Doing Valiantly - Man as Defender
“Be exalted, O God, above the heavens! Let your glory be over all the earth! That your beloved ones may be delivered, give salvation by your right hand and answer me!... Oh grant us help against the foe, for vain is the salvation of man! With God we shall do valiantly; it is he who will tread down our foes.” - Psalm 108:5-6, 12-13 ESV
Ralph Waldo Emerson declared: “Whatever you do, you need courage. Whatever course you decide upon, there is always someone to tell you that you are wrong. There are always difficulties arising that tempt you to believe your critics are right. To map out a course of action and follow it to an end requires some of the same courage that a soldier needs. Peace has its victories, but it takes brave men and women to win them.”
Courage is the subject that the psalmist is talking about. He challenges men in battle with these words: “With God we shall do valiantly.” According to Webster’s 1828 Dictionary, “valiant” is defined as “brave; courageous; intrepid in danger; heroic; as a valiant soldier. Be thou valiant for me, and fight the Lord’s battles.” Men, the psalmist’s call for courage in fighting the Lord’s battles back then is exactly what we need today!
But we not only need courage, we also need Him! We are called by God to do valiantly, while at the same time remembering that it is God and God alone who enables us to prevail in the battles we face! “With God we shall do valiantly; it is he who will tread down our foes” (v. 13). Yes, we must be bold, courageous, fearless, and valiant, but remember that the “battle is the Lord’s” (1 Sam. 17:47). In your role as Defender, that is an incredibly important principle to learn and remember. Courage can only take you so far. God alone brings the victory.
The psalmist was obviously engaged in a battle, and we find ourselves in battles every day. True, we are probably not dodging sharp arrows from a warrior’s bow, but we face the fiery darts of the devil. We’ve got incoming rounds fired at us on multiple fronts. That’s why Paul encourages us as Defenders to “suit up and stand up and pray up” in Ephesians 6:10-18. If there is a battle with temptation or in your personal walk with God, pray: “God, by your grace I will do valiantly, but it is you Lord who gives the victory over temptation and in my walk with you!” If there is a battle in a relationship in your home, pray: “God, by your grace I will do valiantly, but it is you Lord who gives the victory in my home!” Whatever your battle, you are to do valiantly and then trust God to bring a victorious outcome.
Men, I would press you further at the point of standing as a valiant Defender in the culture. There are battles raging, not only over the definition of a legitimate marriage, but also over what even constitutes a “man” or a “woman.” There are battles over when a human life in the womb has rights and is protected by law. There are battles fought over sexually explicit curricula taught to grade school children in public schools, pornographic books placed in school libraries, etc. As you survey the cultural landscape, littered with perversion and brokenness, pray: “God, for the sake of my country, by your grace I will do valiantly, but it is you Lord who gives the victory in America!”
Pray that God would enable you to be a valiant Defender in your home and in your community and give Him praise, thanksgiving, and glory when He grants victory.
“Be exalted, O God, above the heavens! Let your glory be over all the earth! That your beloved ones may be delivered, give salvation by your right hand and answer me!... Oh grant us help against the foe, for vain is the salvation of man! With God we shall do valiantly; it is he who will tread down our foes.” - Psalm 108:5-6, 12-13 ESV
Ralph Waldo Emerson declared: “Whatever you do, you need courage. Whatever course you decide upon, there is always someone to tell you that you are wrong. There are always difficulties arising that tempt you to believe your critics are right. To map out a course of action and follow it to an end requires some of the same courage that a soldier needs. Peace has its victories, but it takes brave men and women to win them.”
Courage is the subject that the psalmist is talking about. He challenges men in battle with these words: “With God we shall do valiantly.” According to Webster’s 1828 Dictionary, “valiant” is defined as “brave; courageous; intrepid in danger; heroic; as a valiant soldier. Be thou valiant for me, and fight the Lord’s battles.” Men, the psalmist’s call for courage in fighting the Lord’s battles back then is exactly what we need today!
But we not only need courage, we also need Him! We are called by God to do valiantly, while at the same time remembering that it is God and God alone who enables us to prevail in the battles we face! “With God we shall do valiantly; it is he who will tread down our foes” (v. 13). Yes, we must be bold, courageous, fearless, and valiant, but remember that the “battle is the Lord’s” (1 Sam. 17:47). In your role as Defender, that is an incredibly important principle to learn and remember. Courage can only take you so far. God alone brings the victory.
The psalmist was obviously engaged in a battle, and we find ourselves in battles every day. True, we are probably not dodging sharp arrows from a warrior’s bow, but we face the fiery darts of the devil. We’ve got incoming rounds fired at us on multiple fronts. That’s why Paul encourages us as Defenders to “suit up and stand up and pray up” in Ephesians 6:10-18. If there is a battle with temptation or in your personal walk with God, pray: “God, by your grace I will do valiantly, but it is you Lord who gives the victory over temptation and in my walk with you!” If there is a battle in a relationship in your home, pray: “God, by your grace I will do valiantly, but it is you Lord who gives the victory in my home!” Whatever your battle, you are to do valiantly and then trust God to bring a victorious outcome.
Men, I would press you further at the point of standing as a valiant Defender in the culture. There are battles raging, not only over the definition of a legitimate marriage, but also over what even constitutes a “man” or a “woman.” There are battles over when a human life in the womb has rights and is protected by law. There are battles fought over sexually explicit curricula taught to grade school children in public schools, pornographic books placed in school libraries, etc. As you survey the cultural landscape, littered with perversion and brokenness, pray: “God, for the sake of my country, by your grace I will do valiantly, but it is you Lord who gives the victory in America!”
- Which of the two challenges do you have the most trouble with: 1) Doing valiantly or 2) Trusting God for the victory? What can you do to make progress toward the one that is the biggest challenge for you?
- Those whose lives you are shaping must learn to be valiant and courageous while at the same time trusting and depending on God. How are you modeling the role of Defender to them?
Pray that God would enable you to be a valiant Defender in your home and in your community and give Him praise, thanksgiving, and glory when He grants victory.