His Glory!

Praise the Lord for another opportunity to glean from His Holy word. Today we consider how we can leverage on glorifying God especially in times of battle. He who takes the glory, fights the battle.

“And when the Philistine looked about, and saw David, he disdained him: for he was but a youth, and ruddy, and of a fair countenance. And the Philistine said unto David, Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves? And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. And the Philistine said to David, Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field. Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied. This day will the LORD deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee; and I will give the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. And all this assembly shall know that the LORD saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the LORD’s, and he will give you into our hands. And it came to pass, when the Philistine arose, and came and drew nigh to meet David, that David hasted, and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine. And David put his hand in his bag, and took thence a stone, and slang it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead, that the stone sunk into his forehead; and he fell upon his face to the earth. So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and smote the Philistine, and slew him; but there was no sword in the hand of David.” 1 Samuel 17:42-50 KJV

Many of us are familiar with this popular scripture where David gave God the glory and thus led Israel by the mighty hand of God to win the battle over the Philistines. He knew from his experience as a shepherd boy back in the wilderness of Bethlehem what God was capable of doing. He rode on this faith and confronted Goliath as inspired by the Holy Spirit ( using his sling and stones) rather than relying of the strength of man (the ammunition that Saul offered).

“And it came to pass as they came, when David was returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, that the women came out of all cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet king Saul, with tabrets, with joy, and with instruments of musick. And the women answered one another as they played, and said, Saul hath slain his thousands, And David his ten thousands. And Saul was very wroth, and the saying displeased him; and he said, They have ascribed unto David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed but thousands: and what can he have more but the kingdom? And Saul eyed David from that day and forward. And it came to pass on the morrow, that the evil spirit from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied in the midst of the house: and David played with his hand, as at other times: and there was a javelin in Saul’s hand. And Saul cast the javelin; for he said, I will smite David even to the wall with it. And David avoided out of his presence twice.” 1 Samuel 18:6-11 KJV

Notice how Saul was negatively stirred up against David when the women of Israel praised David for the victory over Goliath. That moment where the women ascribed to David more accolades (glory) than they did to Saul (the reigning king of Israel) started his battle with Saul. We learn however further down the line that David’s right standing in God’s sight (for He called him a man after His heart), delivered him from that battle ultimately.

“Therefore David blessed the Lord in the sight of all the assembly and said, “Blessed (praised, adored, and thanked) are You, O Lord God of Israel (Jacob) our father, forever and ever. Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the GLORY and the victory and the majesty, indeed everything that is in the heavens and on the earth; Yours is the dominion and kingdom, O Lord, and You exalt Yourself as head over all. Both riches and honor come from You, and You rule over all. In Your hand is power and might; and it is in Your hands to make great and to give strength to everyone. Now therefore, our God, we thank You, and praise Your GLORIOUS name. “But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to offer as generously as this? For all things come from You, and from Your own hand we have given to You. For we are sojourners before You, and tenants, as all our fathers were; our days on the earth are like a shadow, and there is no hope [of remaining].” 1 Chronicles 29:10-15 AMP

In the above scripture, we see how David (now king) returns all the glory to God Almighty. Just as he who takes the glory fights the battle, he who fights the battle must take the glory. Do not withhold God’s glory when he fights your battles and delivers you from difficult situations. In the book of Exodus, the song of Moses also reflects this same principle after Jehovah Nissi won the victory over Pharaoh and Egypt.

“Who is like unto thee, O LORD, among the gods? Who is like thee, glorious in holiness, Fearful in praises, doing wonders?” Exodus 15:11 KJV

If you are yet to experience any victory you’ve been anticipating, praise while you wait. Praising God in your waiting season will stir Him up to fiercely intervene with any and all that contend with you. Always give Him the glory before, during and after the battle. The Lord will fight for you and you shall hold your peace, Amen.

With Love, Esinam.