The Point of Purity Podcast

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Episode #134 - "Dude, Do Right!" 

Transcript

Have you ever been in a spot where you knew the odds were stacked against you? You knew there was no way you could win. You knew if you stood up for what was right, if you chose fight instead of flight, you risked losing everything. And yet, in spite of all of that, you stood for what you knew to be right no matter the cost. That, gentlemen—that is a man of steel. That is what makes a Super Man of God!

Welcome to the Point of Purity Podcast! I’m your host Steve Etner – author, National Speaker, Certified Professional Mentor TM and Purity Coach for The Pure Man Ministry and this is Episode #134. In this episode we continue our journey through my book entitled “Are You a Super Man of God? Becoming God’s Man of Steel”. This week’s episode is entitled “Dude – Do Right!”

Over the next couple episodes, we are taking a look at three super men of God. Three men of steel. Three men who knew what it meant to stand in the gap, square up against the enemy and watch God win the battle. Our goal in this week’s episode is to understand that God’s man of steel does what is right, even when the odds are stacked up against him. So, let me introduce you to our first man of steel named Josheb.

“These are the names of the mighty men whom David had: Josheb-Basshebeth a Tahchemonite; he was chief of the three. He wielded his spear against eight hundred whom he killed at one time” (2 Samuel 23:8). Wait a minute … did you catch that? This guy killed 800 men at one time! Now that’s a man of steel!

Josheb-Basshebeth was a Tahchemonite. We’re talking William Wallace, Maximus Desimus Meridius and John Rambo all wrapped up into one. Dude, you don’t want to mess with this guy! In this part of the story, Josheb finds himself in a rather tight situation, facing impossible odds. He’s surrounded by 800 men who want him dead. 800 to 1. The likelihood of victory, let alone survival, doesn’t look very good for poor Josheb.

Our hero is faced with a critical decision. A terrifying, life-changing decision. “Do I turn tail and run like crazy, or do I stand my ground and fight?” Okay, guys, I gotta ask—what would you do? I mean, really? Who in their right mind would choose to stick around in the face of those odds? Apparently, Josheb.

Don’t forget that those 800 men weren’t wimps. They weren’t pansies. Josheb wasn’t facing a bunch of green-behind-the-ears farmers armed with pitchforks (if you’re a farmer, I mean no offense—unless you start charging at me with a pitchfork, that is). These were seasoned warriors with sharpened blades in hand. They had multiple notches in their belts, if you know what I mean.

These 800 blood-thirsty warriors had one specific target: Josheb. They had one specific goal: Josheb’s death. So by all accounts, Josheb should have been easy pickings. And yet the Bible says he wielded his spear against all 800 and slaughtered every one of them.

Imagine for a moment that you are Philistine warrior #562. I wonder what would have been going through your mind as you stood there, watching your comrades dropping like flies at the might of this Tahchemonite. Suddenly he sets his eyes on you and comes charging. I can’t answer for you, but I’m fairly positive I’d be dropping my sword, holding my hands up in front of me shouting, “Whoa, whoa—seriously—wait a minute! How are you doing this? Dude, who are you?”

I can just see the huge smile on Josheb’s face as he pounds his chest and says, “I’m Josheb-Basshebeth, the Tahchemonite. Commander of the armies of the North. General of the fearless legions. Loyal servant to the true King. Father of a murdered son, husband of a murdered wife. And I will have my revenge, if not in this life, then in the next!” Well, I’m fairly certain he didn’t actually say those exact words since that came from the movie Gladiator, but you get my drift.

Have you ever been there? Have you ever been in a spot where you knew the odds were stacked against you? You knew there was no way you could win. You knew if you stood up for what was right, if you chose fight, instead of flight, you risked losing everything. And yet, in spite of all of that, you stood for what you knew to be right no matter the cost. That, gentlemen—that is a man of steel. That is what makes a Super Man of God!

• I’m talking about the business owner who stands up and says, “No! I will not compromise God’s standards just so I can get this sale or save a few extra bucks."
• I'm talking about the employee who sees what's going on behind the scenes and under the table and refuses to be a part of it—even if it means his job.
• I'm talking about the teenager who refuses to do what everybody else is doing when he knows it's wrong, even though he’s experiencing a relentless barrage of constant teasing and taunting of his peers.
• I’m also talking about the guy who says “No!” then turns and walks the other way when tempted to lust and commit adultery.

This is a mindset that says, “No Retreat!”

