November 9, 2021: Courage in Crisis

Eleazar son of Dodai the Ahohite was the next of the elite Three. He was with David when the Philistines poked fun at them at Pas Dammim. When the Philistines drew up for battle, Israel retreated. But Eleazar stood his ground and killed Philistines right and left until he was exhausted—but he never let go of his sword! A big win for God that day. The army then rejoined Eleazar, but all there was left to do was the cleanup” (2 Sam 23:9–10, MSG).

Eleazar is one of my favorite heroes in the Bible. One of David’s three elite warriors, Eleazar is chronicled in Scripture as a one-man army defeating the enemies of God with his sword. He courageously stood against those who would destroy the ways of God with corruption, destruction and moral decay.

I often apply his principles of warriorship to a Christian leader’s responsibility and to the study and proclamation of truth. In today’s society, truth, integrity, honesty, justice and basic human decency are under attack from the enemy.

Ellen White writes: “The greatest want of the world is the want of men [and women] ... who will stand for the right though the heavens fall” (Education, p. 57).

We can find courage from Eleazar’s example and strategy: 1) He placed his faith in God—the only One who could guarantee the destruction of the army—and so should we. 2) It takes courage to stand against the enemy and relentless courage to stand for what is right. 3) Never let go of what God trained You to do.

Dear God, help us to fight injustice wherever we see it—at work, school or even in the church. Amen.

Anthony A. Medley is the senior pastor of the Emmanuel-Brinklow church in Maryland.