It wasn’t the first time they had been in this position. It wouldn’t be the last. If history were any indication, versions of this same event would continue to occur as they had for decades. Different field. Different soldiers. Same enemy. They had been fighting for decades. Small skirmishes. Epic standoffs. Intense battles. A winner always emerged. Rarely was it the same side. Neither group was in a position to claim superiority. The Philistines found victory through advanced weapons and well-informed strategies. The Israelites discovered it in obedience to God. Standing still. Holding their ground. Trusting God to have their backs. When God was fighting for them, the Philistines could never win. Israel simply had to stand their ground.
David fully understood that concept. Standing his ground. He knew exactly how it was done. He’d stood up and fought off predators that came after his sheep. Lions. Bears. God had protected and cared for him and his flock in the face of danger. He had every reason to believe God would always do the same. That’s how he ended up facing down Goliath. Faith in God. Confidence in His power. Courage to walk out in the open when everyone else hid, talk back when others were silent, and stand firm when everyone else cowered. His brothers had wanted him to do the same. They wanted him to drop off their provisions and get out of there. It wasn’t a good place for a kid. They weren’t wrong. It wasn’t a great place for a kid to hang about, but it was the perfect place for the people of God to hold their ground against the enemy of God.
He’d done that and a little more. Walking out to confront the giant, David drew himself up as tall as possible. He still looked like an an in comparison. His tiny, impotent sling hung limply from his fingers. Defiantly lifting his chin, David courageously squared his shoulders and took possession of his space. Size didn’t matter. The evil eyes, cruel laugh, menacing threats, and enormous spear didn’t stop him. They didn’t make him comfortable. David’s stomach probably knotted up a bit. His knees might have wobbled. His heart rate accelerated. It didn’t matter. What mattered was standing his ground. Planting his feet solidly on the ground God had given them, David pitched his voice to be heard at Goliath’s increased altitude, and firmly said his piece. They weren’t going anywhere. Not one Israelite soldier was running away. They were going to stay right where they were and watch God work. Right now.
Wrapping a stone in the pouch of his sling, David loosened up his throwing arm. Goliath laughed. Hard. He wasn’t the tiniest bit shaken. Neither was David. He didn’t need to be. No matter the size of the enemy in front of him, the God surrounding him was greater. Spinning his arm with absolute precision, David let loose of the sling. Silent tension fell over the soldiers watching from their tents. Some rested their hands on their weapons, ready for the imminent battle. Others stared in slack-jawed amazement at the brashness of the kid. Most just watched in astonishment as that stone, once safely locked inside the sling, sailed through the air with miraculous accuracy and landed between Goliath’s eyes with alarming force. So much force, in fact, that it didn’t bounce back into the dirt. It sank in. Way in. And Goliath fell. Because David had obeyed God and stood his ground. (I Samuel 17)
Eleazer and David would have to do the same if they wanted victory against the Philistines. And they did. Standing in a field of swaying barley, they had no idea how the fight would go. They knew only one thing. Neither of them was giving up any ground. No matter who else ran away, left the battlefield, or abandoned the fight, they were staying. The risk was significant. The field was for growing food, not fighting battles. It was plowed and flat and treeless. There were no large rocks behind which to hide, no trees for cover, no outcroppings for surprise attacks. They had only their wits and their swords. Because their men were nowhere to be found. Quickly and quietly, they had disappeared. There one moment, gone the next. A mass exodus. The flight of the cowardly soldiers. Before David and Eleazer knew it, they were back-to-back in the middle of the field, surrounded by Philistine soldiers.
