“And his armourbearer said unto him, Do all that is in thine heart: turn thee; behold, I am with thee according to thy heart.”-1 Samuel 14:7
Every Jonathan needs an armourbearer. It may be that you have not been called by God to lead. You don’t have a clear vision, path, or plan to move forward against Satan’s forces. It is entirely possible because by natural course leaders are in the minority, and how much more Godly ones. Jonathan felt the call of God to go up and smite the Philistines. He said, “for there is no restraint to the Lord to save by many or by few.” He trusted in the Lord and decided to step out in faith. Instead of striving against him or being jealous, this lowly armourbearer simply said: “do all that is in thine heart. I am with thee.”
We can’t all be leaders, but we can support, encourage, and help. In this fight against Satan’s forces, we can support the Jonathan’s and fight alongside them. When Johnathan saw it in his heart to go up and smite the garrison of Philistines, the people of God were hiding in caves. At this point in time, it was a dangerous thing to challenge the Philistines. There was no “back-up” for Jonathan, the Lord was his backup. The Israelites were not an army, rather a group of secluded strangers. The garrison of twenty was but a small part of a much larger force of the Philistines but Jonathan took confidence in God and had faith. He said to his armourbearer let us go up at once and smite the garrison. The armourbearers’ fate would have been tied to Jonathan’s, but that doesn’t mean he had to be loyal to Jonathan’s call. Have you ever heard this “Your call is not my burden.” He could have discouraged Jonathan, ignored him, tried to make him see “reason” or any number of things to get Jonathan to calm down, and cool off. No need to be so zealous. No need to try and do anything rash. Instead, he said “I am with thee.” He became the “first follower,” not a leader but no less important. He trusted in Jonathan and encouraged him to do all that was in his heart. The encouragement of the people of God, encouragement from our brothers and sisters is crucial in a budding ministry. When fear, doubt, and overwhelming odds are present. The beginning stages are ripe with the unknown. To see and encourage those whom God has called is part of spiritual maturity; it shows you are close to the heart of God. Who you support is a reflection on what you love. Where would the early church have been if Barnabas hadn’t of put his arm around new converted Saul and “declared unto them how he had seen the Lord in the way.” This armourbearer supported the right man. Instead of tearing him down and setting up roadblocks, he went to battle with him. There are many, many people who can armchair evaluate just about every jot and tittle of what God’s people are trying to do, but how few are the armourbearers who are willing to go to battle. The church is not a person, but persons. A community of people; some leading, some following, and all helping each other.
Jonathan and his armourbearer did go up. They took the garrison and won the victory. When the garrison was taken and the Philistine slain, it encouraged the people. It gave them the motivation they needed to trust God and come out of the caves. To win back the land the Philistines had taken from them. One act of encouragement can fan the flicker of revival into a raging fire. Maybe you are not called to lead, but you can be an encouragement to those who are. You can say: “I am with thee.”