Remember, Josheb was not some superman from another planet. He wasn’t gifted with the Force. He wasn’t wearing a precious golden ring that gave him special abilities. He was just a normal, ordinary, everyday guy who was fully yielded to the Lordship and leadership of the Almighty, all-powerful God of the Universe.

Josheb chose to stand his ground in the face of certain defeat, and shout out to the enemy, “You shall not pass!” Then he fought with every fiber of his being until the task was accomplished. Josheb knew what you and I need to know: with God on our side, we have nothing and no one to fear!

God says, “I am the Lord, your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, ‘Do not fear; I will help you’” (Isaiah 41:13). The only way you will overcome, the only way you will know victory when defeat feels certain, the only way you will effectively say “No!” to temptation when it comes knocking on your heart’s door—the only way you can consistently be God’s Man of Steel—is to completely yield yourself to the Lordship and leadership of the Almighty, all-powerful God of the Universe in your life. Not sometime this week. Not tomorrow. Not even in a few hours. Now. Right here, right now.

The fact is, we face a foe far greater than 800 Philistine warriors. Ephesians 6:12 warns us that “we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” In other words, we are to every moment of every day “give no opportunity to the devil.” (Ephesians 4:27) So, let me pose this question to you: In what ways have you been giving the enemy a foothold in your life and why?

OK – so here’s where we’re at in our Super Man of God study. God’s man of steel chooses to do what’s right, even when the odds are stacked against him. And we saw a great example of that in the life of Josheb as he stood against 800 Philistines and saw God work a miracle.

Secondly: God’s Man of Steel doesn’t give up, even when no one stands with him.

Now here’s what I’d like to do. I’m going to take a few moments and read to you a portion of my book “Are You a Super Man? How to Become God’s Man of Steel.” Listen closely ...

Let me introduce you to Eleazar the Ahohite. Now this guy is the epitome of a normal, ordinary, everyday guy. He was discontented with life—nothing seemed to bring him happiness. So he tried various get-rich-quick schemes that got him in debt up to his eyeballs. Bottom line: he was in emotional and psychological distress as a result of some really bad choices.

Looking for a way out, he heard a rumor about a group of guys who were heading up to Adulam to pledge their loyalty to the one and only David-the-Giant-Slayer. Now there was a guy with promise. There was a guy who was going places. There was a guy Eleazar definitely wanted to meet.

Upon his arrival at David’s camp, Eleazar was led to the mouth of a cave and told simply to wait. Looking around, he was shocked at what he saw—or rather, at what he didn’t see. There were no royal banners flying high. There were no servants bustling about. In fact, there really wasn’t much of anything very impressive. Just a few guys sitting on rocks looking bored or scared—or both.

After a few moments, this short, young scrawny-looking kid strode out of the cave. With a big smile on his face, he introduced himself as David. Eleazar was surprised—definitely not what he was expecting. Could this really be the famous Giant-Slayer he had heard so much about? He was so small and so, well, so skinny.

After a quick tour of the camp and a lengthy explanation as to why David was there, Eleazar decided he would like to join that motley crew. The accommodations weren’t all that great. Living in a cave certainly had its perks, though—your creditors couldn’t find you, and you certainly didn’t have to worry much about housekeeping. But the dank surroundings, along with the stench of a bunch of guys camping out who hadn’t bathed in weeks, certainly had their drawbacks.

A week or so later, as the sun was just beginning to rise in the east, a scout came running into the cave with the report of a legion of Philistine soldiers camping out on the other side of a large field a short distance away. David decided it was worth checking out, so he and his group of misfits grabbed their swords and headed out.

Eleazar stood to David’s left as they gathered at the opposite end of the field, cautiously surveying the Philistine encampment. The smoke rising from the enemy’s campfires sat heavy on the countryside. Through the early morning haze, he could see distorted shapes of soldiers walking about. The sounds of their swords clanking and their guttural laughs left Eleazar with a solid weight rapidly growing at the bottom of his gut.

Suddenly David cupped his hands to his mouth, took a deep breath, and began to taunt and tease the Philistines. Eleazar watched as, one by one, his friends and cohorts followed David’s lead. He couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Seriously? Were they actually standing here yelling at the Philistines like a bunch of schoolyard kids? “C’mon guys,” Eleazar thought. “What are you doing? What do you think is going to happen when you start poking at a hornet’s nest?”

