The Three Man Mission

Introduction

Today we read about a team mission! Mighty Men who define the mission and achieve the goal!

"In 2007, a Navy SEAL named Mike Day entered a room in Iraq and walked into a literal wall of bullets. He was ambushed by enemy fighters at point-blank range.He was shot 27 times. Sixteen bullets hit his body armor, and 11 penetrated his flesh. A grenade detonated just feet away, knocking him unconscious. By all medical and human logic, Mike Day should have been dead.But the story didn't end there. He woke up. Surrounded by chaos, bleeding from dozens of wounds, he didn't give up. He pulled his pistol, eliminated the immediate threat, secured the area for his team, and then—incredibly—walked on his own two feet to the rescue helicopter.

A dusty rooftop in Ramadi, Iraq. A Navy SEAL named Michael Monsoor was on watch. Suddenly, a live grenade bounced onto the roof, landing right in front of him. Monsoor had a choice. He was the only man standing next to the exit. He could have jumped back and saved himself. But on the floor around him were his brothers—men he had sworn to protect. In less than two seconds, Michael made his choice. He didn't run out the door. He lunged forward and threw his chest directly onto the explosive. He took the full blast so his friends could live.

Is being a MIGHTY MAN about surviving or sacrificing? The life of a man in God’s army requires sacrifices! Sometimes critical impacts/losses. In few but possible situations — YOUR LIFE!

This week we read about sacrificing for the king with the potential cost of injury and death — but in the end PROTECTED & PRASIED

2 Samuel 23:13–17 ESV

13 And three of the thirty chief men went down and came about harvest time to David at the cave of Adullam, when a band of Philistines was encamped in the Valley of Rephaim. 14 David was then in the stronghold, and the garrison of the Philistines was then at Bethlehem. 15 And David said longingly, “Oh, that someone would give me water to drink from the well of Bethlehem that is by the gate!” 16 Then the three mighty men broke through the camp of the Philistines and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem that was by the gate and carried and brought it to David. But he would not drink of it. He poured it out to the Lord 17 and said, “Far be it from me, O Lord, that I should do this. Shall I drink the blood of the men who went at the risk of their lives?” Therefore he would not drink it. These things the three mighty men did.

What a mission that ends in a crazy response that we will get to. Before that lets talk about where we are!

The Cave of Adullam - the place of grace

in 1 Samuel 22 when David first went on the run…

1 Samuel 22:1–2 “1 David departed from there and escaped to the cave of Adullam. And when his brothers and all his father’s house heard it, they went down there to him. 2 And everyone who was in distress, and everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was bitter in soul, gathered to him. And he became commander over them. And there were with him about four hundred men.”

This place was Hope Headquarters

Every single man who arrived had this in common: they were broken. They were desperate. They had nothing to offer! They didn’t strut into David’s den with their heads held high, a heart full of courage and a fist full of faith. Rather they slunk in, their eyes to the ground, their hearts heavy and their hands empty. These weren’t the stuff of legends. They were the nobody’s of the earth. A shameful, pitiable, rag-tag gang of good-for-nothing nobodies.

Just the kind of gang, as it happens, that God loves to get His hands on to use for His glory!

What the men found at the cave wasn’t comfort. It wasn’t cash. It wasn’t shallow words or empty promises. No. What they found was hope. A fresh start with a new identity. A brotherhood to belong to, and a captain worth fighting for.

He might not have been wearing a crown just yet, but in David, these men had found their king!

There were as many as 400 men at the cave during this time, yet only three were close enough to their captain to hear the cry of his heart. That’s significant because I am persuaded that one of the greatest sources of frustration among Christian men these days is this: they know that they were born for an adventure but haven’t got a clue what that adventure is meant to look like. This is because they haven’t heard the cry of their Captain’s heart. Tragically, many then go seeking for thrills in all the wrong places, often with devastating consequences.

However, the problem isn’t that God’s not speaking.

The problem is that we’re not close enough to listen!

Why is that?

