1 Samuel 17:45-46 “David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will hand you over to me, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head. Today I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel.”

David was absolutely convinced of the reality and power of our God. The God of the armies of Israel was the one who destroyed the chariots of Egypt and brought down the walls of Jericho. In both cases, Israel did not have to fire a single shot or swing a single sword. This was the God who allowed just 300 Jewish soldiers under Gideon to defeat a Midianite army of over 100,000. This God, who could flick Goliath away like an irritating fly, was as real and as present for David as a person sitting next to you at this moment.

Here we have our Christ window into this Old Testament account. Here we see our Savior, because the God of the armies of Israel is the same God whose love and power have delivered us in way that makes all of this look tiny. Our hero and champion Jesus is this same God of the armies of Israel. He has defeated the devil and all his demons. He canceled every one of our sins and destroyed death itself. We didn’t even have to lift even a finger in that fight.

He did it all for us by giving up his own life at the cross, then taking it back again in his resurrection from the dead. This same Jesus is present with us every time we take the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God (Ephesians 6:17), out of its sheath and use it today. Confronting sin and overcoming unbelief is not about our power. It’s not about our cleverness, our persuasive arguments, or skills in debate. It is about the power of Jesus Christ working in his word. He says this word “will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.”

With this gracious, saving God on our side David was completely confident of victory. And we should be just as confident for our battles with God’s enemies, too.

That’s not to say that our success will always look like David’s on the outside. The early Christians were often forced to defy the Roman empire of their day in order to remain loyal to Christ. In thousands of cases that meant beatings, torture, and even death. Did that mean failure and defeat? Even when their bodies were lying lifeless on the sands of the arena, their souls were living and reigning with Christ in heaven. Beyond a personal victory over the powers of this world, their example of faithfulness in the face of death inspired many more to hear the gospel, know Jesus as their Savior, and spread his love to others.

It has often been said, “the blood of the martyrs was the seed of the church.” The more Christians died, the more the gospel got out, and the more the Church was winning. These early Christians were courageous, not cowards. They believed the truth, not the world’s brash claims. God give us the faith to be as courageous and loyal as they were.