1Sam014 Jonathan's Military Exploits

In the early days of Saul's kingship, he made strategic decisions which manifested his faithless heart. Instead of waiting for Samuel, Saul ordered the sacrifices which were to be conducted under Samuel's authority (13:8-11), substituting human autonomy for God's authoriative word. The fruit of his faithless heart was rebellion and apathy which resulted in his rejection by God. His son Jonathan however, was energized by a robust faith in the Lord. Instead of sitting under shade tree in Gibeah, Jonathan sprung into bold action against the Philistines. Jonathan's beautiful expression of faith "perhaps the Lord will work for us, for the Lord is not restrained to save by many or by few" provides real insight into the divine impulses which animated him and drove him into action against the Satanic, Philistine hordes. This message concludes with a series of applications which seek to clarify how the law and the gospel is revealed in the actions of Jonathan recorded in chapter 14.