Bible Reflections From Scripture Union Volume OneSample

Jonathan’s Victory by Faith
Read 1 Samuel 13:23–14:23

Jonathan said to his young armor-bearer, "Come, let's go over to the outpost of those uncircumcised fellows. Perhaps the LORD will act in our behalf. Nothing can hinder the LORD from saving, whether by many or by few." 1 Samuel 14:6

An old Chinese proverb illustrates well the ridiculous situation we may sometimes find ourselves in. Picture a person standing still on top of a mountain with his mouth open wide. He is waiting patiently for a duck to fly in but it would be more sensible if he were to go and hunt for a duck. Sometimes, instead of waiting and waiting, we have to be pro-active and venture out in faith.

In today’s Bible passage, we see King Saul gathering his 600 men under the shade of a pomegranate tree. Perhaps he was immobilised by fear of the threat of the Philistines who camped not too far away. Jonathan, his son, could not understand the inertia flamed by fear. In times like this we need younger people with faith to take over. Jonathan, with the support of only his armor bearer, decided by faith to attack the powerful Philistine army. He was not sure God would help him but he was sure that if it were God’s will, nothing could keep Him from giving him the victory, no matter how few their number (14:6).

There were obstacles. The Philistines spotted these two young men and taunted them that finally the Hebrews were coming out of the holes they were hiding in! But Jonathan pressed boldly on and the two of them with their bare hands killed twenty Philistines altogether. That sent shivers in the Philistine camp and God helped Jonathan further by sending an earthquake to further terrify the Philistines.

Fear looks around but faith looks up. Pray for those you know who are living in fear for some reason or other that they will have the faith they need to overcome their fears. When was the last time you saw a demonstration of real faith in action?