"Then David inquired of the LORD, saying, "Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will You give them into my hand?" And the LORD said to David, "Go up, for I will certainly give the Philistines into your hand."
2 Samuel 5:19 (NKJV)
We should all agree that once we make Jesus Lord over our lives, our enemy, Satan, will continue to present trouble for us. It is the presence of God in us that brings forth the wrath of the destroyer. David had just been anointed king, and the Philistines lined up in battle formation against him and God's people. In order to be a victorious Christian, we must be reminded of and live by the following "great truths," which are our strategy to win over Satan's schemes.
Victorious Christians have already won (through faith) because Jesus defeated sin, death, hell, and the grave through His own resurrection from the dead.
Victorious Christians have perfect counsel from God. We can see this in 2 Samuel 5:19, where David "inquired of the LORD" - or in other words, he prayed and asked God what he should do. And what did God do? He answered David perfectly. He will do the same for us when we sincerely ask Him what to do.
Victorious Christians are quick to obey God. We can see David's response to God's answer in verse 19 in David's action in verse 20. He immediately smote his enemy there and received a great breakthrough. Our God, the God of the Holy Scriptures, is The God of the Breakthrough.
Victorious Christians rely on God's power and not their own flesh. We understand that without God, we can do nothing, but with God - all things are possible. It is in Him alone that we live, move, and have our being.
Victorious Christians do not get ahead of God because God is sovereign and able to change His strategy. We can see in verse 22 that the enemy came back. However, David did not assume that he could use the previous strategy and get the same results. Instead, he once again "inquired of the LORD". This time, when God answered David, God changed His strategy, which once again provided victory. If David had gotten ahead of God, he would have been defeated.
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Victorious Christians go into battle expecting to win because God is with them. In verse 25, we see that as long as David did as God commanded him, he received an incredible victory. Surely, this became his confidence and his expectation. This will also be our testimony if we simply inquire of God and do as we are commanded.
King David never lost a battle, as he depended on God for all of his conflicts. And the same can be said for you and me as we move forward in life if we will lean and depend wholly on our risen Savior.
[As adapted from The Bondage Breaker and Stomping Out The Darkness by Dr. Neil Anderson and Dr. Dave Park.]