Men are generally pretty garbage at relational stuff. We see it as girly business. That’s why when we go to a church and are encouraged to “greet the person next to you with a holy hug”, or even worse, “Let’s all hold hands and pray”, our instinctive response is: “If this goes down—someone’s going home in an ambulance!”

We’re just not like that. Men are not “touchy-feely”. We’re more ”touch me and you die!” The truth is, however, that we were created and redeemed for relationships, both with God and with others.

Psalm 27:4 ESV

4 One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple.

Do you know who wrote those lyrics? Not some pansy, pretty-boy worship leader, fresh from pressing his pants and putting product in his hair. No, it was David the giant-slaying captain of the caves. The ultimate warrior of worship. If the man after God’s own heart was able to excel at both hand-to-hand combat AND heart-to-heart relationship, I guess it must be OK!

David craved an intimate relationship with his God. This in turn led to strong, meaningful relationships with his men. Jesus is looking for hot-blooded, devoted disciples who desire nothing more than to be with Him. To enjoy His presence. To share His life. To hear His heart.

Man of God, how is your relationship with Jesus right now? If you can hear His heart, then you will know that it beats for mission.

Right now He’s calling His people to go.

To preach the gospel.

To serve the broken.

To reach the schools.

To invite to church.

To start Bible studies.

As soon as the the three heard David’s heart, they couldn’t hold themselves back. They simply were not content to stay hidden away in the relative safety of the cave any more. The king wanted a drink—they were going to be the ones to deliver. It’s a compelling picture of what our response should be as men who love Jesus.

Blood brothers

this is the only account of soldiers from the Mighty Men planning, fighting and triumphing together.

These men were determined to get the king a drink, but they were going to do it as a team. There is a crucial lesson for us here because as men we often lean towards the lone-ranger way of living for Jesus and this is neither healthy or biblical.

Scripture is packed with “one another” commands that are only possible in meaningful relationship with others. Furthermore, Proverbs 27 v 17 tells us that “Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another”. It might be a bitter pill to swallow, but as men we need each other if we’re going to thrive as soldiers of Christ.

As the old African proverb says:

“If you want to go quickly, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”

Courageous passion

They went to extraordinary lengths, risking life and limb, all for the cause of delivering refreshments.

Anyway, before we consider why the 3 set out on this extraordinary mission, let’s take a look at exactly what it was that they accomplished.

First up was the small matter of a 20-mile hike, probably under cover of night.

This was a dangerous road because there was a band of Philistines camped directly between them and their target.

They then had to locate the well,

draw the water,

bottle it and

journey 20 miles back to the cave without losing it or spilling it or falling into enemy hands.

WOW!! What an adventure.

And all because the king loves Bethlehem H20!

There’s so much that can be written about this incredible venture. Yet there is one thing about these three men that stands out above everything else: they really loved their king. And there is no greater motivator than love. If the stench of Adullam’s cave served no other purpose, it reminded them of grace—that they were not the men they used to be. That they had been saved from shame and disgrace and that the only fitting response was to dedicate their lives to loyal service for their captain.

It was their love for David that drove them out of the cave and straight into harm’s way. It was love that gave them courage to face up to and smash through overwhelming opposition, and love that gave them the endurance to see the mission through. I love this because I see Jesus all over it.

Having been reminded of just how graced we are to be one of His soldiers… having been encouraged to draw close enough to Him that we can hear His heart cry for our lives—we are now given a compelling portrait of the power of love as a motivating force.

Man of God, never lose sight of who it is that you are serving. In Jesus we have a Captain who went before us, putting Himself in harm’s way. He walked the brutal road to the cross, where He faced up to and smashed through the barrier of our sin, jail-breaking us out of the kingdom of darkness and faithfully delivering us into His kingdom of light!

Why? Because He loved us!

1 John 4:19 “19 We love because he first loved us.”

The Christian life should simply be one of grateful response for the gospel.

Even when you were the baddest, maddest, murkiest and most messed-up sinner in town (and you were!), remember that your King loved you with such intense, unstoppable passion that hell itself couldn’t keep you from His heart.

