3rd June 2024
The whole armour of God
This is the seventeenth study in a series of studies about shadows in scripture
‘I’ve searched the land and found this David, son of Jesse. He’s a man whose heart beats to my heart, a man who will do what I tell him .’ Acts 13:22 (MSG)
As far as a reference from God goes, His comments to Samuel about David, before he was anointed king, reveal qualities we might all wish to attain: our hearts beating in time with our Creator, and a willingness to obey Him. We know how the story plays out as we read about the rest of David’s exploits, and we know he slipped up from time to time. There was the episode with Bathsheba, then the forbidden census of the people. But in Psalm 51 we read a story of heartrending repentance when he asks for forgiveness and looks forward to the time when the final sacrifice will be made by the Saviour: ‘Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God, you who are God my Savior, and my tongue will sing of your righteousness.’ (Psalm 51:14 NIV).
David was a deliverer of his people; a shepherd who became a king; a ruler who brought his people together. He is described as a man of war – and this fighting spirit preceded his well-documented confrontation with Goliath. He describes being a shepherd, and protecting sheep, as a process of war: “Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God.” (1 Samuel 17:36 NIV).
In this seemingly uneven fight, David was given Saul’s armour to wear – and Saul undoubtedly had the best armour available. Even though it was what Saul put his trust in, it wasn’t right – David was used to trusting his God, not the helmet, the sword and the coat. The Apostle Paul compellingly draws on this image in his epistle to the Ephesians when he encourages the New Testament Christians to, ‘…put on the full armour of God…’ (Ephesians 6:11 NIVUK). It is the armour that David wore and the armour that Christ wore, as they fought the enemies that sought to kill the sheep.
The accounts are written about 600 years apart but tell the same story. The heavy bronze helmet, the breastplate, the belt and sword, and the shield are substituted with truth, righteousness, faith, and the promise of salvation that the gospel proclaims. (vv.13-17)
Prayer
Thank you, heavenly Father, for the protection your perfect armour offers. As it was protection for David and Jesus, so let it be protection for us, as we go about your work. In Jesus’s name, Amen.
Study by Maggie Mitchell
About the writer:
Maggie Mitchell attends the Market Harborough congregation of Grace Communion International
Local congregation:
GCI Market Harborough
9 The Point
Rockingham Road
Market Harborough
LE16 7QU
Meeting time:
Sunday 4.00 pm
Local congregational contact:
Sinead Henderson
Email: sinead.henderson@gracecom.church
Word of Life contact:
wordoflife@gracecom.church