Do You Know Who You Are?

This month’s Pastor’s Perspective is delivered by Dr. Chris Montgomery, Frazer Memorial UMC

There was nothing wrong with the armor. In fact, it was probably the best armor in Israel. It was most likely made with the finest of materials. It was undoubtedly fashioned with precision since it was for the most important man in Israel. The King!

I can see the craftsman working diligently. Going over every inch of the metals used to tailor such a piece of equipment. I’m sure it was flawless. Completely functional. Beautiful to behold. Yet, there was a problem. The problem was that the armor was not made for David. It was Saul’s armor. And Saul had placed it on David. In 1 Samuel 17, we read the following words:

38 Then Saul dressed David in his own tunic. He put a coat of armor on him and a bronze helmet on his head. 39 David fastened on his sword over the tunic and tried walking around, because he was not used to them. (1 Samuel 17:38-40)

“I cannot go in these,” he said to Saul, “because I am not used to them.”
So he took them off. 40 Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine.

Notice David did not immediately refuse. He did tie the armor on. David even tried it out by walking around. However, something was not quite right. Something in (and literally on) David was uneasy. Something led David to refuse the King’s request and defy the King’s actions by taking off the armor the King had placed on him. Something in David enabled him to breathe in deeply and form the words that would ultimately reject the King’s offer of his very own armor. What was it? It was understanding.

One of David’s greatest qualities was that he understood who he was and who he was not. David learned something about himself while spending countless hours alone tending sheep. He not only learned something about himself but a few things about God as well. 

David decided to choose some stones. He decided to place them in his shepherd’s bag. He decided to pick up a sling. These items seem elementary compared to the noble armor of a King. But David knew who he was.

The question is, do you? Are you walking around in someone else’s armor? An armor that someone else placed on you. Are you walking around wanting someone else’s armor? An armor not made for you. Or are you content? Content in the knowledge of your God-given identity, even if it is a shepherd’s bag with a few smooth stones and a sling inside.

Chris Montgomery is senior pastor of Frazer Free Methodist Church, 6000 Atlanta Hwy,
Montgomery, AL. Visit www.frazer.church.