One of Satan’s strongest weapons is discouragement through negative words.
If David had followed his brother’s or Goliath’s or Saul’s words in 1Samuel 17 he would not have gone on to be the greatest King Israel ever had. To his brothers he had a wicked heart and to Goliath he was the runt of the pack and was to be despised. Even Saul could not believe in him at first
“You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a boy, and he has been a fighting man from his youth” (verse 33).
These words which came from three different people would have destroyed most men but not David. “David said to Goliath, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will hand you over to me… (verses 45,46a).
This speech showed the courage and faith of David who went on to write so many psalms and showed he was not only called to lead Israel but could inspire the people with his courageous words. In 1Peter 5:9 We are exhorted to resist the devil and to stand firm in our faith. This is exactly what David does: he ignores the negative words of others and stands firm.
When Nicky Gumbel left theological college he applied to nine churches to take him on as a curate but he was turned down by them all! Thankfully his calling was recognised by Sandy Millar and others at Holy Trinity Brompton. We all need people who recognise our calling and ministry. The Lord thankfully always has people who can help us overcome the devil’s devices such as negative words or experiences which sometimes can come from unexpected sources.
Some years ago I saw a young man turned down for ministry and he was very upset by the negative words that had been said to him. Thankfully I was in the position of being able to recommend him for service in a Methodist evangelical circuit and later had the joy of taking a meeting with him. What a pleasure it was to see how his ministry had developed and how much he was a blessing to others through a little bit of encouragement.
Even the Lord had to put up with negative words from religious leaders and others. He must have been thrilled when Peter said..
“Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life”
John 6:68
Ignore negative people and their words – even if they come from a Christian!
Photo by Nick Fewings on Unsplash
