The Mighty Men

Order of Service

• Opening Hymn — Spirit of the Living God
• Call to Worship — Zephaniah 3:14-17
• Prayer of Invocation
• Confession of Faith — Apostles' Creed
• Scripture Reading — Luke 24:28-35
• Pastoral Prayer
• Offering
• Prayer of Dedication
• Hymn of Preparation — How Firm a Foundation
• Sermon
• Lord's Supper — Words of Institution from 1 Corinthians 11:23-26
• Hymn — Fairest Lord Jesus (verses 1–2)
• Distribution of Bread
• Distribution of Cup
• Hymn — Fairest Lord Jesus (verses 3–4)
• Benediction — Joshua 1:9

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Sermon Title: The Mighty Men

Scripture: 2 Samuel 23:8-39

I. The Mighty Men Display the Grit of God (vv. 8–12)

A. The top three Mighty Men: Josheb-basshebeth, Eleazar, and Shammah

1. Josheb-basshebeth kills 800 with his spear at one time
2. Eleazar holds his ground against the Philistines until his hand clings to his sword
3. Shammah stands alone in a field of lentils and strikes down the Philistines while the rest flee

B. The key refrain: "The Lord worked a great victory" (2 Samuel 23:10, 12)

1. God gets all credit for the victory, but works it through the grit of his servants
2. God does not work victory through a lazy, complacent church but through the church militant

C. The Christian life is a call to fight

1. Genesis 3:15 — God puts enmity between the seed of the woman and the serpent; he places a fighting spirit in his people
2. Romans 7:21-23 — Paul describes an internal war in the believer between the law of God and the law of sin
3. Philippians 2:12-13 — Work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you
4. Matthew 5:46-47 — Servants of the kingdom fight their natural inclinations; mere natural affection is not the mark of a Christian
5. Luther: we are simultaneously sinner and saint until glory — the fight remains

D. Application: Do you fight, or is your Christian life only active when natural inclinations and schedule align with it? The absence of struggle and enmity with evil is cause for concern.

II. The Mighty Men Inspire Gratitude Toward God (vv. 13–17)

A. Three of the Thirty break through the Philistine camp to bring David water from the well of Bethlehem

1. An act of extraordinary courage, strength, and loyalty

B. David pours the water out as an offering to the Lord rather than drinking it

1. He says, "Shall I drink the blood of the men who went at the risk of their lives?" (2 Samuel 23:17)
2. The water represents the blood of his men; blood belongs to Yahweh — he pours it out not as trash but as treasure
3. This is a token of David's thanksgiving to God for his faithful servants

C. Paul consistently says "I thank God for you" — never merely "I thank you" — recognizing that the body is a gift from the head

1. Paul is never a solitary, self-sufficient Christian; he always has companions and receives the church's aid (see Acts)
2. When I am weak, then I am strong (2 Corinthians 12:10) — weakness forces reliance on the body, which manifests Christ's love materially

D. Application: Do not live as an isolationist Christian

1. We speak much about how to give; we need to speak more about how to receive
2. Closing yourself off from the church cuts you off from a primary means of grace — the material manifestation of God's warmth and affection through the body
3. Love the church, embrace the church, and thank God for her

III. The Mighty Men Remind Us of the Grace of God (v. 39)

A. The list of Mighty Men — connected to David's success and the davidic covenant — ends with Uriah the Hittite

1. Uriah is the man David murdered in cold blood; he stands as a monument to David's sin
2. To cap the list with Uriah is to declare that the kingdom's success is not grounded in the might or righteousness of sinful men but solely in the unmerited grace of God

B. Uriah appears again in the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew 1:6

1. "David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah" — highlighting David's sin
2. Matthew 1:16 — "Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born" — not born of Joseph by natural generation (and thus not born in original sin) but conceived by the Holy Spirit, born in original righteousness

C. Christ is the ultimate Mighty Man and Mighty King

1. He does not cling to a sword until his hand hurts; he clings to a cross, offering up his own blood
2. He crushes the head of the serpent (Genesis 3:15) through self-sacrifice, not military conquest
3. He fulfills all righteousness for unrighteous sons and daughters of Adam

D. Application: Come to the Lord's Table in the strength of your Mighty King

1. We come not as mighty men and women in our own flesh, but as weak vessels — prodigals looking to Christ alone
2. Uriah's blood cries out from the ground for a mighty king; behold Jesus Christ, whose pure body and spotless blood are shed for his people