The Spirit of Faith

1 Samuel 14:1-2

The Bible Teaching Commentary

Paul J. Bucknell

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The Spirit of Faith at Work

“14:1 Now the day came that Jonathan, the son of Saul, said to the young man who was carrying his armor, “Come and let us cross over to the Philistines’ garrison that is on yonder side.” But he did not tell his father. 2 And Saul was staying in the outskirts of Gibeah under the pomegranate tree which is in Migron. And the people who were with him were about six hundred men” (1 Sam 14:1-2).

No wonder Jonathan and David were friends! David's daring fight with Goliath reminded him how God here had led him to one-handedly (along with his armor bearer) fight the massive Philistine army. Facing impossible odds, they both had the same spirit of faith in what the Living God could do.

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Jonathan was facing an incredible spirit of immobility as he watched his father do nothing, sulking from messing up his life, while the army readied to destroy the people of Israel. We can see Jonathan's faith at work in verse 6, "Come and let us cross over to the garrison of these uncircumcised; perhaps the LORD will work for us, for the LORD is not restrained to save by many or by few.”

What if all of God's people would now arise in this spirit of faith in our marvelous God? We likewise would see God break apart our greatest enemies of His love and move forward with His kingdom spreading to the edges of the globe. What are we waiting for?

Biblical Foundations for Freedom ( BFF )

Rev. Paul J. Bucknell