their side so the sent him home. Returning to Ziklag, David and his men found God had given them good reason not to help Saul. Their families and friends and servants had been captured by the Amalekites. For the next few days David and his men were occupied with tracking down these raiders and when they found them, they fought from sundown to the next evening to kill them and take back what was theirs. God preserved all their people (both captured and soldiers) and all the spoils the Amalekites had stolen. David’s people rescued what was theirs, killed the enemies of the Lord and added to their own spoils by taking what had been the Amalekite’s all while being kept from aiding Saul in the battle in which he was meant to die.

How can I apply what I’ve learned: The honor of God and the honor due to His name should not be taken lightly. The Israelites would risk life and slavery in the most unlikely to succeed missions just to prevent an enemy from claiming victory over God. They would send tiny forces against enemy armies to keep the enemy from claiming God was to weak to defend them. David, a teen aged shepherd, of no great size, fought the Philistine Giant Goliath just to make him stop defying God and God’s people with insults about how Jehovah God was powerless against the Philistines and their gods.

There will always be those who try to claim victory in spite of clear defeat. Their folly is their own and we need only remind them of the facts in the matter. When Israel mops the floor with some terrorist group and the exiled leaders of that group go out and claim they won, no one is really buying it. When others go out and make great speeches about God being powerless and their arguments are given credence by the public, it is another matter entirely. It is wrong to allow others to dishonor God. God never let someone fail whose mission was to defend His name. We have no right to stand by while others mock our God and malign His name. When they equate Christianity with Islam and claim false religions have more credence than Christianity, we should not be silent.

God has given us the order, in 1 Peter 3:15 “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear: 16. Having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ. 17. For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well doing, than for evil doing.” Learning what the bible says and the evidence which supports it is our duty to God. Standing up with that information and defending God and His word is also our duty.

Refer to the works of Dr Simon Greenleaf, and Lee Strobel. Also look for other apologetics from people like Tim Lahaye and other authors. Learn the truth and the proof of what the scripture says and don’t be afraid to use it.

more to learn for in-depth study: Saul, as predicted, died in battle against the Philistines. Having been badly wounded he fell on his own sword to avoid capture. His son’s and armor bearer all lost their lives there as well. When the Philistines discovered the bodies the next day they cut of Sauls Head as a symbol of victory to all their cities and hung the bodies of Saul and his sons on the wall of the temple of one of their false gods. The people living in Jabesh Gilead, heard what had been done and sent their soldiers to retrieve the bodies and take them back from the dishonor. The bodies were cremated and the bones buried in Jabesh.

tomorrow: Second Samuel 1-3