Sermon Central
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In Search Of Ordinary Heroes
Contributed by Shawn Drake on Jan 9, 2002 (message contributor)
Summary: This sermon is about those not so well known men of the Bible that were heroes for the Lord.
Tuesday Evening Revival Service April 11, 2000 Bel Aire Baptist Church Hobbs, NM
IN SEARCH OF ORDINARY HEROES
Introduction:
1. There will come a day when faith becomes sight, and then- only then- will our
seeking of the Lord be finished at last.
a. We will find ourselves in Heaven, standing face-to-face with the One we
have trusted and followed for so long.
b. Jesus will be what makes it truly Heaven- not streets of gold or walls of
jasper, but God alone in all His splendor.
c. We will know Him as He as known us from the beginning.
2. In addition, what a delight it will be to meet those heroes of the faith, who fill the
pages of the Bible.
a. I can’t wait to greet Paul the apostle, Moses, Abraham, Deborah, Joshua,
Ruth, David, Helez, Sibbecai, Ahiam, Hezro, Zabad... Who?
b. Did I wander off track a bit?
c. You say you don’t recognize those last few names?
3. They are all carefully listed in 1 Chronicles 11, an amazing group of warriors
known as David’s "mighty men".
a. The Holy Spirit thought they were impressive enough to have every last
one written down, because "they, together with all Israel, gave [David’s]
kingship strong support to extend it over the whole land, as the LORD had
promised"(vs.10).
b. These individuals are role models for us today- even if we cannot
pronounce their names.
4. These are people who applied their strength and courageous action toward what
God had promised.
a. It was not enough for them that the prophet Samuel had anointed David
king-in-waiting back when he was a teenager.
b. Much more recently the elders of Israel had gathered in Hebron to declare
David the new monarch.
c. But out in the villages, and especially on the borders of the land, not
everyone was convinced.
d. The picture was still unclear.
e. The rule of God’s king was yet to be established.
f. Foreign enemies were still living inside the land promised to God’s people.
5. These heroes did not just sit back, as many do today, saying, "Well, God
promised, and I’m sure He will fulfill His word."
a. They stepped up and took action to make the promise become reality.
b. They understood that God’s work in the world is usually a joint project; He
works with us as we yield ourselves to work with Him.
6. So these men risked their lives.
a. They left their families and headed for dangerous territory.
b. The Bible uses a special word three times to describe what they did:
"exploits".
7. Similarly, the Gospel of Jesus Christ will be planted today in hostile cities and
territories and nations only by mighty men and women who dare to take risks.
a. Apathetic churches across the land will be revived only by people of deep
spirituality who refuse to accept the status quo.
b. Wayward children and broken marriages will be touched by the hand of
God only as someone stands in the gap and fights valiantly in the power of
the Spirit.
c. You and I have had the opportunity to knows some mighty warriors of the
faith.
8. Their determination is like the kind we see in 1 Chronicles 12:18, where it says,
"The Spirit came upon Amasai, chief of the Thirty, and he said: ’We are yours, O
David! We are with you, O son of Jesse! Success, success [or "peace and
prosperity"] to you, and success to those who help you, for your God will help
you."
a. Once again, the merging of divine and human effort is clearly shown.
b. Oddly, two people on David’s list weren’t even Jewish.
c. They would never have been allowed to worship at the holy tabernacle.
d. Zelek the Ammonite and Ithmah the Moabite were definitely from the
"wrong" nationalities.
e. Their countrymen harassed the Israelites continually and tempted them
toward idolatry.
f. Yet Zelek and Ithmah ended up being honored because they fought and
risked their lives for God’s king.
9. All these were common people who did uncommon things for God.
a. In that sense, they remind us of those "unschooled, ordinary" people of
b. David’s thirty mighty warriors were not royalty.
c. They were not graduates of a military academy.
d. They were just regular people from small places who set their hearts to do
exploits for God’s anointed one.
10. What we desperately need in our own time are not Christians full of posturing.
a. We need men and women who will step out to turn back today’s slide
toward godlessness, prayerless churches, family breakup, and a
"hap-hazard" heart for evangelism.
I. The Telling Moment
A. The first person on David’s list, Jashobeam, "raised his spear against three