Sure enough, as if on cue, the Philistine soldiers came pouring out of their tents, charging across the field toward David and his group of misfit warriors. Eleazar watched them come. He saw the bloodlust in their eyes. His own blood turned cold at the sound of their screams for revenge. Before he even knew what was happening, his sword was in his hand. “Alright, David, let’s take these guys—we can do this!” he shouted. No response. “David?” Looking side to side, neither David nor his other friends were anywhere to be seen. Hearing a sound behind him he spun on his heel, ready to defend himself, only to see the shrinking backsides of his friends as they hightailed it out of there.

Stunned, he looked at the onslaught of warriors coming at him and then back at his friends. Eleazar was faced with a terrifying, life-changing decision. “Do I live to fight another day, or is today a good day to die?” Shrugging his shoulders, he turned to face the enemy. Planting his feet firmly in place, Eleazar raised his sword high and shouted, “Bring it! Because you shall not pass!”

OK – thank you for investing the time to listen to that story. And by the way, if you’re interested in knowing more, let me encourage you to go to Amazon.com today and purchase your copy of “Are You a Super Man of God?”

Samuel says that “the men of Israel retreated, but (Eleazar) stood his ground and struck down the Philistines till his hand grew tired and froze to the sword. The Lord brought about a great victory that day” (2 Samuel 23:9-10). One man, one decision, one God, one amazing victory.

Guys, the ability to defeat the enemy was not within Eleazar. He could never have struck down every Philistine on that field of battle on his own. The only reason he could defeat the enemy, the only reason he was able to come away from that encounter in absolute victory, the only reason Eleazar was God’s Man of Steel that day, was because he had fully yielded himself to the Lordship and leadership of the Almighty, all-powerful God of the Universe in his life. As a result, he became a tool in God’s hand. No, it wasn’t Eleazar who won that victory; it was the Lord! 2 Samuel 23:10 tells us that God enabled Eleazar to fight “and the Lord brought about a great victory that day!”

Any time you try to fight the enemy in your own power, you will fail! It is only with God that we will gain the victory. Why? Because only He can trample our enemies! In fact, the Psalmist declares in Psalm 108:13 that “Through God we will do valiantly, and it is (God) who shall dread down our adversaries.”

God was with Eleazar when he faced down those Philistines all by himself. Yes, God gave Eleazar the victory. But Eleazar had to fight alone. He had to fight long, and he had to fight hard. In fact, he fought so long and so hard that he got the mother of all muscle cramps. His hand literally froze to the sword.

When the battle was over, after he had dispatched the last Philistine soldier, Eleazar dropped to his knees. Exhausted, covered in sweat and blood, he tipped his head back and screamed in sheer agony as he slowly pried his fingers off the hilt of his sword. As Eleazar fought, he gave it his all. That, my friend, is a man of steel. That is a mighty man of God.

Not only does God’s man of steel have a mindset that says, “No retreat,” he also says, “No reserve! I will hold nothing back. I will give everything I am and everything I have for my king.”

How about it, guys: Are you ready to give everything you are and everything you have for your King? Yes, you may be asked to stand on the battlefield alone. You may be required to fight the fight of faith with no one standing by your side. But do you understand that when you surrender to the Lordship and leadership of God in your life you are guaranteed the victory? The Almighty, all-powerful God of the Universe is within you. Truly, you can do all things through Christ because He will give you His strength! (Philippians 4:13; 2 Peter 1:3)

OK. Let’s hit the pause button until next week’s episode as we continue our journey through my book “Are You A Super Man?” If you would like to learn more about today’s study, or if you’re interested in learning more about The Pure Man Ministry, be sure to visit our website to see the multitude of resources we’ve made available to you – you can find our website at ThePurityCoach.com.

If you’re a subscriber to this podcast, then you’ve heard me talk about our “Point of Purity Program” – a 12 week, 1-on-1, Bible-Centered coaching program taking you into Scripture to teach you how to develop a lifelong strategic plan for sexual purity. And I often talk on this podcast about the various books I have written – all of which are available on Amazon (just do a search for my name – Steve Etner – and you will see how you can purchase any and all of my books).

As a faith-based, donor-supported ministry, all of this (and so much more) is only made possible by our team of ministry partners who give financially to this ministry. Without compromise The Purity Coach shows men and women how to have a continuous relationship with Jesus that is real and personal.

To that end we need ongoing financial assistance from partners like you who are committed to providing hope and helping men and women across the globe win their personal battle against the beast of sexual impurity.

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So, until next time this is Author, Speaker, Certified Professional Mentor TM and Purity Coach Steve Etner reminding you that if you are going to glorify God in your everyday living, He must first be glorified in your every moment thinking.

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