The knowledge changed nothing. They fought without letting up, refusing to give an inch of ground to the enemy. They weren’t distracted by the pounding feet of fleeing men. They weren’t discouraged by the fear of defeat. They weren’t derailed by exhaustion, the taunts of the Philistine soldiers, or the sheer number of their foes. In determination, they fought on. Indeed, Eleazer fought so hard and killed so many opposition men that his arm could barely lift his sword by the end of the battle. In a massive minority, with the odds ridiculously stacked against them, God saw those two men standing their ground and gave them the victory. (II Samuel 23:9-10; I Chronicles 11:13-14)
Shammah felt the same. He understood the importance of standing his ground, not giving up, not running away when things looked severe. Watching his fellow soldiers run the opposite direction, Shammah staked his space in a field of lentils and battled the Philistines. Alone. In lentils. Admittedly, I checked the internet. Lentils do not grow on trees. They are not giant plants offering hiding spaces and cover. No. There is absolutely no cover in a lentil field. Not one with plants. Certainly not one without. Shammah was an unobstructed target. Or should have been. It was not humanly possible or conceivable that one man with no cover would be able to defeat an entire army and send them running for their lives. But Shammah did. Because he held his ground. He stood up for what he believed. He believed in God. And, regardless of the odds, the impossibilities, the improbabilities, God brought him a trouncing victory. Because he stood his ground. (II Samuel 23:11-12)
Given an infinite amount of time, we could continue. The list of Biblical heroes who stood their ground against enemies, both physical and spiritual, is long and varied. Daniel stood on his knees when ordered to forsake praying to God. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego stood on their feet when commanded to bow to a golden statue. Stephen stood on his faith even as he fell to his knees while being stoned for sharing what he believed. He counted the value of eternal life worth more than earthly applause. He didn’t alter the gospel, sugarcoat truth, or change his course to satisfy public opinion. He stood his ground. So must we. (Daniel 3:16-21; 6:1-18; Acts 7:54-60)
Bombarded by opinions and ideas dressed up to sound good and lure us away from God, it sometimes takes every ounce of strength we have to stand firm in what we believe. The cacophony of voices is loud and persistent. The differing viewpoints can make our heads spin and cloud our minds. The arguments for wrong and against right are so convoluted that just one weak moment could draw us aside, turn our heads, confuse our hearts. It is urgently important to know what you believe and why you believe it profoundly. It is even more important to know who you believe in. You must know God. Intimately. Know His Word. Know His voice. Be in a position to test every opinion, every theory, every idea, every thought against the Word of God. Check the Book. Every time. Stand firmly on what God says. Not every person’s interpretation of the Bible will be correct. So know it yourself. Read it. The actual Book. Not just books about the Book. Read the Book. Memorize it. Base your beliefs on your own knowledge of the Bible and your personal interactions with God. Don’t gullibly take some preacher, blogger, or writer’s word for what you should believe. Know the Book. Know the Author. You have that capability.
Unlike the people of Biblical times, you can own and read the Bible. You can learn ancient languages and read it in the original verbiage. You can read it in modern English, Old English, or whatever language you choose. It won’t change the message. Wrong will still be wrong. Right will still be right. God will not have changed from the dawn of Creation to the morning of the day you read about it. He won’t change tomorrow, either. The same God who surrounded David in the valley of Elah, upheld Eleazer in the barley field, and fought with Shammah among the lentils, will stand by you too. The God who held Daniel’s hand in the lion’s den, walked with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the furnace, and personally welcomed Stephen to heaven’s glory is with you too. The Bible says it. You can believe it. No matter what society, friends, politicians, celebrities, social media, or television preachers staunchly avow, the only true authority is the Word of God. It is His message to mankind. It never changes. To truly follow it, you will have to stand on it. Even when it means standing alone. (Daniel 3:22-28; 6:19-23; Acts 7:55-56; Isaiah 40:8; Psalm 119:89)
Following Jesus, being His disciple, means to stand your ground. Be rooted and grounded in Christ and His Word. Refuse to budge. In storms. In adversity. In temptation. In battles that seem too lopsided to win. Don’t move. Stay there. Stand on the Word of God. Even if you have to stand alone. Value your relationship with God above the trinkets of the world. Take the Bible seriously. Live your life by its words. Ground yourself in its values. Stabilize your soul with its truth. Strengthen your heart with its promises. Why? Because everything else is passing away. It is all changing. It is crumbling. It is failing. God’s Word isn’t. It can’t. It won’t. It is safe and secure. Every promise, every prophecy, every word. It is all trustworthy. The Book. The Author. You need to know them both, so you can have the courage to stand your ground. (Luke 9:23; I Corinthians 15:58; 16:13; Ephesians 6:11; Joshua 1:8; II Timothy 3:16-17; James 1:22; Psalm 119:11; Matthew 24:35)