God says,
“And after him was Shammah the son of Agee the Hararite. And the Philistines were gathered together into a troop, where was a piece of ground full of lentiles: and the people fled from the Philistines. But he stood in the midst of the ground, and defended it, and slew the Philistines: and the LORD wrought a great victory.”
Samuel 23: 11,12
Like Shammah, there comes a day in every believer’s life when they have to stand their ground even when others flee. Shammah saw what the Philistines were doing to God’s Promised Land and decided to take his stand in a field of Lentils. Realizing the enemy meant to take the very food out of the mouths of his children, Shammah decided it was time to do or die: those uncircumcised philistine dogs would go no further.
It’s worth fighting for
Brethren, there is something worth fighting for and it is our right to receive the promises of God in our lives even when faced with overwhelming odds. The size of the enemy does not matter, all that matters is that we say to them “no further” and decide to stand our ground and protect what God has given us.
When you find yourself in that sort of situation, declare before heaven and earth that the enemy shall progress “no further”. Decide then and there is where you will stand until you have complete victory or perish. The lesson from Shammah is that we must commit all or risk losing everything. You cannot fight a life and death battle half-heartedly; you must act with every ounce of strength to win the contest.
Be angry, yet sin not
As you pray, let righteous anger well up within you and proceed like fire from between your lips. Declare that what you have been given is yours and you will not let another take it. The vision you have been given is worth fighting for and even if those closest to you run away from the battle this is your field of promise and it shall not be taken from you.
People play lightly with the revealed word of God and, when inconvenient, rationalize it away because, after all, it is not “scripture”. However, when God speaks He does not have different levels of inspiration. In times past, if holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Spirit it is considered scripture. Today the current word revealed to holy men of God in our generation is just as valid and important to follow.
We have something important to fight for
Truly, we have a task set before us that is bigger and more important than our earthly comforts and desires. This is a true saying:
“God is not an “ala Carte” deity, but an “all or nothing” Lord.”
Revelation is not born of the Holy Spirit one day and, when inconvenient, questionable the next. If God gave us this land it is our land yesterday, today, and forever. Let us take a stand, fight for what is ours, and preserve what God has given to us at all costs.
Paul says,
“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places”
Ephesians 6:12
What God tells us is absolutely right. We will not move one inch from His promise until we have victory. Meanwhile, we will fight with the weapons that God has given us,
“For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every Christ;”
2 Corinthians 10:3-5
Furthermore, Paul says.
“But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love.” NAS
2 Corinthians 13:13
It was faith, hope, and love that planted Shammah’s feet firmly in that field of lentils and caused him to believe God for victory even when other’s hearts failed. It is because he desperately “cared” that God was able to defeat the enemy through him. Victory is not according to our ability, but according to the God of our fathers in whom we trust.
You see, the others who ran away from the battle did so because of fear and unbelief. Although they came to the battle in confidence, when they saw that things weren’t going their way, they gave up, sounded the retreat, and fled. Fear melted their hearts and thus their resolve. In the natural, it looked impossible, and fleeing in the opposite direction made good sense. Unfortunately, many people yield to fear and give up the Promised Land when victory is theirs for the taking. I am sure that those who ran past Shammah thought to themselves that he was a fool and a dead man. However, it is Shammah we read about in the Bible by name and not them.
Defend your own piece of the promised land and say, “no further!”
Those who flee may think, “It’s just a field of lentils, why lose my life over it?” But in reality it was much more than a piece of ground, it was the Promised Land that God gave us. If we are not willing to stop the enemy there and then, I ask you “where?” The enemy of our souls doesn’t just take a little piece of our inheritance and leave us alone. Satan attacks again and again, gradually diminishing our birthright, until he stands at our very doors to take what little we have left. Whether we fight in a field of lentils or at our front doors we will eventually fight. The enemy of our souls will give us no rest until we stand our ground and say, “No Further!“
Jesus really meant it when he said to save our life we must lose it. We must fully count the cost and accept that we must give all to gain everything. Even though we might have to pay the ultimate price, our battle cry must be:
“Better to die in faith than to live in unbelief!”
It is time to take a stand and say no further! This is our field, our promise, and God will bring to pass what He said no matter what. When the battle is over and the dust clears we stand in the portion He gives us. Miraculously, by God’s grace, our enemy lies fallen to the ground at our feet. Amen.
