A GOD WHO BRINGS VICTORY

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In Christ, Mark

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

In the course of time, David defeated the Philistines and subdued them, and he took Gath and its surrounding villages from the control of the Philistines.

David also defeated the Moabites, and they became subject to him and brought him tribute.

Moreover, David defeated Hadadezer king of Zobah, in the vicinity of Hamath, when he went to set up his monument at the Euphrates River. David captured a thousand of his chariots, seven thousand charioteers and twenty thousand foot soldiers. He hamstrung all but a hundred of the chariot horses.

When the Arameans of Damascus came to help Hadadezer king of Zobah, David struck down twenty-two thousand of them. He put garrisons in the Aramean kingdom of Damascus, and the Arameans became subject to him and brought him tribute. The Lord gave David victory wherever he went.

David took the gold shields carried by the officers of Hadadezer and brought them to Jerusalem. From Tebah and Kun, towns that belonged to Hadadezer, David took a great quantity of bronze, which Solomon used to make the bronze Sea, the pillars and various bronze articles.

When Tou king of Hamath heard that David had defeated the entire army of Hadadezer king of Zobah, he sent his son Hadoram to King David to greet him and congratulate him on his victory in battle over Hadadezer, who had been at war with Tou. Hadoram brought all kinds of articles of gold, of silver and of bronze.

King David dedicated these articles to the Lord, as he had done with the silver and gold he had taken from all these nations: Edom and Moab, the Ammonites and the Philistines, and Amalek.

Abishai son of Zeruiah struck down eighteen thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt. He put garrisons in Edom, and all the Edomites became subject to David. The Lord gave David victory wherever he went.

David reigned over all Israel, doing what was just and right for all his people. Joab son of Zeruiah was over the army; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was recorder; Zadok son of Ahitub and Ahimelek son of Abiathar were priests; Shavsha was secretary; Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Kerethites and Pelethites; and David’s sons were chief officials at the king’s side.

1 Chronicles 18

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

In 1 Chronicles, Chapter 17, God made the following promise to David:

“I will make your name like the names of the greatest men on earth. I will also subdue all your enemies.” (verses 8b and 10b).

In the following chapter, Chapter 18, we find God making good on this promise.

First, and almost predictably, we find David gain a win over the Philistines. By far, this wasn’t the first time this had happened. You can go all the way back to David as a young boy topping the Philistine giant Goliath in a 1-on-1 fight with just one smooth stone cast from a sling. From that point on, David had been the Philistine’s nemesis but when they would attack him, they would find themselves on the losing end. Such was the case here and as a result, David “took Gath and its surrounding villages from the control of the Philistines.”

But God wasn’t done handing enemies over to David.

We read where the Moabites were next, followed by the king of Zobah, the Arameans from Damascus, and the Edomites. All were subdued by God and conquered under David’s rule. And through all, David began to build up the coffers of Israel with the spoils of victory. He gained the following:

- A tribute from Moab.

- Captured chariots, charioteers, horses, and foot soldiers from Zobah.

- Fortified garrisons in Damascus with the Arameans subject to him. He also was given a tribute.

- Gold shields from the officers of Hadadezer.

- A great quantity of bronze from Tebah and Kun.

And it wasn’t just David’s coffers that became greater. As God had promised, David’s name grew greater as well.

In fact, other nations began to see it would be fruitless to confront him and Israel. We see this in our passage as Tou, king of Hamath, sent his son Hadoram to David to congratulate him on all his wins, presenting David with “all kinds of articles of gold, of silver and of bronze” which David in turn dedicated to the Lord, “as he had done with the silver and gold he had taken” from “Edom and Moab, the Ammonites and the Philistines, and Amalek.” Better to make peace than be beaten.

And so it was. The Lord had fulfilled His promises to David and as the scripture tells us, He “gave David victory wherever he went.”

Indeed, we serve a God who has and does bring victory. For David, the victory was from his enemies who were subdued. For us today, God has subdued and given us victory over our greatest enemy Satan through His Son Jesus Christ,  who bore the sins of mankind on Calvary’s cross and then conquered death and the grave so we might be able to as well. As a result of His selfless sacrifice, whoever believes in Jesus as Savior will not perish but live forever (John 3:16). Paul summed up our victory this way:

“Death has been swallowed up in victory.”

“Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?”

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 15:54b-57

The sting of death is sin but those who are in Christ Jesus have been justified or made just-as-if-I-had-never-sinned. When God sees us through the lens of Jesus, He sees our sin penalty already paid and grants us the victory over death, ushering us into a life forever with Him and His Son Jesus.

Friends, we have good news, not just today but every day. For through Jesus Christ, we are a victorious people and we need to live like it, giving all thanks, honor, glory, and praise unto our God who brings victory now and forever.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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