Sinner or Hero?

When you read about David's mighty men in 1 Chronicles 11 and 12 you get pretty impressed. Guys like Benaiah who killed a lion in a pit on a snowy day and snatched the spear out of a seven and a half foot tall Egyptian guy. They weren't called mighty men for nothing. Thanks to them Jerusalem was conquered, the Philistines were overcome and Israel had peace from its enemies and a king was protected that was a man after God's own heart.

So its interesting to go back to the time when all these guys joined David. You wouldn't exactly call them "mighty" at that point. Back in 1 Samuel 22, when David was not king, but on the run from King Saul who was trying to kill him. David went and hid in a cave. Joining him there: "everyone who was in distress, and everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was bitter in soul." Sure doesn't sound like any "mighty men" to me. And yet these I think are the same guys that later are heroes of Israel.

Do you sometimes feel bitter or in distress or in debt? Do you feel like hiding in a cave and that God could never really use you? Take heart. God turned the disaffected into the mighty and he can do the same for you. How did it happen? These guys rallied around a man who loved God with all his heart. For us, we gather around one of David's descendants, Jesus Christ. Spend time with Him and He can turn you into a hero too!

Pastor Tom