His rescue operation to the cross and back makes the mighty men exploits look like a trip to the supermarket! If you have heard the cry of God’s heart to go and to do great exploits in His name, then despite the danger and regardless of the cost, let the irresistible love of Jesus ignite in your heart an inferno of courageous passion for Him and for His glory.

Blessed Beyond Measure

So the mighty men make it back, flask in hand, and present it to their beloved captain. However, the drama doesn’t end there. If I was responsible for writing the script for this closing scene here, I would have David and the mighty men together in the cave, surrounded by the 400. David would slowly raise the flask in a toast to these three heroes, then put it to his parched lips and swig it down with delight written all over his face.

But that’s not how it ends. Read the story in full…

2 Samuel 23:15–17 ESV

15 And David said longingly, “Oh, that someone would give me water to drink from the well of Bethlehem that is by the gate!” 16 Then the three mighty men broke through the camp of the Philistines and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem that was by the gate and carried and brought it to David. But he would not drink of it. He poured it out to the Lord 17 and said, “Far be it from me, O Lord, that I should do this. Shall I drink the blood of the men who went at the risk of their lives?” Therefore he would not drink it. These things the three mighty men did.

Instead, he refuses to even take a sip... and then tips it out all over the floor!

What?!! You’ve got to be kidding. After everything those men went through! What a waste?

The end of the story is the most passionate and profound part of the whole saga. The key to understanding what David was doing is the phrase: “He poured it out before the Lord”.

David accepted the gift from his men and used it for something far more precious. He held in his hand a flask of Bethlehem’s finest, a drink that his heart had so deeply craved, and brought to him by men whose courageous love was too much for him to handle. David was literally blessed beyond measure and the overflow was worship.

There was no more noble use for that drink than this. As David poured it out as a drink offering, far from devaluing the actions of his men, he was adding unprecedented value to what they did. The three warriors would not have been angered by David’s response. Rather, they would have been blown away by the gesture. They would have seen that their acts of sincere devotion here on earth had eternal significance. They had looked to honor their king. Their king had taken their gift and given the praise and glory to their one true King in heaven.

CLOSING

What an inspiring thought, that the things that we do here on earth can somehow bless the heart of God in heaven. That what we do in this life is of eternal significance. Man of God, may that fill you with fresh courage as the heart-cry of your King propels you into a life of courageous passion and gospel adventure for His glory.

Hopefully JB’s courageous faith has inspired us to defy the odds and live strong as men of faith in a hostile culture.

The iron fist and swashbuckling skills of Eleazar certainly gave us fresh incentive to tighten our grip on God’s word, and Shammah’s epic bean-field stand-off surely makes us want to fight with all we’ve got to protect what God has entrusted to us.

The exploits of the Three Nameless Ninjas can’t fail to ignite passion in our hearts for King Jesus,

if it’s the warriors of the Hard Corps who have left the greatest impression on us, then we have spectacularly missed the point of what their incredible lives were all about; and I have failed dismally as an author!

The point is that, regardless of how impressive an art exhibition on display in a gallery may be, it’s the artist and not the individual pieces of art who gets the credit. In the same way, the feats of courageous passion and devastating military skill exemplified by the Hard Corps were really the work of one much greater—Jesus Christ. Therefore, while we should rightly applaud the heroics of David’s Mighty Men, surely the most appropriate response is to go a step further and fully surrender our lives to the same God who they fought for.

That’s a crazy thought, isn’t it?

That we can actually step up and fight in the ranks of the same army of the same great King as the Thirty and the Three. That before God, the soldiers of the Hard Corps are in no way greater than any of us. Rather, they’re our brothers in the gospel, who we stand in line with, shoulder to shoulder.

On the surface they might have looked more impressive than many of us, but in reality they were just as dependent on His grace as we are. They knew who they were fighting for and they knew who fought for them. And that same God is as faithful to His people today as He was back then. I hope that excites you. I pray that gives you courage!

GATHER AROUND WILL AND LIFT A MIGHTY MAN TO GO OUT