Godly Courage Versus Godless Fear

Order of Service

• Announcements
• Call to Worship — Psalm 105:1-3
• Hymn — We Gather Together
• Prayer of Invocation
• Corporate Confession of Sin
• Assurance of Pardon — Psalm 130:3-4
• Scripture Reading — Acts 7:1-29
• Hymn — Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah
• Pastoral Prayer
• Offering
• Hymn — Onward, Christian Soldiers
• Sermon
• Hymn — Lead On, O King Eternal
• Benediction

---

Sermon Title: Godly Courage Versus Godless Fear

Scripture: 1 Samuel 14:1-23

I. Good Company Versus Bad Company

A. Jonathan's good company: his armor-bearer

1. The armor-bearer was not merely a luggage carrier but a fellow combatant and right-hand man in battle
2. His response in verse 7 — "Behold, I am with you heart and soul" — reflects confidence not in Jonathan himself, but in Yahweh whom Jonathan trusts
3. Jonathan frames the battle covenantally, calling the Philistines "the uncircumcised," identifying the conflict as the Lord's battle between covenant and non-covenant peoples
4. Jonathan's words echo Samuel's charge to Saul in 1 Samuel 10: "Do what your hand finds to do, for God is with you"
5. Nothing inspires courage in others more than a man of strong faith — as Martin Luther's stand at the Diet of Worms inspired men like Martin Bucer

B. Saul's bad company: Ahijah the priest of the line of Eli

1. The author singles out Ahijah from among the 600, giving his genealogy: son of Ahitub, brother of Ichabod, son of Phinehas, son of Eli (1 Samuel 14:3)
2. The mention of Ichabod is deliberate — his name means "the glory has departed," born on the day the ark was captured and Eli's line was judged
3. Saul, who departed from Samuel (the true mouthpiece of God), now keeps company with the rejected priestly line — the line of departing glory
4. This foreshadows 1 Samuel 15:29: "The Glory of Israel will not lie or have regret" — the glory must depart from Saul
5. Proverbs 13:20 — "Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm"

C. Application: Who are your comrades and heroes? Who you walk with shapes whether you fight or hide in a cave.

II. Inactivity Versus Activity

A. Saul's inactivity

1. Saul sits in the cave at Migron with 600 men, doing nothing
2. He possesses the ephod (the Urim and Thummim used to inquire of the Lord) but does not use it
3. He only thinks to inquire of God after the battle has already begun (1 Samuel 14:18)
4. Even then, he dismisses the priest and rushes into battle without hearing the Lord's instruction — repeating the pattern seen in chapter 13

B. Jonathan's active faith

1. Before engaging, Jonathan seeks a confirming sign from the Lord: if the Philistines say "come up," the Lord has given them into Israel's hands
2. This contrasts sharply with Israel's superstitious use of the ark in 1 Samuel 4 — Jonathan does not treat God as a magic instrument but genuinely inquires of Him
3. God fights alongside Jonathan: an earthquake and great panic cause the Philistines to turn on one another
4. Even Israelite defectors who had joined the Philistines switch sides when they see God's power at work

C. Application

1. God brings clarity not to those sitting in caves but to those actively pursuing His ways and trusting His promises
2. There is a difference between nodding "yes and amen" to God's promises in passivity and actually moving in concert with them
3. 2 Peter 1 — "Practice godliness and make your calling and election sure"
4. A boxer who keeps his arms down gets knocked out — God has called us to a fight, not a meadow; we must engage

III. The Possibilities with God Versus the Impossibilities with Man

A. The impossibility with man seen in Saul

1. Saul counts men and sees 600 against 30,000 chariots — by every human calculation, inaction is rational
2. Saul and Israel have only two weapons between them (his own and Jonathan's)
3. Seeing only on the horizontal plane — through the eyes of man — produces paralysis and fear

B. The endless possibilities with God seen in Jonathan

1. 1 Samuel 14:6 — "It may be that the Lord will work for us, for nothing can hinder the Lord from saving by many or by few"
2. Jonathan's "it may be / perhaps" reflects the faith of Gideon (Judges 7:2) — God reduced 32,000 to 300 so Israel would not boast that their own hand saved them
3. Dale Ralph Davis: Jonathan's "perhaps" is part of his faith — he confesses the power of Yahweh while retaining the freedom of Yahweh; faith does not make God its errand boy
4. Biblical examples of "perhaps/maybe" faith:
   • David prays for his dying son (2 Samuel 12) — "Who knows whether the Lord will be gracious to me?"
   • Joel calls Israel to repentance — "Who knows whether he will turn and relent?"
   • Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego (Daniel 3) — "Our God is able to deliver us… but even if he does not, we will not serve your gods"
5. Jesus in Gethsemane — "Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not my will but yours" (Matthew 26:39)
6. Matthew 19:26 — "With man it is impossible, but with God all things are possible"

C. The gospel and application

1. Our salvation is only possible because it is impossible for God to abandon His holiness — the Son must go to the cross; there is no other way
2. Christ's courageous faith at Gethsemane — hearing "no other way" from the Father, He did not turn away but went all the way to the cross
3. True faith says: "Who knows, perhaps… but even if not, I will serve God unto death and into glory"
4. This faith is not self-generated — it is a Spirit-wrought gift from above, opening our eyes to gaze upon Christ alone