SELECTING THE BATTLEGROUND IN CONFLICT FOR THE FAITH
W. McKillop
Matthew 4: 1–4; 2 Samuel 5: 17–25
We had last week at the three-day meetings the matter of contending earnestly for the faith and we touched briefly on the thought of selecting the battlefield in the conflict. It would be clear to us I am sure, that if we are to contend earnestly for something it must be worth contending for and clearly the faith once delivered to the saints is well worth contending for.
But then we need to contend intelligently and spiritually, and that brings up how we are related to the Spirit in conflict. As always the Lord is the model for us. He “was carried up into the wilderness by the Spirit to be tempted of the devil”. It would bring out that the Lord did not seek after conflict, He was carried up by the Spirit. Therefore, if we think of contending in conflict, the question is how we are related to the Spirit in us. It says, “the tempter coming up to him said, If thou be Son of God, speak, that these stones may become loaves of bread. But he answering said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word which goes out through God’s mouth”.
What I would like to suggest, beloved brethren, is that we must not let the enemy select the battleground, it is clear that the tempter here would have made sonship the issue. He says, “If thou be Son of God”. Well it was true that Jesus was the Son of God, but the battle was not to be fought on the ground of sonship. “But he answering said, It is written, “Man shall not live by bread alone”. The issue in the Lord’s mind in this conflict was not sonship, but manhood, and manhood according to God What I would suggest, beloved brethren, is that we must seek the Spirit’s help so that if something that by itself is according to the truth is brought in to become the battleground, we need to see whether that truth, or some other feature of the truth is really the issue. The issue here was not sonship; the issue was man and how man according to God would maintain the claims of God as “living by every word which goes out through God’s mouth”, and thus wholly defeat the tempter.
Things may infiltrate among us, and on the surface they may seem to be in accord with the truth, but the issue is whether anything that is put forward is the truth, and whether it is the issue in the conflict at the moment. So in answering the tempter the Lord quotes, “It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone “. This would relate in the assembly gospel to the thought of manhood, and man living “by every word which goes out through God’s mouth”.
Well I link this scripture with what I read in 2 Samuel 5 because we find here that the Philistines heard that they had anointed David king over Israel. I suppose we could expect after three days of ministry, if the saints have come to freshly anointing Christ as king, as pre-eminent, that the enemy will stir something up. So the Philistines went up, not to seek Israel, although David was anointed king over Israel, but all the Philistines went up to seek David.
That is, Christ is the issue in every conflict that comes up. “David heard of it, and went down to the stronghold”. We can thank God that there is such a thing as the stronghold in our localities and in conflict we want to resort to that. So the Philistines came and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim. That would be in contrast to David going down to the stronghold. “And David inquired of Jehovah, saying, Shall I go up against the Philistines?”. The will of God I think must govern us in any conflict for the truth and we must move when the time is right to move. It is a great matter to understand patience because God is the One who is to determine when the conflict is to be joined. And he says, “wilt thou give them into my hand?” Someone might take on to engage in conflict without understanding whether God would support him and give him victory. I think the Lord would warn us about the danger of moving apart from the will and timing of God in conflict. “And Jehovah said to David, Go up; for I will certainly give the Philistines into thy hand”. So David goes up and victory is assured. I think we want to be assured that if we enter into conflict God will give us the victory.
“And the Philistines came up yet again, and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim”. The first man is active in the things of God and is always on this line of spreading himself. “And David inquired of Jehovah; and he said, Thou shalt not go up; turn round behind them and come upon them opposite the mulberry-trees”. So God selects the battleground. As we enquire of Him, He will direct us as to how the battle is to proceed. The previous victory is not to be a precedent in this stage of the conflict. “And it shall be, when thou hearest a sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry-trees”. That is, there is divine activity and it is not David and his men. There is something going on in the tops of the mulberry-trees and when that sound is heard, the sound of marching, which is clearly a military thought, “then thou shalt bestir thyself; for then will Jehovah have gone forth before thee, to smite the army of the Philistines”. That would be a very great comfort to us in contending for the faith that God has gone before us. Not historically but currently, that whatever the current issue is—and we ought to enquire of God what it is—although spiritual persons would discern what it is because if you see the Philistines spreading themselves you know that that has to be met. “And David did so, as Jehovah had commanded him”. That is, it is a question of God in control. And David “smote the Philistines”.
I would encourage us, beloved brethren, to think soberly and dependently about the selection of the battlefield in the conflict, to understand what the current conflict is, to enquire of God as to how it is to be met, and to understand how God acts. It is not a human action, the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry-trees. God goes before. The apostle could say, “thanks to God, who gives us the victory”, 1 Corinthians 15: 57. I think dependent, enquiring, spiritual persons will assure in any conflict that God will give us the victory. I trust that these few remarks may prove helpful to us in considering conflict at the present time for the maintenance of the truth, and especially the truth of manhood according to God among us.
Word in ministry meeting, Ormond Beach/Bunnell
21 December 2004