The Ministry of the Armor-Bearer

6 And Jonathan said to the young man that bare his armour, Come, and let us go over unto the garrison of these uncircumcised: it may be that the Lord will work for us: for there is no restraint to the Lord to save by many or by few. 7 And his armourbearer said unto him, Do all that is in thine heart: turn thee; behold, I am with thee according to thy heart.

Pray - Be Seated

What Is An Armor-Bearer?

The Armor-Bearer was a position of high honor and privilege. You would be responsible for carrying your leader’s shield into battle and for protecting your leader from the attacks of the enemy.

You would be working for the promotion of your leader, not yourself.

It was a place of service.

The word “service” or the phrase “to serve” is always translated in scripture as “ministry”, or “to minister”.

Never do we see ‘Minister’ translated as ‘master’, or ‘in charge’.

Armor-Bearer: An officer selected by kings and generals because of his bravery, not only to bear their armor, but also to stand by them in the time of danger. — Easton’s Bible Dictionary.

Not just the king had armor-bearers. Captains of the army and others had armor-bearers as well.

You become a protective covering; a shield, sword.

This requires a prayer life of your own.

You must be experienced in battle — spiritually mature and ‘blooded’.

You must be spiritually strong — able to lift burdens off of leadership.

You must be spiritually brave — able to stand at the front of an assault or in time of danger alongside leadership.

The Qualifications Of An Armor-Bearer

Must be broken

Obscurity, frustration, loneliness, making mistake after stupid mistake, entering into a winter season in our walk with God. These are designed to break us.

Wild stallion vs. work horse

The extent of our brokenness will determine the level of our effectiveness in the kingdom of God.

We must respond to this process correctly!

First comes the pain, the shock. Then comes the doubt, the fear, the questions.

At some point we come to a juncture in our walk with God. Do we yield ourselves to God’s work in our lives? Do we recognize the hand of the Lord in all of this? Or to we instead yield to the effects of the circumstances?

If to the circumstances:

We will end up focusing on ourselves — which is exactly what God was trying to destroy in us to begin with!!!

We’ll become bitter and unforgiving.

If to God

He can then work in us His qualifications for service.

Must be faithful — to God, not to man

If we’re faithful to a man, we’ll quit when we stop agreeing with him, or when we get offended, or for any number of reasons.

If we’re faithful to God, We’ll never give up on our assignment no matter what happens.

We’ll continue even if we stop agreeing with our leader.

We’ll continue even if we’re offended.

Faithfulness to God will keep us focused on the mission and the vision of the church even when we’re hurt, wounded, or feel overlooked or undervalued.

The enemy wants division

God wants unity

We understand that if we falter, our leadership is left vulnerable to attack.

And if, God forbid, our leader becomes wounded in the battle, faithfulness to God will keep our carnal nature from rejoicing. (David at the death of Saul).

Must have the heart of a Son, and not that of an hireling.

An hireling is begrudging. Shows up to assignments and might actually complete them, but for a paycheck.

He has not yet fully embraced the vision of the organization or taken ownership of it.

A son has a portion in the house and will strive to protect that portion. Fully committed to the vision and the mission and has a vested interest in seeing the vision achieved.

Must possess Humility

Means that you go low when your leader goes high

You forego any need you may have to be recognized, or to be in the spotlight.

We choose to weaken ourselves and be seen as second.

Must be an intercessor

One who fights on behalf of another until the battle is won!

One who fights in the spiritual until it manifests in the physical.

Need to be in sync with the Spirit and the Heart of leadership

I’ve been planted here to ensure the vision of this church body comes to pass according to the will of God. Not ours!

My leader’s heart is my heart! My leader’s passion is my passion! My leader’s vision is my vision.

Conclusion

You won’t hear them complaining, you’ll see them doing.

Know what the vision is

Know what your place in the body of Christ is

Lay your hopes and dreams at the feet of Jesus and pick up instead the dream of your leader.