1 Chronicles 19

David was God's appointed leader over Israel. The Lord gave him tremendous victories over his enemies. The best plan that any nation could have pursued would have been to submit to David and to seek his mercy.

Not every nation saw it this way. In the case of the Ammonites, advisers to their new king imagined that David's intentions were evil against them. David had sent messengers to console the king at the death of his father. The Ammonites were deeply disrespectful to David's emissaries, sending a message to David that they did not trust or honor him.

Because of this affront to the dignity of his soldiers, David moved against the Ammonites with a great army under the command of Joab. The Ammonites had hired Syrian mercenaries in order to defeat David with overwhelming force coming against him from two different fronts.

Joab led the army in a valiant assault upon the two armies. He urged the men of Israel to “be of good courage,” a very familiar word of instruction since the days of Moses and Joshua. Joab added another important note for everyone who fought for David: “May the Lord do what seems good to Him.” This combination of courage and faith in the Lord is needed for every battle where the people of God want to see the will of the Lord accomplished.

In this case the Syrians that the Ammonites hired to fight for them proved to be very unreliable helpers. After they fled from the field of battle, the Ammonites also lost their courage. The Syrian forces would try one more time to assemble a great force against Israel. This time David led the troops himself and won a second great victory for Israel. After that the Syrians did what would have been best to do at the outset, becoming subject to David.

Like the Philistines, Moabites, and Edomites, the Syrians needed to learn that God intended to bless the Israelites under the leadership of David. There was no point in refusing this great man. All those outside Israel should have surrendered to him, and all the fighting men of Israel needed to fight courageously with trust that both victory and defeat were entirely in the hands of Almighty God.

Though the battle that today's church fights, under the leadership of Jesus, may be very different than the war David fought against the Ammonites and the Syrians, there are principles for us to learn as those who seek to serve the Lord. First, we know that God's Holy Spirit is not a spirit of fear, but of courage. Secondly, there is no better place for us to seek the will of God than in the service of the great Son of David, who said in His darkest hour, “Not my will, but yours be done.” In His cross we see the epitome of courage and faithfulness.