Tuesday, October 4, 2011
There is a very important history and spirit in the Bible related to ARMORBEARERS. In Bible times armorbearers were aides chosen
by kings of high-ranking military commander for their bravery and loyalty,
and actually carried the shield and armor of his leader as they went into
battle! It would be similar to the Air
Force
Aide de Camp, or a general’s executive. Further insight comes from the meaning of the
Hebrew word, which are actually two words, “to
lift up; to support; to bear up; to carry” along with “to end, complete, finish.”
I think my favorite would have
to be Jonathan and his armorbearer in (1Sam.14:1-7). Jonathan had a “somebody’s got to do something” attitude concerning the enemy, the
Philistines. Jonathan said to the young man who carried his armor, "Come, let
us go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised. It may be that the Lord will
work for us, for nothing can hinder the Lord from saving by many or by
few." And his armor-bearer said to
him, "Do all that is in your heart. Do as you wish. Behold, I am with you
heart and soul.” Which is a tremendous spirit of faith all the way
around. It’s obvious that Jonathan’s
confidence was not in his brilliantly devised military tactics, but in God’s
power to help with many or with just a few.
I love his armorbearers response, “I’m
game. Whatever is in your heart, I’ve
got your back!” (a HSW rough translation)
The result of this bold move was a significant victory that day that
brought about the rallying of God’s people.
Today, an armorbearer is not an
actual position to find in the Classifieds
or on Craig’s List, as it is a spirit
or mindset or attitude a person has. It
does, however, still have much to teach us. It teaches us that victory in the
spiritual realm is a team effort,
made up of covenant-minded people.
Reality is we all have out pluses
and minuses that answer to each
other. We all have blind spots that are only overcome with the help of others, by an
armorbearer. The lowest point
spiritually in Israel’s history (Jdgs 17:6) is where it says “everyone did what was right in his own
eyes.” We call it today, “doing your own thing....being faithful to
your own truth.” The Living Bible
puts it, “In those days Israel had no
king, so everyone did whatever he wanted to–whatever seemed right in his own
eyes.” Radical individualism
that places the priority of self-interest over the common good is a sure
formula for decline. 
This brings me to the purpose of
the blog posting: it is my tribute to Freddy
& Mary Lou Gonzalez who have served as our Ministers of Pastoral Care
since 2000. Our policy has always been
to “send our best” when responding to
the Holy Spirit when He says “Separate to
Me ____ for the work to which I’ve called them.” In our June Conference of 2010, Freddy and
Mary Lou were announced to go to pioneer a church in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Because his paperwork and visa didn't come until May, we decided to keep
them with us until after the June Conference, and then his customary “farewell
tour” for him and the rest of the family.
I was able to personally pray and lay hands on them last Sunday
(1Tim.5:22), and then, yesterday, Freddy preached his farewell service, an
excellent message followed by a nice fellowship. Today, they boarded the plane for their
flight to Buenos Aires, which means “Game
On!” I just want to make it known
they he has served our congregation with excellence for the last decade, and he
will be missed. He embodies the true
spirit of an armorbearer! The one reassuring factor is that God has
blessed us with many, many men and women who also have the same spirit, and are
willing to jump in and help fill the gap!
There is a powerful spiritual
principle behind all of this: Jonathan had
one (armorbearer) because he was
one, both an armorbearer and friend to King David. The words that defined and inaugurated their
friendship tells us volumes. “As soon as he had finished speaking to
Saul, the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved
him as his own soul. And Saul took him
that day and would not let him return to his father's house. Then Jonathan made a covenant with David,
because he loved him as his own soul.
And Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was on him and gave it to
David, and his armor, and even his sword and his bow and his belt. And David
went out and was successful wherever Saul sent him, so that Saul set him over
the men of war. And this was good in the sight of all the people and also in
the sight of Saul's servants.”
Their souls were knit together
meant this was more than just a nice acquaintance, but a deep covenant bond
that brings out God’s best in our lives.
In the New Testament, it was not the size of the church that determines
this, but the priorities and commitments of people’s hearts. I love what Alan Redpath said, “It is God’s plan for souls to be knit
together. The human heart has cried out
that it might be knit to another as Jonathan was knit to David. Therefore, every true friendship, every real
Christian courtship, every genuine oneness in marriage, is a re-establishment
of this sacred union. It was God’s
purpose from before the foundation of the world.”
I was recently reading an
article about Honoring Your Missionaries,
and it mentioned what I think is unthinkable, that in some places they are not
honored. Yes, I understand the blend of
local ministry and global ministry, and that they are BOTH important. I also know, that you can’t “export” what’s
not happening in a dynamic way locally.
Church planting is essentially taking the life, the commission, and the
disciplines of evangelism, discipleship, fellowship, Biblical authority and
transporting it to another city or nation through the lives of a God-called and
anointed couple. One way that we keep
that call and vision constantly before the minds of people is by the flags of the various nations where we
have workers that fly from the rafters of our auditorium. They are vision-expanding, and a constant
reminder that God’s influence through the local church can reach not just our
city, but also around the world. So as
of 10-4-11 under the flag of Argentina, are not just faceless employees, but
beloved armorbearers, Fred & Mary Lou Gonzalez!
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